Brandenburgers in the Russian Front

[Edward L. Hsiao]

Gentlemen,

What military targets besides bridges did Brandenburger Commandos attacked successfully in the heart of the Soviet Union? I never heard much about the Brandenburgers attacking military installations such as factories,supply depots,whatsoever.

Sincerely,

Edward L. Hsiao

[Edward L. Hsiao]

Gentlemen,

Anything at all about the Brandenburgers attacks on Soviet installations?

Edward L. Hsiao

[Art]

Communication center at Maikop. Mostly known by baron Munchausen style rendition which erroneously claims that B. captured oil fields in Maikop. Examples:
http://best-hoaxes.blogspot.ru/2011/02/ ... ssian.html
https://ospreypublishing.com/behind-sov ... ields-1942

[Dann Falk]

Greetings All,

You can also read the book The Brandenburger Commandos by Franz Kurowski, published by Stackpole Military about $20 new. 378 pages maps and photos. ISBN# 978-0-8117-3250-5. It's a good read.

[Jan-Hendrik]

Try

these documents by HGr. Mitte

Jan-Hendrik

[Reigo2]

There was also the attempt to take a Soviet coastal battery in Kübarsaare (island Saaremaa/Ösel) 14th September 1941, but it ended up as a failure.

[Juha Tompuri]

Brandenburg units in Finland? /viewtopic.php?f=55&t=28980
Brandenburg Raid Murmansk RR Aug 1942 viewtopic.php?f=59&t=203925&hilit

Regards, Juha

[Edward L. Hsiao]

Gentlemen,

In the book "The Brandenburgers-Global Mission",p.84,"Beginning on 15th June 1941,a large number of combat and sabotage teams crossed the Russian border by night. They infiltrated deep into the enemy rear,where they waited to strike as soon as the German attack began. Their mission was to cut telephone lines,blow up radio and telephone masts,destroy bridges and railroad tracks,and occupy positions vital to the advance and hold them until the arrival of German troops.
And on page 90 of that book,the missions by the Brandenburgers in the first days and weeks of the Russian campaign were so manifold in number and nature that is is impossible to do more than name a few to illustrate the extent of the unit's commitments. So the book is limited with examples of exploits of the Brandenburgers in the Soviet Union.
I guess the Brandenburgers were really busy in blowing up positions when the invasion of the Soviet Union,June 22nd 1941 began.
Sincerely,

Edward L. Hsiao

[Edward L. Hsiao]

Hello Jan-Hendrik,

I can't understand about those documents by HGr.Mitte at all. It's in Russian or German. I have to read something that is in English. A lot of action going on with the Brandenburgers in the Russian Front.

Edward L. Hsiao

[Sid Guttridge]

Hi Edward,

To reiterate what I wrote elsewhere, there are a lot of dubious claims about the Brandenburgers and their operations were not necessarily successful. For example:

1) An old, 1960s book, Assault from Within, claims that Brandenburgers captured Odessa and were equipped with Tiger tanks. In fact the city fell to the Romanians after the Red Army evacuated by sea and the Tiger wasn't hadn't yet been developed, let alone used.

2) It is sometimes claimed that the Brandenburgers captured some Caucasus oil fields in mid 1942. They may have been first in, but their mission failed. They were meant to capture the oil fields intact by coup-de-main, whereas in fact it was a successful demolition operation by the retreating Red Army that ensured that the Germans never extracted any oil during their many months of occupation.

3) In August 1944 the Brandenburger Parachute Battalion was landed on Romanian airfields with the aim of destroying the German aircraft already delivered to Romania. It proved a fiasco. The entire battalion was wiped by the Romanians.

Cheers,

Sid

[Stephan]

Here seems to be two diametrally different scenarios: relatively few actions, and often unsuccesfull. Esp if done with much troops.

Innumerable actions, often small groups, usually succesfull. We can write up just a small part of the whole if we want to press it into just one book.

I suppose the compromise - and reality, is; it was not at all just some of the innumerable examples written up - but THE succesful cases...