Bloody Stalingrad

by Andrew McGregor

  As the personnel carriers gathered speed again, Hausser’s vehicle swerved to avoid three terrified dogs running across the street. The young commander staring as they passed them, their small frightened thin bodies propelling them quickly into another side street to his left.

  As they neared the centre of the town, the fires on either side seemed to increase, Russian soldiers running either side of the street to get to cover and potential safety. He could see a couple of heavy machine guns being mounted on makeshift platforms as a defence in preparation for any further attack.

  Some local inhabitants, their clothes worn and ragged, huddled next to buildings that were not alight and he noticed several furtive glances in their direction as they passed. The local population obviously distrusting of the new occupants due to history and the many recent executions.

  The sounds of war echoed through his ears, the moaning and crying of the local residents at the further carnage inflicted upon their lives, the Russian soldiers’ shouts of alarm or orders to move men or equipment, the sporadic firing of small arms and machine guns into the air. Hase’s senses seemed overwhelmed at the sights, sounds and smells he was witnessing and he forced himself to look ahead, to close out the visions around him.

  Hase fixed his eyes on the horizon into the darkness ahead, leading out of the town. He was aware of the tears on his cheeks, the sorrow of human suffering. Then he stiffened, attempting to distinguish something he had seen in the distance, a glint in the sky. The hairs on the back of his neck stiffened, his mouth becoming dry as he swallowed hard, realising the planes were about to start another run.

  ‘Hausser! Hausser!’ He uttered a forced shout.

  The young commander turned and saw his outstretched hand pointing. Hausser’s eyes widened, his mind needing no explanation for what the young ‘Hiwi’ had seen, the angle of the soldier’s outstretched arm enough explanation.

  The young commander turned desperately to Meino, shouting, ‘Get off the road, NOW!’

  Meino glanced upwards, seeing the ME110 in the distance now swooping down to begin a low pass across the town, a low pass directly down the main road…straight towards them. He pushed his right foot down on the pedal and the small carrier turned sharply to the left, the right track briefly leaving the ground due to the steep turn at speed. As the track hit the snow once more, it skidded, then propelled the small vehicle forwards towards a side street.

  In the second vehicle, Udet performed a similar turn…following the first carrier. Hase looked out to his right as the ME110 began to fly level with the road, its guns now flashing as it approached. Some 100 metres in front of him a Russian squad was caught in the street and he watched mesmerised as the figures turned and tried to open fire on the approaching aircraft. In an instant, they disappeared in a flurry of bullets from the twin engine plane, tearing their bodies to pieces and peppering the snow around them as they fell.

  Bullets spattered across the road behind them as Udet desperately steered the second carrier into the side street, the roar of the plane’s engines as it passed just behind them deafening the soldiers momentarily. To the rear, Hase heard some further explosions as the fighter bomber dropped some of its deadly cargo and rose into the air, banking away to the right. Russian machine gun fire accompanied the explosions as the gunners desperately attempted to drive off the planes.

  As they slowly and cautiously progressed down the side street, he became aware of the number of inhabitants sheltering in the lane, this part of the town seemed to have yet escaped the attentions of the Luftwaffe. Many of the townsfolk were sitting to the sides of the lane awaiting the end of the air raid, the people either elderly men, women or children looking defiantly at the men in the carriers as they passed them by. He considered the majority of the residents of the town were Kalmyks and mostly anti-communist, their reaction to the men in the carriers in Russian uniforms therefore understandable.

  Behind them, he could hear another plane completing a strafing run along the main street, with Russian machine gun fire in response becoming louder and more organised, a sign the enemy had deployed more weapons against the ‘Destroyers from above’. There were some further explosions and then he could hear the aircraft engines become more distant to the west as the pilots banked back north towards Stalingrad, their attempts at destroying or disrupting enemy lines of supply potentially a success.

  As they neared the end of the lane, he saw Hausser indicate for them to turn right from his hand actions, the two carriers entered another smaller side street that ran parallel with the main road. They proceeded along this lane cautiously to the end and then turned back to join the main road at the northern edge of the town.

  As they turned left to face north onto the main highway, Hase looked briefly back down the main street, the burning buildings and vehicles an indication of the success of the air raid. Bodies of Russian soldiers and the town’s inhabitants lay scattered across the road and next to the buildings grimly overseen by the corpses hanging from the telegraph poles. With this last glance, he realised the full extent of this war now had no boundaries, that potentially the human soul was now lost to hatred and madness.

  With his mood now fully despondent, he turned and slumped back in his seat in the carrier as both vehicles lumbered north into the darkness.

  Chapter Thirteen: With the Compliments of the Enemy

  They continued north for some time, the snow on the road compacted and frozen assisting the speed the personnel carriers could perform. In the darkness the evidence of war and destruction was barely visible apart for the occasional abandoned or destroyed vehicle pushed to the side of the highway, the wide road deserted in the winter gloom. The only sign of life since leaving the town behind them had been a lorry slowly moving south, its driver and guard waving solemnly to them as they passed.

