Last modified: 2006-08-26 by jarig bakker
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The Uniforms, Organization and History of the Foreign Legions of
the Third Reich series published by Roger Bender Publishing (website
here) has plenty of both fascist party flags and foreign units in Wehrmacht
and Waffen-SS service, including even Cossack, Turkestan, and many
more nationalities' flags.
Santiago Dotor, 26 January 2001
However, very few of the flags of the Third Reich's foreign legions
appear in FOTW. The only related flags are those of (para-) nationalsocialist
or fascist parties and/or regimes. For instance, the flag of the Vlaamsch
Nationaal Verbond had nothing to do with the flag of the Flemish
volunteer units in the Wehrmacht and/or Waffen-SS.
Santiago Dotor, 30 January 2001
The answer about an unknown flag sent earlier. Translated, the caption
says:
"Two flags, a common fight" A series of photographs showing the
volunteers from the Asian republics of the USSR. This photograph shows
the flag of the cossacks of Kuban. See photo at this
webpage".
Guido Abate, 27 Nov 2002
I recognise this photo. It is from the Nazi propaganda magazine,
Signal. It does indeed show Cossack troops who fought under German
command. I will try to find the associated article in the magazine
and post more information later.
Devereaux Cannon, 28 Nov 2002
This is quite of a discovery. Up to now I used to think that most, but
not *all* the shoulder patches used by foreign volunteers in the German
armed forces, reflected actual flags. The quarterly-per-saltire designs
of the Don, Kuban etc. cossacks were among those which I thought were *not*
used as flags. It appears, though, that they were indeed. I attach the
flag of the 1st Kuban Cossacks Battalion for our website.
More information about the 1. Kuban-Kosaken-Kavallerie Bataillon, which
ended up as part of the XV SS-Kosaken-Kavallerie-Korps, can be found
here - (including their
horrific end after surrendering to the British who handed them over to
the Soviets), and here.
Santiago Dotor, 28 Nov 2002
In flagReport 17 was published:
"Don Cossaks.- "National" colors are red & blue. In German
magazin "Signal" (December 1943, #24, special issue) there is a
photo with Cossak banner divided into 4 triangles (upper & lower are
red, right & left are blue). Although "Signal" writes that it
is a banner of Kuban Cossaks, it's wrong.."
The flag belongs to the Don Cossacks
The flag black and red is from Kuban Cossacks.
The flag blue (light) and green is from Terek Cossacks
Kuban Cossacks adopted another flag in exile, probably before
WWII (I don't know the exact dates, perhaps c. 1935-1942). In 1942 the
old flag of the short lived State of Kuban was readopted as national flag
(different from national colours in army on German service). Also Don Cossacks
flag of the short lived state was readopted as national flag in 1942 (blue-red
are military national colors) and later confirmed in exile in 1951.
Previousely, in exile (1935) the old flag was slighty modified: the yellow
stripe was in top and blue (light) in center.
Jaume Ollé, 28 Nov 2002
The flag on the photo at this
webpage (referred to above) was red and black in my humble opinion.
Santiago Dotor, 29 Nov 2002
According to Jaume Ollé: 'The flag blue (light) and green is
from Terek Cossacks'. I saw image of J.Olle.
But I know only two sleeve badges of Terek Cossacks: black-blue and
black-green-red. Blue-green badges never existed.
Victor Lomantsov, 29 Nov 2002
The first version (May 1942) of the Turkistan Legion flag showed a white
bow and arrow upon a red over blue field. On the canton a shield with German
army eagle.
Marcello Ravaioli, 20 April 2001
This is described and illustrated in Littlejohn
1987, p. 267. Littlejohn adds that the German (Wehrmacht model)
eagle
was disliked by the Turkistan volunteers, who therefore had a second
colour issued (I seem to recall in 1943) which had the eagle removed.
Santiago Dotor, 28 May 2002
Littlejohn 1987, p. 267, shows a photograph
of the second model colour, and this shows a slightly different bow (more
detailed ends) and arrow (longer and with a sharper point), the flag proportions
are almost exactly 2:3 and it has no fringe.
Santiago Dotor, 28 May 2002