| 2nd Marine Division | |
|---|---|
| German:2. Marine-Infanterie-Division | |
| Active | March–May 1945 |
| Country |  Nazi Germany |
| Branch |  Kriegsmarine |
| Type | Marine |
| Role | Amphibious warfare |
| Size | Division of approx. 13,000 personnel |
| Home Station | Glückstadt |
| Engagements | Defence of the Homeland |
The2nd Marine Division (German:2. Marine-Infanterie-Division) was a military formation of theGerman Navy (Kriegsmarine) under control of theGerman Army (Heer) during the later part of theSecond World War.
In March 1945, the 2nd Marine Division was formed inSchleswig-Holstein with its home station inGlückstadt from excess naval personnel. The division also had a significant number of personnel from theHitler Youth, a battalion of theWaffen-SS, and Hungarian units.[1]
At the beginning of April 1945, the division was declared ready for action and, although poorly trained and equipped, relocated to the zone south ofBremen on theWeser River. From 5 April the division was part of Luftwaffe GeneralKurt Student's Army Group and moved in to defend the Weser-Aller line. On 10 April the division moved under theBlumentritt Army Group, and fought defensive battles on the Aller betweenVerden an der Aller andRethem and from theEssel-Schwarmstedt bridgehead. From 15 April further actions occurred at Kirchboitzen,Kirchlinteln,Visselhövede,Neunkirchen am Potzberg, and Jeddingen. All guns of the two anti-aircraft batteries were lost on the Aller and Weser.[1]
The remnants of the division were on 20 April in the area south ofBremen. Of the original almost 13,000 men, only 3,000 remained on 21 April after two weeks of heavy fighting. On 23 April, the remnants of the division settled in theCuxhaven area, where they were used again against the21st Army Group. On 28 April 1945, the remnants were returned toMeldorf an der Elbe, while the approximately 750 men were withdrawn behind theKaiser Wilhelm Canal and were used as an alarm unit in theAlbersdorf andHemmingstedt area. At the end of the war, the remains of the division were atBunsoh where it surrendered to the British.[1][2]
The division's target structure was that of the'Volksgrenadier Division', though this was never achieved. The division had no heavy weapons and was mainly equipped with small arms andpanzerfausts. The 2nd Marine Engineer Battalion was never established, with the establishment of the 2nd Marine Intelligence Division and 2nd Marine Field Replacement Battalion also never completed, along with the 200th Marine Supply Regiment never operational due to a lack of vehicles.[1]
The organisation of the division was as follows (with German title in parentheses, those initalics were never fully formed):[1][2]
The divisional commanders included:[1][2][3]
The 2nd Marine Division was the superior formation of German soldierKurt Albrecht, who was executed for desertion on 28 April 1945 as one of Nazi Germany's last death sentences. Albrecht's death became a topic of interest for a group of 12th grade students in Osterholz-Scharmbeck, after which the local government was convinced to rename a footpath after Albrecht. This makes him one of very few German enlisted men of World War II for whom public places in Germany are named.[4]