Ever since the Rommel family had been invited by the village of Herrlingen to rent this frame villa back in December, 3 Aldinger had been there to supervise repairs, direct the landscaping, and in general act on the family’s behalf to renovate the lovely little country home. He had also closely assisted Lucie in running the house, doing countless errands for her, and had just been there for her daily on behalf of the field marshal—which of course, even further endeared the aide to her.
Now in early February, despite the weather, his duties had taken him back to the garden again, where he was quite in his element, personally getting the ground around the house ready for spring (not surprising, since as a civilian he had been a landscape architect).
Gause was up quite early that critical morning and noticed that Aldinger had not yet arrived to start the day’s work. When the aide came in some time later, Gause happened to catch him preparing to start in on the garden. Gause stopped him and proceeded to chastise him somewhat harshly for being late.
Unfortunately, Lucie overheard the rebuke and immediately took issue with Gause, fiercely defending an embarrassed Aldinger.
Lucie had come away from the incident with a permanent dislike of Gause. Coupled with his bad health, his negativity, and his depression about the war and the loss of his home and possessions, the man was really starting to irritate her.
To make matters worse, Frau Gause had not fared much better with her. Gause’s wife was not an easy woman to be around, and recently she had a number of times gotten on Lucie’s nerves. Perhaps she had whined too much about losing her home. Maybe she too was overly pessimistic about the war. And anyway, having guests on an extended stay was a pain for any hostess, especially when that home was in the middle of refurbishment.
As the days went on, Lucie had become more and more unsettled with the two of them. She was certainly glad to see the chief of staff go back to France, and told her husband that she definitely did not want Gause or his wife back.
The field marshal does respect his wife’s opinion, despite realizing that sometimes he gives in too easily to her requests. It will not take Lucie long to convince her husband that they need to get away from the Gause family, both socially and militarily.
The chief of staff will eventually have to go.
1Named after Frederick Barbarossa von Hohenstaufen, a great 12th-century German hero, part of a noble German dynasty in Swabia that had been the source of a number of German kings. Its creation was as one of two new Waffen-SS divisions, agreed to in theory on New Year’s Eve 1942 by Hitler. The sister division is the 10th SS Frundsburg, named after the famous 16th-century German mercenary Georg von Frundsburg. The two units were initially designated panzergrenadier divisions and began forming in January 1943 in Berlin. On February 8, several cadre elements were assembled at a Truppenubungsplatz (training area) in Mailly-le-Camp (east of Paris, between Chalons-sur-Marne and Troyes). Shortly thereafter, two units from the LSSAH Replacement Battalion in Berlin arrived and SS Brigadeführer Wilhelm (“Willi”) Bittrich took command of the 9th SS. Throughout the rest of the year the 9th SS and 10th SS continued forming, and in late October, they were designed panzer divisions, if in name only. By early February of 1944, the 9th SS consisted of the 9th SS Panzer Regiment, the 19th and 20th SS panzergrenadier regiments, the 9th SS Panzer Artillery Regiment, and ten specialty battalions.
2One could also argue the change would ultimately cost Rommel his own life eight months later.
3See entry for December 14, 1943.
Tuesday, February 15
Generalfeldmarschall von Rundstedt is still on leave at the spas in Bad Tölz.
***
Rommel leaves sprawling Fontainebleau again for an inspection of northern France near Dieppe. He visits several positions and receives a report from General Feuchtinger, commanding the reborn 21st Panzer Division. This unit is a sort of phoenix, rising up from the ashes of an earlier bird—one that Rommel had known well. The original 21st Panzer had been one of his key units in the Afrika Korps, but it had mostly been lost in Tunisia. Now it is having problems getting tanks.
Nearly all of the latest-model new units coming off the assembly line are either going to the mayhem on the Eastern Front, or are being sent south to Italy to thwart the Americans and the British. The 21st simply has to make do with whatever they can for now. In addition to 54 German tanks of various models, they have at least 28 captured French Somua tanks (without radios), some three dozen Hotchkiss armored assault units, and some Russian 122mm artillery pieces: hardly the normal allocation for a front-line panzer division.
