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5 unusual facts about 30th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS


30th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS

Soldiers of the division together with an unspecified Italian unit killed 40 civilians in Étobon, France on 27 September 1944, in retaliation of the support given by villagers to the French partisans.

In mid-August 1944, the division was moved by rail to southeastern France in the region of Belfort and Mulhouse.

The success of the French breakthrough in the Belfort Gap starting on 13 November 1944 created a crisis in the German defenses from Belfort to Mulhouse.

Elements of the division arrived in Vesoul on 20 August 1944 and were charged with the security of the Belfort Gap, particularly against operations conducted by the French Forces of the Interior (FFI).

With defending units under severe pressure by the French advance, the Germans committed the 30th SS Division to counterattack the French attack at Seppois.



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