German divisions of the second world. Division insignia SS. I am SS Panzer Division "Das Reich"

During the Second World War, the divisions of the SS troops were considered the elite formations of the armed forces of the Third Reich.

Almost all of these divisions had their own emblems (tactical, or identification, signs), which were by no means worn by the ranks of these divisions as sleeve patches (rare exceptions did not change the overall picture), but were applied with white or black oil paint on divisional military equipment and vehicles, buildings in which the ranks of the corresponding divisions were quartered, the corresponding signs in the locations of the units, etc. These identification (tactical) insignia (emblems) of SS divisions - almost always inscribed on heraldic shields (having a "Varangian" or "Norman", or tarch form) - in many cases differed from the lapel insignia of the ranks of the corresponding divisions.

1. 1st SS Panzer Division "Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler".

The name of the division means "SS Adolf Hitler's bodyguard regiment." The emblem (tactical, or identification, sign) of the division was a tarch shield with the image of a master key (and not a key, as they often write and think incorrectly). The choice of such an unusual emblem is explained very simply. The surname of the division commander Josef ("Sepp") Dietrich was "speaking" (or, in heraldic language, "vowel"). In German, "dietrich" means "master key". After awarding "Sepp" Dietrich with Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, the division emblem was framed with 2 oak leaves or a semicircular oak wreath.

2. 2nd SS Panzer Division "Das Reich".

The name of the division - "Reich" ("Das Reich") translated into Russian means "Empire", "Power". The emblem of the division was the "wolfsangel" ("wolf hook") inscribed in the tarch shield - an old German amulet that scared away wolves and werewolves (in German: "werewolves", in Greek: "lycanthropes", in Icelandic: " ulfkhedinov ", in Norwegian:" varulvov "or" wargs ", in Slavic:" ghouls "," wolkolaks "," wolkudlaks "or" wolkodlaks "), located horizontally.

3. 3rd SS Panzer Division "Death's Head" ("Totenkopf").

The division got its name from the SS emblem - "dead (Adam's) head" (skull with bones) - a symbol of loyalty to the leader until death. The same emblem, inscribed in the tarch shield, served as the division's identification mark.

4. 4th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Police" ("Police"), also known as "(4th) SS Police Division".

This division received this name because it was formed from the ranks of the German police. The division's emblem was a "wolf's hook" - "Wolfsangel" in an upright position, inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch.

5. 5th SS Panzer Division "Viking".

The name of this division is explained by the fact that, along with the Germans, it was recruited from the inhabitants of the Nordic countries (Norway, Denmark, Finland, Sweden), as well as Belgium, the Netherlands, Latvia and Estonia. In addition, Swiss, Russian, Ukrainian and Spanish volunteers served in the ranks of the Viking division. The emblem of the division was a "kosovidny cross" ("sun wheel"), that is, a swastika with arched crossbeams, on a heraldic shield-tarche.

6. 6th SS Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division "Nord" ("North").

The name of this division is explained by the fact that it was recruited mainly from the natives of the Nordic countries (Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Estonia and Latvia). The emblem of the division was the ancient Germanic rune "Hagall" (reminiscent of the Russian letter "Ж") inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch. The hagall (hagalaz) rune was considered a symbol of unshakable faith.

7. 7th SS Volunteer Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division "Prince Eugene (Eugen)".

This division, recruited mainly from ethnic Germans living in Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Vojvodina, Banat and Romania, was named after the famous commander of the "Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation" of the second half of the 17th - early 18th centuries. Prince Eugene (in German: Eugen) of Savoy, famous for his victories over the Ottoman Turks and, in particular, for the Roman-German emperor conquered Belgrade (1717). Yevgeny Savoisky also became famous in the War of the Spanish Succession for his victories over the French and earned himself no less fame as a patron of the arts. The emblem of the division was the ancient Germanic rune "odal" ("otilia"), inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch, meaning "heritage" and "blood relationship".

8. 8th SS Cavalry Division Florian Geyer.

This division was named in honor of the imperial knight Florian Geyer, who led one of the detachments of German peasants ("Black Detachment", in German: "Schwarzer Gaufen") during the Peasant War in Germany (1524-1526), who rebelled against the princes (large feudal lords who opposed the unification of Germany under the emperor's scepter). Since Florian Geyer wore black armor and his "Black Squad" fought under a black banner, the SS viewed him as their predecessor (especially since he opposed not only the princes, but also for the unification of the German state). Florian Geyer (immortalized in the eponymous drama by the classic of German literature Gerhart Hauptmann) heroically died in battle with the superior forces of the German princes in 1525 in the Taubertal valley. His image entered German folklore (especially song), enjoying no less popularity than, say, Stepan Razin - in Russian song folklore. The emblem of the division was a naked sword inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch with a point upward, crossing the shield from right to left diagonally, and a horse's head.

9. 9th SS Panzer Division "Hohenstaufen".

This division was named after the dynasty of the Swabian dukes (since 1079) and the medieval Roman-German emperors-Kaisers (1138-1254) - the Hohenstaufens (Staufens). Under them, the medieval Germanic state ("Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation"), founded by Charlemagne (in 800 AD) and renewed by Otto I the Great, reached the peak of its power, subjugating Italy to its influence, Sicily, the Holy Land and Poland. The Hohenstaufens tried, relying on the economically highly developed Northern Italy as a base, to centralize their power over Germany and restore the Roman Empire - "at least" - the Western (within the borders of Charlemagne's empire), ideally, the entire Roman Empire, including the Eastern Roman (Byzantine), which, however, did not succeed. The most famous representatives of the Hohenstaufen dynasty are Kaisers-crusaders Frederick I Barbarossa (who died during the Third Crusade) and his grand-nephew Frederick II (Emperor of Rome, King of Germany, Sicilian and Jerusalem), as well as Konradin, who was defeated and defeated by the Pope Duke Charles of Anjou for Italy and beheaded by the French in 1268. The division's emblem was a vertically drawn sword inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch with a point upward, superimposed on the capital Latin letter "H" ("Hohenstaufen").

10. 10th SS Panzer Division "Frundsberg".

This SS division was named after the German Renaissance commander Georg (Jorg) von Frundsberg, nicknamed "Father of the Landsknechts" (1473-1528), under whose command the troops of the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation and King of Spain Charles I of Habsburg conquered Italy and in 1514 year took Rome, forcing the Pope to recognize the primacy of the Empire. They say that the fierce Georg Frundsberg always carried with him a golden noose, which he intended to strangle the Pope if he fell into his hands alive. In his youth, the famous German writer, Nobel Prize winner Gunter Grass served in the ranks of the SS Frundsberg Division. The emblem of this SS division was the capital Gothic letter "F" ("Frundsberg") inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch, superimposed on an oak leaf located diagonally from right to left.

11. 11th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Nordland" ("Northern Country").

The name of the division is explained by the fact that it was recruited mainly from volunteers natives of the Northern European countries (Denmark, Norway. Sweden, Iceland, Finland, Latvia and Estonia). The emblem of this SS division was a heraldic shield-tarch with the image of a "sun wheel" inscribed in a circle.

12. 12th SS Panzer Division "Hitler Youth"

This division was recruited mainly from the ranks of the youth organization of the Third Reich "Hitler Youth" ("Hitler Youth"). The tactical sign of this "youth" SS division was the ancient German "solar" rune "sig" ("sovulo", "sovelu") inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch - a symbol of victory and the emblem of Hitler's youth organizations "Jungfolk" and "Hitler Youth", from among members of which were recruited volunteers of the division, imposed on the master key ("alignment with Dietrich").

13. 13th mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Khanjar"

(often referred to in military literature as "Handshar" or "Yatagan"), which consisted of Croatian, Bosnian and Herzegovinian Muslims (Bosniaks). "Khanjar" is a traditional Muslim edged weapon with a curved blade (akin to the Russian words "konchar" and "dagger", also meaning bladed edged weapons). The division's emblem was inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch curved sword-khanjar, directed from left to right upward diagonally. According to the surviving data, the division also had another identification mark, which was an image of a hand with a khanjar superimposed on a double "SS" rune "sig" ("sovulo").

14. 14th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS (Galician No. 1, since 1945 - Ukrainian No. 1); she is the SS Galicia division.

The emblem of the division was the old coat of arms of the city of Lvov, the capital of Galicia - a lion walking on its hind legs, surrounded by 3 three-toothed crowns, inscribed in the "Varangian" ("Norman") shield.

15. 15th grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS (Latvian No. 1).

The division's emblem was originally the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the Roman numeral "I" over the stylized printed capital Latin letter "L" ("Latvia"). Subsequently, the division acquired another tactical sign - 3 stars against the background of the rising sun. 3 stars meant 3 Latvian provinces - Vidzeme, Kurzeme and Latgale (a similar image adorned the cockade of the military personnel of the pre-war army of the Republic of Latvia).

16. 16th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Reichsfuehrer SS".

This SS division was named after SS Reichsfuehrer Heinrich Himmler. The emblem of the division was a bundle of 3 oak leaves inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch with 2 acorns at a handle framed with a laurel wreath, inscribed in a shield-tarch.

17. 17th SS Motorized Division "Götz von Berlichingen".

This SS division was named after the hero of the Peasant War in Germany (1524-1526), the imperial knight Georg (Götz, Götz) von Berlichingen (1480-1562), the fighter against the separatism of the German princes for the unity of Germany, the leader of the detachment of insurgent peasants and the hero of the drama Johann Wolfgang von Goethe "Goetz von Berlichingen with an iron hand" (knight Goetz, who lost his arm in one of the battles, ordered to make himself an iron prosthesis, which he owned no worse than others - a hand of flesh and blood). The emblem of the division was the iron hand of Goetz von Berlichingen, clenched into a fist (crossing the tarch shield from right to left and from bottom to top diagonally).

18. The 18th SS Horst Wessel Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division.

This division was named after one of the "martyrs of the Hitlerite movement" - the commander of the Berlin stormtroopers Horst Wessel, who composed the song "Banners up"! (which became the anthem of the NSDAP and the "second anthem" of the Third Reich) and killed by communist militants. The division's emblem was a naked sword, point upward, crossing the shield-tarch diagonally from right to left. According to the surviving data, the Horst Wessel division also had another emblem, which was a stylized rune-like Latin letters SA (SA = Sturmabteilungen, ie. " assault squads";" Martyr of the Movement "Horst Wessel, after whom the division was named, was one of the leaders of the Berlin storm troopers), inscribed in a circle.