  The soldiers in the two personnel carriers travelled in grim silence, fully aware that any investigation of the ditches and slopes to the side of the road would reveal more bodies, frozen and contorted in death. To a couple of the soldiers the irony did not lack consideration, that these corpses were finally at peace with one another, the German, Russian and Romanian bodies now lying next to each other, or even in indiscriminate groupings.

  Hase sat slumped in his seat, his greatcoat collar pulled up under his helmet as protection against the cold. The scarf that had been round his mouth was now wrapped tightly round his neck as he smoked the American cigarettes Hausser had given him one after another. He observed the beauty of the sky with the rays of the moon shining through cracks in the almost continuous ceiling of heavy snow cloud. The air was relatively still apart from the disturbance of the carrier in front of them and cold air drifting in from the right. He could see the condensed breath of the men in the front and in his own carrier as they drove, the exhaled breath hanging in the air like mist as if suspended by imaginary lines from the sky, then the small condensed air clouds swirling as the vehicles and men passed through them.

  The slight breeze from the lakes to their right was now continuous and the colder air from the iced expanse of water nipped at the men’s noses and exposed flesh as the vehicles proceeded northwards. As he threw his forth cigarette into the road, he noticed the lead vehicle slowing and beginning to turn off the road to the left, joining a small track that lead into a field.

  Hase squinted into the darkened expanse as the lead vehicle left the road, seeing the outline of three destroyed Romanian R2 tanks in the field. One of the burnt out tanks was off to the left, its turret missing and the rest of the vehicle lying at an angle from where it had received a hit to its tracks. He watched as Hausser’s vehicle lumbered slowly behind the two remaining destroyed tanks to sit behind an improvised defensive snow wall.

  As his vehicle slowed to negotiate the slope of the track leaving the road, he observed the nearest tank had been hit on its weakened flank, just below the turret. The gaping hole punctured in its side sealing the fates of the crew inside as the splinters of heated me
tal caused by the impact had imploded into the vehicle. He considered the ends of the lives of the tank crewmen to have been virtually instant, but in extreme terror as they must have desperately tried to stop the advance of Russian tanks the day before.

  Behind the destroyed tanks, the land rose in a gradual incline, and he could just make out a grouping of trees further to the north at the top of the slope. As his vehicle jolted to a halt next to the lead carrier, he noticed they were now just off the track and concealed behind the destroyed and abandoned defensive position. Next to his vehicle, the track continued up the hill, winding its way along gradual inclines as it rose into the distant trees.

  Hase lifted himself up from his seat, placing his gloved hands on the side of the carrier and stepping over the metal plate into the snow, feeling his boots break through the first thin layer of upper ice. The crunch of the iced snow was mirrored by the others as they all climbed out of the vehicle, with Udet assisting Nicu clamber over the side of the carrier. Hase reached inside his greatcoat pocket and retrieved the American cigarettes he had placed there earlier. Lighting one, he turned back and leant into the vehicle to retrieve his rifle which had been lying next to him in his seating position, blowing smoke into the air as he turned to walk the short distance to the others.

  The soldiers were gathered between the two tanks, sitting either side in the snow, or crouched against the vehicles. Hausser was leaning against the tank on the right and smiled as he approached, indicating for him to sit next to Tatu. As Hase lowered himself next to the Romanian quartermaster, using the side of the tank as support, Tatu slapped his shoulder playfully, ‘Still with us young Hase, Eh? If you keep this up there will be a place for you in the Romanian army I think.’

  He looked round, seeing the smiles and grins on the faces of the other men, feeling the heat on his face as he flushed, slightly embarrassed. As he assumed his seating position, the stout Romanian placed a firm arm round his shoulder, ‘No need for shyness here, young Hase. You are our friend and comrade. Together we will all come through this no matter what comrade Stalin has planned for us!’

  He smiled sheepishly, feeling more at ease now. Petru leant forward and offered him a handful of biscuits, ‘Here Hase, have some rations from our new American friends. Eat my friend, keep your strength up.’

  Hase reached out and took two biscuits from Petru’s outstretched hand, smiling and nodding his thanks to him. Having the food in his hand made him realise just how ravenous he was, having not eaten in nearly twelve hours, he bit greedily into the first biscuit. The flavours of sugar, chocolate and oatmeal filled his mouth and throat, tantalising his senses and inviting him to look more closely at the tasty biscuit. He could just make out the word ‘Hershey’ on the darkened surface of the second biscuit as he pushed the remains of the first biscuit clumsily and greedily into his mouth.

  He watched the seven men closely between the two tanks as he chewed the second biscuit, Petru turning to Udet and indicating for him to pass one of the ration boxes he had taken from the personnel carriers. Udet obliged, cheekily demanding a biscuit for his task which he received upon delivery of the box. Petru busied himself opening the carton and passing out the tins that had lain within until nearly all soldiers present had one.

  He watched as Albrecht surveyed the rectangular tin, turning it over in his hands, seeming puzzled. Petru smiled and nudged Udet, who grinned widely, cleared his throat loudly and proceeded to hold his tin out into the middle of the group, a wry smile on his face. They all watched as the younger infantryman pulled a strange looking key from the side of his can and proceeded to wrap this round a rough part of the exterior of the container. As he twisted, a strip of metal from the can opened and Udet began to wind this round the key until the base of the container was almost removed.

