Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

German invasion of the Soviet Union Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...

Waffen SS The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with volunteers and conscripts from both occupied and unoccupied lands. The grew from th ...

Flemish National League The (Dutch language, Dutch for "Flemish National Union" or "Flemish National League"), widely known by its acronym VNV, was a Flemish Movement, Flemish nationalist political party active in Belgium between 1933 and 1945.German invasion of May 1940. It was formed several months after the VNV had begun recruiting Flemish volunteers for smaller Waffen SS formations and was depicted as the future army of an independent Flemish state. Amid opposition from its personnel, the roughly 1,000-strong formation was given a notionally independent status as an SS Volunteer Legion Flanders (''SS-Freiwilligen Legion Flandern''). It subsequently sustained heavy casualties on the Eastern Front in fighting around

Leningrad Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

. The Flemish Legion was officially disbanded in May 1943 and reformed within the Waffen-SS as the SS Assault Brigade Langemarck (''SS-Sturmbrigade Langemarck''). 200 soldiers refused to swear allegiance to

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

in October 1943 and were transferred to other units or

penal units Penal is a town in south Trinidad, Trinidad and Tobago. It lies south of San Fernando, Princes Town, and Debe, and north of Moruga, Morne Diablo and Siparia. It was originally a rice- and cocoa-producing area but is now a rapidly expanding and ...

. It was subsequently reorganised on several occasions and was officially designated as a

division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

in September 1944 but remained around 2,000-strong and never expanded beyond

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. Br ...

-strength. It participated in fighting in

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, Estonia, and Pomerania. Its remaining personnel finally surrendered to the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

at

Mecklenburg Mecklenburg (; nds, label=Low German, Mękel(n)borg ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schwerin ...

on 3 May 1945.

Background

VNV and nationalist collaboration in Flanders

There were several political parties in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

at the time of the German invasion in May 1940 that were broadly sympathetic to the

authoritarian Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic votin ...

and anti-democratic ideals represented by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

. In

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

, the largest and most important of these groups was the

Flemish National League The (Dutch language, Dutch for "Flemish National Union" or "Flemish National League"), widely known by its acronym VNV, was a Flemish Movement, Flemish nationalist political party active in Belgium between 1933 and 1945.Flemish Movement The Flemish Movement ( nl, Vlaamse Beweging) is an umbrella term which encompasses various political groups in the Belgian region of Flanders and, less commonly, in French Flanders. Ideologically, it encompasses groups which have sought to promo ...

which had originated as a response to the perceived marginalisation of the Dutch language in Belgium during the 19th century. It became increasingly radical during and after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. VNV's ideology was framed in opposition to the Belgian state, calling for Flanders to form part of an racially defined "

Greater Netherlands Greater Netherlands () is an irredentist concept which unites the Netherlands, Flanders, and sometimes including Brussels. Additionally, a Greater Netherlands state may include the annexation of the French Westhoek, Suriname, formerly Dutch-speak ...

" (''dietsland'') by fusing with the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. It was also influenced by

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and

anti-communism Anti-communism is political and ideological opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in the Russian Empire, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, when the United States and the ...

but was initially distrustful of

Nazi ideology Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

which was seen as

anti-clerical Anti-clericalism is opposition to religious authority, typically in social or political matters. Historical anti-clericalism has mainly been opposed to the influence of Roman Catholicism. Anti-clericalism is related to secularism, which seeks to ...

. Nonetheless, the VNV became increasingly influenced by fascist ideas. At national elections in April 1939, VNV received approximately 15 percent of the Flemish vote. After the Belgian Army's surrender on 28 May 1940, a

Military Administration Military administration identifies both the techniques and systems used by military departments, agencies, and armed services involved in managing the armed forces. It describes the processes that take place within military organisations outsid ...

was created to govern the German-occupied Belgium. Hoping to expand its support in Flanders and influenced by Nazi racial ideals, it adopted the so-called ''

Flamenpolitik ''Flamenpolitik'' (German; "Flemish policy") is the name for certain policies pursued by German authorities occupying Belgium during World War I and World War II. The ultimate goal of these policies was the dissolution of Belgium into separate W ...

