Stormtrooper on the Eastern Front: Fighting with Hitler's Latvian SS

by Mintauts Blosfelds, Lisa Blosfelds (Editor)

Overview

Following the conquest of his native Latvia by the Nazis, the author was given the stark choice: service in the SS or forced labor in a slave camp. So he 'volunteered' to fight for the Nazis. He describes his training and how he became an instructor before being sent into Russia. He nearly perished during the terrible winter of 1943-44 being wounded and finding himself with his friend lying dead on top of him. As the tide turned and the Russians advanced remorselessly through. He was wounded twice more and awarded the Iron Cross for bravery.With German resistance collapsing, the author had to flee for his life - capture by the Russians meant almost certain death. He surrendered to the Americans but describes the neglect he suffered at their hands. Unable to return to Latvia now occupied by the Russians, he became a Displaced Person eventually settling in the UK.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781781596517
Publisher:	Pen & Sword Books Limited
Publication date:	01/31/2020
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	224
Sales rank:	956,721
File size:	5 MB

About the Author

Mintauts Blosfelds was born in Latvia in 1924. After his wartime adventures he came to England and worked in the Yorkshire coalmines until he joined International Harvesters. He retired in 1982 and died in 1987. His daughter Lisa who edited his memoirs lives in Doncaster.

Table of Contents

List of Maps vii

Foreword and Acknowledgements viii

Notes on the Pronunciation of Latvian Names ix

Biographical Note x

Introduction 1

Part I Training

Chapter 1 How the German Army Entered Latvia in the Late Summer of 1941 7

Chapter 2 Life under German Occupation, 1941 to 1943 14

Chapter 3 Paplaka Recruit Training Depot, May to July 1943 19

Chapter 4 With the Guards Company in Riga, July to October 1943 25

Chapter 5 Instructor with a Signals Unit, Bolderaja, October 1943 31

Chapter 6 Instructor at Paplaka, November 1943 35

Chapter 7 Chemical Warfare Course, Riga, December 1943 40

Part II The Russian Front

Chapter 8 The Drive to Russia and the Front Line, January 1944 47

Chapter 9 With the 205th Division, January 1944 59

Chapter 10 Return to the 32nd Latvian Regiment and Action near Cholodowo, Early February 1944 65

Chapter 11 The Attack on Panowo, 7 February 1944 72

Part III Recovery

Chapter 12 Hospital and Home Leave, February to June 1944 81

Part IV Return to the Russian Front

Chapter 13 Return to the Front in Russia, July 1944 93

Chapter 14 The Retreat from Russia, 10-15 July 1944 101

Chapter 15 With Battle Group Jeckeln - Fighting in Estonia and Latvia, August to September 1944 121

Part V Retreat from the Russians

Chapter 16 Germany, Recuperation and Return to the Legion, October to December 1944 141

Chapter 17 1945 Diary 148

Part VI Prisoner of War

Chapter 18 Prisoner of War, Summer and Autumn 1945 187