Battle of Narva 1944 - Tannenberg line defence and battle of the Blue hills 

Update 18/07/2020 - A new version of this video has finally been released. It's twice the size in lenght, and offers better footage and maps. Don't hesitate to take look! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-cLdxx6tqgJY.html

I know a Dutch SS veteran who fought at the Tannenberg line and around Narwa. He said it was really really bad on and around those hills and they suffered massive casualties. He was a Unterscharführer. He is far in the 90 now and still rocking, visiting him every now and then.

Fantastic documentary on this battle that I'd never heard of before. Sorrow that so many young men were lost.

One of the best historical video's I have seen. Thank you for posting!

I knew and old man, now deceased, who was a Soldier during the time of this engagement. Unfortunately many questions were never answered and out of deep respect for him and his apparent wish to remain largely silent about this time, many questions were never asked. I regret that now... Sometimes he would relent and I remember him telling me how he spent his 21st Birthday as a soldier on that frontier. Some of the snippets of stories he rarely told about the day to day of being a soldier I value most of all... I hold a precious few fragments of an ever fading treasure map. He told some of his time spent in a Czech coal mine camp at Wars end uptil about 46-47?... But enough of that for now. He mentioned very little except that he wore an emblem on his collar that many today that visit this channel would be familiar with but when he was alive he felt the need to conceal this connection. Never outright declaring his association but one could tell he was certainly not ashamed of anything he did when he wore that uniform. In Australia, Assimilation was the way back in the 50's through to the late 60's. Annonymity the preferred method of camoflauge. Even though he wore that much maligned and yet mysterious symbol, he considered himself to be a simple soldier. Granted, the outfit he aluded to being a member of was a well trained and highly motivated group of soldiers he never-the-less saw himself as a son of the Baltic defending his homeland the best way he could against those who would have seen his home utterly destroyed... A homeland he never got to see again... I enjoy watching such films as these. I sometimes find myself searching those young yet old faces for one that is more familiar... Indeed as familliar as my own.

thank you sir, this upload means alot to me as i have been trying to find more detailed and probaganda free information about this battle , as my grandfather died there , from what little i was told by familie and the son of one of his brothers in arms ss nordland ,i had no idea it was this intense my god,,,

It's refreshing to hear the history of a battle with facts. No spin nor false narrative. I'm a British man and it's hard to find any good sources of information in the Eastern front. So thanks for this...

Excellent as usual.. One of my favorite subjects of WWII were the SS volunteer Divisions who were comprised of non German Nationals and fought with so much ferocity and courage to ward off Bolshevism.

Your research is impeccable, and the production was exceptionally well done!

An Estonian veteran fought in that battle, took over command when higher officers fell in battle and cleared a whole line of trenches with 20 men, slaying 80, he died in 2014 and lived long enough to see the second Republic of Estonia, what a fkin legend.

No matter your political stance, you have to admire the pure guts of these men, fighting for a lost course against a never ending amount of enemies. Hard to believe they did it.

Superb narration, I keep coming back and replay this vid over and over again.

This European battle group saved Finland (well - among other things). There was enough time for Finns to concentrate major forces to stop Russians in Karelia peninsula and knock off 600 Russian tanks. There was no fear that Russians might come from south over the sea at the same time there was major catastrophic battle ongoing between July-August in Finnland’s eastern front that ended somehow luckily. But this idea is not easy to understand here ... that multinational SS forces ... from Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Norway, Germany, Belgium, Danmark, Austria and ... helped us to keep Our Independence. That was year 1944 (please check that Estonian movie 1944).

Superb courage, skill and German discipline even against overwhelming odds at this late stage of the war.

Nice video Ace. I'd recommend: "The Last Knight of Flanders" by Allen Brandt. With the documented battlefield accounts of Remy Schrijnen alone (which you skim over actually) you could have very easily made this video 30 minutes. They are, in a word astounding. I'd easily venture, no other legionaire force in history has achieved such a loss to kill ratio in defense of any position in the same amount of time. Some of the battlefeild accounts are simply mind boggling.

Once again a remarkable job from The Ace Destroyer, thank you and continue like this... The impartiality and precision of your work is excellent, congratulations for that too.

The presentation and knowledgeable interpersonal of the battle on large and small units is always up to high standards. I enjoyed this videos cinematography and detail your crushing it as usual.

Latvian SS were also there, they fought next to their Estonian brothers to stop communist advance!

And courage like that is exactly why Remy Schrijnin was awarded the Knights Cross. Seven Soviet tanks destroyed by one man with a Pak40, all while Mister Schrijnin was wounded. Outstanding.

Thank you for providing this very interesting & well narrated part of the European war. Wow ,so amazing, kind regards from Queensland, Australia.

