The LXXXI Army Corps () was an army corps of the German Wehrmacht during World War II. The corps was established in occupied France in 1942 and remained active until 1945.
History The LXXXI Army Corps was established in occupied France on 28 May 1942 from the renamed Höheres Kommando z. b. V. XXXII. In turn, the Higher Command XXXII, not to be confused with the XXXII Army Corps, had been established on 15 October 1939 from the Grenzschutz-Abschnittkommando 2. The initial commander of the LXXXI Army Corps was Adolf-Friedrich Kuntzen.
The LXXXI Army Corps, initially headquartered at Rouen, was originally subordinate to the 15th Army under Army Group D between June 1942 and July 1944. It was then moved to the 5th Panzer Army in August 1944, to the 7th Army between September and October 1944, and to the 5th Panzer Army between November and December 1944. It was moved back to the 15th Army in early 1945.
On 5 March 1945, Gauleiter of Cologne-Aachen Josef Grohé demanded from LXXXI Army Corps commander Friedrich Köchling to defend the city of Cologne at all costs; Köchling refused.
LXXXI Army Corps surrendered in the Ruhr Pocket.
Structure +Organizational chart of the LXXXI (81st) Wehrmacht Army CorpsYearDateSubordinate unitsArmyArmy GroupOperational area19428 June10th Panzer, 302nd Infantry, 332nd Infantry, 711th Infantry15th ArmyArmy Group DNorthern France (Rouen)4 July302nd Infantry, 332nd Infantry, 711th Infantry5 August2 September10th Panzer, 302nd Infantry, 332nd Infantry, 711th Infantry8 October5 November302nd Infantry, 332nd Infantry, 348th Infantry, 711th Infantry1 December332nd Infantry, 348th Infantry, 711th Infantry19431 January3 February4 March191st Infantry, 348th Infantry, 711th Infantry, 17th LFD9 April348th Infantry, 711th Infantry, 17th LFD1 May1 June7 July5 August5 September4 October8 November3 December19441 January245th Infantry, 348th Infantry, 711th Infantry, 17th LFD12 February245th Infantry, 711th Infantry, 17th LFD11 March8 April11 MayArmy Group B12 June245th Infantry, 346th Infantry, 711th Infantry, 17th LFD17 July89th Infantry, 245th Infantry, 17th LFD31 August49th Infantry, 85th Infantry, 353rd Infantry5th Panzer ArmyNormandy16 September9th Panzer, 116th Panzer, Panzerbrigade 105, 49th Infantry7th ArmyAachen13 October12th Infantry, 246th Volksgrenadier5 November3rd Infantry, 12th Infantry, 246th Volksgrenadier5th Panzer Army26 November3rd Infantry, 12th Infantry, 47th Infantry, 340th Volksgrenadier31 December47th Infantry, 353rd Infantry, 363rd Infantry15th ArmyRur / Ruhr Pocket194519 February59th Infantry, 363rd Infantry1 March9th Panzer, 11th Panzer, 59th Infantry, 363rd Infantry, 476th Infantry12 AprilPanzerbrigade 106, Würtz, Scherzer
Noteworthy individuals
Adolf-Friedrich Kuntzen, corps commander of LXXXI Army Corps (1 April 1942 – 7 September 1944). Friedrich-August Schack, corps commander of LXXXI Army Corps (7 September 1944 – 20 September 1944). Friedrich Köchling, corps commander of LXXXI Army Corps (20 September 1944 – 10 March 1945). Ernst-Günther Baade, corps commander of LXXXI Army Corps (10 March 1945 – May 1945). Otto Zeltmann, chief of the general staff of LXXXI Army Corps.
References