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20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian)
Encyclopedia
20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian) was a unit of the Waffen SS established on 25 May 1944 in German occupied Estonia during World War II. Formed in Spring 1944 after the general conscription-mobilization was announced in Estonia on 31 January 1944 by the German occupying authorities, the cadre
of the 3rd Estonian SS Volunteer Brigade, renamed the 20th Estonian SS Volunteer Division on 23 January 1944, was returned to Estonia and reformed. Additionally 38,000 men were conscripted in Estonia and other Estonian units that had fought on various fronts in the German Army, and the Finnish Infantry Regiment 200
were rushed to Estonia.
Estonian officers and men in other units that fell under the conscription proclamation and had returned to Estonia had their rank prefix changed from "SS" to "Waffen" (Hauptscharführer
would be referred to as a Waffen-Hauptscharführer rather than SS-Hauptscharführer). The wearing of SS runes on the collar was forbidden, and these formations began wearing national insignia instead.
The Division fought the Red Army
on the Eastern Front
and surrendered in May 1945.
was complete by 21 June 1940 and rendered "official" by a communist coup d'état
supported by Soviet troops and the Nazi government under the 23 August 1939 agreement signed in Moscow between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union as a Treaty of Non-Aggression. A secret protocol of the pact defined domains of influence, with the Soviet Union gaining eastern Poland, Finland, Latvia, Estonia and the Romanian province of Bessarabia. Germany was to control western Poland and Lithuania.
After Nazi Germany
invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, the Germans were perceived by most Estonians as liberators from the USSR and its repression, and hopes were raised for the restoration of the country's independence. The initial enthusiasm that accompanied the liberation from Soviet occupation quickly waned as Estonia became a part of the German-occupied "Reichskommissariat Ostland
"
By January 1944, the front was pushed back by the Red Army almost all the way to the former Estonian border. On 31 January 1944 general conscription-mobilization was announced in Estonia by the German authorities. On 7 February Jüri Uluots
, the last constitutional prime minister of the republic of Estonia, supported the mobilization call during a radio address in the hope of restoring the Estonian Army and the country's independence. 38,000 men were conscripted, the formation of the 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian) had begun.
and the 287th Police Fusilier Battalion and the returned Estonian volunteers of the Finnish army unit 200
.
, the division was ordered to be replaced on the Nevel
front and transported to the Narva front, to defend Estonia.
The arrival of the I.Battalion, 1st Estonian Regiment at Tartu
coincided with the prepared landing operation by the left flank of the Leningrad Front to the west coast of Lake Peipus, 120 kilometres south of Narva. The I.Battalion, 1st Estonian Regiment was placed at the Yershovo Bridgehead on the east coast of Lake Peipus. Estonian and German units cleared the west coast of Peipsi of Soviets by February 16. Soviet casualties were in thousands.
Felix Steiner
's III SS (Germanic) Panzer Corps, then defending the Narva bridgehead
. The division was to replace the remnants of the 9th and 10th Luftwaffe Field Division
s, which were struggling to hold the line against a Soviet bridgehead north of the town of Narva. Upon arriving at the front on 20 February, the division was ordered to eliminate the Soviet bridgehead. In nine days of heavy fighting, the division pushed the Soviets back across the river and restored the line. The division remained stationed in the Siivertsi and Auvere sectors, being engaged in heavy combat.
In May, they were pulled out of the front line and reformed with the recently returned Narwa battalion into the division as the reconnaissance
battalion. By that time, active conscription of Estonian men into the German armed forces was well under way. By Spring 1944, approximately 32,000 men were drafted into the German forces, with the 20th Waffen Grenadier Division consisting of some 15,000 men.
On 26 July, pursuing the withdrawing defenders, the Soviet attack fell onto the Tannenberg Line. The Soviet Air Force and artillery bombarded the German positions, destroying most of the forest on the hills. On the morning of 27 July, the Soviet forces launched another powerful artillery barrage on the Sinimäed.
The heaviest Soviet attack took place on July 29. By noon, the Red Army had almost seized control of the Tannenberg Line. The last reserve on the front, I.Battalion, 1st Estonian Regiment had been spared from the previous counter attacks. The scarcity of able-bodied men forced Sturmbannführer Paul Maitla
to request reinforcements from patients in the field hospital. Twenty injured men responded, joining the remmnants of other units including a part of the Kriegsmarine
and supported by the single remaining Panther tank
. The counter attack started from the parish cemetery south of the Tornimägi with the left flank of the assault clearing the hill of Soviet soldiers. The attack continued towards the summit under heavy Soviet artillery and bomber attack, culminating in close combat on the Soviet positions. The Estonian troops moved into the trenches. Running out of ammunition, they used Soviet grenades and automatic weapons taken from the fallen. According to some veterans, it appeared that low-flying Soviet bombers were attempting to hit every individual Estonian soldier moving between craters, some of them getting buried under soil from the explosions of Soviet shells. The Soviets were forced to retreat from the Grenaderimägi Hill.
