British Free Corps

In World War II, the British Free Corps (BFC) or Britisches Freikorps was a unit of the Waffen-SS consisting of British and Dominion prisoners of war who had been recruited by the Nazis. Despite the notoriety of this unit, it was tiny: Adrian Weale's research has identified about 59 men who belonged to this unit at one time or another, some for only a few days, and at no time did it reach more than 27 men in strength — smaller than a contemporary German platoon.

Formation

Roepke's first order of business was the name. "The Legion of St. George" was rejected as being too religious and the "British Legion" was also not acceptable since it was in use by a UK World War I veterans group. It was Alfred Minchin who suggested "British Free Corps" after reading about the "Freikorps Danmark" in the English version of Signal magazine. Thus, it was accepted that (though, in correspondence, the unit was sometimes called the "Britisches Freikorps"), officially the name was the "British Free Corps". That settled, Roepke moved on to the purpose of the unit. All the current members told Roepke they wanted to fight the Russians, (which was what the Germans wanted to hear), and so, with that settled, it was ordered that the BFC must swell to create at least a single infantry platoon of 30 men. It was also decreed that no BFC member could be part of any action against British and Commonwealth forces nor could any BFC member be used for intelligence gathering. Until a suitable British officer joined the unit, the BFC would be under German command. Other things worked out included BFC members not having to get the SS blood tattoo, not having to swear an oath of loyalty to Hitler, and not being subject to German military law. They would receive pay equal to the German soldiers of their rank. Finally, it was decided to equip the unit with standard SS uniforms with appropriate insignia. Roepke ordered the BFC to be moved to the St. Michaeli Kloster in Hildesheim and also put in an order for 800 sets of the special BFC insignia to the SS clothing department.

Related Topics:
British Legion - World War I - Signal - Hitler - Hildesheim

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Officially, the BFC came into existence on January 1, 1944. By February 1944, the BFC made the move to Hildesheim and the Kloster, which was a converted monastery, now the SS Nordic Study Centre and also the barracks for foreign workers labouring for the SS. Prior to the move, things for the BFC men were pretty idle but after the move, recruiting was to be stepped up. Of the group who left the BFC in December, the rumour that they would be sent to a SS run stalag, caused some of them to rethink their decision and three of them returned to their POW camps. Two new recruits were gained, including Private Thomas Freeman of No 7 Commando of Layforce. (Freeman was to be the only BFC man who did not receive any punishment post-war for his membership.) MI5 stated his only purpose for joining the BFC was to escape and also to sabotage the unit. At this time, Roepke ordered the BFC men to assume false names for official documents but not all did so. The BFC were also issued their first SS field uniforms, but without any insignia. Tasks were now assigned to the BFC members as well, which led to some factionalism. Despite having duties, the majority of the time was spent being idle once simple chores such as cleaning the billets were done.

Related Topics:
January 1 - December - Stalag - Private - MI5

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This idleness gave Freeman a chance to ruin the BFC by going after those who weren't Fascist or strong anti-Communist. By getting them on his side, especially since the main pro-Nazi BFC men were often away from the barracks, Freeman sought to form a rift in the unit. He was able to go on one of the recruiting drives, with the purpose to gain men for his own ends. It netted three volunteers, though one returned to his camp soon after.

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In April 1944, the BFC was issued its distinctive insignia, the three lion passant collar tab, the Union Jack arm badge, and the cuff title bearing "British Free Corps" in Gothic script. On the morning of 20 April, Roepke said that the BFC was now fully-fledged (by being issued uniforms, weapons, and pay books), and recruiting could begin in earnest. Promotions were also handed out at this time, with Freeman becoming senior NCO. Following the parade, the BFC members went off to various camps throughout Germany and Austria where they had been interned. The idea, however, was flawed and this recruiting drive netted just six new members. During one such drive, Berry confided to a camp leader his predicament, the leader saying he should seek out the Swiss embassy in Berlin, which Berry did not follow up. Two of these recruits, John Leister and Eric Pleasants, who had been caught up in the war when the Germans occupied the Channel Islands and put them both in camps, were mostly motivated by the opportunity to better food, alcohol and access to women. Pleasants frankly admitted to Minchin and Berry that he "was in it to have a good time."

Related Topics:
Lion - Passant - Union Jack - Gothic - 20 April - Germany - Austria - Berlin - Channel Islands - Alcohol

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The recruiting drives brought the BFC to a strength of 23 men. This worried Freeman because if the unit reached 30, then the BFC would be incorporated into the SS Wiking Division and sent into action. To prevent this, Freeman drafted a letter, signed by him and 14 other BFC men (mostly newcomers), requesting they be returned to their camps. Freeman and one other instigator sent to a penal stalag on the charge of mutiny on June 20, 1944. Freeman escaped the stalag in November 1944, and reached Soviet lines where he was repatriated in March 1945. Still, the BFC was rattled and tensions between members were evident, made worse by Cooper's intent to instil SS-style discipline and methods, which was alien to the Englishmen. With Freeman gone, Wilson became senior NCO, which was a mistake given Wilson had lied upon his capture about his rank, and thus had little experience leading men.

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In August 1944, four more recruits joined the BFC, including Lieutenant William Shearer. However, three of these recruits were blackmailed into enlisting. Two of them were made to join as they had relationships with local women: one had made his girlfriend pregnant, which was an offence punishable by death; the other man's liaison with a woman was discovered by the Gestapo. This addition of men corced into joining the BFC only damaged morale, and touched off lack-lustre recruiting drives.

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Morale continued to decline. A flap over the wearing of the Union Flag arm badge below the German eagle flared up at this time. By this time, many other units wore their national flag on the right sleeve, and some of the BFC men thought the position of the badge was disrespectful to Britain. It took a direct order from Heinrich Himmler to settle the matter by allowing the badge to be worn on the right sleeve if desired. Then there was the addition of Lieutenant Shearer, the first, and only British officer to accept a position in the unit. It was hoped that, at the least, Shearer would provide a token officer presence: however, Shearer was a schizophrenic and refused to put on his BFC uniform or even leave his room. After several weeks, he was returned to the mental asylum from whence he came, and later sent back to England on medical grounds. A last blow was the invasion of France by the Allies.

Related Topics:
Heinrich Himmler - Schizophrenic

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