by Griff Hosker
"You lads keep your eyes on the paratroopers. I will see what I can do about those advancing to our left."
I reloaded both guns and took aim at an officer urging his men forward. He spun around when I hit him. The men with him dropped to the ground and began firing back at us. Some had rifles and their bullets hit the half track. I saw that there were at least four tanks heading for the remaining Shermans. Just then I heard the sound of aeroplanes. I looked to the west and saw tank busting Typhoons, three of them, roaring in. When some of the Germans looked up I took advantage and shot at them. I saw two fall.
Beaumont arrived and he placed the rocket launcher on the side of the half track, "This is better sir." As one Panther was hit by the rockets from the leading Typhoon Beaumont fired at the one following. Once again he hit the leading sprocket. As it stopped the second Typhoon hit it and the tank became a raging inferno. The last Typhoon hit a self propelled gun which was lumbering towards the Shermans. Our line held.
"Sir, they are pulling back!"
The attack by the Typhoons had been the last straw. The paratroopers moved back as the remaining tanks did. Fletcher asked, "Is that it, sir? Is it over?"
"No, Fletcher, it means they will risk a night attack. We can't use the Typhoons then and they will have cover." I stood, "Anyone else hurt?"
My men stood and waved. They were all alive.
"Hay, get some food on the go. Fletcher, get on the radio and find out what is going on. Tell the Canadians we have held. Beaumont, Hewitt, come with me and bring grenades."
We left the safety of the half track. I took out my Luger and held it in my left hand. "Sergeant Poulson, bring your men. They will come again tonight. We need to make some booby traps."
We reached the first of the bodies just eighty yards from our half track. The ones who had been hit by the grenades were a mess. "Take their grenades and ammunition." While my men worked their way south I went ahead. As Beaumont searched a dead Sergeant I saw a corpse rise and raise his pistol to shoot at him. I fired half a magazine into him. When I reached his body I saw that he had already been badly wounded. He had a stump for a foot and yet he had fought to the end. These were fanatics.
"Thanks sir." He held up some parachute cord. "It looks like they hold on to this stuff too, sir."
"When you have finished join me."
I found the dead ground in which they had sheltered. It was two hundred yards from our position. There were no bodies to be seen. I walked to the river and looked back to the half track. I could only see the top corner. As my men arrived I said, "We start here and we make a line of booby traps. Offset them. I do not want them in a line. I want a front of a hundred and fifty yards covering. It does not need to be continuous. It is early warning. I will go and find our secondary position. Join me when you are done."
I walked back a hundred yards. I could see the half track from here. We needed to make this into a killing zone. If we did not then we would be overwhelmed.
As I was inspecting the ground a captain from the Canadian company joined me. "What are you doing, Captain Harsker? My men have been watching and they are curious."
"This is not over. Jerry has to get through this gap before it is closed. They will come back tonight. We have no aeroplanes then. We will have limited line of sight and the men we are fighting are ruthless with nothing to lose. We are making this somewhere they will avoid." I pointed to our half track. "I am going to have my two machine guns fixed to fire here. We will have them in a cross fire. I have eight men left. There could be two hundred paratroopers coming for us. I have to make them decide that you are the easier target!"
He looked offended, "Thanks a lot!"
I shrugged, "Would you rather we were killed and you were outflanked?"
"But we thought it was over."
"It is never over until you take the guns from their cold dead hands." To make the point I reached down and pick up the sub machine gun from the dead paratrooper whose sightless eyes stared up at the sky. "I would suggest you have your men clear the ground in front of you and set booby traps. When you hear ours going off then you can bet there will be men approaching you."
"Very lights?"
I nodded, "I would use them. You will hear their armour so I am guessing they will send infantry in first. The Major is down to a handful of tanks. I have not see any Panzerfausts yet. If they have them they will use them tonight. If they eliminate your armour then they can waltz back to Germany!"
