Breakout (Kirov Series Book 38)

by Schettler, John

  “General Von Rundstedt will give us a full briefing on the situation in his sector, but from what I can divine, the Allies seem to be aiming at the very heart of France now. They want Paris.”

  “What are the British doing?” asked Kluge.

  “We stopped O’Connor at Vichy, and Montgomery at Renne, but only for a while. They reorganized, and renewed that offensive five days before you say the American offensive began. Given the inroads Patton made earlier when he obtained that big bridgehead over the Loire, it then became necessary for us to withdraw our line further north in the east. We have abandoned the position at Lyon, and pulled that entire front back, anchoring it at Lons near the Swiss border. From there, the line now extends through Chalon-sur-Saone, to Nevers on the Loire. Then it follows the Loire all the way to Tours.”

  “And their line of advance?” asked Kluge.

  “They followed us, undoubtedly thinking they had us beaten, but we retired in good order. O’Connor is on their left, moving through Moulins three days ago. He is now advancing on Bourges and Vierzon, keeping west of the Loire, but I think he will turn north and press for the river where it makes the big bend through Orleans.”

  “Patton has advanced to either side of Le Mans,” said Kluge, “Though the latest report still sees that city in our hands.”

  “Not for long,” said Guderian. “Von Rundstedt will certainly tell us he cannot hold that line, and it looks like Patton will then push for Chartres. O’Connor may drive north towards Orleans, assuming he can get to the Loire. Or, he may simply divert further northeast, and go for Paris. He’s holding hands with the French II Corps on his left.”

  “He has a long way to go,” said Kluge, “and through difficult country. At the moment, Patton is the Hydra we must slay, and here stands our Hercules.” He looked at Brigadier Berg, his arm extended.

  “A fitting metaphor,” said von Rundstedt. “Patton is a nine-headed menace, pushing his serpentine patrols out in every direction. Smash one, and two more will burst out in its place. And remember, the Hydra had an accomplice, a massive crab snapping away at the hero’s foot, just like O’Connor in the south, gnawing at the line east of Tours. What we need is Iolaus, the Argonaut, and nephew of the great Heracles. He was the one who put a torch to the serpent necks where Hercules severed those heads, and thereby prevented more from growing. That, I think, is where out reserve Panzer divisions come in. I am eager to see this match.”

  “Do not worry,” said Kluge. “Soon it will be time for Hercules to undertake his second labor.”

  Chapter 8

  OKW’s approval of Guderian’s plan to reorganize the Brandenburgers and use those brigades as the nucleus of new Panzer formations would soon start to shake things up in the Panzerwaffe .

  “I have traded a lot of space for time in the east,” said Guderian. “O’Connor only has a single corps forward, with one armored and two infantry divisions. He is reorganizing his remaining forces well to the south. As for Montgomery, he is doing the same, and undoubtedly trying to make up his mind where to go next. He advanced up the Loire from Roanne, but then sent a strong corps towards Chalon. That is, of course, his most direct route to Germany. My thinking was that he envisioned a line of advance from Chalon, to Dijon, and then up to Nancy, but he has stopped. This move north by O’Connor puts a lot of heavily wooded terrain between his forces and those of Montgomery. In fact, I was surprised to see it. I thought the British would turn northeast as I described, and with everything they had.”

  “You forget that General Montgomery may wish he was in command,” said Kluge, “but this Eisenhower is the overall Allied Commander. I think he is coordinating the seizure of the central heartlands of France as a prerequisite to a general move toward our borders. Don’t forget that they will need a lot of supply to take the war there, and all the ports we gave them in Brittany will really be useless for that. It is over 500 British miles from Brest to the German frontier.”

  “That is what this landing in the Pas-de-Calais is about,” said Guderian. “I have spoken to Generalfeldmarschall Rommel, and he agrees that the intent of these landings is twofold. The Allies were well aware of the deployments of the V-1 program, and they are certainly trying to overrun those launch sites. Beyond that, they already have the three small Channel Ports, Calais, Boulogne and Dunkerque. Now I think they will want something bigger.”

  “Antwerp?” Kluge suggested the obvious.

