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The Division Azul (Spanish: División Azul, German: Blaue Division), or 250. Infanterie-Division, was a unit of Spanish volunteers that served in the German Army on the Eastern Front of the Second World War.

Although Spanish dictator Field Marshal (Generalísimo) Francisco Franco did not enter the war on the side of Nazi Germany, he permitted volunteers to join the German Army (Wehrmacht Heer) on the clear and guaranteed condition they would exclusively fight against "Bolshevism" (Soviet Communism) on the Eastern Front, and not against the Western Allies or any Western European occupied populations. In this manner, he could keep Spain at peace with the Western Allies whilst simultaneously repaying Hitler for his support during the Spanish Civil War (see Condor Legion). Spanish foreign minister Ramón Serrano Súñer made the suggestion to raise a volunteer corps, and at the commencement of Operation Barbarossa, Franco sent an official offer of help to Berlin.

250th Blue Division
Division Azul
Blau Division
DRK
German Red Cross
Deutsches Rotes Kreuz
Wehrmacht Heer
Soldaten
Ostfront
Infanteire
Eastern Front
WW-II Spanish Soldiers
Soldados Segunda Guerra Mundial
Spanish Volunteers World War II
Third Reich

Hitler approved the use of Spanish volunteers on June 24, 1941. Volunteers flocked to recruiting offices in all the metropolitan areas in Spain. Cadets from the officer training school in Zaragoza volunteered in particularly large numbers. Initially, the Spanish government was prepared to send about 4,000 men, but soon understood that there were more than enough volunteers to fill an entire division: 18,104 men in all, 2,612 officers and 15,492 soldiers.

Fifty percent of officers and non-commissioned officers (NCOs) were professional soldiers, many of them veterans of the Spanish Civil War. Many others were members of the Falange (the Spanish fascistoid party). Others felt pressure to join because of past ties with the Republic or - like Luis García Berlanga, who later became a well-known cinema director - to help their relatives in Franco's prisons.

General Agustín Muñoz Grandes was assigned to lead the volunteers. Because the soldiers could not use official Spanish army uniforms, they adopted a symbolic uniform comprising the red berets of the Carlists, khaki trousers used in the Spanish Legion, and the blue shirts of the Falangists - hence the nickname "Division Azul". This uniform was used only while on leave in Spain; in the field, soldiers wore the German Army (Wehrmacht Heer) field gray uniform with a shield on the upper right sleeve bearing the word "España" and the Spanish national colors.

On July 13, 1941, the first train left Madrid for Grafenwohr, Bavaria for a further five weeks of training. There they became the Wehrmacht Heer's 250th Infantry Division and were initially divided into four infantry regiments. Following the standard Wehrmacht Heer model, one of these regiments was dispersed among the others, which were named after three of the Spanish cities that volunteers largely originated from - Barcelona, Valencia and Seville. Each regiment had three battalions (of four companies each) and two weapons companies. An artillery regiment of four battalions (of three batteries each). Aviator volunteers formed a "Blue Squadron" (Escuadrilla Azul) which, using Bf 109s and FW 190s, was credited with 156 Soviet aircraft kills.

