Late 1940 to May 1941:
Following the Western Campaign, the corps initially remained in France and Belgium as an occupation force.
In May 1941, orders were issued to redeploy to eastern Poland (the General Government), where the corps—operating under the 17th Army—prepared for the attack on the Soviet Union.
June to December 1941:
With the launch of Operation Barbarossa on June 22, 1941, the corps advanced via Rawa Ruska toward Lemberg (Lviv).
The route took the troops (at times referred to as "Group Schwedler" after their commander, Viktor von Schwedler) through Tarnopol and Proskurov to the Belaya Tserkov area and to positions securing the banks of the Dnieper during the Battle of Kiev.
By late autumn 1941, the force had advanced via Stalino (Donetsk) into the Voroshilovgrad (Luhansk) region.
