The 68. Infanterie-Division was formed in August 1939 as part of the 2. Welle (wave) from 3. Infanterie-Division. After suffering heavy losses at Zhitomir, it was was withdrawn to Poland. It was refitted there in February 1944 as part of the 24. Welle from Schatten-Division Demba. The division surrendered to the Red Army in May 1945 at Jägerndorf in the Sudetenland.

Commanders

Generalleutnant Georg Braun (? Aug 1939 - 14 Nov 1941) (KIA) (1)
Generalleutnant Robert Meißner (16 Nov 1941 - 24 Jan 1943)
Generalleutnant Hans Schmidt (24 Jan 1943 - 25 Oct 1943)
Generalleutnant Paul Scheuerpflug (25 Oct 1943 - 8 May 1945)

Area of operations

Poland (Sep 1939 - May 1940)
France (May 1940 - June 1941)
Eastern front, southern sector (June 1941 - Sep 1944)
Slovakia & Poland (Sep 1944 - Jan 1945)
Silesia (Jan 1945 - May 1945)

Nicknames

Brauner Bär (Brown Bear)

Holders of high awards

Holders of the Commendation Certificate of the Commander-in-Chief of the Army  (5)
- Gebühr, Heinz, 05.12.1944 (4728), Oberstleutnant, Kdr. Gren.Rgt. 196
- Göllner, [first name not listed], 05.01.1942 (634), Oberleutnant, Chef 11./Inf.Rgt. 169
- Sewzik, Willy, 05.01.1942 (635), Oberleutnant, Chef 1./Inf.Rgt. 169
- Siehr, Robert, 18.04.1942 (915), Hauptmann, Abt.Fhr. II./Art.Rgt. 168
- Siehr, Robert, 17.11.1944 (4488), Major, Kdr. Art.Rgt. 168
Holders of the German Cross in Gold (65)
Holders of the German Cross in Silver (2)
- Bosch, Richard, 30.08.1944, Heeres-Werkmeister (K) d.R., Stab/Pz.Jäg.Abt. 168
- Leitzke, Gerhard, 20.04.1945, Major d.R., Nachr.Abt. 168
Holders of the Honor Roll Clasp of the Heer (14)
Holders of the Knight's Cross (14)
Unit-Level Commendation Certificate of the Commander-in-Chief of the Army for Shooting Down Aircraft (1)
- 5./Artillerie-Regiment 168
-- Date/Place of Downing: 05.09.1942 bei Golossnowka
-- Award Date: 28.11.1942 (288)

Order of battle (1942)

Grenadier-Regiment 169
Grenadier-Regiment 188
Grenadier-Regiment 196
Aufklärungs-Abteilung 168
Artillerie-Regiment 168
Pionier-Bataillon 168
Panzerjäger-Abteilung 168
Nachrichten-Abteilung 168
Versorgungseinheiten 168

Order of battle (1943-1945)

Grenadier-Regiment 169
Grenadier-Regiment 188
Grenadier-Regiment 196
Füsilier-Bataillon (A.A.) 68
Artillerie-Regiment 168
Pionier-Bataillon 168
Panzerjäger-Abteilung 168
Nachrichten-Abteilung 168
Feldersatz-Bataillon 168
Versorgungseinheiten 168

Notable members

Bruno Sutkus (sniper credited with 209 kills, Lithuanian form of the name is Bronius Sutkus)

Bruno Sutkus

(Courtesy of Michael)

Footnotes

1. Generalleutnant Georg Braun was killed on 14 November 1941 in Kharkov by partisans.

Sources used

French L. MacLean - Quiet Flows the Rhine: German General Officer Casualties in World War II
Georg Tessin - Verbände und Truppen der deutschen Wehrmacht 1933-1945

Reference material on this unit

Frhr. von Berlepsch - Die 68. Infanterie Division 1939-1945
Bruno Sutkus - Sniper Ace: From the Eastern Front to Siberia