Roberts Ancans
Encyclopedia
Roberts Ancāns was a Obersturmführer
in the Waffen SS during World War II
. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
, which was awarded to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership by Nazi Germany
during World War II
.
, Latvia
. In 1938 he started law studies in Latvian university
. In the autumn 1939 he volunteered in Latvian army. Ancāns was member of Latvian student fraternity Lacuania.
in 1940, and during the German invasion of the Soviet Union
(Operation Barbarossa
) he volunteered to join the first Latvian units
in July 1941 and the Waffen SS in February 1942. He was among those Latvian soldiers who were trapped in Kholm
in early 1942. There he was wounded and after treatment served in the Latvian Legion near Leningrad
, in the Volchov marshes and at the Velikaya river
.
After the 19th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd Latvian) was formed, he became part of the 19th Reserve Battalion.
In the fighting of the Courland pocket
on the 24 December 1944, with his company of 180 men, they destroyed a Soviet attack aimed at the point where the 19th SS and the 21st Luftwaffe Field Division
met, and they also destroyed 12 tanks in the process.
After the 19th SS and the 21st Luftwaffe divisions had been withdrawn Ancāns company had been reduced to 38 men, most of them seriously wounded. For his bravery and leadership in the battle he was awarded the Knight's Cross. In May 1945, he was seriously wounded and evacuated from the pocket.
, but then emigrated to the USA. He died in New York
on the 1 January 1982.
In 1949-50, United States Displaced Persons Commission investigated the Estonian and Latvian "SS" and found these military units to be neither criminal nor Nazi collaborators. On 12 September 1950, Harry N. Rosenfield, the United Nations Refugee Relief Association commissioner, wrote to Jūlijs Feldmanis, Latvia's chargé d'affaires in Washington, saying that «the Waffen-SS units of the Baltic States (the Baltic Legions) are to be seen as units that stood apart and were different from the German SS in terms of goals, ideologies, operations and constitution, and the Commission does not, therefore, consider them to be a movement that is hostile to the government of the United States under Section 13 of the Displaced Persons Act, as amended.»
Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer 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...
in the Waffen SS during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
The 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...
, which was awarded to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership by 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...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Early life
Roberts Ancāns was born on the 11 November 1919, in Tilža parishTilža parish
Tilža parish is an administrative unit of the Balvi municipality, Latvia....
, Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
. In 1938 he started law studies in Latvian university
University of Latvia
University of Latvia is a university located in Riga, Latvia. Being established in 1919, University of Latvia is the biggest university in the Baltic states.-History:...
. In the autumn 1939 he volunteered in Latvian army. Ancāns was member of Latvian student fraternity Lacuania.
World War
Ancāns was in the Latvian ArmyLatvian Land Forces
Land Forces ) form the regular contingent of the National Armed Forces and provide for the defense of all national territories. The development of the Land Forces is directed towards improving their combat andprofessional capabilities.- Mission :...
in 1940, and during the German invasion of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
(Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
) he volunteered to join the first Latvian units
Schutzmannschaft
Schutzmannschaft or Hilfspolizei were the collaborationist auxiliary police battalions of native policemen in occupied countries in East, which were created to fight the resistance during World War II mostly in the Eastern European countries occupied by Nazi Germany. Hilfspolizei refers also to...
in July 1941 and the Waffen SS in February 1942. He was among those Latvian soldiers who were trapped in Kholm
Kholm
Kholm is a town and the administrative center of Kholmsky District of Novgorod Oblast, Russia, situated at the confluence of the Lovat and Kunya Rivers, north of Toropets, southwest of Staraya Russa, and south of Veliky Novgorod. Population:...
in early 1942. There he was wounded and after treatment served in the Latvian Legion near Leningrad
Leningrad
Leningrad is the former name of Saint Petersburg, Russia.Leningrad may also refer to:- Places :* Leningrad Oblast, a federal subject of Russia, around Saint Petersburg* Leningrad, Tajikistan, capital of Muminobod district in Khatlon Province...
, in the Volchov marshes and at the Velikaya river
Velikaya River
For the Velikaya river in Far East Siberia, see Velikaya River .Velikaya River is located in western Russia . It starts in highlands in the south of Pskov Oblast, flows north through the cities of Opochka, Ostrov, and Pskov into Lake Peipus, which is drained by the Narva River....
.
After the 19th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd Latvian) was formed, he became part of the 19th Reserve Battalion.
In the fighting of the Courland pocket
Courland Pocket
The Courland Pocket referred to the Red Army's blockade or encirclement of Axis forces on the Courland peninsula during the closing months of World War II...
on the 24 December 1944, with his company of 180 men, they destroyed a Soviet attack aimed at the point where the 19th SS and the 21st Luftwaffe Field Division
Luftwaffe Field Division
The Luftwaffe Field Divisions were German military formations which fought during World War II.-History:...
met, and they also destroyed 12 tanks in the process.
After the 19th SS and the 21st Luftwaffe divisions had been withdrawn Ancāns company had been reduced to 38 men, most of them seriously wounded. For his bravery and leadership in the battle he was awarded the Knight's Cross. In May 1945, he was seriously wounded and evacuated from the pocket.
Post war
Ancāns survived the war and until 1955 lived in West GermanyWest Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
, but then emigrated to the USA. He died in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
on the 1 January 1982.
Miscellaneous
The Latvian Legion's attachment to the SS, unit designations and ranks were considered a formality. Latvian and Estonian soldiers regardless of whether they volunteered or were drafted, were not members of the Nazi party.In 1949-50, United States Displaced Persons Commission investigated the Estonian and Latvian "SS" and found these military units to be neither criminal nor Nazi collaborators. On 12 September 1950, Harry N. Rosenfield, the United Nations Refugee Relief Association commissioner, wrote to Jūlijs Feldmanis, Latvia's chargé d'affaires in Washington, saying that «the Waffen-SS units of the Baltic States (the Baltic Legions) are to be seen as units that stood apart and were different from the German SS in terms of goals, ideologies, operations and constitution, and the Commission does not, therefore, consider them to be a movement that is hostile to the government of the United States under Section 13 of the Displaced Persons Act, as amended.»