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The Brandenburgers (german: Brandenburger) were members of the Brandenburg
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
special forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...
unit during
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 ...
. Originally, the unit was formed by and operated as an extension of the military's intelligence organ, the ''
Abwehr The ''Abwehr'' (German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', but the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context; ) was the German military-intelligence service for the ''Reichswehr'' and the ''Wehrmacht'' from 1920 to 1944. A ...
''. Members of this unit took part in seizing operationally important targets by way of sabotage and infiltration. Being foreign German nationals who were convinced
Nazi 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 ...
volunteers, constituent members had lived abroad and were proficient in foreign languages as well as being familiar with the way of life in the area of operations where they were deployed. The Brandenburg Division was generally subordinated to the army groups in individual commands and operated throughout
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russ ...
, in
northern Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in t ...
,
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
, the
Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
and in the
Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...
. In the later course of the war, parts of the special unit were used in ''
Bandenbekämpfung In German military history, ''Bandenbekämpfung'' (German; ), also Nazi security warfare (during World War II), refers to the concept and military doctrine of countering resistance or insurrection in the rear area during wartime through e ...
'' operations against partisans in
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
before the division was reclassified and merged into one of the
Panzergrenadier ''Panzergrenadier'' (), abbreviated as ''PzG'' (WWII) or ''PzGren'' (modern), meaning '' "Armour"-ed fighting vehicle "Grenadier"'', is a German term for mechanized infantry units of armoured forces who specialize in fighting from and in conjunc ...
divisions in the last months of the war. They committed various atrocities in the course of their operations.