250th Blue Division Division Azul, Die Blaue Division, by Strassner
Division Azul Blaue Division, 250. Infanterie-Division, by Emilio Esteban Infantes
DRK Die blaue Division, Soldatengeschichten Band 99, by Haupt
German Red Cross Die deutschen Infanterie-Divisonen, Band 1-3, by Werner Haupt
Deutsches Rotes Kreu Die deutsche Feldpostübersicht 1939-1945, Band 1-3, by Nobert Kannapin
Blau Division Die Pflege der Tradition der alten Armee in Reichsheer und im der Wehrmacht, by Schirmer/Wiener
Third Reich Die Truppenkennzeichen... der deutchen Wehrmacht u. Waffen-SS, Band 1-4, by Schmitz/Thies
WW-II Spanish Soldiers Der Zweite Weltkrieg im Kartenbild, Band 1-3, by Klaus-Jurgen Thies
Soldados Segunda Guerra Mundial Deutsche Verbände und Truppen 1918-1939, by George Tessin
Spanish Volunteers World War II Verbände und Truppen der deutchen Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS..., Band 1-14, by Georg Tessin
Wehrmacht Heer Formationsgeschichte und Stellenbesetzung 1815-1939, Teil 1, der deutschen Heer, Band 1-3, by Günter Wegner
Espana Die Deutsche Wehrmacht u. Waffen-SS, Ihre Kommando. u. Großverbände... im Zweiten Weltkrieg, author unknown
Soldaten Das Reichsheer und Seine Tradition, author unknown
Ostfront Deutsche Rote Kreuz Suchdienst, Divisionsschicksale, author unknown DRK
Waffen-SS Reforging the Iron Cross, The Search for Tradition..., by Donald Abenheim
Infanteire The German Infantry Handbook 1939-1945, by Alex Buchner
Eastern Front German Army Order of Battle: The Replacement Army 1939-1945, by Victor Madej
Hitler Youth German Army Order of Battle: Field Army and Officer Corps 1939-1945, by Victor Madej
Hitler's Legions, by Samuel Mitcham
German Order of Battle World War II, Vol I, by George Nafziger
German Order of Battle 1944, author unknown
After swearing, on August 20, a modified military oath to fight communism, the Division Azul was assigned to combat duties. It was initially assigned to Army Group Center, the force advancing towards Moscow. The division was transported by train to Suwalki, Poland (August 28), from where it had to continue by foot on a 900 km march. It was scheduled to travel through Grodno (Belarus), Lida (Belarus), Vilnius (Lithuania), Molodechno (Belarus), Minsk (Belarus), Orsha (Belarus) onto Smolensk and from there to the Moscow front. While marching towards the Smolensk front on September 26, the Spanish volunteers were rerouted from Vitebsk and reassigned to Army Group North (the force closing on Leningrad), and became part of German 16th Army. Why they were forced to march such a distance without transport is unclear.

It was first deployed on the Volkhov front, with its HQ stationed in Grigorovo, in the outskirts of Novgorod. It was in charge of a 50 km section of the front north and south of Novgorod, along the banks of the Volkhov river and Lake Ilmen.

In August, 1942 it was transferred North to the Southeastern flank of the Leningrad siege, just South of the Neva near Pushkin, Kolpino and Krasny Bor in the Izhora River area.

The Division Azul remained on the Leningrad front where they suffered heavy casualties both due to cold and to enemy action at Myasnoi Bor following an encounter with the Soviet 305th Rifle division during early February. Franco dispatched more reinforcements, which in time included conscripts in addition to volunteers. Through rotation, as many as 45,000 Spanish soldiers served on the Eastern Front. They were awarded both Spanish and German military awards, and were the only division to be awarded a medal of their own, commissioned by Hitler.

After the collapse of German front following the Battle of Stalingrad, the situation changed and more German troops were deployed southwards. By this time general Emilio Esteban Infantes had taken command.

Eventually, the Allies and conservative Spanish Anglophiles (including many officials of the Roman Catholic Church) began to pressure Franco to withdraw the troops from the Eastern Front quasi-alliance with Germany. Franco initiated negotiations in the spring of 1943 and gave an order of withdrawal on October 10.

Some convinced Spanish soldiers refused to return. Even if some people believe that Franco gave his unofficial blessing as long as their number would stay below 1,500, the Spanish Government on the 3rd of November compelled everybody to return to Spain, or they would lose the Spanish nationality. In the end the total of 'non returners' was closer to 3,000 (mostly Falangists). Spaniards also joined other German units, mainly the Waffen-SS, and fresh volunteers slipped across the Spanish border near Lourdes, occupied France. The new pro-German units were collectively called the Blue Legion (Legión Azul).

The Spaniards initially remained part of the 121st Infantry Division, but even this meagre force was ordered to return home in March 1944 and was transported back to Spain on March 21. The rest of the volunteers were absorbed into German units.

Platoons of Spaniards served in the 3rd Gebirgs Division and the 357th Infantry Division. One unit was sent to Latvia. Two companies joined the Brandenburger Regiment and German 121st Division in Yugoslavia to fight against Tito's partisans. Fifty pro-Fascist Spaniards entered the French Pyrenees to combat the French Resistance, of which some members were former Communist milicians of the Republican side.

