23rd SS Volunteer Panzer Grenadier Division Nederland The 23rd SS Volunteer Panzer Grenadier Division " Nederland " was a Germanic " Waffen - SS " division comprising volunteers of Dutch background . It saw action on the Eastern Front during World War II . In February 1945 , the 4th SS Volunteer " Panzergrenadier Brigade Nederland " was to be merged into the 11th SS Volunteer " Panzergrenadier Division Nordland " , but after protests from the Dutch National Socialist movement , the " Nationaal - Socialistische Beweging " ( NSB ) , it was formed into its own " SS Panzer Grenadier Division " , although its strength never reached more than a brigade . History . Origins . After the success of Germany ' s " blitzkrieg " attacks on Poland and in the West in 1939 – 1940 , many European fascists saw Germany as an answer to the Bolshevik problem . " Reichsführer - SS " Heinrich Himmler , with the support of Adolf Hitler , began a campaign in late 1940 to recruit those European fascists of sufficiently Aryan stock into a series of " Legions " , under the control of the " Waffen - SS " . The SS Volunteer " Standarte Nordwest " was formed to cater for volunteers from the Low Countries . The Dutch were seen as especially well qualified for service in the SS ; a large recruiting drive , backed by the NSB and other collaborating organizations , was begun . The drive was given an air of respectability by the support of Dutch General Staff Officer Lieutenant - General Hendrik A . Seyffardt . The drive was very successful , and by April 1941 , volunteers began arriving in Hamburg . They were quickly processed and signed up for service in the " Nordwest " . Many Dutchmen assumed that service in the " Waffen - SS " would result in a powerful position for the Netherlands in Hitler ' s " New World Order " . By July 1941 , the number of recruits meant that the " Nordwest " could be dissolved and several separate units formed . The Dutch were organized into SS Volunteer Unit " Niederlande " . Dutch volunteers , many members of the NSB , continued to sign up for the unit , and by July 1941 the formation was the size of a reinforced infantry battalion , boasting five fully motorized companies . The unit was again redesignated , this time as SS Volunteer Legion " Niederlande " . NSB Leader Anton Mussert saw the Legion as the forerunner to the new model Dutch Army . On 11 July 1941 , Mussert called upon all able bodied members of the NSB to sign up for the Legion . Great efforts were made by the Germans to persuade the Dutchmen that the new unit was an ' All - Dutch ' affair , and indeed many recruits were under the impression that the Legion was an independent Dutch formation fighting alongside their German Allies . General Seyffardt was recruited to command the Legion , and all recruits were permitted to wear the Prinsenvlag ( an unofficial Dutch national flag ) on the sleeve of the uniform . While many recruits were convinced of the independence of the Legion , Seyffardt was aware of its true nature . While strongly anti - communist , he did not subscribe to the Nazi Party ( NSDAP ) ideology . When he discovered that his formation was to come under the control of the " Waffen - SS " , he objected , but the Germans ignored his complaints . The recruits went through basic training in Hamburg , before being sent on to Arys in East Prussia for further training . Despite the harsh attitude of the German " Waffen - SS " instructors , the recruits were committed to their cause and were soon highly trained . In November 1941 , the legion was ordered to the front near Leningrad , under the overall command of Army Group North . Battles around Leningrad . The Legion arrived at the Volkhov river in mid January 1942 and began setting up a defensive line . For the next few weeks it was engaged in operations to prevent the Soviets from establishing a bridgehead on the west bank of the Volkhov . During this period it was also engaged in several offensive operations against Red Army defensive positions , as well as anti - partisan activities . In early February , Mussert visited the front , raising the morale of the troops . On 10 February , the Soviets launched a major offensive aimed at the relief of Leningrad . Despite being heavily outnumbered , the Legion held the line , albeit suffering heavy casualties . The Legion was engaged in defensive operations against incessant Soviet assaults until early June , and despite suffering heavy casualties , managed to hold their positions . In June , the Legion had its first chance to go on the offensive , destroying a large Red Army force near Fuhovga Lake . During this battle , the Legion captured 3 , 500 prisoners , including General Andrey Vlasov , who was to become leader of the Russian Liberation Army . In late June , it was transferred north to take part in the Siege of Leningrad . After