Creating A “Pan-European Army”: North and West European Soldiers of the Third ReichRiver Shichida
Program: Military History: Capstone-Thesis: Master of Arts (MA)
Awarded: November 2024
Capstone Instructor: Dr. Irina Gorbunova Ford
Abstract: During World War II, Germany recruited foreign soldiers from North and West Europe into their armed forces and were committed mainly on the Eastern Front. The intention was to create a “Pan-European Army” that would best serve the ideological goals of the Third Reich. This initiative was a failure because the training, integration, treatment and use of these foreign soldiers were undermined by the regime’s racial ideology, its desire to create a “Greater Germanic Reich”, and the lack of true National Socialists volunteers among the foreigners. This research found that Germany’s leading military forces, the Waffen-SS and the Wehrmacht, had trouble incorporating foreigners into their combat formations due to the preconception that Germans were the superior racial group in Europe. Since non-German soldiers had to be integrated into the German-oriented armed forces, the Germans in many cases tried to “Germanize” the foreigners or indoctrinate them in National Socialism. In other cases, the Germans showed neglect towards their foreign troops, believing that dealing with racially inferior groups was not worth their time. The extreme and carless attitudes of the Germans caused many foreigners to believe their national identities were being undermined. This was further complicated by the regime’s intention to establish a “Greater Germanic Reich” that would have resulted in the complete absorption of the conquered countries that many of these foreigners originated from. These foreign soldiers also had a diversity of motives for joining, but most did not share the German National Socialist ideology and policies. Not every foreign volunteered because they believed in the Third Reich’s quest for a “New Order” shaped to the regime’s benefit. A common motive that conflicted with the “Greater Third Reich” pursuit was the desire for national independence and equal status alongside the Germans. This was especially prominent among the collaborationist groups from the occupied countries who willingly recruited for the Germans. The initial number of recruits during the early years of the Eastern Front campaign and prior were mostly disappointing. Once at the front, the foreign formation did not always meet German expectations or garner positive opinions. The Germans appeared to have initially recruited these foreigners just for their propaganda potential. Research for this qualitative study involved historical studies, memoirs, war diaries, after-action reports, and recorded interviews. Secondary historical sources were used mainly to outline the general history of these foreign soldiers from their recruitment period to their combat period. Wary diaries, after-action reports, and a few memoirs were used to provide additional detail on the history of the foreign formations to help determine if the Germans had properly trained these foreigners, treated them fairly, used them effectively in combat, or abused them in any way. Memoirs, video interviews of veterans, and some secondary studies were used to identify certain motives among the foreign soldiers, how the Germans treated and perceived each group, and if these affected the foreigners and their respective units in any way.