297th Infantry Division ( Wehrmacht ) The 297th Infantry Division ( German : " 297 . Infantriedivision " ) was an Infantry Division within the German Army , active during the Second World War . It was one of the components of the 6th Army during its failed attack on Stalingrad . Operational history . The 297th Infantry Division was activated on January 31 , 1940 and raised in March as part of the eighth wave of Wehrmacht divisions , assembled from the men of Military district " WK VII " , which is now Bruck an der Leitha and the surrounding Lower Austrian areas , out of men from the 27th ; 44th ; 45th ; 57th and 268th Infantry Divisions . The divisions of the eighth wave were referred to by some as the " class of 1918 " , as they consisted largely of young men born in that year , who would be the ages of 21 and 22 upon being called - up . The division served as an OKH reserve division throughout the Western Campaign of 1940 , later being re - stationed in Poland in July 1940 as the initial preparations for Operation Barbarossa were made . Barbarossa , Stalingrad and capitulation . The 297th Infantry Division attacked through the Ukraine as part of Army Group South to meet its objective in conquering Kiev . The division first aided in the capture of Zhytomyr in July , followed by Uman the following month before taking out Kiev in September . It then proceeded to go through a war - torn Kharkov and into Rostov before the year ended . During the take - over of the Ukraine , the division served as part of the 6th Army ' s XLIV Corps , under " General of the Infantry " Koch . The division survived the hazards of the Soviet winter offensive , being moved around the 6th Army in January as the Wehrmacht prepared to continue their assault on the Soviet Union , helping to re - take Kharkov in May . The division ' s commander , " Lieutenant General " Max Pfeffer , anticipating a long upcoming struggle , joked to a Captain under his command over the latter ' s reluctance to accept a transfer offer to France , saying " just be happy that you ' re getting a break . The war will last long enough and be terrible enough for you to get a good taste of it . " On June 10 , the division began crossing the Seversky Donets River by assault boat , constructing a bridge for other units , including the 14th Panzer Division . The division continued to make inroads around the black sea to take down the industrial city of Stalingrad , serving in IV corps under " General of the Engineers " Erwin Jaenecke . During the Battle of Stalingrad , some units within the division were seen to construct caves which would later be transformed into a field hospital and an equipment storage room . The division fought in the ruined city until " Field Marshal " Friedrich Paulus ' surrender in January 1943 , with the 297th division ' s and IV Army Corps mutual commander , General Pfeffer , following suit into Soviet captivity on the 16th . With the airfield lost to the Red Army , the division was so badly - beaten it could hardly be considered a proper fighting force . Pfeffer ' s successor as division commander , " Major General " Moritz von Drebber , finally surrendered to the Red Army a mere nine days later . A photograph of Drebber and several other Axis commanders was taken ; one of the men photographed was Dr . Otto Renoldi , the chief surgeon for the 6th Army . A chaplain for the division was executed by a Soviet officer when he bent over to treat a wounded man . Reformation and the Balkans . The division was recreated in Bordeaux in the summer of 1943 before being sent over to Yugoslavia in July , where it took part in anti - partisan activities . In November , elements of the division were transferred - over to the newly formed 367th Infantry Division . In February 1944 , its commanding officer , " Lieutenant General " Deutsch , was injured in a car accident in Vlorë , dying the following month ; " Lieutenant General " Gullmann took over for several days before command transferred to " Lieutenant General " Baier . By the Autumn of 1944 , the division was in a retreat to Montenegro from the growing forces of Josef Broz Tito , soon after being under attacked from the approaching Soviet Army . The division remained active up until German surrender in May , 1945 , when its men gave themselves up to the Yugoslavs . Commanders . The following officers commanded 297th Infantry Division :