The battle took many casualties in the division, including Sturmbannführer Georg Sooden
who was killed on July 28 and Hauptsturmführer Oskar Ruut
on August 3.
Vent and sent south to help defend the Emajõgi
river line, seeing heavy fighting.
At the end of August, the III.Battalion, 1st Estonian Regiment was formed from the 1st Battalion of the Finnish Infantry Regiment 200
recently returned to Estonia. As their largest operation, supported by Estonian Police Battalions No. 37, 38 and Mauritz Freiherr von Strachwitz's tank squadron, they destroyed the bridgehead of two Soviet divisions and recaptured Kärevere Bridge by 30 August. The operation shifted the entire front back to the southern bank of the Emajõgi and encouraged the II Army Corps to launch an operation attempting to recapture Tartu. The attack of 4–6 September reached the northern outskirts of the city but was repulsed by units of the Soviet 86th, 128th, 291st and 321st Rifle Divisions. Relative calm settled on the front for the subsequent thirteen days.
authorised the full withdrawal from Estonia in mid September, all men who wished to stay to defend their homes were released from service. Many chose this offer, fighting the Soviets alongside other Estonian units and then withdrawing into the forests to become the Forest Brothers
(partisans). Severely weakened by this, the division was withdrawn to Neuhammer to be refitted.
On 19 September 1944 the liquidation of the Klooga concentration camp
, in close proximity to the division's training camp started. Approximately 2,500 prisoners from the Vaivara camp complex had been brought there in the course of the evacuation. The training and replacement units of the division based at Klooga
under the command of Sturmbannführer Georg Ahlemann provided guards for the perimeters.
. This offensive forced the German forces back behind the Oder
and Neisse rivers. The division was pushed back to the Neisse, taking heavy casualties. The division was then trapped with the XI. Armeekorps
in the Oberglogau - Falkenberg
- Friedberg
area. On 17 March 1945, the division launched a major escape attempt, which despite making headway, failed. On 19 March, the division tried again, this time succeeding, but leaving all heavy weapons and equipment behind in the pocket.
In April, the remnants of the division were moved south to the area around Goldberg. After the Prague Offensive
, the division attempted to break out to the west, in order to surrender to the western Allies
. The local Czech population resumed their hostilities on the surrendered Estonian troops regardless of their intentions. In what veterans of the Estonian Division who had laid their weapons down in May 1945 recall as the 'Czech Hell', the local people chased, tortured and humiliated the Waffen SS men and murdered more than 500 Estonian POWs. Some of the Estonians who had reached the western allies were handed back to the Soviets.
In the spring of 1946, out of the ranks of those who had surrendered to the Western allies in the previous year, a total of nine companies
were formed. The most notable being the "4221 Guard Company", formed from some 300 veterans with a mission to guard the external perimeter of the Nuremberg International Tribunal courthouse and the various depots and residences of US officers and prosecutors connected with the trial. The men were also entrusted with guarding the accused Nazi war criminals held in prison during the trial up until the day of execution.
Created on 26 December 1946, and led by Captain Vaido Viitre, the company consisted of six armed platoons and one staff platoon. Each platoon consisted of four squads, totalling 40 men; the staff platoon included medics, supplymen, cooks, carpenters, drivers, mechanics and secretaries, a total of 30 men.
, in declaring the Waffen SS a criminal organization, explicitly excluded conscripts in the following terms:
to the Secretary of State, clarified the US position on the "Baltic Legions: "they were not to be seen as "movements", "volunteer", or "SS." In short, they had not been given the training, indoctrination, and induction normally given to SS members. Subsequently the US Displaced Persons Commission in September 1950 declared that:
erected in the Estonian city of Pärnu
. The inscription To Estonian men who fought in 1940-1945 against Bolshevism and for the restoration of Estonian independence was the cause of the controversy. The monument was rededicated in Lihula
in 2004 but was soon removed because the Estonian government opposed the opening. On 15 October 2005 the monument was finally moved to the grounds of the Museum of Fight for Estonia's Freedom
in Lagedi
near the Estonian capital, Tallinn.
On 22 May 2004, the Jerusalem Post ran a story about the plans of some Estonian individuals to build a monument to the 20th Division. International outrage followed, due to the criminal status of the non-conscript Waffen-SS after the Nuremberg Trials
. One of Russia's chief Rabbi
s, Berl Lazar
, condemned the action, stating it would breed anti-Semitism .
On 28 July 2007, a gathering of some 300 veterans of the 20th Waffen-Grenadier-Division and of other units of the Wehrmacht, including a few Waffen SS veterans from Austria and Norway, took place in Sinimäe
, where the battle between the German and Soviet armies had been particularly fierce. This gathering takes place every year and has seen veterans from Estonia, Norway, Denmark, Austria and Germany attending.
According to Andrew Mollo
, a British authority on SS uniforms, the Estonian SS were very different from other SS units. Estonia had been occupied by the Red Army in 1940, the Estonians fought for the independence of their country and were brought under the SS umbrella against their will.
