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The SS Division Hitlerjugend or 12th SS Panzer Division "Hitlerjugend" (German: 12. SS-Panzerdivision "Hitlerjugend") was a German armoured division of the Waffen-SS during World War II. [7] The majority of its junior enlisted men were drawn from members of the Hitler Youth, while the senior NCOs and officers were from other Waffen-SS divisions.
During the Normandy Campaign, Waffen-SS Standartenführer Kurt Meyer, commander of the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend, used the Abbaye d’Ardenne for his regimental headquarters, as its towers gave a clear view of the battlefield. [4] In June 1944 at the abbey, 20 Canadian soldiers were murdered by members of the 12th SS Panzer Division.
Meyer commanded the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend during the Allied invasion of Normandy, and was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords. After ordering the mass murder of civilians and prisoners of war (POWs) several times during the conflict, Meyer was convicted of war crimes for his role in the ...
The 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend set out by rail for Normandy at the end of March, 1944. On 1 April, their train was approaching the gare d'Ascq , a junction where three railroads intersected, when an explosion blew the line apart, causing two cars to derail.
The 12 SS Panzer Division was one of three German armoured divisions that were in reserve relatively close to the Allied beachheads. [6] The division did not deploy to counter the Allied attack until after 3:00 PM on June 6 when orders were finally issued by German dictator Adolf Hitler .
SS-Obersturmbannführer Mohnke was given command of the 26th SS Panzergrenadier Regiment, which was the second regiment formed in the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend. [ 13 ] Mohnke was implicated in the killing of 35 Canadian prisoners at Fontenay-le-Pesnel , as part of the Normandy Massacres , albeit he never faced a trial owing to a lack ...
Division Name (in German) Ethnic composition Named after Years Active Insignia Maximum Manpower 1st: Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler: Germans and 300 Italians after 8/9/1943: Life Regiment Adolf Hitler: 1933–1945: 22,000 (1944) [2] 2nd: Das Reich: Germans: Greater Germanic Reich: 1939–1945: 19,021 (1941) [1] 3rd: Totenkopf: Germans: Totenkopf ...
The two volumes were translated into English and published as a single hardback volume in 1994 as The History of the 12.SS-Panzerdivision Hitlerjugend by J.J. Fedorowicz Publishing. [3] It was issued in two paperback volumes by Stackpole Books in 2005 as The 12th SS: The History of the Hitler Youth Panzer Division. The Fedorowicz edition is 401 ...