Slovak Expeditionary Army Group: Difference between revisions

Slovak Expeditionary Army Group
Slovak Expeditionary Army Group
Slovenská Armádna Skupina
Active	September 1941 – June 1944
Country	Slovakia
Branch	Slovak Army
Size	45,000
Engagements	World War II Eastern Front Battle of Uman; Battle of Lypovec; Battle of Rostov (1941); Operation Bamberg; Battle of the Caucasus; Battle of the Dnieper; Melitopol Offensive; ;

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The Slovak Expeditionary Army Group was an element of the military forces of the Slovak Republic that fought under Nazi German command on the Eastern Front during World War II.

Background

The Slovak Republic was a puppet state established on 14 March 1939. It possessed a small army of its own, largely made up of parts inherited from the old Czechoslovak Army. The 1st Slovak Infantry Division took part in the German invasion of Poland in September 1939. In the aftermath of the German invasion of France, the German government consolidated its control of the Slovak regime.^[1] On 21 June 1941, the Slovak government not informed about the invasion of Russia and offered to participate in the German invasion of the Soviet Union. Germany accepted the following day.^[2] The Slovak Army was called up, as the regime sought to demonstrate its indispensability to Nazi Germany and its greater loyalty than Hungary.

History

The Slovak Expeditionary Army Group of about 45,000 men entered the Soviet Union shortly after the German attack. This army lacked logistic and transportation support, so a much smaller unit, the Slovak Mobile Command under command of Rudolf Pilfousek (a.k.a. the Pilfousek Brigade), was formed from units selected from this force; the rest of the Slovak army was relegated to rear-area security duty. The Slovak Mobile Command was attached to the German 17th Army (as was the Hungarian Carpathian Group also) and shortly thereafter given over to direct German command, the Slovaks lacking the command infrastructure to exercise effective operational control. This unit fought with the 17th Army through July 1941, including at the Battle of Uman and the Battle of Lypovec.

At the beginning of August 1941, the Slovak Mobile Command was dissolved and instead two infantry divisions were formed from the Slovak Expeditionary Army Group. The Slovak 2nd Division was a security division, but the Slovak 1st Division was a front-line unit which fought in the campaigns of 1941 and 1942, reaching the Caucasus area with Army Group B. The Slovak 1st Division then shared the fate of the German southern forces, losing its heavy equipment in the Kuban bridgehead and suffering heavy losses at Melitopol in the southern Ukraine.

Slovak troops took part in Operation Bamberg, an anti-partisan action in which 5,000 alleged partisans, including 200 Jews, were shot.^[3] Slovak soldiers participated in numerous pogroms and frequently robbed Jews during the first days and weeks of the occupation in the summer of 1941. However, there was no equivalent of the Barbarossa decree (which authorized Wehrmacht soldiers to execute civilians without trial) and some Slovak soldiers were tried for robbing or murdering Jews, receiving only very light sentences. Many Slovak soldiers and the army leadership nevertheless approved of the anti-Semitic actions, due in part to the large amount of propaganda promoting the Jewish Bolshevik canard.^[4]

In June 1944, the remnant of the division, no longer considered fit for combat due to low morale, was disarmed and the personnel assigned to construction and logistical work, a fate which had already befallen the Slovak 2nd Division earlier for the same reason.

Commanders of the 1st Mobile Infantry Division

Augustín Malár (September 1941 – September 1942)
Jozef Turanec (September 1942 – January 1943)
Stefan Jurech (January 1943 – September 1943)^[5]
Elmir Lendvay (September 1943 – June 1944)^[6]