The 101st company Spanische-Freiwilligen Kompanie der SS 101 of 140 men, made up of four rifle platoons and one staff platoon, was attached to 28th SS Volunteer Grenadier Division Wallonien and fought in Pomerania and Brandenburg province. Later, as part of 11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland and under command of Haupsturmführer der SS Miguel Ezquerra, it fought the last days of the war against Soviet troops in Berlin.

The number of casualties of the Division Azul and its sequels accounted for 4,954 dead, and 8,700 wounded. In addition, 372 members of the Division Azul, the Blue Legion or volunteers of the Spanische-Freiwilligen Kompanie der SS 101 were taken as prisoners by the Soviet forces. Of these, 286 were kept in captivity until 1954 when they returned to Spain in the ship Semiramis fleeted by the International Red Cross (2 April, 1954).

The major military contribution of the Division Azul was entirely disproportionate to its modest strength and few material possibilities (arms and ammunition). The conviction and military fanaticism by which the Spanish volunteers assisted the Germans at the Eastern Front, was not left unawarded. Soldiers and officers of the Division Azul were awarded 2 Knight Crosses (one with Oak Leaves), 2 Golden Crosses, 138 Iron Crosses First Class, 2,359 Iron Crosses Second Class and 2,216 War Merit Crosses with Swords.

Although this is yet to be properly studied and assessed, the fact that many (if not most) of Spanish Army high ranking officers in the 1960s and '70s had served in the División Azul certainly had an influence on their role in and views about the transition to democracy in Spain in the late '70s. Many of the generals that took part in the attempted coup d'etat on February 23, 1981, both for it and against it, had served in this unit during World War II. Amongst them were generals Alfonso Armada and Jaime Milans del Bosch. Other Division Azul veterans, for example José Luis Aramburu Topete, at the time (1981) Director of the Guardia Civil, and José Gabeiras remained loyal to the legal democratic government under the young Juan Carlos I.

The Battle of Krasny Bor was fought between the German Wehrmacht's 250th Infantry Division, composed of Spanish volunteers, and the Soviet 55th Army by the village of Krasny Bor, Leningrad Oblast, northern Russia. The major clash took place on Wednesday, 10 February 1943. In Spain, it has become known as "Black Wednesday", due to the huge losses of the Spanish division in the battle. It was the most costly battle in which the Spanish volunteers participated on the eastern front.

The battle was an important event in the period after Stalingrad because it represented a revitalized Soviet Army's attempt at a strategic offensive in the northern sector of the front. Although the operation ended with a few miles of the Leningrad-Moscow Highway in Soviet hands for the first time since September 1941, the Spanish division was able to hold off the much larger Soviet attack without yielding substantial ground.

A relatively unknown but nonetheless highly effective fighting unit was the 250th Infantry Division or "Spanish Blue Division" as it was commonly known. This unit was true volunteer unit unlike many of the other foreign volunteer divisions who consisted of volunteers but also employed conscription as a means to swell their numbers.

The origins of Germany's Spanish volunteers can be traced to the Spanish Civil War in 1936 when Hitler supplied aid to Generalisimo Francisco Franco in the form of Luftwaffe, naval and ground units collectively known as "The Condor Legion". This all arms formation along with Italian infantry and air units provided considerable help and were highly instrumental in Franco's victory over the Republicans. In 1939 when war was declared on Germany Hitler constantly pressured and threatened Franco to join in the war on the side of Germany. This was unacceptable to Franco who proved most unwilling to enter into a war with the Allied forces of Britain and France and despite the pressure exerted on him, refused to allow German forces to travel through mainland Spain to invade the British stronghold of Gibraltar.

Franco although holding no great fascist convictions was not totally unsympathetic to the Nazi cause and was also conscious of the debt owed to Germany for their assistance to his forces during the Spanish Civil War. It was Spain's foreign minister Ramón Serrano Suñer who along with the approval of General Franco, drew up plans to form a division of Spanish volunteers made up from army and Falange members to assist Germany.

