Panzergrenadier is a German term for a formation of panzer grenadiers, i.e. infantry units trained to fight in close cooperation with their own tanks. This term was officially used in 1942, when infantry divisions were renamed grenadier divisions and motorized infantry divisions into panzer grenadier divisions. It is worth adding that in the years 1937-1942, the Schützen Regiment was used to describe the infantry regiments serving in armored units. Theoretically, the basic equipment of armored grenadier divisions was to be armored half-tracked transporters, especially Sd.Kfz.251, but due to insufficient production, these infantry were often transported by trucks. As a standard, an armored grenadier division consisted of three infantry regiments, two battalions in each regiment and numerous support units, including anti-tank, anti-aircraft, sapper and communication units. Self-propelled guns, such as the StuG III, were often used in these formations. It is worth adding that the armored grenadier divisions were formed not only in the Wehrmacht, but also in the Waffen SS - for example the Totenkopf Division or the Hohenstaufen Division.
Battle for Kharkiv was played from February 21 to March 18, 1943. It is assumed that about 70,000 soldiers took part in the battle on the German side, while on the Soviet side - about 340,000. soldiers. On the German side was commanded by Field Marshal Erich von Manstein, while on the Soviet side - Marshal Filip Golikow. The genesis of the Battle of Kharkiv in 1943 dates back to the German defeat at Stalingrad in February 1943 and the Red Army's move to the west offensive in the area of today's south-west Russia, which was aimed at the German Army Group "South". At the beginning of February 1943, Soviet troops liberated, among others, Kharkiv, Kursk and Belgorod. At the same time, however, despite the successes, the Soviet troops were stretched significantly, their logistics was defective and, above all, they suffered relatively high losses in the course of their offensive operations. In this situation, despite the significant numerical superiority of the enemy, the German troops (especially armored forces - including the 2nd SS Panzer Corps) launched the offensive and in the period from February 21 to 28, 1943, they encircled and destroyed the Red Army troops fighting south of Kharkiv. On March 4, the II Corps entered the city, retaking it from the Soviet hands until March 15, and three days later Belgorod was recaptured. The Battle of Kharkiv stabilized the eastern front until the Battle of the Kursk in July 1943. In the course of the fighting, the Soviets lost about 80,000 people, while the German side - about 11,000 people.
Initially, the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler unit was a unit of about 120 people of the German dictator's bodyguard, which was formed in March 1933 and was commanded by Joseph "Sepp" Dietrich. The unit quickly grew to a unit of about 800 people, and the admission criteria were very strict. Not only were the physical abilities of the candidates guided, but absurd criteria such as "racial purity" were applied at the time, and the genealogy of candidates was checked not infrequently up to several generations back! At the outbreak of World War II, the unit was already a motorized regiment and fought in the September campaign (1939), and later also in Belgium and France in 1940. In 1940, the unit was expanded to the size of a brigade, and in 1941 it was sent to the campaign in the Balkans, where it fought in Greece, among others. From June 1941, the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler unit took part in Operation Barbarossa. In the summer of 1942, she was transferred to France and renamed the Panzer Grenadier Division. From the beginning of 1943, the division fought on the Eastern Front, in the territory of Ukraine, and in the summer of the same year it took part in the battles on the Kursk Arch. For a short time (in 1943) it was transferred to Italy, and at the end of 1943 it returned to the Eastern Front again, as an armored division. At the beginning of the following year (1944), the division was sent to Belgium, where its manpower and machinery were rebuilt. From June 1944, it fought with the Western Allies in Normandy, suffering heavy losses in the course of these fights. As a result, it was withdrawn to Germany and rebuilt again - in December 1944 the unit took part in the offensive in the Ardennes, but in January 1945 it was transferred to Hungary. However, it was decimated there, and in April of the same year its survivors forced their way west to surrender to the Allied forces. The Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler unit was considered the most elite among the Waffen SS divisions and often proved its high combat value. However, it should be remembered that its soldiers committed many war crimes during World War II, including murdering prisoners (to mention the crime in Taganrog or Malmeda) or civilians. Many soldiers and officers of this unit were put on trial (after 1945) - often sentenced to death.