Chapter 16
Bill Hay had been resourceful. He had rigged up a trap in the river and we ate fresh fish for our meal. Cooked over an open fire they augmented our dull rations well. With a dixie of tea inside us we would be ready for the night. Leaving just myself and Sergeant Poulson on watch I let the rest of the men sleep.
"What did the Major say sir?"
"That the Poles had almost run out of ammunition but they still held and the gap was almost closed. Headquarters are sending reinforcements to us and the Americans are already racing for the Seine. If this was anyone but the S.S. they would have surrendered already. I think that tonight will be hard. I just hope that those to our left are on the ball."
"How is the arm sir?"
"It aches but I have yet to spring a leak!"
He nodded to the men who were sleeping in the half track and on the ground around it. "The lads have done well."
"They always do. I feel guilty that they are still at the same rank. They should all be promoted. You should be too. You deserve it."
"None of them are bothered, sir. They are not professional soldiers."
I nodded, "Warriors for the working day."
"That Shakespeare sir?"
"Yes, Sergeant, Henry Vth."
"That's us then. Just working soldiers. We all want to finish the war together. It is more like a family. We know we can rely on each other. Joe Wilkinson found that and he was only with us for a short time. The other lads told me how much he wanted to stay. He wasn't bothered that he had been promoted. If the Yanks are heading for Paris then we will soon have France recaptured. I know what you are saying about the Germans defending Germany but I reckon that there will be peace when we get to the German border."
"I am not so sure, Polly. The border goes from Belgium all the way to the Alps. It is mountainous country and unless we get a foothold by winter it will be hard. I just want to get through this night."
A couple of hours into the watch Gordy woke and insisted that Sergeant Poulson and I get our heads down for an hour at least. Reluctantly we complied. Fearful of my wrath they woke me an hour before night fell. We had more fish from Bill Hay's trap augmented by some ridiculously early blackberries. After a mug of tea we were ready for the onslaught which we knew would be coming.
Fletcher had been on the radio and when I was woken he reported, "Germans are still escaping, sir. Headquarters has ordered every unit on full alert. Some of our lads are coming to plug the gap."
"Our lads? Commandos?"
"No, sir, 'fraid not. Regulars. They'll be alright though. They have six pounders."
That was what we needed, anti tank guns. We now had a couple of rockets left and no grenades for the rocket launcher. We had very little ammunition for the Colts and the Thompsons. If we had not looted the dead we would be out of ammunition as were the Poles. It was ironic but if we threw back the Germans then it would be by using their own bullets and weapons against them.
We were probably more relaxed than the other units for we had our own early warning system. I hoped that the Canadian company next to us had heeded our warning or we could be outflanked and with the river to our right we had nowhere to run! An hour after dark we heard firing far to our left. There had not been the sound of tanks and so I deduced that it had to be infantry. Then the night was lit up as a tank exploded. From the size of the fireball I knew that it was a Sherman and that meant they had Panzerfausts.
"Stand to lads. They are out there." I had my Mauser in my hand. I would not be using
the telescopic sight but it had a longer range than the submachine guns. We had measured the range to our booby traps. As soon as the second set was triggered they would be a hundred yards away and I would just fire blind at waist height. I had a small pile of Mauser clips. Every German with a rifle who had been killed carried four. Not much for a single German but plenty for me. We also had the grenades we had not used for the booby traps. The two machines were also set to fire at the second set of booby traps. We had suffered from them in the Low Countries back in forty and we had learned our lessons well. We knew how to make a killing ground.
The firing grew in intensity to our left and then we heard the sound of armour. The Germans were bringing up their tanks. Perhaps they were not trying to get through on a broad front. That theory was blown out of the water when a booby trap in front of the Canadians was triggered. The Canadians opened fire. It was nerves. We would have waited.
