README – Dataset on The foreign soldier’s transnational experience in the Nazi military (sphere) – A biographical study of conscripts and volunteers from BeNeLux and their military and individual experience in WWII  

General Information  
This dataset is part of the TransWarSoldierWWII project, funded under the European Commission’s Horizon Europe program/Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) (Grant agreement ID: 101063708, DOI: 10.3030/101063708). 
The dataset contains an overview of the transcribed letters, focusing on war experiences and the treatment of non-German Waffen-SS soldiers.  

Project Background  
This research examines the personal war experiences, treatment, and post-war perspectives of non-German members of the Waffen-SS, with a particular focus on Belgium (BE), the Netherlands (NL), and Luxembourg (LU). It explores:  
- The transnational background of non-German Waffen-SS soldiers,  
- The multilingual nature of the letters, reflecting the linguistic diversity of the authors and the regions,  
- The post-war treatment and judicial processes faced by these individuals.  

Dataset Description  
This dataset contains letters written by individuals during the war, organised into case studies based on the writers' origins: Belgium (BE), the Netherlands (NL), and Luxembourg (LU).
The letters were selected based on the writers' status as “volunteers in the Waffen SS” who, at the time, were “non-German citizens” but held citizenship in their respective countries.  
While not all letters were written from the front line, they originate from various locations, including training camps, home during leave, and hospitals. However, all writers were active service members at the time of writing.

Contents of the data set  
- Letter IDs (Identified by document number)  
- Archival Metadata (without full author names due to archival restrictions)  
- Case Study Focus: BE, NL, LU  
- Languages of Letters: Dutch, French, German
- Additional Information - If no location or date is provided, or if the information is only fragmented.

Archival Restrictions  
- Due to archival regulations, the names of letter writers cannot be publicly distributed. However, unique document IDs have been included to enable verification and citation.  
- The dataset complies with ethical standards for archival research and follows data protection requirements.  

Citation & Funding Information  
This dataset is part of the project:  
TransWarSoldierWWII – Transnational War Experiences and the Treatment of Non-German Waffen-SS Soldiers  
- Funding Source: European Commission, Horizon Europe  
- Grant Agreement ID: 101063708  
- Project DOI: 10.3030/101063708, https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101063708

Contact Information  
For questions or further research inquiries, please contact:  
Nina Janz
NIOD, Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies 
Amsterdam
n.janz@niod.knaw.nl