Countdown to D-Day

by Peter Margaritis

  Today, Generalfeldmarschall Rommel rides with Gause on a northwest tour to the Seine Bay to inspect the new barriers going up along the shoreline there. During the trip, Rommel takes up the delicate matter of discussing a replacement for his chief of staff. Rommel had decided, urged by Lucie, to replace him back in mid-March. He had written to her on the 17th:

  Let’s draw a line underneath it all… I am going to. Perhaps G. will find another post. Of course, it’s a tough decision for me to have to change my chief at a time like this.

  He had meant what he had written. However, he was unsure of making the decision to relieve Gause, because in many respects, he was indeed reluctant to let Gause go. On the record of course, Rommel would only have the highest praise for the man.

  He had then sent word by letter to Hitler’s army adjutant, General Schmundt, that he needed a new chief of staff. He wanted someone who had extensive experience in mobile warfare and had spent time in the Generalstab. Rommel recommended that Gause be given command of a panzer division.

  In response to his request, OKW had given Rommel a shortlist of two general officers. Rommel had picked Hans Speidel immediately, mostly because he was a fellow Swabian. But Rommel also knew him. They had served in the Argonne Forest in 1915, and after the war, Rommel had run across him serving in the 13th Württemberg Regiment. Now Speidel has been ordered to Berchtesgaden to be briefed about his new post.

  Rommel and Gause are alone now, 2 traveling in Rommel’s Horch. Perhaps the field marshal gives him the need-to-move-on speech. A sensitive and usually not tactless leader, Rommel probably does not tell his trusted chief of staff about Lucie’s recent disenchantment with him, nor about his “nerve-wracking” wife. Maybe, Rommel tells him, it is time for Gause to rearrange his life, considering that his home had been bombed out last year, leaving him nothing. Maybe it is time for Gause to further his career, to move up to a more important posting, perhaps somewhere in von Rundstedt’s command, where he can be Rommel’s confidant. When the invasion comes, Gause will probably get his own panzer division to command.

  Gause is of course upset about the move. He has been with the field marshal since their initial North African operations in the summer of 1941. Perhaps he feels abandoned when he hears about the replacement, but he tries to be stoic about it, if not for himself, then to make it easier on the field marshal.

  They begin inspecting the defenses of Reichert’s 711th Grenadier Division, 3 holding the left flank of von Salmuth’s Fifteenth Army. Again, Rommel finds that a number of his instructions have not filtered down to this divisional headquarters. A good deal of the construction that Rommel anticipated seeing has not yet begun.

  Next they view a few positions of Richter’s 716th Division along the Normandy coastline. After the inspections are over, Rommel travels to Caen where he is met by 84th Corps commander Erich Marcks, General Kraiss, commanding the 352nd Infantry4 (now moved up to the Calvados coastline alongside the 716th), and General Reichert. A number of moves are discussed. The 709th and the 716th Grenadier are now fully committed to defending the Seine Bay, as is the 352nd Infantry (which means it is no longer considered in reserve). General Hellmich’s 243rd has been moved northward, and the newly arrived 3rd Parachute Division under General Meindl5 has been put into Brittany, somewhat east of the critical port of Brest.

  Rommel then leaves the coast and travels eastward to Rouen to attend a large conference at the headquarters of Kuntzen’s 81st Corps (of which the 711th is a part). At 7 p.m., Generalfeldmarschall von Rundstedt, in a rare trip to the coast, joins up with Rommel at Kuntzen’s headquarters. Together with Gause, Kuntzen, and the Fifteenth Army’s chief of staff, 6 they discuss the new deployments. Rommel, his inspection of the 711th Division fresh in his mind, mentions again how some of his orders are not filtering down to the divisional level, and von Rundstedt calmly promises to look into it.

  Something else, though, is bothering the old Prussian. He is upset because, of the four remaining special railway engineer battalions attachéd to OB West, he must now give one up to Kesselring in Italy. Losing units to the Eastern Front is one thing—but for Italy, that is another thing entirely. And with the Allies stepping up their raids on the French railroads, this reassignment does not sit well with him. It is bad enough that the Allies are crippling his railway supply system, without OKW helping them out.

