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Sunday, September 24, 2023

Jürgen Wagner and Léon Degrelle


SS-Sturmbannführer der Reserve Léon Degrelle (Kommandeur Kampfgruppe "Wallonien") was forbidden to return to combat after winning the Ritterkreuz following the Cherkassy campaign. However, he joined the Wallonien Battalion after it arrived in Estonia, and took a moment to pose with SS-Brigadeführer und Generalmajor der Waffen-SS Jürgen Wagner (Kommandeur 4. SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenadier-Brigade "Nederland" and Kommandeur Kampfgruppe "Wagner"), in whose battlegroup the battalion fought. On the right is SS-Obersturmführer Karl Schäfer, who was nominally Degrelle’s aide. He also had the secret mission of reporting Degrelle’s activities to Heinrich Himmler. The picture was taken at the end of August 1944 near Dorpat (Tartu), Estonia, when part of the Wallonie Sturmbrigade came under the command of Kampfgruppe Wagner. Degrelle and his German aide wore SS-Erbsenmuster (pea-dot pattern) camouflage uniforms. Degrelle even wore an M38 Feldmütze with the same camo, which was the field modification rather than an official troop depot release!



Marc Rikmenspoel: Helmut von Vollard-Bockelberg next to Jürgen Wagner. Vollard-Bockelberg was a Heer Oberstleutnant i.G., a trained Generalstab officer. He was Ia of Nordland until the end of July, 1944, when Nordland commander Fritz von Scholz was killed. Joachim Ziegler then took command of Nordland, and von Vollard-Bockelberg replaced him as Chef des Stabes of the III. (germ.) SS-Panzerkorps. During the next month, August 1944, the Tannenberg Line quieted down, while Tartu became a crisis. So Jürgen Wagner was sent there to command, and Helmut von Vollard-Bockelberg went with him to plan the defense. The Walloons and Flemings each sent a small battalion to Estonia. The Flemings were ready for combat, and went right into action on the Tannenberg Line. The Walloons had too many new men, and needed a couple of weeks of training before being sent to the Tartu front. Degrelle was forbidden to return to combat after winning the Ritterkreuz, and was in Belgium for his brother's funeral when the battalion was sent to Estonia. He violated orders and made his way to Estonia to take over the Walloon battalion, and Himmler acquiesced and allowed him to stay there (and where Degrelle won the Eichenlaub rallying defenses at moments of crisis a couple of times!). It's natural that photographers would seek to photograph the leading personalities on the scene, and get them to pose together. Karl Schäfer would have served as Degrelle's escort officer and translator at this point, and he's seen in some of the photos from this time.

Source :
"Knight's Cross Winners of the Waffen SS" by Marc Rikmenspoel
"The Wallonien: The History of the 5th SS-Sturmbrigade and 28th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division" By Richard Landwehr, Jean-Louis Roba and Ray Merriam
https://www.facebook.com/groups/691098008051629/?multi_permalinks=1362454627582627&hoisted_section_header_type=recently_seen
https://www.reddit.com/r/GermanWW2photos/comments/lrj0d9/estonia_august_1944_degrelle_as_commanding/

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