MaschinenPistole 40 (MP 40) SturmGewehr 44 (StG 44) Panzerschreck
Panzerfaust
Pistole P08 (Luger P08) SIG 33 MaschinenGewehr 34 (MG 34
) MaschinenGewehr 42 (MG 42)
– 24 Raupenschlepper, Ost
Volkswagen Schwimmwagen
Sd.Kfz. 10/4
En cadre
En cadre or cadre is a French expression originally denoting either the complement of commissioned officers of a regiment or the permanent skeleton establishment of a unit, around which the unit could be built if needed...
of the 3rd Estonian SS Volunteer Brigade, renamed the 20th Estonian SS Volunteer Division on 23 January 1944, was returned to Estonia and reformed. Additionally 38,000 men were conscripted in Estonia and other Estonian units that had fought on various fronts in the German Army, and the Finnish Infantry Regiment 200
Finnish Infantry Regiment 200
Infantry Regiment 200 or Soomepoisid was a unit in the Finnish army during World War II made up mostly of Estonian volunteers, who preferred to fight against the Soviet Union in the ranks of the Finnish army instead of the armed forces of Germany....
were rushed to Estonia.
Estonian officers and men in other units that fell under the conscription proclamation and had returned to Estonia had their rank prefix changed from "SS" to "Waffen" (Hauptscharführer
Hauptscharführer
Hauptscharführer was a Nazi paramilitary rank which was used by the Schutzstaffel between the years of 1934 and 1945. The rank was the highest enlisted rank of the SS, with the exception of the special Waffen-SS rank of Sturmscharführer....
would be referred to as a Waffen-Hauptscharführer rather than SS-Hauptscharführer). The wearing of SS runes on the collar was forbidden, and these formations began wearing national insignia instead.
The Division fought the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
on the Eastern Front
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
and surrendered in May 1945.
Historical context
On 16 June 1940, the Soviet Union had invaded Estonia. The military occupationMilitary occupation
Military occupation occurs when the control and authority over a territory passes to a hostile army. The territory then becomes occupied territory.-Military occupation and the laws of war:...
was complete by 21 June 1940 and rendered "official" by a communist coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
supported by Soviet troops and the Nazi government under the 23 August 1939 agreement signed in Moscow between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union as a Treaty of Non-Aggression. A secret protocol of the pact defined domains of influence, with the Soviet Union gaining eastern Poland, Finland, Latvia, Estonia and the Romanian province of Bessarabia. Germany was to control western Poland and Lithuania.
After Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, the Germans were perceived by most Estonians as liberators from the USSR and its repression, and hopes were raised for the restoration of the country's independence. The initial enthusiasm that accompanied the liberation from Soviet occupation quickly waned as Estonia became a part of the German-occupied "Reichskommissariat Ostland
Reichskommissariat Ostland
Reichskommissariat Ostland, literally "Reich Commissariat Eastland", was the civilian occupation regime established by Nazi Germany in the Baltic states and much of Belarus during World War II. It was also known as Reichskommissariat Baltenland initially...
"
By January 1944, the front was pushed back by the Red Army almost all the way to the former Estonian border. On 31 January 1944 general conscription-mobilization was announced in Estonia by the German authorities. On 7 February Jüri Uluots
Jüri Uluots
Jüri Uluots was an Estonian prime minister, journalist, prominent attorney and distinguished Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Tartu....
, the last constitutional prime minister of the republic of Estonia, supported the mobilization call during a radio address in the hope of restoring the Estonian Army and the country's independence. 38,000 men were conscripted, the formation of the 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian) had begun.
Formation
The 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS was formed in January 1944 via general conscription, from a cadre drawn on the 3. Estnische SS Freiwilligen Brigade, and further troops from the Ost BattalionsOstlegionen
Ostlegionen or Osttruppen were conscripts and volunteers from the occupied eastern territories recruited into the German Army of the Third Reich during the Second World War....
and the 287th Police Fusilier Battalion and the returned Estonian volunteers of the Finnish army unit 200
Finnish Infantry Regiment 200
Infantry Regiment 200 or Soomepoisid was a unit in the Finnish army during World War II made up mostly of Estonian volunteers, who preferred to fight against the Soviet Union in the ranks of the Finnish army instead of the armed forces of Germany....
.
Defence of Estonia
After the Soviet Kingisepp–Gdov OffensiveKingisepp–Gdov Offensive
This is a sub-article to Battle of Narva.The Kingisepp–Gdov Offensive was a campaign between the Soviet Leningrad Front and the German 18th Army fought for the eastern coast of Lake Peipus and the western banks of the Narva River from 1 February till 1 March 1944...
, the division was ordered to be replaced on the Nevel
Nevel
Nevel is a town and the administrative center of Nevelsky District of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located on Lake Nevel southeast of Pskov. Population:...
front and transported to the Narva front, to defend Estonia.