And the division commander is an unusual breed as well.
Generalmajor Edgar Feuchtinger, a stout 37-year-old career officer, is a Nazi favorite. An early party supporter, he was a key organizer in the yearly Nuremberg Rallies of the 1930s. His military experience has unfortunately only featured the command of a horse-drawn artillery regiment in the East. But his political connections have remained strong, and so his chance to command has now come. What he does with it will remain to be seen.
Still, Feuchtinger is off to a good start. He is working hard to get this unit up to snuff. Having taken what had initially been a light infantry division with no mechanization, he has by hook-or-crook found, appropriated or stolen enough tanks and other odd armored vehicles for the unit to be reclassified as a panzer division, though only in the barest sense of the term. Organized practically from scratch, the unit has had to be completely refitted. Many vehicles are captured enemy equipment, and many of the transports used are commandeered taxicabs, but at least they are mobile. Feuchtinger has been able to get his hands on some German models as well, but these are mostly a couple dozen old PzKw IIs and PzKw IIIs and 30-odd PzKw IV Ausf. B or C tanks, with their short, 75mm guns.1
The PzKw IV Ausf. B, or Ausf. C models were the newest models the 21st Panzer was able to get. Unfortunately, at this stage of the war, they were considered to be relatively obsolete. The muzzle velocity of their short, 75mm KwK L/24 guns was only 385 mps, about half that of an Ausf. G. The Ausf. B weighed only 20 tons, four tons less than the Ausf. G. And not only did it lack firepower, but its protection was âinferior. Its maximum armor was only 30mm, less than half the 81mm on an American Sherman, and it carried no side skirts. The optics were obsolete, visibility from inside was not that good, and the tracks were a bit narrower than those on a Sherman.
Production of tanks was at a crisis at this point in the war, so the Ausf. G and Ausf. H models were hard to get. Even more unfortunate was the fact that by now, even the Ausf. G and Ausf. H models were outdated in comparison to the larger Soviet and American models. However, German technology was not lacking, and the older PzKw IVs were being replaced by the PzKw VIa, nicknamed the “Tiger,” and more slowly by the new renowned PzKw V Ausf. D, nicknamed the “Panther.”2
Rommel tells Feuchtinger that the 21st Panzer getting Tigers and Panthers is of course, out of the question at this time. He then leaves and takes time out to visit the town of Auberville, some 28km northeast of Le Havre. While he is there, he checks out the old quarters that he occupied way back in 1940, during his mad dash across France. Ah, so long ago…
On the way back, he stops at a luxurious château along a loop in the Seine River. It has been chosen as his new headquarters.
He and his men (usually Meise or Gehrcke3) have over the past weeks been looking northwest of Paris along the Seine River for a location with caves in the chalk and gypsum cliffs—a type of position that would be naturally protected from air attacks. After permission to use the naval underground torpedo arsenal had been denied by the Kriegsmarine, they had continued looking.
This location that they have found seems to suit his needs. Although somewhat pretentious, it is ideally located. About 64km northwest of Paris, it is roughly halfway between the capital (where the major strategic headquarters are located) and Rouen, and just 165km from Le Havre on the coast. The château is situated in the small town of La Roche-Guyon. I
t is a splendid villa, although the thought of using the place leaves Rommel indifferent. He does not much care about picking comfortable quarters, and his schedules reflect this. For him, just about any building will do, as long as it is closer to the coast. Having a headquarters farther away from where the fighting will be is totally unsuitable for him.
The large estate has been the home of the Duc du Rochefoucald since the 17th century. The present duke is 60-year-old Jean de La Rochefoucauld. The château is located above the sloping northern bank of the Seine at a large U-shaped river bend. Behind it is a steep chalk cliff in which a few connecting tunnels to the château have been dug. High above and just behind the château is a round, half-ruined Norman tower that dates back to the 11th century.
Next to the château and to its left is the small village of La Roche-Guyon, with about 540 inhabitants. The senior staff will stay at the château. The rest of his men, at least 80, will be quartered in the town.
