Idel-Ural Legion

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The Volga-Tatar Legion (German: Wolgatatarische Legion) or Idel-Ural Legion (Tatar: Идел-Урал Легионы, romanized: İdel-Ural Legionı) denoted a series of units within the Wehrmacht in World War II. It was recruited among Muslim Volga Tatars in the Soviet Union, but also included other Idel-Ural peoples, including Bashkirs, Chuvashes, Maris, Udmurts, Erzyas, and Mokshas. Germany promoted the Idel-Ural Legion as evidence that Muslim and Christian peoples of Volga Bulgarian descent were opposed to Russia and Bolshevism, but they also wanted to spare German blood. The legion was established in 1942 and comprised around 12,500 men, spread over seven battalions numbered 824 to 831. On 23 February 1943, near Vitebsk, Belarus, the entire 825th Battalion (about 900 soldiers) went over to the partisans. One of the most notable members of the legion was Soviet–Tatar poet Musa Cälil, who was later executed by the Gestapo for sabotage. Tamurbek Dawletschin always denied involvement with the legion, but historian Sebastian Cwiklinski found that Dawletschin was one of the founders of the legion's newspaper, Idel-Ural.