Great video!!! My great-grandfather was with the 6. SS-Freiwilligen-Sturmbrigade Langemarck and was at the battle of Tannenberg and operation Sonnenwende.

Epic! This battle will be recounted thousands of years from now, just as we still recall Homer's "Iliad"from the Trojan War, thirty-two centuries ago.

Incredible, little known history and some of the fiercest fighting of WWll. Excellent film archive footage. Thank you.

Really like your presentations, thank you and keep them coming please!

First time checking out the channel. Looks amazing. Great to get the historical perspective of WW2 from the Eastern Front.

Marvelous documentary about a feat of unparalleled heroism. I knew very little about this battle, yet it's definitely one of the most intriguiging. I'm Flemish myself and truly astonished by the bravery of the Langemarck Brigade.

Great video. Cool that you are making a video about a "small" battle on the Eastern front. And great graphics!

A classic battle. All the rigours and exhaustive determination of the combatants. The elan of the SS Panzer regiments is a stirring ode to their remarkable professionalism. They held on to their victories and regained ground lost.The Estonians fought to the very last.Impressive narration once again from Ace Destroyer.You're the best on the Tube.Keep it up.Maintain the momentum. Thumbs up.

Excellent video. Very detailed and informative with great maps and footage.

In 1954 I was a soldier in the US Army, stationed in Germany. Another US soldier of the same company was an Estonian, a little older than me, maybe 25 or 26. He told me that, when he was in Estonia 1944 (he would have been 15) he was drafted, by into the Russian Army, escaped them and the Germans put him in an Estonian unit of the German Army. He said that a refugee organization brought him from Germany to Kansas after the war and it was from there he was drafted into the US Army and sent there where I met him. I've often wondered if that was a true story. Has anyone here with knowledge fo the war around Estonia ever heard of a story like that?

this carnage seems like a total waste of human life, no matter what side you're on

Excellent coverage on a significant and lesser known front--the carnage on the Eastern front makes other theatres of WW2 pale in comparison. Thank you for piecing this battle together, kind sir

This is a great video. Alot of footage ive never seen before. I hope you make more videos like this. Thank you for your hard work

My grandfather was Wehrmacht. He survived a headshot from a Gi's smg! Thoses guys were something else man!

I really enjoyed he use of footage, photos and maps....thanks! ....got me sub'd!!!!

Beautifully done, glad i found your channel

Your channel has become one of my favourites. Keep up great work!

I just recently discovered you. Your coverage of the Eastern front is amazing. This battle I'm not very familiar. Excellent defensive fighting. I look forward to seeing your other posts. One suggestion I have is carefully using a pop filter when making the narration. Thanks

Excellent report. Good job!

I found this enlightening. We read that there was "...fierce fighting on the Eastern Front" but a film like this gives us a better understanding of the bitterness of the struggle, as well as a realisation that there is no national monopoly on courage. Thank you.

Once again, beautiful job. Thanks!

It is quite impressive what the defenders were able to do .Vastly outnumbered by a better armed force , they were able to inflict casualties to the attackers in numbers greater than 6× their own force . Well done.

Fantastic explanation and pictures

A very good job! Facts, maps... all needed infos containing this report is how history should be presented.

I'd encourage you to make more of these, very good quality.

Sensacional.....muuito bom esse vídeo...parabéns a The AceDestroyer pelo documentário....

Excellent narration

Thanks for posting this piece of history. Very valuable since there is lack of documentation on this front

Great video! I've always been very interested in Army Group North and hope you can make videos like this

My grandfather was a part of the NORDLAND Denmark unit. Got wounded during this battle, ending in a lazaret. Never got to hear his stories, sadly.

This is fantastic. Amazing how most of the German Wehrmacht was wiped out by 43, depending on Baltic, Scandinavian and Dutch volunteers to hold the lines. It’s just as admirable to see these men so willing to die for their conquerer. I love the battlefield maps. Some of the combat footage I’ve surprisingly never seen before. A+

Probably one of the best accounts i have heard Thankyou what a Battle!! These were some of the most violent and vitally important Battles of that time in the East and proved the worth of committed Volunteers from the West those poor lads were really put through the wringer on those 3 hills as bad as anything in the first world war

Very well done. the ´´´little´´ battles must not be forgotten. Many thanks for this.

This is one of my favorite videos! Eastern front is an under told story

This demonstrates the quality of the German forces and the foreign fighters who volunteered to fight alongside them. Respect to them and the Russians who had to fight against them.

An excellent historical documentary edited from public source material about the Battle of Narva, in the old USSR during World War II. One of the best I've seen assembled by amateur historians. Thank you

Well done little piece of some big history.. incredible footage...RIP the dead of all wars

I oncr spoke to a man who lives near these hills. In the late 50's he started plowing on the fields on the east side of the mountains. He stopped 100m later because so much human remains and metal was brought to the surface. He got some really nice " souvenirs". Till this day these mountains are closed to random hiking, you can only go there with a permission or with a tour guide. Our granddad's were the real heros !