The complex was administratively taken over on March 17, 1943 by the German forces, who installed a flak battery on the hill above the château.4 Just down the main street5 is the town’s Kommandant’s office. Near the town center is the 15th-century church of St. Samson, on the Rue des Frères Rousse.6
Because the bridge next to the château was destroyed in June 1940, anyone wishing to cross the Seine has to take the local ferry.7 There are also road bridges at the nearby towns of Mantes and Vernon. All in all, the château’s location is off the main routes, but within easy access of them, and most of all, it is close to the coast.
It appears that the château will suffice for them. Built somewhere around the 15th century, it is elegant and spacious, although because of its age and solid construction, utilities are somewhat challenging. And considering that an entire army group headquarters will be working there, quarters will be a problem. Obviously, many will have to stay in the town. Some room has been made by digging tunnels adjoining the mansion. Also, there are numerous cellars that they could use in addition to the tunnels. Still, there is much work to be done. Engineers will dig out more tunnels in the cliffs, for such things as extra offices, storage, a makeshift movie theater, and of course, safe air raid shelters.
Yes, all in all, it will do nicely. Rommel returns to Fontainebleau, satisfied.
1PzKw stands for PanzerKampfwagen, the German military term for tank. Equivalent to the American term “Mark,” it was used to denote the tank’s model number. Thus the Allies’ term “German Mark IV” was based upon the German designator, PanzerKampfwagen IV (PzKw IV). This model with all its variations was the most-produced German tank of the war. An improved version of the older PzKw III, it had in turn undergone during the course of the war a number of different modifications, or Ausführung. The earlier versions sported a short, low-velocity 75mm main gun that could not compete with later Allied tanks. PzKw IV production lines eventually began turning out the PzKw IV Ausf. G or H, what the Allies called a “Mark IV Special.” At 24 tons, each sported a heavier, 75mm KwK 40 gun (the KwK 40 L/43 gun for the Ausf. G, and the improved KwK 40 L/48 for the Ausf. H), which could penetrate 84mm of armor at 1,100 meters. Its own armor protection included thicker armor on the front and sides. Some units carried side skirts to absorb the blow from hollow-charge projectiles fired at its sides, but many such skirts were torn off when passing hedges and trees.
2The Panther is acknowledged by most military experts as the finest-designed tank of the war.
3Generalmajor Gehrcke, Rommel’s newly arrived communications officer. He later became Rommel’s reconnaissance expert as well.
4Until then, the villagers were largely left alone by the occupiers, except for occasional work drafts. To avoid them, able workers would often hide in their boves (caves dug in the chalk cliff) to escape being deported for work gangs. These few would later leave their hiding places when it was safe, with chalk residue covering them, arising from the caves “white, like endives” (testimony of villager Paulette Lamiral).
5Address No. 6 on what is now the Rue Paul Dauvergne.
6“Street of the Red Brothers.”
7See Appendix A, page 595.
Wednesday, February 16
Rommel spends the better part of the day on the phone. The 9th SS Panzer Division is getting ready to reposition itself south, inland, behind the Nineteenth Army while the 271st Infantry Division in contrast is to be repositioned closer to the beaches.
Rommel assesses his work so far. Hundreds of obstacles are popping up all over the coastline, as his men work feverishly to construct his idea of a defensive line. Rommel’s toys are many, and quite deadly.
To create havoc with landing craft coming in at high tide, ramming cones with mines attachéd and steel saws are to be positioned offshore. Scores of thousands of steel girders are to be dumped onto the coastline, fastened in a variety of shapes.
One of these is the Tschechenigel, 1 an idea borrowed from old Czechoslovakian defenses. Consisting of angle or rail beams, often old Czech stock, each unit consists of three or four two-meter beams laid out at right angles to each other, connected and reinforced in the center by welds or fasteners. At high water, they rip the bottom out of any landing craft approaching overhead. Another similar contraption that Rommel is borrowing from his enemies is the “Belgian door”: large iron gates that are fastened down in the surf, also designed to foul incoming craft. A similar device to this is the “ Rollbock”2
Tetrahedrons are being constructed with a similar purpose, as are other anti-tank obstacles. Simple stakes seem inadequate to stop landing craft, so Tellermines3 are to be attachéd to their tops and sides to give the Allied boats a nasty surprise.
