Английская Википедия:256th Lithuanian Police Battalion
256th Lithuanian Police Battalion (Шаблон:Lang-lt) was a Lithuanian auxiliary police battalion formed in August 1943. Initially, it was named the 10th Lithuanian Police Battalion, but it soon was renumbered as the 256th. It continued to fight until the Capitulation of Germany.
Formation
On 24 March 1943, the battalion started being formed in the Žaliakalnis' barracks in Kaunas, which used to house the 1st Hussar Regiment.Шаблон:Sfn[1] The Chief of Ordnungspolizei in Lithuania ordered that the newly formed battalion should be formed from policemen of the Schuma and public police suitable for SS service.Шаблон:Sfn It was foreseen that the battalion would consist of 715 officers and men, all of which were to be sent from the public police and auxiliary police battalions.Шаблон:Sfn So, about two hundred soldiers and fifteen officers were transferred from other Lithuanian auxiliary police battalions to the 10th Battalion, as well as five hundred policemen of the Public Police from Vilnius, Kaunas, Šiauliai, Panevėžys, Mažeikiai, Marijampolė, Utena and other district towns.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
| Bn. No. | No. of officers | No. of soldiers |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | 3Шаблон:Efn | 54 |
| 6th | 3 | - |
| 9th | 6Шаблон:Efn | 69 |
| 14th | 3Шаблон:Efn | 86 |
Organisation
By the order on 27 February 1942 of the chief of the Ostland Ordungspolizei, in a company of an auxiliary police battalion, there should be 140 men and there should be 40 men in the battalion's staff.Шаблон:Sfn Structure of the 10th Police Battalion was:Шаблон:Sfn
- HQ Staff
- 1st Company
- 2nd Company
- 3rd Company
- 4th Company
Weaponry
The Schuma Battalion is supposed to have been armed with Russian weaponry.Шаблон:Sfn
History
On 29 March 1943, after solemnly marching in Kaunas through the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Freedom Monument on Donelaitis Street, the battalion's soldiers were seated in trains at Šančiai and left for the Eastern Front.[1]
In Pskov Oblast
In April, the 10th Battalion was in Novgorod Oblast near Lake Ilmen, where it fortified its positions next to the Volkhov river, which were previously occupied by the Spanish Blue Division.[1]Шаблон:Sfn Next to the Lithuanian Battalion, there was a Latvian Police Battalion. Both units were subordinated to the 4. SS-Polizei-Panzergrenadier-Division.[1] The Battalion sometimes fought with leading units of the Red Army and raided the enemy's positions.Шаблон:Sfn
| Rank | Name | Birth date | Death date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pvt. | Antanas Vaikutis | 1909 | 1943 04 16 | |
| 2nd Lt. | Gediminas Kazys Skardinskas (Skardys) | 1916 | 1943 05 23 | |
| Pvt. | Domas Požėla | 1915 | 1943 06 06 | Killed by a mine fragment;[2]
buried in the Yuriev Monastery's cemetery |
| Pvt. | Bronius Tvaskus | 1920 | 1943 08 28 | |
| Pvt. | Vytautas Alilionis | 1922 | 1943 09 04 |
The Battalion's first wounded were jaunesnysis puskarininkis J. Mockus and grandinis I. Zelenkovas, both of whom were awarded the Wound Badge.Шаблон:Sfn
On 13 August 1943, the 10th Battalion was renumbered to 256th Lithuanian Police Battalion.Шаблон:Sfn On December 1, after Lithuanian opposition to the SS Legion's formation, the three Lithuanian Police battalions under SS control (5th, 10th and 13th) were transferred to the Wehrmacht.[1]Шаблон:Sfn
In February 1944, when the Soviet Army launched a successful offensive in the region of the Ilmen river, the 256th Battalion retreated to Ostrov in Pskov Oblast, being continuously engaged in defensive battles against the Red Army and the Soviet partisans.[1] During these battles, far more soldiers were killed or wounded.[1] In March, the Battalion was moved from Ostrov to the Aukštoji Panemunė barracks of Kaunas for refitting and strengthening with new soldiers.[1]
In May, the 256th Battalion was transported by train to Opochka, where it guarded the bridges and railway between Opochka and Krasnogorodsk.Шаблон:Sfn During the summer of 1944, the unit partook in a large anti-partisan operation, but the Lithuanians did not engage in fighting with partisans as they stood in a barrier at the edge of the forest.Шаблон:Sfn Unfortunately, Pvt. Zubavičius stepped on a mine and was killed while several other were wounded.Шаблон:Sfn
In the Courland Pocket