19. 19th grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS (Latvian # 2).

At the time of formation, the division's emblem was a "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the Roman numeral "II" over a stylized printed capital Latin letter "L" ("Latvia"). Subsequently, the division acquired another tactical sign - an upright right-sided swastika on the "Varangian" shield. Swastika - "fiery cross" ("ugunskrusts") or "cross (of the god of thunder) Perkon" ("perkonkrusts") has been a traditional element of Latvian folk ornament from time immemorial.

20. 20th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS (Estonian No. 1).

The division's emblem was a "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield depicting a straight drawn sword with its tip upward, crossing the shield from right to left diagonally and superimposed on the capital Latin letter "E" ("E", that is, "Estonia"). According to some reports, this emblem was sometimes depicted on the helmets of the Estonian SS volunteers.

21. The 21st mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Skanderbeg" (Albanian No. 1).

This division, recruited mainly from the Albanians, was named after the national hero of the Albanian people, Prince George Alexander Kastriot (nicknamed by the Turks "Iskander Beg" or, for short, "Skanderbeg"). While Skanderbeg (1403-1468) was alive, the Ottoman Turks, who had repeatedly suffered defeats from him, could not subjugate Albania to their power. The emblem of the division was the ancient coat of arms of Albania - a two-headed eagle, inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch (the ancient Albanian rulers claimed kinship with the Basileus emperors of Byzantium). According to the surviving information, the division also had another tactical sign - a stylized image of a "Skanderbeg helmet" with goat horns, superimposed on 2 horizontal stripes.

22. The 22nd SS Volunteer Cavalry Division Maria Theresa.

This division, recruited mainly from ethnic Germans living in Hungary and from Hungarians, was named after the Empress of the "Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation" and Austria, Queen of Bohemia (Bohemia) and Hungary, Maria Theresa von Habsburg (1717-1780), one of the most prominent rulers of the second half of the 18th century. The emblem of the division was the image of a cornflower flower inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch with 8 petals, a stem, 2 leaves and 1 bud - (subjects of the Austro-Hungarian Danube monarchy, who wanted to join the German Empire, until 1918 wore a cornflower in their buttonhole - the favorite flower of the German emperor Wilhelm II of Hohenzollern).

23.23rd Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division of the Waffen SS "Kama" (Croatian No. 2)

consisted of Croatian, Bosnian and Herzegovinian Muslims. "Kama" is the name of a cold weapon with a curved blade (something like a scimitar), which is traditional for Balkan Muslims. The tactical sign of the division was a stylized image of the astronomical sign of the sun in a crown of rays on a heraldic shield-tarche. Preserved information about another tactical sign of the division, which was the Tyr rune with 2 arrow-shaped processes perpendicular to the rune trunk, in its lower part.

24.23rd Waffen SS Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division "Netherlands"

(Dutch No. 1).

The name of this division is explained by the fact that its personnel were recruited mainly from the Dutch (Dutch) Waffen SS volunteers. The division's emblem was the "odal" ("otiliya") rune with the lower ends in the form of arrows, inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch.

25. 24th mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Karst Jaegers" ("Karst Jaegers", "Karstjeger").

The name of this division is explained by the fact that it was recruited mainly from the natives of the mountainous region of Karst, located on the border between Italy and Yugoslavia. The division's emblem was a stylized image of a "karst flower" ("karstbloom") inscribed in the heraldic shield of the "Varangian" ("Norman") form.

26.25th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS "Hunyadi"

(Hungarian # 1).

This division, recruited mainly from Hungarians, was named after the medieval Transylvanian-Hungarian Hunyadi dynasty, the most prominent representatives of which were Janos Hunyadi (Johannes Guniades, Giovanni Vaivoda, 1385-1456) and his son King Matthew Corvin (Matthias Hunyadi, 1443- 1490), who heroically fought for the freedom of Hungary against the Ottoman Turks. The division's emblem was the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the "arrow-shaped cross" - the symbol of the Vienna National Socialist Party "Arrows Crossed" ("Nigerlashists") by Ferenc Salasi - under two three-toothed crowns.

27. 26th Grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Gömbös" (Hungarian # 2).

This division, which consisted mainly of Hungarians, was named after the Hungarian Foreign Minister Count Gyula Gömbes (1886-1936), a staunch supporter of a close military-political alliance with Germany and an ardent anti-Semite. The division's emblem was the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the same arrow-shaped cross, but under 3 three-toothed crowns.

28. The 27th SS Langemark Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division (Flemish No. 1).

This division, formed from German-speaking Belgians (Flemings), was named after the site of the bloody battle that took place in Belgium during the Great (First World) War, in 1914. The division's emblem was the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the "triskelion" ("tryphos" or "triquetra").

29.28 SS Panzer Division. Information about the tactical mark of the division has not been preserved.

30. The 28th SS Wallonia Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division.

This division owes its name to the fact that it was formed mainly from French-speaking Belgians (Walloons). The division's emblem was a heraldic shield-tarch with the image of a straight sword crossed in the shape of the letter "X" and a curved saber with the handles up.

31. 29th Grenadier Infantry Division of the Waffen SS "RONA" (Russian # 1).

This division - "Russian Liberation People's Army" consisted of Russian volunteers B.V. Kaminsky. The tactical sign of the division, applied to its equipment, judging by the surviving photographs, was a widened cross with the abbreviation "RONA" under it.

32. 29th Grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Italy" (Italian No. 1).

This division owed its name to the fact that it consisted of Italian volunteers who remained loyal to Benito Mussolini after his release from prison by a detachment of German paratroopers led by SS Sturmbannfuehrer Otto Skorzeny. The tactical sign of the division was the vertically located lictor fascia (in Italian: "littorio"), inscribed in the heraldic shield of the "Varangian" ("Norman") form - a bunch of rods (rods) with an ax embedded in them (the official emblem of the National Fascist Party of Benito Mussolini) ...

33. 30th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS (Russian No. 2, it is also Belarusian No. 1).

This division consisted mainly of former soldiers of the "Belarusian Regional Defense" detachments. The division's tactical sign was the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the double ("patriarchal") cross of the Holy Princess Euphrosyne of Polotsk, located horizontally.

It should be noted that the double ("patriarchal") cross, located vertically, served as a tactical sign of the 79th Infantry, and located diagonally - the emblem of the 2nd Motorized Infantry Division of the German Wehrmacht.

34. 31st SS Volunteer Grenadier Division (aka 23rd Waffen SS Volunteer Mountain Rifle Division).

The division's emblem was a full-face deer head on the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield.

35. The 31st SS Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Bohemia and Moravia" (German: "Böhmen und Meren").

This division was formed from the natives of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, who came under the German control of the territories of the Czech Republic (after the declaration of independence by Slovakia). The division's emblem was a Bohemian (Czech) crowned lion walking on its hind legs, and a power crowned with a double cross on the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield.

36. The 32nd SS Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division "January 30".

This division was named in memory of the day Adolf Hitler came to power (January 30, 1933). The division's emblem was a "Varangian" ("Norman") shield with the image of a vertically located "battle rune" - the symbol of the ancient German war god Tyr (Tyra, Tiu, Tsiu, Tuisto, Tuesco).

37. 33rd Waffen SS Cavalry Division "Hungaria", or "Hungary" (Hungarian # 3).

This division, which consisted of Hungarian volunteers, received the appropriate name. Information about the tactical sign (emblem) of the division has not been preserved.

38. 33rd grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Charlemagne" (French No. 1).

This division was named after the Frankish king Charlemagne ("Charlemagne", from the Latin "Carolus Magnus", 742-814), who was crowned in 800 in Rome by the emperor of the Western Roman Empire (which included the territory of modern Northern Italy, France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and part of Spain), and is considered the founder of modern German and French statehood. The division's emblem was a cut "Varangian" ("Norman") shield with half of the Roman-German imperial eagle and 3 fleurs de lys (fr .: fleurs de lys) of the French kingdom.

39. 34th SS Landstorm Nederland Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division (Dutch No. 2).

"Landstorm Nederland" means "Dutch militia". The division's emblem was inscribed in the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield "Dutch national" version of the "wolf hook" - "Wolfsangel" (adopted in the Dutch National Socialist movement of Anton-Adrian Mussert).

40.36th SS Police Grenadier (Infantry) Division ("Police Division II")

consisted of German police officers mobilized for military service. The division's emblem was a "Varangian" ("Norman") shield with the image of the Hagall rune and the Roman numeral "II".

41. 36th Waffen SS Grenadier Division "Dirlewanger".

The emblem of the division was inscribed in the "Varangian" ("Norman") shield 2 crossed in the shape of the letter "X" hand grenades - "beaters" with handles down.

In addition, in the last months of the war, the formation of the following new SS divisions, mentioned in the orders of the Reich SS leader (Reichsführer) Heinrich Himmler, was initiated (but not completed):

42. The 35th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Police" ("Police"), it is also the 35th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Police Division. Information about the tactical sign (emblem) of the division has not been preserved.

43.36th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS. Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

44. 37th SS Volunteer Cavalry Division "Luttsov".

The division was named in honor of the hero of the fight against Napoleon - Major of the Prussian army Adolf von Lutzoff (1782-1834), who formed the first volunteer corps in the history of the War of Independence (1813-1815) of German patriots against Napoleon's tyranny ("Lutzov's black huntsmen"). The tactical sign of the division was the image of a straight, naked sword, point up, inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch, superimposed on the capital Gothic letter "L", that is, "Luttsov").

45. The 38th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Nibelungen" ("Nibelungen").

The division was named after the heroes of the medieval Germanic heroic epic - the Nibelungen. This was the original name for the spirits of darkness and fog, elusive to the enemy and possessing innumerable treasures; then - the knights of the kingdom of the Burgundians who seized these treasures. As you know, SS Reichsfuehrer Heinrich Himmler dreamed after the war to create an "order state of the SS" on the territory of Burgundy. The emblem of the division was the image of the Nibelungian winged invisibility helmet inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch.

46. The 39th SS Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division Andreas Gofer.

The division was named after the Austrian national hero Andreas Hofer (1767-1810), the leader of the Tyrolean rebels against Napoleonic tyranny, betrayed by the traitors to the French and shot in 1810 in the Italian fortress of Mantua. To the tune of the folk song about the execution of Andreas Hofer - "Under Mantua in chains" (German: "Tsu Mantua in banden"), German social democrats in the 20th century composed their own song "We are the young guard of the proletariat" (German: "Vir zind di junge garde des proletarians "), and the Soviet Bolsheviks -" We are the young guard of workers and peasants. " Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

47. 40th SS Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division "Feldgerrngalle" (not to be confused with the same name division of the German Wehrmacht).