a month ' s relative quiet in the trenches around the city , the Legion was pulled out of the line in preparation for Operation " Nordlicht " , an assault on Leningrad which was to be the decisive blow . The launch of the offensive on 14 August was preceded by a Soviet counterstroke . This resulted in the complete failure of the operation , with many units being removed from the battle to stop the counteroffensive . After the failure of this offensive , the Legion was moved south of Leningrad , near to Lake Ladoga , to defend against expected Soviet attacks . The following battles were known as the First Battle of Ladoga . The Legion was involved in heavy fighting until the end of 1942 , when it was regrouped with the 2nd SS Infantry Brigade . The Legion was moved back into the line alongside the " SS - Freiwilligen - Legion Norwegen " , a Norwegian volunteer outfit . In early January , the Red Army launched another offensive which would be known as the Second Battle of Ladoga . The Dutch and Norwegians managed to withstand several Soviet tank attacks , destroying many T - 34 s with their 7 . 5 cm " PaK 97 / 98 " anti - tank guns . After this action , the Dutch SS - " Sturmmann " Gerardus Mooyman received the Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross for single - handedly destroying nineteen Soviet T - 34s and KV - 1s . Mooyman was the first non - German to receive the Knight ' s Cross . On 6 February , General Seyffardt , back in Amsterdam campaigning for new recruits for the Legion , was assassinated by the Dutch Resistance group CS - 6 . The Legionnaires were stunned , but had little time to mourn their lost leader . Soviet attacks resumed and continued throughout the spring thaw . In April 1943 , the Legion was ordered back to Sonneberg in Thüringen to be reformed as a " Panzergrenadier brigade " . Service in Yugoslavia . Upon arrival at Sonneberg , the Legion was dissolved and began the task of reforming as the ' SS Volunteer Panzer Grenadier Brigade " Nederland " . The brigade was to consist of two " Panzer Grenadier " regiment s . The two Regiments were granted honour titles , the 48th SS Volunteer Panzer Grenadier Regiment " General Seyffardt " , in honour of their dead figurehead , and the 49th SS Volunteer Panzer Grenadier Regiment " de Ruyter " ; it was named after the seventeenth - century Dutch Admiral Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter . Added to this core force were to be Reconnaissance , Pioneer , Panzerjäger and Artillery components . The brigade was to be commanded by SS - " Oberführer " Jürgen Wagner . In September 1943 , the Brigade was ordered to the Independent State of Croatia ( Yugoslavia ) to join SS - " Obergruppenführer " Felix Steiner III SS ( Germanic ) Panzer Corps currently forming in the area . Upon its arrival , the Brigade received 1 , 500 Dutch recruits , drawn from the veterans of " SS Division Wiking " . During its time there , elements of the brigade were engaged in operations against Yugoslav Partisans . The fighting was brutal and no quarter was given on either side ; however the Brigade showed itself capable in combat . During this period , the brigade was redesignated 4th SS Volunteer Panzer Grenadier Brigade " Nederland " . At this time , its strength stood at 9 , 342 officers and men : that of a weak division . On Christmas Day 1943 , the brigade was deemed ready for the front , and , along with Steiner ' s SS Corps , was moved to the area around Oranienbaum in Army Group North ' s sector . Retreat from Oranienbaum . Upon its arrival at the front , Steiner ' s SS Corps was deployed to the area near Oranienbaum . the Corps was to form a part of the " 18 . Armee " . Opposing the Corps was General Leonid A . Govorov ' s Leningrad Front . On 14 January , the Soviets launched the Leningrad - Novgorod Offensive aimed at driving Army Group North from the Leningrad region . Govorov was to attack in conjunction with the adjacent Volkhov Front under General Kiril A . Meretskov . The Krasnoye Selo – Ropsha Offensive cut through the weak infantry units formed out of the 9th and 10th Luftwaffe Field Divisions defending the line , and by doing so knocked two large , if unreliable , units out of Steiner ' s newly formed corps . The " Nederland " , fighting alongside the " 11 . SS - Freiwilligen - Panzergrenadier - Division Nordland " attempted to stem the tide of Govorov ' s Front , but were soon forced to fall back to avoid encirclement by Meretskov ' s Force . The " Nederland " was involved in the fighting withdrawal to the Narva River in Estonia , where a line of defence was to be established . The " Nederland " was to defend the northern and central flanks of the Ivangorod bridgehead . Battle for the Narva Bridgehead . Steiner ' s men had little time to dig - in , with the first Soviet attacks beginning on 3 February . Despite