  “Correct. Look for that operation to swing northeast to cut off Antwerp soon. They must have a major port to sustain any further attack toward Germany. If Montgomery does get his way, then I think he will drive up the Mannheim-Frankfurt corridor, while the rest push from Antwerp, east to look for a crossing over the Rhine. If I was in command, I would skirt north of Essen and Dortmund, on the North German plain. The two forces would meet near Kassel, and then turn east for Berlin. We are a long way from that now, but I am sure OKW is looking ahead, and planning our defense. What can you tell us about what happened?” Guderian looked at Berg now.

  “It was much as you describe it. The front collapsed at Normandy, and there was a rapid exploitation. Our forces made a haphazard retreat, but it was Montgomery commanding the push through Belgium, not Patton. The Americans were fighting down near Nancy and Metz. Strange how things are all turned about here. It is incomprehensible. How could the course of events have changed? That said, the Allies planned a big airborne operation to bounce the Rhine, but we stopped them—at least the first time. They tried a second time, and succeeded, and I do not think you will want to hear what followed.”

  Guderian took a deep breath, nodding. “Forewarned is forearmed,” he said. “We know where they are most likely to go, and now the only question is whether or not we can stop them. General Berg, here is what I propose. We have an excellent division, the Brandenburgers , and it has been an elite fire brigade for us time and time again—in fact, it is five brigades, the largest division in the army, and the only one organized in that manner. Now we need to be more economical. A lot of our Panzer divisions are worn down, some barely fielding enough troops and equipment to make up a regiment. We need more mobile formations, and I made the proposal to OKW that we could use the Brandenburgers to form the nucleus of five new divisions. Might you consider something similar with your brigade?”

  “You mean break it up? Frankly, it would be much more effective fighting as one cohesive unit. What did you have in mind?”

  “A way to sharpen our spears,” said Guderian. “If you built five battalion sized KGs, then we might assign one to each of the five Brandenburg Brigades.”

  “The tip of the spear,” said Berg, nodding.

  “Exactly. We have some fine new tanks coming off the production lines, and with big new main guns like that one.” He pointed to the long barrel of the Leopard. “Suppose your KG was the leading edge of that hard core formed by the Brandenburgers . We are fighting a strategic defense now, and I envisage the need for a lot of counterpunching, just as you say you blunted those two armored thrusts in the Pas-de-Calais. If your troops could leaven the dough, we might cook up something truly effective when we build those five new divisions. All this assumes we have the time, and that we can even find the troops and armor to do so. OKW now realizes that a new division built around cadres of veteran troops ends up with much more cohesion and fighting effectiveness. This is the idea I have in mind. You would, of course, have one of these new divisions to command in the field.”

  “General,” said Berg. “We can discuss this further, and if you do have the means, I can assure you my full cooperation.”

  “Unfortunately,” said Kluge. “We still have that battle to fight. The situation with 7th Army is getting out of hand. If we don’t stop Patton, he will be here before we can raise a single new platoon!”

  The decision to disperse Berg’s 21Pz to the five Brandenburg Brigades, would have to be deferred for a time, as the urgency of von Rundstedt’s situation now demanded quick action. With 9th Pa
nzer from the east heading to 15th Army, Guderian received the rebuilt 10th Panzer for Southeast France. He therefore decided he would release his prized reserve division while Montgomery was fiddling with supplies and reorganizing. So now Patton’s old nemesis, the elite Brandenburg division, was coming west.

  * * *

  The Germans had correctly assessed the overall Allied plan of attack, but in one thing, they were wrong. Eisenhower did not really want Paris. In fact, he quailed at the thought of liberating and occupying that massive city. The cost, in terms of supply simply to sustain the local population, and the need to see to a new administration, was staggering. Army intelligence estimated it would cost him supply that might otherwise feed and move seven divisions. So Ike’s real plan was to bypass the City of Light, and never to get within artillery range of the place. That may have ruffled De Gaulle’s feathers, but then no one liked that man. If he insisted that Paris be liberated, then Eisenhower told him he would have to arrange to do so with Free French troops, and that the supply for that effort would have to be provided by the liberated French government now reestablishing itself in the south.