  Rommel sympathizes and offers some suggestions on improving the rail network.

  That night Rommel writes another letter to his wife:

  How are we doing with our taxes? I guess we will have to pay taxes for Ajax too. How is the mutt doing? The little one7 is too cute for words and I believe he will be a good hunting dog. He is not yet quite housetrained. But I can’t spend very much time with him…

  Now March is nearing its end without the Anglo-Americans having started their attack. I believe they have lost confidence in their cause.

  1Fifty-one-year-old General der Gebirgstruppe Ferdinand Schörner, commanding Heeresgruppe A on the Southern Front in Russia.

  2Except, of course, for Rommel’s driver, Korporal Daniel.

  3See footnote for March 6.

  4The 352nd’s sister division, the 353rd, was stationed in Brittany. The Germans had four rating levels for their infantry divisions: Level I (full attack capability), Level II (limited attack capability), Level III (full defense), or Level IV (limited defense). The veteran 352nd carried a Level I rating, but was not considered a top-notch division. The bodenständig divisions were all Level III or IV.

  5General der Fallschirmtruppen Eugen Mendl.

  6Generalleutnant Rudolf Hofmann.

  7His dog Elbo.

  Friday, March 31

  General Dr. Hans Speidel leaves his position as Chief of Staff, Eighth Army on the Eastern Front and travels southwest by train across the muddy Russian steppes. He is headed for Berchtesgaden, where he is to be decorated for recently helping to save the Eighth Army as its chief of staff. He is also going to be briefed on his new position in the West—Chef der Generalstab, Heeresgruppe B.

  ***

  General der Flieger Kurt Student, commander of the vaunted airborne arm of the Luftwaffe, has set up his new headquarters at the Parachute High Command in Nancy. His orders are to create additional airborne units in France, even though he must still administer those currently in Russia and Italy.

  ***

  Today on Heldengedenktag, 1 some good news comes to the Berghof. Last night, a large RAF night bombing raid against the party’s famous rally city of Nuremburg was met with fierce resistance. Although the night air had been cold, visibility was excellent as the enemy bombers had approached the city. Using a new radar and following the bomber condensation trails in the night sky, German nightfighters closed with the enemy Terrorflieger formations and ripped into them. Of some seven hundred enemy bombers, about a hundred were brought down. The Führer is pleased.

  General Erhard Milch, in charge of aircraft production, calls this the turning point in the air war over Germany, just like September 1940 had been for the enemy in the Battle of Britain. Milch confidently adds that as England had survived past that critical point, Germany would survive past this one.

  ***

  This morning, Rommel gets on the phone with Jodl about the reserve panzers. He tells him that they need to be under the unified command of one Western commander; namely, him.

  Jodl replies that he has not yet received the confirmation from von Rundstedt and when he does, the order will go to the Führer for confirmation.

  Rommel points out that he had talked to von Rundstedt the day before at a conference with the 81st Corps officers at Caen. Von Rundstedt, he tells Jodl, saw the logic of having the tanks under one commander. Of course, the old Prussian still assumes that this should be von Schweppenburg, who technically takes orders from him. Rommel does not point this out.

  Jodl again reassures Rommel, and says that the Führer will look into this matter this afternoon. Rommel thanks him, and asks him to n
otify him when the Führer finally does give his permission. He then hangs up, muttering under his breath.

  Later, OB West calls. Heeresgruppe B is ordered to transfer the still-forming 12th SS Panzer Division to the boundary between the Seventh and Fifteenth Armies. They are also instructed to create a new unit from the 155th and 179th Reserve Panzer Divisions. After this new unit moves to its training area, the 21st Panzer is to be moved to their old area.

  Rommel asks about the status of the 2nd SS Panzer Corps, getting ready to head east. He is told that two nights before, part of it had been caught by British bombers just east of Paris in its assembly area at the Vaires railroad yard and pummeled.

  Rommel asks for details. Blumentritt replies that the 10th SS had been caught out in the open. What made things worse was that a nearby train of sea mines was also hit, and the mines were touched off in a chain reaction of explosions that tore into the panzer troops. Estimated casualties were over a thousand.