Background and membership

The unit was the brainchild of ''Hauptmann'' (captain)
Theodor von Hippel Theodor-Gottlieb von Hippel (19 January 1890 – 1 January 1977)Immo Eberl, Helmut Marcon (1984): ''150 Jahre Promotion an der Wirtschaftswissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Universität Tübingen: Biographien der Doktoren, Ehrendoktoren und Habil ...
, who, after having his idea rejected by the ''
Reichswehr ''Reichswehr'' () was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first years of the Third Reich. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army () was dissolved in order to be reshaped ...
'', approached Admiral
Wilhelm Canaris Wilhelm Franz Canaris (1 January 1887 – 9 April 1945) was a German admiral and the chief of the '' Abwehr'' (the German military-intelligence service) from 1935 to 1944. Canaris was initially a supporter of Adolf Hitler, and the Nazi r ...
, commander of the German Intelligence Service, the ''
Abwehr The ''Abwehr'' (German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', but the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context; ) was the German military-intelligence service for the ''Reichswehr'' and the ''Wehrmacht'' from 1920 to 1944. A ...
''. Hippel proposed that small units, trained in sabotage and fluent in foreign languages, could operate behind enemy lines and wreak havoc with the enemy's command, communication and logistical tails. Canaris was at first against the proposal as he viewed such measures similar to what the
Bolsheviks The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
had done and was suspicious of Hippel's motives. Still determined to form the unit, Hippel looked to his section chief,
Helmuth Groscurth Helmuth Groscurth (16 December 1898 – 7 April 1943) was a German staff and ''Abwehr'' officer in the Wehrmacht and a member of the German resistance. As an intelligence officer he was an early proponent of the Brandenburgers, commanded unconve ...
, who supported the unit's formation and the two men conferred on the matter on 27 September 1939. Just a few days after their meeting, the Army General Staff put forth a directive authorizing the creation of "a company of saboteurs for the West." As part of the ''Abwehr's'' 2nd Department, Hippel was tasked with creating the unit. Originally, the unit Hippel assembled was named the ''Deutsche Kompagnie'', then later on 25 October it became the ''Baulehr-kompagnie 800'' and then again on 10 January 1940, the unit was called the ''Bau-Lehr-Bataillon z.b.V. 800'' (800th Special Duties Construction Training Battalion); but its later more widely known epithet, "the Brandenburgers", stemmed from the name of the unit's first permanent quarters. Training for the men in the Brandenburg Division ranged from five to seven months and included course instruction on reconnaissance, swimming, hand-to-hand combat, demolitions, marksmanship in both German and Allied weapons, conventional infantry tactics, and other specialized training. Brandenburg units were deployed as small commando outfits to penetrate into enemy territory and conduct both sabotage and anti-sabotage operations. Despite their demonstrated successes while incurring minimum casualties, many traditionally-minded German officers still found their use abhorrent. Most of the personnel were fluent in other languages, which allowed them, for example, to penetrate the Netherlands in 1940 disguised as Dutch barge crews just before the start of the
invasion An invasion is a military offensive in which large numbers of combatants of one geopolitical entity aggressively enter territory owned by another such entity, generally with the objective of either: conquering; liberating or re-establishing con ...
. In 1941, they preceded the
invasion of Yugoslavia The invasion of Yugoslavia, also known as the April War or Operation 25, or ''Projekt 25'' was a German-led attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia by the Axis powers which began on 6 April 1941 during World War II. The order for the invasion was p ...
undercover as Serbian workers. During the night before
Operation Barbarossa 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 ...
began, Brandenburger units crossed the Soviet border disguised as Soviet workers and
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 ...
soldiers. Others even adorned themselves in Arab garments to conduct surveillance on Allied warships traversing between the
Straits of Gibraltar The Strait of Gibraltar ( ar, مضيق جبل طارق, Maḍīq Jabal Ṭāriq; es, Estrecho de Gibraltar, Archaic: Pillars of Hercules), also known as the Straits of Gibraltar, is a narrow strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Medit ...
and North Africa ahead of the Wehrmacht deployment there. Correspondingly, Department II of the ''Abwehr'', under which the Brandenburgers were subsumed, had a distinct sub-component for army, navy, and air force operations. Many of the Brandenburgers were misfits who could hardly be characterized as conventional soldiers, due in large part to the nature of their operations. They would mingle with enemy soldiers, secretly countermand orders, redirect military convoys, and disrupt communications—all the while collecting intelligence along the way. Ahead of the primary invasion forces in the USSR, operatives from the Brandenburg Division seized bridges and strategically important installations in clandestine missions lasting for weeks before they linked up with advancing forces. The predecessor formation to the Brandenburg Division was the ''Freikorps Ebbinghaus'', which originated before the
invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week aft ...
in 1939. Colonel
Erwin von Lahousen Generalmajor Erwin Heinrich René Lahousen, Edler von Vivremont (25 October 1897 – 24 February 1955) was a high-ranking Abwehr official during the Second World War, as well as a member of the German Resistance and a key player in attempts to a ...
(and the defense groups of military districts VIII and XVII) from within Department II of the ''Abwehr'', put together small ''K-Trupps'' (fighting squads), which consisted of Polish-speaking
Silesians Silesians ( szl, Ślōnzŏki or Ślůnzoki; Silesian German: ''Schläsinger'' ''or'' ''Schläsier''; german: Schlesier; pl, Ślązacy; cz, Slezané) is a geographical term for the inhabitants of Silesia, a historical region in Central Europ ...
and ethnic
Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...
, whose job it was to occupy key positions and hold them until the arrival of regular Wehrmacht units. The first members of the "K-Trupps" were German nationals. Generally, these men were civilians who had never served in the army but were briefly trained by the "Abwehr" and were led by army officers. After the Polish campaign, this changed as these commandos became members of the Wehrmacht. Despite their seeming lack of prior experience, the demands placed on these newly formed commandos were high. It was mandatory that they be volunteers for this duty. They were also expected to be agile, capable of improvising, endowed with initiative and team spirit, highly competent in foreign languages and in their dealings with foreign nationals, and capable of the most demanding physical performance. Eventually, the early guiding principle that required members of the Division Brandenburg to be volunteers ended with their increasing use and integration with the regular army.


