Ostbataillon Huber

An ad hoc formation, Ost-Bataillon Huber comprised of various eastern volunteer units, mainly Russians and Ukrainians, from a training facility at Quetquidan in Brittany. During the Normandy campaign, they were put under LXXXIV Armeekorps, AOK 7, and was intended to be sent to Normandy. But it had not arrived during June 1944.

In Normandy, the battalion were put as a part of German defence against the American First Army’s drive toward St-Lo. Unlike other Osttruppen formations in Normandy, Ostbataillon Huber fought hard during the campaign, where they lost 80 percent in casualties when defending la Haye-du-Puitsand and was overrun. The bad conduct of this (non-German) unit was blamed for the day’s loss in ground, described as a “deep penetration.”