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The 15th Waffen-Grenadierdivision der SS (lett. Nr. 1) was formed in the Waffen SS's drive for manpower in the wake of Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941. After a successful recruitment drive in the Reichskommissariat Ostland (Baltic states) for the Nazi anti-partisan brigades, Heinrich Himmler formed Baltic legions by late August 1942, including the Lettische SS-Freiwilligen-Legion, the nucleus of the later 15th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS. The Division fought on the Pomeranian Wall defences at Podgaje, 2 February 1945.〔Encyclopædia Britannica〕〔Majewski, Ryszard:'' Waffen SS. Mity i rzeczywistość. '', Wrocław : Krajowa Agencja Wydawnicza, 1983, s. 247, ISBN 83-03-00102-7〕〔''Polski czyn zbrojny w II wojnie światowej.'', Warszawa : Wydawnictwo Ministerstwa Obrony Narodowej, 1988, s.531 (tom 3), ISBN 83-11-07038-5〕 The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grades were based on four separate enactments. The first enactment ''Reichsgesetzblatt I S. 1573'' 〔@ALEX Österreichische Nationalbibliothek (Reichsgesetzblatt Teil I S. 1573; 1 September 1939 )〕 of September 1, 1939 instituted the Iron Cross and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. As the war progressed some of the recipients distinguished themselves further and a higher grade, the Oak Leaves to Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was instituted. The Oak Leaves, as they were commonly referred to, were based on the enactment ''Reichsgesetzblatt I S. 849'' 〔@ALEX Österreichische Nationalbibliothek (Reichsgesetzblatt Teil I S. 849; 3 June 1940 )〕 of June 3, 1940. In 1941 two higher grades of the Knight's Cross were instituted. The enactment ''Reichsgesetzblatt I S. 613'' 〔@ALEX Österreichische Nationalbibliothek (Reichsgesetzblatt Teil I S. 613; 28 September 1941 )〕 of September 28, 1941 introduced the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. At the end of 1944 the last and final grade, the Knight's Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds, based on the enactment ''Reichsgesetzblatt 1945 I S. 11'' 〔@ALEX Österreichische Nationalbibliothek (Reichsgesetzblatt 1945 I S. 11; 29 December 1944 )〕 of December 29, 1944 concluded the variants of the Knight's Cross. ==Prerequisites== To qualify for the Knight's Cross, a soldier had to already hold the 1939 Iron Cross First Class, though the Iron Cross I Class was awarded concurrently with the Knight's Cross in rare cases. Unit commanders could also be awarded the medal for exemplary conduct by the unit as a whole. 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「List of Knight's Cross recipients 15th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Latvian)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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