It was a cold morning on 12. April and clouds of breath
surrounded the soldiers of the Leibstandarte as they began their day. It was
going to be a day of hard fighting, though few of these men knew what lay ahead.
Lined up tents and the remnants of last nights bonfire gave a false sense of
security in the little grove thoughtfully picked as our camp site. The enemy was
close and as we were soon to learn, too close for comfort.
After the briefing of the unit commanders and Zug- and
Gruppenfuehrer (Platoon- and Squad leaders) a final inspection of troops and
equipment finished the preparations and we assembled to be taken via trucks to
our jump off point. Only a short drive later we arrived in a small grove and
after Panzerobergrenadier Ackermann and myself concealed our Motorcycle with
sidecar between some bushes, we joined our comrades and took position at the
edge of the forest. Our small combat group was comprised of two squads and was
led by youthful yet experienced Oberscharfuehrer Varga. The two squads were in
the capable hands of combat veterans Unterscharfuehrer Bergstroem and
Oberscharfuehrer Lewis. Receiving new orders we were to take new positions 150
meters ahead and with that reach the Hauptkampflinie (main line of resistance).
The Panzergrenadiere had to cross an open field and were submitted to dangerous
exposure. Sturmmann Franklin and myself were given the task of
protecting our rear and eventually pull our vehicles forward and rejoin our
Kampfeinheit (combat unit). Our comrades made it safely across the field and I
sighed in relief. In the mean time Franklin and I were joined by units of the
Wehrmacht, which brought with them mortars and light and heavy machine guns and
were to take position on our left flank. We were happy to see the additional
fire power, especially since fire was opened and our MG 34 roared to life across
the field.
The 34 was operated by a father and son team, unique but
effective since Perrault Senior and Junior completed each other and delivered
accurate fire, keeping the opposing GI's heads down. The fire became heavier and
the first wounded cried out. Our objective was heavily defended and we received
accurate fire from well concealed positions. Franklin started the Kuebel and I
hopped on the BMW Krad and under covering fire from a squad of the Wehrmacht we
raced in break neck speed across the field to join our comrades in their
struggle. As soon as we arrived and left our vehicles we entered a small forest
and immediately came under heavy fire. While slowly advancing we came across
some of our fallen comrades which were in the process of being moved to the rear
and my heart cramped, making my determination grow to overcome and wipe out
enemy resistance. I was trying to advance within hand grenade range when 30
meters ahead a GI came into my sights, split seconds later he toppled over
backwards and movement ceased. Suddenly I saw a motion in the corner of my eye
and turning to the right I felt a heavy blow against my head and faded...
Coming to I was safe amongst my comrades and realized I was
lucky having gotten away with just a bruise and light trauma and the dent in my
helmet bore silent witness to it. The bullet that hit me came from a well
camouflaged sniper which was covering our right flank and was responsible for a
number of casualties and although heavily fired upon seemed impregnable.
Once regrouped Oberscharfuehrer Lewis decided to take out the
deadly sniper with an all out assault. The attack was successful and the enemy
marksman died under a hail of bullets! A reconnaissance patrol revealed an
abandoned bunker overlooking a small clearing. In this bunker and its
surrounding terrain we took position and waited for further orders. At one point
the heavy MG on our left flank came under heavy fire from advancing GIs which
used a ridge as cover for their approach. A small raiding party consisting of
Sturmmann Franklin and myself gave our comrades of the Wehrmacht a helping
hand and hit the advancing enemy in their flank. GIs not killed or wounded
retreated quickly. This surprise attack temporarily crippled the American attack
and gave the boys from the Wehrmacht valuable time to regroup.
Just when we were ready to finish the job and pursue the
retreating enemy, Oberscharfuehrer Varga received orders to fall back and led us
about 100 meters to the rear where we reestablished position once more where we
first engaged the enemy. Although we didn't quite understand the withdrawal it
was not up to us to question orders and we secured our position. Adjacent to the
little grove we occupied was a canal and another forest on the opposite side of
that canal. Panzerobergrenadier Ackermann took position on the edge of the grove
scanning the left side of the canal, my position on the bank covered the other
side. I kept a visual with Oberscharfuehrer Varga who stayed with the vehicles,
trying to get in touch with headquarters. While scanning the far end of the
canal I suddenly saw movement and emerging from a group of tall trees was a
small group of soldiers. As the soldiers came closer Ackermann signaled me and I
passed on the information to the Zugfuehrer: A squad of British Paratroopers was
approaching! The Oberscharfuehrer alerted everybody and urged us to hold fire
until the targets were up, close and personal! Moments later Ackermann opened up
with his MP 40 and was immediately joined by the rest of us. It was over in
seconds, our ambush wiped out the entire British recon patrol and our location
remained unbetrayed.
New orders were issued and once more we advanced and were to
retake to area around the small bunker. Once there the Perraults set up the MG
in the bunker and now our true objective became clear: Across the small field in
front of us was a rise and next to it a bridge, it was a vital crossing which we
had to take and secure, but there was one problem, it was defended by a massive
concrete pill box and a network of trenches and the only way across was
the bridge or crossing the canal! As soon as we started advancing we came under
mortar fire and I knew we needed to take out that mortar before it was able to
zero in on us. Oberscharfuehrer Varga split up our force and with a group on
either side of the canal we executed a pincer movement on the deadly
bunker. I was ordered to attempt taking out the mortar with grenades and
although I was able to race across the field with the motorcycle unharmed, I
came under heavy fire from a commanding ridge which protected the bunkers right
flank. I managed to toss a couple grenades into the mortar position and although
the mortar resumed firing a few minutes later it did give us a break within
which we worked our way closer to the bunker. Rottenfuehrer Birch protected my
left flank and also came under heavy fire from the ridge. Shortly after I was
joined by Rottenfuehrer Butner. Just as we readied to continue the assault, a
mighty explosion to the rear caught our attention and we saw a fire
threaten to consume our command post in the small bunker. We left our forward
positions and with combined efforts were able to get the fire under control
which could have easily cut off our reinforcements and blown up forward ammo
dumps.
Afterwards we resumed the attack, happy that the enemy took
no advantage of our troubled situation, and after a daring raid through the
canal Oberscharfuehrer Lewis and a handful of men took the bunker from the rear
while the rest of us drew fire from the front of the bunker diverting their
focus. We lost some good men in this struggle but persevered and proved once
more that the SS Panzergrenadiere of the LAH were unstoppable.
After securing the bunker Oberscharfuehrer Varga informed us,
that we had to expect a counter attack and right away we prepared for that
occasion. The counter attack never came!
A reconnaissance patrol consisting of Panzerobergrenadier
Taylor and Panzergrenadier Nosil returned reporting about some enemy movement
and sporadic exchange of fire but no attack of force was to be expected. Our
attack had overwhelmed the Allied defense, the enemy withdrew, Victory was ours!
Wolf Busch
SS Sturmmann
1.SS Pzr. Div. LAH