Hugo Primozic, legendary StuG Ace of WWII

I. Introduction:

Hugo Primozic was a famous StuG Ace of WWII, credited with destroying 60 Soviet tanks during the fierce Battle of Rzhev. 

When we think about the German Aces of WWII, the first that comes to mind are the Panzer Aces, then the Luftwaffe, but rarely those warriors from other military units…like the StuGs; despite the fact that the StuGs were the most effective “tank killers” of the Wehrmacht during the entire conflict.

Hugo Primozic is one of the few German elite warriors who prove that you don’t need a Tiger tank to face the mighty Red Army. 

II. Early life and military career.

Hugo Primozic was born in the town of Wurttemberg, Germany. His father was an ethnic Slovenian while his mother was German.

Initially trained as a locksmith, Primozic quickly changes his career and decides to join the 100.000-strong army of the Weimar Republic(Reichswehr).

After the start of WWII, he fought during the Blitzkrieg against France as an artillery gunner.

Dissatisfied with his current position in the Wehrmacht, he asked to be redeployed to the mechanized assault gun units. Luckily for Primozic, his application was accepted.

III. Hugo Primozic’s hour of Glory: Rzhev Salient

In 1942, Hugo Primozic joins the 667th StuG battalion which was very soon sent to the Eastern Front. This moment marks the beginning of Primozic’s legendary career.

On September 15, 1942, Primozic’s unit was defending a critical sector in what we all know today as the Rhzev Salient. 

A Soviet Armor brigade attempts a breakthrough on that day and only Primozic’s small unit(2-3 StuGs) was standing on their path to victory.

Overwhelmed and most likely outgunned, Primozic’s small StuG unit seems to not have any chance of success against the Soviets. 

Unfortunately for the Red Army, Primozic and his small StuG unit proved to be formidable adversaries.

Realizing that attacking the Soviet armored column was not an option, Primozic and his fellows decided to simply wait for the enemy tanks to get close enough(even within 500 meters of range).

Once in range, Primozic and his fellows will first concentrate their fire against the most dangerous of the Soviet tanks, then focus on the easier targets.

During this encounter, Primozic StuG was shot twice, but each time, the enemy shells ricochet.

On the other hand, Primozic successfully knocks out a KV heavy tank(not clear if a KV-2 or KV1-S).

With the most dangerous Soviet tanks knocked out, Primozic and the other StuG units continued to change their firing locations.

By being on the move, the StuGs first avoided Soviet tank and artillery fire, while also avoiding any flanking maneuvers.

By the end of the day, Primozic and his allies achieve the unthinkable.

The Soviets suffered heavy losses(24 tanks) and were forced to retreat.

For this achievement, Hugo Primozic was rewarded the Knight’s Cross to the Iron Cross.

Primozic would later write a report about this fierce clash:

“On 15th September we had only two StuGs ready when the Russians wanted to break through. There was heavy artillery fire, and we had to hide in trenches until the storm was over. When the artillery barrage ended, the first enemy tanks already passed our positions, while we still had to climb aboard our guns.”

You might think that this is the end of Primozic’s story, but the interesting part now comes.

The Soviets didn’t give up completely on recapturing the Rhzev Salient, on November 24, 1942, they launched Operation Mars, of course, Soviet armor would again be the spearhead of the Red Army.

Once again, Hugo Primozic’s unit would be deployed to counter the Soviet advance. 

Hugo Primozic would achieve another success, knocking out another 7 Soviet tanks that day and raising his total kill streak to 60 tanks disabled before the end of 1943. 

To put this number in context, Primozic’s unit, Sturmgeschütz Abteilung 667, which consisted of only 21 Stugs, destroyed approximately 468 enemy tanks in the same timeframe of 4 months.

For his skills in battle and devotion to duty, Hugo Primozic also received the Oak Leaves to the
Knight’s Cross, thus becoming the first Noncommissioned Officer to receive this decoration.

On January 31, 1943, Primozic will also be promoted to the rank of Leutnant.

The Wehrmacht propaganda magazine Signal will also mention in an article another great achievement of Hugo Primozic:

“Wachtmeister Primozic destroyed tanks day after day during an enemy offensive. On the fourth day, he had to cover the flank of his division, but during that day he fired his last shell… He had to retreat to escape from encirclement by breaking through… There was another StuG, immobilized, and while the Russians were closing in, Primozic came out of his vehicle to connect both vehicles, and drove both back to their own lines…”

Since Primozic acquired a lot of experience in knocking out Soviet tanks, his knowledge was considered to be too valuable, so he was assigned to a training unit as a military instructor. 

From this point until the war’s end, Primozic will only focus on his training career.

IV. After WWII

At the end of WWII, in May 1945, Primozic was captured by the American forces and survived the War.

He lived the rest of his days in the German town of Fulda and passed away on March 18, 1996.

V. Sources:

1. Bob Carruthers, Stürmgeschutze: Armoured Assault Guns, Pen&Sword Military.
2. Mike Syron, Panzerkrieg: The Rise and Fall of Hitler’s Tank Divisions, Carroll & Graf.
3. James Lucas, Foreword by Robert Kershaw, War on the Eastern Front – The German Soldier in Russia 1914–1945, Frontline Books, London