TheLXVIII Army Corps (German:LXVIII. Armeekorps) was anarmy corps of theGermanWehrmacht duringWorld War II. The corps was initially formed in April 1943.
The LXVIII Army Corps, initially known asGeneralkommando z.b.V. LXVIII,General Command for special deployment 68, was formed on 9 April 1943 from the personnel of the Generalkommando z.b.V. which had been formed on 23 September 1942 from personnel that had served onSpecial Staff F as part of the German support for the insurgents inIraq in theAnglo-Iraqi War.[1] The first corps commander of LXVIII General Command wasHellmuth Felmy.[2]
The LXVIII General Command was moved toArmy Group E, part ofArmy Group F,[Note 1] in late May 1943 and set up its headquarters inAthens. In June 1943, the staff had not yet been assigned divisions but stood by in the reserves of Army Group E. By 7 July, it had been assigned the1st Panzer Division and the117th Jäger Division. The LXVIII General Command remained in charge of these two divisions until late October 1943.[3] In September, the two divisions were briefly joined by the29th Infantry Division "Piemonte" and the59th Infantry Division "Cagliari" of theKingdom of Italy as part of the short-lived11th Italian Army.[4] After that, the LXVIII General Command was once again transferred to Army Group E. By 8 November 1943, the 1st Panzer Division had been transferred away and the11th Luftwaffe Field Division and theBrandenburgers had joined the corps.[3]
The exact organizational composition of the LXVIII General Command between January and March 1944 is unclear, as the administrative papers are lost to history.[3]
Documents are once again available starting on 15 April, at which point the LXVIII General Command consisted of the 117th Jäger Division, the 11th Luftwaffe Field Division and the newly added41st Infantry Division. The Brandenburgers had been transferred away. This composition stayed consisted until 31 August 1944. By 16 September, the 11th Luftwaffe Field Division had been transferred away, leaving only the 117th Jäger Division and the 41st Infantry Division.[3]
The staff was renamed to become LXVIII Army Corps on 30 September 1943.[1]
The 117th Jäger Division was also removed from the LXVIII Army Corps in September, leaving only the 41st Infantry Division by 13 October 1944.[3] Subsequently, the LXVIII Army Corps was itself transferred and was taken from Army Group E to the2nd Panzer Army. Here, it was reunited with the 117th Jäger Division and further strengthened by the118th Jäger Division and the1st Mountain Division by 5 November. The 41st Infantry Division was not passed along with the transfer and was thus no longer part of the corps. By 26 November, the 118th Jäger Division and 1st Mountain Division had left the corps, whereas the44th Infantry Division as well as the13th and31st SS Divisions had been added.[5]
Felmy was succeeded as corps commander byFriedrich-Wilhelm Müller on 8 December 1944.[2]
By 31 December, the 117th Jäger Division as well as the 31st SS Division had left the corps, whereas the71st Infantry Division had been added. This left the 44th and 71st Infantry Divisions as well as the 13th SS Division going into the new year 1945.[5]
Müller was succeeded as corps commander byRudolf Konrad on 29 January 1945.[2]
By 19 February, the 44th Infantry Division had left the corps, leaving only the 13th SS Division and the 71st Infantry Division. This stayed unchanged through 1 March. By 12 April, the297th Infantry Division was added.[5]
By 7 May 1945, one day beforeGerman surrender in World War II, the 297th Infantry Division had left the corps and the 118th Jäger Division had rejoined. Thus, the LXVIII Army Corps consisted of the 13th SS Division, the 71st Infantry Division and the 118th Jäger Division when World War II ended.[5]
| Year | Date | Commander[2] | Subordinate units[3][4][5] | Army | Army Group | Operational area |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1943 | 1 June | Hellmuth Felmy | None | Army Group E[Note 1] | Army Group F | Athens |
| 7 July | 1st Panzer,117th Jäger | |||||
| 5 August | ||||||
| September | 1st Panzer, 117th Jäger,29th Italian Infantry,59th Italian Infantry | 11th Italian Army | ||||
| 4 October | 1st Panzer, 117th Jäger | Army Group E[Note 1] | ||||
| 8 November | 117th Jäger,11th LFD,Brandenburgers | |||||
| 3 December | ||||||
| 1944 | January | Unknown | ||||
| February | ||||||
| March | ||||||
| 15 April | 117th Jäger, 11th LFD,41st Infantry | |||||
| 15 May | ||||||
| 17 June | ||||||
| 15 July | ||||||
| 31 August | ||||||
| 16 September | 117th Jäger, 41st Infantry | |||||
| 13 October | 41st Infantry | |||||
| 5 November | Brdbg., 117th Jäger,118th Jäger,1st Mountain | 2nd Panzer Army | Serbia,Hungary (Drava) | |||
| 26 November | Brdbg., 117th Jäger,13th SS,31st SS,44th Infantry | |||||
| 31 December | Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller | 44th Infantry,71st Infantry, 13th SS | ||||
| 1945 | 19 February | Rudolf Konrad | 13th SS, 71st Infantry | Army Group South | Hungary (Drava) | |
| 1 March | ||||||
| 12 April | 13th SS, 71st Infantry,297th Infantry | |||||
| 7 May | 13th SS, 71st Infantry, 118th Jäger | Oberbefehlshaber Südost | Styria |