Formation and France The 167th Infantry Division was formed in the Bavarian capital of Munich in November 1939, absorbing the 7th; 27th and 34th Field-Replacement Battalions from their respective divisions in January. It was also at this point that its commanding officer, Colonel Gilbert, was promoted to major general, shortly before his replacement by Lieutenant General Oskar Vogl. The division took part in the
initial 1940 invasion of France with
Army Group C, capturing
Ouvrage Kerfent and
Ouvrage Bambesch - two components of the
Maginot Line - between 20 and 21 June. The division remained in occupied France until February 1941, when it returned to its garrison in Bavaria. In August 1940, Major General Hans Schönhärl took over as commanding officer, being promoted to lieutenant general in December.
Barbarossa and the Soviet Union In June 1941, the division was transferred to the occupied Polish capital of
Warsaw as the Axis forces began their assault on the Soviet Union in
Operation Barbarossa. In August, Schönhärl was replaced as commanding officer by Major General Verner Schartow, himself replaced by Major General
Wolf Trierenberg. On December 17,
Red Army forces succeeded in punching a hole in the 167th's sector, only to be forced back by support from the
112th Infantry, with some tank support. Later the Division took part in the
Battle of Moscow,
Battle of Kursk, and finally against the
Dnieper–Carpathian Offensive, where the 167th Infantry Division was disbanded due to heavy losses in January 1944.
Second formation as 167th Volksgrenadier Division (October 1944) The re-created division, now designated
167. Volksgrenadierdivision, took part in the
Ardennes Offensive. On New Years Day, it, along with the
5th Parachute Division, aided the panzers in defending the area around the Belgian town of
Lutrebois in
Luxembourg. While the three were able to hold off the approaching Americans and dealt heavy casualties to their enemies, the situation elsewhere in the Ardennes was different and the 167th was ordered to fall back. == Commanders ==