Operations

The night before the
Invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week aft ...
(Plan White) in September 1939, small groups of German special forces dressed in civilian clothes crossed the Polish border to seize key strategic points before dawn on the day of the invasion. This made them the first special operations unit to see action in the Second World War. ''Freikorps Ebbinghaus'' engaged in atrocities against Poland's population and its captured PoWs. On 4 September, members of the ''Freikorps Ebbinghaus'' executed 17 people at
Pszczyna Pszczyna (german: Pleß, cs, Pština) is a town in southern Poland with 25,823 inhabitants (2019), and a seat of a local gmina (commune). It is situated in the Silesian Voivodeship, and was a part of the Katowice Voivodeship from 1975 until adm ...
, among them
Boy Scout A Scout (in some countries a Boy Scout, Girl Scout, or Pathfinder) is a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement. Because of the large age and development span, many Scouting associations have split ...
s from the town's secondary schools. They also tortured 29 citizens of
Orzesze Orzesze (german: Orzesche, Silesian: ''Ôrzeszŏ'') is a town in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. Borders on the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union – metropolis with the population of 2 million. Located in the Silesian Highlands. I ...
before executing them. On 8 September 1939, in the upper Silesian city, Siemanowice, they executed 6 Poles and then on 1 October 1939, shot 18 people in Nowy Bytom. Larger massacres were carried out in
Katowice Katowice ( , , ; szl, Katowicy; german: Kattowitz, yi, קאַטעוויץ, Kattevitz) is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Upper Silesian metropolitan area. It is the 11th most popul ...
, where hundreds of people were executed. Within two weeks of the invasion of Poland, ''Ebbinghaus'' had "left a trail of murder in more than thirteen Polish towns and villages". On 15 December 1939 the company was expanded and re-designated as the ''Brandenburg Battalion''. After its formation, the soldiers of the new special unit were initially employed to protect the Romanian oil fields and later chrome ore supplies from Turkey. The battalion consisted of four
companies A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...
, organised along linguistic lines: * 1st company - men from Baltic/Russian territories * 2nd company -
Volksdeutsche In Nazi German terminology, ''Volksdeutsche'' () were "people whose language and culture had German origins but who did not hold German citizenship". The term is the nominalised plural of '' volksdeutsch'', with ''Volksdeutsche'' denoting a sin ...
from Romania; * 3rd company -
Sudeten Germans German Bohemians (german: Deutschböhmen und Deutschmährer, i.e. German Bohemians and German Moravians), later known as Sudeten Germans, were ethnic Germans living in the Czech lands of the Bohemian Crown, which later became an integral part ...
who spoke Czech, Slovak, and Ruthenian * 4th company -
Volksdeutsche In Nazi German terminology, ''Volksdeutsche'' () were "people whose language and culture had German origins but who did not hold German citizenship". The term is the nominalised plural of '' volksdeutsch'', with ''Volksdeutsche'' denoting a sin ...
from
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
In addition, the Battalion contained volunteers who had lived in Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine. A platoon of Brandenburgers took part in
Operation Weserübung Operation Weserübung (german: Unternehmen Weserübung , , 9 April – 10 June 1940) was Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign. In the early morning of 9 Ap ...
, the invasion of Scandinavia in April 1940, during which they secured strategic properties in Denmark and Norway. During the spring 1940 invasions of Belgium and the Netherlands, the Brandenburg units proved essential in seizing "vital points ahead of Guderian's panzers." Chronicling Brandenburger No. 3 Company's penetration into Belgium, Lahousen was gratified to report that, "forty-two out of sixty-one objectives were secured and handed over to the units following behind." For their exploits in Belgium and the Netherlands, the Brandenburgers were among the most decorated units marching with the invading German armies, which earned them the admiration of the ''Abwehr'' Chief,
Wilhelm Canaris Wilhelm Franz Canaris (1 January 1887 – 9 April 1945) was a German admiral and the chief of the '' Abwehr'' (the German military-intelligence service) from 1935 to 1944. Canaris was initially a supporter of Adolf Hitler, and the Nazi r ...