This division was named after the building of the "Gallery of Generals" (Feldgerrngalle), in front of which on November 9, 1923, the Reichswehr and the police of the leader of the Bavarian separatists Gustav Ritter von Kara shot a column of participants in the Hitler-Ludendorff coup against the government of the Weimar Republic. Information about the tactical mark of the division has not been preserved.

48. 41st Waffen SS Kalevala Infantry Division (Finnish # 1).

This SS division, named after the Finnish heroic folk epic, began to be formed from the Finnish Waffen SS volunteers who did not obey the order of the Finnish Commander-in-Chief Marshal Baron Carl Gustav Emil von Mannerheim, given in 1943, to return from the Eastern Front to their homeland and rejoin the Finnish army ... Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

49. 42nd SS Infantry Division "Lower Saxony" ("Niedersachsen").

Information about the emblem of the division, the formation of which was not completed, has not been preserved.

50. 43rd Waffen SS Infantry Division "Reichsmarshal".

This division, the formation of which was started on the basis of units of the German air force("Luftwaffe"), left without aviation equipment, cadets of flight schools and ground personnel, was named after the imperial marshal (Reichsmarshal) of the Third Reich, Hermann Goering. Reliable information about the emblem of the division has not survived.

51. 44th Waffen SS Wallenstein Motorized Infantry Division.

This SS division, recruited from ethnic Germans living in the Protectorate of Bohemia-Moravia and Slovakia, as well as from Czech and Moravian volunteers, was named in honor of the German imperial commander during the Thirty Years War (1618-1648), Duke of Friedland Albrecht Eusevius Wenzelztein von (1583-1634), a Czech by birth, the hero of the dramatic trilogy of the classic of German literature Friedrich von Schiller "Wallenstein" ("Wallenstein's Camp", "Piccolomini" and "Death of Wallenstein"). Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

52. 45th SS Infantry Division "Varyags" ("Vareger").

Initially, Reichsfuehrer SS Heinrich Himmler intended to give the name "Varyags" ("Vareger") to the Nordic (North European) SS division, formed from Norwegians, Swedes, Danes and other Scandinavians who sent their volunteer contingents to help the Third Reich. However, according to a number of sources, Adolf Hitler "rejected" the name "Varangians" for his Nordic SS volunteers, trying to avoid undesirable associations with the medieval "Varangian Guard" (which consisted of Norwegians, Danes, Swedes, Russians and Anglo-Saxons) in the service of the Byzantine emperors. The Fuehrer of the Third Reich had a negative attitude towards the Tsargrad "Vasilevs", considering them, like all Byzantines, "morally and spiritually corrupted, deceitful, insidious, venal and treacherous decadents," and not wanting to be associated with the rulers of Byzantium.

It should be noted that Hitler was not alone in his antipathies to the Byzantines. Most Western Europeans fully shared this antipathy to the "Romans" (since the era of the Crusades), and it is no coincidence that in the Western European lexicon there is even a special concept of "Byzantinism" (meaning: "deceit", "cynicism", "meanness", " groveling before the strong and ruthlessness to the weak, "perfidy" ... in general, "the Greeks are deceitful to this day," as the famous Russian chronicler wrote). As a result, the German-Scandinavian division formed in the Waffen SS (which later included the Dutch, Walloons, Flemings, Finns, Latvians, Estonians, Ukrainians and Russians) was given the name "Viking". Along with this, on the basis of Russian white emigrants and former citizens The USSR in the Balkans began the formation of another SS division under the name "Vareger" ("Varyags"); however, due to the circumstances, the case was limited to the formation in the Balkans of the "Russian (guard) corps (Russian guard group)" and a separate Russian SS regiment "Varyag".

During the Second World War on the territory of Serbia in 1941-1944. In alliance with the Germans, the Serbian SS Volunteer Corps also operated, consisting of former servicemen of the Yugoslav Royal Army (mostly of Serbian origin), most of whom were members of the Serbian monarchist-fascist movement "Z.B.O.R.", headed by Dmitry Lötich. The tactical sign of the corps was a tarch shield and an image of an ear of bread superimposed on a naked sword with the tip down, located diagonally.

The history of World War II has many pages that many historians in the West prefer not to read. It is worth mentioning only the national divisions of the Reich. The topic is very delicate, and in the light of recent events in the south-east of Ukraine, it is also becoming painful.

One has only to mention the history of the SS Galicia division! These "brave fighters" are now glorified in the Ukrainian state, but their "feats" were sometimes amazed at the Gestapo veterans. And this already says a lot.

How it all began

From the very first days of the war, the leadership of the Ukrainian nationalists bombarded the German government with "demands" for the urgent creation of nationalist combat units that could "contribute to the victory over Bolshevism." But at first all their efforts were wasted. At that time, their German masters paid absolutely no attention to this fuss. Their military successes were such that they were amused only at the thought that they could accept the help of these political mosques.

In 1943, circumstances changed somewhat. There was Stalingrad, under which the backbone of Paulus's army was broken, there were other battles that convincingly debunked the myth of invincibility. Already in February of that year, the Germans began to think about how to use the "Ukrainian resource" more politely, plugging holes at the front with nationalists.

Creation of a "glorious division"

This initiative was warmly supported by the Governor of the Galicia District O. Wächter. Most likely, he received the final permission directly from his former boss Himmler. Some historical documents have survived, which indicate the fact that the creation of the SS "Galicia" division was first discussed by them on March 1, 1943.

Already on March 28, 1943, Wächter informs his boss that the leaders of the nationalists happily seized the opportunity to "serve Germany." In mid-April of the same year, Wächter called a party meeting, which was attended by the highest ranks of the SS.

They did not delay, and therefore almost immediately decided to create the SS Galicia division. The participants in this meeting agreed ahead of time that they would avoid using the word "police" in the name of the newly created unit. Simply put, they agreed in advance on the formation of a police punitive body. It is not surprising that the selected nationalists were equipped similarly to their "colleagues" from other punitive SS units, wearing gray uniforms. They differed from others only in a special flap on the sleeve.

An official order to form the SS Galicia Division was issued on 28 April. Soon the first recruits began to enter the division.

On the features of recruitment

It should be emphasized that the recruitment of new human material was "generous". This wording meant that racial prejudice did not prevent the Germans from recruiting troops from the "Slavic rabble". The entrance to this "elite unit" was categorically closed only to completely non-European types, whose appearance clearly spoke of a far from Aryan origin.

The work of propagandists

On the day of the publication of the order for the formation of the division, Wächter issues a secret directive. She unequivocally says that the bodies responsible for the appeal of the nationalists, in no case should even hint at the very fact of their assistance to the Germans. The commissions were obliged to focus exclusively on the "fight against Bolshevism." They even deciphered the abbreviation SS as "Sich Riflemen", which went off with a bang in a poorly educated, uncultured environment.

This is also hinted at by the anthem of the SS division "Galicia", which contains many words about the "greatness of the nation", but does not in any way speak of service to the Reich.

The number of human resources

At the beginning of June, there were 81,999 registered people. Officially, 52,875 of them were accepted, 29,124 were refused service. But it should not be assumed that the conscription was immediately terminated, since replenishment was required constantly. headed by K. Schulze, who carried out recruiting until August 1944, and the "cosmetic repair" of the battle-worn unit was carried out almost until the end of 1945.

Since the mobilization proceeded at an unprecedented pace, the Germans formed several units at once. This explains the fact that the SS "Galicia" division, the photos of whose members are in the article, was an extremely heterogeneous formation. In addition to the 11,578 people who officially went through special preparatory courses, the Germans immediately manned five additional regiments and one battalion from the "surplus". These regiments and battalion immediately went through the classic police drill, which all other punitive units were subjected to.

Recruiting Methods Used

It soon turned out that the recruited "material" was clearly not enough due to constant losses in battles, and therefore not only official draft commissions for volunteers began to operate, but also special detachments that were engaged in the violent mobilization of youth. This became obvious by mid-June 1944, when the Ukrainians themselves began to fully feel the full extent of their "loyalty to the Reich." The captured youths were immediately sent to serve in the SS "Hohenstaufen" and "Frundsberg", which that summer were just near Lvov.

Also, other German divisions, who were passing through those parts, also used the source of cheap Ukrainian "material". They regularly took several dozen caught “patriots of Ukraine” into service. In the villages near Lviv, the German administration completely disregarded its nationalist hangers-on, completely rewriting all men without their knowledge. It was an excellent storehouse of human resources, which Germany at that time began to desperately lack. People began to be taken not only from the streets, but also directly from public institutions.

Even in churches, the "patriots of Ukraine" could no longer feel safe, since they were sent to pay "debt to the Fuhrer" directly from services. At that time, even the most selective nationalists could not help but notice the plight of their masters on the fronts, and therefore somehow they were in no hurry to fight. It is believed that the SS "Galicia" division (a photo of its standards is in this material) let through at least 32 thousand warriors.

Command and places of registration

At first, SS Brigadefuehrer Schiemann was responsible for the functioning of the new police formation. But he stayed in this post only until mid-November 1943. Soon the SS Oberführer Fritz Freitag became the commander of the Galicians, who at the end of April was solemnly awarded the honorary title of Brigadenführer (an analogue of our Major General in the SS forces).

This disposition of the command to him was due to the fact that this man had rich experience in commanding police units and was well aware of the specifics of working with them. German combat officers treated him with extreme contempt: Freitag had not been in a single battle, had not the slightest idea about tactics and army life.

In general, the Ukrainian SS division "Galicia" became a kind of "scarecrow" among the Nazis, since from the Germans there were exiled exclusively worthless, mediocre, or simply cowardly officers. Of course, the fighting qualities of the compound were appropriate.

At first, the main part of the personnel was located in the "Gaidelager", and from the beginning of 1944 the division was quartered in the city of Neugamer (Silesia, Germany). However, on July 18, 1943, when the first batch of recruits from Lvov arrived, they were first placed in the Gaidelager camp (near Dembitsa), and then they were formally formed into police regiments.

