Editing Volksgrenadier (section)

==History and organization==
The strategic emergency and concomitant manpower shortage resulting from the losses in mid-1944 required the creation of [[infantry]] divisions that economized on personnel and emphasized defensive strength over offensive strength. The ''Volksgrenadier'' divisions met this need by using only six line infantry [[battalion]]s instead of the normal nine for infantry divisions – already a common reality for many existing divisions. The units also had a higher proportion of [[submachine gun]]s and light [[Automatic firearm|automatic weapons]] and thus relied more on short-range firepower than in standard German Army infantry units. Automatic weapons like the new ''[[StG 44|Sturmgewehr 44]]'' and anti-tank weaponry like the single shot ''[[Panzerfaust]]'' were also used by ''Volksgrenadier'' units. One battalion of one grenadier regiment and the two companies of the engineer battalion were assigned bicycles for transportation instead of motor vehicles.{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}}

They were organized around small cadres of hardened veteran soldiers, noncommissioned officers and officers, and then bulked out with anything the Replacement Army could supply: "jobless" personnel of the shrinking ''[[Kriegsmarine]]'' and ''[[Luftwaffe]]'', recovered wounded soldiers from broken formations returning to duty from hospitals, older men who would have been considered too old or too unfit for the peacetime army, and young men and teenagers from the latest conscription classes were all recruited into the ranks.

===Organisation<ref>{{cite book|author=War Department|date=1945|title=Handbook on German Military Forces|location=Washington, D.C.|publisher=United States Government Printing Officer|page=II-18}}</ref>===
* Division headquarters
* Fusilier company or battalion (bicycle-mounted)
** Company headquarters
** [[Submachine gun]] platoon
** Submachine gun platoon
** Rifle platoon
** Heavy weapons platoon
** [[Infantry support gun|Infantry howitzer]] section
* Signal battalion
** Battalion headquarters
** Telephone company
** Radio company
** Supply platoon
* Grenadier regiment
** Regimental headquarters
** Regimental headquarters company
** Infantry battalion
** Infantry battalion
** Infantry howitzer company 
** Antitank rocket launcher company
* Grenadier regiment
* Grenadier regiment
* Artillery regiment
** Regimental headquarters
** Regimental headquarters battery
** 75&nbsp;mm gun battalion
** 105&nbsp;mm gun/howitzer battalion
** 105&nbsp;mm gun/howitzer battalion
** 150&nbsp;mm howitzer battalion
* Antitank battalion
** Battalion headquarters
** Battalion headquarters company 
** Antitank company (motorized)
** Antitank company (self-propelled)
** Antiaircraft company (self-propelled)
* Engineer battalion
** Battalion headquarters company 
** Engineer company (bicycle-mounted)
** Engineer company (bicycle-mounted)
* Supply regiment
** Supply troops
** Ordnance company
** Maintenance platoon
** Administrative troops
** Medical troops
** Veterinary company
** Field post office