Roland Battalion

Roland Battalion
Active	25 February - late October 1941
Country	Nazi Germany
Branch	Abwehr
Size	240 to 350
Engagements	Operation Barbarossa

The 'Roland Battalion (German: Battalion Ukrainische Gruppe Roland), officially known as Special Group Roland, was the subunit under command of the Abwehr special operations unit Lehrregiment "Brandenburg" z.b.V. 800. Along with the Nachtigall Battalion it was one of two military units formed on 25 February 1941 by head of the Abwehr Wilhelm Franz Canaris, which sanctioned the creation of the "Ukrainian Legion" under German command. It was manned primarily by occupied Poland citizens of Ukrainian ethnicity directed to unit by Bandera's OUN orders .

In Germany, in November 1941 the Ukrainian personnel of the Legion was reorganized into the 201st Schutzmannschaft Battalion. It numbered 650 persons which serve for a year at Belarus before disbanding.

Prior to Operation Barbarossa, the Bandera's OUN actively cooperated with Nazi Germany. According to the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and other sources, OUN-B leader Stepan Bandera held meetings with the heads of Germany's intelligence, regarding the formation of "Nachtigall" and "Roland" Battalions. On 25 February 1941 the head of the Abwehr, Wilhelm Franz Canaris, sanctioned the creation of the "Ukrainian Legion" under German command. The unit would have had 800 persons. Roman Shukhevych became a commander of the Legion from the OUN-B side. OUN expected that the unit would become the core of the future Ukrainian army. In the spring the OUN received 2.5 million marks for subversive activities against the USSR. In the spring of 1941 the Legion was reorganized into 2 units. One of the units became known as Nachtigall Battalion, a second became the Roland Battalion, and the remainder was immediately dispatched into Soviet Union to sabotage the Red Army's rear.

...
Wikipedia