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20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian) ((ドイツ語:20.Waffen-Grenadier-Division der SS (estnische Nr.1)), (エストニア語:20. eesti diviis)〔Saksa okupatsioon (1941–44). Eesti. Üld. Eesti entsüklopeedia 11 (2002). pp. 312–315〕) was a unit of the ''Waffen SS'' established on 25 May 1944 in German-occupied Estonia during World War II. Formed in Spring 1944 after the general conscription-mobilization was announced in Estonia on 31 January 1944 by the German occupying authorities, the cadre of the 3rd Estonian SS Volunteer Brigade, renamed the 20th Estonian SS Volunteer Division on 23 January 1944, was returned to Estonia and reformed. Additionally 38,000 men were conscripted in Estonia and other Estonian units that had fought on various fronts in the German Army, and the Finnish Infantry Regiment 200 were rushed to Estonia. Estonian officers and men in other units that fell under the conscription proclamation and had returned to Estonia had their rank prefix changed from "SS" to "Waffen" (''Hauptscharführer'' would be referred to as a ''Waffen-Hauptscharführer'' rather than ''SS-Hauptscharführer''). The wearing of SS runes on the collar was forbidden, and these formations began wearing national insignia instead. The Division fought the Red Army on the Eastern Front and surrendered in May 1945. ==Historical context== On 16 June 1940, the Soviet Union had invaded Estonia.〔(Five Years of Dates ) at Time magazine on Monday, 24 Jun. 1940〕 The military occupation was complete by 21 June 1940 and rendered "official" by a communist coup d'état supported by Soviet troops and the Nazi government under the 23 August 1939 agreement signed in Moscow between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union as a Treaty of Non-Aggression. A secret protocol of the pact defined domains of influence, with the Soviet Union gaining eastern Poland, Finland, Latvia, Estonia and the Romanian province of Bessarabia. Germany was to control western Poland and Lithuania.〔Estonia: Identity and Independence by Jean-Jacques Subrenat, David Cousins, Alexander Harding, Richard C. Waterhouse ISBN 90-420-0890-3〕 After Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, the Germans were perceived by most Estonians as liberators from the USSR and its repression, and hopes were raised for the restoration of the country's independence. The initial enthusiasm that accompanied the liberation from Soviet occupation quickly waned as Estonia became a part of the German-occupied "Reichskommissariat Ostland". By January 1944, the front was pushed back by the Red Army almost all the way to the former Estonian border. On 31 January 1944 general conscription-mobilization was announced in Estonia by the German authorities.〔(mobilisation in Estonia ) at estonica.org〕 On 7 February Jüri Uluots, the last constitutional prime minister of the republic of Estonia,〔(Jüri Uluots ) at president.ee〕 supported the mobilization call during a radio address in the hope of restoring the Estonian Army and the country's independence. 38,000 men were conscripted, the formation of the 20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian) had begun.〔Jurado, p 13〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「20th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Estonian)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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