Beyond the Rhine

by Griff Hosker

  After a few more strokes I saw a fork in the river. I took the right hand one. I risked a glance astern. This was not the place to become separated. The tree line stopped and I felt exposed. Here the river was at its widest. I also suspected that it was quite shallow. The current was not as strong as I had expected and it felt like we were making good time. We had our rhythm and we were heading upstream and were undetected. It did not take long for the small river to narrow. That brought the return of the trees. We had our first danger when we passed under the road and rail bridges. They would have sentries on them. At some point they would walk across them. I just hoped that they would not be looking down. As we slipped under them I heard, drifting down, the sound of conversation. A glow, like a huge firefly, spiralled down and hissed into the water, twenty feet to our right. It was a cigarette end. Our training had paid off. Our fifteen paddles made not a sound.

  Once we were beyond the bridges we then had a couple of tortuous miles where the river twisted and turned through, what I hoped was deserted countryside. I began counting the loops. The first was the largest. When we came to the fourth loop we would disembark and hike the last seven and half miles to the crossroads. My glances astern told me that, even though they had more weight than we did, the other two boats were keeping up. Just before the last loop we passed within forty yards of the canal. I heard voices on barges and the sound of engines as the Germans took advantage of the cover of night to move goods up the river. When the offensive began they would be the target of dive bombers.

  I was feeling the burn in my shoulders as we paddled up the last loop. I saw the trees, just two hundred and fifty yards away. We had that far to run exposed, and then we would have forest all the way to Schermbeck.

  “Beaumont!”

  He and White stopped paddling and my paddle guided us to bump into the bank. White and Beaumont leapt ashore and held us close by the two painters. I jumped out with my Colt ready. I saw no one. Davis and Foster began passing the Bergens and weapons to me. I stacked them on the bank. When that was done they stepped out. The three of us took stones which lay on the bank and put them with the paddles in the bottom of the dinghy. Then Beaumont and White punctured the Lucky Lady with their daggers. They pushed her out into the current and she settled lower into the water. She would sink at some point but it would be downstream from where we landed.

  I hefted my Bergen and took out my compass. While the other two boats disembarked I waved Davis and Foster towards the woods. It took longer for the others to disembark. They had a radio, a mortar and a Bren gun. They still managed it quickly and their boats were pushed into the current. I could not see the Lucky Lady. Either she had sunk already or was far downstream. I pointed to Bill Hay and he nodded. He was the rear guard. I hurried after Davis and Foster. They were waiting for me at the edge. Davis pointed with his sniper rifle. There was a track. I checked the compass and it was heading in the right direction. I took the lead with Davis at my right shoulder. We set off at a brisk pace. It was not quite a run but it was faster than double time. I wanted to cover the seven and a half miles in under two hours. It had taken us three to reach this point. We had a whole day to hide up before the show began.

  This was not the thick forest it had once been. Aeroplanes had dropped bombs and others were shot down to disappear into the forest. This was on the flight path to the Ruhr. Pilots would jettison bombs on the way home and this was the area where stricken birds would crash. Two miles into the forest we saw one such dead bird. It was a Flying Fortress. As we passed I could see that the Germans had stripped her of any metal that they could re-use. The guns had gone, just her name remained, ‘Rita Hayworth’. I could not help but wonder what had happened to the crew. If they had bailed out then they could be prisoners of war somewhere. On the other hand their bodies could lie within the cannibalised carcass of the bomber.

  We had a road to cross close by Drevenback. The village was three hundred yards away but we took no chances. With two men watching to the north with silenced Colts levelled, we sprinted across the road and then continued our woodland walk. I used time as a marker of distance. After an hour I stopped, for we were in a denser section of woods and I risked my torch. I checked the map and compass. In half a mile we would have to leave the woods, albeit briefly, and head across open fields. Farmers had left a strip of trees and hedges as a field boundary. We would have to follow that until we came to the wood near to the Lippe. We were under two miles from our destination.

  It was less than half a mile of open ground we had to cover but there was a farmhouse between us and the river. I felt exposed as I led my men at a run across the open ground. I spied the trees ahead and to the north of me. The field had just been ploughed and was not easy to negotiate. Fletcher would be struggling with the radio. When we reached the thin treeline I did not stop but plunged along it. After a hundred yards I stopped to allow the others to catch up. Bill Hay arrived. I held up my thumb and he gave me the okay sign. We had not been seen. I was aware that we were moving more slowly as we came to the last obstacle. It was a farm track which headed south to the river before looping back to the farm which lay on the other side of the woods in which we would be sheltering. It was 0300 hours when we crossed it. I had no doubt the farmer and his family might be preparing to rise but they would not be using the track. Once across we headed into the forest. Inside its canopy of green we were safe. I slowed us to a walk and we began to search for a camp site. I wanted to avoid paths. The last thing we needed was for a German to stumble upon us. There was a patch of ground which rose to our left and I began to climb. I found a bare piece of ground behind some wild blackberry bushes. It was a perfect place to hide. In autumn it would be a popular place but there was not even a bud yet. I circled my arm to show that we had arrived.