The response was extremely good with many Spaniards who were Nationalist ex-Civil War combatants who were conscious of the Soviet Union's contribution to the Republican cause and who harboured genuine anti-Communist sentiments relished the chance to fight the Bolshevik's on their own turf. Recruiting stations were set up in the headquarters of the Falange Party for volunteers to offer their services. In the Infantry Academy in Zaragoza officer cadets volunteered en masse to further boost the already high number of volunteers. This number was so high in fact that by 2nd July when the recruiting stations were closed the number of volunteers far exceeded 19,000 and in fact a number of divisions could have been formed. This was confirmed by the German ambassador in Spain who claimed that 40 times the required amount of men had volunteered for the new Spanish/German division.

An order issued in late June, just before the recruiting centres were closed, stated that 50% of the officer and NCO volunteers must be professional soldiers and all the officer positions above the rank of lieutenant were filled by Spaniards.

Four infantry regiments were formed and the battalions which made up these new divisions were formed in the areas of Madrid, Zaragoza, Seville, Spanish Morrocco, Valladolid, Coruña, Burgos, Valencia, and Barcelona. The divisions were all under the command of Spanish colonels: Rodrigo, Esparza, Pimentel and Vierna and as was practiced in the Spanish army - the above units would be known by the name of their commanders: "Regimento Pimentel", "Regimento Vierna", and "Regimento Esparza." An artillery regiment under the command of Colonel Badillo as well as engineer, anti-tank, signals and medical units consisting entirely of Spanish personnel were also formed. All were volunteers. Overall command was given to 45 year old General Agustín Muñoz Grandes. Grandes was born in Carabanchel Bajo, Madrid, on 27th January, 1896. He graduated in the Military Academy of Toledo and received his first command in Africa, where his relationship with General Francisco Franco started. During the Spanish Civil War Muñoz Grandes directed the IV Brigade of Navarre, with the rank of colonel. In March, 1936 he took part in the offensive at Aragon as commander of the Army of Urgel.

In 1939, Muñoz Grandes was nominated as General Secretary of the Falange Party but despite this appointment to this overtly fascist organistion he, like Franco was not of any particular political persuasion.

The Spanish volunteers were issued with German uniforms and equipment, although some continued to wear their blue shirts and berets during the initial training stages. The issue of uniforms was complicated because Spanish was not technically at war so Spanish Army uniforms were out of the question. A new symbolic uniform was created which consisted of the red beret of the Carlist movement, the blue shirt of the Falangist movement (from which the division received its name) and the khaki trousers of the Spanish Foreign Legion, while Officers wore khaki shirts with blue cuffs and collar. This uniform was worn on leave in Spain, but before going to the front the Legionnaires would change into regular field gray Wehrmacht Heer uniform with a shield on the upper right sleeve which bore the Spanish National colors with the word “España”. The name "Blue Division" (Division Azul in German, Division Azul in Spanish) was given to the unit on account of the blue shirts worn by the Falange Party members. Incidentally this was the name given to O'Duffy's Irish fascist volunteers who fought with Franco during the Spanish Civil War.

When the entire division had been formed, On July 13th the first train with volunteers left Madrid, they were transported to Germany via France by the trainload and were warmly received on entering Germany where they were then sent to the training camp in Grafenwöhr, Bavaria. On 25th July this new formation was officially given the title of 250th Infantry Division and the number of infantry regiments was reduced from four to three as was the norm in the German army. These units were designated 262nd Infantry Regiment (mainly Barcelona recruits) under the command of Colonel Pimentel, 263rd Infantry Regiment (Valencia) under the command of Colonel Vierna and 269th Infantry Regiment (Sevilla) under the command of Colonel Esparza. The 250th Artillery Regiment was split into three units containing three batteries, each equipped with 10.5cm guns and a heavy artillery unit equipped with 15cm guns. The anti-tank unit was equipped with 36 outdated PAK 3.7cm anti-tank guns.

Colonel Rodrigo was appointed second in command to General Augustin Muñoz Grandes and in all the unit now consisted of 641 officers, 2,272 NCOs and 15,780 men. In all 17,924 Officers and soldiers in four infantry regiments, Also, because among the volunteers there were enough pilots, a squadron was formed entirely of Spanish airmen and equipped with Me 109s and later FW 190s. The “Blue Squadrilla” received credit for 156 Soviet aircraft.

