3018 RUSSIAN WINTER

Feldgendarmerie is a German military police, the genesis of which dates back to the Napoleonic wars. This formation was primarily responsible for keeping order in the ranks of its own army, prosecuting common crimes or offenses against discipline and regulations. Feldgendarmerie existed in the German army already during World War I, when it grew from 33 companies in 1914, to as many as 115 companies at the end of the war. After 1918, the formation was disbanded. However, shortly after Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime took power in 1933, the Feldgendarmerie was restored in the German armed forces. Special schools of this formation were also established in Berlin and Potsdam, and the selection of candidates for formation was very strict and rigorous. During World War II, the Feldgendarmerie not only performed order functions in the German armed forces, but was responsible for maintaining German control over the occupied territories in Europe. It also participated in anti-sabotage and anti-partisan actions. It should also not be forgotten that the members of this formation also took part in crimes against humanity and participated in the crime of the Holocaust.The decisive influence on the shaping of the organization and tactics of the German infantry before the outbreak of World War II was, on the one hand, the experience of the previous World War, but also theoretical works created in the 1920s and 1930s, which often emphasized the need to perceive the German infantry as a tool waging an offensive war. This affected both the equipment and the organization of the German infantry division, which during the September campaign of 1939 consisted of 3 infantry regiments, each of which was divided into 3 infantry battalions, an artillery company and an anti-tank company. In addition, there were numerous support units, including: an artillery regiment with 4 artillery squadrons (including one heavy), an anti-tank battalion, a sapper battalion and a communications battalion. In total, the so-called infantry division In the first mobilization wave, there were approximately 17,700 people and had a significant artillery component, but also was abundantly equipped with machine guns. It also had modern and efficient - for those times - means of communication and command. In the course of the war, infantry divisions underwent transformation - in 1943 some of them were transformed into armored grenadier divisions. However, from 1943, the standard division of the "traditional" infantry consisted of approx. 12,500 men (and not approx. 17,700 as in 1939), and its artillery component - especially heavy artillery - was also reduced in it, while its anti-tank defense was significantly improved. It is assumed that during the entire Second World War, about 350 infantry divisions served in the Wehrmacht.