  I pointed to my shoulder and then at Lieutenant Poulson. He was in charge. I tapped Davis on the shoulder and we went back down the slope. I wanted to scout out the crossroads. We reached the edge of the trees and there were open fields. We had a mile of open country to scout. This time there were just two of us. With blackened faces and hands we would be hard to see. Wearing rubber soled shoes, we were silent. We headed across the fields which, thankfully, had yet to be ploughed. I saw that they had cabbages in them. We were half way across a field when I heard the vehicle. We stopped and crouched in the middle of the cabbage field. The vehicle was coming from the south and heading north. We now knew where the road was.

  The edge of the field was marked with a hedge. It had a few gaps. I poked my head through one and looked south. I saw the river and the bridge. It was guarded. I could not see how many men were there but I saw the shadows of moving men and the barrel of a 20mm cannon. We did not cross the road. The sentries at the bridge might see our movement. Instead we ran north using it to shield us from the road. The hedge disappeared at one point and I saw that the road was a wide one. It was the main road. When we heard the sound of a lorry ahead, moving from east to west we dropped to the ground and began to crawl. It took ten minutes to reach the edge of the Wesel Road. We were at the crossroads. We wriggled up until we could peer beneath the bushes. I heard another lorry. I saw its wheels as it headed west. I could not see any guards. It was unprotected. I saw that there were three buildings around the crossroads. All had been hit by either shellfire or bombs. They were wrecked ruins. We could use them. We had seen enough. We retraced our steps and headed back to our camp.

  The first hint of grey was in the east as MacLean whistled us in. I saw that the camouflage netting was up. There were fewer German aeroplanes now but all it would take was one and we would be in trouble. I waved over Gordy and Polly. “I have found the crossroads. We can use the wrecked buildings there. I think we can make it a strongpoint. They have guards at the bridge. I don’t know how many. After we have secured the crossroads I will take my team and try to take them out. It will make our job easier.”

  Gordy nodded, “I have arranged the sentry rota sir. Fletcher has used
the radio and told HQ that we are in position. He used a really short burst. If they do have anyone listening they wouldn’t have been able to locate us.”

  “Good, then we get our heads down and wait out this day. As soon as we hear the barrage then we can open fire. With luck the 1st Commando Brigade will be here by nightfall.”

  Beaumont brought me a cup pf tea. “We could smell the smoke from the farm sir so we thought they wouldn’t notice our little stove.”

  He was probably right and I could not undo it but I would have had just water. Having said that the hot tea was welcome.

  “We used the rest of the water to make soup sir and put it in the Thermos. We have turned off the stove now.”

  I ate some dry rations and washed them down with the tea. I rolled up in a ball and fell asleep. They let me sleep until early afternoon. After I had rinsed out my mouth with water, Bill Hay reported to me. “Not much to be seen sir. Some American bombers went over and we heard them dropping their load to the east. No sign of Jerry. We heard the sound of a convoy going up the road. We were surprised that they weren’t attacked.”

  “I think they are going to save everything for tomorrow. The barrage will start at about 0300 hours and then the bombers will begin first thing in the morning. One thing you can say about Montgomery is that he is well prepared.”

  As darkness fell we took down the netting and prepared to leave. We had plenty of time to reach our objective. I wanted to be in position to tackle the bridge as soon as the artillery began. We had the advantage of knowing when it would start. The Germans would hear the shells and wonder what it meant. Their attention would be on the skies and not the ground. It was a merciless war we fought. One moment of inattention could cost you your life.

  Davis and I led. We had ironed out the kinks the previous night. We shaved minutes off our journey. We headed diagonally across the last field to the apex of the two hedges. I waved Davis, Hay and Emerson forward. They scrambled through the hedge. If there were any Germans there then they would find and silence them. A few minutes later Davis returned, “All clear sir, and the road looks empty.”

  I led them through the hedge. I pointed to the nearest building. It faced west. “Gordy, your post. Set up the Bren and the mortar.”

  “Sir.”

  I pointed to the building on the east of the road, “Lieutenant Poulson, that is your little home from home. Watch the north and the east.”

  “Sir.”

  I took my section to the last building. It was forty yards south of the other two. It looked to have been a cottage. As we entered it I said, “White, you and Foster set up the rifle grenade to cover the road. Davis go and recce the bridge. I need to know how many Germans are there.”

  “Sir.”

  “Beaumont, you and I will make this into a fort.”

  We scoured the building for anything which could be used for defence. Upstairs I found two mattresses and a bedframe. We used the bed and the chairs to protect us from the east and the south. We placed the mattresses to give us some protection from the north. There were two tables. We placed them so that they would act as emplacements. Our Thompsons would have to be our machine guns. Finally we laid out grenades so that they were within reach.

  By the time we had finished Davis was back, “One 20 mm, sir, and one MG 42. There are eight men there, sir. There are two sandbagged emplacements on either side of the road. They have a German truck. I think they are using it as sleeping quarters.”

  “What about the south side of the bridge?”

  “Another six men and two MG 42 machine guns. I think there is a Kubelwagen there but they had disguised it with a camouflage net.”

