__NOTOC__ The 19th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd Latvian) (, ) was an infantry division of the

Waffen-SS The (; ) was the military branch, combat branch of the Nazi Party's paramilitary ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscr ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It was the second Latvian division formed in January 1944, after its sister unit, the

15th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Latvian) In music, a fifteenth or double octave, abbreviated ''15ma'', is the interval between one musical note and another with one-quarter the wavelength or quadruple the frequency. It has also been referred to as the bisdiapason. The fourth harmonic, ...

with which it formed the

Latvian Legion The Latvian Legion () was a formation of the Nazi German Waffen-SS during World War II. Created in 1943, it consisted primarily of ethnic Latvians.Gerhard P. Bassler, ''Alfred Valdmanis and the politics of survival'', 2000, p150 Mirdza Kate Balta ...

. It was surrounded in the

Courland Pocket The Courland Pocket was a Pocket (military), pocket located on the Courland Peninsula in Latvia on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front of World War II from 9 October 1944 to 10 May 1945. Army Group North of the ''Wehrmacht'' were ...

at the end of the war where it surrendered to the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

.Tessin, p. 127 The division was formed in January 1944, from 2 SS Infantry Brigades with the addition of a newly raised third regiment, Waffen Grenadier Regiment 46 (Latvian No. 6). Simultaneously, the designations of the two other grenadier regiments were changed from 39 and 40 to 42 and 43 respectively. The commander of the SS brigade, SS-Oberführer

Hinrich Schuldt __NOTOC__ Hinrich Schuldt (14 January 1901 – 15 March 1944) was a German SS commander during World War II. He was a posthumous recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords of Nazi Germany. SS Brigade Schuldt SS ...

became the first commander of the division. After Schuldt was killed in action on 15 March 1944, SS-Standartenführer

Friedrich-Wilhelm Bock __NOTOC__ Friedrich-Wilhelm Bock (6 May 1897 – 11 March 1978) was a German Waffen-SS commander during World War II who led three SS divisions, the SS Division Hohenstaufen, 4th SS Polizei Division, Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd L ...

temporarily took command, being replaced on April 13 by SS-Oberführer

Bruno Streckenbach Bruno Streckenbach (7 February 1902 – 28 October 1977) was a German SS functionary during the Nazi era. He was the head of Administration and Personnel Department of the Reich Security Main Office (RSHA). Streckenbach was responsible for man ...

, who led the division until the end of war.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:19th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (2nd Latvian) Generalbezirk Lettland Latvian Legion Military history of Latvia during World War II Military units and formations established in 1944 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945 Foreign conscript units of the Waffen-SS #19

See also

References

Bibliography