List of Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS divisions that committed war crimes in Italy

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This is a list of Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS divisions that committed war crimes in Italy during World War II. War crimes by German combat divisions in Italy were committed by the Waffen-SS and the Wehrmacht , with its sub-branches, the army, Luftwaffe (air force) and Kriegsmarine (navy). [1] Historically, the view existed that the Wehrmacht fought a clean campaign there and the atrocities and war crimes were committed only by the SS, and in the latter case predominantly by the Einsatzgruppen and concentration camp guards, not by the Waffen-SS. This view has been refuted by modern research, which found that the Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS were equally involved in war crimes. [2]

Contents

Background

Research in 2016 funded by the German government found the number of victims of Nazi war crimes in Italy to be 22,000, double the previously estimated figure. The victims were primarily Italian civilians, sometimes in retaliation for partisan attacks under the doctrine of Bandenbekämpfung ("bandit fighting"), and Italian Jews. [3]

The killing of Italian civilians by front-line units of the Wehrmacht and SS has sometimes been seen as stemming from a sense of betrayal the Germans felt by the Italians signing the Armistice of Cassibile, [4] but historians have argued that the reasons for atrocities and the brutal behaviour were more complex, often resulting from the military crisis caused by the German retreats and the fear of ambushes. [5]

Only very few soldiers of German divisions accused of war crimes ever stood trial and even fewer served time in jail after their conviction. Notable exceptions include Eduard Crasemann, commander of the 26th Panzer Division, which was involved in the Padule di Fucecchio massacre, and who was found guilty of war crimes by an Allied military tribunal and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment, dying in jail in 1950, and Walter Reder, sentenced to life in prison by an Italian military court for his role in the Marzabotto massacre as the commander of the SS-Panzer-Aufklärungsabteilung 16 of the 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division Reichsführer-SS, who was released in 1985. [6]

The 1st Fallschirm-Panzer Division Hermann Göring and 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division Reichsführer-SS were disproportionally involved in massacres of the civilian population during the war in Italy, the two divisions accounting for approximately one third of all civilians killed in war crimes in the country. [7]

List

Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS divisions that committed war crimes in Italy: [1]

DivisionBranchMajor incidents [lower-alpha 1] Ref.
1st SS Panzer Division Waffen-SS [10]
1st Fallschirm-Panzer Division Luftwaffe
  • Acerra massacre (Campania), 1–3 October 1943, 84 civilians executed [11]
  • Napoli massacre (Campania), 1 October 1943, 93 civilians executed [12]
  • Monchio, Susano and Costrignano massacre (Emilia-Romagna), 1 March 1944, 130 civilians executed [13]
  • Vallucciole massacre (Tuscany), 13 April 1944, 107 civilians executed [14]
  • Civitella in Val di Chiana massacre (Tuscany), 29 June 1944, 146 civilians executed [15]
  • Cavriglia massacre (Tuscany), 4 July 1944, 173 civilians executed [16]
[17]
1st Parachute Division Luftwaffe [19]
2nd Parachute Division Luftwaffe
  • A number of incidents between September and November 1943, with up to seven civilians executed in each incident
 [20]
3rd Panzergrenadier Division Army
  • A number of incidents between September 1943 and August 1944, with up to twenty two civilians executed in each incident
 [21]
4th Parachute Division Luftwaffe
  • Pedescala massacre (Veneto), 30 April–2 May 1945, 63 civilians executed [22]
[23]
5th Mountain Division Army [25]
15th Panzergrenadier Division Army [27]
16th Panzer-Division Army
  • San Clemente di Caserta massacre (Campania), 4 October 1943, 25 civilians executed [28]
[29]
16th SS Panzergrenadier Division Waffen-SS [35]
19th Luftwaffe Field Division Luftwaffe [37]
20th Luftwaffe Field Division Luftwaffe
  • A number of incidents between July and August 1944, with up to twenty civilians executed in each incident
 [38]
24th Waffen Mountain Division Waffen-SS [40]
26th Panzer-Division Army [42]
29th Panzergrenadier Division Army [44]
34th Infantry Division Army [45]
42nd Jäger Division Army [47]
44th Infantry Division Army
  • A number of incidents between March and September 1944, with up to thirty-three civilians executed in each incident
 [48]
65th Infantry Division Army [49]
71st Infantry Division Army [51]
90th Panzergrenadier Division Army
  • A number of incidents between August 1944 and April 1945, with up to five civilians executed in each incident
 [52]
92nd Infantry Division Army
  • A number of incidents between March and July 1944, with up to eleven civilians executed in each incident
 [53]
94th Infantry Division Army
  • San Polo massacre (Tuscany), 14 July 1944, 63 civilians executed [54]
[55]
114th Jäger Division Army
  • Madonna dell'Albero massacre (Emilia-Romagna), 27 November 1944, 56 civilians executed [56]
[57]
148th Infantry Division Army
  • One incident recorded, the Regnano Castello massacre (Tuscany), 23 November 1944, 14 civilians executed [58]
[59]
162nd Turkoman Division Army
  • A number of incidents between December 1943 and May 1945, two of those, in January 1945 in the Emilia-Romagna resulted in the execution of at least 20 civilians each
 [60]
232nd Infantry Division Army
  • A number of incidents between August and September 1944, with up to five civilians executed in each incident
 [61]
278th Infantry Division Army
  • A number of incidents between March and July 1944, with up to seven civilians executed in each incident
 [62]
305th Infantry Division Army
  • A number of incidents between October 1943 and April 1945, with up to twelve civilians executed in each incident
 [63]
334th Infantry Division Army
  • A number of incidents between February and September 1944, with up to thirty civilians executed in each incident
 [64]
356th Infantry Division Army
  • Benedicta massacre (Piedmont), 6–7 April 1944, 97 civilians executed [65]
[66]
362nd Infantry Division Army [67]

Notes

  1. ↑ Major incidents included in this column are massacres with more than 50 victims. If a unit was only involved in massacres with less than 50 victims, the time period in which war crimes were committed and the highest number of victims are stated instead.

