by Gee, Colin
Confusion reigned in the sector of the 102nd US Infantry division. Elements in and around Wolfsburg reported distant artillery fire but nothing more. Other units spoke of tanks in large numbers hammering their way through, possibly already in Königslutter and Lehre.
British Guards near Wolfenbuttal reported Soviet tanks and infantry approaching from the south.
The 30th Cavalry Recon troops, who were positioned on that axis, were off the grid. 30th US Infantry Division, their parent formation, was holding Goslar and its environs and, by all accounts, inflicting heavy casualties on its attackers.
There were no reports of any ground activity for a distance of almost thirty miles south of Goslar but allied troops were dying as Soviet artillery took them under fire.
The 4th US Cavalry Group had virtually ceased to exist, buried under an avalanche of fire and massive assaults, its few survivors falling back to new positions as a very serious Soviet attack drove from Rittmannshausen towards Kassel.
Most surprisingly, 5th US Armored Division units seemed to be falling back before an attack aimed at Bad Hersfeld. No reports had been received from the divisions command units but the 5th was a prime formation and would have been expected to hold on for much longer. Eisenhower had already dispatched a Brigadier-General to assess the situation and do whatever was necessary to restore the divisions ‘spine’. Ike was not to know that Major-General Oliver and most his staff lay dead in their command post, victims of a clandestine assault by Siberian infantrymen well equipped for stealthy attack. The 5th was leaderless and it showed.
An adjacent formation, the 6th US Armored Division, was faring no better for its command structure had also fallen victim to ground assault, although this time the attackers were beaten off with heavy casualties. Whilst the Divisional Commander was still breathing, he was in no fit state to issue orders, concussed as he was by a grenade and in any case, his ability to control his division had been destroyed with his main radio equipment. General George Windle Read Jr was a tough and decorated soldier but he was out of the fight for some time and so his senior surviving officer took control, trying to ease the 6th into some sort of defensive order using runners and short-range radios but instead caused a major gap to open in the lines.
Although still in possession of parts of North Fulda the 6th had over adjusted and Soviet forces were already well on the road to the south-west. Their target was obvious and of pressing concern to those in the very headquarters tasked with stopping them.
It was Frankfurt.
Further along the line, 89th US Infantry had been badly handled and was falling back to the south-west. No news of the 355th RCT had been heard since the intensive artillery barrage commenced. Some garbled reports of paratroops on the Säale Bridge northeast of Bad Neustadt had come from a unit of the 340th Field Artillery stationed nearby. They were unconfirmed and no further contact had been made.
One recent unconfirmed report placed units of 76th US Infantry Division in heavy fighting in Ebern, north of Bamberg, other divisional units being forced back towards Hofheim, threatening the flanks of the 89th.
6th Cavalry in Coburg reported nothing save the distant noises of combat, and neither did any of the formations in the curved defensive front from Coburg round to Weiden.
South of Weiden the story was very different.
16th US Armored Division was an untested unit that had heard a few angry shots in Czechoslovakia at the war’s end, and the fury of the Soviet assault was more than many could stand. Some units just ran away, others just raised their hands as waves of Russian infantry swept forward. According to a bewildered Brigadier General Pierce, cohesion was lost and although some of his units were showing signs of resistance, he could not hold.
Information pieced together suggested that 64th Armored Infantry, with some tanks and artillery, was trying to retain a foothold on Wernberg but with little success.
To Eisenhower and his Generals there seemed to be a major breakthrough in the making east of Nurnberg and, combined with the issues north of the city, made this the most dangerous area of their front at the moment. The line from Coburg to Weiden including Bayreuth seemed to be in danger of being nipped off around the flanks.
This was compounded by the withdrawal of the 102nd US Cavalry Group from its blocking positions northeast of Cham. It was already heading back as fast as it could in the direction of Regensburg closely pursued by what the reports described as hundreds of Soviet tanks. Not that anyone there or in the SHAEF Headquarters knew the Soviet units by name as yet but as the major in charge of 102nd had quaintly put it when asked for more information on the enemy units and why he was retreating, ‘a tank is a tank, and hundreds of the fuckers painted green with red stars on coming at you at speed are to be avoided at all costs so we bugged out.’ 102nd Cavalry had in fact been sitting astride the main route of advance of the huge 5th Guards Tank Army so their resistance would have been extremely brief had they stood their ground.
At Bayerische Eisenstein, units of the 29th Tank Corps equipped with American Sherman Tanks had bluffed their way through the lines of the 90th US Infantry Division, driving hard for Regen and Deggendorf. Either side of the route of advance Soviet artillery harassed the confused American troops.
Reports from the 26th US Infantry Division Commander indicated Soviet formations approaching Passau on the Donau, already having penetrated nearly 20 miles behind that morning’s lines without any reported fighting.
