Schwerpunkt: From D-Day to the Fall of the Third Reich (40 page)

I looked at a map and saw that for us to reach Antwerp, we’d have to cross major roadways and cross several rivers. In order for us to do this before the enemy had time to properly arrange their defense and before they could bring up reinforcements and send off their superior air power to destroy us from the air, our troops would have to seize all the major highways, railways and river ways through eastern Belgium within a day or two of our attack. By God, this is just what Hitler foresaw and just what he ordered us to do. But when all the details of what our unit was ordered to do were explained, I admit that I truly hoped that some of the Secret Weapons we had heard so much about were going to appear on our supply wagons and that they wouldn’t be too heavy for our horses to carry because without some kind of secret weapon, I’m not too confident this battle is going to end well. Unfortunately, I now understand that none of these weapons will be available to us for this battle. I’m also not at all sure we have enough tanks and infantry to carry out the orders we were given. But I can’t be heard to be a defeatist or a naysayer, especially with the propaganda officer nearby, so I move about the day with a confidence and swagger I don’t feel.

For the last two weeks, our commanders have been preparing feverishly and secretly. No radio communications are allowed but what we do know is that two new Panzer Armies have been created just for this historic battle. I’ve now discovered why the Hürtgenwald was defended so heavily. There were American troops in that forest trying to capture the ancient city of Aachen from behind and it was ordered that they not be allowed to penetrate to any depth. I know the Schwammenauel Dam also lies on the other end of the forest and I’m guessing our troops were to prevent the enemy from opening the dam and flooding the adjacent towns and villages. And now I’ve found out that masses of our troops, more than I even thought existed, were mobilizing in the Hürtgen Forest for our new offensive.

Old General Sepp Dietrich will be commanding the 6
^th
SS Panzer Army in the north, General Manteuffel will be in charge of the 5
^th
Panzer Army in the middle and General Brandenberger will command the 7
^th
Army in the south. These three armies are to strike over a 125 km wide front and destroy the enemy once and for all. In preparation for the battle, der Führer brought 28 divisions together and then made a personal appearance at Field Headquarters by the Ardennes, presumably so he could fuel us fighting men who would always remember his charisma when this battle turned the tide of the war and Germany would emerge victorious. Of course, I never saw him as he didn’t come to our camp. I am not sure when der Führer left Belgium for Germany but I know he wasn’t present for very long.

What we called “The Rundstedt Offensive” began for real on Beethoven’s birthday, 16. December. Just as scheduled, the battle began with a huge artillery barrage. What I distinctly remember was the cold and the fog that enveloped the Belgian forest that day. We began by delivering shells and mortars to our adversaries in the Ardennes Forest and Luxembourg. Around 10:00 that morning, our tanks started moving to their objectives. I found out later that they met little resistance and our progress on the first day was better than we could have hoped for. I think the opposition was anticipated to be heavier than it was. What caused our tanks the biggest problem was not enemy troops, it was the terrain the tanks had to travel on. Either it was muddy and swampy or it was mined and blocked by obstacles.

On that first day, we had those stupid Americans running. They were all split up and we’d see small groups of men trying to stay hidden while looking for their colleagues. We were able to kill many enemy soldiers and we took many enemy prisoners as whole battalions surrendered to us. If other Kampfgruppen have taken as many prisoners as we did, I wouldn’t be surprised if 10 or 15 thousand enemy soldiers are captured. I was happy that each one killed or captured meant an earlier end to the war for me. And who can say? If by our gallant attack the enemy is prevented from launching any new offensive plans of their own and we are able to defeat them in this Forest of the Ardennes, Herr Hitler will be decreed the greatest military genius of our century, perhaps of all time.

Besides the timing, the weather, the secrecy and the hurriedness of this operation, another stroke of genius in der Führer’s planning of this battle was that we will drop paratroopers into the rear of the enemy’s position. This part of Hitler’s plan even had its own name which I learned was Operation Stößer. The paratroopers were to drop at a designated roadway at night before the rest of the offensive began. I only hope the paratroopers could hold their objective until the scheduled reinforcements showed up because with everything us Landsers had to overcome, I was thinking we might not be able to get there within the 24 hours allotted. For this reason, I hoped the paratroopers were well armed and well supplied, just on the off chance we wouldn’t be able to get to them in time.

