2. Gebirgsjäger Profile: Origin, Organization and Known Personnel

Below are photos of the commanders followed by a summary of the division's origins, organization and known personnel.

Gen der Gebtruppen Valentin Feurstein 1 Sep 39 - 4 Mar 1941

Genlt Ernst Schlemmer 8 Mar 41 - 1 Jan 42)

Gen der Gebtruppen Georg Ritter von Hengl 1 Jan 42 - 1 Oct 43

Genlt Hans Degen 1 Oct 43 - 6 Feb 45

Genlt Willibald Utz 6 Feb 45 - 8 May 45

​Valentin Feurstein (1 January 1885 - 8 June 1970) was an Austrian military officer serving in the Austrian and German armies. Feurstein served in the Austrian Bundesheer in the 1930s. He served as Commander of 3.Division (stationed in St. Pölten). After the Anschluss and the incorporation of the Bundesheer into it, Feurstein served as a General in the Wehrmacht.

He commanded the 2nd Mountain Division in Fall Weiss and during the Norwegian campaign. In 1941 he was promoted to full General of the mountain troops (Gen.d.Geb.Tr.). He also served on the Italian front in 1943.
Feurstein was City Commander of Bregenz in 1945 and tried to declare Bregenz as non-combat zone.
He was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (Knights Cross of the Iron Cross) on 12 August 1944.

Like their predecessors in the Monarchy, the Austrian Federal Ministry of Defence published a yearly Army List known in Austrian parlance as a Schematismus. With the events of 1938 a full blown Schematismus which included the full order of battle of the army was never published and only a "Rangliste" or rank list was prepared. The following list of General Officers and Colonels is reproduced from this Rangliste. All of these officers had served the old Austro-Hungarian Monarchy and many were to serve in the German Wehrmacht following the March 1938 Anschluß. Also appended below is the list of Divisional and Brigade Commanders at this date.

A table of abbreviations will be found at the foot of the page.
1.Division (Vienna)
Generalmajor Karl Kotik

2.Division (Vienna)
Feldmarschalleutnant Theodor Haselmayr

3.Division (St. Pölten)
Generalmajor Valentin Feurstein

4.Division (Linz)
Generalmajor Anton Kienbauer

5.Division (Graz)
Generalmajor Rudolf Schaffarz

6.Division (Innsbruck)
Feldmarschalleutnant Eugen Beyer

7.Division (Klagenfurt)
Generalmajor Eduard Barger

8.Brigade (Salzburg)
Generalmajor Kurt Zborzil

Schnelle Division (Vienna)
Generalmajor Dr. Alfred Hubicki

Luftstreitkräfte (Vienna)
Generalmajor Alexander Löhr

2. Gebirgs-Divison was formed on 1 April 1938 from the 6. Division and 8. Brigade of the Austrian Bundesheer.
It fought in Poland as a part of Heeresgruppe Süd. On 23 September the division attacked the Polish 24. Infantry Division (Colonel Boleslaw Schwarzenberg-Czerny) in the forest near Boratycze. III/Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 137 was cut-off from the rest of the division and suffered heavy losses until other elements of the division managed to break through to them and the Polish forces withdrew in the evening.
 
In 1940 it took part in the invasion of Norway, during the invasion it fought in central Norway and later travelled through the wilderness from Trondheim to Narvik in an attempt to rescue the besieged 3. Gebirgs-Divison.
When Norway surrendered the division was used as an occupation force until the invasion of the Soviet Union. The division fought in Lapland as part of Gebirgskorps Norwegen (later XIX. Gebirgs-Armeekorps) on the northern sector of the Eastern Front until 1944 when it was sent to Denmark. It later fought on the western front and ended the war near Würtemberg (in southern Germany). The remnants of the disbanded Heeres-Gebirgsjäger-Bataillon 201 were absorbed by I./Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 137 in Feb 1945.

Commanders 

General der Gebirgstruppen Valentin Feurstein  
(1 Sep 1939 - 4 Mar 1941) 

Generalleutnant Ernst Schlemmer  
(8 Mar 1941 - 1 Jan 1942) 

General der Gebirgstruppen Georg Ritter von Hengl  
(1 Jan 1942 - 1 Oct 1943) 

Generalleutnant Hans Degen  
(1 Oct 1943 - 6 Feb 1945) 

Generalleutnant Willibald Utz  
(6 Feb 1945 - 8 May 1945) 

Operations Officers (Ia) 

Oberstleutnant Hans Degen  
(10 Nov 1938 - 15 Oct 1939) 

Oberst Eduard Zorn  
(15 Oct 1939 - 8 Jan 1943) 

Oberstleutnant Erwin Fußenegger  
(8 Jan 1943 - 14 Oct 1943) 

Major Franz Steinhart-Hantken  
(14 Oct 1943 - 1 Jan 1944) 

Oberstleutnant Hans Roschmann  
(1 Jan 1944 - 15 Feb 1945) 

Major Claus Becker  
(15 Feb 1945 - Mar 1945) 

Major Hermann Conrad  
(Mar 1945 - May 1945) 

Nicknames
Rentier-Division (Reindeer Division)
 