First combat use

At the very beginning of 1944, an urgent directive came from Berlin about the need to form a "battle group" as soon as possible to fight the partisans of Poland and the USSR. A battalion was quickly formed, a battery of light guns was handed over to it, after which this company was scattered across the outskirts of Poland. So the 14th SS Grenadier Division "Galicia" began its truly inglorious path.

Just a day later, the formation of a similar group was completed, which was intended for counter-guerrilla warfare in the vicinity of Lviv. Subsequently, the Nazi leadership noted that both of these units "acted quite successfully." But the Germans are showing amazing unanimity, not trying to describe in more detail these "successes".

However, it is quite clear that the division “fought bravely” with exceptionally superior forces, preferring to attack unarmed civilians first. If only there was no choice at all, the "brave warriors" entered into fire contact with the partisans, for the fight against which the SS "Galicia" division was actually formed.

The first "exploits" of the Galicians

Soviet troops were fortunate enough to seize the archive of this glorious unit, which still serves as irrefutable proof of the military "achievements" of Ukrainian nationalists. There is a record that the fourth regiment was the first to enter the battle with the partisans ... In total, about 12 people were wounded. As a result of the operation, the villages of Guta-Penyatskaya and Benyaki were razed to the ground. The gallant nationalists burned down the houses. Together with their inhabitants, of course. In total, they killed at least 800 peaceful peasants, among whom were many women and children. However, the flag of the SS "Galicia" division was never considered a truly military banner, since only "rejected" German officers and elite nationalists fought under its canopy, whom their masters did not even consider as people.

In Ternopil, the Ukrainian henchmen of the Wehrmacht dispersed even more. When, as a result of a counterattack, the Germans managed to recapture part of the city, the animals simply drove the surviving people into one of the churches, after which they burned everyone. In their native Lviv, they destroyed about one and a half thousand people, in Zolochev they were engaged in mass executions of captured Red Army soldiers. They practically destroyed the small town of Olesko completely, but killed "only" 300 people.

This "generosity" is explained by the fact that the rest of the inhabitants were driven off to forced labor in Germany. If it were not for the need of the Germans for slaves, even more blood would have been shed. The nationalists were very fond of killing those who could no longer resist them. Actually, the SS division "Galicia" has forever been marked by this very feature of its own in history.

Brodsky catastrophe

But the time has come for these "brave warriors" to meet in a real battle with regular soldiers, and not with unarmed civilians. The SS "Galicia" division near Brody had a "full ammunition load", being manned by soldiers of the 29th, 30th and 31st regiments. In addition, many warriors from some other formations were attributed to it.

At that time, in its "glorious ranks" there were 346 officers, 1131 non-commissioned officers and 13,822 soldiers. Thus, its total strength was 15 299 warriors. Only 1000 men and 1200 soldiers of the reserve battalion, who were lucky enough to be outside the encirclement, escaped from the Brodovsky Cauldron relatively unharmed.

Several hundred nationalists managed to infiltrate the encirclement in small groups that avoided open confrontation with Soviet troops. In total, out of 15 thousand, no more than 1/5 of the personnel survived. This fact once again confirmed the simple fact that police formations in open combat are worth absolutely nothing. All their "valor" lies only in atrocities against the civilian population and captured, unarmed soldiers.

However, the complete defeat of the SS "Galicia" division was close. After the Battle of Brody, it was just a matter of time.

Further combat path

In February 1944, the fourth regiment was transferred to Ternopil, where its members participated in the suppression of the partisan movement. Subsequently, they participated in episodic cases of resistance to the advancing Soviet troops.

The rest of the division was transferred to France, where further military training took place. In the spring, almost all nationalists were sent to Neugamer. From time to time they continued to be used in the fight against the French resistance.

Thus, the history of the SS "Galicia" division in a truly military sense was absolutely inglorious: the Ukrainians took part in real battles only from March to July. After it was completely defeated near Brody, its pitiful remnants are finally reorganized into a police unit, after which they are used exclusively in this field.

Slovakia and Yugoslavia

In early October 1944, the rested nationalists, into whose ranks at that time many "volunteers" recruited directly from the streets, were sent to Slovakia. There, the "brave Aryans" were engaged in a familiar and extremely pleasant business, suppressing. The "Dirlivanger's brigade", known for their atrocities, was subordinate to the Ukrainians. Its members are still well remembered in Belarus, since they are responsible for a huge number of lives of brutally tortured people.

Where then was the SS Galicia division sent? Brody showed perfectly well that it was useless to use nationalists against regular units of Soviet troops, and therefore they were sent to Carinthia, where they pursued the partisans of Yugoslavia. Here the Galicians spent all the last months of the war.

In 1945, its soldiers were transferred to German territory, trying to force at least once "to courageously repulse the blow of the Soviet troops." Futile hopes. As soon as the banners of the British troops dawned in the distance, the "courageous patriots of Ukraine" rushed into captivity with incredible speed. This was the last march of the SS Galicia Division in that war.

In the town of Tamsweg, through which the prisoners passed, the British established a filtration point, where at first they relatively successfully caught Commander Fritz Freitag from this news fell into black melancholy and committed suicide. His place was taken by the Polish Colonel Pavel Shandruk. However, time has clearly shown Freitag was wrong. Thousands of Galicians seeped through the liquid English post, and they settled down perfectly on the territory of England.

"Purely English Betrayal"

What happened to the "gallant fighters" of this division, who so bravely rushed to surrender to English captivity? Alas, but their fate was the best. There is a lot of historical evidence that in 1945 there were about eight thousand servicemen on the territory of Great Britain, who served in Galicia.

As of 1999, at least one and a half thousand of both direct participants in those events and their descendants lived in England. The UK government is extremely reluctant to delve into these issues. Of the eight thousand war criminals, the British convicted ... one person. This "lucky" was Anton Sevenyuk.

What was the reason for such a loyal attitude? The fact is that upon surrender, the "brave patriots" all as one called themselves ... Poles, who were brutally killed just a couple of years ago. They did not really check them, and the British did not have a vital interest in this. After all, it was not their villages and cities that were burned by these animals.

In the mid-90s, a separate bureau, which, as it were, was engaged in the "capture of Nazi criminals", and completely ceased to exist. Hitler's henchmen, who successfully surrendered to the British, finally ceased to be afraid of at least some threat of exposure and punishment. Almost all documents in this case are still classified.

In general, the inhabitants of Foggy Albion are well aware of the SS Galicia division. The film about her, which was filmed in England, seems to condemn the atrocities of the nationalists, but at the same time emphasizes that many soldiers were either recruited by force, or succumbed to the "romantic impulse of the revival of Ukraine." But none of these facts in any way justifies their monstrous crimes.

Modern realities

Such an epic story still has its echoes today. Thus, the flag of the SS "Galicia" division can still be seen at some events held by informal associations that have forgotten how much grief these non-humans have brought.

During the Second World War, the divisions of the SS troops were considered the elite formations of the armed forces of the Third Reich.

1. 1st SS Panzer Division "Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler".

2. 2nd SS Panzer Division "Das Reich".

3. 3rd SS Panzer Division "Death's Head" ("Totenkopf").

4. 4th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Police" ("Police"), also known as "(4th) SS Police Division".

5. 5th SS Panzer Division "Viking".

6. 6th SS Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division "Nord" ("North").

7. 7th SS Volunteer Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division "Prince Eugene (Eugen)".

8. 8th SS Cavalry Division Florian Geyer.

9. 9th SS Panzer Division "Hohenstaufen".

10. 10th SS Panzer Division "Frundsberg".

11. 11th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Nordland" ("Northern Country").

12. 12th SS Panzer Division "Hitler Youth"

13. 13th mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Khanjar"

14. 14th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS (Galician No. 1, since 1945 - Ukrainian No. 1); she is the SS Galicia division.

15. 15th grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS (Latvian No. 1).

16. 16th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Reichsfuehrer SS".

17. 17th SS Motorized Division "Götz von Berlichingen".

18. The 18th SS Horst Wessel Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division.

This division was named after one of the "martyrs of the Hitlerite movement" - the commander of the Berlin stormtroopers Horst Wessel, who composed the song "Banners up"! (which became the anthem of the NSDAP and the "second anthem" of the Third Reich) and killed by communist militants. The division's emblem was a naked sword, point upward, crossing the shield-tarch diagonally from right to left. According to the surviving data, the Horst Wessel division also had another emblem, which was a stylized rune-like Latin letters SA (SA = Sturmabteilungen, that is, "assault detachments"; "Martyr of the Movement" Horst Wessel, after whom the division received its name , was one of the leaders of the Berlin stormtroopers), inscribed in a circle.

19. 19th grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS (Latvian # 2).

20. 20th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS (Estonian No. 1).

21. The 21st mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Skanderbeg" (Albanian No. 1).

22. The 22nd SS Volunteer Cavalry Division Maria Theresa.

23.23rd Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division of the Waffen SS "Kama" (Croatian No. 2)

24.23rd Waffen SS Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division "Netherlands"

(Dutch No. 1).

25. 24th mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Karst Jaegers" ("Karst Jaegers", "Karstjeger").

26.25th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS "Hunyadi"

(Hungarian # 1).

27. 26th Grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Gömbös" (Hungarian # 2).

28. The 27th SS Langemark Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division (Flemish No. 1).

29.28 SS Panzer Division. Information about the tactical mark of the division has not been preserved.

30. The 28th SS Wallonia Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division.

31. 29th Grenadier Infantry Division of the Waffen SS "RONA" (Russian # 1).

32. 29th Grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Italy" (Italian No. 1).

33. 30th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS (Russian No. 2, it is also Belarusian No. 1).

34. 31st SS Volunteer Grenadier Division (aka 23rd Waffen SS Volunteer Mountain Rifle Division).

The division's emblem was a full-face deer head on the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield.

35. The 31st SS Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Bohemia and Moravia" (German: "Böhmen und Meren").

36. The 32nd SS Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division "January 30".

37. 33rd Waffen SS Cavalry Division "Hungaria", or "Hungary" (Hungarian # 3).

This division, which consisted of Hungarian volunteers, received the appropriate name. Information about the tactical sign (emblem) of the division has not been preserved.

38. 33rd grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Charlemagne" (French No. 1).

39. 34th SS Landstorm Nederland Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division (Dutch No. 2).

40.36th SS Police Grenadier (Infantry) Division ("Police Division II")

consisted of German police officers mobilized for military service. The division's emblem was a "Varangian" ("Norman") shield with the image of the Hagall rune and the Roman numeral "II".

