218th Infantry Division (Wehrmacht)
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218. Infanterie-Division German 218th Infantry Division |
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Unit insignia of the 218th Infantry Division
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| Active | August 1939 – May 1945 |
| Country |
 Nazi Germany
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| Branch | Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Division |
| Engagements | |
The German 218th Infantry Division (218.Infanterie-Division) was a military unit of the German Army that served in World War II. It was organised along the standard lines for a German infantry division, and had about 15,000 men, 48 guns in its artillery regiment, and mobility was provided mainly by horse-drawn vehicles, it had about 5,000 horses. Its men moved predominantly on foot.
The 218th Infantry served in the Invasion of Poland as a reserve division for the 4th Army. Subsequently, it was moved to the west facing the Maginot line, which it attacked in May 1940 under the leadership of 7th Army. Following a period of occupation duty and also briefly a return to civilian life, its soldiers were sent to Russia in the winter of 1941. It remained on the Eastern Front until the end of the war, retreating with Army Group North back through the Baltic states, until the Army group was trapped in Courland. The 218th Infantry Division, still in Courland, surrendered to the Soviets on 8 May 1945.
The 218th Infantry division saw its first action in the German invasion of Poland. On 1 September it was Army reserve for the 4th Army stationed in Pomerania in northern Germany. It crossed into Poland, into the corridor which had given Poland access to the Baltic sea, and towards the River Vistula and the border with East Prussia. The division advanced behind the main fighting front and saw little fighting in the campaign.
In May 1940, the division was moved to the West, assigned to the reserve of 7th Army. On 15 June 1940 218 Infantry Division became one of 5 Infantry divisions committed by 7th Army in Operation Kleiner Bär, a crossing of the Rhine in the Colmar area. They were to cross the river and attack a portion of the Maginot line defended by 3 French fortress divisions. The 218th attack at Schoenau, led by Infantry Regiment 397, was held up by French fortifications which although damaged by the artillery preparation were not put out of action and forced the Regimental commander to suspend the river crossing in the face of mounting casualties. The divisions 386 Regiment had more success. Crossing the Rhine in an area of fewer fortifications, the regiments assault teams captured the French forward line and several casements, and by noon were engaging the French rearward defensive lines. The following day, with the assistance of further artillery, Stuka dive bomber strikes, the 218th was able to pierce the French defenses, together with 22st1 and 239th infantry divisions. By 19 June, the division had advanced a further 15 miles into the Vosges Mountains. The French Army was in a state of collapse, as on the previous day, Guderian's Panzer forces had reached the Swiss border, effectively surrounding the French defenders in the Vosges and 3 days later the armistice was signed at Compiègne, marking the end of hostilities.
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