The arrival of the I.Battalion, 1st Estonian Regiment at Tartu
Tartu
Tartu is the second largest city of Estonia. In contrast to Estonia's political and financial capital Tallinn, Tartu is often considered the intellectual and cultural hub, especially since it is home to Estonia's oldest and most renowned university. Situated 186 km southeast of Tallinn, the...
coincided with the prepared landing operation by the left flank of the Leningrad Front to the west coast of Lake Peipus, 120 kilometres south of Narva. The I.Battalion, 1st Estonian Regiment was placed at the Yershovo Bridgehead on the east coast of Lake Peipus. Estonian and German units cleared the west coast of Peipsi of Soviets by February 16. Soviet casualties were in thousands.
Battle of Narva
On 8 February 1944, the division was attached to GruppenführerGruppenführer
Gruppenführer was an early paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party, first created in 1925 as a senior rank of the SA.-SS rank:...
Felix Steiner
Felix Steiner
Felix Martin Julius Steiner was a German Reichswehr and Waffen-SS officer who served in both World War I and World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords...
's III SS (Germanic) Panzer Corps, then defending the Narva bridgehead
Battle of Narva (1944)
The Battle of Narva was a military campaign between the German Army Detachment "Narwa" and the Soviet Leningrad Front fought for possession of the strategically important Narva Isthmus on 2 February – 10 August 1944 during World War II....
. The division was to replace the remnants of the 9th and 10th Luftwaffe Field Division
Luftwaffe Field Division
The Luftwaffe Field Divisions were German military formations which fought during World War II.-History:...
s, which were struggling to hold the line against a Soviet bridgehead north of the town of Narva. Upon arriving at the front on 20 February, the division was ordered to eliminate the Soviet bridgehead. In nine days of heavy fighting, the division pushed the Soviets back across the river and restored the line. The division remained stationed in the Siivertsi and Auvere sectors, being engaged in heavy combat.
In May, they were pulled out of the front line and reformed with the recently returned Narwa battalion into the division as the reconnaissance
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
battalion. By that time, active conscription of Estonian men into the German armed forces was well under way. By Spring 1944, approximately 32,000 men were drafted into the German forces, with the 20th Waffen Grenadier Division consisting of some 15,000 men.
Battle of Tannenberg Line
When Steiner ordered a withdrawal to the Tannenberg Line on 25 July, the division was deployed on the Lastekodumägi Hill, the first line of defence for the new position. Over the next month, the division was engaged in a heavy defensive battle in the Sinimäed hills.On 26 July, pursuing the withdrawing defenders, the Soviet attack fell onto the Tannenberg Line. The Soviet Air Force and artillery bombarded the German positions, destroying most of the forest on the hills. On the morning of 27 July, the Soviet forces launched another powerful artillery barrage on the Sinimäed.
The heaviest Soviet attack took place on July 29. By noon, the Red Army had almost seized control of the Tannenberg Line. The last reserve on the front, I.Battalion, 1st Estonian Regiment had been spared from the previous counter attacks. The scarcity of able-bodied men forced Sturmbannführer Paul Maitla
Paul Maitla
Paul Maitla was an Estonian military commander. He is one of the four Estonian soldiers who received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross...
to request reinforcements from patients in the field hospital. Twenty injured men responded, joining the remmnants of other units including a part of the Kriegsmarine
Kriegsmarine
The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
and supported by the single remaining Panther tank
Panther tank
Panther is the common name of a medium tank fielded by Nazi Germany in World War II that served from mid-1943 to the end of the European war in 1945. It was intended as a counter to the T-34, and to replace the Panzer III and Panzer IV; while never replacing the latter, it served alongside it as...
. The counter attack started from the parish cemetery south of the Tornimägi with the left flank of the assault clearing the hill of Soviet soldiers. The attack continued towards the summit under heavy Soviet artillery and bomber attack, culminating in close combat on the Soviet positions. The Estonian troops moved into the trenches. Running out of ammunition, they used Soviet grenades and automatic weapons taken from the fallen. According to some veterans, it appeared that low-flying Soviet bombers were attempting to hit every individual Estonian soldier moving between craters, some of them getting buried under soil from the explosions of Soviet shells. The Soviets were forced to retreat from the Grenaderimägi Hill.
The battle took many casualties in the division, including Sturmbannführer Georg Sooden
Georg Sooden
Georg Aleksander Sooden was an Estonian officer, serving firstly in the Estonian Army, secondly in Wehrmacht and thirdly in Waffen-SS, fighting mostly in the Estonian area....
who was killed on July 28 and Hauptsturmführer Oskar Ruut
Oskar Ruut
Oskar Ruut was an Estonian Hauptsturmführer in World War II, who served in the famous Battalion Narva and in 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS ....
on August 3.
Battle of Tartu
In mid-August, the division's 45th Estland and 46th regiments were formed into the KampfgruppeKampfgruppe
In military history and military slang, the German term Kampfgruppe can refer to a combat formation of any kind, but most usually to that employed by the German Wehrmacht and its allies during World War II and, to a lesser extent, in World War I...
Vent and sent south to help defend the Emajõgi
Emajõgi
The Emajõgi is a river in Estonia which flows from Lake Võrtsjärv through Tartu County into Lake Peipus, crossing the city of Tartu for 10 km. It has a length of 100 km...
river line, seeing heavy fighting.