41. 36th Waffen SS Grenadier Division "Dirlewanger".

The emblem of the division was inscribed in the "Varangian" ("Norman") shield 2 crossed in the shape of the letter "X" hand grenades - "beaters" with handles down.

42. The 35th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Police" ("Police"), it is also the 35th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Police Division. Information about the tactical sign (emblem) of the division has not been preserved.

43.36th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS. Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

44. 37th SS Volunteer Cavalry Division "Luttsov".

45. The 38th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Nibelungen" ("Nibelungen").

46. The 39th SS Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division Andreas Gofer.

47. 40th SS Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division "Feldgerrngalle" (not to be confused with the same name division of the German Wehrmacht).

48. 41st Waffen SS Kalevala Infantry Division (Finnish # 1).

49. 42nd SS Infantry Division "Lower Saxony" ("Niedersachsen").

Information about the emblem of the division, the formation of which was not completed, has not been preserved.

50. 43rd Waffen SS Infantry Division "Reichsmarshal".

This division, the formation of which was begun on the basis of units of the German air force ("Luftwaffe"), left without aviation equipment, cadets of flight schools and ground personnel, was named after the imperial marshal (Reichsmarshal) of the Third Reich Hermann Goering. Reliable information about the emblem of the division has not survived.

51. 44th Waffen SS Wallenstein Motorized Infantry Division.

52. 45th SS Infantry Division "Varyags" ("Vareger").

It should be noted that Hitler was not alone in his antipathies to the Byzantines. Most Western Europeans fully shared this antipathy to the "Romans" (since the era of the Crusades), and it is no coincidence that in the Western European lexicon there is even a special concept of "Byzantinism" (meaning: "deceit", "cynicism", "meanness", " groveling before the strong and ruthlessness to the weak, "perfidy" ... in general, "the Greeks are deceitful to this day," as the famous Russian chronicler wrote). As a result, the German-Scandinavian division formed in the Waffen SS (which later included the Dutch, Walloons, Flemings, Finns, Latvians, Estonians, Ukrainians and Russians) was given the name "Viking". Along with this, on the basis of Russian White emigrants and former citizens of the USSR in the Balkans, the formation of another SS division called "Vareger" ("Varyags") was started; however, due to the circumstances, the case was limited to the formation in the Balkans of the "Russian (guard) corps (Russian guard group)" and a separate Russian SS regiment "Varyag".

SS division emblems

Almost all German divisions had their own emblems or markings. As a rule, they were applied with white, black or yellow oil paint on divisional military equipment and vehicles; buildings in which the ranks of the respective divisions were quartered; corresponding pointers in the locations of the parts; aircraft (if any), etc. In SS divisions, such insignia or emblems ("Erkennungszeichen", German: Erkennungszeichen) almost always fit into heraldic shields that had a "Varangian" or "Norman" form, or the form of a tarch, and in many cases differed from the lapel insignia of the ranks of the corresponding divisions. Although in practice, such identification marks (judging by the surviving photographs) were often applied to equipment and divisional equipment without heraldic shields or simply fit into a circle.

1st Panzer Division "Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler" ... The name of the division can be translated as "SS Regiment of Adolf Hitler's bodyguards." The emblem of the division was a tarch shield with the image of a master key (and not a key, as they often write and think incorrectly). This choice of drawing is explained by the fact that the surname of the division commander Josef (Sepp) Dietrich in German means a skeleton key (dietrich). After Joseph Dietrich was awarded the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, the division emblem was framed with 2 oak leaves or a semicircular oak wreath. The division was founded on March 17, 1933 by Hitler shortly after he came to power. At the beginning of World War II, the 1st SS Division fought as a motorized infantry regiment. According to the testimonies, due to the special stamina, this unit suffered high losses, due to insufficient military training and blind fanaticism. Achievement of the task, regardless of losses, was considered a special pride.

2nd SS Panzer Division "Das Reich" ... The name of the division can be translated into Russian as "Empire", "Power". The emblem of the division was the "wolfsangel" (wolf hook) inscribed in the shield-tarch - an old Germanic rune-amulet that scared away wolves and werewolves (in German: "werewolves", in Greek: "lycanthropes", in Icelandic: "ulfheads" , in Norwegian: "varulvov" or "wargs", in Slavic: "volkolakov", "volkudlakov" or "volkodlakov"), located horizontally. The division was created on October 10, 1938 by the amalgamation of the "SS reserve troops" and parts of the SS formations "Dead's Head".

3rd SS Panzer Division "Death's Head" ("Totenkopf"). The emblem of the division was the image of the dead (Adam's) head (skull with bones) inscribed in the shield-tarch - a symbol of loyalty to the leader until his death. It was created on November 1, 1939 as a division of motorized infantry. It included parts of the SS "Dead Head", which was engaged in the protection of concentration camps, and the SS battalion of Danzig.

4th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Police" ("Police"), aka "(4th) SS Police Division". This division received this name because it was formed from the ranks of the German police. The division's emblem was a "wolf hook" - "Wolfsangel" in an upright position, inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch. Founded on October 1, 1939 as the Police Division of the German police. On February 10, 1942, it passed to the Waffen-SS, to which it belonged informally.

5th SS Panzer Division "Viking". It was founded in April 1941 from the SS "Nordland" and "Westland" regiments. The division was the first to include foreigners. It was fought by foreign volunteers from "racially acceptable peoples", mainly residents of the Nordic countries (Norway, Denmark, Finland, Sweden), as well as Belgium, the Netherlands, Latvia and Estonia. However, foreigners made up only 10% of the personnel. By the end of the war, Swiss, Russian, Ukrainian and Spanish volunteers served in the ranks of the division. The emblem of the division was the oblique cross (sun wheel), that is, a swastika with arched bent crossbeams, on a heraldic shield-tarche.

6th SS Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division "Nord" ("North"). It was founded in the fall of 1942 in Finland as the SS Nord mountain division from the Nord SS division. October 22, 1943 received the 6th number and became the 6th SS Division. The name of this division is explained by the fact that it was recruited mainly from the natives of the Nordic countries (Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Estonia and Latvia). The emblem of the division was the ancient Germanic rune "Hagall" ("Hagalaz") inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch, which was considered a symbol of unshakable faith.

7th SS Volunteer Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division "Prince Eugene (Eugen)". Founded in October 1942. She showed particular cruelty to the civilian population. According to the results of a military investigation in 1944, it became known that as a result of the atrocities of the division, 22 settlements with a total population of about 1000 people were destroyed. This division, recruited mainly from ethnic Germans living in Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Vojvodina, Banat and Romania, was named after the famous commander of the "Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation" of the second half of the 17th and early 18th centuries. Prince Eugene (in German: Eugen) of Savoy, famous for his victories over the Ottoman Turks and, in particular, for the Roman-German emperor conquered Belgrade (1717). Yevgeny Savoisky also became famous in the War of the Spanish Succession for his victories over the French and earned himself no less fame as a patron of the arts. The division's emblem was an ancient Germanic rune "odal" ("otilia", "etel") with bent lower ends, stylized and inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch. The rune itself means "real estate / estate" or "heritage" and symbolizes the roots and past of a person - clan, family, homeland, home, property, traditions. However, it should be noted that some foreign and domestic runologists tend to consider this version of the "odal" rune (with curved lower ends) as a separate, "irregular" rune "erda" ("earth rune"). According to their interpretation, the rune of the earth and the earthly goddess, bearing the same name in the Germanic languages - "erda", symbolizes, on the one hand, the earth itself and its holiness, and on the other, the native land, homeland, clan. Nevertheless, apparently, in the Third Reich in general, and in the SS - in particular, no distinction was made between the runes "Odal" and "Erda" with swept lower ends, used as the emblem of the Dutch SS division "Landstorm Nederland" - the name "Odal-Rune" was used).

8th SS Cavalry Division Florian Geyer. It was created on September 9, 1942 as an SS Cavalry Division. Participated in the suppression of the partisan population, acted against the Polish insurgents from the Regional Army in Volyn. This division was named in honor of the imperial knight Florian Geyer, who during the Peasant War in Germany (1524-1526) led one of the detachments of German peasants ("Black Detachment", in German: "Schwarzer Gaufen"), who rebelled against the princes (large feudal lords who opposed the unification of Germany under the emperor's scepter). Since Florian Geyer wore black armor and his "Black Squad" fought under a black banner, the SS viewed him as their predecessor (especially since he opposed not only the princes, but also for the unification of the German state). Florian Geyer (immortalized in the eponymous drama by the classic of German literature Gerhart Hauptmann) heroically died in battle with the superior forces of the German princes in 1525 in the Taubertal valley. His image entered German folklore (especially song), enjoying no less popularity than, say, Stepan Razin - in Russian song folklore. The emblem of the division was inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch a straight naked sword with a point upward, crossing the shield from right to left diagonally and a horse's head.

9th SS Panzer Division "Hohenstaufen" ("Hohenstaufen"). Created from the reserve "Leibstandarte-SS Adolf Hitler" on December 31, 1942 in France. Supplemented by volunteers from all over the Reich. This division was named after the dynasty of the Swabian dukes (since 1079) and the medieval Roman-German emperors-Kaisers (1138-1254) - the Hohenstaufens (Staufens). Under them, the medieval German power ("Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation"), founded by Charlemagne (in 800 BC) and renewed by Otto I the Great, reached the peak of its power, subjugating Italy, Sicily, the Holy Land and Poland. The Hohenstaufens tried, relying on the economically highly developed Northern Italy as a base, to centralize their power over Germany and restore the Roman Empire - "at least" - the Western (within the borders of the empire of Charlemagne), ideally, the entire Roman Empire, including the Eastern Roman (Byzantine), in which, however, they did not succeed. The most famous representatives of the Hohenstaufen dynasty are Kaisers-crusaders Frederick I Barbarossa (who died during the Third Crusade) and his grand-nephew Frederick II (Emperor of Rome, King of Germany, Sicilian and Jerusalem), as well as Konradin, who was defeated and defeated by the Pope Duke Charles of Anjou for Italy and beheaded by the French in 1268. The emblem of the division was inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch, located vertically, with a straight naked sword, point upward, superimposed on the capital Latin letter "H" ("Hohenstaufen").