References

^ Rychlík 2018, pp. 121–2.
^ Rychlík 2018, p. 122.
^ Hutzelmann, Barbara (2018). "Einführung: Slowakei" [Introduction: Slovakia]. In Hutzelmann, Barbara; Hausleitner, Mariana; Hazan, Souzana (eds.). Slowakei, Rumänien und Bulgarien [Slovakia, Romania, and Bulgaria]. Die Verfolgung und Ermordung der europäischen Juden durch das nationalsozialistische Deutschland 1933-1945 [de] [The Persecution and Murder of European Jews by Nazi Germany 1933-1945] (in German). Vol. 13. Munich: Institut für Zeitgeschichte. p. 39. ISBN 978-3-11-036500-9.
^ Baka, Igor (2017). "Slovenská armáda a protižidovské pogromy na okupovanom území ZSSR v lete 1941" [The Slovak army and anti-Jewish pogroms in the occupied part of the USSR in 1941] (PDF). Historický časopis (in Slovak). 65 (4): 689–708. doi:10.31577/histcaso.2017.65.4.6. S2CID 199227689.
^ Slovak heritage
^ Feldgrau WW2 Slovakian Axis Forces

Bibliography

Rychlík, Jan (2018). "Slovakia". In Stahel, David (ed.). Joining Hitler's Crusade: European Nations and the Invasion of the Soviet Union, 1941. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 107–33. ISBN 978-1-316-51034-6.

External links

Slovakian Axis Forces in WWII

[FOOTNOTERychlík2018121–2-1] Rychlík 2018, pp. 121–2.

[FOOTNOTERychlík2018122-2] Rychlík 2018, p. 122.

[3] Hutzelmann, Barbara (2018). "Einführung: Slowakei" [Introduction: Slovakia]. In Hutzelmann, Barbara; Hausleitner, Mariana; Hazan, Souzana (eds.). Slowakei, Rumänien und Bulgarien [Slovakia, Romania, and Bulgaria]. Die Verfolgung und Ermordung der europäischen Juden durch das nationalsozialistische Deutschland 1933-1945 [de] [The Persecution and Murder of European Jews by Nazi Germany 1933-1945] (in German). Vol. 13. Munich: Institut für Zeitgeschichte. p. 39. ISBN 978-3-11-036500-9.

[4] Baka, Igor (2017). "Slovenská armáda a protižidovské pogromy na okupovanom území ZSSR v lete 1941" [The Slovak army and anti-Jewish pogroms in the occupied part of the USSR in 1941] (PDF). Historický časopis (in Slovak). 65 (4): 689–708. doi:10.31577/histcaso.2017.65.4.6. S2CID 199227689.