At the end of August, the III.Battalion, 1st Estonian Regiment was formed from the 1st Battalion of the Finnish Infantry Regiment 200
Finnish Infantry Regiment 200
Infantry Regiment 200 or Soomepoisid was a unit in the Finnish army during World War II made up mostly of Estonian volunteers, who preferred to fight against the Soviet Union in the ranks of the Finnish army instead of the armed forces of Germany....
recently returned to Estonia. As their largest operation, supported by Estonian Police Battalions No. 37, 38 and Mauritz Freiherr von Strachwitz's tank squadron, they destroyed the bridgehead of two Soviet divisions and recaptured Kärevere Bridge by 30 August. The operation shifted the entire front back to the southern bank of the Emajõgi and encouraged the II Army Corps to launch an operation attempting to recapture Tartu. The attack of 4–6 September reached the northern outskirts of the city but was repulsed by units of the Soviet 86th, 128th, 291st and 321st Rifle Divisions. Relative calm settled on the front for the subsequent thirteen days.
Withdrawal from Estonia
When Adolf HitlerAdolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
authorised the full withdrawal from Estonia in mid September, all men who wished to stay to defend their homes were released from service. Many chose this offer, fighting the Soviets alongside other Estonian units and then withdrawing into the forests to become the Forest Brothers
Forest Brothers
The Forest Brothers were Estonian, Latvian, and Lithuanian partisans who waged a guerrilla war against Soviet rule during the Soviet invasion and occupation of the three Baltic states during, and after, World War II...
(partisans). Severely weakened by this, the division was withdrawn to Neuhammer to be refitted.
On 19 September 1944 the liquidation of the Klooga concentration camp
Klooga concentration camp
Klooga was a Nazi labor subcamp of the Vaivara concentration camp complex established in September 1943 in Harju County, during World War II, in German-occupied Estonia near the northern Estonian village Klooga...
, in close proximity to the division's training camp started. Approximately 2,500 prisoners from the Vaivara camp complex had been brought there in the course of the evacuation. The training and replacement units of the division based at Klooga
Klooga
Klooga is a small borough in Keila Parish in Harju County in northern Estonia. It has a population of 1,029 .During th German occupation in World War II a Nazi labor camp was situated in Klooga....
under the command of Sturmbannführer Georg Ahlemann provided guards for the perimeters.
Final battles
Eventually, the reformed division, which numbered roughly 11,000 Estonians and 2,500 Germans, returned to the front line in late February, just in time for the Soviet Vistula-Oder OffensiveVistula-Oder Offensive
The Vistula–Oder Offensive was a successful Red Army operation on the Eastern Front in the European Theatre of World War II; it took place between 12 January and 2 February 1945...
. This offensive forced the German forces back behind the Oder
Oder
The Oder is a river in Central Europe. It rises in the Czech Republic and flows through western Poland, later forming of the border between Poland and Germany, part of the Oder-Neisse line...
and Neisse rivers. The division was pushed back to the Neisse, taking heavy casualties. The division was then trapped with the XI. Armeekorps
XI Army Corps (Germany)
-Commanders:* Artillery General Emil Leeb, 1 September 1939 – 1 March 1940* Infantry General Joachim von Kortzfleisch, 1 March 1940 – 6 October 1941...
in the Oberglogau - Falkenberg
Falkenberg, Lower Bavaria
Falkenberg is a municipality in the district of Rottal-Inn in Bavaria in Germany....
- Friedberg
Strzelce Krajenskie
Strzelce Krajeńskie is a town in Poland, in Lubusz Voivodeship. It is the capital of Strzelce-Drezdenko County. Population is 10,186 .-External links:**...
area. On 17 March 1945, the division launched a major escape attempt, which despite making headway, failed. On 19 March, the division tried again, this time succeeding, but leaving all heavy weapons and equipment behind in the pocket.
In April, the remnants of the division were moved south to the area around Goldberg. After the Prague Offensive
Prague Offensive
The Prague Offensive was the last major Soviet operation of World War II in Europe. The offensive, and the battle for Prague, was fought on the Eastern Front from 6 May to 11 May 1945. This battle for the city is particularly noteworthy in that it ended after the Third Reich capitulated on 8 May...
, the division attempted to break out to the west, in order to surrender to the western Allies
Allies
In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...
. The local Czech population resumed their hostilities on the surrendered Estonian troops regardless of their intentions. In what veterans of the Estonian Division who had laid their weapons down in May 1945 recall as the 'Czech Hell', the local people chased, tortured and humiliated the Waffen SS men and murdered more than 500 Estonian POWs. Some of the Estonians who had reached the western allies were handed back to the Soviets.
Guard duty during the Nuremberg Trials
Company (military unit)
A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 80–225 soldiers and usually commanded by a Captain, Major or Commandant. Most companies are formed of three to five platoons although the exact number may vary by country, unit type, and structure...
were formed. The most notable being the "4221 Guard Company", formed from some 300 veterans with a mission to guard the external perimeter of the Nuremberg International Tribunal courthouse and the various depots and residences of US officers and prosecutors connected with the trial. The men were also entrusted with guarding the accused Nazi war criminals held in prison during the trial up until the day of execution.
