2 SS Infantry Brigade
Encyclopedia
The 2 SS Infantry Brigade (mot) was formed on the 15 May 1941, under the command of Karl Fischer von Treuenfeld
with the 4th and 5th SS Infantry (formerly Totenkopf) Regiments and began its operational service in September in the rear area of Army Group North
, under which command it would spend its entire existence. It gradually began to incorporate foreign legions of the SS under its operational control, such that it became regarded as a multinational unit, especially on the siege lines of the Leningrad front. After the western legions departed for refit, it began operating with Latvian volunteer formations and eventually was re designated the 2nd Latvian SS Infantry Brigade and on the 18 May 1943, and used as the cadre in the formation of the 19th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd Latvian) in January 1944.
and Kurt Knoblauch of the RFSS office, held just three days before hostilities between Germany and the Soviet Union began. In this meeting it was decided that the 2 SS Infantry Brigade along with the 1 SS Infantry Brigade
and the SS Cavalry Brigade
would be used in the rear of the advancing army to conduct anti partisan
operations as well as assisting in rounding up the Jewish population. A few weeks later they were involved in the mass murder of the population of the occupied territories, their victims for 1941, could be measured in the tens of thousands.
, Flemish
and Norwegian
volunteer Legions.
changed the 2 SS Infantry Brigade into a Latvian Brigade and at the same time set the foundations for a Latvian Division.
The existing 18th, 24th, and 26th Latvian Schuma Battalions serving in Leningrad were used to form the Brigade's 2nd SS Volunteer Regiment. They were then sent for training at Krasnoje Selo, where Himmler added the 16th Latvian Schuma Battalion to the brigade in February.
On 18 May 1943, these Latvian Battalions along with the other three Latvian Legion Battalions were incorporated into the 2 SS Infantry Brigade, and re-designated the 2 SS Latvian Brigade. The Dutch, Flemish and Norwegian formations were then removed from the Brigade and the 2 SS Latvian Brigade was deployed with Army Group North. It was placed under the command of Brigadeführer
Fritz von Scholz
and was engaged in defending the west bank of the Volkhov River
near Leningrad until late 1943.
Karl Fischer von Treuenfeld
Karl Fischer von Treuenfeld was a Gruppenführer and Generalleutnant of the Waffen SS during World War II and the commander of the VI SS Army Corps....
with the 4th and 5th SS Infantry (formerly Totenkopf) Regiments and began its operational service in September in the rear area of Army Group North
Army Group North
Army Group North was a German strategic echelon formation commanding a grouping of Field Armies subordinated to the OKH during World War II. The army group coordinated the operations of attached separate army corps, reserve formations, rear services and logistics.- Formation :The Army Group North...
, under which command it would spend its entire existence. It gradually began to incorporate foreign legions of the SS under its operational control, such that it became regarded as a multinational unit, especially on the siege lines of the Leningrad front. After the western legions departed for refit, it began operating with Latvian volunteer formations and eventually was re designated the 2nd Latvian SS Infantry Brigade and on the 18 May 1943, and used as the cadre in the formation of the 19th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd Latvian) in January 1944.
Formation
The 2 SS Infantry Brigade was raised on 15 May 1941 and was placed under the command of Army Group North for the invasion of the Soviet Union. Prior to this, the role that the unit would undertake during the assault was discussed in a meeting between Henning von TresckowHenning von Tresckow
Generalmajor Herrmann Karl Robert "Henning" von Tresckow was a Major General in the German Wehrmacht who organized German resistance against Adolf Hitler. He attempted to assassinate Hitler in March 1943 and drafted the Valkyrie plan for a coup against the German government...
and Kurt Knoblauch of the RFSS office, held just three days before hostilities between Germany and the Soviet Union began. In this meeting it was decided that the 2 SS Infantry Brigade along with the 1 SS Infantry Brigade
1 SS Infantry Brigade
The 1 SS Infantry Brigade was a unit of the German Waffen SS formed from former concentration camp guards for service in the Soviet Union behind the main front line during the Second World War. They conducted anti-partisan operations in the rear of the advancing German army and were involved in...
and the SS Cavalry Brigade
SS Cavalry Brigade
The SS Cavalry Brigade was a unit of the Waffen SS formed in 1940, from cavalry regiments created for occupation duties in German-occupied Poland. Later, while serving in German-occupied areas of the Soviet Union, the brigade was involved in the genocide of the Jewish population and anti-partisan...
would be used in the rear of the advancing army to conduct anti partisan
Partisan (military)
A partisan is a member of an irregular military force formed to oppose control of an area by a foreign power or by an army of occupation by some kind of insurgent activity...
operations as well as assisting in rounding up the Jewish population. A few weeks later they were involved in the mass murder of the population of the occupied territories, their victims for 1941, could be measured in the tens of thousands.
1942
In 1942, the 19th and 21st Latvian Security Battalions from the Latvian Legion were attached to the Brigade. The brigade was now an international formation that included DutchNetherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Flemish
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
and Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
volunteer Legions.
1943
In January 1943, the 19th and 21st Latvian Schuma (Police) Battalions were serving with the Brigade, impressed by their conduct, Heinrich HimmlerHeinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...
changed the 2 SS Infantry Brigade into a Latvian Brigade and at the same time set the foundations for a Latvian Division.
The existing 18th, 24th, and 26th Latvian Schuma Battalions serving in Leningrad were used to form the Brigade's 2nd SS Volunteer Regiment. They were then sent for training at Krasnoje Selo, where Himmler added the 16th Latvian Schuma Battalion to the brigade in February.
On 18 May 1943, these Latvian Battalions along with the other three Latvian Legion Battalions were incorporated into the 2 SS Infantry Brigade, and re-designated the 2 SS Latvian Brigade. The Dutch, Flemish and Norwegian formations were then removed from the Brigade and the 2 SS Latvian Brigade was deployed with Army Group North. It was placed under the command of Brigadeführer
Brigadeführer
SS-Brigadeführer was an SS rank that was used in Nazi Germany between the years of 1932 and 1945. Brigadeführer was also an SA rank....
Fritz von Scholz
Fritz von Scholz
Fritz von Scholz, Edler von Rerancze, known as Fritz von Scholz was an Austrian Austro-Hungarian Army and later German Waffen SS officer who served in both the First and Second World Wars....
and was engaged in defending the west bank of the Volkhov River
Volkhov River
Volkhov is a river in Novgorod Oblast and Leningrad Oblast in northwestern Russia.-Geography:The Volkhov flows out of Lake Ilmen north into Lake Ladoga, the largest lake of Europe. It is the second largest tributary of Lake Ladoga. It is navigable over its whole length. Discharge is highly...
near Leningrad until late 1943.
1944
In January 1944, the Brigade was used as the cadre in the formation of the 19th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd Latvian).Further reading
- Birn, Ruth Bettina - Case studies on Anti-Partisan Warfare during the Eastern Campaign.
- Goldsworthy, Terry - Valhalla's Warriors: A history of the Waffen-SS on the Eastern Front 1941–1945.
- Stein, George H. - The Waffen-SS: Hitler's Elite Guard at War 1939–1945.