[5] Slovak heritage

[6] Feldgrau WW2 Slovakian Axis Forces

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{refimprove|date=June 2018}}
+{{more citations needed|date=June 2018}}
+{{Infobox military unit
-[[File:Slovak soldiers on the Eastern Front.png|thumb|Members of the Slovak Expeditionary Army pictured in a propaganda photograph in October 1941]]
+| unit_name                     = Slovak Expeditionary Army Group
+| native_name                   = Slovenská Armádna Skupina
+| image                         =
+| image_size                    =
+| alt                           =
+| caption                       =
+| dates                         = September 1941 – June 1944
+| country                       = {{flagcountry|Slovak Republic (1939–1945)}}
+| branch                        = {{flagdeco|Slovak Republic (1939–1945)|war}} [[Ground Forces of the Slovak Republic|Slovak Army]]
+| size                          = 45,000
+| battles                       = [[World War II]]
+* [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front]]
+** [[Battle of Uman]]
+** [[Battle of Lypovec]]
+** [[Battle of Rostov (1941)]]
+** [[Operation Bamberg]]
+** [[Battle of the Caucasus]]
+** [[Battle of the Dnieper]]
+** [[Melitopol Offensive]]
+<!-- Commanders -->| commander1                    =
+| commander1_label              =
+| commander2                    =
+| commander2_label              =
+| commander3                    =
+| commander3_label              =
+| commander4                    =
+| commander4_label              =
+}}
 The '''Slovak Expeditionary Army Group''' was an element of the military forces of the [[Slovak Republic (1939–1945)|Slovak Republic]] that fought under Nazi German command on the [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front]] during [[World War II]].
 ==Background ==
-The [[Slovak Republic (1939–1945)|Slovak Republic]] was a [[puppet state]] created after the [[German invasion of Czechoslovakia]]. It possessed a small army]of its own, largely made up of parts inherited from the old [[Czechoslovak Army]]. As a result of German pressure, the 1st Slovak Infantry Division took part in the [[Invasion of Poland (1939)|German invasion of Poland]] in September 1939. In the aftermath of the [[Battle of France|German invasion of France]], the German government consolidated its control of the Slovak regime.{{Sfn|Rychlík|2018|pp=121-2}} On 21 June 1941, the Slovak government was informed that it was expected to provide a contingent to participate in the [[Operation Barbarossa|German invasion of the Soviet Union]]. It accepted the following day, being the first day of the German offensive.{{Sfn|Rychlík|2018|p=122}} The Slovak Army was called up, as the regime sought to demonstrate its indispensability to Nazi Germany and its greater loyalty than [[Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946)|Hungary]].
+The [[Slovak Republic (1939–1945)|Slovak Republic]] was a [[puppet state]] established on 14 March 1939. It possessed a small army of its own, largely made up of parts inherited from the old [[Czechoslovak Army]]. The 1st Slovak Infantry Division took part in the [[Invasion of Poland (1939)|German invasion of Poland]] in September 1939. In the aftermath of the [[Battle of France|German invasion of France]], the German government consolidated its control of the Slovak regime.{{Sfn|Rychlík|2018|pp=121-2}} On 21 June 1941, the Slovak government not informed about the invasion of Russia and offered to participate in the [[Operation Barbarossa|German invasion of the Soviet Union]]. Germany accepted the following day.{{Sfn|Rychlík|2018|p=122}} The Slovak Army was called up, as the regime sought to demonstrate its indispensability to Nazi Germany and its greater loyalty than [[Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946)|Hungary]].
 ==History ==
-The Slovak Expeditionary Army Group of about 45,000 men entered the Soviet Union shortly after the [[Operation Barbarossa|German attack]]. This army lacked logistic and transportation support, so a much smaller unit, the ''Slovak Mobile Command'' under command of [[Rudolf Pilfousek]] (a.k.a the ''Pilfousek Brigade''), was formed from units selected from this force; the rest of the Slovak army was relegated to rear-area security duty. The Slovak Mobile Command was attached to the [[17th Army (Wehrmacht)|German 17th Army]] (as was the Hungarian [[Gyorshadtest|Carpathian Group]] also) and shortly thereafter given over to direct German command, the Slovaks lacking the command infrastructure to exercise effective operational control. This unit fought with the 17th Army through July 1941, including at the [[Battle of Uman]] and the [[Battle of Lypovec]].