10th SS Panzer Division "Frundsberg". It was created on February 1, 1943 in southern France as the 10th SS Panzer-Grenadier Division. On October 3, 1943, it was renamed and given the name Frundsberg in honor of the German Renaissance commander Georg (Jorg) von Frundsberg, nicknamed "Father of the Landsknechts" (1473-1528), under whose command the troops of the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation and King Charles of Spain I of Habsburg conquered Italy and took Rome in 1514, forcing the Pope to recognize the primacy of the Empire. They say that the fierce Georg Frundsberg always carried with him a golden noose, which he intended to strangle the Pope if he fell into his hands alive. The division's emblem was the capital Gothic letter "F" ("Frundsberg") inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch, superimposed on an oak leaf located diagonally from right to left.

11th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Nordland" ("Northern Country"). It was created in July 1943. She fought on the Eastern Front, in May 1945 it was almost completely destroyed in Berlin. The name of the division is explained by the fact that it was recruited mainly from volunteers natives of the Northern European countries (Denmark, Norway. Sweden, Iceland, Finland, Latvia and Estonia). The emblem of this SS division was originally a "wolf hook" without a central vertical line, and later - a heraldic shield-tarch with the image of a "sun wheel" inscribed in a circle.

12th SS Panzer Division "Hitler Youth" ("Hitler Youth"). The order on the formation of a division from conscripts born in 1926 was signed on February 10, 1943. This division was recruited mainly from the ranks of the eponymous youth organization of the Third Reich. The emblem of the division was the ancient German "solar" rune "sig" ("sovulo", "sovelu"), inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch - a symbol of victory and the emblem of Hitler's youth organizations "Jungfolk" and "Hitler Youth", from among whose members volunteers of the division were recruited, superimposed on the master key ("alignment with Dietrich").

13th mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Khanjar" (often referred to in military literature as "Handshar" or "Yatagan"), consisting of Croatian, Bosnian and Herzegovinian Muslims (Bosniaks). Formation began in August 1943. The division has established itself as a competent anti-partisan detachment, the main area of activity in Bosnia, Serbia. The division's emblem was a curved sword-khanjar inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch - a traditional Muslim edged weapon, directed from left to right upward diagonally. According to the surviving data, the division also had another identification mark, which was an image of a hand with a khanjar superimposed on a double "SS" rune "sig" ("sovulo").

14th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS "Galicia" (Sichevykh Streltsov) she is the Galician division number 1, since 1945 - the Ukrainian division number 1). The emblem of the division was the old coat of arms of the city of Lvov, the capital of Galicia - a lion walking on its hind legs, surrounded by three three-toothed crowns, inscribed in the "Varangian" ("Norman") shield. Along with the 13th SS division, the first SS division is recruited from the "non-Nordic" volunteers of the Ukrainians - Galicians.

15th grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS (Latvian # 1). It was created at the beginning of 1943 and was originally called him. Lettische SS-Freiwilligen Division, renamed division in June 1944, as was the 19th Waffen-SS Grenadier Division, from the Latvian SS Legion. Almost all the leading positions of the division were occupied by Latvians. The division's emblem was originally the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the Roman numeral "I" over the stylized printed capital Latin letter "L" ("Latvia"). Subsequently, the division received another sign - three stars against the background of the rising sun. The stars meant three Latvian provinces - Vidzeme, Kurzeme and Latgale (a similar image adorned the cockade of the military personnel of the pre-war army of the Republic of Latvia).

16th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Reichsfuehrer SS". It was created on October 3, 1943 in Ljubljana from the SS Reichsfuehrer SS assault brigade. The division was responsible for the massacres at Sant'Anna di Stazzema and Marzabotto on August 12, 1944 and October 1, 1944, respectively. Used extensively from Italy and Corsica to Hungary. This division was named after the SS Reichsfuehrer Heinrich Himmler. in a heraldic shield-tarch a bunch of three oak leaves with two acorns at the handle framed by a laurel wreath.

17th SS Motorized Division Götz von Berlichingen. Created at the end of autumn 1943 in southwestern France from tank-grenadier brigades 49 and 51 and other units, among others, the 10th Panzer Division. It was used in the Balkans against Tito's partisans, in France, in Normandy against 3 American divisions, Saarpfalz, Bavaria. This division was named after the hero of the Peasant War in Germany (1524-1526), the imperial knight Georg (Götz, Götz) von Berlichingen (1480-1562), the fighter against the separatism of the German princes for the unity of Germany, the leader of the detachment of insurgent peasants and the hero of the drama Johann Wolfgang von Goethe "Goetz von Berlichingen with an iron hand" (knight Goetz, who lost his arm in one of the battles, ordered to make an iron prosthesis for himself, which he owned no worse than others - a hand made of flesh and blood). The emblem of the division was the iron hand of Goetz von Berlichingen, clenched into a fist (crossing the tarch shield from right to left and from bottom to top diagonally).

The 18th SS Horst Wessel Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division. It was created from the 1st SS Infantry Brigade on January 25, 1944 in the Zagreb (Celje) region of western Croatia. The division was planned to be formed from SA employees, however, due to their insufficient number, the division was staffed with Hungarian Germans. This division was named after one of the "martyrs of the Hitlerite movement" - the commander of the Berlin stormtroopers Horst Wessel, who composed the song "Banners up"! (which became the anthem of the NSDAP and the "second anthem" of the Third Reich) and killed by communist militants. The division's emblem was a straight, naked sword, point upward, crossing the shield-tarch diagonally from right to left. According to the surviving data, this division also had another emblem, which was a stylized rune-like Latin letters SA (SA - Sturmabteilungen, ie "assault squads" - one of the leaders of which Horst Wessel was), inscribed in a circle.

19th grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS (Latvian No. 2). Formed on the basis of the "Latvian Volunteer Brigade" in January 1944. Most of the soldiers and officers up to regiment commanders were Latvians. At the time of formation, the division's emblem was a "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the Roman numeral "II" over a stylized printed capital Latin letter "L" ("Latvia"). Subsequently, the division acquired another tactical sign - an upright right-sided swastika on the "Varangian" shield. The swastika - "fiery cross" ("ugunskrusts") or "cross (of the god of thunder) Perkon" ("perkonkrusts") has been a traditional element of Latvian folk ornament from time immemorial.

20th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS (Estonian No. 1). Formation began in February 1944 and was carried out on a voluntary basis. All those wishing to serve in this unit had to meet the requirements of the SS troops for health and ideological reasons. The division's emblem was a "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield depicting a straight drawn sword with its tip upward, crossing the shield from right to left diagonally and superimposed on the capital Latin letter "E" ("Estonia"). According to some reports, this emblem was sometimes depicted on the helmets of the Estonian SS volunteers.

21st mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Skanderbeg" (Albanian No. 1). It began to be created on May 1, 1944 in Northern Albania (region of Kosovo) on the orders of Himmler. This division, recruited mainly from the Albanians, was named after the national hero of the Albanian people, the prince, George Alexander Kastriot (nicknamed by the Turks "Iskander Beg" or, for short, "Skanderbeg"). While Skanderbeg (1403-1468) was alive, the Ottoman Turks, who had repeatedly suffered defeats from him, could not subjugate Albania to their power. The emblem of the division was the ancient coat of arms of Albania - a two-headed eagle, inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch (the ancient Albanian rulers claimed kinship with the Basileus emperors of Byzantium). According to the surviving information, the division also had another sign - a stylized image of a "Skanderbeg helmet" with goat horns, superimposed on 2 horizontal stripes.

22nd SS Volunteer Cavalry Division "Maria Theresa" (and not "Maria Teresa", as they often write incorrectly). It was formed on April 29, 1944 from Hungarian volunteers. Acted as part of Army Group South Ukraine. She received her baptism of fire in October 1944 as part of the 6th Army. Participated in the defense of Budapest, where it was actually destroyed, the remnants of the division were used in the formation of the 37th SS Volunteer Cavalry Division "Luttsov". This division, recruited mainly from ethnic Germans living in Hungary and from Hungarians, was named after the Empress of the “Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation” and Austria, Queen of Bohemia (Bohemia) and Hungary, Maria Theresa von Habsburg (1717-1780), one of the most prominent rulers of the second half of the 18th century. The emblem of the division was the image of a cornflower flower inscribed in a heraldic shield-tarch with eight petals, a stem, two leaves and one bud - (subjects of the Austro-Hungarian Danube monarchy, who wanted to join the German Empire, until 1918 wore a cornflower in their buttonhole - the favorite flower of the German emperor Wilhelm II of Hohenzollern).

23rd Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division Waffen SS "Kama" (Croatian number 2). The formation of the division began on June 10, 1944 in eastern Croatia from Croatian, Bosnian and Herzegovinian Muslims, but was not completed, due to the threat to the training camp of the division by the advancing Red Army. The personnel were included in the 13th SS Mountain Division "Khandshar", which consisted of Croatian, Bosnian and Herzegovinian Muslims. "Kama" is the name of a cold weapon with a curved blade (something like a scimitar), which is traditional for Balkan Muslims. The tactical sign of the division was a stylized image of the astronomical sign of the sun in a crown of rays on a heraldic shield-tarche. Preserved information about two other tactical signs of the division. The first was the Tyr rune with two arrow-shaped processes perpendicular to the rune stem, in its lower part; the second - the rune "odal" (similar to the tactical sign of the SS division "Prince Eugene".

23rd Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division Waffen SS "Netherlands" (1st Dutch) ... The division appeared in February 1945, after the renaming of the SS “Nederland” volunteer tank-grenadier brigade. Nominally, the division consisted of volunteers, in fact - from Dutch collaborators who fled to Germany after the Allies occupied Holland, as well as from German soldiers of the Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS. (Division number "23" was previously used for the never-formed 23rd SS Mountain Division "Kama" (Croatian # 2)). Until the end of the war, the division, never numbering more than 5,200 personnel, fought in Pomerania against the Red Army, before it was almost completely destroyed in the encirclement at Halba. and surrendered. The division's emblem was the "odal" ("otiliya") rune with the lower ends in the form of arrows, inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch.

24th mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Karst Jaegers" ("Karst Jaegers", "Karstjeger"). Organized on August 1, 1944 and consisted mainly of Italian volunteers. It was used in northern Italy, primarily in Friuli and Julian Venice, against partisans. The name of this division is explained by the fact that it was recruited mainly from the natives of the mountainous region of Karst, located on the border between Italy and Yugoslavia. The division's emblem was a stylized image of a "karst flower" ("karstbloom"), inscribed in the heraldic shield of the "Varangian" ("Norman") form.