'' which gave preferential treatment to the Flemish population over the French-speaking

Walloons Walloons (; french: Wallons ; wa, Walons) are a Gallo-Romance ethnic group living native to Wallonia and the immediate adjacent regions of France. Walloons primarily speak '' langues d'oïl'' such as Belgian French, Picard and Walloon. Walloo ...

in areas such as the repatriation of Belgian prisoners of war. The VNV hoped to use German support to expand its own political influence within Flanders. After the start of the occupation, it shifted its ideological position to be more compatible with Nazi ideas and suspended demands for Flemish secession from Belgium.

Early recruitment campaign

In the first months of the occupation, the VNV's privileged position was increasingly challenged by smaller and more radically collaborationist groups including the Algemeene-SS Vlaanderen and DeVlag which embraced

Nazi ideology Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

and were more explicitly pro-German. In September 1940, the Algemeene-SS Vlaanderen announced its intention to recruit Flemish volunteers for the

Waffen-SS The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscripts from both occup ...

, initially sent to the SS-Division ''Wiking''. This began a "race" in Flanders to recruit volunteers for the German army although the VNV was initially reluctant to join because it feared it would lose control over its recruits. In contrast with "

Walloons Walloons (; french: Wallons ; wa, Walons) are a Gallo-Romance ethnic group living native to Wallonia and the immediate adjacent regions of France. Walloons primarily speak '' langues d'oïl'' such as Belgian French, Picard and Walloon. Walloo ...

", Flemish volunteers were considered " Nordic" in Nazi racial thinking and therefore racially suitable for the Waffen-SS rather than the

German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...

. Between April and June 1941, the VNV recruited 500 to 800 Flemish volunteers for a mixed Flemish-Dutch unit known as the SS-Volunteer Banner ''Nordwest'' (''SS-Freiwilligen Standarte Nordwest'') which the German authorities had promised would not be deployed in combat roles.

Formation

The

German invasion of the Soviet Union Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...

in June 1941 expanded the activities of collaborationist groups in Belgium and elsewhere in

German-occupied Europe German-occupied Europe refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly occupied and civil-occupied (including puppet governments) by the military forces and the government of Nazi Germany at various times between 1939 an ...

. On 8 July 1941, the VNV announced its intention to recruit a "Flemish Legion" to fight as part of the German forces on the Eastern Front. In propaganda, the Legion was depicted as the first step towards the creation of an independent Flemish army. It was advertised that the unit would be commanded by Flemish officers, and volunteers who had previously served in the Belgian Army were told that they would be able to retain past ranks and privileges. Approximately 560 men were recruited between July and August 1941. In practice, most of the recruits had been active members of the VNV. The creation of the Flemish Legion also forced the

Rexist Party The Rexist Party (french: Parti Rexiste), or simply Rex, was a far-right Catholic, nationalist, authoritarian and corporatist political party active in Belgium from 1935 until 1945. The party was founded by a journalist, Léon Degrelle,

, a largely French-speaking group in Belgium, to recruit a "

Walloon Legion The Walloon Legion (french: Légion Wallonie, "Wallonia Legion") was a unit of the German Army (''Wehrmacht'') and later of the Waffen-SS recruited among French-speaking collaborationists in German-occupied Belgium during World War II. It wa ...

" rather than the "Belgian Legion" it had originally advocated. The volunteers were transported to

Dębica Dębica (; yi, דעמביץ ''Dembitz'') is a town in southeastern Poland with 44,692 inhabitants as of December 2021. It is the capital of Dębica County. Since 1999 it has been situated in the Podkarpackie Voivodeship; it had previously been in ...

in modern-day

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

in August 1941. The first signs of dissatisfaction began to emerge as it became apparent that the unit would actually be commanded purely by Germans and that many of the other promises made during the recruitment campaign would not be kept. Discipline was harsh, and Flemish volunteer were often subject to "systematic humiliation". At the time, the Germans attempted to amalgamate the new volunteers into the ''Wiking'' formation. The majority of the new recruits refused to join the Waffen-SS and the units were instead joined into a new

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

-sized Flemish Legion, itself associated with the larger

Volunteer Legion Netherlands The Volunteer Legion Netherlands ( nl, Vrijwilligerslegioen Nederland) was a Collaboration with the Axis Powers during World War II, collaborationist military formation recruited in the German occupation of the Netherlands, German-occupied Neth ...

