List of Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS divisions that committed war crimes in Italy


This is a list of Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS divisions that committed war crimes in Italy during World War II. War crimes by German combat divisions in Italy were committed by the Waffen-SS and the Wehrmacht, with its sub-branches, the army, Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine. Historically, the view existed that the Wehrmacht fought a clean campaign there and the atrocities and war crimes were committed only by the SS, and in the latter case predominantly by the Einsatzgruppen and concentration camp guards, not by the Waffen-SS. This view has been refuted by modern research, which found that the Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS were equally involved in war crimes.

Background

Research in 2016 funded by the German government found the number of victims of Nazi war crimes in Italy to be 22,000, double the previously estimated figure. The victims were primarily Italian civilians, sometimes in retaliation for partisan attacks under the doctrine of Bandenbekämpfung, and Italian Jews.
The killing of Italian civilians by front-line units of the Wehrmacht and SS has sometimes been seen as stemming from a sense of betrayal the Germans felt by the Italians switching sides, but historians have argued that the reasons for atrocities and the brutal behaviour were more complex, often resulting from the military crisis caused by the German retreats and the fear of ambushes.
Only very few soldiers of German divisions accused of war crimes ever stood trial and even fewer served time in jail after their conviction. Notable exceptions include Eduard Crasemann, commander of the 26th Panzer Division, which was involved in the Padule di Fucecchio massacre, and who was found guilty of war crimes by an Allied military tribunal and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment, dying in jail in 1950, and Walter Reder, sentenced to life in prison by an Italian military court for his role in the Marzabotto massacre as the commander of the SS-Panzer-Aufklärungsabteilung 16 of the 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division Reichsführer-SS, who was released in 1985.
The 1st Fallschirm-Panzer Division Hermann Göring and 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division Reichsführer-SS were disproportionally involved in massacres of the civilian population during the war in Italy, the two divisions accounting for approximately one third of all civilians killed in war crimes in the country.

List

Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS divisions that committed war crimes in Italy:
DivisionBranchMajor incidentsRef
1st SS Panzer DivisionWaffen-SS
1st Fallschirm-Panzer DivisionLuftwaffe
  • Acerra massacre, 1–3 October 1943, 84 civilians executed
  • Napoli massacre, 1 October 1943, 93 civilians executed
  • Monchio, Susano and Costrignano massacre, 1 March 1944, 130 civilians executed
  • Vallucciole massacre, 13 April 1944, 107 civilians executed
  • Civitella in Val di Chiana massacre, 29 June 1944, 146 civilians executed
  • Cavriglia massacre, 4 July 1944, 173 civilians executed
    • 1st Parachute DivisionLuftwaffe
  • , 21 November 1943, 125 civilians executed
    • 2nd Parachute DivisionLuftwaffe
  • A number of incidents between September and November 1943, with up to seven civilians executed in each incident
    • 3rd Panzergrenadier DivisionArmy
  • A number of incidents between September 1943 and August 1944, with up to twenty two civilians executed in each incident
    • 4th Parachute DivisionLuftwaffe
  • Pedescala massacre, 30 April–2 May 1945, 63 civilians executed
    • 5th Mountain DivisionArmy
  • Grugliasco massacre, alongside the 34th Infantry Division, 30 April 1945, 67 civilians executed
    • 15th Panzergrenadier DivisionArmy
  • Bellona massacre, 6–7 October 1943, 54 civilians executed
    • 16th Panzer-DivisionArmy
  • San Clemente di Caserta massacre, 4 October 1943, 25 civilians executed
    • 16th SS Panzergrenadier DivisionWaffen-SS
  • Sant'Anna di Stazzema massacre, 12 August 1944, 394 civilians executed
  • San Terenzo Monti massacre, 17–19 August 1944, 159 civilians executed
  • Vinca massacre, 24–27 August 1944, 162 civilians executed
  • San Leonardo al Frigido massacre, 16 September 1944, 149 civilians executed
  • Marzabotto massacre, 29 September–5 October 1944, 770 civilians executed
    • 19th Luftwaffe Field DivisionLuftwaffe
  • Guardistallo massacre, 29 June 1944, 55 civilians executed
    • 20th Luftwaffe Field DivisionLuftwaffe
  • A number of incidents between July and August 1944, with up to twenty civilians executed in each incident
    • 24th Waffen Mountain DivisionWaffen-SS
  • Fosse del Natisone massacre, execution of 105 civilians, soldiers and partisans after the Italian surrender
    • 26th Panzer-DivisionArmy
  • Padule di Fucecchio massacre, 23 August 1944, 174 civilians executed
    • 29th Panzergrenadier DivisionArmy
  • San Martino di Lupari, 29 April 1945, 125 prisoners executed
    • 34th Infantry DivisionArmy
  • Grugliasco massacre, alongside the 5th Mountain Division, 30 April 1945, 67 civilians executed
    • 42nd Jäger DivisionArmy
  • Ronchidoso massacre, alongside the 65th Infantry Division, 28–30 November 1944, 66 civilians executed
    • 44th Infantry DivisionArmy
  • A number of incidents between March and September 1944, with up to thirty-three civilians executed in each incident
    • 65th Infantry DivisionArmy
  • Ronchidoso massacre, alongside the 42nd Jäger Division, 28–30 November 1944, 66 civilians executed
    • 71st Infantry DivisionArmy
  • Tićan massacre, 11 September 1943, 84 civilians executed
    • 90th Panzergrenadier DivisionArmy
  • A number of incidents between August 1944 and April 1945, with up to five civilians executed in each incident
    • 92nd Infantry DivisionArmy
  • A number of incidents between March and July 1944, with up to eleven civilians executed in each incident
    • 94th Infantry DivisionArmy
  • San Polo massacre, 14 July 1944, 63 civilians executed
    • 114th Jäger DivisionArmy
  • Madonna dell'Albero massacre, 27 November 1944, 56 civilians executed
    • 148th Infantry DivisionArmy
  • One incident recorded, the Regnano Castello massacre, 23 November 1944, 14 civilians executed
    • 162nd Turkoman DivisionArmy
  • A number of incidents between December 1943 and May 1945, two of those, in January 1945 in the Emilia-Romagna resulted in the execution of at least 20 civilians each
    • 232nd Infantry DivisionArmy
  • A number of incidents between August and September 1944, with up to five civilians executed in each incident
    • 278th Infantry DivisionArmy
  • A number of incidents between March and July 1944, with up to seven civilians executed in each incident
    • 305th Infantry DivisionArmy
  • A number of incidents between October 1943 and April 1945, with up to twelve civilians executed in each incident
    • 334th Infantry DivisionArmy
  • A number of incidents between February and September 1944, with up to thirty civilians executed in each incident
    • 356th Infantry DivisionArmy
  • Benedicta massacre, 6–7 April 1944, 97 civilians executed
    • 362nd Infantry DivisionArmy
  • Involved in the Marzabotto massacre, alongside the 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division, 29 September–5 October 1944, 770 civilians executed