Its tanks were organized into the 33rd Panzer Regiment, which was supported by two regiments of panzergrenadiers, or mechanized infantry. In 1942, the division was organized around three regiments. The division's few survivors were pushed into the Ruhr Pocket where they surrendered to the Allies at the end of the war.
The division suffered massive casualties in armor and personnel until it finally collapsed in March 1945. It was destroyed several successive times by British and American forces as the German Army was pushed back across Europe. Returning to France to rebuild in 1944, the division was rushed to counter Operation Overlord. Sweeping east, the division was then a component of Operation Barbarossa, the German attack on the Soviet Union it was badly mauled at the Battle of Kursk. Originally raised from Austrian forces annexed into Germany before the war, the 9th Panzer Division was part of most of the German Army's early Blitzkrieg attacks into western Europe.
The division was headquartered in Vienna, in the German military district Wehrkreis XVII. It came into existence after 4th Light Division was reorganized in January 1940. The 9th Panzer Division was a panzer division of the German Army during World War II.
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