Erwin
Rommel conferred with his two officers in the North African desert. As
usual, the Desert Fox is wearing his daughter's scarf and British
captured goggle. No exact information about when or where this pic was
taken.
FIRST VISIT (18 MAY 1944)
On
Thursday, 18 May 1944, Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel
(Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B und Generalinspekteur der
Küstenbefestigungen West) visited the 21. Panzer-Division base at
Maisons-Laffitte, northern France. At 8:00 AM, when Rommel arrived at
the HQ of Panzer-Regiment 200. there was nobody! When the
Regimentskommandeur, Oberst Hermann von Oppeln-Bronikowski, eventually
arrived, trailing alcohol fumes, Rommel snorted: “You’re lazy stinkers!
What happens if the enemy invasion begins before eight-thirty?” The
colonel gasped, “Catastrophe!” and slumped into a chair. Amazingly, the
field marshal took no action. Ruge explained in his diary, “Rommel saw
at once that he was a good fellow, and he didn’t hold this lapse against
him.”
The reformed 21st Pz Div came into existence in Normandy
in mid-1943, and was the only panzer division over which Rommel had been
allowed to exercise any control prior to the invasion. He had practised
them when they were stationed just south of Caen, in various manoeuvres
to exploit any momentary weaknesses of the enemy just after landing.
Although the Division contained some Afrikakorps veterans, it was
equipped with poorly armoured light tanks and had been rated as unfit
for service on the Eastern Front. After the withdrawal through France it
was assigned to Army Group G. It was commanded throughout its second
existence by Edgar Feuchtinger (last rank Generalleutnant), an
artilleryman born in Metz in 1894. Most of division’s officers had never
had anything to do with tanks before. Divisionskommandeur Edgar
Feuchtinger had resourcefully mechanized the unit with an extraordinary
array of captured Czech, French and Russian tanks. If the enemy invaded
Normandy, Feuchtinger’s would be the only panzer division on the spot!
Generalfeldmarschall
Erwin Rommel (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B und Generalinspekteur der
Küstenbefestigungen West) shaking hands with the officers of 21.
Panzer-Division, introduced by Divisionskommandeur Generalmajor Edgar
Feuchtinger who stands behind Rommel.
Accompanied
by Generalmajor Edgar Feuchtinger (right, Kommandeur 21.
Panzer-Division) and Hauptmann Dr.-Ing. Alfred Becker (left, Kommandeur
Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 200 / 21.Panzer-Division), Generalfeldmarschall
Erwin Rommel (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B und Generalinspekteur der
Küstenbefestigungen West) inspecting the war machines of 21.
Panzer-Division. In the background parked a 15cm heavy field howitzer
stands on a French Lorraine Schlepper (Tank Supply Tractor).
Generalfeldmarschall
Erwin Rommel (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B und
Generalinspekteur der Küstenbefestigungen West) inspecting the war
machines of 21. Panzer-Division, accompanied by the Divisionskommandeur,
Generalmajor Edgar Feuchtinger. In the background parked a 15cm heavy
field howitzer stands on a French Lorraine Schlepper (Tank Supply
Tractor).
Generalfeldmarschall
Erwin Rommel (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B und Generalinspekteur der
Küstenbefestigungen West) inspecting the war machines of 21.
Panzer-Division, accompanied by the Divisionskommandeur, Generalmajor
Edgar Feuchtinger.
Generalfeldmarschall
Erwin Rommel (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B und
Generalinspekteur der Küstenbefestigungen West) inspecting the war
machines of 21. Panzer-Division, accompanied by the Divisionskommandeur,
Generalmajor Edgar Feuchtinger. Shown here is the Jagdpanzer Marder 1
105mm self-propelled artillery (Panzerhaubitze) based on the French H39
chassis.
Generalfeldmarschall
Erwin Rommel (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B und
Generalinspekteur der Küstenbefestigungen West) tasting the soldier's
meal. In the background is Generalmajor Edgar Feuchtinger (Kommandeur
21. Panzer-Division).
Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B und
Generalinspekteur der Küstenbefestigungen West) tasting the soldier's
meal. At left is Generalmajor Edgar Feuchtinger (Kommandeur
21. Panzer-Division).
Parade
of the war machines of 21. Panzer-Division in front of
Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B und
Generalinspekteur der Küstenbefestigungen West) and Generalmajor Edgar
Feuchtinger (Kommandeur
21. Panzer-Division)
German armored personnel carriers parked in the North African desert in
June 1942, near Tobruk. The first halftrack on the right is a
communication vehicle (leichter Funkpanzerwagen) Sd.Kfz. 250/3 "Greif" (WH number 937035), which served as a light command headquarters of
Generaloberst Erwin Rommel (Oberbefehlshaber Panzerarmee "Afrika").
