Western European Volunteers in the Waffen-SS

Exhibition of photographs of the Légion Wallonie

Photography Exhibition: Waffen-SS Battle for Europe

More than 11,000 French citizens joined the Waffen-SS in 33.Waffen-Grenadier-Division der SS Charlemagne. This does not take into account thousands of 1940 French citizens who volunteered after the provinces of Alsace-Lorraine (Elsaß-Lothringen) were annexed by the German Reich and declared Reichsländer, that is, integral parts of the Reich. A rough estimate is that over 8,000 Flemings served in the Flemish 27.SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenadier-Division Langemark and in 5.SS-Panzer-Division Wiking up to September 1944, and that the number grew to over 13,000 by the end of the war. Another 10,000 Walloons served in 28.SS-Freiwilligen-Grenadier-Division Wallonien. All together, perhaps 10,000 Italians saw active duty with the Italian Waffen-Verband der SS and 29.Waffen-Grenadier-Division der SS. Up to 20,000 Dutch joined the Waffen-SS in 23.SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenadier-Division Nederland and Wiking, and tens of thousands of others served in organizations such as Organization Toth. More than 26,000 Scandinavians volunteered for service in the Wiking and 11.SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenadier-Division Nordland. Another 13,000 Swedes volunteered against the Soviet aggression in Finland during the Winter War and through rotation, as many as 47,000 Spanish and around 200 Portuguese volunteers served in the Spanish Blue Division as well as in Spanische-Freiwilligen Kompanie der SS 101 and 102. Left image: Belgian volunteer Leutnant Léon Degrelle at an opening ceremony in Belgium on June 18 1943 of an exhibition of photographs of the Légion Wallonie. In the same month, the Wallonian Legion was taken into the Waffen-SS as SS-Sturmbrigade Wallonien and Degrelle himself was promoted SS-Obersturmführer. Wallonien was attached to 5.SS-Panzer-Division Wiking in the middle Dnieper River sector in late 1943 just prior to the Soviet encirclement at Korsun. Fair use. Right image: Exposition de Photographies de la Waffen-SS, 42 Avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris in January 1944. Fair use.