21st Panzer Division in Tunisia

Okay let us look at the 21st Panzer Division as at the start of the Kasserine battle


The division arrived in Tunisia as part of the withdrawal of the Afrika Korps from Libya after their defeat at the battle of El Alamein. Losses both during the battle and the retreat had reduced the division to shadow of its former self.

Fifth Panzer Army, War Diary (Extract), 24 January 1943

Upon its arrival it began the process of being rebuilt with 5th Panzer Army allocating these three battalions to the division. Panzer battalion 190 was intended to be part of the 90th Light division but had been diverted to Tunisia as part of the build up and had served as an independent battalion. It will eventually be re-badged as the II battalion of the 5th Panzer Regiment.

21st Panzer Division, Division Order for the Cap-
ture of the Faid Strongpoint, 26 January 1943

21st Panzer Division, Division Order for the Cap-
ture of the Faid Strongpoint, 26 January 1943

A brief sidebar it does eventually appear that the T2 battalion is absorbed into the 21st Panzer Division but I sa yet do not know if it ever returned to the Italian Brigade Imeriali .

After a brief respite, the division was given its first orders for an operation in Tunisia. An attack om the Faid pass. It also received some attachments from the Italian army. The above documents also show the task organization of those elements of the division involved in the battle.

The centre group is given an unidentified battalion  of the 104th Panzer Grenadier Regiment. So soon after the allocation of two march battalions to the division is indicative that the 21st is still absorbing replacements and as yet does not know which battalions are ready for action. There are two observations that can be made from this.  The first is that there is a third group within the division made up of either non-combat ready units or those detached from the divisions control. This can be seen later on as other units appear on the divisions roster. The second is that the 1st battalion of the 104th as the only combat ready battalion of the panzer grenadiers is composed of survivors of the retreat from Libya.

Fifth Panzer Army, Operation FRUELINGSWIND, 8 February 1943

Fifth Panzer Army, Operation FRUELINGSWIND, 8 February 1943

At the conclusion of the Faid pass battle new orders are issued in preparation for the the next battle. The reference to the static elements should be read as Kampfgruppe Pfeiffer which is placed under the control of 10th Panzer Division for at least the start of the attack.

21st Panzer Division, Division order for the attack on Sidi Bou Zid, 12 February 1943

21st Panzer Division, Division order for the attack on Sidi Bou Zid, 12 February 1943

We now get orders creating two kampfgruppes for the opening stages of the Kasserine battles. These are not the only elements of the division there are others that are not assigned to the three Kampfgruppes that we know of. They are the 580th Reconnaissance battalions, 609th Flak battalion. 220th Panzer Engineer battalion and the 155th Artillery Regiment.


The war diary of the 21st Panzer provides a comprehensive history of what the division was doing the campaign. Yet there are problems that exist within it.

The first is that it makes extensive use of the various unit titles such as 5th Panzer Regiment interchangeably with the various kampfgruppe title such as Stenkoff who is the Panzer Regiments commander. If you know who commands what and when this will be no problem but it certainly can be confusing at times.

The second is that it follows pretty much all units within the division. In this case it is Kampfgruppe Pfeiffer which starts the battle detached to the 10th Panzer Division. At some stage it returns to the 21st Panzer's control as on the sixteenth it is again attached to the 10th Panzer and does not return to the division until the eighteenth of February. There is also a reference to the kampfgruppe is now composed of a grenadier battalion an armoured battalion and two light batteries.

21st Panzer Division War Diary 14-23 February 1943

Third there are many references to the 104th Panzer Grenadier Regiment, many of these are followed by an A or B. It would appear that while there were for a while four battalions in the regiment they were operating in two separate half regiments.Of course they don't tell which battalions are assigned to each.

21st Panzer Division War Diary 14-23 February 1943

Now while there is no reference to the 104B leaving the divisions control it is recorded as returning. It is probable that it is somehow tied to Kampfgruppe Pfeiffer but there is no evidence of that.

21st Panzer Division War Diary 14-23 February 1943

Well that appears to cover the divisions changes upto the end of the Kasserine battle. I would like to say it is comprehensive and accurate but there are still a few more documents to be checked.

Hopefully there will be some covering the divisions history in the later battles.