This illustrated title details the campaign history, uniforms, and
insignia of a major foreign volunteer formation of the Waffen-SS before
its final transformation into a full division in the winter of 1944.
Goebbels' 1941 propaganda campaign to present Germany's invasion of the
USSR as a battle for European civilization against Asian barbarism
convinced many men in occupied "Germanic" European countries, such as
Scandinavia and the Low Countries, to volunteer to fight on the Russian
Front. One of the strongest national legions of such a kind was raised
in the Netherlands, where it was supported by a large pro-Nazi movement
led by Anton Mussert. The 3,000-man Netherlands Volunteer Legion fought
on the Leningrad front in regimental strength, from the Red Army's
winter 1941/42 counter-offensive until April 1943. The survivors were
then reinforced to form a 5,500-strong Panzergrenadier Brigade, and
after anti-partisan service in Croatia, they returned to Army Group
North as part of Steiner's III SS Panzer Korps, fighting in the most
arduous battles of 1943--44 until driven back into Pomerania. In the
final months of the war the division formed the nucleus of the new 23rd
SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division "Nederland."
In this illustrated study of the Dutch Waffen-SS Legion and Brigade,
specialist Massimiliano Afiero explores the full history of this
important formation from its establishment in 1941 until it was
incorporated into the "Nederland" Division in 1944. Contemporary
photographs and full-color illustrations support the text and reveal key
details including aspects of uniform and insignia.
