Thread by @Niels_1944

Thread: German orbats #3 Let’s continue our crash course of German OOBs. We’ll stay with this one

Link to the previous thread:

https://twitter.com/Niels_1944/status/1427970711621079049

Let’s look at an artillery regiment
Staff, HQ battery, 4 battalions (each with a staff, HQ battery and 3 batteries)

Again, a square flag for a regiment. We have seen the box shape with the infantry. Here the stylized gun symbol identifies it as an artillery battery and ‘St’ means Stab (staff/HQ)

1st battalion or 1. Abt. in German
Same principle as with the regimental staff, but here we have 3 gun batteries

The arrow represents a cannon. Sometimes the vertical lines are heavy (like a company) sometimes (here) the are slim. The arrow shows this battery is armed with cannon. The type? Light (le) Czech (t) pieces. 4 pieces and 2 LMG.

2-4 battalion are differently armed

The symbol here represents a howitzer batteries (think of a gun with a wheel on each side)
Again they are light Czech pieces with 2 LMG

Here’s the same battalion in an actual strength report. Note the heavy bars and the addition of a new symbol: an arrow with a circle underneath. It represents an anti-aircraft gun. In this case a light piece (common with static divisions)

The presence of 4 light battalions is actually unusual. The New Type and Type 44 organization kept the traditional organization of 3 light and 1 heavy battalion (left).

Here the calibers are shown (15cm and 10,5cm) as well as MGs. As an example some batteries are listed with 3 art. pieces as there could be shortages. Hence the 'x)'

In German infantry division artillery was usually transported by horses. So fewer guns means fewer horses in the 'Grundgliederung. Typically batteries were nonetheless still equipped with 4 pieces, so more horses

https://twitter.com/Niels_1944/status/1412357747023224833

To be continued with a look at antitank troops and recon units.
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