36th SS DIRLEWANGER DIVISION
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The Dirlewanger brigade was formed on June 15th 1940 and was known as Wilddiebkommando Oranienburg. Originally compsed of 84 men, the formation was enlarged to 300, adding many convicts and former German prisoners of concentration camps to it. Soon the formation was renamed to SS Sonder Batallion Dirlewanger and was transfered to Poland and Belarus where it conducted anty-paritzan activities.

By January 29th, 1942, Hitler allowed the brigade to conscript foreign volunteers from the occupied territories and along with others, many Ukrainians were recruited. The battalion was further enlarged members of Wehrmacht, Luftwaffe and Waffen SS - the latter ones were added because Brigade was seen as a punitive formation. In 1942 the Brigade participates in a series of anty-partizan operations such as "Adler", "Regata", "Karlsbad" and "Frida". In 1944 participates in the supression of the Warsaw Uprising.

In 1945 the Brigade was given a status of a full grown division and was composed of 6000 Germans, Ukrainians, Belorussians and Russians. The Division included: 72nd SS Grenadier Regiment, 73rd SS Grenadier Regiment, Panzer battalion (28 self propelled guns), 687th Pioneer Brigade (Wehrmacht), 1244th Grenadier Regiment (Wehrmacht), 681st Panzer-Jaeger battalion.

After Poland and Belorussia Brigade was moved to supress the rebellion in Slovakia and latter on to Silesia to uphold the front line, where it eventually has surrendered to the American army. Those parts of the division who had surrendered to the Soviets were immeadiatly executed.