Eastern volunteers and their religion

[Arto O]

Hi everybody

Like "lets build...", I would like to make a list of all ethnic groups of eastern volunteers, their religion and if they ever practise mass in the field. Now, some forum members might not agree who are "eastern" volunteers, for example baltic people, ukranians etc, but I went to german way of thinking who were consired as easterns (of course the volunteers from India are not there). I surely have a lot of mistakes in my spelling, please correct me (some names are in german). I have to following:

Russian orthodox:
Georgians
Mari
White russians
Mordovia
Chuvashes
Udmurts
Russians (moskovits)
Cossacks

Creek catholics:
Ukranians, galizien

Christians in general (exactly what??):
Estonians
Lithuanians
Latvians
Armenians

Buddist:
Kalmucks
Indo china

Muslims:
Abchasians Adigs
Ascherbaidschans Cirkassians
Balkers Karatschians
Wolga tatars Kazahkstans
Kyrgystans Nogais
Tartastan Kasacks
Wolgafinnen Chechens
North Osset Dagestan
Ingushes Kabardians
Krim tatars Turkestan
Uzbekistans Tadshiks
Bashkirs Karapalkaks
Lezghins

Jews (not the correct term):
Karaites (from the Krim peninsula)

Confucius:
Koreans (just one case, I think, the guy found my allies in the atlantic wall)

Hindus:
Indians

Sikhs:
Indians

The only groups that I have seen pictures celebrating religious masses are: whiterussians, cossacks, ukranians, galizien. Of course there is the photograps sent by Askold some years ago, a group of muslim osttruppen praying. But as far as know nobody finally was not able to determine who they were. The key to this lays in the headgear worn by the mullah, which I have tried to find without a result.
There are a mentions in the forum about afganistan volunteers in some occacions (the last one "how many arabs muslims..."), were they really afganistans or tadshiks (people related to afganistans, but lived inside the ex soviet union)?

Any comment is very welcome, especially if you any photographs about the religious masses.

Cheers

Arto

[henryk]

Creek catholics:
Ukrainians, galizien
Christians in general (exactly what??):
Estonians
Lithuanians
Latvians

Besides Greek Catholic, Ukrainians were also Russian Orthodox, now Ukrainian Orthodox.
Lithuanians were mainly Roman Catholic.
Latvians from the south were mainly Roman Catholic, from the north, mainly Protestant.
Estonians were mainly Protestant.

[LMA-17]

North Ossetia and Wolgafinnen are Christian Orthodox according Joachim Hoffmann' Ostlegionen book.
There are many Muslims in Indian formations, 1/3 to 2/3 of volunteers.

Armenian belong Armenian Orthoodox.

There are pics Azeri, Volga Tatar, and Turkestanis volunteers in mass-prayer. I think there is a pic of Turkestanis SS at prayer in this forum, taken from Andrew J. Mollo's SS pictorial book. Also some mullah pic exist in this forum

[Arto O]

Thanks henryk and LMA-17,

Interesting note about the ukrainians, but I suppose that the people in the view topic forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=96959 (page 14) is a creek catholic ceremony, which mosly used a maltese cross as their symbol.
I always had doubt about wolgafinnen. I agree with you. North ossets is interesting as their region lays inside a muslim area.
The muslims you refer in Indian legion were they all sikhs, or existed some other sect?
I have seen a lot of pictures of mass praying of 13. SS Division, and some Turkestani mullahs, but none except the photo sent by Askold, which stays in mystery.
I will try to search button.
Please If somebody know some links, please let me know.

Thanks in advance

Arto

[Arto O]

Sorry,

The view topic about osttruppen praying is
forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?f=51&t=86094
and NOT sent by Askold

Arto

[henryk]

The people in now Eastern Ukraine are mainly Russian Orthodox. In now Western Ukraine, the north part was pre-WWII Polish Wolynia and Polesia. When held by Russia, after the partitions of Poland until 1918, the Greek Catholics were forcibly converted to Russian Orthodox, and remained Russian Orthodox. In the south part, part of southeastern Poland pre-WWII, and part of Austria after the partitions until 1918, the population was generally Greek Catholic if ethnic Ukrainian, and Roman Catholic if ethnic Polish. After the Soviet invasion in 1939, Greek Catholic churches were changed to Russian Orthodox, remaining that way until Ukraine was freed in 1991, when they became Ukrainian Catholic again.

