12.ϟϟ-Panzerdivision „Hitlerjugend“ (II)

Pz.Kpfw. IV n°536 of SS-Pz.Reg.12 Hitlerjugend

Pz.Kpfw. Panther n°128 of SS-Pz.Reg.12 Hitlerjugend

Pz.Kpfw. Panther n°128 of SS-Pz.Reg.12 Hitlerjugend

Although fanatical in their determination and tenacity to fight to the death, it did not take long for the 12.SS-Panzer-Division Hitlerjugend to suffer horrendous casualties. In their first engagement with the Canadians, the division destroyed 28 Canadian tanks while losing only 6 soldiers for their efforts. They fought with a very high degree of determination. However, the odds were against them in the long run. In slightly over one month of combat, the Hitlerjugend Division had lost over 60 percent of its forces due to combat actions. The main tanks fielded by the Hitlerjugend Division were the Panzer IV, deployed in 1.Bataillon of the division's armoured regiment and the Panzer V Panther tank. The Panther weighed 44.1 tons, mounted a 70-calibres long 7.5cm gun and possesed well-sloped armour protection. It outperformed Allied tanks in terms of combined lethality and survivability. In addition to these two tank types, the division also deployed Jagdpanzer IV's tank destroyers. Top image: Panzer IV n°536 commanded by Hitlerjugend panzer ace SS-Unterscharführer Willy Kretzschmar of the 5.Kompanie of SS-Panzer-Regiment 12. This photo is taken after an artillery round blew off the tanks' track immobilizing it in Buron about 6 kilometres north-west of Caen in June 1944. Willy Kretzschmar and his SS panzer crew is accounted for at least fifteen Allied tanks during the desperate defensive battles that the Hitlerjugend conducted in Normandy but the exact number is unknown. Commons: Bundesarchiv. Bottom clips: Panther n°128 of the division's most potent combat unit fires on British-Canadian positions north of Caen during the Normandy campaign in June 1944. Footage from Die Deutsche Wochenschau. Fair use.