  Rommel thanks him and hangs up.

  At about 10:30 a.m., a special guest arrives at La Roche-Guyon: Admiral Krancke, Marinegruppenkommandos West. He and Admiral Ruge, now backed by Rommel, have a morning conference regarding the mine situation off France. Rommel wants some new fields laid in the Seine Bay.

  Krancke explains that there are several priorities in other areas that must come first. American supplies arriving in a steady stream of Allied convoys to Northern Russia are taking a heavy toll on German land forces there. Krancke’s top priority right now is to work with Dönitz’s crippled U-boat arm to somehow stem the flow of merchant ships going up there. Minefields off France will have to wait.

  Rommel counters by telling him that the Allies have not mined the bay for quite some time. They are sweeping the Straits of Dover, but not near where they have recently laid down three new fields. Rommel thinks this is significant.

  Rommel mentions the Bay of the Seine. What about new minefields there? Krancke replies that they cannot do much right now. Because of heavy enemy air activity, and the fact that they are short of mines, he has had to cancel the program of replacing the 1943 fields in the middle of the Channel. He feels that those laid in deep water will be no good by the middle of June.

  Rommel persists. What about Normandy? They turn to a map of the Calvados coast. Krancke points out that the coastline here is really too rocky for a successful invasion, and so it does not need to be mined. Rommel is skeptical.

  Krancke tells him he will take his suggestions under advisement. They then talk about another ongoing issue, the alert status conditions for the coastal naval batteries. Rommel states that he wants naval units in training to be moved closer to the coastline. Krancke says that is not practical.

  The meeting ends on that sour note. Although Krancke stays for lunch, the atmosphere in the dining room is somewhat tense. The admiral’s antagonistic attitude towards Ruge continues, and Rommel is again caught between defending his naval advisor while trying to smooth over Krancke to get some cooperation from the man without asserting his rank.

  That afternoon, after Krancke leaves, Rommel, Gause, and von Tempelhoff discuss a number of details with Günther Blumentritt. Rommel would like more rear areas to be secured against paratroop landings, especially the deployment areas of the panzers. He feels that the critical port of Antwerp should be more fortified, based upon his latest observations there.

  He also tells Blumentritt that the Nineteenth Army units in southern France must be better organized, and of course, he adds that he wants more mines. He then requests intelligence updates from OB West, and wants to get some artillery for the 3rd Parachute Division. They were supposed to get a couple batteries of 88mm flak guns, but Sperrle at Third Air Fleet had turned them down.

  He goes on with his requests. Too many obstacles have been placed around the airfields. This is a waste. He wants some of them removed and installed on his beaches. And while he is at it, he mentions some Luftwaffe combat engineer battalions that he wants to use.

  Still, he adds more. He wants permission to have the Dives River dammed to flood some outlying key areas. More importantly, he also wants to relocate the 12th SS Panzer (forming in Belgium), and the 21st Panzer (forming near St. Lô), both to be repositioned closer to the coast. After all, they are now the only panzer formations in France. If the Allies were to invade now…

  Rommel has some questions regarding Directive No. 40. He is looking to extend his command influence, and to clear up hazy areas regarding policy.

  At the end of the meeting, Rommel and Gause both congratulate Blumentritt on his promotion to General der Infanterie. The promotion officially goes into effect tomorrow, April 1. They have a small toast in celebration, and finally Blumentritt returns to his headquarters with his hands full.

  That evening, Rommel writes home again to Lucie:

  Dearest Lu:

  No news of importance. Stalin seems to have made all manner of demands to his Allies, such as supplying him with a fleet of strength equivalent to the former Italian Mediterranean Fleet…

  It would be fine if it were true. I saw plenty to cheer me here yesterday. Although we’ve still a lot of weaknesses, we’re looking forward full of confidence to what’s coming…

  1Lit. “Memory of Heroes Day.” Originally observed as Volkstrauertag (“The People’s Mourning Day”), the name was changed by the new Nazi party at the end of February 1934. Essentially equivalent to the US Memorial Day, it too was originally started as a national holiday to commemorate those servicemen who died fighting for their country in World War I. The Nazis though changed the focus of the memorialization to German heroes, rather than all slain servicemen. After the war, the event reverted to its original name.