Great video, i really like videos like this. keep it up !

This is my own first exposure to the work of "Ace Destroyer", my thanks to him for an excellent documentary. The ferocity of battle shows us the importance of prior dedication by devotion to ideas and to debate?

Toll! Outstanding account of an area of war seldom visited by American history buffs. What an account... Flawless in content and delivery.

Really well done sir. Subbed.

Very Interesting overview. A few years ago, I met an old Estonian fellow who told me first, that although he was a soldier, he fought for 'the other side'. He said he was pressured into joining the 20th Division but really had 'no choice'...? -and was evacuated from Narva with a leg wound. I showed him a booklet from the local library about his division and he said he recognised one of the officers as his C.O. What a character. Thanks for posting this documentary.

Great video, very informative, well presented with excellent comments.

Incredible tenacity in the face of overwhelming odds! Thank you!

Im not pro ss / Germany, but alot of the guys that signed up for international ss divisions signed up because they want to battle the upcoming soviet threat. People hate the international SS for this, but during the cold war everyone was afraid of the soviet superpower. Even churchill saw a threat in the soviets. Also keep in mind that all SS soldiers were shot on sight, and could not surrender.

This is some good organised pruduction value would like to see more battles ww2 especialy

Thank you for making this, I've been trying to find more information about Estonian history lately together with the world wars. Since my family originates from there. The Estonian culture in my family is almost dead, together with the danish parts of it. (yes my family is Swedish, Danish and Estonian) I wish to honor great grandmother's suffering in Soviet times, since she had to escape the country she loved so much around 1944.

Excellent video and commentary- thank you

What a story. In July and August the fighting in Normandy was so hard we Westerners don't tend to look beyond it ... nothing new there I suppose. Anyone know if there's a book on the Tannenberg Line? Anyway, a fine film and many thanks to you, AceDestroyer, for posting it.

Amazing tech account ... Very good work !

An interesting effort to portray this important see-saw battle from the German side, an engagement with enormous losses overall. Interesting images some of them not seen previously. Thanks.

Always great and thorough.

Love the video this is such an interesting and bizarre battle, how all these men from different nations ended up fighting there for the Germans against the soviets WW2 will never seas to amaze me.

Keep up the great work on these videos. I love history and I'm wonder how incredible these German soldiers fought on.

Hi there, I stumbled across your channel by pure chance and must say that I very much enjoyed the experience. As a military historian, the Second World War is a mist fascinating subject, full of so many firsts: Panzers, Radio, combined troops, air power, aircraft carriers... the goes on and on. However it is the trust given to even the smallest German units to make decisions on the local level - this due to the new very mobile format of warfair - that was in many ways the most unique aspect of this war. However It was the courage, that all combatants had to show, that is as old as time itself. Some of the finest fighting is often done on a smaller scale, as here in this case, unlike in the great engagements and are worthy of analysis and I like your highlighting if some of the individuals or smaller units that really brings individual achievements to light. Thanks again, I look forward to reviewing all of your work

Great video keep up the great work your videos are awesome mate

What a tragic loss of brave young man on both sides.

this video says estonians fought to death and lead attacks, like 1918-1920 when estonia won soviets and germans and become free state

excellent video, thank you for this fantastic effort

Great stuff! Superb historical recounting! 👍👍

Back then when armies didnt have drones,combat helicopters support,neither night visions or gps.Only a map and a compass.Fighting was brutal.

Excellent work

Great video. Thanks for sharing.

Excellent video and great footage.

Very well made video. I like it.

Most excellent video....have a soft spot for 5th SS Wiking and 11th SS Nordland. Keep up the great work! 👍👌👏

Thank you for the video and effort.

Outstanding work and film!

Wow! Very informative and neutral, really like that👍

There were also Flemish volunteers in the Nordland brigade.

I UTTERLY ENJOYED EVERY SECOND OF YOUR MARVELOUS PRESENTATION !!! THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO !! 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

I like your video you learn something new everyday. Keep up the good work and take care.

The staggering Losses of Russian combat personnel in this war shows how good the Germans are. Only they are not design to fight in war of attrition with 3 open fronts.

Great job!

Very interesting videos...Thanks for making them. BTW....The 5th SS Wiking is my favorite division.

Good narration and cronicle materials. Nice job.

Nice job, congratulations.

Defenders do have the advantage, but these kill ratios are just mind boggling. What absolute class those German troops had, even if they were comprised from different nations. Now THAT is a united Europe.

Great! Thanks for posting!