During WWII the German Wehrmacht
created units of "B" - Class soldiers. These units were officially classed as
Bew?hrungs units and employed the use of troops who had been classed as
militarily "dishonourable". The z.b.V. (zur besonderen Verwendung)
designation translates to "for special
purposes".
Infantry Battalion 561zbV (later
Grenadier Battalion 561zbV) was one of a number of these front-line units
composed of troops who had to "regain their honour" - at least in the eyes of
the German Wehrmacht. It's members had caused minor discipline infractions -
such as listening to the BBC broadcasts, falling asleep on watch and other
misdemeanours. Most of these personnel served time in the infamous military
prison - Fort Zinna - Torgau.
At the prison they were assessed as to
whether they were classed as "fit" to return to active military duty in the 500
series bew?hrungs units, and if fit, were sent to these units to redeem their
honour. The intention was that once they had redeemed themselves, they would be
returned to their original unit or another standard unit similar to one they had
originally come from.
My Grandfather served in such a unit
(561 zbV), though his sentencing to prison and subsequent posting to 561 is bit
of a mystery. From the information I've been able to gather, it is understood
that he was wrongly imprisoned for theft - a matter which was dealt with in the
civilian courts. As a result my Grandfather served 3 years in Torgau before
being posted to Infantry Battalion 561, as part of the anti-tank company. The
unit, by this time, was involved in bitter fighting with the advancing Russian
troops on the Eastern Front, finally ending up in the Kurland pocket, along with
other units - cut off from the diminishing borders of Germany.
After 12 years of re-enacting/living
history I thought it was time that these little known infantry units were
portrayed. After co-creating SS Fallschirmjäger 500/600 (UK) and beginning the
path to portraying bewährungs troops, it seems only fitting that I honour my
Grandfather and similar men who served in these units.
Historical Documents
I've included documents and links which may be useful for research and information on these units - please see the documents and links sections. The rest of the site will be a "work in progress"....................
Should you wish to portray a soldier from the ranks of these little known units, please feel free to contact me on the link provided.
Kurland Pocket 1944
For further details on recruitment or any other queries
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