  For his part, Patton had been tireless in his efforts to build on the momentum began with operation Thunder. While the thunder from the 8th Air force had not achieved the dramatic destruction he and Bradley envisaged, the lightning from his six armored divisions had produced more than enough power to breach the enemy front. But he wanted yet more. It was this insistent aggression, and his own innate flair for innovation, that saw him find a way to produce yet another armored division out of thin air.

  There were two independent units operating with 7th Army that would form the nucleus of this new division, and one more newly arrived unit that he was very keen to get into action. The first was TF Abrams, the independent brigade that had been culled together in Algeria. It had remained stubbornly independent, with a single tank battalion, and one each of tank destroyers, armored infantry, engineers and mobile artillery. The second was the crack 442nd Infantry Regiment, which would have gone to Italy before the US forsook that theater. It was the single most decorated unit in all US military history, composed entirely of second generation American soldiers of Japanese ancestry.

  So there were two regimental combat teams that he could team up to begin his new project. Now all he needed was more clout with some armor, and it came to him as a most welcome addition to his 7th Army reserve, designated “TF Pershing.” Like all the other great powers, the US had also been accelerating the development of its tank programs. American designers had clearly seen the liabilities of the Sherman tank, though they had continued to produce them by the thousands. New models with better armor and stronger guns were developed, like the M4-A3E2, later nicknamed the “Jumbo” after the war, but the US remained well behind its principle enemy in armor design.

  The British breakthrough Centurion was now proving itself capable of matching anything the Germans had, and the Americans now threw their hat in the ring with an all new design, the T-26 Pershing. This tank had been held up by a clique in the Army that had rallied around General Lesly McNair, who favored enhanced tank destroyers and AT guns as the principle means of dealing with enemy armor. He was opposed by men like General Jacob Devers, who strongly advocated for a new medium/heavy tank to replace the Sherman.

  In the real history, McNair and his advocates had delayed the introduction of the T-26, but in this history, Devers won that battle. Development of the tank had begun in 1942 with the T-20 model, and now, two full years later, the T-26 was ready to go into mass production with the new M3 90mm main gun. Five companies, totaling 75 tanks, came in with the regular Sherman replacements, and they all went to Patton.

  Eager to see the new beast, Patton had them all sent directly to his 7th Army HQ, and there he also summoned General Abrams entire Task Force, and Colonel Charles Pence of the 442nd RCT. That was all to become his new division. He would round up as many stray halftracks as he could find to move his infantry, and also fold in more combat engineers and artillery from units directly under 7th Army, including an armored cavalry unit, more tank destroyers, and the 768th Armored Battalion.

  The “Provisional Armored Division” was born on the 11th of May, assembled near Ecommoy behind Lucas, and it had 155 tanks, 71 tank destroyers, four battalions of infantry, two of combat engineers, AA support, and loads of artillery. Now Patton stood in the crossroads of that small French town and pointed up the road leading northeast. He might have sent it north, where Truscott had already broken out and was now crossing the Sarthe north of Le Mans. Instead he decided to add fuel to the fire Lucas was wielding in his drive south of the city.

  He had already stolen 5th Armored from Truscott to reinforce that attack, and he pulled 3rd armored out of a wooded flank area, using the 91st Cav to take over that screening position. Now he was going to throw on another log with his Provisional Armored Division. The Germans had contained Lucas for two days with the 15th Panzergrenadiers and Panzer Lehr . Now they would face all of five US armored divisions on the morning of May 12th. General Abrams was given overall command of the Provisional Division, and Patton told him to “go rip the heart out of those Nazi sons-of-bitches, and bust this front wide open.”

  * * *

  Truscott’s exploitation was advancing into thin air. About 30 kilometers north of Le Mans, his armored cavalry ran into elements of Berlichingen’s 25th Panzer, which had pulled off the line and moved to Beaumont on the Sarthe. Not strong enough to contest that town, the cavalry skirted east, finding no opposition. 2nd Infantry was forming the shoulder of this breakthrough, facing the remnant of 7th Panzer, and the 91st Division. Only one armored division, the 4th, actually went through the wide gap, driving northeast to Bonnetable. They would eventually bump into the arriving 232 Division about 10 kilometers south of Mamers, and desultory enemy artillery fire along they line of march signaled that the Germans at least had a division in that sector.

