Initially assembled in December 1939, the 198th Infantry Division participated in the German invasion of Denmark as well as the occupation of Copenhagen on 9 April 1940.

Faced with advancing Western Allied armies, the division withdrew to the Upper Rhine sector by winter 1944/45 and participated in the failed attack against Strasbourg ("Operation Northwind").

The majority of the division was crushed by the Western Allies in the Colmar Pocket in March 1945; a token leftover force escaped across the Rhine into southwestern Germany.

II./308 subsequently seized Kastellet bastion without firing a shot before marching on Amalienborg palace, where a firefight broke out between the German infantrymen and the Danish Royal Life Guards.

The skirmish was still ongoing when Luftwaffe flyovers of the city, and the connected threat of bombardment, ultimately convinced Christian X of Denmark to order a ceasefire and to proceed with a surrender to Germany.

After the successful conclusion of that campaign, the 198th Infantry Division was put under supervision of Army Group South to participate in Operation Barbarossa.

[4] With the beginning of Operation München, the 198th Infantry Division initially fought west of the Dnieper, then took part in the attacks against Dnipropetrovsk.

[2] They would eventually be reassembled on 19 February 1943, using personnel from Wehrkreis IX and V.[1] On 10 April 1942, Röttig was replaced as divisional commander by Albert Buck.

[2] Later in the year 1943, the 198th Infantry Division fought in the Izium area between June and July, and participated in the German resistance against the Soviet Belgorod-Kharkov Offensive Operation in August.

As part of the German defeat at Kharkov, the 198th Infantry Division was heavily damaged and effectively reduced to Kampfgruppe strength.

The division, already battered during the battles at Kharkov, managed to break out of the encirclement and escape, but suffered severe losses once again as it retreated to Romania.

[2] After the German retreat from France, several minor formations were folded into the 198th Infantry Division during its defensive operations in the Upper Rhine area.

[1] In January 1945, the 198th Infantry Division took part in the attack of Army Group Upper Rhine against Strasbourg, dubbed Operation Nordwind.

Parts of the formation did however manage to escape across the Rhine into Germany, where the remnants of the 198th Infantry Division continued to put up token resistance against the Western Allies.