Created on 26 December 1946, and led by Captain Vaido Viitre, the company consisted of six armed platoons and one staff platoon. Each platoon consisted of four squads, totalling 40 men; the staff platoon included medics, supplymen, cooks, carpenters, drivers, mechanics and secretaries, a total of 30 men.
Outcome of Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg TrialsNuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg Trials were a series of military tribunals, held by the victorious Allied forces of World War II, most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military, and economic leadership of the defeated Nazi Germany....
, in declaring the Waffen SS a criminal organization, explicitly excluded conscripts in the following terms:
Position of the US Displaced Persons Commission
In 13 April 1950, a message from the US High Commission in Germany (HICOG), signed by John J. McCloyJohn J. McCloy
John Jay McCloy was a lawyer and banker who served as Assistant Secretary of War during World War II, president of the World Bank and U.S. High Commissioner for Germany...
to the Secretary of State, clarified the US position on the "Baltic Legions: "they were not to be seen as "movements", "volunteer", or "SS." In short, they had not been given the training, indoctrination, and induction normally given to SS members. Subsequently the US Displaced Persons Commission in September 1950 declared that:
Legacy
Most living veterans of the division belong to the 20th Estonian Waffen Grenadier Division Veterans Union (Estonian: 20. Eesti Relvagrenaderide Diviisi Veteranide Ühendus). It was founded in 2000 and gatherings of veterans of the division are organised by the union on the anniversaries of the battle of the Tannenberg Line in the Sinimäed hills. Since 2008, the chairman of the union, Heino Kerde, is a former member of the 45th Regiment.Modern controversy
In 2002, the Estonian government forced the removal of a monument to Estonian soldiersMonument of Lihula
Monument of Lihula is the colloquial name of a monument commemorating the Estonians who fought for Estonia against the Soviet Union in World War II, located in Lagedi near Tallinn, the capital of Estonia....
erected in the Estonian city of Pärnu
Pärnu
Pärnu is a city in southwestern Estonia on the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet of the Gulf of Riga in the Baltic Sea. It is a popular summer vacation resort with many hotels, restaurants, and large beaches. The Pärnu River flows through the city and drains into the Gulf of Riga...
. The inscription To Estonian men who fought in 1940-1945 against Bolshevism and for the restoration of Estonian independence was the cause of the controversy. The monument was rededicated in Lihula
Lihula
Lihula is a town in Estonia with population of 1,614 . It is a centre of a rural municipality in Lääne County.The castle of Leal was first mentioned in 1211. It was the centre of Diocese Saare-Lääne...
in 2004 but was soon removed because the Estonian government opposed the opening. On 15 October 2005 the monument was finally moved to the grounds of the Museum of Fight for Estonia's Freedom
Museum of Fight for Estonia's Freedom
The Museum of Fight for Estonia's Freedom is a privately owned museum in Lagedi, near Tallinn. It specialises on exhibits of World War II battles on Estonian soil, or involving Estonian soldiers.- External links :*...
in Lagedi
Lagedi
Lagedi is a small borough in Rae Parish, Harju County, northern Estonia. It has a population of 847 .-External links:*...
near the Estonian capital, Tallinn.
On 22 May 2004, the Jerusalem Post ran a story about the plans of some Estonian individuals to build a monument to the 20th Division. International outrage followed, due to the criminal status of the non-conscript Waffen-SS after the Nuremberg Trials
Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg Trials were a series of military tribunals, held by the victorious Allied forces of World War II, most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military, and economic leadership of the defeated Nazi Germany....
. One of Russia's chief Rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
s, Berl Lazar
Berel Lazar
Rabbi Shlomo Dovber Pinchas Lazar, better known as Berel Lazar, is an Orthodox, Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic rabbi. He is presently Chief Rabbi of Russia, and chairman of the Federation of Jewish Communities...
, condemned the action, stating it would breed anti-Semitism .
On 28 July 2007, a gathering of some 300 veterans of the 20th Waffen-Grenadier-Division and of other units of the Wehrmacht, including a few Waffen SS veterans from Austria and Norway, took place in Sinimäe
Sinimäe
Sinimäe is a village in Vaivara Parish, Ida-Viru County in northeastern Estonia. Pop. 430.-See also:*Sinimäed Hills*Battle of Tannenberg Line...
, where the battle between the German and Soviet armies had been particularly fierce. This gathering takes place every year and has seen veterans from Estonia, Norway, Denmark, Austria and Germany attending.
According to Andrew Mollo
Andrew Mollo
Andrew Mollo is a British expert on military uniforms that has led him into a career in motion pictures and as an author of various books on military uniforms...
, a British authority on SS uniforms, the Estonian SS were very different from other SS units. Estonia had been occupied by the Red Army in 1940, the Estonians fought for the independence of their country and were brought under the SS umbrella against their will.