I do know that at least initially, our Rundstedt Offensive pushed the enemy into disarray, in part because of Operation Stößer I think. Who knows whether it was the fact that no one actually surveyed the drop zone or whether the few Luftwaffe pilots we have left weren’t properly trained to drop Fallschirmjäger at night, or whether there were other reasons I can’t even think of, but we heard that the paratroopers were widely dispersed when they landed. After some time, a couple of hundred men were collected but we found out later that they weren’t strong enough to hold their objective. The only good thing I heard about this whole thing was that because of how far apart the Fallschirmjäger fell when they were dropped behind enemy lines, the enemy believed the drop was bigger than it was which caused them to keep more men in their rear which meant fewer men facing us at the front.

And here’s another brilliant part of der Führer’s plan: Operation Greif. This plan called for volunteers of men who all speak perfect English, slang and all. They are to be dressed in uniforms of the enemy and will drive their stolen vehicles. Since they won’t be dressed in German military uniforms, they are ordered to infiltrate the enemy lines, change street signs and cut whatever wires they can find, all to confuse and harass the American enemy soldiers. The raid will be led by Colonel Otto Skorzeny, the same officer who rescued Benito Mussolini when the ungrateful Italians kidnapped him and hid him away in the Alps. Frankly, I’m amazed anyone would volunteer to do this because if they are captured, the enemy will undoubtedly execute them as spies.

General von Manteuffel’s orders to us were to cross the Meuse River but we were first to move through the forest and reach a town called Bastogne. There, we were ordered to clear it of the enemy and take and maintain control of its important crossroads. From the map, I can see that there are seven roads in the Ardennes which all meet up at Bastogne. Obviously we have to capture and control these crossroads. Once that objective was met, our tanks were to continue to the River Meuse, cross it and then move on to Antwerp. We never got that far. Others may have, but we did not.

Because of the mud and water, our vehicles had to drive in low gear which meant they burned up even more precious fuel than expected and soon, our division was at a standstill awaiting supplies of not only fuel but of men and ammunition as well. One whole infantry battalion never arrived to support our beleaguered troops because the rail lines had all been destroyed. If the secrecy ordered by der Führer had not been so strict before this offensive was launched, perhaps we could have sent out reconnaissance teams who would have brought these road and rail impediments to the attention of our officers but that was not permitted.

We continued to be concerned about fuel and where we will get enough of it to move our army to the ordered destination. We were told that our fuel lay in the dumps of the enemy and that we had to capture their depots as we pushed toward our objective. It’s a brilliant plan only there are a great many enemy soldiers defending these depots and a great many impediments denying us access. On our way to collect whatever fuel we could, we encountered tree stumps across the road which prevented our trucks from gaining any surprise and when our vehicles could veer off the road to avoid those roadblocks, the adjacent area was all mined.

Soon we heard that the troops who were ordered to protect our flanks had run out of fuel and while they were sitting there like bumps on pickles, we were expected to continue our attack towards Bastogne. We cannibalized broken down tanks and trucks and drained the last drop of gas that was in those vehicles. This was pretty easy since as we moved northwest, many of our tanks got bogged down in the swampy terrain and going was very slow. A lot of them broke down so we went to work getting their gas. The only problem was that I assumed our offensive would eventually need those tanks which were numbering fewer and fewer as we moved on.

As we were beginning our battle, one of our officers drove his tank into a column of American tanks. Clearly outnumbered, he still knocked out a few of their Shermans before his Panther was rammed. We had just one mechanic and while that Panther tank was as dead as a doornail, the mechanic eventually managed to restart it. The Panther immediately headed back to our area, and while on his way, he knocked out another enemy Sherman tank that was chasing him but aiming right for us. As the officer was getting out of the tank, though, he got hit and died before I got to congratulate him. I found out he was the same tank commander who had held the cross roads by Carentan by knocking out a tank at the corner of the Carentan crossroads where Purple Hearts had to have been given out by the hundreds. I got a couple of Amis (which is what we are calling the Americans) in his honor.

