The Galician Division 1943-45: Ukrainian Volunteers and Conscripts in the Waffen SS

In this new history of the ‘Galicia’ Division, David McCormack debunks many of the myths that have resulted in enduring controversies involving the public, the media, academics, and politicians. Were the volunteers and conscripts of this Ukrainian Waffen-SS formation heroes or villains? Or were they just ordinary soldiers?

Format: Hardback
Length: 208 pages
Publication date: 26 May 2022
Publisher: Fonthill Media Ltd

In this absorbing new history of the ‘Galicia’ Division, David McCormack debunks many of the myths that have resulted in enduring controversies amongst the public, the mainstream media, academics, and politicians. ‘The Galicia Division 1943-45 : Just Ordinary Soldiers?’ provides an objective appraisal of the Ukrainian volunteers and conscripts that have been described as both heroes and villains in equal measure. What were the circumstances that led thousands of Ukrainians to volunteer to fight in Hitler’s crusade against Bolshevism in 1943? Why did coercion replace incentivisation as a means of recruitment in 1944? Why was a decision made by the British authorities to ignore Stalin’s demands for the repatriation of the division in 1945? Did the long established German military doctrine of ‘absolute destruction’ provide the foundations for accusations of war crimes against the division? How can the recent fetishisation of the division by Ukrainian nationalists be explained?

Weight: 458g
Dimension: 234 x 156 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781781558720