Ostlegionen or Ostgruppen (literally "Eastern Legion") were conscripts and volunteers from the occupied eastern territories recruited into the German Army of the Third Reich during the Second World War.

On June 22, 1941, Germany invaded soviet Russia. As they did so they came upon thousands upon thousands of enemy soldiers who either surrendered without a fight or were flat out deserting. By August of that year the invading army had interned half a million soviet prisoners of war. Many of them were Muslims. The one thing all these Muslims had in common was their hatred for soviets. These Muslims taken as prisoners of war offered their services to the Nazi empire. The fuhrer was elated and so these Muslims were trained to infiltrate the Russian intelligence and divert it.

The staff of the disbanded 162nd Infantry Division in Poland was charged with the raising and training of the six Eastern Legions. It eventually raised and trained 82 battalions. A total of 98 battalions were raised with 80 serving on the Eastern Front and in the Balkans. 12 were later transferred to France and Italy in 1943.

Strength

• Armenian Legion - 11 Armenian Battalions
• Azerbaijani Legion - 14 Azeri Battalions
• Belarusian Legion
• Caucasian Muslim Legion - 5 North Caucasian Battalions, consisted of Azerbaijanis, Chechens, etc
• Estonian Legion
• Georgian Legion - 14 Georgian Battalions
• Latvian Legion
• Lithuanian Legion
• Russian Legion
• Turkestan Legion - 34 Turkestani Battalions, comprised Turkomans, Uzbeks, Kazakhs etc.
• Ukrainian Legion
• Volga-Tatar Legion - 8 Volga-Tatar Battalions

Ostbataillonen

The East Battalions were battalion size formations that wore German uniforms and equipment that were integrated into larger German units. They began as the private initiatives of individual military commanders, but eventually became formalized, and by late 1943 contained 427,000 volunteers and conscripts, a force equivalent to 30 German divisions. Many were utilized in the west, e.g. Yugoslavia.

The battalions of the Turkistani Legion formed part of the 162nd Infantry Division and saw heavy action in Yugoslavia and Italy.

A number of Ostgruppe battalions were used to guard sections of the Normandy region prior to Operation Overlord, specifically Utah, Juno and Sword beach. Ost units that fought in the Battle of Normandy were from the 243rd and 709th Static Infantry Divisions.

Legacy

The majority of Ost soldiers were recruited from the Soviet Union and other occupied nations of Eastern Europe. The effectiveness of the Ost units varied, with some performing admirably while others simply surrendered once attacked by regular enemy forces. In general, Ost troops were stationed away from critical areas or used for rear guard duties whenever possible.

See also

• Hiwi
• Russian Liberation Army
• Collaboration during World War II

External links

• Historical lessons for the British and Germans The case for integrated indigenous forces as a logical force multiplier
• Korean volunteers