Mixed news came from Kefermarkt, north of Linz in Austria. Soviet troops had again plunged deep into allied lines without any real combat but had stumbled into the early morning exercise of the 63rd Armored Infantry and 41st Tank Battalions of 11th US Armored Division, being supervised by their commander Major-General Dager. Casualties in tanks had been high due to a surprise air strike. The Soviet 49th Army was tasked with this assault and its lead formation, 70th Rifle Corps, suffered grievous casualties as the unsupported infantry were faced with alert and well-equipped experienced infantry. Dager’s men had successfully executed a set-piece ambush and the assault was bloodily handled.
That action was ongoing but it seemed the red arrows there had been stopped.
At Enns, the Russians had crossed the river and were fighting their way through the 317th Regt, 80th US Infantry Division, who were slowly giving ground as they fell back towards Asten. Elements of the 305th Engineers had blown the bridge at Enns as the attack started but the enemy had crossed in boats and, unknown to the briefing officer, had already started work on a permanent structure capable of carrying tanks.
Other units of the 305th Engineer had been overrun near Sterninghofen, and 318th Infantry Regt was falling back in front of a huge armoured assault, seemingly aimed at outflanking Linz to the south.
South of that, there were no reports of any activity whatsoever.
As the Brigadier-General finished and the next officer stood to speak more reports arrived, condemning part of his outline to the bin as the situation changed yet again.
That would be the way of it for some time to come.
1035 hrs Monday, 6th August 1945, Headquarters of Red Banner Forces of Soviet Europe, Schloss Schönefeld, Leipzig.
At Schloss Schönefeld similar activity was taking place, although everyone was a lot more relaxed as the attacks were going extremely well in the main.
Zhukov received reports of the success of Operation Kurgan sceptically, encouraging Malinin to harry the air commander into firming up the figures his regiments were claiming.
None the less, he was pleased, for if the Kurgan reports from air and ground attack were only half-right then severe blows had been dealt to the allied tactical air forces throughout Europe, with relatively light casualties themselves.
The destruction of the British warships had caused much celebration amongst his naval liaison team but that was pretty much a sideshow to the Marshall. As long as they kept the allies off the North German shoreline that was all he worried about.
It w
as the reports of ground successes that interested him, particularly the low levels of resistance encountered, particularly in the southern part of Germany.
The feedback from the raids aimed at command and control was limited and there were few indications as to their success, save for the obvious disorganisation in some allied units.
Nowhere on the map or in the reports were there indications of retaliatory air strikes or counter-attacks so it was probable that the Allied command structure was paralysed by either incompetence, fear or injury.
‘Well whatever it is, is fine by me,’ mused Zhukov.
The plan ensured that the pressure would be kept on at all points of attack and that the Soviet air regiments would keep attacking the allied air forces, not permitting them time to recover, although new units arriving would be a problem in time.
Timed perfectly to the thought, Malinin appeared with the latest estimates of the destruction wrought upon allied air power.
The figures were larger than before.
Malinin replied to the question in Zhukov’s eyes.
“Yes Comrade Marshall, I think we can trust these to be a reasonable set of figures. The regiments have confirmed their submissions and understand the need for accuracy, and the projections of success from the ground assaults are wholly reasonable, certainly not over-optimistic.”
Zhukov studied the list again.
“In which case Malinin, we have been extremely lucky today.”
Handing the paper back to his deputy, Zhukov cast his professional eye over the map once more. Pointing at one place where things had not gone well he gave Malinin instructions.
“Tell Rokossovsky to sort out his attack north of Linz or he will be counting trees.”
Shifting his point of focus Zhukov continued.
“And tell Bagramyan to get 43rd Army moving or he won’t get his Marshall’s stars!”
Whilst the words were spoken with the normal bark of command Malinin knew that the bite was not present, for the day was going very well indeed and his boss was a very happy man.
0530 hrs Monday, 6th August 1945, Rittmanhausen, Germany.
Allied Forces - ‘A’ Troop, 4th Cavalry Recon Sqdn, 4th Cavalry Group, US 19 Corps, 9th US Army, US 12th Army Group.
Soviet Forces – 55th Rifle Division of 89th Rifle Corps, 189th Tank Regiment of 2nd Guards Cavalry Corps all of 61st Army, and 5th Guards Rocket Barrage Division, all of 1st Red Banner Central European Front.
Nothing the doughboys had experienced came close to the hell that was visited upon them that morning.
Veterans of D-Day and a score of actions on the drive across Europe, the troopers of 4th Cav rightly considered themselves veterans and solid soldiers.
From concealed positions two and a half miles to the east, two Guards Rocket battalions from 5th GRBD employed ninety-six BM13-16 Katyusha mounts to deluge the American positions in Rittmannshausen and Luterbach.
That amounted to fourteen hundred and thirty-six rockets in the air at the same time, each with forty-eight pounds of high explosive at the business end.
Their arrival on target was devastating and many young men died without even knowing what had killed them.
German civilians also died as their houses were swept aside in a wave of high explosive.
Divisional artillery guns from units of 89th RC also joined in, initially firing a mixture of fragmentation and smoke, adding to the confusion.
Tanks of the 2nd GCC started forward with tank riding infantry clinging to their sides, aiming straight down the road.
