The 9th Armored Division during World War II
In 1985, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the US Army Center of Military History began a program to honor US Army divisions that took part in the Allied liberation of Nazi camps. The US Army Center of Military History defines a liberating division as one whose official records show its presence at a camp within 48 hours of the first soldier’s arrival. The 9th Armored Division is among the 36 US divisions that have been recognized to date.
Key Facts
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US, British, Soviet, and Canadian troops encountered concentration camps and other sites of Nazi crimes as they advanced across Europe in 1944 and 1945.
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The Allied soldiers liberated sick and starving camp prisoners from Nazi tyranny. They also provided them with food, clothing, and medical aid.
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The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the US Army Center of Military History have recognized 36 US divisions for their role in the liberation of Nazi camps.
9th Armored Division Campaigns during World War II
In early October 1944, the 9th Armored Division landed in France and was immediately deployed eastward to advance into Luxembourg. When the Germans began their Ardennes offensive on December 16, 1944, the "Phantom" division was deployed just north of Diekirch, a few miles east southeast of Bastogne, Belgium. As the Germans attacked US positions near St. Vith on the northern sector of the front, part of the 9th was transferred to assist in defending the city. The units of the 9th Armored Division engaged in fierce combat that bought the US commanders time to organize the defense of Bastogne, which became known as the Battle of the Bulge. By the time they withdrew to the eastern outskirts of the town, the units of the 9th had withstood repeated attacks on the roads leading to Bastogne.
On March 7, 1945, the unit captured the Ludendorff Bridge over the Rhine River at the city of Remagen. The 9th continued its drive into central Germany and by war's end had advanced into Czechoslovakia.
The 9th Armored Division and the Liberation of Zwodau and Falkenau an der Eger
On May 8, 1945, troops of the 9th, along with comrades from the 1st Infantry Division, liberated Zwodau and Falkenau an der Eger, both subcamps of the Flossenbürg concentration camp. Both camps were located on the territory of what today is the Czech Republic. SS entrepreneurs had established Zwodau in 1944 for the production of air force equipment and, by March 1945, it housed some 1,200 female prisoners. Falkenau housed 60 prisoners.
At the time of its liberation, the camp in Zwodau held some 900–1,000 starving women prisoners. The army divisions procured food from the neighboring areas and provided badly needed medical attention to the survivors.
Recognition as a Liberating Unit
The 9th Armored Division was recognized as a liberating unit by the US Army's Center of Military History and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1993.
9th Armored Division Battle Casualty Figures
Hundreds of thousands of US servicemen and women died or were wounded in the fight against Nazi tyranny.
The total number of battle casualties for the 9th Armored Division in the European Theater of Operations during World War II was 3,845. In this case, “battle casualties” includes all personnel who were unable to fight in battle because they were wounded, missing, captured, or killed.
Among the battle casualties suffered by the 9th Armored Division, there were 728 deaths.
9th Armored Division Nickname
Although no nickname for the 9th was in common usage throughout the war, "Phantom" division was sometimes used in 1945. It originated during the Battle of the Bulge, when the 9th Armored Division seemed, like a phantom, to be everywhere along the front.
Footnotes
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Footnote reference1.
In the aftermath of World War II, the US Department of the Army compiled casualty figures for US Army personnel. The US government published these figures in 1953. The report listed casualty numbers for the US Army for the period from December 7, 1941 (Pearl Harbor) through December 31, 1946, when US President Harry S. Truman officially declared the end of war hostilities. Army Battle Casualties and Nonbattle Deaths: Final Report, 7 December 1941-31 December 1946, Prepared by the Statistical and Accounting Branch, Office of the Adjutant General, Under the Direction of the Program Review and Analysis, Division of the Comptroller of the Army, O.C.S., (Washington: Department of the Army, 1953), p. 3-4, 84-89.
Critical Thinking Questions
What challenges did Allied forces face when they encountered the camps and sites of other atrocities?
What challenges faced survivors of the Holocaust upon liberation?