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A European anabasis: western European volunteers in the German army and SS, 1940-1945
Kenneth W. Estes
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The commander of the French Legion, Edgar Puaud, sent year's end 1943 greetings to Marshal Petain, in this telegram from the " . . . Frenchmen fighting on the Eastern Front for the Fatherland and a New Europe . . . ." NARA T77/833/5571642.
Brussels, August 8, 1941. Waiting for Degrelle to join the ranks after his farewell speech at the nearby Palais des Beaux-Arts. The officer in the foreground on the left is Jules Mathieu, all are in uniform of the Formations de Combat, the militia of the Rex Party. (Coll. E. De Bruyne).
Brussels: Gare du Nord railroad station, 8 August 1941. Degrelle in his Rexist militia uniform in company of unidentified German soldiers, a few moments before getting on the train to Regenwurmlager/Germany. (Coll. E. De Bruyne).
Spring-Summer 1942: a propaganda postcard showing antitank instruction in the presence of Walloon Legion Commander Lucien Lippert (taller of two with soft hats). Next to him is Pierre Dengis (white uniform). The latter was to become the commanding officer of the Assault Gun Company of the 5th SS Wallonien Assault Brigade. ( Coll. E. De Bruyne).
Lieutenant Jules Mathieu. Summer 1942. A high-ranking officer in the Rexist Militia, he began his service in the Walloon Legion as a platoon leader in the 1st Company, among whose ordinary soldiers stood Léon Degrelle. He finished the war as an SS major and commander of the 69th Regiment in the paper-strength divisional organization. (Photo J. Mathieu/Coll. E. De Bruyne).
Tasting the soup. On the left Hubert Van Eyser who was to be killed in action at Cherkassy as a platoon leader in the 1st Company. (Phto J. Mathieu/Coll. E. De Bruyne).
"Most of these pictures were taken just after the return from the Caucasus campaign when the battalion was refitting at Pieske Barracks, Meseritz before moving to the SS-Übungsplatz at Wildflecken in June 43. (Wildflecken when in SS uniform). The man left on the 1st row looks to me as if he is Marcel Barbier. New recruits are arriving, some in plain clothes others in their black Formation des Combat uniform ( with the Burgundian Cross on their chests). Note that on one particular photo, (row beneath, third photo from left ), the men still wear their mountain boots." Caption by Eddy DeBruyne, with thanks for the identification efforts. NARA photo Record Group 242, file 242-jrp-89 unknown.