Infantry from 89th RC moved forward in the open to threaten Luterbach and Altefeld, as well as others who slipped clandestinely through the woods between Rittmannshausen and Rambach.
Staff Sergeant Joshua Ravens was a tank commander, and exceptionally proud of his M24 Chafee light tank, ‘Lady Lucy’, named for his fiancée back in New York.
On hearing the rocket strikes on the positions to his southeast, he immediately got his tank moving to support his colleagues in ‘A’ Troop who were clearly under attack.
As ‘Lady Lucy’ moved cautiously forward, Ravens’ attempts to bring up anyone else on the radio net failed.
Artillery was falling in front of them in what looked like a combination of explosive and smoke rounds so he commanded his driver to seek a position of cover off the road.
Immediately the driver swung the vehicle left and drew up adjacent to a small copse of trees just off the road about two hundred yards short of the village.
In between new explosions and burst of smoke shells, the crew could see the destruction being wrought to the buildings and people in front of them.
Emerging out of that destruction were a number of shell-shocked and dazed survivors, both military and civilian.
The nearest man was very obviously staggering around oblivious to the fact that he had no arms but he soon succumbed to his wounds and fell silent to the earth.
The falling artillery seemed now to be all smoke.
One or two unwounded men emerged from the village, gathering up the injured and creating a casualty station at the side of the road.
An M3 half-track drew up alongside the Chafee and Ravens went to seek orders and information in equal measure.
The young 2nd Lieutenant, so recent an arrival that Ravens could not recall his name, was no wiser than he, and certainly less experienced in the arts of war.
Against Ravens advice, he ordered the Chafee and his own vehicle forward into the village, the half-track immediately surging forward.
Ravens climbed aboard ‘Lucy’ and watched the M3 disappear into the smoke and then blossom into a fireball.
With eyes fixed on the death pyre of the young officer and his men Ravens tried the radio again but stopped as he became aware that the half-track appeared to be backing slowly out of the smoke towards him.
It took a moment for him to realise that the destroyed vehicle was being pushed along by a tank coming out of the village.
Ravens, shocked into inactivity for a short time, watched as the half-track refused to be pushed in a straight line and started to swing its burning body off to the right as he looked. The tank pushing it helped it on its way and, in a scream of anguished metal, broke loose.
The tank’s hull machine-gun hammered out and the casualty station was no more.
“Tank action front!” he yelled, dropping into the turret as fast as he could.
The gunner, another veteran, was on the ball, already tracking his target as the loader drove home a solid shot shell. Their target, actually a T34/85 of the 2nd Guards Cavalry Corps, was equally competent and experienced.
Both fired together and both hit.
The Chafee’s 75mm main gun was not noted for its armour piercing performance and the gunner tried for a turret ring shot. The shell struck the T34 on the right side of the turret and sped away to bury itself in the village beyond. On its journey, it wiped three tank riding infantry off the vehicle, leaving only bloody spray marks where men had once clung.
The Russian 85mm shell struck the front glacis plate and easily penetrated the thin armour in front of the driver’s position. The rest of the crew were covered with the drivers remains as the shell carved its way through, moving on to remove both of Ravens legs at the hips before it buried itself in the engine compartment at the rear and the vehicle started to burn.
By the time the shocked and dazed crew started to exit the vehicle, Ravens was dead.
The three survivors dropped to the ground and in their shocked state were unaware of the approaching Soviet tank.
It swept on by as the riding infantry exacted revenge for their three dead comrades, killing the helpless American survivors as they passed.
With their deaths, ‘A’Troop ceased to exist.
0810 hrs Monday 6th August 1945, Neumarkt im Mühlkreiss - Kefermarkt Area, US occupied Lower Austria.
Allied Forces – 63rd Arm.Inf.Btn and 41st Tnk.Btn of 11th US Armored Division, US XI Corps, US Third
Army.
Soviet Forces – 2nd & 3rd Btns of 440th Rifle Regt of 64th Rifle Division of 70th Rifle Corps of 49th Army of 3rd Red Banner Central European Front.
The two companies of the 63rd Armored Infantry had been there all night, as directed by the divisional exercise schedule. Set up on a east-facing line commencing on the Pernau side of Neumarkt, running along the heights all the way down until it curved to the east passing to the south of Wittinghof and terminating on the heights adjacent to the river Feldaist, with a strong reserve in Rudersdorf and a smaller force just to the north-east of Neumarkt.
The brief was for a narrow front dawn attack mounted by elements of the 41st Tank battalion, namely C & D companies who, along with C/63rd had laagered overnight in the fields south of Lasberg.
This was the enemy force that was to attack and breakthrough the defence, needing to enter Matzeldorf to triumph in the exercise.
Languishing around Netzberg were the Sherman’s of A/41st, presently untasked but slated to conduct a tank assault during the second exercise later.
B/41st was still on the northern outskirts of Linz unneeded in the exercise and conducting maintenance prior to the whole division being shipped back to the States for demobilisation.
None the less, in and around the exercise site nearly one and a half thousand experienced US troops were wide-awake and loaded for bear.