Idel Ural Legion
Idel Ural Legion | |
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![]() One of the variants of the Idel Ural Legion patch | |
Active | 1942–1945 |
Country | Nazi Germany |
Type | Ostlegionen |
Size | 40,000 troops |
Engagements | World War II |
The Volga-Tatar Legion (German: Wolgatatarische Legion) or Idel-Ural Legion (Tatar: Идел-Урал Легионы, romanized: İdel-Ural Legionı) or The Osttürkischer Waffenverband der SS denoted a series of units within the Wehrmacht in World War II. It was recruited among Muslim Volga Tatar in the Soviet Union, but also included other Idel-Ural peoples, including Bashkirs, Chuvashes, Maris, Tatars, Udmurts, and Mordvins. Germany promoted the Idel-Ural Legion as evidence that Muslim and Christian peoples of Volga Bulgarian descent were opposed to Russia and Bolshevism, but they also wanted to spare German blood.[1]
The legion was established in 1942 and comprised around 12,500 men, spread over seven battalions numbered 824 to 831. On February 23, 1943, near Vitebsk, Belarus, the entire 825th Battalion [ru] (about 900 soldiers) went over to the partisans.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6d/Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1981-059-12%2C_Tartaren_in_der_Wehrmacht.jpg/220px-Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1981-059-12%2C_Tartaren_in_der_Wehrmacht.jpg)
One of the most notable members of the legion was Soviet–Tatar poet Musa Cälil, who was later executed by the Gestapo for sabotage.[2]
See also
- Ostlegionen
References
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