262nd Infantry Regiment ( 3 Companies 1,2,3,)
263rd Infantry Regiment ( 3 Companies 1,2,3,)
269th Infantry Regiment ( 3 Companies 1,2,3,)
250th Artillery Regiment ( 4 Companies 1,2,3,4)
250th Panzerjager Battalion
250th Reconnaissance Battalion
250th Pioneer Battalion
250th Signals Battalion
250th Supply Troop
250th Transport Company
250th Light Supply Columns ( 9 Companies in all )
250th Fuel Supply Unit
250th Maintenance Platoon
250th Bakery Company
250th Butcher Company
250th Medical Company (2 Companies)
250th Ambulance (2 Companies)
250th Field Hospital
250th Veterinary Troop
250th Feldgendarmerie
250th Field Post Office

Their German instructors were constantly irritated by the Spaniards, who's standards of discipline and appearance failed to match their own high German standards. As they were regular soldiers in the Spanish army intensive training for them lasted only one month and after swearing a modified oath of allegiance to Hitler, were on their way to the Eastern Front (Ostfront) by 20th August.

What followed was a strange episode which must have tested the Spaniards resolve and commitment to the German cause. They were transported only as far as Suwalki in Poland where they were forced to march on foot over 1,000 km through Poland and Lithuania to Vitebsk in Russia via Vilna, Molodeschno, Minsk and Orscha. This forced march left some of their number hospitalised and coupled with the loss of many horses delayed their entry into combat in Russia by 40 days. The original intention of sending the division to Smolensk was changed and instead the Division were sent northwards by train to Leningrad in Northern Russia along with Feldmarschall von Leeb's forces who were besieging the city.

Their orders were as part of XXXVIIIth Corps to relieve the German 18th Division and elements of the 126th division near Shimsk and to hold a line of 50km from Lubkovko in the north to Kurisko in the south. Their first action took place on the night of 12th October 1941 at Kapella Nova where an advanced Spanish position intercepted a Soviet detachment which was attempting to cross a river. The resulting combat left 50 Soviet dead and 80 prisoners in the hands of the Spanish 269th Regiment.

Their next action took place on the eastern side of the River Volkhov which saw two regiments of the Blue Division along with two other German divisions (18th and 126th) take part in an offensive over the eastern side of the River Volkhov. Stiff Soviet resistance was met during the 20th October by Soviet machine gunners at Russa and Sitno and actions coordinated by Battalion Commander Major Roman succeeded in driving out the Soviets from the village of Sitno.

Further actions by the 263rd Regiment resulted in the occupation of Tigoda on 28th October and as well as this the Erstaz Battalion of 250th had taken Dubrovka. The 263rd Regiment took Nitlikino on the 29th but the Ersatz Battalion who had turned south from Dubrovka to attack Muravji had met fierce Soviet opposition from machine gunners who had been positioned in stone buildings which had been christened the "barracks" by the Spaniards. Despite artillery support by Blue Division artillery units they failed to dislodged the Soviets and were forced to retreat amid heavy losses.

In November the Blue Division crossed the frozen River Volkhov despite Soviet infantry, artillery and air counter-attacks and managed to hold onto their new positions. The 269th Regiment were instructed to occupy the villages of Otenski, Possad and Posselok which had been taken by elements of the 18th Division. Possad and Posselok were subjected to heavy attack by the Soviets and after heavy losses the surviors were ordered back to Possad where a similar scenario had taken place and the Spanish defenders had suffered similar Soviet attacks. By the next day the village was surrounded and subjected to constant artillery and mortar bombardment. Spanish casualties mounted and a field hospital that had been set up in the cellar of a house overflowed with dead and wounded. By 14th November only 180 Spaniards were left defending the village and after the wounded battalion commander was replaced, combat engineers constructed two fortified positions which allowed the wounded to be evacuated by sled. On 27th November defences were strengthened by the construction of blockhouses between Otenski and Schevelevo by Spanish combat engineers. On 4th December an attack by four Soviet infantry regiments supported by heavy artillery, mortars and aircraft was repulsed by Commander Roman's engineers, anti-tank gunners and artillery batteries. The Spanish positions had now been consolidated apart from Pass which was still under Soviet attack and this forced the Spanish units in Schevelevo to return to the ruins there to relieve the beleaguered defenders. With the temperature at -40 degrees and under air and artillery attack the situation there was desperate. Food was scarce and what frozen scraps of bread was left had to be divided with an axe, the defenders had been deprived of sleep for days and yet the moral of the troops was still high. In response to Soviet calls for surrender the Spaniards called out "Arriba España!" which was a Spanish Civil War battle cry used by the Nationalists.

