Nachtigall Battalion

The Nachtigall Battalion (English: Nightingale Battalion), also known as the Ukrainian Nightingale Battalion Group (German: Bataillon Ukrainische Gruppe Nachtigall), or officially as Special Group Nachtigall (German: Sondergruppe 'Nachtigall') was a subunit under command of the German Abwehr special-operations unit Lehrregiment "Brandenburg" z.b.V. 800 in 1941. Along with the Roland Battalion it was one of two military units which originated on February 25, 1941, when the head of the Abwehr, Admiral Wilhelm Franz Canaris, sanctioned the formation of a "Ukrainian Legion" under German command. The Legion was composed of volunteer Ukrainians many of whom were members or supporters of Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN-B). The Battalion participated in early stages of Operation Barbarossa (the Axis invasion of the Soviet Union) with Army Group South between June and August 1941.

After returning to Germany, in November 1941 the Ukrainian members of the Legion were reorganized into the 201st Schutzmannschaft Battalion. It numbered 650 persons who served for one year in Byelorussia (present-day Belarus) before disbanding. Many of its members, especially the commanding officers, went on to join the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (founded in 1942), and 14 of its members joined SS Division Galicia in spring 1943.