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References

  1. 1 2 "List of units" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  2. ↑ Gentile, p. 1
  3. ↑ Armellini, Arvise (5 April 2016). "New Study: Number of Casualties in Nazi Massacres in Italy Nearly Double as Previously Believed". Haaretz . Retrieved 16 August 2018.
  4. ↑ Jowett, The Italian Army 1940-43 (3), p. 24
  5. ↑ Neitzel, Sönke. "Book Review by Sönke Neitzel in War in History: Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS im Partisanenkrieg: Italien 1943-1945". University of Cologne . Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  6. ↑ "Military Courts". Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  7. ↑ Gentile, pp. 4 & 5
  8. ↑ "BOVES, 19.09.1943" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  9. ↑ "Meina" (in German). Gedenkorte Europa 1939–1945. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  10. ↑ "1. SS-Panzer Division Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  11. ↑ "ACERRA 01-03.10.1943" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  12. ↑ "Napoli 1-10-1943" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  13. ↑ "MONCHIO SUSANO E COSTRIGNANO PALAGANO 18.03.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  14. ↑ "VALLUCCIOLE PRATOVECCHIO STIA 13.04.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  15. ↑ "CIVITELLA IN VAL DI CHIANA 29.06.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  16. ↑ "CAVRIGLIA 04.07.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  17. ↑ "Fallschirm-Panzer-Division "Hermann Goring"" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  18. ↑ "PIETRANSIERI ROCCARASO 21.11.1943" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  19. ↑ "1. Fallschirmjäger-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  20. ↑ "2. Fallschirm-Jäger-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  21. ↑ "3. Panzer Grenadier Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  22. ↑ "Pedescala Valdastico 30.4.1945-2.5.1945" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  23. ↑ "4. Fallschirm-Jäger-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  24. 1 2 "Grugliasco, 30.04.1945" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  25. ↑ "5. Gebirgs-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  26. ↑ "cava di Bellona, 07.10.1943" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  27. ↑ "15. Panzer-Grenadier-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  28. ↑ "San Clemente di Caserta, Caserta, 4/10/1943" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  29. ↑ "16. Panzer-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  30. ↑ "SANT'ANNA DI STAZZEMA 12.08.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  31. ↑ "SAN TERENZO MONTI FIVIZZANO 17-19.08.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  32. ↑ "VINCA FIVIZZANO 24-27.08.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  33. ↑ "SAN LEONARDO AL FRIGIDO MASSA 16.09.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  34. 1 2 "Monte Sole (scheda generale)" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  35. ↑ "16. SS-Panzer-Grenadier-Division "Reichsführer-SS"" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  36. ↑ "GUARDISTALLO 29.06.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  37. ↑ "III. Gruppe/Luftwaffe-Artillerie-Regiment 19" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  38. ↑ "20. Luftwaffe-Feld-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  39. ↑ "Commemorazione dei fucilati alle "Fosse del Natisone"". anpi.it (in Italian). 16 December 2012. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  40. ↑ "24. Waffen Gebirgs Karstjäger Division der SS Karstwehr Bataillon" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  41. ↑ "Padule di Fucecchio, 23.08.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  42. ↑ "26. Panzer-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  43. ↑ "San Martino di Lupari, 29.4.1945" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  44. ↑ "29. Panzer-Grenadier-Division "Falke"" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  45. ↑ "34. Infanterie-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  46. 1 2 "Ronchidoso, Gaggio Montano, 28-30.09.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  47. ↑ "42. Jäger–Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  48. ↑ "44. Infanterie-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  49. ↑ "65. Infanterie-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  50. ↑ "Tićan (Bivio di Tissano), Višnjan (Visignano), 11.09.1943" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  51. ↑ "71. Infanterie-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  52. ↑ "90. Panzer-Grenadier-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  53. ↑ "92. Infanterie-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  54. ↑ "SAN POLO AREZZO 14.07.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  55. ↑ "94. Infanterie-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  56. ↑ "Madonna dell'Albero, Ravenna, 27.11.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  57. ↑ "114. Jäger-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  58. ↑ "REGNANO CASTELLO CASOLA IN LUNIGIANA 23.11.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  59. ↑ "148. Infanterie-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  60. ↑ "162. Turkistan-Infanterie-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  61. ↑ "232. Infanterie-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  62. ↑ "278. Infanterie Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  63. ↑ "305. Infanterie Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  64. ↑ "334. Infanterie-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  65. ↑ "BENEDICTA BOSIO 06.04.1944" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  66. ↑ "356. Infanterie Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  67. ↑ "362. Infanterie-Division" (in Italian). Atlas of Nazi and Fascist Massacres in Italy. Retrieved 20 September 2018.

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