| 704th Infantry Division 104th Jäger Division | |
|---|---|
| German:704. Infanterie-Division German:104. Jäger-Division | |
 Divisional insignia | |
| Active | 1941 – 1945 |
| Country |  Nazi Germany |
| Allegiance | Adolf Hitler |
| Branch | Infantry |
| Size | Division |
| Engagements | World War II |
104th Jäger Division was aninfantrydivision of theGermany Army inWorld War II. It was formed in April 1943, by the redesignation of the704th Infantry Division, which was itself formed in April 1941. The division served in German-occupiedYugoslavia in May 1941 where it took part inanti-partisan and security operations in theIndependent State of Croatia. In April 1943, it was reorganized and redesignated the 104th Jäger Division and took part in theBattle of the Sutjeska in June 1943. Following the Italian surrender, elements from the division took part in themurder of thousands of Italians from the33 Infantry Division Acqui in September 1943,[1][2] on theGreek island ofCefalonia in one of the largest-scaleGerman atrocities to be committed by German Army troops instead of theWaffen SS.[3]
The division surrendered to the Yugoslav Army atCelje inSlovenia in May 1945.[4] Many of the division's survivors, including the commander GeneralFriedrich Stephan, were executed by the Yugoslavs after they had surrendered.[5]
The main purpose of the Germanjäger divisions was to fight in adverse terrain where smaller, coordinated formations were more facilely combat capable than the brute force offered by the standard infantry divisions. Thejäger divisions were more heavily equipped than the mountain divisions, but not as well armed as larger infantry formations. In the early stages of the war, they were the interface divisions fighting in rough terrain and foothills as well as urban areas, between the mountains and the plains. Thejägers (it meanshunters in German), relied on a high degree of training and slightly superior communications, as well as their not inconsiderable artillery support. In the middle stages of the war, as the standard infantry divisions were downsized, the Jäger structure of divisions, with two infantry regiments, became the standard table of organization.[6]
Almost unknown outside of Italy, this event ranks with Katyn as one of the darkest episodes of the war" also "The German 11th Battalion of Jäger-Regiment 98 of the 1st Gebirgs (Mountain) Division, commanded by MajorHarald von Hirschfeld, arrived on the island and soon Stukas were bombing the Italian positions
Πρέπει να σημειωθεί πως τα βιβλία για τη σφαγή των Ιταλών στρατιωτών της Κεφαλονιάς (η μεγαλύτερη σφαγή αιχμαλώτων του Β' Παγκοσμίου Πολέμου), εκτός αυτού του Μπερνιέρ, είναι το ένα καλύτερο από το άλλο. Translation: It must be noted that the books about the massacre of the Italian soldiers in Kefalonia (the biggest massacre of prisoners of war in WWII), except the one by Bernier, are one better than the other.