. On 27 May 1940, chief-of-staff of the High Command of the German armed forces,
Wilhelm Keitel Wilhelm Bodewin Johann Gustav Keitel (; 22 September 188216 October 1946) was a German field marshal and war criminal who held office as chief of the '' Oberkommando der Wehrmacht'' (OKW), the high command of Nazi Germany's Armed Forces, duri ...
, wrote to Canaris that the Brandenburgers had "fought outstandingly well" which was further validated when Hitler presented
Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia est ...
commendations to 75% of the 600 men who participated. By October 1940, the Brandenburgers constituted an entire regiment-sized unit. The rest of the Brandenburgers were assigned to Panzer Corps ''Grossdeutschland'' along with its old training partner from 1940 to 1941, the ''Grossdeutschland'' Division. The unit was again deployed in
Operation Marita The German invasion of Greece, also known as the Battle of Greece or Operation Marita ( de , Unternehmen Marita, links = no), was the attack of Greece by Italy and Germany during World War II. The Italian invasion in October 1940, which is usu ...
, the invasion of the Balkans. On 6 April 1941, during Operation Marita, the Brandenburgers managed to take the strategically important bridge over the
Vardar The Vardar (; mk, , , ) or Axios () is the longest river in North Macedonia and the second longest river in Greece, in which it reaches the Aegean Sea at Thessaloniki. It is long, out of which are in Greece, and drains an area of around . Th ...
and they also secured the gorge on the River Danube which forms part of the boundary between Serbia and Romania known otherwise as the
Iron Gates The Iron Gates ( ro, Porțile de Fier; sr, / or / ; Hungarian: ''Vaskapu-szoros'') is a gorge on the river Danube. It forms part of the boundary between Serbia (to the south) and Romania (north). In the broad sense it encompasses a rou ...
. Shortly after this, they captured the island of
Euboea Evia (, ; el, Εύβοια ; grc, Εὔβοια ) or Euboia (, ) is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. It is separated from Boeotia in mainland Greece by the narrow Euripus Strait (only at its narrowest poin ...
. Additional operations were demanded of the Brandenburgers during the opening phase for the June 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union, as they were the first to sweep across the border, destroying power facilities, cutting communication lines, spreading disinformation, and activating "sleeper" agents. Their most notable mission was taking the bridges over the
Daugava , be, Заходняя Дзвіна (), liv, Vēna, et, Väina, german: Düna , image = Fluss-lv-Düna.png , image_caption = The drainage basin of the Daugava , source1_location = Valdai Hills, Russia , mouth_location = Gulf of Riga, Baltic Se ...
in
Daugavpils Daugavpils (; russian: Двинск; ltg, Daugpiļs ; german: Dünaburg, ; pl, Dyneburg; see other names) is a state city in south-eastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. The parts of the c ...
on 28 June 1941, during which members of the 8th Company of the Brandenburg Kommandos crossed the bridge in a commandeered Soviet truck, overpowered the guards and held the position for two hours against significant Soviet counterattacks. From June 1942 through February 1943, the Brandenburgers carried out commando operations against Allied supply lines in North Africa by way of clandestine missions in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia. In early August 1942, a Brandenburg unit of 62
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 ...
and Sudeten Germans led by
Adrian von Fölkersam Adrian Freiherr von Fölkersam (russian: Адриан Арминович Фелькерсам; 20 December 1914 – 21 January 1945) was a German Brandenburger and Waffen-SS officer in World War II. Career Fölkersam was born into an aristocra ...
penetrated farther into enemy territory than any other German unit. They had been ordered to seize and secure the vital
Maikop Maykop (russian: Майкоп, p=mɐjˈkop Help:IPA/Russian, mɐj'kop); ady, Мыекъуапэ, Mıéquapə ) is the capital city of the Republic of Adygea in Russia, located on the right bank of the Belaya River (Kuban), Belaya River (a tribut ...
oilfields. Disguised as
NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union. ...
men, and driving Soviet trucks, Fölkersam's unit passed through the Soviet front lines and moved deep into hostile territory. The Brandenburgers ran into a large group of
