Description 22nd SS Freiwilligen-Kavallerie-Division The 22nd SS Freiwilligen-Kavallerie-Division, officially known as the 22nd SS Volunteer Cavalry Division “Maria Theresia,” was a formation of the Waffen-SS created in 1944. Comprised predominantly of ethnic Hungarian volunteers from Transylvania, it was named in honour of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria. The division was hastily assembled amid the chaos of the waning months of World War II and was primarily engaged in defensive operations on the Eastern Front, facing the advancing Soviet Army. Its members endured severe conditions and heavy casualties, reflecting the grim realities of late-war combat. As the war drew to a close in 1945, the division was ultimately dissolved, with many of its personnel captured, killed, or scattered across central Europe.
