Panzer division (Wehrmacht)A Panzer division was one of the armored (tank) divisions in the army of Nazi Germany during World War II. Panzer divisions were the key element of German success in the blitzkrieg operations of the early years of World War II. Later the Waffen-SS formed its own panzer divisions, and the Luftwaffe fielded an elite panzer division: the Hermann Göring Division. A panzer division was a combined arms formation, having both tanks (Panzerkampfwagen, , usually shortened to "Panzer"), mechanized and motorized infantry, along with artillery, anti-aircraft and other integrated support elements.
EssenEssen (ˈɛsn̩; Latin: Assindia) is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dortmund, as well as the ninth-largest city of Germany. Essen lies in the larger Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Region and is part of the cultural area of Rhineland. Because of its central location in the Ruhr, Essen is often regarded as the Ruhr's "secret capital".
Erich von MansteinFritz Erich Georg Eduard von Manstein (born Fritz Erich Georg Eduard von Lewinski; 24 November 1887 – 9 June 1973) was a German Field Marshal of the Wehrmacht during the Second World War. He was subsequently convicted of war crimes and sentenced to 18 years imprisonment. Born into an aristocratic Prussian family with a long history of military service, Manstein joined the army at a young age and saw service on both the Western and Eastern Front during the First World War (1914–18).
Gerd von RundstedtKarl Rudolf Gerd von Rundstedt (12 December 1875 – 24 February 1953) was a German field marshal in the Heer (Army) of Nazi Germany during World War II. Born into a Prussian family with a long military tradition, von Rundstedt entered the Prussian Army in 1892. During World War I, he served mainly as a staff officer. In the inter-war years, he continued his military career, reaching the rank of Colonel General (Generaloberst) before retiring in 1938. He was recalled at the beginning of World War II as commander of Army Group South in the invasion of Poland.
Operation Sea LionOperation Sea Lion, also written as Operation Sealion (Unternehmen Seelöwe), was Nazi Germany's code name for their planned invasion of the United Kingdom. It was to have taken place during the Battle of Britain, nine months after the start of the Second World War. Following the Battle of France and that country's capitulation, Adolf Hitler, the German Führer and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, hoped the British government would accept his offer to end the war.
Battle of CreteThe Battle of Crete (Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta, Μάχη της Κρήτης), codenamed Operation Mercury (Unternehmen Merkur), was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, with multiple German airborne landings on Crete. Greek and other Allied forces, along with Cretan civilians, defended the island. After only one day of fighting, the Germans had suffered heavy casualties and the Allied troops were confident that they would defeat the invasion.
ParatrooperA paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne forces. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during World War II for troop distribution and transportation. Paratroopers are often used in surprise attacks, to seize strategic objectives such as airfields or bridges. Paratroopers jump out of airplanes and use parachutes to land safely on the ground.
Sturzkampfgeschwader 3Sturzkampfgeschwader 3 (StG 3—Dive Bomber Wing 3) was a Dive bomber wing in the German Luftwaffe during World War II and operated the Junkers Ju 87 Stuka. The wing was activated on 9 July 1940 using personnel from German medium bomber and other dive-bomber units. StG 3 was one of the few dive bomber units created during the war. StG 3 fought its first campaign in the Battle of Britain a short time after formation. In 1941 it served in the Balkans Campaign and then some groups served on the Eastern Front, from 1943, until disbanded.