  Udet smiled at the reaction of the other soldiers, ‘American beef for all!‘ He declared triumphantly, ‘This will lift our spirits for the journey north.’ He nodded across to Hase and winked, a grin forming on his face as Petru tossed cans across to him and Tatu.

  Hase smiled briefly as he moved the tin around in his own hands, surprisingly feeling warmth on the canister. Looking up he saw Petru smile at his obvious surprise, ‘I left the box of tins next to the engine.’ The Romanian explained as the grins on the faces of the group widened.

  Hase moved the tin around in his hands trying to determine a similar approach to opening the sturdy fist sized canister as Udet had. Once he had realised the best approach, he duplicated Udet’s actions and opened the tin successfully, tasting the corned beef cautiously at first before eating more readily once he determined the delights from the flavour.

  He watched as the men ate from their tins using their knives and bayonets to retrieve the remaining scraps of meat from the containers. Most ate the contents of two tins and some biscuits driven by their hunger and he observed with some relief that Nicu was eating with them, the colour seeming to slowly return to his features as he sat wrapped tightly in his thick coat with blankets around his shoulders.

  Once the meal was consumed, Hausser tossed a packet of American cigarettes to each man and they all smoked, their moods lighter than in the previous hours due to the sustenance and camaraderie. Hausser left the men to their thoughts for a couple of moments before beginning to speak of the journey ahead, his scarf now around his neck and the outline of a stubble beard showing round his chin. His eyes flashed as he began to speak, the cold of the night and atmosphere seeming to brighten his blue eyes making them quite piercing in the gloom of the night air.

  Hausser drew breath, looking across to his men, ‘We need to consider how we will make the last few kilometres.’ He waited until all the men had turned to look at him before continuing, ‘We have come about half way I think, but there is still some distance to go through enemy territory.’

  The commander shifted on his seated position and produced a map from inside his tunic, laying it in the centre of the group. Pointing to the road north of Dubovyy Ovrag on the worn paper he looked around the men, all intently viewing the page where his gloved finger was., ‘We are about here, with Chapurniki about four kilometres further north. We will have to go through that town to get across the river in its centre, then we have a short distance to Krasnoarmeyskiy Rayon, a lower suburb of Stalingrad. It is there I think the lines are at present according to the information from the sentry back in the town.’

  The men all nodded solemnly, realising the distance they still had to travel and the dangers they faced.

  Hausser continued, ‘If we keep moving now, we should get to the town just before dawn. If challenged we are heading north from Dubovyy Ovrag to deliver orders and some supplies to a unit just south of the Stalingrad suburbs, that should hopefully get us through. There is one problem however…we have insufficient fuel to make the whole journey in our vehicles I fear.’ The commander paused, wary the group’s mood was becoming more subdued.

  He smiled to alleviate concerns, his voice becoming softer, ‘If we stay calm and together we will get through this…we will move from here in twenty minutes. Meino, fill the vehicle tanks with the reminder of the fuel from the spare cans and leave anything we don’t need. Once we get going then it is just twelve more hours my friends and we will reach safety. Now are there any questions?’

  Hausser glanced around the group slowly, giving each man a chance to ask anything. Satisfied, he folded the map and placed it back into his tunic.

  Nicu spoke softly from his right, his huddled figure leaning against the tank slightly behind the commander. ‘I have a question.’

  The men all turned to look inquisitively at the young Romanian as he moved the blankets from his left shoulder. He lifted an empty beef tin with his left hand, pointing at the small writing near the base of the can, ‘Where or what is Uruguay?’

  Chapter Fourteen: Firefight

  Hase stared down from over the makeshift emplacement snow wall, seeing the road some 120 metres away, the moon glinting against the
iced parts of the surface. Next to him on his right, Udet slowly raised his head to the same height as his, with just his eyes looking over the snow obstacle.

  A thin mist was slowly moving in off the lakes beyond the road, but even with the poor light of the moon reflecting across the snow, he was able to vaguely make out the far edge of the highway. As per Hausser’s instructions, he was to keep watch over the thoroughfare whilst the others unloaded the carriers of any unnecessary items and emptied the spare fuel cans into the vehicle tanks.

  Udet patted his shoulder softy, whispering, ‘Sehen sie, Hase?’ His right hand rose to point at the truck on the road in the distance. ‘Da!’

  Hase turned his head to the right and saw the distant lorry slowly and methodically moving north up the road, the vehicle’s cautious driver wary of the limited control he had over his vehicle with only tyres and no tracks on the iced snow.

  Pushing himself from the snow emplacement, he moved at a crouch back between the destroyed tanks to the personnel carriers where the rest of the men were grouped. Approaching Hausser, he gently placed his hand on the young commander’s arm to gain his attention.

  Hausser was looking at the map, placed across one of the stowage bins on the carrier and turned as he felt the contact on his arm, ‘Yes Hase, what is it? What have you seen?’

  Hase rose to a standing position, aware they were concealed from any view from the road by the destroyed tank hulks, ‘There is a vehicle on the road Hausser, he is heading north slowly. We will probably overtake him when we set off.’