. In practice, the autonomy of the Flemish Legion would be increasingly ignored by the German military authorities and the VNV was unable to protest without compromising its own political position. As with some other formations at the time, the Flemish Legion was technically a "legion" attached to the Waffen-SS rather than a part of the Waffen-SS itself. According to the historian David Littlejohn, "the Germans were anxious to convey the impression of a semi-independent national unit" but the distinction was always illusory and was eventually abandoned in 1943. In practice, the Flemish Legion was effectively indistinguishable from other units of the Waffen-SS from the start and its personnel wore standard Waffen-SS uniforms with only a small shield-shaped badge depicting a Flemish lion to mark them out. In its first months, it was officially designated the SS Volunteer Legion "Flanders" (''SS-Freiwilligen Legioen Flandern'').

Deployment on the Eastern Front

Battles around Leningrad

The Flemish Legion was declared to be battleworthy and was deployed to the sector around

Leningrad Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

in November 1941 to participate in the military blockade of the city which had begun two months earlier. It was attached to the 2 SS Infantry Brigade. A large-scale offensive aimed to relieve Leningrad was launched by the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

in January 1942. The Flemish Legion was involved in heavy fighting and took significant losses. Reimond Tollenaere, a leading figure within the VNV who had enlisted in the unit, was killed in a

friendly fire In military terminology, friendly fire or fratricide is an attack by belligerent or neutral forces on friendly troops while attempting to attack enemy/hostile targets. Examples include misidentifying the target as hostile, cross-fire while eng ...

incident in the same month.

Michael Lippert Michael Hans Lippert (24 April 1897 – 1 September 1969) was a mid-level commander in the Waffen-SS of Nazi Germany during World War II. He commanded several concentration camps, including Sachsenhausen, before becoming a commander of the SS- ...

, the Legion's unpopular German commanding officer, was wounded in April 1942. He was replaced with Conrad Schellong, another German officer, who had previously served in the ''Wiking'' Division. The Legion was withdrawn from the front in June 1942 after almost six months in combat but were re-deployed to the region again in August 1942. They were finally withdrawn from the line in March 1943 in anticipation of the unit's reorganisation.

Ukraine

Soon after arriving at Dębica, the Legion was ordered to move on to Milowitz in

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

. In May 1943, the Flemish Legion was amalgamated with other Flemish volunteers to form the new SS-''Sturmbrigade'' Langemarck on the orders of

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...

. Tensions between the Flemish volunteers and the SS, however, led to some members refusing to take the SS oath of allegiance. The Germans again insisted that the volunteers take the oath in October 1943. Some 200 "rebels" who refused were transferred to other units or

penal units Penal is a town in south Trinidad, Trinidad and Tobago. It lies south of San Fernando, Princes Town, and Debe, and north of Moruga, Morne Diablo and Siparia. It was originally a rice- and cocoa-producing area but is now a rapidly expanding and ...

. In August, the VNV's leader

Hendrik Elias Hendrik Jozef Elias (12 June 1902 – 2 February 1973) was a Belgian politician and Flemish nationalist, notable as the leader of the Vlaams Nationaal Verbond between 1942 and 1944. Biography Elias was a noted academic, holding doctorates in bot ...

announced that the VNV would not recruit more members for the German army. The allocation of the title ''Langemarck'', in memory of the bloody World War I battle fought at Langemarck, West Flanders in 1914, was intended to represent Flemish-German camaraderie. However, the Flemings themselves did not understand why they had been given a title which represented the losses suffered by German soldiers trying to take over their country in 1914. The Flemings felt a jealousy that their French speaking countrymen, the

Walloons Walloons (; french: Wallons ; wa, Walons) are a Gallo-Romance ethnic group living native to Wallonia and the immediate adjacent regions of France. Walloons primarily speak '' langues d'oïl'' such as Belgian French, Picard and Walloon. Walloo ...

, were granted as a title their home region. Despite this, significant numbers of Flemings continued to sign up for service with the Waffen-SS. In addition to the veterans of ''Flandern'', the Sturmbrigade now gained a contingent of new Flemish volunteers, an anti-tank ''Panzerjäger'' company, an assault gun battalion equipped with StuGs and a

FlaK Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...

battalion. In October 1943, the brigade was renamed 6th SS Volunteer Sturmbrigade ''Langemarck''. In December 1943, the ''Langemarck'' was ready to be sent to the front. The total unit strength was 2,022 men. On 26 December 1943, ''Langemarck'' was sent to

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

to act as a part of

Army Group South Army Group South (german: Heeresgruppe Süd) was the name of three German Army Groups during World War II. It was first used in the 1939 September Campaign, along with Army Group North to invade Poland. In the invasion of Poland Army Group Sou ...