25th grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Hunyadi" (Hungarian # 1). It was formed from the employees of the Hungarian army in February 1945. The Soviet winter offensive forced her to retreat west, where she surrendered to American forces. This division was named after the medieval Transylvanian-Hungarian Hunyadi dynasty, the most prominent representatives of which were Janos Hunyadi (Johannes Guniades, Giovanni Vaivoda, 1385-1456) and his son King Matthew Corvin (Matthias Hunyadi, 1443-1490), who heroically fought for freedom Hungary against the Ottoman Turks. The division's emblem was the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the "arrow-shaped cross" - the symbol of the Viennese National Socialist Arrows Crossed Party ("Nilashists") by Ferenc Salasi - under two three-toothed crowns.

26th Grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Gömbös" (Hungarian # 2). This division, which consisted mainly of Hungarians, was named after the Hungarian Foreign Minister Count Gyula Gömbes (1886-1936), a staunch supporter of a close military-political alliance with Germany and an ardent anti-Semite. The division's emblem was the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the same arrow-shaped cross, but under three three-toothed crowns.

27th SS Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Langemark" (Flemish No. 1). This division, formed from German-speaking Belgians (Flemings), was named after the site of the bloody battle that took place in Belgium during the Great (First World) War, in 1914. The division's emblem was the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the "triskelion" ("tryphos" or "triquetra").

28th SS Wallonia Volunteer Panzer-Grenadier Division. It was finally formed on October 18, 1944, after the 5th SS Volunteer Assault Brigade "Wallonia", consisting of the 69th and 70th SS Grenadier Regiments, was reorganized. This division owes its name to the fact that it was formed mainly from French-speaking Belgians (Walloons). The division's emblem was a heraldic shield-tarch with the image of crossed in the shape of the letter "X" naked straight sword and a curved saber with the handles up (in rare cases, with the handles down).

29th Grenadier Infantry Division of the Waffen SS "RONA" (Russian # 1). The formation of the division was officially announced on August 1, 1944, but the Warsaw Uprising that began soon led to the fact that the promising potential of the "division" (4-5 thousand people) was used by the German command in its suppression, where it suffered heavy losses; at the same time, the composition of the proposed division showed its extremely low combat value, with almost complete absence of discipline and morality. In September 1944, together with the Dirlewanger brigade, she was deployed to suppress the Slovak uprising, where she operated until October 1944. By this time, the idea of forming a division was finally abandoned, and the remaining personnel (about 3 thousand) was transferred to the formation of the 600th Infantry Division of the Wehrmacht (also known as the 1st ROA Division) where the new command was characterized as "bandits, marauders and thieves" ; by the end of October 1944, after inspecting the remaining personnel stationed in Katowice, plans for the formation of the division finally disappear. The unit, as a real combat division, never existed, and did not take part in hostilities. Despite this, in popular literature it is mentioned under such a name as it really existed. At the beginning of 1945, the 29th SS Grenadier Division "Italy" was created under the same number (No. 29). The divisional mark applied to the equipment, judging by the surviving photographs, was a widened cross with the abbreviation "RONA" under it.

29th grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Italy" (Italian number 1). It emerged on February 10, 1945 as the second SS division under this number (29th SS Grenadier Division "RONA" (Russian No. 1), previously disbanded) from the SS Waffen Grenadier Brigade (Italian No. 1) that had already existed since November 1943. In some publications, the additional name of the division appears as "Italy" or "SS Legion Italiana". This division owed its name to the fact that it consisted of Italian volunteers who remained loyal to Benito Mussolini after his release from prison by a detachment of German paratroopers led by SS Sturmbannfuehrer Otto Skorzeny. The division's tactical sign was a vertically located lictor fascia (in Italian: “littorio”), inscribed in the heraldic shield of the “Varangian” (“Norman”) form - a bunch of rods (rods) with an ax embedded in them (the official emblem of the National Fascist Party of Benito Mussolini) ...

30th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS (Russian No. 2, it is also Belarusian No. 1). It began to form on March 9, 1945 on the basis of the 1st Belarusian SS brigade, created on January 15, 1945, and consisted of one regiment. It was planned that the formation of the division would be completed by June 30, 1945, but events at the front led to the fact that between April 15 and 20, 1945, the division was disbanded. The bulk of the personnel was made up of Belarusians, who had previously served in the police formations and detachments of the "Belarusian Regional Defense", and then in the 75th and 76th regiments of the "2nd Russian". The division was not fully formed and did not take part in hostilities. The division's tactical sign was the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield with the image of the double ("patriarchal") cross of the Holy Princess Euphrosyne of Polotsk, located horizontally.

31st SS Volunteer Grenadier Division (also known as the 23rd Waffen SS Volunteer Mountain Division). It was created on October 1, 1944 on the territory of Hungary from Volksdeutsche self-defense units and soldiers from the disbanded 23rd SS Mountain Division "Kama". Initially, the division took part in the fighting in the Mohacs - Pecs area. There they took part in battles at Popovach, Fighters, Fekete Kapu. Then the division retreated northeast to Pechvarad, then took part in the battles south of Sekzard. Having suffered significant losses, in December 1944 the division was forced to retreat again, this time to the Dombovar area. During these battles, the division again suffered significant losses and was withdrawn to Styria, to Marburg. At the end of January 1945, the somewhat replenished division was sent to Army Group Center in Silesia. Upon arrival in the Lignitz area, the SS police regiment "Brisken" was brought into its composition and sent to the front. The division first took part in the offensive in the area of Schonau and Goldberg, and then went on the defensive. After that, the division defended itself near Murau, then withdrew to Hirschberg, then to Kennigratz, and there surrendered to the Red Army. The division's emblem was a full-face deer head on the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield.

The 31st SS Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Bohemia and Moravia" (German: "Boehmen und Maren"). This division was formed from the natives of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, who came under the German control of the territories of the Czech Republic (after the declaration of independence by Slovakia). The emblem of the division was a Bohemian (Czech) crowned lion, marching on its hind legs, and a power, crowned with a double cross, on the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield.

32nd SS Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division "January 30". Formed in January 1945 in the city of Kurmark from the German Volksdeutsche conscripts (volunteers and mobilized), teachers of the SS Junker Schools, instructors and cadets of SS tank and infantry schools. Initially it numbered about 2000 people. The division suffered heavy losses on the Eastern Front on the Oder River, where it fought in February-March 1945. Several units defended the southern part of Berlin. The surviving remnants of the division surrendered to the Allies on May 5, 1945 in the city of Tanemünde. This division was named in memory of the day Adolf Hitler came to power (January 30, 1933). The division's emblem was a "Varangian" ("Norman") shield with the image of a vertically located "battle rune" - the symbol of the ancient German war god Tyr (Tyra, Tiu, Tsiu, Tuisto, Tuesco).

33rd Cavalry Division of the Waffen SS "Hungaria", or "Hungary" (Hungarian # 3). This division was presumably formed in Hungary in 1944-1945 from Hungarian cavalry units and was destroyed in Budapest. Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

33rd grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Charlemagne" (French No. 1). The formation of the brigade was started back in 1944, however, this military formation became a division only on February 10, 1945 in West Prussia, after the SS Charlemagne Grenadier Waffen Brigade (French No. 1) was reorganized and given the status of a division. After suffering heavy losses in Pomerania on March 25, 1945, the unit was withdrawn east of Neustrelitz and had to stay there until the end of the replenishment and rest. In May 1945, the division surrendered to Soviet troops. This division was named after the Frankish king Charlemagne ("Charlemagne", from the Latin "Carolus Magnus", 742-814), who was crowned in 800 in Rome by the emperor of the Western Roman Empire (which included the territory of modern Northern Italy, France, Germany , Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and part of Spain), and is considered the founder of modern German and French statehood. The division's emblem was a dissected "Varangian" ("Norman") shield with half of the Roman-German imperial eagle and three fleurs de lys (fr .: fleurs de lys) of the French kingdom.

34th SS Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Landstorm Nederland" ("Netherlands Militia"), (Dutch No. 2). It was originally a volunteer SS brigade in the Third Reich, consisting mainly of Danes and Dutch. She took part in hostilities on the western front of the European theater of action of the Second World War. In February 1945, the brigade received an order according to which it was reorganized into an SS division, despite the fact that its strength was never higher than the combat strength of an individual brigade. The emblem of the division was the "Dutch national" version of the "wolf hook" - "Wolfsangel" (adopted in the Dutch National Socialist Movement of Anton-Adrian Mussert), inscribed in the "Varangian" ("Norman") heraldic shield.

35th SS Police Grenadier (Infantry) Division ("Police Division II") The formation of the division began on March 16, 1945, when the 29th and 30th SS police regiments were assigned to the Waffen-SS and consisted of German police officers mobilized for military service. The real combat potential of the division remained unknown, since the division only managed to take part in the defense of Berlin (in the battle at the Seelow Heights) and was destroyed in an attempt to break through the Soviet defense, known in Western historiography as the Battle of Halb. Some insignificant parts of the division managed to surrender to American or Soviet troops in the area of the demarcation line of two army groupings near the Elbe .. The division's emblem was a "Varangian" ("Norman") shield with the image of the Hagall rune and the Roman numeral "II".

36th Grenadier Division of the Waffen SS "Dirlewanger". SS Assault Brigade "Dirlewanger" - a punitive SS unit under the command of Oskar Dirlewanger, recruited from German prisoners, concentration camps and SS military prisons. The special status of the brigade was marked by the fact that on the collar tabs, instead of SS runes, its members wore the symbol of the brigade - crossed grenades. At the end of the war, the 36th SS Waffen Grenadier Division "Dirlewanger" was created on the basis of the brigade. It can only be called a division conditionally, since formally it never became such (in 1944, on the basis of this brigade, it was supposed to form a separate (36th according to the standard "continuous" numbering) division, however, the formation was never completed, since in 1945, almost all members of the brigade were destroyed). The emblem of the division was inscribed in the "Varangian" ("Norman") shield two crossed in the shape of the letter "X" hand grenades "beater" with handles down.

