7e division SS "PRINZ EUGEN"

This book sheds light on the little-known—or entirely unknown—fate of a Waffen-SS mountain division composed largely of ethnic Germans (*Volksdeutsche*) from Romania, Serbia, Croatia, Slovakia, and Hungary, who were mobilized as part of the "Greater Germany" settlement policy.

The division was initially commanded by a Transylvanian who had served in the Austro-Hungarian Imperial Army—*Gruppenführer* Artur Phleps—and was later led by an experienced senior officer, *Brigadeführer* Otto Kumm. Under their leadership, it became a highly specialized field division.

Named in honor of Prince Eugene of Savoy-Carignan (1663–1736)—an officer who served the Austrian monarchy and rose to become commander-in-chief of the Holy Roman Empire’s armies—the "Prinz Eugen" division found itself embroiled in an increasingly "dirty" war against numerous, well-organized, and well-armed partisan units. It inflicted heavy losses upon them—a fact for which the division would pay a steep price in the post-war era.

While the "Prinz Eugen" division fought primarily against partisans—a conflict marked by certain atrocities—it also engaged regular Soviet and Bulgarian troops, demonstrating its effectiveness in "conventional" warfare. Indeed, the unit did not lay down its arms until May 12, 1945—four days after the official end of hostilities.

Through numerous photographs, most of which have never been published before, the reader gains a clearer understanding of this atypical Waffen-SS unit, comprised of "ethnic Germans" of various nationalities operating within a complex geographical landscape.