"Greif" is equipped with two radio stations: he large antenna belongs to
a FuG 7 radio station with a range of up to 50 km. The smaller antenna
is FuG 5 radio stations with a range of up to 5 km, which serves for
communication between the machines within the unit. To the left of
Rommel's command vehicle is an armored personnel carrier Sd.Kfz. 251
Ausf.B. On the sides of the vehicle there is a design resembling a
makeshift loop-type antenna and a large antenna, which suggests that
this is also a communications vehicle (mittlerer Funkpanzerwagen) Sd.
Kfz. 251/3 Ausf.B (possibly a field conversion of the usual Sd. Kfz.
251/1 into Sd. Kfz. 251/3). The last armored personnel carrier on the
left is Sd. Kfz. 251/1 Ausf.S. The officer holding the map who chats
with Rommel is Oberst Eduard Crasemann (Kommandeur Artillerie-Regiment
33 [motorisiert]). The picture was taken by Kriegsberichter Albrecht
Heinrich Otto of PK (Propaganda-Kompanie) "Afrika".
General
der Panzertruppe Erwin Rommel (Befehlshaber Panzergruppe "Afrika") with
unknown Ritterkreuzträger in North Africa. Behind Rommel with face
barely visible is Generalmajor Alfred Gause (Chef des Generalstabes Panzergruppe "Afrika").
The picture was taken in the period between July 1941 (Rommel promoted
from Generalleutnant to General der Panzertruppe) and January 1942
(Rommel promoted to Generaloberst).
On 30 March 1944, Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel (Oberbefehlshaber Heeresgruppe B und Generalinspekteur der Küstenbefestigungen West) held a meeting with Wehrmacht officers in Canteleu, Normandy, to discuss the development of the German defense network being built there. This photo shows the former Commander of the Afrikakorps pointed his finger to the map, while in front of him in attention is Generalleutnant Wilhelm Richter (Kommandeur 716. Infanterie-Division). The bald officer standing in the center is General der Panzertruppe Adolf-Friedrich Kuntzen (Kommandierender General LXXXI. Armekorps). Other high-ranking Wehrmacht officers who were present at the meeting in Canteleu but do not shows in this photo includes: Generalfeldmarschall Gerd von Rundstedt (Oberbefehlshaber West), Generalleutnant Rudolf Hofmann (Chef des Generalstabes 15. Armee), Generalleutnant Dietrich Kraiss (Kommandeur 352. Infanterie -Division), and Generalmajor Rudolf Stegmann (Kommandeur 77. Infanterie-Division).
Divisionskommandeur Rommel is having a casual discussion with his officers from the Panzer-Regiment 25 / 7.Panzer-Division near the banks of the river Seine (France), mid-June 1940. From left to right: Major Franz von Lindenau (Kommandeur I.Abteilung /
Panzer -Regiment 25), Oberst Karl Rothenburg (Kommandeur Panzer-Regiment
25), Major Casimir Kentel (Kommandeur II.Abteilung / Panzer-Regiment
25), Hauptmann Adelbert Schulz (Chef 1.Kompanie / I.Abteilung /
Panzer-Regiment 25), Generalmajor Erwin Rommel (Kommandeur 7.
Panzer-Division), and Major iG Otto Heidkämper (Ia Erster
Generalstabsoffizier 7. Panzer-Division). In the Battle of France, 7.
Panzer-Division was equipped with outdated Czechoslovakian tanks (some
of them are visible in the background). The division, resuming its advance on 5 June, drove for the River Seine to secure the bridges near Rouen. Advancing 100 kilometres (62 mi) in two days, the division reached Rouen to find the bridges destroyed. From here they moved north, blocking the westward route to Le Havre and the Operation Cycle evacuations and forcing over 10,000 men of the 51st (Highland) Division, French 9th Army Corps and other supporting troops to surrender at Saint-Valery-en-Caux on 12 June. 
Generalmajor Erwin Rommel (seated at left, Kommandeur 7. Panzer-Division) studying maps with his officers. This photo was taken during the German invasion of France, May 1940.General der Panzertruppe Erwin Rommel (Kommandierender General Deutsches Afrikakorps) directs the movements of his force with Oberst Erwin...