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 ...
soldiers fleeing from the front. Fölkersam saw an opportunity to use them to the unit's advantage. By persuading them to return to the Soviet cause, he was able to join with them and move almost at will through the Soviet lines. On 26 December 1942, the men of Parachute Company of the Brandenburg Regiment were transported by gliders in an operation to destroy bridges and supply routes used by the British in North Africa. It was a disaster. Some of the gliders were shot down while flying over enemy lines and others were destroyed approaching their targets. Most of the paratroopers were killed in the operation. Units of the division were sent to the Balkans to engage in anti-partisan operations. In mid 1943, many Brandenburger units were moved from the Balkans, and took part in actions to disarm Italian soldiers. One vital area was the island of
Kos Kos or Cos (; el, Κως ) is a Greek island, part of the Dodecanese island chain in the southeastern Aegean Sea. Kos is the third largest island of the Dodecanese by area, after Rhodes and Karpathos; it has a population of 36,986 (2021 census), ...
, in the
Dodecanese The Dodecanese (, ; el, Δωδεκάνησα, ''Dodekánisa'' , ) are a group of 15 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the southeastern Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean, off the coast of Turkey's Anatolia, of which 26 are inhabited. ...
island chain off the coast of
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
. Kos had been secured by British troops in September 1943, and a large garrison of allied Italian troops was also present. Along with
Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...
paratroop forces, Brandenburgers took part in the recapture of the island. On 25 May 1944, members of the division, attached to '' SS-Fallschirmjäger-Bataillon 500'', took part in the unsuccessful Operation Rösselsprung, an airborne operation to capture Yugoslav Partisan leader
Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito (; sh-Cyrl, Тито, links=no, ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman, serving in various positions from 1943 until his deat ...
. In September 1944 it was decided that special operations units were no longer necessary. The Brandenburg Division became the Infantry Division Brandenburg and transferred to the Eastern front. Approximately 1,800 men (including von Fölkersam) were transferred to SS-''Standartenführer''
Otto Skorzeny Otto Johann Anton Skorzeny (12 June 1908 – 5 July 1975) was an Austrian-born German SS-''Obersturmbannführer'' (lieutenant colonel) in the Waffen-SS during World War II. During the war, he was involved in a number of operations, including th ...
's ''SS-Jäger-Bataillon 502'' operating within '' SS-Jagdverband Mitte'', but mostly to the '' SS-Jagdverband Ost'' until the end of the war. Only the Kurfürst Regiment retained its original role as a commando unit. In late 1944, the division was equipped with a Panzer Regiment and redesignated ''Panzergrenadier-Division Brandenburg'' and returned to the Eastern front. The Brandenburgers were involved in heavy fighting near Memel, until their withdrawal, along with the ''Großdeutschland'', via ferry to
Pillau Baltiysk (russian: Балти́йск; german: Pillau; Old Prussian: ''Pillawa''; pl, Piława; lt, Piliava; Yiddish: פּילאַווע, ''Pilave'') is a seaport town and the administrative center of Baltiysky District in Kaliningrad Oblast, Rus ...
. The division was all but annihilated during the heavy fighting near Pillau and only 800 men escaped to the thin strip of land at
Frische Nehrung The Vistula Spit ( pl, Mierzeja Wiślana; russian: Балтийская коса; german: Frische Nehrung) is an aeolian sand spit, or peninsular stretch of land that separates Vistula Lagoon from Gdańsk Bay, in the Baltic Sea, with its tip sepa ...
. While some survivors surrendered to the British in
Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sch ...
in May, others enlisted in the
French Foreign Legion The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, Armoured Cavalry Arm, cavalry, Military engineering, engineers, Airborne forces, airborne troops. It was created ...
and fought in the
First Indochina War The First Indochina War (generally known as the Indochina War in France, and as the Anti-French Resistance War in Vietnam) began in French Indochina from 19 December 1946 to 20 July 1954 between France and Việt Minh (Democratic Republic of Vi ...
where their skills proved an asset.


