44th “Hoch- und Deutschmeister” Reichsgrenadier Division

Author: Carlo Gentile

The 44th “Hoch- und Deutschmeister” Reichsgrenadier Division was primarily composed of Austrian soldiers and was deployed in many of the Second World War's major operational theatres. After its near-total destruction in the Battle of Stalingrad, the division was re-formed in the west. Beginning in September 1943, it took part in the occupation of Italy, operating in northern Italy, Slovenia, and on the Cassino Front. In June 1944, the division conducted a raid in Capistrello (L’Aquila province), executing the men it had captured. In the autumn of 1944, the division carried out further reprisals against civilians, including a massacre in Sassoleone in the northern Apennines.

Nationality: Austrian
Arny Branch: Infantry division
Armed Force: Wehrmacht
Commanders: Generalleutnant Franz Bayer 1 March-31 Dec. 1943
Generalleutnant Friedrich Franek 1 Jan.-30 April 1944
Generalleutnant Bruno Ortner 1 May-25 June1944
Generalleutnant Paul Klatt 18 June-26 June 1944
Generalleutnant Hans-Günther von Rost 26 June 1944-23 March 1945
Years of Service: 1939-1945
Campaign: Poland 1939
France 1940
Barbarossa and Eastern Front 1941–1943
Italy Summer 1943 – Nov. 1944
Eastern Front Dec. 1944 – May 1945
Confirmed Massacres: Valletta dell’Aldriga (Mantova) 18 Sept. 1943
Capistrello (L’Aquila) 4 June 1944
Sassoleone (Bologna) 24 Sept. 1944

Origins and war experience

The Formation and Deployment of the 44th Infantry Division in the Second World War

In April 1938, the 44th Infantry Division was formed in Vienna through the expansion of the 4th “Hoch- und Deutschmeister” Infantry Regiment. The division participated in the invasion of Poland in 1939 and later fought on the Somme during the French campaign in 1940. On 22 June 1941, it joined the German attack on the Soviet Union, advancing deep into the country's interior. After enduring heavy fighting during the winter of 1941–42, the division was redeployed to various sectors of the Eastern Front in May 1942. That summer, it was assigned to the 6th Army and took part in the brutal fighting around Stalingrad. Encircled in November 1942, the division was cut off from supplies and was almost completely destroyed by January 1943.
The 44th “Hoch- und Deutschmeister” Reichsgrenadier Division

In the first half of 1943, the division was reorganised in Belgium as one of the so-called Stalingrad Divisions. It was renamed the “44th ‘Hoch- und Deutschmeister’ Reichsgrenadier Division,” a title derived from the medieval spiritual and military Teutonic Order. This title had historically been associated with an important Austrian infantry regiment founded in 1696. The term Hoch- und Deutschmeister (“Grand Master of the Teutonic Order”) is deeply rooted in Austrian military and cultural history, symbolising the link between the medieval knightly orders and modern military tradition.

Structurally, the division mirrored a standard German infantry division. However, its prestigious name did not result in higher-quality personnel or superior equipment. The division's rank-and-file soldiers were predominantly Austrian, especially from Vienna, while its officers were a mix of Austrians and Germans. Once stationed in Italy, the division was considered difficult to command, likely because Wehrmacht leadership viewed Austrian soldiers as less “hard” or battle-ready than their German counterparts. Despite these perceptions, many of its units reinforced critical positions, such as at Cassino and the Passo della Futa. At the same time, the division faced significant internal challenges, marked by the frequent turnover of its commanding generals.

On the Italian Front

From the Alpine border to Montecassino

Following the armistice between Italy and the Allies on 8 September 1943, the division played a central role in disarming and interning Italian troops in the Trentino and South Tyrol regions. In October 1943, it was transferred to the Operational Zone of the Adriatic Littoral, where it engaged in anti-partisan operations in Istria and Slovenia.

In late November 1943, the division was redeployed to Southern Italy, holding positions along the Gustav Line near Monte Cairo and the surrounding area. It took part in the Battle of Monte Cassino, suffering heavy casualties during the fighting.

On 4 June 1944, near the Capistrello train station, soldiers from Engineer Battalion 80 executed a group of Italian civilians arrested during these searches.

The massacre of Capistrello

At the start of the Allied offensive in May 1944, the division was stationed in the sector east and northeast of Roccasecca. Following the collapse of the Gustav Line, its troops retreated along the Roveto Valley toward Balsorano. During the retreat, they conducted search operations in the hills around Capistrello, where partisans and British parachutists were believed to be hiding.

On 4 June 1944, near the Capistrello train station, soldiers from Engineer Battalion 80 executed a group of Italian civilians arrested during these searches.
The retreat through Umbria and the Casentino

In its continued retreat, the division moved through the Sabina region in Latium toward Rieti and Leonessa, eventually advancing into Umbria. Along its route north, it passed through towns such as Terni, Assisi, Città di Castello, Umbertide, Sansepolcro, and Pieve Santo Stefano. In early July 1944, the division carried out anti-partisan search operations in the Monte Santa Maria Tiberina area and engaged in combat in the Perugia region.