âEverywhere of course, between the miles of interlaced barbed wire and the rolls of concertina, are areas that will be strewn with thousands of land mines. What kind of mine is set down each time depends upon three factors: location, purpose, and availability. Since Rommel wants more than he can get, he arranges for certain types to start being made in France. Against tanks and vehicles in open areas are laid the classic Tellermines, as well as wooden mines (the “Holzmine 42”), which are much harder to detect by enemy engineers. For advancing troops, especially along trails and paths, the S-mine4 is to be used, as well as a wooden model called the “Schumine 42.”
Wherever Rommel travels, he shows his men how to make homemade defensive devices. Here and there, he finds out about captured caches of medium- to large-caliber shells, most of which are now orphan, since the guns that they had been designed for are now either destroyed or in Allied hands. There has to be a way to use them.
So he has created one.
His design is beautifully basic, and he nicknames it die Nussknackermine—“the nutcracker mine.” In a workshop, a surplus obsolete shell (such as an old French caliber) is carefully set into a small concrete block and covered with a two-piece lid that has a hole in the center. A pivotable heavy wooden or metal stake is affixed with one end around or next to the tip of the shell, and the other end going up through the hole in the housing. The assembly is then planted into the sand at low tide, casing end first, with the stake sticking up.
The theory is simple. When a boat or vessel runs into the stake, it acts like a lever and rams down onto the shell’s fuse, exploding it beneath or beside the vessel. In a similar fashion, the engineers design a mechanism for mortar shells that can also be used with contact detonators. These devices will start being laid next month.
This is another place where that fire-hose technique he was shown back on February 3 comes in handy. To expedite installation of his “nutcrackers,” instead of pile-driving the stakes into the seabed, water jets are used.
Rommel’s engineers and technicians are finding out that he is full of many other such ideas, devices, and fixtures, all designed to slow down or stop the enemy’s landing. He toys with the idea of hiding kerosene tanks along some of the exits leading from key beach areas. One easy strike will engulf an approaching column in flames. He orders searchlights
to be positioned in strategic, high positions on certain bluffs. They will not only blind and confuse a landing enemy, but help defenders locate incoming targets at night.
Inland from the beaches, he orders certain open fields, pastures, and clearings to be covered by 3—4m stakes and pylons driven into the ground at 30m spacings. These artificial thickets that he first mentioned to Meise as they flew in his Heinkel back in December will prevent glider landings. New artillery shells will eventually be attachéd to many, if they ever come.5
He will later be amused to learn that these inland obstacles have been jokingly dubbed by the men as “ Rommelspargel”—“Rommel’s asparagus.”
He constantly exhorts everyone under him to push themselves to the limit. He has no qualms about ruthlessly driving them, working them to a frazzle, and he does not hesitate to chew someone out over any problem. He tirelessly points out open areas, improper troop positions and equipment, or weak or non-existent camouflage schemes for minefields. There is no such thing as too much or too good camouflage for a minefield or block, he tells them. On his tours, he makes sure that he does not limit his inspections to just fixed bunkers and defensive positions. He visits mobile units as well, reinforcing to them his theme of having to strike back quickly.
He arrives, he inspects, he gives out orders, and then he is gone in a cloud of dust. He never takes time out for evening social events such as a concert or play because his schedule is always full. His sleeping periods are short, and his breakneck pace gives his staff fits. He had though, become accustomed to that in the desert, so it did not bother him much now. He never starts his day any later than 8 a.m. Sometimes, he rises before dawn and gathers up a couple escorts for a tour; his aide Hammermann, sometimes Meise, von Tempelhoff, or Ruge. He eats a hurried breakfast and then hits the road, often between 5 and 6 a.m., riding down country roads at high speeds to see some different installation. He seldom takes much food along (another habit picked up in the desert), although he does try to drink two quarts of seltzer water a day. He makes a hurried inspection, his staff members scribble down some notes, and then they leave in a flurry.
Countdown to D-Day Page 25