Eventually Muñoz Grandes was allowed by the German high command to order a retreat from Possad and Otenski and on 7th December the exhausted defenders retreated. They had lost 120 dead, 440 wounded and 20 missing but despite these losses they were to see further action almost immediately.

By 10th December all Spanish units had crossed over the River Volkhov back to their starting out point of two months earlier and two weeks later on 24th December Udarnik and Gorka were under attack from Soviet forces. The order was to hold these areas at all costs which the Spaniards did despite furious counter attacks by the Soviets. It was here that Soviet atrocities against the Spanish troops took place and after advancing from Lubovko, Commandante Rebull discovered the mutilated bodies of Alferez Moscoso and his men which had been stripped and impaled on bayonets and had pickaxes driven into their chests to form a crude quasi-crucifix.

Almost all of the Spanish line had now been recovered from Soviet hands apart from a small ruined church near Lubovko which had been taken by a battalion of Soviet troops. Supported by a German artillery unit they soon put the defenders to flight and the fleeing Soviets were mercilessly cut down by the Spaniards as revenge for the earlier Soviet atrocities on Spanish troops.

In 1942 the Blue Division was as part of Army group North subject to a counter attack which was aimed at the right flank of Army Group North and at Lake Ilmen the 290th Division was decimated under the Soviet steamroller. The survivors of which there were 543 were holed up in the village of Vsad which was besieged by a Soviet Ski Battalion. All communication with the defenders had been lost and it was ordered that 5th anti-tank Company commander Captain Ordas take command of the Ski Company of the 250th Division situated on the north west shore of Lake Ilmen. The 206 strong detachment mounted on 70 horse drawn sleighs set off in temperatures that dropped to as low as -56 degrees. Many men succumbed to frostbite - 102 in all by the time they reached Ustrika. Here they contacted Munoz who ordered them forward to Vsad where the Germans were still clinging to survival. Further traveling over the next few days reduced the company strength to 76 men. They finally met Soviet resistance at Shiloy Tschernez whom the Spaniards promptly forced to evacuate. However the Soviets replied with an armoured and ski troop assault which forced the Spanish and Latvian troops (from the 81st Division whom they had linked up on their advance) until a stand was made at Bolshoye Utschno. The combined force managed to hold back the Soviets allowing the wounded to be evacuated. Eventually the mission objective to establish communication with the garrison at Vsvad was achieved but not after heavy losses which reduced their numbers to 34 men. After a further objective was ordered for the Spaniards to join up with the 81st Division and capture three villages left them with only 12 men. All were awarded Spanish military decorations as well as the German Iron Cross.

Further fighting for the 250th Division took place on the east bank of the River Volkhov at the end of March which had seen Soviet forces encircle the German forces situated there. The 250th as part of 18th Army was successful in relieving the encircled garrison at Maloye Samoshie on 12th February. Eventually the Soviets were forced to retreat and a link was made with the 58th Infantry division and 4th SS Polizei Division north of the pocket.

By June the south of the pocket was scene to bitter fighting in which the Soviets had taking a severe beating from the German forces there and by the end of June had been subject to German air attack as well as armoured attack from Tiger tanks from sPzAbt 502. By 25th June most Soviet resistance had ceased and the Spaniards impressive tally was as follows: 5,097 Soviet POWs taken, 46 artillery pieces for their own losses of 274 men. General Lindermann, Commander of 18th Army singled them out for special praise as they had consistently proved their fighting prowess and dogged determination during the previous months.

In late August 1942 the build up to the Blue Division's distinguishing action took place at Krasny Bor. The division had taken up new positions on the Leningrad front from Puskin to Krasny Bor in the east. They established a good relationship with the locals which the Germans had not really managed to do well in that area. The siege of Leningrad was to be brought to a swift end but all changed when the defeat at Stalingrad took place in early 1943. The reinforcements that had been arriving to take the city were rushed southwards and the plans for Leningrad were put on ice. Previous to this in November command of the Division Azul had been passed to General Emilio Esteban who had also served as a corps commander during the Spanish Civil War.