  PART TWO

  Les Sanglots Longs

  Spring

  By the beginning of April, Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel was firmly in control of Heeresgruppe B. He had shown OKW that he was no commander to sit idly by and run his units from a desk. He had been a whirlwind of activity, touring up and down the coast, inspecting divisions, taking notes, giving orders. Despite several stalls and some grudging resentment from some senior officers, his efforts were starting to pay off. The Atlantic Wall was quickly turning into a stalwart defensive barrier. All along the coastline, as unit commanders tried desperately to carry out his extensive plans, hundreds of thousands of men prepared formidable defenses. Some though, were not convinced that the reception planned for the landings would make all that much of a difference.

  Rommel of course knew differently. “The war will be won or lost on the beaches,” he had once told his new aide, Hauptmann Lang, on a chilly day, as they overlooked a deserted beach in their greatcoats. “We’ll have only one chance to stop the enemy, and that’s while he’s in the water… struggling to get ashore.”

  By now he had developed a rigorous routine. Coastal inspections and meetings with subordinate officers were exhaustive. He traveled regularly, and often the ritual of getting in and out of the Horch, not to mention tramping around various sites, sometimes for hours, played hell with his lumbago. Still, he dealt with the discomfort stoically and kept up his active, hectic schedule. He had to. It was the only way that he could even hope to have his men ready.

  As usual, his staff found it hard to keep up with him, especially when he traveled. Most of them usually stayed at headquarters to tackle administrative details, and to coordinate the efforts of the units with each other and with higher commands. That was not to say though, that he always inspected the positions with a small entourage. On the contrary, he was often accompanied by many officers, including of course, the commanders of the positions that he was inspecting. In addition, he was often followed by reporters and photographers representing newspapers and magazines published throughout the Reich. So some of his stops turned out to be borderline newsreel sideshows for Goebbels’ propaganda machine. Still, he did not mind the theatrics. He had come to realize the value of publicity to both the home front and to the men in uniform. The
articles inspired confidence in his men and the country, while at the same time it worried the enemy’s intelligence organizations.

  He felt, almost guiltily, that he had to travel nearly every day. Contrary to the encouraging updates that he conveyed to the Führer, there were just too many reasons to be dissatisfied with the work that was going on along the coast, and his eyes, even though mismatched in vision, 1 were sharp enough to pick out problem areas at construction sites in a way that seemed uncanny to his subordinates.

  Many problem areas were obvious. The emplacement of the big coastal guns by Organization Todt was proceeding far too slowly. Concrete shortage was the biggest reason. Then there were the foreigners that had been pressed into forced labor to help build the positions. They were not very enthusiastic about their work. Some were local one-time soldiers or sailors, now civilians working for the Reich. The projects to build large fortifications to help defeat the Allies did not thrill them at all, although they were in no position to argue about it. So they usually worked as slowly and leisurely as they dared, and their workmanship was often not up to par.

  Constructing defense points in the Seventh Army sector was going slower than in the Fifteenth Army sector, where the invasion was expected to come. By April, only 31 of the planned defensive strongpoints there were finished. Marcks’ men were doing their best, but it was not enough. And it was way too slow for Rommel.

  Perhaps what bothered him most though was that privately, even he had serious doubts about whether they could stop the Allies from coming ashore. If they failed, the war would be lost for sure. He had known (as many generals did) for months that they could not now win the war outright. At most, they could force a peace.

  He knew that deep down, the Führer realized this as well. Rommel had seen a glimpse of this one day back in the late spring of 1943. At Hitler’s chalet in Bavaria, Rommel had been studying the overall strategic situation with Hitler. They were relatively alone, and Rommel once again became depressed over what he was seeing on the maps and the reports they were getting daily. The staggering losses on the Eastern Front; the wholesale surrenders at Stalingrad and Tunis; the Allies poised to invade Italy or Greece. Enemy bomber formations now flew regularly over the Reich, growing stronger every day, dealing out death and destruction both day and night. Germany had dramatically lost the Battle of the Atlantic with the introduction of sophisticated enemy electronics and escort carrier groups.