Spanish volunteers in Waffen SS

[Spanish Freiwillige]

Agreed, my first thought was a panzer beret eagle ... it almost looks like a cape eagle.

Ian

not unusual for spanish volunteers to add the insignia they liked to uniforms and headgear, I remeber seeing a Guripa that added a panzer tab skull to his M36 tunic

[Blue Division]

Great photography! very strange to see the Spanish volunteers in the uniform of the SS...
Thanks for showing!

Regards

[Ludwig]

Very nice photo! I have never seen it before.

[Guripa250]

Many thnakds for this information new for me !!!

RS

[Frontalschaden]

Hello

Here are some Infos about spanish volunteers in the Waffen SS, especially in the 28. SS Freiwilligen Grenadier Division Wallonien.

At first I have to say sorry for my bad old rusty school english. I will try to make it understandable for you...

After fetching the Blue Divison home in november 1943, some guys want to serve in the Waffen SS.
Luis Garcia Valdajos and Ricardo Botet (I don`t know if this is the right name notation) were two of this men. They met Degrelle at the end of october 1944 at the Hotel Adlon in Berlin.
At the 1.11.1944 they were integrated into the 28. SS Freiwilligen Grenadier Division Wallonien in the near of Breslau (Silesia). Shortly after that date they moved to a Walloon training camp near Alfeld/Leine (in the south Hannover area). From here Valdajos and Ricardo Botet started a promotion campaign to get new spanish volunteers out of Heeres units, armament industries, and so on.
Out of this volunteers, SS Obersturmführer Valdajos builded a Grenadier coy with himself in command.
Botet was used as a platoon leader and later on, he was sent to a Führeranwärterlehrgang (officers candidate course?) to the SS Panzergrenadierschule Kienschlag (SS mechanised infantry school)
Other platoon leaders in this coy were SS Oberscharführer Lorenzo Oscana and SS Oberscharführer Rafael Lafuente.
At the beginning the coy existed out of 100 men, later on the coy grew up to 250 men.
The coy was used as 3. Kompanie of the I. Bataillon of the SS Freiwilligen Panzergrenadier Regiment 70 (battalion commander SS Obersturmführer Robert Denie).
(3rd coy of the 1st battalion of the SS mechanised infantry regiment 70)
The spaniards had their baptism of fire at Stettin area. In this fightings they were under command of SS Untersturmführer Rudi Bal (a spanish speaking Walloon) in in the absence of Valdajos.
Later on in the Stargard area they were under command of the Walloon SS Untersturmführer Albert Steiver.
In the hard fightings in february 1945, Valdajos came back to his coy. (Don`t know why he was away)
There was a remaining of only 60 men after this hard fightings. During the reorganisation of the walloon divison, the spanish survivors were sent back to the walloon replacement battalion in the south Hannover area.
From there they were moved to Berlin for a regrouping. Valdajos were transferred to the SS Hauptamt and Miguel Ezquerra took over command. (Some sources say, that Ezquerra was a SD leader/officer ?) At this time they were not longer part of the SS Freiwilligen Grenadier Division Wallonien.
After the twilight of the gods in Berlin, Valdajos fled from Berlin to the netherlands, Belgium, France and than to his old barraks in Madrid (spain), where he reported back at 14.12.1945.
He was accused as a deserter, but not arrested. After 2 years of court proceedings, he was acquitted of a charge.


Best regards, Fronti