In September, the Battalions soldiers retreated by foot towards the Baltic Sea.Шаблон:Sfn The soldiers destination was Ziemupe town, in between Liepāja and Pāvilosta, where it arrived in October.[1]Шаблон:Sfn Here the soldiers guarded the Baltic Sea coast against Soviet landings.[1]
On 13 October 1944, the Red Army occupied Riga and from October 15, the fight for Courland was on.Шаблон:Sfn In Army Group Courland, there was in total three Lithuanian Schuma Battalions - the 5th, 13th and 256th.[1] The 256th Battalion was assigned to the XXVIII Army Corps of the 18th, later 16th Army.[3]
On 14 March 1945, the Battalion was ordered to march to the town of Шаблон:Interlanguage link, the HQ of the Army Group Courland.Шаблон:Sfn From here it was ordered to occupy a strip in the front line along the Bārta river, where it remained until German capitulation.Шаблон:Sfn In the last two months of the war, the battalion fought with attacking Soviet troops.Шаблон:Sfn
After Capitulation
On 8 May 1945, most of the 256th Battalion, like the 5th and 13th Battalions, were taken prisoner of war (POW) and were sent to POW camps or filtration camps, where they were interrogated by the NKVD and later tried by war tribunals.Шаблон:Sfn Most of the soldiers refused to surrender and attempted to escape to Lithuania and join the Lithuanian partisans or to be interned in Sweden.[1]
Continuing the fight against Bolshevism
Among those attempting to escape to Lithuania were Major Jonas Semaška, Captain Pranas Mikelskas, Captain Stepas Januševičius and others.Шаблон:Sfn
Escape to Sweden
On 10 May 1945, a group of sixteen men attempted to swim to Gotland from Pāvilosta by a motorboat, where they were interned.Шаблон:Sfn Among the group, there were ten Lithuanians:Шаблон:Sfn
- Major Pranas Ambraziūnas,
- Captain Valdemaras Langys (Langė),
- Lieutenant Vincas Lengvelis,
- Lieutenant Justinas Plevokas,
- Lieutenant Jonas Jančys,
- Lieutenant Soteras Vosylius,
- Battalion's doctor Vincas Zenkevičius,
- Viršila Stasys Dranseika,
- Non-commissioned officer Vacys Ingelevičius,
- Private Pranas Plaškys.
On 25 January 1946, the Swedish extradited the Baltic soldiers, and all of the interned Lithuanians were given over to USSR, except for Pranas Plaškys, who was released prior to the extradition because he was underage.Шаблон:Sfn All of them were repressed and sent to Gulag.[1]Шаблон:Sfn Even now, some of their fates are unknown.Шаблон:Sfn
Commanders
From the formation to March 1945, the commander of the battalion was Capt. Jonas Matulis, transferred from the 14th Lithuanian Police BattalionШаблон:Sfn
In March 1945, Major Pranas Ambraziūnas was named commander of the 256th Schuma Battalion after the 5th Lithuanian Police Battalion which he previously commanded was disbanded.Шаблон:Sfn According to the interrogation protocol of Pranas Ambraziūnas on 30 October 1950, he was awarded the rank of major and 2nd Class of the Iron Cross for his long service in the German Army and good organization of the battalion's retreat.
It is known that at different times, the Battalion's companies were led by:Шаблон:Sfn
- Lieutenant Albinas Molis (1st Company)
- First lieutenant (Шаблон:Lang-lt) Justas Plevokas (3rd Company)
- Lieutenant Soteras Vosylius
- Captain Voldemaras Langys (Langė?)
- Captain Vladas Puodžiūnas
- Captain B. Armonas
- Lieutenant Vincas Lengvelis
Curiosities
In 1943, Cpl. (Шаблон:Lang-lt) Bronius Žymantas made a wooden scale model of Yuriev monastery.[1] When the same soldier was in Gulag, his talent was noticed by the chief, so Bronius Žymantas was exempted from heavy labour and instead made beautiful wooden furniture for those of the NKVD and their wives.[1] On 19 April 1946, Bronius Žymantas was released from the Gulag after nearly a year when he was captured.[1]
Notes
References
Sources
- Arūnas Bubnys. Lietuvių policijos batalionai Pskovo srityje ir Kurše: 13-asis ir 10(256)-asis batalionai (1942–1945)
- Robertas Čerškus. Bronius Žymantas – karys ir menininkas
- 10-asis savisaugos batalionas
- Шаблон:Cite book
Шаблон:Lithuanian Military Units in German Service 1941-1945
- Английская Википедия
- Lithuanian Schutzmannschaft Battalions
- Military units and formations established in 1943
- Military units and formations disestablished in 1945
- Страницы, где используется шаблон "Навигационная таблица/Телепорт"
- Страницы с телепортом
- Википедия
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