+The Slovak Expeditionary Army Group of about 45,000 men entered the Soviet Union shortly after the [[Operation Barbarossa|German attack]]. This army lacked logistic and transportation support, so a much smaller unit, the ''Slovak Mobile Command'' under command of [[Rudolf Pilfousek]] (a.k.a. the ''Pilfousek Brigade''), was formed from units selected from this force; the rest of the Slovak army was relegated to rear-area security duty. The Slovak Mobile Command was attached to the [[17th Army (Wehrmacht)|German 17th Army]] (as was the Hungarian [[Gyorshadtest|Carpathian Group]] also) and shortly thereafter given over to direct German command, the Slovaks lacking the command infrastructure to exercise effective operational control. This unit fought with the 17th Army through July 1941, including at the [[Battle of Uman]] and the [[Battle of Lypovec]].
-At the beginning of August 1941, the Slovak Mobile Command was dissolved and instead two infantry divisions were formed from the Slovak Expeditionary Army Group. The Slovak 2nd Division was a [[Security Division (Wehrmacht)|security division]], but the [[1st Mobile Infantry Division (Slovak Republic)|Slovak 1st Division]] was a front-line unit which fought in the campaigns of 1941 and 1942, reaching the [[Battle of the Caucasus|Caucasus area]] with [[Army Group B]]. The Slovak 1st Division then shared the fate of the German southern forces, losing its heavy equipment in the [[Kuban bridgehead]] and suffering heavy losses at [[Melitopol]] in the southern Ukraine.<br>
+At the beginning of August 1941, the Slovak Mobile Command was dissolved and instead two infantry divisions were formed from the Slovak Expeditionary Army Group. The Slovak 2nd Division was a [[Security Division (Wehrmacht)|security division]], but the [[1st Mobile Infantry Division (Slovak Republic)|Slovak 1st Division]] was a front-line unit which fought in the campaigns of 1941 and 1942, reaching the [[Battle of the Caucasus|Caucasus area]] with [[Army Group B]]. The Slovak 1st Division then shared the fate of the German southern forces, losing its heavy equipment in the [[Kuban bridgehead]] and suffering heavy losses at [[Melitopol Offensive|Melitopol]] in the southern Ukraine.
-In June 1944, the remnant of the division, no longer considered fit for combat due to low morale, was disarmed and the personnel assigned to construction and [[Military logistics|logistical]] work, a fate which had already befallen the Slovak 2nd Division earlier for the same reason.
-Slovak troops took part in [[Operation Bamberg]], an [[Bandenbekämpfung|anti-partisan]] action in which 5,000 alleged partisans, including 200 Jews, were shot.<ref>{{cite book | |last1=Hutzelmann |first1=Barbara ||editor1-last=Hutzelmann |editor1-first=Barbara|editor2-last=Hausleitner |editor2-first=Mariana |editor3-last=Hazan  |editor3-first=Souzana|title=Slowakei, Rumänien und Bulgarien|trans-title=Slovakia, Romania, and Bulgaria |date=2018 |publisher=[[Institut für Zeitgeschichte]] |location=Munich |isbn=978-3-11-036500-9 |language=de| series={{ill|Die Verfolgung und Ermordung der europäischen Juden durch das nationalsozialistische Deutschland 1933-1945|de}} [The Persecution and Murder of European Jews by Nazi Germany 1933-1945]|volume=13 |chapter=Einführung: Slowakei |trans-chapter=Introduction: Slovakia|ref=harv|p=39}}</ref> Slovak soldiers participated in numerous pogroms and frequently robbed Jews during the first days and weeks of the occupation in the summer of 1941. However, there was no equivalent of the [[Barbarossa decree]] (which authorized Wehrmacht soldiers to execute civilians without trial) and some Slovak soldiers were tried for robbing or murdering Jews, receiving only very light sentences. Many Slovak soldiers and the army leadership nevertheless approved of the Holocaust, due in part to the large amount of propaganda promoting the [[Jewish Bolshevik]] canard.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Baka|first= Igor|title=Slovenská armáda a protižidovské pogromy na okupovanom území ZSSR v lete 1941|trans-title= The Slovak army and anti-Jewish pogroms in the occupied part of the USSR in 1941|journal= Historický časopis|date=2017|volume=65|issue= 4| pp= 689-708|language=sk|url=http://www.historickycasopis.sk/pdf/historickycasopis42017/baka-slovenska-armada-a-protizidovske-pogromy-na-okupovanom-uzemi-zssr-v-lete-1941.pdf}}</ref>