the ferocity of these attacks , the " Nederland " maintained the bridgehead over the Narva . In early March the main focus of the Red Army assaults were directed at the " De Ruyter " regiment , defending the town of Lilienbach on the northern flank . In fierce hand - to - hand combat , the Dutchmen repulsed the Soviet thrusts , forcing Govorov to look elsewhere for his breakthrough . After a feint attack towards " Nordland ' s " positions , Govorov directed his forces at the " General Seyffardt " regiment , holding the centre of the line . The regiment was forced from its positions , but a counterattack led by regimental commander " SS - Standartenführer " Wolfgang Jörchel retook the defensive works and averted a Soviet breakthrough . Govorov again shifted his focus of attack back to the " de Ruyter " , commanded by SS - " Obersturmbannführer " Hans Collani , a veteran of the " Wiking " division . The Dutch line cracked , only the arrival of " Nordland ' s " Panzer Battalion saved the situation . When the Panzer counterattack bogged down , Collani ordered his men to fall back to positions closer to Lilienbach . The Soviets saw this , and began laying heavy artillery fire on the withdrawing Dutchmen . This was followed up with a major assault , and the " De Ruyter " suffered heavily . Company leader " SS - Untersturmführer " Helmut Scholz gathered a group of men and went into action , retaking " De Ruyter ' s " original positions , giving the regiment breathing space and preventing a rout . On 22 March another assault hit " De Ruyter " , this time cutting through the lines on 5 Company ' s front and threatening to annihilate the regiment . Battalion commander SS - " Hauptsturmführer " Heinz Frühauf formed an assault group from his headquarters personnel and attacked the 150 - man Soviet force wreaking havoc in the regiment ' s rear . After destroying the Soviet force in heavy fighting , he then reformed his men and cleared the regiment ' s trenches of enemy troops . Withdrawal - Loss of the " General Seyffardt " . When Govorov realised that the Dutch lines would not crack , he shifted his attention south to the " Nordland ' s " " Danmark " regiment . The launch of Operation " Bagration " on 22 June resulted in Govorov stepping up the pressure . In February , the Red Army had established the strong Krivasoo bridgehead on the western bank of the Narva and threatened to cut off the entire corps . On 23 July , Steiner ordered a withdrawal to the " Tannenbergstellung " , a prepared position 16 km to the west . The " General Seyffardt " regiment and the brigade ' s artillery component were to provide a rearguard for the retreating troops . Govorov launched the Narva Offensive on the German lines on 24 July , in the afternoon , the " Nederland ' s " Artillery battalion started withdrawing across the Narva bridge . The Dutchmen got involved in heavy fighting but somehow they managed to hold the Soviets while the last of the SS men got across the river . The " Nordland ' s " Pioneer Battalion blew up the bridge . However , due to a colossal mistake by its officers , the " General Seyffardt " regiment would not survive the withdrawal . Attempting to avoid Red Army forces , the regiment was ordered to take a different route to that originally planned . The withdrawing Dutchmen were discovered by Jabos ( fighter bombers ) of the Red Air Force , and were soon pinned down . Soviet ground forces were brought in to trap the withdrawing Dutchmen , soon the regiment was under attack from the air and the ground . Trapped in the open , the " General Seyffardt " never stood a chance . After a short time , it ceased to exist , with only a few survivors under the command of SS - " Untersturmführer " Nieuwendijk - Hoek reaching the " Tannenbergstellung " a week later . With the exception of the " General Seyffardt " ' s loss , the withdrawal had been a success , and Steiner ' s men began to dig - in on the " Tannenbergstellung " , in preparation for the next Soviet attack . The " Nederland " had lost one of its two regiments , and many valuable veterans in it . The " General Seyffardt " was ordered to be reformed at Schlochau . Retreat into Courland . During the withdrawal to the " Tannenbergstellung " defensive line , the " Nederland " was involved in rearguard actions . SS - " Rottenführer " Derk Elsko Bruins of the " Panzerjäger " ( anti - tank ) Battalion destroyed 12 Soviet tanks in one engagement , earning himself the Knight ' s Cross . When the new defensive line was established , the " Nederland " was pulled out of combat to act as reserve , allowing the exhausted Brigade a little rest and time to recuperate . The reaction of the brigade to the 20 July plot on Hitler ' s life had been one of shock and anger , several letters of sympathy and support were sent to Hitler by men from the " Nederland " . Despite the