9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen

9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen
Insignia of 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen
Active	February 1943 – May 1945
Country	Nazi Germany
Branch	Waffen-SS
Type	Panzer
Role	Armoured warfare
Size	Division
Engagements	Falaise pocket Operation Market Garden Battle of the Bulge Operation Frühlingserwachen
Decorations	reference in the Wehrmachtbericht
Commanders
Notable commanders	Willi Bittrich Sylvester Stadler

The 9th SS Panzer Division "Hohenstaufen", also known as SS-Panzergrenadier-Division 9 Hohenstaufen, was a German Waffen-SS Armoured division which saw action on both the Eastern and Western Fronts during World War II. The division was activated on the 31 December 1942. Many of the men of the division were young German conscripts, with a cadre of experienced NCOs and staff from the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler. Their first action was in March 1944 in Poland; they were then moved to Normandy in June that year. After the retreat from France, they were moved to Arnhem in September 1944, to rest and refit and became involved in the Allied parachute landings. Their next action was the German advance in the Ardennes in the winter of 1944–1945. After defeat in the Ardennes, the division was moved to Hungary, where it took part in the fighting to the west of Budapest in February and March. Falling back into Austria, the division surrendered to the advancing United States Army on 5 May 1945, at Steyr.

The 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen was formed, along with its sister formation 10th SS Panzer Division Frundsberg, in France in February 1943. The division was mainly formed from Reichsarbeitdienst (RAD) conscripts. Originally, Hohenstaufen was designated as a Panzergrenadier division, but in October 1943 it was promoted to full Panzer Division status. At its formation, Hohenstaufen was commanded by SS-Obergruppenführer Wilhelm Bittrich. The title Hohenstaufen came from the Hohenstaufen dynasty, a Germanic noble family who produced a number of kings and emperors in the 12th and 13th centuries AD. It is believed that the division was named specifically after Friedrich II, who lived from 1194–1250.