12.ϟϟ-Panzerdivision „Hitlerjugend“ (I)

Generalfeldmarschall Gerd von Rundstedt observing exercises conducted by Hitlerjugend

Pz.Kpfw. V Panther n°314 at Mailly-le-Camp training center

Pz.Kpfw. IV n°635 of SS-Pz.Reg.12 Hitlerjugend en route to Normandy

Pz.Kpfw. IV n°615 of SS-Pz.Reg.12 Hitlerjugend en route to Normandy

The 12.SS-Panzer-Division Hitlerjugend, with 20,540 personnel, first saw action on June 7 1944. It was the first Waffen-SS division into action in the Normandy Campaign, blocking the Anglo-Canadian advance toward the strategically vital town of Caen during the first couple of days of the Allied invasion. The division was unique because the majority of its junior enlisted men were drawn from members of the German youth organization Hitlerjugend born as late as in 1926, while the officers were generally veterans of the Eastern Front. About 1,000 experienced Waffen-SS officers and NCOs had been transferred from the 1.SS-Panzer-Division Leibstandarte SS during its formation and training in 1943. SS-Panzer-Regiment 12 of the Hitlerjugend trained at Mailly-le-Camp in France until it was transferred to the Beverloo Camp in Belgium where it joined the rest of the division in January 1944. In early April 1944, the Hitlerjugend was ordered to move to Normandy in France. It continued training exercises in the peaceful area around Caen, familiarizing itself with the terrain. This proved invaluable in the months that followed. Although its training had not been completed and some units of the division were still on exercises, upon being alerted to the Allied landings the Hitlerjugend division and its panzer regiment were among the first German armoured units to be thrown into battle. SS-Panzer-Regiment 12 arrived on the morning of June 7 1944 to spearhead the division's counterattack. Their Panzers proved bulwarks of the German defence in Normandy. However, they were not immune to Allied bombing. Top image: Prussian Generalfeldmarschall und Oberbefehlshaber West Gerd von Rundstedt standing on a Sd.Kfz.7 half-track while observing exercises conducted by SS-Panzer-Regiment 12 at the Beverloo Camp in March 1944. From left to right: Regimental Commander Kurt Meyer, Divisional Commander Fritz Witt, Corps Commander Josef Sepp Dietrich and Commander-in-Chief West Gerd von Rundstedt. Top middle image: Panther n°314 at the shooting range at Mailly-le-Camp training center in France. Credit: Rui Manuel Candeias. Bottom middle image: Panzer IV n°635 commanded by SS-Oberscharführer Johann Terdenge was captured by the British around Caen during Operation Epsom in late June 1944. It ended up being sent back to the U.K. for technical evaluation at STT. A notable feature of the newly formed SS-Panzer-Regiment 12 panzer uniform was the wearing of leather surplus from Germany's U-boat arm. Credit: Royston Leonard. Bottom image: members of this young tank crew have painted their girlfriends´and mothers´names on their tank. Information based on original photographs of wrecked vehicles: Panzer IV n°615 was later captured at the Battle of Buron where the Canadians had been badly mauled in the fierce fighting on June 8 1944. By 1944 the Panzer IV was in widespread use within the Waffen-SS. It was fitted with armoured skirts to provide protection from Allied antitank rockets. Photos by KB Bernhard Kurth (PK 698). Commons: Bundesarchiv.