Georgian Legion on parade displaying flag of Independent Georgia, Germany 1943.

The first Georgian Legion as an ethnic military legion was formed in the German army, based in Turkey, in 1914, during the World War I. The main founder and commander of this legion was a distinguished Georgian military figure General Leo Kereselidze, one of the leaders of the Committee of Independence of Georgia (1914-1918). Main goal of the legion was liberation of Georgia from the Russian Empire. 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... Combatants Allied Powers: British Empire France Italy Russia United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary Bulgaria Germany Ottoman Empire Casualties Military dead: 5 million Military dead: 4 million The First World War, also known as The Great War, The War to End All Wars, and World War I (abbreviated WWI) was... GENERAL Leo Kereselidze Faunder of Tetri Giorgi. ... Official language Russian Official Religion Russian Orthodox Christianity Capital Saint Petersburg (Petrograd 1914-1925) Area Approx. ...

Georgian Legion was also the Wehrmacht’s ethnic military legion formed by the Georgian émigrés who were forced to leave their motherland after the Soviet occupation of the Democratic Republic of Georgia in 1921. The Georgian Legion was joined by former Red Army' volunteers' captured by the Germans and enlisted, while facing certain death from starvation, disease, forced labour and brutality, in POW lagers. German cavalry and motorized units entering Poland from East Prussia during the Polish Campaign of 1939 Wehrmacht (Defence force) was the name of the armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. ... Soviet redirects here. ... National motto: n/a Language Georgian (official), Russian (unofficial) Capital Tbilisi (aka Tiflis) Chairman of the Government Noe Ramishvili (1918–1919), Noe Zhordania (1919–1921) Area 107,600 km² Population 2. ... 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... The short forms Red Army and RKKA refer to the Workers and Peasants Red Army, (in Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия - Raboche-Krestyanskaya Krasnaya Armiya), the armed forces first organized by the Bolsheviks during the Russian Civil War in 1918. ... Geneva Convention definition A prisoner of war (POW) is a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. ...

General Shalva Maglakelidze in German uniform.

The legion was formed in December 1941. The Georgians trained in the western Ukraine and became operational in the autumn of 1942. At least 30,000 Georgians served in the Nazi armed forces. Serving in the 13 field battalions, each having 5 companies and up to 800-strong, of the Wehrmacht's Georgia Legion, Georgians were also found in the Wehrmacht's North Caucasian Legion and in other Caucasian ethnic legions. The Georgian Legion was commanded by Major General Shalva Maglakelidze. Western Ukraine (Західно-українська Народна Республіка, West-Ukrainian Peoples Republic) was a short-lived republic that existed in late 1918 and early 1919 in eastern Galicia, Bukovina and Transcarpathia and included the cities of Lviv, Kolomyja, and Stanislav. ... National Socialism redirects here. ... Symbol of the Austrian 14th Armoured Battalion in NATO code In military terminology, a battalion consists of two to six companies typically commanded by a lieutenant colonel. ... A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 100-200 soldiers. ... German cavalry and motorized units entering Poland from East Prussia during the Polish Campaign of 1939 Wehrmacht (Defence force) was the name of the armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. ... German cavalry and motorized units entering Poland from East Prussia during the Polish Campaign of 1939 Wehrmacht (Defence force) was the name of the armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. ... The Entholinguistic patchwork of the modern Caucasus - CIA map The Caucasus, a region bordering Asia Minor, is located between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea which includes the Caucasus Mountains and surrounding lowlands. ... An ethnic group is a group of people who identify with one another, or are so identified by others, on the basis of a boundary that distinguishes them from other groups. ... Insignia of a United States Air Force Major General German Generalmajor Insignia Major General is a military rank used in many countries. ... Shalva Maglakelidze (1893_1970) was a Georgian politician and commander of the Georgian Legion of the Wehrmacht. ...

Georgian officers resting on the bench.

Across Europe, especially in Italy and France, many Georgian soldiers in the German Armed Forces deserted and joined local Resistance Movements. In April-May 1945, a Georgian battalion stages an uprising on the Dutch island of Texel. World map showing Europe Political map Europe is one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiographic one, leading to various perspectives about Europes borders. ... The armed forces of a state are its government sponsored defense and fighting forces and organizations. ... The Georgian Uprising of Texel (April 5, 1945–May 20, 1945) was an insurrection by a German non-combat battalion of Soviet Georgian POWs on Texel (pronounced Tessel) against the German occupiers of that Dutch island during World War II. It is sometimes described as Europes last battlefield. ... This article is about the Dutch island Texel. ...

See also

• Tetri Giorgi
• Union of Georgian Traditionalists
• Georgian Uprising of Texel

Tetri Giorgi (“White George”) is one of the names of St George, in the eastern mountainous part of Georgia. ... Union of Georgian Traditionalists (ქართველ ტრადიციონალისტთა კავშირი in Georgian) was a national political organization of the Georgian Political Emigration in 1940s. ... The Georgian Uprising of Texel (April 5, 1945–May 20, 1945) was an insurrection by a German non-combat battalion of Soviet Georgian POWs on Texel (pronounced Tessel) against the German occupiers of that Dutch island during World War II. It is sometimes described as Europes last battlefield. ...

External links

• Russian Volunteers in the German Wehrmacht in WWII
• Essay on 822nd Georgia Battalion
• List of units and photogallery (Georgian)