German Legion (1919)

As of August 1919, the German Legion was the name given to a union of various German volunteer corps in the Baltic States during the Latvian War of Independence and the Russian Civil War . The short-lived association submitted to the West Russian Liberation Army and was disbanded after its military defeat in December 1919.

prehistory

To protect against the Bolshevik armies, the Baltic State Army was formed in Latvia in 1919 from German-Baltic , Latvian and Russian volunteers. In addition, Imperial German officers and soldiers were recruited through the Baltenland advertising agency . After the Bolsheviks were decisively defeated in June 1919, a civil war-like conflict broke out between the Baltic-German and Estonian- Latvian associations. On July 3, 1919, the Strasdenhof armistice ended this fighting. The Baltic State Armed Forces became part of the Latvian army and dismissed all Reich Germans.

"Baltenland" regiment

The dismissed Reich German units of the Landeswehr were then combined into a regiment under Major Baron von Huene. These were the Medem, Petersdorff, Khaynach and Jena Freikorps and the Löwe battery. These troops moved into the area south of Riga and later formed the basis of the German Legion.

During the summer, under pressure from the Entente Cordiale, the repatriation of German troops from Latvia and Lithuania began . The bulk of the volunteers wanted to stay in the Baltic States, as unemployment and the downsizing of the army meant there were no future prospects in Germany. In addition, it was hoped, in agreement with the Entente, the White Armies and the new states of Lithuania and Latvia, to be used in an offensive on Moscow or St. Petersburg .

While the various negotiations did not come to a conclusion, the evictions continued. In mid-August it was the turn of the Iron Division , which played a leading role in the Courland settlement plans and an amalgamation with the West Russian Liberation Army. On August 23, the commander Josef Bischoff refused the order to leave for one of his battalions, thereby breaking with the Reich government .

Emergence

A few days later, various volunteer corps, which were also considering converting to the Russians, came together under the name "German Legion". The sea captain Paul Siewert was chosen as guide .

Siewert's main aim was to combat Bolshevism ; In contrast to the Iron Division, settlement plans played no role. These views were set out in an “appeal by the German Freikorps to the German fatherland and all civilized peoples of the world”, which was presented to Reichswehr Minister Gustav Noske , among others .

The plan was to leave Latvia as soon as possible. Based on the Lithuanian rail links, the base in Daugavpils was supposed to move eastwards. However, political and economic obstacles prevented this plan from being carried out. After a prolonged state of suspension, the official transfer to the West Russian Liberation Army of Colonel Bermondt took place in early October 1919 . All those who wanted to keep their German citizenship had since left.

structure

In September about 10,000 men were subordinate to the division headquarters. After Siewert's death on November 16, General Staff Officer Otto Wagener , who was wounded himself, took over the leadership. The units were formed from the Baltenland Regiment, the Brandis and Stewer Freikorps , the Medem Division, the Jena Group, the Baden Storm Battalion, the Austrian Patrol Corps, the Aviation Division 426 and the Sachsenberg Combat Squadron .

Fight with Latvians and Lithuanians

On October 8, the bulk of the German Legion moved north at Iecava . Latvian troops were repulsed across the Daugava . After the occupation of Thorensberg near Riga, the front was extended eastward along the Düna to Friedrichstadt and held against Latvian attacks.

An expected agreement with the Republic of Latvia was not reached. Instead, the Entente Cordiale now exerted the greatest pressure on Germany to bring the disobedient troops back. Because of the further withdrawal of troops loyal to the government, parts of the German Legion (including the Brandis Freikorps) soon had to take over the railway protection in Lithuania themselves. After a stricter border lock in East Prussia , no further supplies came to the Baltic troops. With the onset of winter, even the frozen Daugava was no longer a support of the defense. A successful termination of the company was hopeless and the volunteers "resigned" by the thousands.

At the beginning of November 1919 the Latvian army began a counter-offensive. The German Legion found itself in a dangerous position in its distributed positions at Skaistkalne , Jaunjelgava , Iecava and north of Mitau . By November 15, the division was torn in two and suffered heavy losses. After the resignation to the German General Command VI. (Lieutenant General Eberhardt), attempts were made to enable an orderly retreat by counter-attacks on the Eckau . During the further retreat to East Prussia, the defeated troops had to fight a guerrilla war against Latvian and Lithuanian regular troops and gangs, which tried to appropriate as much as possible of the German Baltic troops.

resolution

By December 13, the German Legion had crossed the border at Tilsit and was demobilized at various military training areas in the Reich. The soldiers and officers were granted an amnesty, but admission to higher positions in the Reichswehr was denied. The former Baltic residents felt betrayed by their homeland and were a source of unrest in the Weimar Republic .

literature

Otto Wagener: "Outlawed by the homeland" Belser, Stuttgart 1920.
Rüdiger von der Goltz : My broadcast in Finland and the Baltic States. Koehler, Leipzig 1920, German Memorabilia. ( online )
Gustav Noske: From Kiel to Kapp. On the history of the German revolution. Publishing house for politics and economics, Berlin 1920.
M. Peniķis: Latvijas atbrīvošanas kaŗa vēsture. 4 volumes. Austrālijas latviešu balva Jaunsargiem, Riga 2006, ISBN 9984-19-951-7 .
Hagen Schulze: Freikorps and Republic. 1918-1920. Boldt, Boppard 1969, (Defense Scientific Research - Department of Military History Studies 8, ZDB-ID 1173304-4).
Reich Ministry of War: The fighting in the Baltic States after the second capture of Riga. June to December 1919 , Berlin 1938.
Nigel Jones : A Brief History of the Birth of the Nazis: How the Freikorps Blazed a Trail for Hitler .