According to the orders of the imperial leader (Reichsfuehrer) SS Heinrich Himmler in the last months of the war, the formation of several more SS divisions was started (but not completed):

The 35th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Police" ("Police"), it is also the 35th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Police Division. Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

36th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS. Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

37th SS Volunteer Cavalry Division "Luttsov". It was formed near Marchfeld on the Hungarian-Slovak border in February 1945. The personnel of the division was assembled from the remnants of the cavalry divisions - the 22nd "Maria Theresa" and the 8th "Florian Gayer", battered in battles near besieged Budapest, and, due to the recruitment of Hungarian Volksdeutsche, was quickly brought to the required number. The division was named after the hero of the fight against Napoleon, Major of the Prussian army Adolf von Lutzoff (1782-1834), who formed the first volunteer corps in the history of the War of Independence (1813-1815) of German patriots against Napoleon's tyranny (Lutzov's black huntsmen). The tactical sign of the division was the image of a straight, naked sword, point up, inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch, superimposed on the capital Gothic letter "L", that is, "Luttsov").

38th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Nibelungen" ("Nibelungen"). It was formed on March 27, 1945 and by personal order of Hitler was sent to the Western Front. She fought in Bavaria. She ended the war on May 8, 1945 in Reit im Winkl, surrendering to American troops. The division was named after the heroes of the medieval Germanic heroic epic - the Nibelungen. This was the original name for the spirits of darkness and fog, elusive to the enemy and possessing innumerable treasures; then - the knights of the kingdom of the Burgundians who seized these treasures. As you know, SS Reichsfuehrer Heinrich Himmler dreamed after the war to create an "order state of the SS" on the territory of Burgundy. The emblem of the division was the image of the Nibelungian winged invisibility helmet inscribed in the heraldic shield-tarch.

39th SS Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division Andreas Gofer. The division was named after the Austrian national hero Andreas Hofer (1767-1810), the leader of the Tyrolean rebels against Napoleonic tyranny, betrayed by the traitors to the French and shot in 1810 in the Italian fortress of Mantua. To the tune of the folk song about the execution of Andreas Hofer - "Under Mantua in chains", the German social democrats in the twentieth century composed their own song "We are the young guard of the proletariat", and the Soviet Bolsheviks - "We are the young guard of workers and peasants." Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

40th SS Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division "Feldgerrngalle" (not to be confused with the eponymous division of the German Wehrmacht). This division was named after the building of the "Gallery of Generals" (Feldgerrngalle), in front of which on November 9, 1923, the Reichswehr and the police of the leader of the Bavarian separatists Gustav Ritter von Kara shot a column of participants in the Hitler-Ludendorff coup against the government of the Weimar Republic. Information about the tactical mark of the division has not been preserved.

41st Infantry Division Waffen SS "Kalevala" (Finnish # 1). This division, named after the Finnish heroic folk epic, began to be formed from the Finnish volunteers of the Waffen SS, who did not obey the order of the Finnish Commander-in-Chief Marshal Baron Carl Gustav Emil von Mannerheim, given in 1943, to return to their homeland from the Eastern Front and rejoin the Finnish army. Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

42nd SS Infantry Division "Lower Saxony" ("Niedersachsen"). Information about the emblem of the division, the formation of which was not completed, has not been preserved.

43rd Infantry Division Waffen SS "Reichsmarshal". This division, the formation of which was started on the basis of units of the German air force ("Luftwaffe"), left without aviation equipment, cadets of flight schools and ground personnel, was named after the imperial marshal (Reichsmarshal) of the Third Reich Hermann Goering. Reliable information about the emblem of the division has not survived.

44th Waffen SS Wallenstein Motorized Infantry Division. This SS division, recruited from ethnic Germans living in the Protectorate of Bohemia-Moravia and Slovakia, as well as from Czech and Moravian volunteers, was named in honor of the German imperial commander during the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648), Duke of Friedland Albrecht Eusebius Wenzelius Wallenstein (1583-1634), a Czech by birth, the hero of the dramatic trilogy of the classic of German literature Friedrich von Schiller "Wallenstein" ("Wallenstein's Camp", "Piccolomini" and "Death of Wallenstein"). Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

45th SS Infantry Division "Varyags" ("Vareger"). Initially, Reichsfuehrer SS Heinrich Himmler intended to give the name "Varyags" ("Vareger") to the Nordic (North European) SS division, formed from Norwegians, Swedes, Danes and other Scandinavians who sent their volunteer contingents to help the Third Reich. However, according to a number of sources, Adolf Hitler "rejected" the name "Varangians" for his Nordic SS volunteers, trying to avoid undesirable associations with the medieval "Varangian Guard" (consisting of Norwegians, Danes, Swedes, Russians and Anglo-Saxons) in the service of the Byzantine emperors. The Fuhrer had a negative attitude towards the Tsargrad “Vasilevs”, considering them, like all Byzantines, “morally and spiritually corrupted, deceitful, insidious, corrupt and treacherous decadents”, and did not want to be associated with the rulers of Byzantium. As a result, the German-Scandinavian division formed in the Waffen SS (which later included the Dutch, Walloons, Flemings, Finns, Latvians, Estonians, Ukrainians and Russians) was given the name "Viking". Along with this, on the basis of Russian White emigrants and former citizens of the USSR in the Balkans, the formation of another SS division called "Vareger" ("Varyags") was started; however, due to the circumstances, the case was limited to the formation in the Balkans of the "Russian (guard) corps (Russian guard group)" and a separate Russian SS regiment "Varyag".

Serbian SS Volunteer Corps. The corps consisted of former members of the Yugoslav Royal Army (predominantly of Serbian origin), most of whom were members of the Serbian monarchist-fascist movement "ZBOR", headed by Dmitri Ljotic. The tactical sign of the corps was a tarch shield and an image of an ear of bread superimposed on a naked sword with the tip down, located diagonally.

German divisions of the second world. Division insignia SS. I am SS Panzer Division "Das Reich"

1. 1st SS Panzer Division "Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler".

2. 2nd SS Panzer Division "Das Reich".

3. 3rd SS Panzer Division "Death's Head" ("Totenkopf").

4. 4th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Police" ("Police"), also known as "(4th) SS Police Division".

5. 5th SS Panzer Division "Viking".

6. 6th SS Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division "Nord" ("North").

7. 7th SS Volunteer Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division "Prince Eugene (Eugen)".

8. 8th SS Cavalry Division Florian Geyer.

9. 9th SS Panzer Division "Hohenstaufen".

10. 10th SS Panzer Division "Frundsberg".

11. 11th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Nordland" ("Northern Country").

12. 12th SS Panzer Division "Hitler Youth"

13. 13th mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Khanjar"

14. 14th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS (Galician No. 1, since 1945 - Ukrainian No. 1); she is the SS Galicia division.

15. 15th grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS (Latvian No. 1).

16. 16th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Reichsfuehrer SS".

17. 17th SS Motorized Division "Götz von Berlichingen".

18. The 18th SS Horst Wessel Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division.

19. 19th grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS (Latvian # 2).

20. 20th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS (Estonian No. 1).

21. The 21st mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Skanderbeg" (Albanian No. 1).

22. The 22nd SS Volunteer Cavalry Division Maria Theresa.

23.23rd Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division of the Waffen SS "Kama" (Croatian No. 2)

24.23rd Waffen SS Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division "Netherlands"

(Dutch No. 1).

25. 24th mountain (mountain rifle) division of the Waffen SS "Karst Jaegers" ("Karst Jaegers", "Karstjeger").

26.25th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS "Hunyadi"

(Hungarian # 1).

27. 26th Grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Gömbös" (Hungarian # 2).

28. The 27th SS Langemark Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division (Flemish No. 1).

29.28 SS Panzer Division. Information about the tactical mark of the division has not been preserved.

30. The 28th SS Wallonia Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division.

31. 29th Grenadier Infantry Division of the Waffen SS "RONA" (Russian # 1).

32. 29th Grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Italy" (Italian No. 1).

33. 30th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS (Russian No. 2, it is also Belarusian No. 1).

34. 31st SS Volunteer Grenadier Division (aka 23rd Waffen SS Volunteer Mountain Rifle Division).

35. The 31st SS Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Bohemia and Moravia" (German: "Böhmen und Meren").

36. The 32nd SS Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division "January 30".

37. 33rd Waffen SS Cavalry Division "Hungaria", or "Hungary" (Hungarian # 3).

38. 33rd grenadier (infantry) division of the Waffen SS "Charlemagne" (French No. 1).

39. 34th SS Landstorm Nederland Volunteer Grenadier (Infantry) Division (Dutch No. 2).

40.36th SS Police Grenadier (Infantry) Division ("Police Division II")

41. 36th Waffen SS Grenadier Division "Dirlewanger".

42. The 35th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Police" ("Police"), it is also the 35th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Police Division. Information about the tactical sign (emblem) of the division has not been preserved.

43.36th Grenadier (Infantry) Division of the Waffen SS. Information about the division's emblem has not been preserved.

44. 37th SS Volunteer Cavalry Division "Luttsov".

45. The 38th SS Grenadier (Infantry) Division "Nibelungen" ("Nibelungen").

46. ​​The 39th SS Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division Andreas Gofer.

47. 40th SS Volunteer Motorized Infantry Division "Feldgerrngalle" (not to be confused with the same name division of the German Wehrmacht).

48. 41st Waffen SS Kalevala Infantry Division (Finnish # 1).

49. 42nd SS Infantry Division "Lower Saxony" ("Niedersachsen").

50. 43rd Waffen SS Infantry Division "Reichsmarshal".

51. 44th Waffen SS Wallenstein Motorized Infantry Division.

52. 45th SS Infantry Division "Varyags" ("Vareger").

How it all began

Creation of a "glorious division"

On the features of recruitment

The work of propagandists

The number of human resources

Recruiting Methods Used

Command and places of registration

First combat use

The first "exploits" of the Galicians

Brodsky catastrophe

Further combat path

Slovakia and Yugoslavia

"Purely English Betrayal"

Modern realities

1. 1st SS Panzer Division "Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler".

2. 2nd SS Panzer Division "Das Reich".

3. 3rd SS Panzer Division "Death's Head" ("Totenkopf").

4. 4th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Police" ("Police"), also known as "(4th) SS Police Division".

5. 5th SS Panzer Division "Viking".

6. 6th SS Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division "Nord" ("North").

7. 7th SS Volunteer Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division "Prince Eugene (Eugen)".

8. 8th SS Cavalry Division Florian Geyer.

9. 9th SS Panzer Division "Hohenstaufen".

10. 10th SS Panzer Division "Frundsberg".

11. 11th SS Motorized Infantry Division "Nordland" ("Northern Country").

46. The 39th SS Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division Andreas Gofer.

46. The 39th SS Mountain (Mountain Rifle) Division Andreas Gofer.