Indian Legion
Indische Legion
In1941, German officialsbegan effortsto convince Indian
POWs to switch sides and fight for the Axis against the
British, who had long been the colonial governors of
India, These efforts were marginally successful, with
a small initial cadre of 300 selected and trained as the
Indian Legion, more commonly known as “Azad Hind,”
or Free India.
This initial cadre would eventually expand to over 2,500
troops, and by 1943 the Legion was posted to various
assignments in Holland and France. The Legion was to
be used mainly in non-combat assignments throughout
the remainder of the war.
Flag of the Indian Legion
Tn March 1945, the remaining members of the Legion were captured by Allied forces
while attempting to reach neutral Switzerland.