88th Infantry Division ( Wehrmacht ) The 88th Infantry Division was a major fighting formation of the German Army ( Wehrmacht ) . It was created in December 1939 , and first saw combat in the Battle of France , and was then posted to security duties . From December 1941 , the division was shifted to the southern sector of the Eastern Front , where it fought until February 1944 when it was encircled near Cherkassy and virtually destroyed . Organisation . The 88th Infantry Division was a unit of the 6th wave of army mobilisation . Due to the rapid expansion of the Army at the declaration of war , there was not enough German equipment available to meet demand , and the divisions of the 6th wave were issued with weapons and equipment of Czech origin . Upon formation , the division had the following sub units : In November 1943 the division was restructured . One of its regiments , the 248 , was disbanded entirely , and the remnants of the ( also disbanded ) 323 ID was incorporated to replace it . This was called the 323 division group of regimental size and the 591 and 593 as battalion sized ' regimental groups ' . This is an expedient that was used in the creation of the Korps abteilung . The other battalions of the division were reshuffled , to leave two regiments of two battalions each and a divisional fusilier battalion . This left the 88th division with seven infantry battalions in line with the Type 44 division organisation and structure . Combat history . By May 1940 the division was deemed ready for combat , transferred to the western front and subsequently took part in the battle for France . Soon after the battle , the Division was sent back to southern Germany for further training , and some of its personnel were allowed to return to their peacetime professions in industry and agriculture . In the winter of 1941 the Division was posted to Russia , and took part in the winter defensive battles of Army Group South , in line between Belgorod and Kursk . Kharkov 1942 . In May 1942 , the Soviets launched a new offensive effort aimed at retaking Kharkov in a pincer move . The southern group attacked from the great bulge in the line west of Izsum , backed up by two of the newly created Tank Corps ( 23rd & 21st ) and 6th Cavalry Corps and the northern grouping attacked on a more direct line using the 38th , 21st and 28th Armies backed up by 3rd Guards Cavalry Corps . The northern group attack began on 13 May with some limited successes . German reaction was swift : using infantry and 3rd and 23rd Panzer divisions , part of the forces gathered for the summer offensive , they hit the northern attack with repeated counterattacks , whilst blocking advancement in the south . As part of these efforts , a two - regimental group from 88th infantry division ( Combat Group Gollwitzer ) was shifted to the area and joined in these attacks from the northern flank . With their attack obviously going nowhere , the Russians abandoned the attack and had withdrawn their offensive groupings by 24 May 1942 . Following this action , the 88th Division then took part in the opening stages of Plan Blue , the German summer offensive . After only a short advance , the division was again put on the defensive on the northern flank of the 9th Army , where it remained for several months . In January 1943 , after the Stalingrad debacle , Russian offensives rippled along the front . The 9th Army front was breached and it was forced to retreat , the 88th Division with it . After the front was finally stabilised for the Germans by Erich von Manstein counter stroke at Karkov , the 88th division was again in defensive positions , this time along the Minus river , whilst dramatic events unfolded around the Kursk salient . The failure of the German offensive preceded the start of a prolonged period of Soviet attacks , and by September , von Manstein was no longer confident that the forces of AGS could defeat the them without substantial reinforcement . Hitler thereafter authorised the withdrawal to the Panther line on 15 September . A race to the Dnieper followed : both German and Soviet forces raced to reach the river first , with the German forces attempting to fully man defensive fortificatiions ahead of the arrival of the bulk of the Soviet forces . The 88th pulled back and crossed the river Dneiper as part of XX Army , and was further inserted into the new defensive line on the western bank . The Soviet forces , however , did manage to seize several bridgeheads across the river . Korsun - Cherkassy . Desperate German counterattacks were unable to dislodge these bridge heads and , by mid - October , they were used as springboards to further offensives . With the Panther line thoroughly breached to the north and south , forces of the 8th Army still defending along the Dnieper in the central sector were vulnerable to encirclement , but were not given authority to withdraw . The Soviet command capitalised on German inaction , and the first Ukrainian Front attacking from the north and second Ukrainian front from the south trapped substantial German forces in a pocket near the town of Cherkassy , including the 88th division . Poland . After the break out from Cherkassy , the division was quickly rebuilt , and by June 1944 was back in line under the 4th Panzer Army , Army Group North Ukraine . In mid - July , Soviet 1st Ukrainian Front started a series of offensives and the German forces were driven back into southern Poland . This was a time of constant retreat for the 88th division as the front was pulled back time after time , but after considerable effort the Germans finally managed to stabilize the front by September . Although the 88th avoided encirclement in these battles , it suffered considerable casualties and was down to a ' kampfhgruppe ' by mid August . The decimated 88th division was to remain static for over 3 months . It finally met its fate in January 1945 , when Soviet armies were unleashed with overwhelming odds and much of Army Group A , of which the 88th division was now a part , was overwhelmed and destroyed . This was the last action of the division ; its remnants were listed as fighting with battle group Jauer at the end of January . The division was finally disbanded later in 1945 , with its survivors absorbed by other units .