horrors of the front , most men of the brigade were still firmly holding to their NSB pro - Nazi ideology . On 24 August , " Reichsführer - SS " Heinrich Himmler sent a letter to the Brigade , praising its fighting spirit . In September , Leon Degrelle ' s " Kampfgruppe " ( Battle Group ) from " 5 . SS - Freiwilligen - Sturmbrigade Wallonien " was placed under the command of the " Nederland " , bolstering its strength . When Hitler authorized the withdrawal of German troops from Estonia , the " Nederland " found itself with another problem on its hands . Besides the Russians , bands of Estonian soldiers , unwilling to leave their country and furious at the Germans for abandoning them , had turned to brigandry . " Nederland ' s " commander , Wagner , was forced to keep a company in reserve to deal with any attacks by the Estonians . Apart from a few skirmishes , the brigade was spared a large scale fight against its former allies . Battles in Courland and withdrawal to Germany . " Nederland " began the retreat into Courland on 23 September , executing a fighting withdrawal and arriving in the area near Gumi - Wolmar in mid October . The brigade was almost immediately attacked by a large Soviet combined arms force , and suffered heavy casualties in just a few days fighting . They also managed to cut off Army Group North in the Courland area , creating what was to be known as the Courland Pocket . Stationed alongside the " Nordland " , the brigade was involved in fierce fighting , protecting the strategically vital city of Libau , one of the embarkation points for troops to be withdrawn to Germany . During the fighting in Courland , the brigade was subject to heavy partisan attacks , and after a number of these attacks , Wagner ordered the reprisal executions of an unknown number of civilians . The second Courland offensive was launched by the Soviets on 27 October , the " De Ruyter " regiment saw heavy fighting , repelling two large infantry attacks . Under almost constant air bombardment , the " Nederland " began digging - in . The next two major offensives to crush the pocket were not in " Nederland ' s " sector , and so besides minor skirmishes , the brigade was left in relative peace for the remainder of 1944 . On 26 January 1945 , the brigade received orders to evacuate the pocket by sea and report to the Swinemünde ( now Świnoujście ) - Stettin area to participate in the defence of the Oder line . The evacuation , through the port of Libau , began immediately . The voyage across the Baltic was dangerous , with the Red Air Force sinking many evacuation ships . The brigade arrived in German territory on 4 February . Final battles . The " Waffen - SS " command presented the idea of merging the " Nederland " into the " Nordland " division , but the NSB would not permit the formation to be disbanded . On 10 February , the brigade was redesignated " 23rd SS Volunteer Panzer Grenadier Division " Nederland " " , although its strength at the time was barely 1 , 000 men . The new division was attached to Steiner ' s Eleventh SS Panzer Army , defending the Northern Oder region . Despite its weak strength , the " Nederland " took part in the abortive Operation Sonnenwende " , and the battles near Altdamm in February 1945 . In April 1945 , the division was split into two " Kampfgruppen " , based on the reformed 48th SS Volunteer Panzer Grenadier Regiment " General Seyffardt " and the 49th SS Volunteer Panzer Grenadier Regiment " de Ruyter " . " Kampfgruppe General Seyffardt " headed south , " Kampfgruppe de Ruyter " remained on the northern Oder front . The final Soviet offensive of 16 April had broken the German lines by 25 April . During the attacks , both formations saw very heavy fighting . The breakthrough by the Red Army cut the lines of communication between the two " Kampfgruppen " . " de Ruyter " , was pushed back , attempting to halt the Soviets near the town of Parchim . On 3 May , the " Kampfgruppe " was attacked by a large number of Soviet tanks . In heavy fighting , the " Kampfgruppe " halted the enemy attack , destroying the spearhead . Hearing rumours of Americans nearby , the formation broke out to the west , surrendering to the US Army and being sent to a POW Camp near Kraak . Meanwhile , " Kampfgruppe " " General Seyffardt " was pushed south by the Soviet offensive , into the area around Halbe . The remnants of the " Kampfgruppe " were absorbed into " Kampfgruppe Vieweger " of the 15th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS ( 1st Latvian ) . During the hellish fighting in the battle of Halbe , the " General Seyffardt " was annihilated . After the war , the survivors were tried in the Netherlands , with several death sentences being handed down . In Yugoslavia , Wagner faced a trial for war crimes ; he was sentenced to death for his actions against the civilian population .