+Slovak troops took part in [[Operation Bamberg]], an [[Bandenbekämpfung|anti-partisan]] action in which 5,000 alleged partisans, including 200 Jews, were shot.<ref>{{cite book  |last1=Hutzelmann |first1=Barbara |editor1-last=Hutzelmann |editor1-first=Barbara|editor2-last=Hausleitner |editor2-first=Mariana |editor3-last=Hazan  |editor3-first=Souzana|title=Slowakei, Rumänien und Bulgarien|trans-title=Slovakia, Romania, and Bulgaria |date=2018 |publisher=[[Institut für Zeitgeschichte]] |location=Munich |isbn=978-3-11-036500-9 |language=de| series={{ill|Die Verfolgung und Ermordung der europäischen Juden durch das nationalsozialistische Deutschland 1933-1945|de}} [The Persecution and Murder of European Jews by Nazi Germany 1933-1945]|volume=13 |chapter=Einführung: Slowakei |trans-chapter=Introduction: Slovakia|page=39}}</ref> Slovak soldiers participated in numerous pogroms and frequently robbed Jews during the first days and weeks of the occupation in the summer of 1941. However, there was no equivalent of the [[Barbarossa decree]] (which authorized Wehrmacht soldiers to execute civilians without trial) and some Slovak soldiers were tried for robbing or murdering Jews, receiving only very light sentences. Many Slovak soldiers and the army leadership nevertheless approved of the anti-Semitic actions, due in part to the large amount of propaganda promoting the [[Jewish Bolshevik]] [[Antisemitic canard|canard]].<ref>{{cite journal|last=Baka|first= Igor|title=Slovenská armáda a protižidovské pogromy na okupovanom území ZSSR v lete 1941|trans-title= The Slovak army and anti-Jewish pogroms in the occupied part of the USSR in 1941|journal= Historický časopis|date=2017|volume=65|issue= 4| pages= 689–708|doi= 10.31577/histcaso.2017.65.4.6|s2cid= 199227689|language=sk|url=http://www.historickycasopis.sk/pdf/historickycasopis42017/baka-slovenska-armada-a-protizidovske-pogromy-na-okupovanom-uzemi-zssr-v-lete-1941.pdf}}</ref>
+In June 1944, the remnant of the division, no longer considered fit for combat due to low morale, was disarmed and the personnel assigned to construction and [[Military logistics|logistical]] work, a fate which had already befallen the Slovak 2nd Division earlier for the same reason.
 == Commanders of the 1st Mobile Infantry Division==
-*[[Augustín Malár]] (September 1941 - September 1942)
+*[[Augustín Malár]] (September 1941 – September 1942)
-*[[Jozef Turanec]] (September 1942 - January 1943)
+*[[Jozef Turanec]] (September 1942 – January 1943)
-*[[Stefan Jurech]] (January 1943 - September 1943)<ref>[http://www.slovakheritage.org/People/jurech.htm Slovak heritage]</ref>
+*[[Stefan Jurech]] (January 1943 – September 1943)<ref>[http://www.slovakheritage.org/People/jurech.htm Slovak heritage]</ref>
-*[[Elmir Lendvay]] (September 1943 - June 1944)<ref>[https://www.feldgrau.com/WW2-Slovakian-Axis-Forces Feldgrau WW2 Slovakian Axis Forces]</ref>
+*[[Elmir Lendvay]] (September 1943 – June 1944)<ref>[https://www.feldgrau.com/WW2-Slovakian-Axis-Forces Feldgrau WW2 Slovakian Axis Forces]</ref>
 ==References ==
@@ Line 24: / Line 54: @@
 ===Bibliography===
-*{{cite book|ref=harv|first=Jan |last=Rychlík|editor1-last=Stahel|editor1-first=David|title=Joining Hitler's Crusade: European Nations and the Invasion of the Soviet Union, 1941|date=2018|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge|isbn=978-1-316-51034-6|pages=107-33|chapter=Slovakia}}
+*{{cite book|first=Jan |last=Rychlík|editor1-last=Stahel|editor1-first=David|title=Joining Hitler's Crusade: European Nations and the Invasion of the Soviet Union, 1941|date=2018|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge|isbn=978-1-316-51034-6|pages=107–33|chapter=Slovakia}}
 ==Further reading==
 *{{cite book |last1=Müller |first1=Rolf-Dieter |title=The Unknown Eastern Front: The Wehrmacht and Hitler's Foreign Soldiers |date=2012 |publisher=I.B.Tauris |location=London |isbn=9781780768908}}
+==External links==
+* [https://www.feldgrau.com/ww2-slovakian-axis-forces/ Slovakian Axis Forces in WWII]
+{{Collaboration with Axis Powers}}
 [[Category:Operation Barbarossa]]
 [[Category:Military history of Slovakia during World War II]]
 [[Category:Infantry divisions of World War II]]
-[[Category:Foreign volunteer units of Nazi Germany]]
+[[Category:Non-German units of the Wehrmacht]]
 [[Category:Military units and formations of the Soviet–German War]]
 [[Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1944]]