Help with a StuG Unit!!!

[Ron Klages]

I am trying to track the lineage of StuG-Battery 659.

I have the following information:
StuG-Batty 659 established on 20 January 1940
deactivated on ??????
one source notes the date as 15 February 1942 and Tessin notes the date as 15 August 1942. Who knows correct date?

After deactivation it was reconstituted as StuG-Battery 287 on 15 August 1942 [Tessin] and assigned to Sonderverband 287.

At this point I believe the trail should be as follows:

StuG-Battery 659 established on 20 January 1940
deactivated on 15 February 1942 after fighting in France and then the northern front of Russia including the Demjansk Kessel.

Reconstituted as StuG-Battery 287 on 15 February 1942 while at Jüterbog and then on 15 August 1942 it was assigned to Sonderverband 287 where it went to fight in Africa[?????] and then the Kalmücken Steppe [Caucasus] in southern Russia.

After fighting in southern Russia it then returned to Dennewitz in Germany for refitting sometime after 20 December 1942 [date not known].

Now again I lose the trail in that it now went to Greece, specifically Rhodes ????, and then it was renamed as 1./PzAbt. Rhodes. Some confusion here since Jetz, in Panzer Truppen II, says that the 1./PzAbt Rhodes was made by renaming StuG-Battery 92 [never heard of this unit] in May 1943. So what happened? Was 287 renamed 92 then renamed as 1./PA Rhodes?

Any help will be greatly appreciated since I have run out of sources for the trail.

Thank you in Advance,

Ron Klages

[Christian]

Ron,

Check out the following links if you have not done so already:
http://www.die-sturmartillerie.com/659.htm
http://www.die-sturmartillerie.com/Einsatz659Batt.htm
http://www.die-sturmartillerie.com/287.htm

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Christian

[John Nelson]

Hey Ron,
Jentz is kinda of confusing on this one. On May.2.43, the I. and II./Sonderverbande 287 including the support elements were renamed Gren.Regt.92(mot.), hence the StuG Batterie 287 was technically renamed StuG Batterie 92. On May.22.43, the StuG Batterie 92 (fr.287) was renamed 1.Kp./Pz.Abt.Rhodes.
Interesting enough the rest of the Gren.Regt.92 was expanded into the Pz.Gren.Brig.92, and formed a Pz.Jg.Abt.192 by the end of '44. Later this Pz.Jg.Abt was reinforced with the Jagdpanzer Kompanie 1192.


John Nelson

[Ron Klages]

Christian and John,

Thank you for the information. Even Tessin was not clear regarding the number 952. Now I have it John.

Christian, excellent site.

Ron