. Fighting alongside the 2nd SS Panzer Division ''Das Reich'', the brigade participated in the heavy defensive battles in the region of

Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

and

Zhitomir Zhytomyr ( uk, Жито́мир, translit=Zhytomyr ; russian: Жито́мир, Zhitomir ; pl, Żytomierz ; yi, זשיטאָמיר, Zhitomir; german: Schytomyr ) is a city in the north of the western half of Ukraine. It is the administrative ...

. In January, 1944 the ''Langemarck'' and elements of ''Das Reich'' were encircled by Soviet forces near

Zhitomir Zhytomyr ( uk, Жито́мир, translit=Zhytomyr ; russian: Жито́мир, Zhitomir ; pl, Żytomierz ; yi, זשיטאָמיר, Zhitomir; german: Schytomyr ) is a city in the north of the western half of Ukraine. It is the administrative ...

. Despite this, they fought their way out of the ''kessel'' (cauldron), suffering heavy casualties and losing the majority of their heavy equipment and vehicles. By early March, the brigade had been reduced to 400 men. At the end of April, the shattered ''Langemarck'' was ordered back to Bohemia for reforming.

Narva – Kurland Pocket

In Bohemia, 1,700 new recruits were waiting to join the division, and soon it was back up to strength. On 19 July 1944,

Kampfgruppe In military history, the German term (pl. ; abbrev. KG, or KGr in usage during World War II, literally "fighting group" or "battle group") can refer to a combat formation of any kind, but most usually to that employed by the of Nazi Germa ...

Rehmann was formed, commanded by SS-Hauptsturmführer Wilhelm Rehmann. KG Rehmann, consisting of the ''Langemarck's'' 2nd battalion was sent to the Narva front to become a part of

Felix Steiner Felix Martin Julius Steiner (23 May 1896 – 12 May 1966) was a German SS commander during the Nazi era. During World War II, he served in the Waffen-SS, the combat branch of the SS, and commanded several SS divisions and corps. He was awarded t ...

's

III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps The III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps (''III. (germanisches) SS-Panzerkorps'') was a German Waffen-SS armoured corps which saw action on the Eastern Front during World War II. The ''(germanische)'' (lit. Germanic) part of its designation was granted ...

which was defending the Tannenberg Line. The Tannenberg Line was anchored on three strategic hills. Running west to east, these were known as Hill 69.9 (''69.9-Höhe''), Grenadier Hill (''Grenadier-Höhe'') and Orphanage Hill (''Kinderheim-Höhe''). From Orphanage Hill, the rear side of the town of Narva could be protected. KG Rehmann was tasked with defending Orphanage Hill. Fighting alongside men of the 11. SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenadier Division ''Nordland'', the 5th SS Volunteer Sturmbrigade Wallonien, the 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian), the 4th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Brigade Nederland and several German formations, the ''Langemarck'' was engaged in very heavy combat against the Soviets. Over the next few months, ''Langemarck'', along with the remainder of Steiner's Corps, executed a fighting withdrawal into the

Kurland Pocket The Courland Pocket (Blockade of the Courland army group), (german: Kurland-Kessel)/german: Kurland-Brückenkopf (Courland Bridgehead), lv, Kurzemes katls (Courland Cauldron) or ''Kurzemes cietoksnis'' (Courland Fortress)., group=lower-alpha ...

, the brigade being in combat for much of the retreat. In September 1944, the remains of KG Rehmann were evacuated by ferry over the

Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages * Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originati ...

to Swinemünde and joined the rest of the Brigade. Following the allied invasion of Belgium, many Belgian fascists fled the country to Germany. The result of this was that both the ''Langemarck'' and the 5th SS Volunteer Sturmbrigade ''Wallonie'' were redesignated as divisions on 18 October 1944.