  I looked at my watch. It was 2300 hours. “The three of us will leave at 0200 hours. I want to be in position before the bombardment begins. Four thousand artillery pieces should make quite a racket. They won’t hear our grenades amongst that lot.”

  Sam White asked, “What do we do sir?”

  “Wait here for us and be ready to give us covering fire if we come back hot.”

  We were like three interdependent fire points. Hewitt, Gordy and myself had done something similar in the Ardennes. There the opposition had been S.S., Tigers and Panthers. I had to hope there was nothing as heavy as that. We just had mortars and a rifle grenade.

  Beaumont said, “We’ll have something to eat now. It is going to be a hard day ahead of us.”

  I grabbed my Thompson, “I will go and see how the others are faring. Take charge, Roger.”

  “Sir.”

  I ducked out of the back of the building and headed for Lieutenant Poulson. I saw, as I approached that they had made it as secure as we had. John Hewitt said, “In here, sir. Duck under this beam!”

  They had placed two beams across a partly destroyed wall. There was just enough space to crawl beneath. “How are things?”

  “We have cannibalised the upstairs to make this stronger sir.”

  “I am taking Davis and Beaumont out to see if we can get rid of Jerry at the bridge. We will wait until the barrage starts. Fletcher get on to HQ and give them the codeword.” Just in case the Germans were listening we had been given a set of codewords. ‘Jackpot’ meant we had the crossroads. “Then keep listening for traffic when the barrage has lifted.”

  “Sir.”

  “You will have to watch the road from the east.”

  “Yes sir, Bill and John are going out later on to set up a few booby traps. There are a couple of trees which Hay reckons he can bring down with a couple of grenades.”

  “Just make sure they aren’t triggered early. Don’t set them until the barrage begins.”

  “Right sir.”

  I ducked back out and went to see Gordy. Bill Hay was outside he led me through a cunning constructed maze of bushes and obstacles. “It will just slow them up, sir.”

  “Good.” Gordy was having a cigarette. I pointed to the floor, “This is the Alamo. If we get knocked out of our houses we come back here. You are the closest to the advance. Your mortar should have the range to reach the bridge. Until it gets too hot have a spotter outside.”

  “Right sir. We only have twenty rounds. It was all that we could carry.”

  “Then you will have to use them judiciously.”

  “Sir.”

  “Good luck lads.”

  I got back to my men. I ate some of the biscuits and drank some water. Once the barrage began we would have little time to eat. Our Bergens acted as extra defences. We had them in front of our firing position.

  “Davis if we can I want you to try to take out the Germans at the southern end of the bridge. Roger and I will use our Colts and our grenades to clear the north end. With luck most of them will be asleep.”

  “We could booby trap the bodies and Kubelwagen on the bridge sir. That would slow them up and give us warning of their advance.”

  “That is what we will do.”

  At 0200 I led my two experienced men out of our emplacement. I felt a little guilty leaving my rookies behind but they could not be risked. Beaumont and I had silenced Colts and Davis a silenced rifle. I had my Thompson with me but the silencer on my Colt would disguise the muzzle flash. We did not head down the road but used the field to the east of it. It was open ground. The farmer or whoever had had the house had cultivated it. I guessed he had kept animals there for there were no plough marks and it was covered in grass. As we approached the hedge and trees we could hear the Germans chatting. It sounded like there were just two of them on duty.

  Davis slid silently off. He would head to the northern bank of the river. Beaumont and I crawled on our bellies towards the sandbagged position. There were fields behind us but in front of us and along the river were some trees. Most had their leaves but not all. We crawled and took cover behind two of them. The sentries were just twenty feet away. Had it been daylight then they might have seen us. I saw, parked just ahead of the sandbags, the truck. That was thirty feet from us. I tapped Beaumont on the shoulder and then poin
ted at the grenades festooned on his battle jerkin. He nodded. We waited. This was another reason why I had only brought experienced men. We could wait without making mountains out of the normal noises of the night. We would not worry if the sentry came close to us for we were confident that we could lie still even under an apparent direct stare.

  One of the two Germans walked to the middle of the bridge and then returned. He started a conversation with the other guard, “Wilhelm said that he heard on the radio that the Americans have broken through further south. Tanks are heading north.”

  “Then we will be heading east soon. I am glad we have the truck and enough fuel to reach Munster!”

  “What is so good about Munster? That is just closer to Berlin and the Russians will soon be there.”

  “My uncle is mayor of Munster. He is high up in the party. I fear that I may need such a friend soon.”

  “That sounds like disloyal talk.”

  “Do you think that we can still win?”

  “I have heard that the Fuhrer has new weapons being built in Austria. They could turn the tide.”

  “Perhaps.”

  Just then a figure climbed from the back of the truck, “When you two ladies have finished disturbing my sleep you can get the kettle on. The next shift would like a brew.”

  “I am fed up of ground acorns!”

  The sergeant laughed, “I have forgotten what real coffee tastes like. I remember the good old days when we first came west! We ate and drank well! You two were probably still at school then! Those Tommies and French knew how to run! Stukas bombing them and our Panzers machine gunning them. Happy days! Now get the water on!”