Commanders
- SS-Brigadeführer Franz AugsbergerFranz AugsbergerFranz Xaver Josef Maria Augsberger was a Brigadeführer of the Waffen-SS.-Early life:Franz Augsberger was the son of a hotel owner in Vienna, then the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire...
(24 January 1944 – 19 March 1945) - SS-Standartenführer Alfons RebaneAlfons RebaneAlfons Vilhelm Robert Rebane, known simply as Alfons Rebane was an Estonian military commander. He was the most highly decorated Estonian military officer in the course of the Second World War, serving in various German military units against the armed forces of the Soviet Union.After World War...
(temporarily during the Battle of Oppeln) - SS-Brigadeführer Berthold Maack (20 March 1945 – 8 May 1945)
Division units
- Waffen-Grenadier Regiment der SS 45 Estland (estnische nr. 1) SS-ObersturmbannführerObersturmbannführerObersturmbannführer was a paramilitary Nazi Party rank used by both the SA and the SS. It was created in May 1933 to fill the need for an additional field grade officer rank above Sturmbannführer as the SA expanded. It became an SS rank at the same time...
Harald RiipaluHarald RiipaluHarald Riipalu was an Estonian military commander and one of four commanders who earned the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross when fighting in the German army in World War II.-Early life:Harald Riipalu was born in Saint Petersburg where his family was lessee in a manor...
- 1st Battalion – SS-HauptsturmführerHauptsturmführerHauptsturmführer was a Nazi rank of the SS which was used between the years of 1934 and 1945. The rank of Hauptsturmführer was a mid-grade company level officer and was the equivalent of a Captain in the German Army and also the equivalent of captain in foreign armies...
Paul MaitlaPaul MaitlaPaul Maitla was an Estonian military commander. He is one of the four Estonian soldiers who received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross... - 2nd Battalion – SS-Hauptsturmführer Ludvig Kiisk
- 3rd Battalion was still in the process of forming
- 1st Battalion – SS-Hauptsturmführer
- Waffen-Grenadier Regiment der SS 46 (estnische nr. 2) SS-StandartenführerStandartenführerStandartenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was used in the so-called Nazi combat-organisations: SA, SS, NSKK and the NSFK...
Juhan Tuuling- 1st Battalion – SS-Hauptsturmführer Heino Rannik
- 2nd Battalion – SS-SturmbannführerSturmbannführerSturmbannführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party equivalent to major, used both in the Sturmabteilung and the Schutzstaffel...
Friedrich Kurg - 3rd Battalion – SS-ObersturmführerObersturmführerObersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi party that was used by the SS and also as a rank of the SA. Translated as “Senior Assault Leader”, the rank of Obersturmführer was first created in 1932 as the result of an expansion of the Sturmabteilung and the need for an additional rank in...
Arseni Korp. The battalion was based on the 660th Ost battalion.
- Waffen-Grenadier Regiment der SS 47 (estnische nr. 3) SS-ObersturmbannführerObersturmbannführerObersturmbannführer was a paramilitary Nazi Party rank used by both the SA and the SS. It was created in May 1933 to fill the need for an additional field grade officer rank above Sturmbannführer as the SA expanded. It became an SS rank at the same time...
Paul VentPaul VentPaul Vent was an Estonian military officer who served in the Imperial Russian Army, the Estonian Army, the Wehrmacht and in the Waffen SS. Paul Vent fought in World War I, Estonian War of Independence and World War II...
- 1st Battalion – SS-Sturmbannführer Georg SoodenGeorg SoodenGeorg Aleksander Sooden was an Estonian officer, serving firstly in the Estonian Army, secondly in Wehrmacht and thirdly in Waffen-SS, fighting mostly in the Estonian area....
. The battalion was based on the 659th Ost battalion. - 2nd Battalion – SS-Hauptsturmführer Alfons RebaneAlfons RebaneAlfons Vilhelm Robert Rebane, known simply as Alfons Rebane was an Estonian military commander. He was the most highly decorated Estonian military officer in the course of the Second World War, serving in various German military units against the armed forces of the Soviet Union.After World War...
. The battalion was based on the 658th Eastern Battalion658th Eastern BattalionThe 658th Eastern Battalion was an Eastern Front World War II military unit of the Wehrmacht composed of Estonians. It was formed on 23 October 1942 from Estnische Sicherungs-Abteilung 181 by the German 18th Army and fought in Northern Russia...
. - 3rd Battalion – SS-Hauptsturmführer Eduard Hints. Formed from mobilized men and was at this moment just arriving at the front.
- 1st Battalion – SS-Sturmbannführer Georg Sooden
- Waffen-Artillery Regiment der SS 20 - SS-Obersturmbannführer Aleksandr Sobolev.
- SS-Waffen Füsilier Battalion 20 - SS-Hauptsturmführer Wallner, SS-Obersturmbannführer Oskar RuutOskar RuutOskar Ruut was an Estonian Hauptsturmführer in World War II, who served in the famous Battalion Narva and in 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS ....
