33rd Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS Charlemagne information
French units of the Waffen-SS
Charlemagne Division
Sleeve badge worn by soldiers in the Charlemagne Division
Active
1944–1945
Allegiance
Nazi Germany
Branch
Waffen-SS
Type
Infantry brigade, later reclassified as division
Size
7,340 men (February 1945)
Engagements
Eastern Front (World War II)
East Pomeranian Offensive
Battle of Berlin
Commanders
Notable commanders
Edgar Puaud Gustav Krukenberg
Military unit
The Waffen Grenadier Brigade of the SS Charlemagne (German: Waffen-Grenadier-Brigade der SS "Charlemagne") was a Waffen-SS unit formed in September 1944 from French collaborationists, many of whom were already serving in various other German units.
Named after the 9th-century Frankish emperor, the Charlemagne Brigade superseded two units of French volunteers already serving within the German Army and Waffen-SS, namely the Legion of French Volunteers Against Bolshevism and SS-Volunteer Sturmbrigade France (SS-Freiwilligen Sturmbrigade "Frankreich"). The division also included French recruits from other German military and paramilitary formations and Miliciens who had fled ahead of the Allied Liberation of France (June–November 1944).
After training, the Charlemagne Brigade was reclassified as a division as the 33rd Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS Charlemagne (1st French) (33. Waffen-Grenadier-Division der SS "Charlemagne" (französische Nr. 1)). It had 7,340 men at the time of its deployment to the Eastern Front in February 1945. It fought against Soviet forces in Pomerania where it was almost annihilated during the East Pomeranian Offensive within a month. Around 300 members of the unit participated in the Battle in Berlin in April–May 1945 and were among the last Axis forces to surrender.
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Global Information
Nazi Germany
Waffen-SS