page_title: 501st Heavy Panzer Battalion
section_title: Tiger II
hierarchical_section_title: 501st Heavy Panzer Battalion / Operations / Eastern Front / Tiger II
context_page_description: The 501st Heavy Panzer Battalion was a German heavy Panzer Abteilung equipped with heavy tanks. The battalion was the second unit to receive and use the Tiger I heavy tank, changing to Tiger IIs in mid-1944.
  It fought and surrendered in Tunisia, reformed in September 1943, then fought on the Eastern front; destroyed, it reformed with Tiger IIs in July 1944, then mostly deactivated on 11 February 1945.
context_section_description: The battalion was reconstituted at Ohrdruf on 14 July. By 7 August 1944, the battalion attained full strength, with 45 new Tiger IIs equipped with later production turrets.
  On 5 August, two companies entrained to south eastern Poland to join Army Group North Ukraine, to continue to resist Operation Bagration. After detraining, most suffered final drive breakdowns while on a 50 km (31 mi) road march. On 11 August, the battalion was attached to 16th Panzer Division. The eight operational tanks attacked the Soviet bridgehead over the Vistula River near Baranów Sandomierski. On the road to Oględów, three Tiger IIs were destroyed in an ambush by a few T-34-85s. Because these tanks suffered ammunition explosions which caused many crew fatalities, main gun rounds were no longer allowed to be stowed within the turret, reducing capacity to 68. Over the next two days, the battalion took heavy casualties.
  On 12 August, the remaining company entrained at Ohdruf, to join the rest of the battalion.
  After poor tactics in and around Radom on 22 August, the battalion commander was relieved, and also implicated in the 20 July plot to assassinate Hitler. He was replaced by Major Saemisch. On 1 September, 26 Tigers IIs were operational, and the battalion was assigned to XXXVIII Panzer Corps. Later in the month, the remaining company eventually joined the rest of the battalion.
  The battalion was down to 36 out of 53 Tiger IIs operational by 1 October 1944. By 1 November this rose to 49, boosted by the absorption of several Tiger Is from the remnants of the 509th. On 21 December, the battalion was redesignated the 424th Heavy Tank Battalion and assigned to the XXIV Panzer Corps, part of 4th Panzer Army.
  The Soviet Vistula–Oder Offensive started on 12 January 1945. The battalion had been deployed far forward, possibly by the direct intervention of Hitler, contrary to the wishes of all command levels from the battalion commander all to the General of Army Group A. The battalion initially received no orders. On 13 January, it was ordered towards Lisow. En route, one Tiger II fell through a bridge. All three companies attempted to attack, but many bogged down in poor ground and were not recoverable. Leutnant Oberbracht lost both tracks but destroyed 20 enemy tanks; 50 to 60 enemy tanks were destroyed in total. Several other tanks broke down while moving to contact. IS-2s and anti-tank guns in Lisow ambushed the battalion, which was almost destroyed; even the battalion commander's tank was knocked out. One Tiger II broke down while successfully recovering a bogged down comrade, and had to be destroyed. Poor reconnaissance was blamed for the debacle.
  The next day, some remnants of the battalion fought on in the pocket forming around them, but were blown up after running out of fuel. Another Tiger II fell through a bridge and was abandoned. The remaining tanks regrouped at Grunberg, gathering together whatever tanks they could (two Panthers, three Panzer IVs, two Hornisse and some Hetzer tank destroyers). After delaying actions with makeshift forces, the remaining elements withdrew by train to Paderborn on 5 February.
  On 11 February 1945, the remaining personnel of the first and second companies of the battalion were reorganized into the 512th heavy tank destroyer battalion (schwere Panzer-Jager-Abteilung 512). The third company remained in Paderborn, and together with two Tiger Is, one Panther and one Panzer IV from the 500th tank training battalion (Panzer-Ersatz-und Ausbildungs Abt. 500) fought a short unsuccessful battle against British forces on Easter 1945. The remaining elements surrendered at Höxter.
caption: Soviet advances from 1 January 1945 to 7 May 1945:   to 30 March 1945   to 7 May 1945
exif: {}