Holders of high awards
Holders of the German Cross in Gold (20)
Holders of the Honor Roll Clasp of the Heer (2)
  Degen, Hans, 05.02.1945, Generalleutnant, Kdr. 2. Geb.Div.
  Nuber, Eugen, 28.11.1941, Leutnant d.R., 13./Geb.Jäg.Rgt. 136
Holders of the Knight's Cross (7)
Holders of the Commendation Certificate of the Commander-in-Chief of the Army for Shooting Down Aircraft (2)
  Benedek, Alexander, 01.08.1944, Obergefreiter, 3./Geb.Art.Rgt. 111
  Fleck, Hans, 01.08.1944, Obergefreiter, 9./Geb.Jäg.Rgt. 137
Holders of the Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty, 1st Class with Swords (3)
  Degen, Hans, 04.04.1944, Generalmajor, Kdr. 2. Geb.Div.
  Hengl Ritter von, Georg, 13.05.1943, Generalmajor, Kdr. 2. Geb.Div.
  Schlemmer, Ernst, 26.10.1941, Generalmajor, Kdr. 2. Geb.Div.
 
Order of battle
Stab / 2.Geb.D. u. Stabskompanie
Gebirgs-Jäger-Regiment 136 (Oberstleutnant G. Hofmeister)
  Stab
  I. Gebirgs-Jäger-Bataillon (Major F. Hauck)
  II. Gebirgs-Jäger-Bataillon (Hauptmann Putzker)
  III. Gebirgs-Jäger-Bataillon (Oberstleutnant Heintzle)
  16. Kompanie
  17. Kompanie
  Kolonne
Gebirgs-Jäger-Regiment 137 (Obstl./Oberst Georg Ritter von Hengl)
  Stab
  I. Gebirgs-Jäger-Bataillon (Major Ruf)
  II. Gebirgs-Jäger-Bataillon (Oberstleutnant Hesselbarth)
  III. Gebirgs-Jäger-Bataillon (Oberstleutnant Kreudler)
  16. Kompanie
  17. Kompanie
  Kolonne
(Gebirgs-)Radfahr-Abteilung 67 (Major W. Lindinger)
 On 1.4.1943 re-named as:
  Gebirgs-Aufklärungs-Abteilung 67
   Stab
   1. Schwadron
   2. Schwadron
   3. Schwadron
   4. (schwere) Schwadron
Gebirgs-Pionier-Bataillon 82 (Hauptmann E. Osterman, ?- Hauptmann Flachberger)
  Stab
  1. Kompanie
  2. Kompanie
  3. Kompanie
  leichte Pionier-Kolonne
  Brücken-Kolonne B (-1943)
Gebirgs-Nachrichten-Abteilung 67 (Oberst Wilhelm Fuermann)
  Stab
  1. Kompanie
  2. Kompanie
  3. Kompanie
  Kolonne
Gebirgs-Artillerie-Regiment 111 (Oberstleutnant E. Ritter von Mehlem)
  Regiments-Stab
  I. Artillerie-Abteilung
  II. Artillerie-Abteilung
  III. Artillerie-Abteilung (7. - 10. Batterie, 2.1944- 7. - 9. Batterie)
  IV. Artillerie-Abteilung (2.1944- 10. - 12. Batterie)
  Kolonne
Gebirgs-Panzer-Jäger-Abteilung 55 (Hauptmann von Seebach)
  Stab
  1. Kompanie
  2. Kompanie
Gebirgs-Divisions-Nachschubführer 67
 On 15.10.1942 re-named as:
 Kommandeur der Gebirgs-Divisions-Nachschubtruppen 67
   Stab
   ?. kleine Kraftwagen-Kolonne (-?)
   ?. Fahr-Kolonne (?-)
   Kraftfahr-Kompanie (?-)
   Kraftwagen-Kolonne (?-)
   Kraftwagen-Werkstatt-Kompanie 67
   Feldpostamt 67
Verwaltungs-Dienste 67
  Verpflegungsamt 67 (-?)
  Verwaltungs-Kompanie 67 (-?)
  Bäckerei-Kompanie 67
  Schlächterei-Kompanie 67
Sanitäts-Dienste 67
  Gebirgs-Sanitäts-Kompanie 67
  1. Kranken-Kraftwagen-Zug 67 (-?)
  2. Kranken-Kraftwagen-Zug 67 (-?)
  Kranken-Kraftwagen-Kompanie 67 (?-)
  Feld-Lazarett 67
Gebirgs-Veterinär-Kompanie 67
 
Notable members
Valentin Feurstein (Generalmajor in the Austrian Bundesheer before the Anschluss)
 
Sources used
Czeslaw Grzelak & Henryk Stanczyk - Kampania Polska 1939 roku
James Lucas - Hitler's Mountain Troops: Fighting at the extremes
Wojciech Wlodarkiewicz - Lwow 1939
Gordon Williamson - German Mountain & Ski Troops 1939-45
 
Reference material on this unit
M. Kräutler & Karl Springenschmied - Es war Ein Edelweiss: Schicksal und Weg der 2.GD