Sub-battalions


Bergmann Battalion

The
Bergmann battalion The Special Group Bergmann or the Bergmann Battalion (german: Sonderverband Bergmann) was a military unit of the German Abwehr during World War II, composed of five German-officered companies of the Caucasian volunteers. History The Bergmann ba ...
(meaning "miner") was a military unit of the German
Abwehr The ''Abwehr'' (German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', but the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context; ) was the German military-intelligence service for the ''Reichswehr'' and the ''Wehrmacht'' from 1920 to 1944. A ...
during
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 ...
, composed of five German-officered companies of volunteers from the
Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...
region of the Soviet Union. The battalion was formed of the émigrés and
Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
POW A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war ...
s from the Caucasian republics at Neuhammer in October 1941. Subordinated to the German commando battalion Brandenburgers and placed under the command of ''
Oberleutnant () is the highest lieutenant officer rank in the German-speaking armed forces of Germany (Bundeswehr), the Austrian Armed Forces, and the Swiss Armed Forces. Austria Germany In the German Army, it dates from the early 19th century. Trans ...
''
Theodor Oberländer Theodor Oberländer (1 May 1905 – 4 May 1998) was an Ostforschung scientist and German Nazi official and politician, who after the Second World War served as Federal Minister for Displaced Persons, Refugees and Victims of War in West Germany ...
, the unit received training at Neuhammer and
Mittenwald Mittenwald is a German municipality in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in Bavaria. Geography Mittenwald is located approximately 16 kilometres to the south-east of Garmisch-Partenkirchen. It is situated in the Valley of the River Isar, b ...
(Bavaria) with the ''
Gebirgsjäger ''Gebirgsjäger'' () are the light infantry part of the alpine or mountain troops (''Gebirgstruppe'') of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The word '' Jäger'' (meaning "hunter" or "huntsman") is a characteristic term used for light infantry in ...
''. Later a special 130-men-strong
Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
contingent of Abwehr codenamed "Tamara-II" was incorporated into Bergmann. By March 1942, there were five companies of some 300 Germans and 900 Caucasians. In August 1942, Bergmann went to the Eastern Front, where it saw its first action in the North Caucasus campaign in August 1942. The unit engaged in anti-partisan actions in the
Mozdok Mozdok (russian: Моздо́к; os, Мæздæг, ''Mæzdæg''; Kabardian: Мэздэгу) is a town and the administrative center of Mozdoksky District of North Ossetia – Alania, Russia, located on the left shore of the Terek River, no ...
-
Nalchik Nalchik (russian: Нальчик, p=ˈnalʲtɕɪk; Kabardian: //; krc, Нальчик //) is the capital city of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, Russia, situated at an altitude of in the foothills of the Caucasus Mountains; about northwe ...
-
Mineralnye Vody Mineralnye Vody (Min-Vody) ( rus, Минеральные Воды (Мин-Воды), p=mʲɪnʲɪˈralʲnɨjə ˈvodɨ, mʲɪn ˈvodɨ; lit. ''mineral waters'') is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in Stavropol Krai, Russia, located a ...
area and conducted reconnaissance and subversion in the
Grozny Grozny ( rus, Грозный, p=ˈgroznɨj; ce, Соьлжа-ГӀала, translit=Sölƶa-Ġala), also spelled Groznyy, is the capital city of Chechnya, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the 2010 census, it had a pop ...
area. At the end of 1942, Bergmann conducted a successful sortie through the Soviet lines, bringing with them some 300
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 ...
defectors, and covered the German retreat from the Caucasus. Bergmann went through a series of engagements with the Soviet partisans and regular forces in the
Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...
in February 1943 and was dissolved—like other ''
Ostlegionen ''Ostlegionen'' ("eastern legions"), ''Ost-Bataillone'' ("eastern battalions"), ''Osttruppen'' ("eastern troops"), and ''Osteinheiten'' ("eastern units") were units in the Army of Nazi Germany during World War II made up of personnel from the ...
'' units—at the end of 1943. The significantly shrunken ex-Bergmann companies were dispatched to conduct police functions in
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
and
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 ...
.


