The
division was formed in 1934 in
Leipzig, by expanding the 11th (Saxonian) Infantry Regiment of the 4th Division of the old
Reichswehr. As this was a direct breach of the terms of the
Treaty of Versailles, its existence was initially concealed; it was formally designated as the 14th Infantry Division in October 1935. This history, particularly of Infantry Regiment 11, made it one of the prestige infantry divisions of the
Wehrmacht. Mobilised in the 1st wave in 1939, the division was involved in the German
invasion of Poland, where it attacked towards
Częstochowa and
Lublin, and the following year's
invasion of France. In October 1940 it was 'motorised', i.e. provided with motor transport as opposed to the usual horse and foot mobility of Wehrmacht infantry divisions, as the
14. Infanteriedivision (mot.), with the following organisation: • Infanterie-Regiment 11 (mot.) • Infanterie-Regiment 53 (mot.) • Artillerie-Regiment 14 (mot.) • Kradschützen-Abteilung 54 • Divisionstruppen 14 During
Operation Barbarossa, the division was involved in the
encirclement of Minsk. In the winter of 1942/3 it was intended to reform the division as the 14th
Panzergrenadier Division, but this process was stopped; in 1943 the formation was changed, having the following organisation: • Infanterie-Regiment 11 • Infanterie-Regiment 53 • Infanterie-Regiment 101 • Artillerie-Regiment 14 • Füsilier-Bataillon 14 • Kradschützen-Bataillon 54 • Divisionstruppen 14 During this period the 14th Infantry Division was mostly assigned to
Ninth Army, with
Army Group Centre on the Eastern Front; it suffered heavy losses during the
Battles of Rzhev, and then in the defence against
Operation Suvorov. 1944 saw the division transferred to
3rd Panzer Army. In the summer of 1944 it was one of Army Group Centre's few reserve formations, and in this capacity was rushed into the line near
Orekhovsk on 25 June in a desperate attempt to hold back the breakthrough of several Soviet divisions at
Orsha during the Soviet summer offensive,
Operation Bagration. Some elements made a last stand around
Bogushevsk before being overwhelmed; Infantry Regiment 11 was left as a rearguard on the road to
Minsk. Only a handful of troops were able to retreat to the German lines. By the end of the year the remainders of the formation had been transferred to
Second Army and was in the area of
Ostrolenka,
Poland; during the Soviet
East Prussian Offensive of January 1945, the rebuilt 14th was one of the divisions pushed north and trapped in the
Heiligenbeil pocket, where it attempted a breakout near
Wormditt, before falling back on
Braunsberg. The division was eventually destroyed in fighting in the
kessel, most of its surviving troops entering Soviet captivity, while a few were evacuated via the
Frisches Haff. ==Commanders==