In January the Soviets attempted to break the siege of Leningrad with renewed vigour and it was ordered lines that a detachment from each division of 18th Army be sent to reinforce the German units under Soviet attack. The Division Azul sent the 269th Regiment under the command of Captain Patino. By 22nd January the 2nd Company of the 269th had reached the area of Poselok and almost immediately came under intense Soviet bombardment from the air and ground. They were eventually forced back from their positions but not before they had repulsed two Soviet infantry attacks. 7th and 6th Companies also suffered the similar style attacks and were forced from their positions suffering heavy casualties - from a contingent of 800 men 600 were now casualties. A counter attack was ordered to recapture the lost positions which they achieved despite heavy Soviet opposition and held the line until they were relieved by a German unit.

More losses were sustained by the Spanish when a shell struck their positions and six Spanish officers who were assembled in a hut were injured. This left only one officer - Lieutenant Soriano in 2nd Company 269th Regiment who by nightfall was defending his positions with just 29 men. Due to heavy German attacks on the Soviets the Spaniards were given a respite and were eventually relieved on 28th. They returned to their headquarters in Slutz with only 1 officer, 7 NCOs and 200 men and were duly awarded the Iron Cross.

In February 1943 the Soviets had defeated the 6th Army at Stalingrad and in the Northern sector the Germans were preparing for a Soviet effort to capture the main road and rail link from Leningrad to Moscow. Positionally the Spanish sector near the River Ishora would be the main centre of attention for a Soviet attack and in anticipation of this the German 212th Division would be held in readiness to support the town of Krasny Bor if the need arose. The Spanish faced four Soviet divisions - 43rd, 72nd, 45th and 63rd. Also in support of these units were two armoured regiments, 187 artillery batteries, two mortar battalions, two anti-tank battalions, one motorised brigade and two ski companies. Facing this the Spanish forces had two infantry battalions, one ski company and small artillery, anti-tank and engineer units, a combined total of 5,600 men.

On the opening day of the attack, despite a ferocious artillery assault the Spaniards managed to advance and set up their command post at Raikelevo where General Estaban Infantes directed the battle. This hree hour artillery assault was followed by an infantry and armour attack which broke through the Spanish line and advanced towards Krasny Bor. 3rd Company, who were defending the October Railway station had been decimated and were left with only 40 men and they fought to the last. Their commander Captain Ruiz de Huidrobo who had been offered the chance of leave a few days earlier was killed in the fighting. He was posthumously awarded the Laureate Cross of St Ferdinand.

All around the Spanish were being cut down under massed Soviet assaults but by mid morning a small number of men had managed to break out of the encirclement and retreat towards Krasny Bor. Despite this isolated units had managed to hold out on the Moscow to Leningrad road and at Podolovo repeatedly fighting off Soviet attacks.

In Krasny Bor itself the Artillery, engineer and other assorted stragglers came under attack from Soviet Infantry and armour. Retreating ambulances as well as the hospital there were deliberately shelled by Soviet tanks but these tanks were eventually beaten off by the Spaniards armed with Molotov Cocktails and handgrenades. In the afternoon belated support came in the form of a Luftwaffe fighter-bomber attack which bombed Soviet positions around Kolpino. All around the situation looked grim for the Spaniards. In and around Krasny Bor the small Spanish pockets of resistance were gradually being overrun and it was not until 4.30pm that day that the German 212th Division supported by the new 112th Division which was made up of Latvian and Flemish volunteers, came to support the beleaguered Division Azul.

The Spanish were ordered to deploy along the Ishora River and to prevent an ecirclement of their positions taking place and all Soviet attempts to achieve just this were repulsed. At Kasny Bor the last remnants of the 262nd artillery men and engineers retreated , leaving only the 1st Artillery group who were to retreat later that night.

More Soviet attacks took place early the next morning along the River Ishora near the paper factory and men of 3rd Company, 262nd Regiment and other personnel from various Spanish units drove all attacks back for the next two days. Soviet assaults then abated somewhat and the last major attack came on 19th March which was again beaten back by the Spanish.

At the end of the battle the Spanish losses were extremely heavy - 75%. In total 3,645 men had been wounded or killed and 300 taken prisoner.