Nachtigall and Roland Battalions

The
Nachtigall Battalion The Nachtigall Battalion ( en, Nightingale Battalion), also known as the Ukrainian Nightingale Battalion Group (german: Bataillon Ukrainische Gruppe Nachtigall), or officially as Special Group NachtigallAbbot, Peter. ''Ukrainian Armies 1914-55'', ...
, officially known as Special Group Nachtigall, and the Roland Battalion, officially known as Special Group Roland, were the subunits under command of the ''
Abwehr The ''Abwehr'' (German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', but the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context; ) was the German military-intelligence service for the ''Reichswehr'' and the ''Wehrmacht'' from 1920 to 1944. A ...
'' special operation unit Brandenburgers (1st Brandenberg Battalion). They were the two military units formed 25 February 1941 by head of the ''Abwehr''
Wilhelm Franz Canaris Wilhelm Franz Canaris (1 January 1887 – 9 April 1945) was a German admiral and the chief of the '' Abwehr'' (the German military-intelligence service) from 1935 to 1944. Canaris was initially a supporter of Adolf Hitler, and the Nazi r ...
, which sanctioned the creation of the "Ukrainian Legion" under German command. They were manned primarily by occupied Polish citizens of
Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...
ethnicity directed to unit by
Bandera Bandera - from a Spanish word meaning a ''flag'' - may refer to: Places * Bandera County, Texas ** Bandera, Texas, its county seat ** Bandera Creek, a river in Texas, with its source near Bandera Pass ** Bandera Pass, a mountain pass in Bandera C ...
's
OUN Oun or OUN may refer to People * Ahmed Oun (born '1946), Libyan major general * Ek Yi Oun (1910–2013), Cambodian politician * Kham-Oun I (1885–1915), Lao queen consort * Õun, an Estonian surname; notable people with this surname * Oun Kham (18 ...
orders. In May 1941, the German command decided to split a 700-strong Ukrainian Legion into two battalions: Nachtigall ("Nightingale") and Roland Battalion. Training for Nachtigall took place in Neuhammer near Schlessig. On the Ukrainian side, the commander was
Roman Shukhevych Roman-Taras Yosypovych Shukhevych ( uk, Рома́н-Тарас Йо́сипович Шухе́вич, also known by his pseudonym, Tur and Taras Chuprynka; 30 June 1907 – 5 March 1950), was a Ukrainian nationalist, one of the commanders of Na ...
and on the German,
Theodor Oberländer Theodor Oberländer (1 May 1905 – 4 May 1998) was an Ostforschung scientist and German Nazi official and politician, who after the Second World War served as Federal Minister for Displaced Persons, Refugees and Victims of War in West Germany ...
. (Oberländer was later to become Federal Minister for Displaced Persons, Refugees and War Victims in the
Federal Republic of Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between ...
.) Ex-Brandenburger ''Oberleutnant'' Dr. Hans-Albrecht Herzner was placed in military command of the Battalion. The Nachtigall unit was outfitted in the standard Wehrmacht uniforms. Before entering Lviv, they placed blue and yellow ribbons on their shoulders. In comparison to Nachtigall – which used ordinary Wehrmacht uniform – the Roland Battalion was outfitted in the
Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...
n uniform with yellow armband with text "''Im Dienst der Deutschen Wehrmacht''" (In the service of the German Wehrmacht). They were given Austrian helmets from World War I. The Battalion was set up by the ''Abwehr'' and organized by Richard Yary of the OUN(b) in March 1941, prior the German invasion to Soviet Union. Approximately 350 Bandera's OUN followers were trained at the ''Abwehr'' training centre at the Seibersdorf under command of the former Poland Army major Yevhen Pobiguschiy. In Germany, in November 1941 the Ukrainian personnel of the Legion were reorganized into the 201st Schutzmannschaft Battalion. It numbered 650 persons which served for one year at Belarus before disbanding. Many of its members, especially the commanding officers, went on to the
Ukrainian Insurgent Army The Ukrainian Insurgent Army ( uk, Українська повстанська армія, УПА, translit=Ukrayins'ka povstans'ka armiia, abbreviated UPA) was a Ukrainian nationalist paramilitary and later partisan formation. During World ...
and 14 of its members joined
14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician) The 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician) (german: 14. Waffen-Grenadier-Division der SS alizische Nr. 1}; uk, 14а Гренадерська Дивізія СС (1а галицька)), known as the 14th SS-Volunteer Division ...
''SS-Freiwilligen-Schützen-Division Galizien'' in spring 1943.


See also

*
Battle of Velikiye Luki The Battle of Velikiye Luki, also named Velikiye Luki offensive operation (russian: Великолукская наступательная операция), started with the attack by the forces of the Red Army's Kalinin Front against the We ...
*
Special Staff F Special Staff F (german: Sonderstab F) was the cover name for a German military mission to Iraq during World War II. ''Sonderstab F'' was created on 20 May 1941 and ceased to exist on 20 June 1941. Description On 23 May, the instructions for ''Son ...
* Operation Mammoth *
Robey Leibbrandt Sidney Robey Leibbrandt (25 January 1913 – 1 August 1966) was a South African Olympic Games, Olympian sportsman, who during World War II acted as an Abwehr agent for the Third Reich against the British Empire in South Africa. He was convicted ...
*
Kampfgeschwader 200 ''Kampfgeschwader'' 200 (KG 200) (" irCombat Squadron 200") was a German ''Luftwaffe'' special operations unit during World War II. The unit carried out especially difficult bombing and transport operations and long-distance reconnaissance flight ...


Notes


References


Citations


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Further reading

* * * {{Subject bar , portal1=Military of Germany , portal2=World War II Abwehr German World War II special forces Special forces units and formations Foreign volunteer units of the Wehrmacht Foreign volunteer units of Nazi Germany Military units and formations established in 1939 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945 Military units and formations of Germany in Yugoslavia in World War II