Then the first of our booby traps was triggered. Expecting it, we had been looking for the enemy. The flash from the grenade illuminated the Germans. It was tempting to fire but the range was still a little long for the submachine guns. The closer they were the more devastating the effect of our firepower. We wanted them walking into a wall of bullets. Another three explosions showed that they were coming in force. To our left we could hear the sound of heavy ordinance. The tanks were engaging each other. A night battle was always dramatic. There were sudden flashes of light against the night sky and huge explosions and with the ground vibrating under the fifty four tones of Krupp's steel the effect was even more heightened. There was silence from our front or at least they had stopped triggering the booby traps. They were either disarming them or moving more cautiously. After the first set there was a hundred yards before they were within range of our guns.
Alarmingly the sound of the tank battle was moving north. It sounded to me as though the Germans had broken through. Panic would be the worst thing for us to do. We had to stay where we were and tough it out. We had a half track and we could move quickly. We would do our job and hold on. If we were outflanked we would fight our way out. When the next booby trap was set off just a hundred yards from us we knew where the enemy were. I began to fire. I made small adjustments as I traversed my gun. I had no idea of the effect but by keeping the gun level I hoped to hit as many as possible. Then the two MG 42 machine guns opened fire followed by the MG 34s. I heard cries as men were hit and then more explosions as they triggered more booby traps. I changed rifles and kept firing. I had no idea if I was hitting anything or not and I kept firing. I reloaded and fired again. Four clips later my barrel was almost too hot to touch.
"Cease fire!" The sound of the fighting to our left had diminished for it had passed further north and allowed us to hear the moans and cries from the Germans before us. Shepherd and Beaumont both had good arms. I shouted, "Ken, Roger, chuck a few German grenades just in case anyone has got close to us or are playing dead."
It was the sort of thing we would do. The paratroopers were as good as we were. In the dark it was impossible to see someone wriggling close to us. "Grenade!"
We ducked down as the two grenades exploded and we heard cries of pain. "Two more!"
They threw another two and then we waited. There was silence. Ominously the Shermans to our left were silent too. "Fletcher, get on the radio. Find out what has happened. Lance Sergeant Hay, nip along to the Canadian Company see if they are all right."
"Sir!"
I heard Fletcher as he spoke on the radio. Of course the battle was still underway and confusion reigned but any news would be welcome.
When he returned his face was grim. "Sir, the Germans have broken through. They went between the Major's tanks and the next battalion. We have been told to sit tight and wait it out."
Billy Hay returned half an hour later. "It is a bit grim sir but they held out too. Jerry got into their front lines and there was hand to hand and close in fighting but they held on. Major Hamilton was wounded and he has one tank left. The Germans are streaming towards hill 462."
I shook my head. The Poles had had a hard enough time before now. How would they cope with the remnants of the S.S. Panzers descending upon them? What was certain was that we could do little about it. As far as we knew the next attack could walk over our tiny unit. The firing to our left gradually died down and we waited for dawn. Alert for the whole night we were tired as the sun broke in the east.
"Sergeant Poulson and Sergeant Barker man the machine guns. Beaumont and Emerson, come with me. Bring your hand guns. Let's see who we fought. Sergeant Poulson, I will wave if it is safe."
As we made our way through the stiffening corpses it became obvious that it was not the paratroopers we had fought. These were line infantry and grenadiers cobbled together from at least six different units. We even found a couple from a pioneer battalion. We reached the first line of booby traps and saw that we had hurt them badly there. Our machine guns at the second line had decimated them These were regular infantry. I lost count of the dead. As we went I took papers from the tunics of the dead German officers I found. It might provide useful intelligence. I put them in my battledress.. It was no wonder the attack had failed. We had expected the best and destroyed the ordinary. It left a sour taste in my mouth. They had been sacrificed to allow the S.S. and the paratroopers to escape.
I waved and the others joined us. "Fletcher, radio Headquarters and tell them that our sector is clear. Ask them, what are our orders?"