, SS-Hauptsturmführer Hando RuusHando RuusHando Ruus was an Estonian SS-Hauptsturmführer in World War II, serving in Battalion "Narva" and in the 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS...
- SS-Waffen Pionier Battalion 20
- SS-Field Medical Battalion 20
- SS-Waffen Signals Battalion 20
- SS-Training and Reserve Regiment 20
Notable members
- Harald NugiseksHarald NugiseksHarald Nugiseks is a former SS-Unterscharführer in World War II, who served voluntarily in the 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS of the Waffen SS. Nugiseks is also one of the four Estonian soldiers who received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.Nugiseks was born in Särevere, Järvamaa,...
, Estonian officer and Knight's CrossKnight's Cross of the Iron CrossThe Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was a grade of the 1939 version of the 1813 created Iron Cross . The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was the highest award of Germany to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership during World War II...
recipient - Kalju LepikKalju LepikKalju Lepik was an Estonian poet who lived as an exile for most of his life....
, Estonian poet - Kaljo Kiisk, Estonian film director
- Artur Rinne, Estonian singer
- Arved ViirlaidArved ViirlaidArved Viirlaid is an Estonian-Canadian writer.Arved Viirlaid fought in the Estonian regiment in Finland during the Second World War, returning to Estonia in 1944....
(formerly in Finnish Regiment 200), Estonian writer
Infantry weapons
Karabiner 98kKarabiner 98k
The Karabiner 98 Kurz was a bolt action rifle chambered for the 8x57mm IS/7.92×57mm IS cartridge that was adopted as the standard service rifle in 1935 by the German Wehrmacht. It was one of the final developments in the long line of Mauser military rifles...
MaschinenPistole 40 (MP 40) SturmGewehr 44 (StG 44) Panzerschreck
Panzerschreck
Panzerschreck was the popular name for the Raketenpanzerbüchse , an 88 mm calibre reusable anti-tank rocket launcher developed by Nazi Germany in World War II. Another popular nickname was Ofenrohr ....
Panzerfaust
Panzerfaust
The Panzerfaust was an inexpensive, recoilless German anti-tank weapon of World War II. It consisted of a small, disposable preloaded launch tube firing a high explosive anti-tank warhead, operated by a single soldier...
Pistole P08 (Luger P08) SIG 33 MaschinenGewehr 34 (MG 34
MG 34
The Maschinengewehr 34, or MG 34, is a German air-cooled machine gun that was first produced and accepted into service in 1934, and first issued to units in 1935. It accepts the 8x57mm IS cartridge....
) MaschinenGewehr 42 (MG 42)
Vehicles
HetzerHetzer
The Jagdpanzer 38 , later known as Hetzer , was a German light tank destroyer of the Second World War based on a modified Czechoslovakian Panzer 38 chassis. The project was inspired by the Romanian "Mareşal" tank destroyer.The name Hetzer was at the time not commonly used for this vehicle...
– 24 Raupenschlepper, Ost
Raupenschlepper, Ost
Raupenschlepper Ost, literally "Caterpillar Tractor East", is more commonly abbreviated to RSO. This fully tracked, lightweight vehicle was conceived in response to the poor performance of wheeled and half-tracked vehicles in the mud and snow during the Wehrmacht's first winter on the Soviet Front...
Volkswagen Schwimmwagen
Volkswagen Schwimmwagen
The VW Type 128 and 166 Schwimmwagen were amphibious four-wheel drive off-roaders, used extensively by the German Wehrmacht and the Waffen-SS during the Second World War...
Sd.Kfz. 10/4
See also
- 3rd Estonian SS Volunteer Brigade
- List of Knight's Cross recipients 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS
- Estonian Regiment "Reval"Estonian Regiment "Reval"Estonian Regiment "Reval" was formed on the early spring of 1944. The regiment comprised only Estonians, and had three battalions. The regiment was led by Major Rubach, helped by Lt. Noorkukk...
- Estonian LegionEstonian LegionThe Estonian Legion was a military unit within the Combat Support Forces of the Waffen SS Verfügungstruppe during World War II, mainly consisting of Estonian soldiers.-Creation:...
- GrenadierGrenadier (soldier)A grenadier was originally a specialized soldier, first established as a distinct role in the mid-to-late 17th century, for the throwing of grenades and sometimes assault operations. At this time grenadiers were chosen from the strongest and largest soldiers...
, Waffen-SSWaffen-SSThe Waffen-SS was a multi-ethnic and multi-national military force of the Third Reich. It constituted the armed wing of the Schutzstaffel or SS, an organ of the Nazi Party. The Waffen-SS saw action throughout World War II and grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions, and served alongside... - WehrmachtWehrmachtThe Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
, List of German military units of World War II - Alfons RebaneAlfons RebaneAlfons Vilhelm Robert Rebane, known simply as Alfons Rebane was an Estonian military commander. He was the most highly decorated Estonian military officer in the course of the Second World War, serving in various German military units against the armed forces of the Soviet Union.After World War...