Second Battle Group
The Second Battle Group is a World War II Living History and Historical Society. The Second Battle Group re-enact the 1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler. The SBG became established in 1978 making it the first group of its type in Europe and have appeared in countless films and documentaries, including Saving Private Ryan.[1]
The SBG is a non-political group whose remit is to increase public awareness of the fighting prowess and camaraderie of the Waffen-SS. The group aims to achieve this by living and fighting at both public and private shows throughout the year, in a manner as close as realistically possible to the conditions prevailing at the time.
Many members are former soldiers. They also enjoy a close relationship with other Axis and Allied reenactment groups in the UK.
Controversies
In April 2007 The Jewish Chronicle reported that children of SBG members, wearing the brown-shirts of the Hitler Youth, had been selling Adolf Hitler mugs at a war-games exhibition in London. The SBG maintain that the children were actually part of a German home front display and that the mugs were on sale elsewhere.
The SBG were the focus of a BBC documentary broadcast on the evening of the 27 August 2007, entitled Weekend Nazis. Two SBG members were covertly filmed expressing racist views. The SBG later issued the following statement through their lawyers:
The views alleged to have been made by members of the SBG are, in the opinion of the SBG, fascist, racist and utterly reprehensible and as such are views we strongly oppose.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Tibbetts, Graham (2007-08-27). "Neo-Nazis infiltrate WWII re-enactment group". Daily Telegraph (London). Retrieved 2007-09-05.