in may, the division was still 5,000 men understrength, so it was pulled out of the front line and reformed with the recently returned "narwa" battalion absorbed into the division as the reconnaissance battalion. by that time, active conscription of estonian men into the german armed forces was well under way. by spring 1944, approximately 32,000 men were drafted into the german forces, with the 20th waffen grenadier division consisting of some 15,000 men.