As the battle progressed, we saw that the enemy had done exactly what der Führer thought they would do. They separated their troops instead of concentrating them for one big push across our border. Well we showed them! At least we showed them for the first week or so but now, I sense the tide is turning and I see that I was too optimistic. Enemy forces are increasing and they are fighting with greater strength. I heard we initially had the enemy troops surrounded at St. Vith and we took thousands of prisoners. All of a sudden, though, the enemy brought up reinforcements which we had not thought possible and our men could not capture or hold that town.

It is snowing so heavily now, that no paths or roads are visible on the ground and the forest makes movement of any tanks almost impossible. It is winter and so the sun rises late in the morning and sets early in the afternoon. We have maybe eight hours of daylight and none of our tanks can fight at night. The best they have perfected is the art of moving from one place to another under cover of darkness to avoid enemy bombing runs. We are losing some of the ground we gained just yesterday and if other units are suffering the same fate, I’m not sure how we will progress to the victory our Führer demands of us. The enemy is now counter-attacking and with the mud all around us, we cannot move fast enough to regain control of the situation.

After a couple of days, it was becoming clear that with all the falling snow, our tanks were not able to gain any momentum on the small Belgian roadways. The only good thing about this snow was that it kept the enemy aircraft away from us for a short time. But soon the skies which had been heavy with clouds, cleared and enemy aircraft appeared knocking out many of our tanks and infantry troops. Those troops who were fighting in the north were able to regroup away from where the bombings were taking place. (If I’ve learned one thing during my service to the Reich, it is never to use the word “retreat.”) I learned that we were able to get many of our troops out of that area where the British were fighting because for some reason, the enemy general did not push with everything he had. As our men moved out trying to get to their assigned assembly areas though, their tanks kept breaking down going over cratered and destroyed roads. All our Northern troops and tanks were to have met by 20. December in order to fend off the concentrated enemy counter-attacks which we anticipated would be commenced. Our commanders were fearful that the enemy would strike before we could fully strengthen our position since it wasn’t until 23. Dec. that all who could make it finally arrived. Luckily, no counter offense took place.

For us fighting at Bastogne in the southern area, however, we faced a foe who was anything but the inferior soldier we were told we would be facing. Our infantry and tank units fought with ferocious distinction and held off the enemy for days, thinking all the while that Bastogne was withering, ready to die. From the patches and information we were able to learn about the enemy we faced there, it appeared we were fighting the airmen from the American 101
^st
Airborne Division. We fought long and hard against them and eventually had them all but surrounded. In a most merciful act, our commanding officer von Lüttwitz, sent an emissary to their commander under a flag of temporary truce who explained to the American Officer that we had them surrounded and we would agree to take them prisoners instead of continuing the fighting and killing. We all watched apprehensively as our man approached the enemy. We waited the allotted two hours and then smiled with relief when we saw the enemy hand a written response back to him. We awaited his return with hope that our battle would end with the capture of so many Americans.

The message we received had one word written on it: “Nuts.” We have several men who can speak English but obviously no one who is fluent. I in fact, knew that Nuts meant Nusser as that was my great grandmother’s last name but nuts made no sense to us. Did he want nuts before surrendering? That was absurd. Since no one could decipher his meaning and it was clear that if he wanted to surrender he would have been far less cryptic, we assumed he was rejecting our offer with this word which nobody understood.

One reason we hoped so ardently for the surrender of the Americans was because we were running out of fuel and we knew there was an enemy fuel depot there. Knowing the only fuel we would now be getting was the fuel we could capture, I could tell our officers were getting concerned. So the battle which has been continuing for over a week now goes on. Today it is Christmas and while we didn’t expect it, we hoped for a lull in the fighting but that was not to be. The snow stopped and the enemy bombings began again. Last night we saw the most massive display of enemy air power ever and their bombs and strafing continue even today. We either have to move at night or we are shot at. Since we couldn’t move today, I was able to write a letter.