side 3.1

As early as in June 1939 the first volunteers from Nordschleswig joined the SS Verfügungstruppe. The early volunteers from Nordschleswig were trained in Radolfzell at the Bodensee and later transfered to the Langenhorn Kaserne near Hamburg. They entered the the SS Infanterie Regiment "Germania" and took part in the Campaigns in the West in 1940.

Volunteers from Nordschleswig as members of the

SS Infanterie Regiment "Germania" in France 1940

After the occupation of Denmark by Germany on 9th April 1940, the NSDAP-N started to organize campaigns to make the members of the German minority join the Wehrmacht or Waffen SS. Within the first months of the German occupation, more than 3000 men had volunteered! As a consequence of the high quality demanded by the SS for entering the force only a few hundred of these volunteers were actually drafted.

During the war NSDAP-N arranged massive recruiting campaigns. The last campaign was held as late as in February - March 1945 by the leader of the DJN, Johann Thorius, a former Kompanieführer from the SS Panzer Grenadier Regiment 24 "Danmark". Even in these last days of the war, Thorius succeeded making some young men volunteer !

Throughout the war more than 5.000 men and women from the German minority in Denmark volunteered for for service in the German army. Approximately 2100 of these were called in.

As mentioned earlier, the volunteers from Nordschleswig saw service in almost all branches of the German Army and in all places of the European battlefields. Mostly the volunteers chose to serve in the Waffen SS, but as can been seen below, quite a few volunteers also served in the Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, RAD, OT and in almost all other formations in the Wehrmacht.

Members of the German minority serving in the German Army:

Date	in the Waffen SS	in the Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, RAD, OT or other formations in the Wehrmacht	Killed or Missed in action
Summer 1939	17
May 1940	120
June 1940	300
March 1941	331
January 1942	550	240
Decmeber 1942	1083	436 + 20 serving in the Grenzschutz + serving as drivers in a Luftgaukommando in Russia	129 killed 6 missing
September 1943	1290	566
December 1943	1311	438	232
April 1944	1335	445	280
January 1945	1391	507	344

It must be mentioned, that not all members of the German Minority, who saw service in the German army, were volunteers. A considerable amount were actually conscripted, as they had no Danish citizenship. Normally the one conscripted saw service within the lines of the Wehrmacht and not in the Waffen SS.

The Waffen SS

Volunteers from Nordschleswig were found in all formations of the SS; frontline units, supply units, propaganda units, in administrative posts in the SS Hauptamt, as agriculturel supervisors, a few are even known to have served as guards in concentraion camps !

Though found in all Divisions of the Waffen SS, the majority of the volunteers were attached to subunits of the following 3 Divisions :

3. SS Panzer Division "Totenkopf"

5. SS Panzer Division "Wiking"

11. Freiwilligen Panzergrenadier Division "Nordland "

Julius Uebel from Uk in Nordschleswig

One of the first volunteers who were killed in the war. He fell May 1940 at St. Hilaire in France. He is buried at the Military Cemetery at Bourdon in France

Johann Thorius,

the last leader of the DJN.

Former Kompanieführer from the

12. Kompanie

SS Panzer Grenadier Regiment 24 "Danmark"

Wolfgang Rudolf Fabian, born in Apenrade, Nordschleswig

Oberleutnant in the

Jagdgeschwader 51 "Mölders"

Fabian was shot down and killed on the 21.08.1942 north east of Shew in Russia