The Ishora River sector was eventually relieved tow months later by the German 254th Division but during the preceding time repatriations of veterans from the Division Azul were taking place. Spain had been under increasing pressure from the Allies to withdraw it's support for Hitler and Franco was seeing that the tide was turning for the Germans on the Eastern Front (Ostfront), so the Allies began to place considerable pressure on Franco to recall his fighting force. Negotiations with the German government began in the Spring of 1943, and the order to withdraw was given on October 10th, 1943. A “Blue Legion” compromising 3,000 men was left behind, commanded by Colonel Navarro, and it was attached to 121st infantry Division. This appeased the Germans and those volunteers who did not want to leave, but even this token force was ordered to withdraw in March, 1944.

This prompted the order to decommission the Division Azul and return it's troops back to their homeland. Their General, Estaban-Infantes was awarded the Ritterkruez on 14th October and also received the news that the division was to be withdrawn. Men who had served in the division longest were to be repatriated first and trains left at a rate of two per week for Bavaria loaded with Division Azul veterans. By 29th October the first Division Azul veterans set foot on Spanish soil...some for the first time in two years.

The final casualty figures for the division were 3,334 dead, 8,466 wounded and 326 missing. 321 were taken prisoner by the Soviets and 94 died in captivity. The remaining 230 Spaniards who had been taken prisoner were repatriated from the Soviet Union in 1954.

Because of casualties, and a system of rotation, as many as 45,000 Spaniards fought on the Eastern Front (Ostfront). Of these, 4,500 were killed in action and a 16,000 further were taken prisoner or wounded in action. Those who were wounded were treated on hospitals throughout Germany, which were operated mainly by Spanish Medical Staff of the Deutsches Rotes Kreuz (DRK).

At the same time as the troops were leaving for Spain a call for volunteers to stay behind and form a new "Spanish Legion" were issued and when one considers the hardships these men had suffered a considerable number (about 50 from each company) volunteered for more service with the German Army. The Blue Legion as it was known did gain the approval of Franco but he stated that it was not to exceed 1,500 men which meant again (as was the case with the initial recruitment for the Division Azul) that there was a surplus of volunteers. In fact by the end of December 1943 there were in fact 3000 volunteers fighting for the Germans.

The new Legion was sent to Yambergin Latvia under the command of Colonel Antonio Garcia Navarro and two infantry "Banderas" which was a Spanish term for a unit smaller than a battalion. There was also another Bandera consisting of artillery, panzerjäger, signals, recce and combat engineer troops which contained three companies.

Their first action was against partisans in the local area in the Narwa area and after that was attached to the German 121st Division in Begolovo and Kostovo. Over Christmas they saw action against the Soviets in which they drove back two strong attacks in appalling weather conditions. In January the Legion was ordered to withdraw and saw further action against partisans and by the end of the month the division had retreated as far back as Luga. From here they were transported by train to Estonia in perpetration for defence of the Narwa coastline against Soviet attack but an order was given to disband the legion and return the Spaniards back to their homeland. On 21st March the legion were boarded onto trains and by 17th April they were back on Spanish soil again. This ended Spanish involvement with the Wehrmacht Heer but a considerable number would volunteer for the Waffen SS which was organising a new Spanish unit entitled Spanische-Freiwillegen Kompnie der SS.

When one considers the Spanish Division Azul and it's fighting qualities it is quite remarkable that a country that was a so-called neutral provided a considerable number of troops for the Nazi cause. The reason for the high number of recruits and willing volunteers are many but range from the genuine anti-Bolsheviks, Nationalist Army veterans and adventures. There have been stories told of ex-Republican fighters who wished to join the legion only to surrender themselves at the first opportunity to the Soviets and fight for them but this must have been rare if it ever happened at all.

An assessment of the Spanish Volunteers would cast them in a favorable light, their fierce fighting abilities would place them among the most successful foreign legions who fought for the Third Reich. They proved themselves in battle continuously in one of the most brutal theaters of war in history, the Eastern Front (Ostfront).

Today in Spain the Blue Division is still remembered at the The National Army Museum in Madrid, close to the Prado Museum which has a a room dedicated exclusively to the Division Azul. There are plans apparently to move into the Alcazar at Toledo, where the former Infantry Academy was situated.