Pomerania – Oder Front

The new ''Langemarck'' division was designated 27th SS Volunteer Grenadier Division ''Langemarck''. While the influx of displaced Flemings meant that the division had a solid base to be formed on, it also meant that more training was required. It was not until 1 January 1945 that the division was ready to be sent back into the line. The ''Langemarck'' was once again attached to III. (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps, now a part of Steiner's newly formed

XI. SS Panzer Army __NOTOC__ The 11th SS Panzer Army (''SS-Panzer-Armeeoberkommando 11'') was not much more than a paper army formed in February 1945 by Heinrich Himmler while he was commander of Army Group Vistula. The military historian Antony Beevor wrote that whe ...

located on the lower

Oder The Oder ( , ; Czech, Lower Sorbian and ; ) is a river in Central Europe. It is Poland's second-longest river in total length and third-longest within its borders after the Vistula and Warta. The Oder rises in the Czech Republic and flows thr ...

near

Stettin Szczecin (, , german: Stettin ; sv, Stettin ; Latin language, Latin: ''Sedinum'' or ''Stetinum'') is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Po ...

. On 16 February, a kampfgruppe with the most experienced men of the division was ordered on the offensive as a part of Operation Sonnenwende, the operation to destroy a Soviet salient and to relieve the troops besieged in the town of

Arnswalde Choszczno (german: Arnswalde) is a town in West Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland. As of December 2021, the town has a population of 14,831. The town is in a marshy district between the river Stobnica and Klukom lake, southeast of Stargard and o ...

. The offensive had been conceived by

Generaloberst A ("colonel general") was the second-highest general officer rank in the German ''Reichswehr'' and ''Wehrmacht'', the Austro-Hungarian Common Army, the East Germany, East German National People's Army and in their respective police services. ...

Heinz Guderian Heinz Wilhelm Guderian (; 17 June 1888 – 14 May 1954) was a German general during World War II who, after the war, became a successful memoirist. An early pioneer and advocate of the " blitzkrieg" approach, he played a central role in t ...

as a massed assault all along the front, but had then been reduced by Hitler to the level of a local counterattack. Despite initial gains, the attack soon bogged down after III. (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps, with ''Nordland,'' ''Langemarck'' and ''Wallonie'' in the vanguard, reached Arnswalde. Heavy Soviet counterattacks threatened to encircle the corps, and so after evacuating all civilian survivors, Steiner canceled the operation and ordered the corps back to the area around Stargard and Stettin. The Soviet offensive of 1 March pushed ''Langemarck'' along with the rest of the III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps before it. By 4 March, the division was falling back to the area around Altdamm, the last defensive position east of the Oder. On the 19th, the unit fell back behind the Oder. As a part of Steiner's XI SS Panzer Army, the ''Langemarck'', now reduced to a Kampfgruppe, began falling back towards

Mecklenburg Mecklenburg (; nds, label=Low German, Mękel(n)borg ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schwerin ...

where it surrendered to the Red Army on 8 May 1945.

Commanders

*SS-Sturmbannführer

Michael Lippert Michael Hans Lippert (24 April 1897 – 1 September 1969) was a mid-level commander in the Waffen-SS of Nazi Germany during World War II. He commanded several concentration camps, including Sachsenhausen, before becoming a commander of the SS- ...

(24 September 1941 – 2 April 1942) *SS-Sturmbannführer Conrad Schellong (11 July 1942 – October 1944) *SS-Oberführer

Thomas Müller Thomas Müller (; born 13 September 1989) is a German professional footballer who plays for club Bayern Munich and the Germany national team. A versatile player, Müller has been deployed in a variety of attacking roles – as an attacking m ...

(October 1944 – 2 May 1945)

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

* *

External links

Légion Flamande (Vlaams Legioen)
at Belgium-WWII (

Cegesoma The Centre for Historical Research and Documentation on War and Contemporary Society (french: Centre d'Études et de Documentation Guerre et Sociétés contemporaines; nl, Studie- en Documentatiecentrum Oorlog en Hedendaagse Maatschappij), known b ...

) {{DEFAULTSORT:27th Ss Volunteer Division Langemarck #27 Foreign volunteer units of the Waffen-SS Infantry divisions of the Waffen-SS Belgian collaboration during World War II Military units and formations disestablished in 1945 Military units and formations established in 1940 Collaboration with the Axis Powers

Background

VNV and nationalist collaboration in Flanders

Early recruitment campaign

Formation

Deployment on the Eastern Front

Battles around Leningrad

Ukraine

Narva – Kurland Pocket

Pomerania – Oder Front

Commanders

See also

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

Further reading

External links