"Right sir. Rog if you find any daggers keep them for me will ya?"
Beaumont shook his head but I knew he would do as his friend had asked.
"The rest of you, let's see what we can get. Pick up any grenades and clips. Who knows when we will get more ammo!"
It was late morning when we had finished collecting ammo. The Germans had taken their wounded with them. Our orders were clear. We were to head back towards Trun and await instructions. I could not leave Major Hamilton and the Canadians without saying goodbye. I left the section loading the half track and walked across the battlefield to the lone Sherman. It had battle damage but it still functioned as a tank. The men of the Canadian Company who had been our neighbours waved and shouted as I passed. We had shared a battle. We might never meet again but we all knew that without the other we would have died. We had protected each other's flanks and we had not flinched. That made brothers of soldiers.
Major Hamilton had a heavy bandage over the right side of his head. He still had the inevitable cigar in his mouth, "You and me, Captain, could get a part in the next Lon Chaney film!"
I laughed and held out my hand, "I'll take the money and the adulation, sir. What is the prognosis?"
"They think I have lost the eye." He shrugged, "Hell I can make do with one! They always said, when I was young, that if I kept on doing that I would go blind! I guess this is just retribution."
I laughed. He could still joke about a disability. The Major was a gutsy guy. I remembered Dad's old gunner, Lumpy, "Dad always said that it didn't matter how you survived a war, just so long as you survived!"
"He is right." He came closer, "I just want to thank you. The advice you gave my men saved their butts! And you nine men did the job of a company. I shall be sorry to see you go. I guess they have plans for you."
"You never know. It is has been an honour to serve with you and your men, Major. I shall have to visit Canada when all this is over."
"You do that and come see me. I live in Guelph, it is a little place in Ontario."
"I will." I shook his hand and then saluted. As I left I reflected that was war in a microcosm. You briefly met other warriors you fought and men died and then you left. I headed back across a battlefield littered with dead men. We had fought over a tiny piece of France. We had held but Germans had achieved a victory of sorts. They had escaped to fight another day. Such was life. I discovered that the breakthrough had been made by the paratroopers who had fought us. They had spearheaded the attack and the captain who spoke to me s
aid that over two thousand had escaped. I knew then, as I headed back to my men, that we had been lucky.
Private Emerson had the engine fired up when I arrived. I sat in the cab feeling weary. My arm was aching and my face itched. "Take us back to Trun, Emerson." I closed my eyes as we headed back to the road which would take us to Trun. When we reached it I could not believe the change which had taken place. All of the roads had been cleared of rubble and there were neat ranks of tents all around. It was now a jumping off point. There were tanks and self propelled guns. There were lorries with anti tank guns. All of them appeared to be heading north west. We seemed to be a salmon swimming against the tide.
"Where should I go sir?"
"If in doubt, Emerson, head for the flag."
He turned towards the flag which was above a tent on the northern avenue. "I'll go and see what the S.P. is."
A sentry saluted as I walked towards it. "Yes sir?"
"Captain Harsker reporting as ordered."
He put his head inside the tent and shouted, " Captain Harsker reporting as ordered."
A familiar voice shouted, "Tell him to come in."
I entered and saw Major Foster and a smiling Lieutenant Ross. The Major stood, "Well done, Tom! You did just what we expected of you... the unexpected!"
I smiled, "And now, of course, you are sending us home."
He shook his head, "Of course not. We wouldn't want Susan to see you with that scar. We need a few weeks to let it heal. No, we need you to join the chaps racing towards the Seine and Paris."
He said it so calmly and casually that I thought I had misheard him, "What?"
"You and your chaps have shown that you are resilient. You speak French and German." He waved me closer. "The thing is we had some chaps ready to do this job but the S.S. caught them behind enemy lines close to Paris. They were all shot. We need you to join the vanguard in case we have to go behind the lines. You are the best qualified chaps we have and with the other team captured I am afraid that you are it."