  Le Mans was still being held, but now it was being badly outflanked to the north and south. von Rundstedt had ceded local command to Bayerlein when he departed for Paris, telling him he wanted no heroics, and as much as possible, to preserve the integrity of his and other divisions on the line.

  “We could hold the city for a few days, but to what end? It is clear they mean to bypass it, so save as much of that infantry as you can.”

  The withdrawal from the city started on the morning of the 12th, with the last of the 111th and the 50th Infantry pulling back. In all this action, the 50th had distinguished itself by maintaining a well-ordered and stubborn defensive line at all times. 15th Panzergrenadier Division was roughly handled by 3rd Armored, but Panzer Lehr stood like a stone wall against pressure from both the 1st and 5th Armored Divisions. Aside from the introduction of the new Provisional Armored Division, Patton’s steel warriors were tired. They had been fighting for a solid week, and many were needing fuel and ammo, and some good rest and chow.

  By careful backstepping, the Germans avoided any major breakthrough, and the Americans would now learn the meaning of “elastic defense.” Retreating after dark, dawn would find the enemy line far refused, spoiling any offensive plans to kick off an attack at that hour. Instead the US would have to conduct active reconnaissance and forward patrolling to see where the enemy line actually was, and then advance cautiously to take up new positions before staging an attack.

  The Germans could now give ground when it was tactically appropriate, and without having to place a series of calls where the hot potato was passed up the chain of command, only to be confiscated and eaten by Adolf Hitler. The Army could fight as it wished, as it was trained to fight, and it was making a difference here.

  By nightfall, Le Mans belonged to Generals Patton and Bradley, with the 30th Infantry doing the honors in liberating the city. It’s capture would greatly improve Patton’s supply situation, because it was a major rail hub, so a key priority was getting the rail lines repaired where damaged, and in good working order. N
ever resting, Patton got hold of the nearest Quartermaster and ordered him to begin routing any rail traffic for supply into that city. The battle for Le Mans was over. Patton was now setting his sights of the ancient city of Chartres, but the Germans were already moving in powerful reserves to try and prevent that.

  Himmler’s SS Nordland Division had pulled into Chateaudun, about 75 kilometers to the east of the breakout zone. They would be all day getting the division off the trains, with no intention to move by daylight. Near dusk they began to move out, following the road and rail lines that led to Authon, which would put them astride the line of advance north of Le Mans.

  Panzer Lehr had weathered a hard blow by the Provisional Armored Division, which was now relieving a weary 5th Armored. As the sun set, Leutnant Willy Neubert found Bayerlein at his headquarters near the division artillery at the town of Bouloire. He came in, removing his felt cap, and shrugged.

  “What news?” asked Bayerlein.

  Neubert pulled off his gloves. “Herr General,” he said. “The Americans have a new tank.”

  Chapter 9

  That evening, Bayerlein was looking over the situation map, torn between handling reports from his own division, and the overall situation on the front. His men had fought well, holding the right shoulder of the northern penetration, and he realized they had been lucky that day. Only one American armored division had pushed through the gap, and it had stopped, unaccountably, near dusk. When his scouts reported that they had seen fuel trucks coming up, the reason became obvious.

  Panzer Lehr was now about 25 kilometers slightly southeast of Le Mans. From there, the line ran south, through 90th Panzergrenadiers, the Hermann Goring Division, and the Reichsführer Division, eventually reaching the 276th Infantry still holding just north of Tours. Then the line flowed due east on the north bank of the Loire, to 361 Division, and Student’s Korps, which was mostly south of the river beyond the big rail and supply center at Blois. As it ran on east, that Korps overlapped the II French Corps, and then the German 62nd Infantry Korps composed of 148, 227 and 353 Divisions, faced off against O’Connor coming up from Nevers and Moulins. Enemy armor was building up on that front, but the Korps was being reinforced with the 226th Division from the 27th Welle.