Draft:Second Samogitian Regiment

Second Samogitian Regiment (USSR)

The Second Samogitian Regiment (Lithuanian: Antrasis Žemaičių pulkas) from August 1944, was a short-lived Red Army unit. Most sources say that it was formed in July 1944, while being disbanded in January 1945, a mere three months later. The unit centred on Venta.

Formation

VLE states that the unit was formed on the order of the Communist Party of Lithuania on 1 August 1944. Other sources suggest that it began in January or on 14 August 1944. The regiment included German deserters, and criminals. Resentment of the German occupation played an important role in motivating locals to join. One source states that an important factor in why some joined was their lack of knowledge surrounding the formation of the Lithuanian Army and them being tricked by Feliksas Baltušis-Žemaitis, who declared that he was forming a Samogitian regiment to defend Lithuania, hiding his Communist intentions. According to VLE, mostly workers from Šiauliai and its surroundings joined the unit. The soldiers were armed with Russian weapons, but received no uniforms and only had civilian clothing.

Composition

In September 1944, the regiment had about 45,000 members. It was divided into twelve infantry battalions, six cavalry squadrons, eight machine-gun groups and mortar teams. At one point in time, the unit had 46 heavy machine guns and three armoured trains.

History

In April 1944, The regiment was defeated in the Battle of Sartininkai. After this defeat, in which some soldiers were killed, most fled to their homes, although a third of the regiment went to Šiauliai. They soon left Šiauliai because of German entry on September 1944. So, the remnants of Samogitian regiment retreated to Lioliai. The Samogitian Regiment's soldiers were disappointed, hungry and tired, and after listening partisans, were inspired to rebel against the Communists and put down their rifles. In fact, some of those that rebelled later joined the Lithuanian Army. Some has gone under unknown circumstances. On January 19 1945, what remained of the unit was incorporated into the Red Army's Lithuanian Division. Just a month later, in April, the regiment was disbanded. According to VLE, the unit had 20,000-25,000 Soliders.

Commander

Throughout the unit's existence, it was commanded by Feliksas Baltušis-Žemaitis.

Partisan Warfare

One of the Lithuanian encyclopedias says that: "Some Soliders went to Žemaitian Partisans. Probably some of Eight-Nine Thousand of them."

References

  1. Lietuvos kariuomenės istorija (in Lithuanian). Vilnius: General Jonas Žemaitis Military Academy of Lithuania. p. 36. ISBN 9955-423-23-4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 January 2015.

Content Disclaimer

Informasi ini disarikan dari Wikipedia dan disajikan kembali untuk tujuan edukasi. Konten tersedia di bawah lisensi CC BY-SA 3.0. Kami tidak bertanggung jawab atas ketidakakuratan data yang bersumber dari kontribusi publik tersebut.

  1. The information displayed on this website is sourced in part or in whole from Wikipedia and has been adapted for the purpose of restating it. We strive to provide accurate and relevant information, however:
  2. There is no guarantee of absolute accuracy. Wikipedia is an open, collaborative project that can be edited by anyone, so information is subject to change.
  3. It is not intended to constitute professional advice. The content displayed is for informational and educational purposes only. For important decisions (e.g., medical, legal, or financial), please consult a professional.
  4. Content copyright. Wikipedia is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License (CC BY-SA). This means that content may be reused with appropriate attribution and shared under a similar license.
  5. Responsible use. Any risk arising from the use of information from this website is entirely the responsibility of the user.