Crossing into Tuscany, the division advanced through the Casentino mountain region and established positions at the Passo dei Mandrioli. On 20 and 21 August 1944, its units carried out a major operation, code-named Maskenball, near the pass and the village of Badia Prataglia. The operation aimed to clear the area of partisan forces.
The Sassoleone reprisal action and combing operations in Budrio and Medicina

In September 1944, the division was positioned in the northern Apennines, south of Imola and Castel San Pietro. On 24 September, the Engineer Battalion conducted a reprisal operation in Sassoleone, during which 23 civilians were killed in response to the killing of a German officer in a partisan ambush.

After suffering heavy losses in the fighting in Valsanterno, the division withdrew to the area around Budrio to reorganise. On 9 October 1944, one of its battalions carried out search operations in the towns of Budrio, Medicina, and Sesto Imolese, detaining 269 men. Two were identified as partisans and immediately executed, while 120 others were deported to Germany for forced labour.
Transfer to Hungary and the end of the war

The postwar period

Despite the division’s involvement in anti-partisan operations in Istria, Slovenia, and later Italy—during which mass executions and civilian killings occurred—there is no evidence that its officers or enlisted soldiers were legally investigated after the war.

The “comradeship association” and absent legal inquiry

Following the war, an association of the division’s veterans was established: the “Comradeship Association of the 44th ‘Hoch- und Deutschmeister’ Reichsgrenadier Division,” which included both Austrian and German sections.

Despite the division’s involvement in anti-partisan operations in Istria, Slovenia, and later Italy—during which mass executions and civilian killings occurred—there is no evidence that its officers or enlisted soldiers were legally investigated after the war. Today, the division’s name is preserved by a unit of the Austrian army.

Sources

The extant documentation tied to the “Hoch- und Deutschmeister” division is fragmentary and dispersed across various archives. Significant holdings can be found in the German Federal Military Archives in Freiburg (RH 26-44) and the Austrian Military Archives in Vienna. These holdings include wartime documents, postwar reports, witness accounts, and personal writings (ego documents). The Freiburg archives also contain records of the German section of the division’s veteran association (B 546, Kameradschaft 44. Infanterie-Division).

New sources have recently been discovered in the archives of the former Soviet Union. Among these is the diary of Engineer Battalion 80, the unit responsible for the massacres at Capistrello and Sassoleone (CAMO/500/12483/23 and 24).

Particularly noteworthy among the ego documents is the diary of Major Georg Zellner, who commanded the 3rd Battalion of the “Hoch- und Deutschmeister” regiment beginning on 17 March 1943. The diary (BArch, Freiburg MSg 2/13458) covers his deployment in Italy from 9 September 1943 to 10 August 1944. Also of interest is the diary of Feldwebel Püribauer (Artillery Regiment 96), documenting the period from July 1943 to September 1944, preserved in the German Federal Military Archives (B 546).

Literature

Friedrich Dettmer, Otto Jaus, Helmut Tolkmitt, Die 44. Infanterie-Division. Reichs-Grenadier-Division Hoch- und Deutschmeister 1938-1945, Friedberg, Podzun, 1979.

Carlo Gentile, Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS im Partisanenkrieg: Italien 1943-1945, Padeborn, Schöningh, 2012, pp. 83, 140f., 150, 158f., 162, 178f., 355f.

Manfred Schick, Monte Cassino – Ein Rückblick nach 60 Jahren. Die 44. Infanterie-Division "Hoch- und Deutschmeister" im Abwehrkampf, Nuremberg, Kienesberger, 2004.

Anton Schimak, Karl Lamprecht, Friedrich Dettmer, Die 44. Infanterie-Division. Tagebuch der Hoch- und Deutschmeister, Vienna, Austria Press, 1969.

Translation

Translated from German by: Joel Golb

2025

Text: CC BY NC SA 4.0

44th “Hoch- und Deutschmeister” Reichsgrenadier Division

Origins and war experience

The Formation and Deployment of the 44th Infantry Division in the Second World War

The 44th “Hoch- und Deutschmeister” Reichsgrenadier Division

On the Italian Front

From the Alpine border to Montecassino

On 4 June 1944, near the Capistrello train station, soldiers from Engineer Battalion 80 executed a group of Italian civilians arrested during these searches.

The massacre of Capistrello

The retreat through Umbria and the Casentino

The Sassoleone reprisal action and combing operations in Budrio and Medicina

Transfer to Hungary and the end of the war

The postwar period

Despite the division’s involvement in anti-partisan operations in Istria, Slovenia, and later Italy—during which mass executions and civilian killings occurred—there is no evidence that its officers or enlisted soldiers were legally investigated after the war.

The “comradeship association” and absent legal inquiry

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