[LMA-17]

Hi Arto O,

Sikh is not an Islam branch, although we could say that Sikhism is a syncretism between Hinduism and Islamic teachings.
North Ossetians rechristianized in 19th century after Tsarist Russia taken the areas from Ottoman.
This is thread in AHF that depict Volga Tatar and Turkestanis SS at prayer http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?f=51&t=86094. In a Russian book about Volga Tatars in Wehrmacht there is another pic of a mullah lead mass prayer of his men in German uniform.

[Arto O]

Thanks Henryk again,

The most obscure and interesting eastern volunteers in my opinion are the Kalmucks. Expert riders in the steppes, belonging to Tibetan buddhist religion. I am quite sure that Adolf didnt had that in mind, when he planned the conquest of the east. David Littlejohn writes in his book Foreign Legions of the Third Reich: "As Buddhist, the Kalmucks had as their flag a saffron banner" (page 308). Do we know how it looked like? As the simbol what is in the famous Kalmuken-Verband Dr. Doll sleeve patch, is it a buddhist symbol or what?
I will sent a picture, which suppose to be kalmuck volunteers. The original text says in german: Der 1c des 40. Panzerkorps, Major Kandutsch (links) begrusst den Fuhrer der Kalmuckenabteilung Major Abuschinow, einen erfolgreichen Partisanenjager; in der Mitte der deutsche Wachtmeister der Abteilung, Willi Lilienthal. Are they really kalmucks?
As it is necessary to inform the origen of the photo in the forum, only I can say that I dont know. I had a criminal habit to "pick up" souvenirs from public libraries in my teens (lack of $), now as grown up, I dont do it again. I hope the moderator doesnt punish me about my crimes more than 30 years ago.
I hope you enjoy about the photo. Now if I fail to sent it, I need to ask Billy to send it for me. Thanks.

Cheers
Arto

[kiseli]

Kalmucks
http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=123668

Hitler's Buddhist Warrior
http://www.thereformedbuddhist.com/2010 ... riors.html

[Arto O]

Thanks LMA-17 and Kiseli,

LMA-17 if you have this russian book, could you send the picture.
Kiseli, the kalmuck web site is really interesting. I would never found it by myself.

MarryX for everybody

Arto

[Arto O]

Hi Everybody,

Here some plates from one book which shows eastern volunteers s insignias. Nothing new really but it might be interest of some forum members. It was a really good serie of books from times of eqyptians until after WWII. I dont have title anymore.

Cheers

Arto

The 2nd plate doesnt want to load, I will try later.

With all my respect, I wonder where are Askold and Semenov and others? They always gave very interesting info about eastern volunteers. I am especially interested any photos which might have not yet apperead at forum.

Eastern

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[Arto O]

Hi,

Like the famous 1945 SS-map, I made my own eastern volunteers map. The idea is to visualize different insignias used by them and ubicate the geografical place of each ethnic group. I hope that it doesnt look too childish , okei it is all hand made. It was made nearly one year ago, so some corrections mentioned in the forum arent there. Many insignias are of course quite fantasious, some exist but where not worn. I will add comments in each serie, as only 3 photos enter at time. Okei there are totally 13 photos, so only for fans
Please, can you give any further comments, or correct any mistakes.
The photos goes like reading, from left to right and from up to down.
1. Photo: Estonia, Latvia, Lituania, Druzhina brigade. What I am not sure, if estonians and lituanians ever wore schuma collar badges? In the area of Lituania is one strange collar badge which should present one seem in the topic "What uniform wearing Russian (Kaunas, 1943), which I have never seen nowhere else. Drushina is presented with kindjal, without shield. I have red this somewhere but a huge doubt that this ever existed.

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[Arto O]

Some more

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[Arto O]

Photo 7. Krim tatars used "Tamgas" in their shields, which I have not seen a photograpich evidence, but is what is the one just below the Azad Hind shield? This appears in the 1945 SS map but it was too small to understand what is it? Looks like wheat with flower????

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[Arto O]

The last ones, which are the same, but more closer view, in order to able to read the text. I hope.

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