Holland 1940-1945

[Erwin L]

Thanks Unfortunately that two women were not the only one that day in Eindhoven....

Keep in mind that just after the liberation a lot of people were wrongly accused of working together with the Germans. Unfortunately they didn't get a fair trial when they needed it.

[Erwin L]

This is the soldbuch from Walther Zimmermann which i got from my good friend Sebastien. Definetely one of my favourits. Walther Zimmermann was born on 23 March 1915 in Hamm

After serving a long time in flak units, he finally served with 3/Fallsch. Jag. Ers u Ausb. Regt. von Hoffmann. The 3rd Kompanie was under command from Oblt Kalweit. Around that time the Regiment was located near Luyksgestel (Netherlands) near the Belgium border preparing for the battles which will be started soon. He was killed in action on 13 september 1944 in Luyksgestel near the Belgium border.

According to Heinz Volz (Fallschirm Jager Regiment von Hoffmann ) the regiment had his first casualties on 13 september 1944, because of Allied Artillery fire. Lt. Hanbuch was also killed because an Artillery grenate hit his foxhole. One soldier from the Stab got wounded when a grenade fragment explode some other handgrenades (probably in a box) from the Germans. Also a Hauptfeldwebel felt in front of the door from the Commandopost. Perhaps one of them was Walther Zimmermann. It's almost sure that Walther Zimmermann lost his life due to this Artillery bombardment this day.

Regards

Erwin

[Erwin L]

During his service in flak units he got some very interesting entries written down in his soldbuch for shooting down Allied bombers with his flak crew. This list was to gather points for the Flakkampf Abzeichen. I believe you need 15 points to earn the Flakkampf Abzeichen. He got 24 points.

An interesting day is 26.11.1943. On this day he and his flakcrew shot down 6 Lancasters returning from a bombinng raid on Berlin.

5 shot down Lancasters are written together on one page. No. 6 is written on a sheet which is entered in the soldbuch. Here also the exact location as Abschussort, has been written. The place Germendorf.

According to the RAF, 26 November 1943 was one of the most successful attacks in the so-called "Battle of Berlin". 28 of the 443 Lancaster were lost during this attack on Berlin. The crews from those 28 lost ended in death or captivity.

One of them was Lancaster DS 814JI M. Here a bit of background information from one of the Lancaster crews. Lancaster DS 814JI M in particular who took part in this attack.

The crew of Lancaster Mk.II, serial no.DS814 JI M of the 514th Squadron at Waterbeach, must have just been on her way home when she was shot down. The bombers approached from the south from Berlin, after they unload their bombs on the northeast sector of Berlin they returned home.

Lancaster DS814 JI M was probably spotted by searchlights in the Teschendorf/Lowenberg area, according to an eye witness. Shortly after the DS814 JI M was spotted by a searchlight he saw that it started to burn and crashed in the woods north of Germendorf.

The day after, the eyewitness visited the crash site and besides the shattered hull from Lancaster DS814 JI M he saw the bodies of two dead crew members. The Lancaster 814 JI M crew was buried in Germendorf on 29 November 1943. After the war they were reburied on the Berlin War cemetry.

Pilot F/O. Maurice R. Cantin, 21 years, KIA, Berlin 9/D/16
Navigator F/Sgt. GF William Saddler, 20 years, KIA, Berlin 9/D/21-22
Flight Engineer Sgt. Kerry G. King, 19 years, KIA, Berlin 9/D/20
Air Bomber Sgt. Stuart E. Smith, unknown, KIA, Berlin 9/D/17
Wireless Operator Sgt. Mitchell WET, 22 years, KIA, Berlin 9/D/21-22
Air Gunner Sgt. Robert N. Walne, 20 years, KIA, Berlin 9/D/19
Air Gunner Sgt Leslie F. Eyre, 36 years, KIA, Berlin 9/D/18

According to researcher M. Schulze i got s ome extra information. A big thanks to him

During that night:
Lancaster JB362 crashed at Gransee.
Lancaster JA913 crashed at Schönwalde/Glien
Lancaster JB527 at Ahrensfelde
Lancaster DV388 at Finow
Three further Lancaster only mentioned as crashed in target
Two Lancs crashed at Trechwitz and Potsdam, both south of Berlin.

So a big chance is that Zimmermann and his Flakcrew were responsible for shooting down some of these as well. Although Zimmermann got more then 15 points in total for shooting down Allied bombers, no entrie regarding this award has been written in solbuch and wehrpass. He most likely got it.

regards

Erwin

[Erwin L]

Finally a picture from his grave at IJsselsteyn War Cemetry.

[Erwin L]

Could this be the signature from Oblt und Komp Fhr Kalweit? I think it is but i'm not sure.

[Panzer Rob]

Wow, that's a great Flak Soldbuch Erwin. It is always an added bonus (for the lack of a better term) to have the entries listed for aircraft shot down, especially when you are able to find detailed info on them, as you have here. Lastly, closing with an image of the soldier's grave marker is always a fitting way to end a post as it serves as a very real and sobering reminder of the ultimate cost of war

Thanks for sharing it with us.

[Panzer Rob]

363.vgd

Did somebody say 363.VGD?

Here's a nice 363.VGD Soldbuch I picked up earlier this year to a NCO by the name of Fritz Brämer who was a platoon leader in 3./Gren.Rgt.957 and fought against the 506 PIR (101st Airborne Division) at Opheusden in October 1944 for which he was awarded the Iron Cross 1st class.

The two SS companies (I believe they were attached to "Frundsberg") attacked by Capt. Dick Winters and a detachment from Easy company in the early morning hours of 5.October was attached to the 363.VGD and would have assisted in the assault on Opheusden later that morning. Brämer's unit - Gren.Rgt.957 - went up against F, G and H companies (3rd Btl., 506PIR) and went on to reach the 506th's Regimental HQ situated in Opheusden. Major Horten, the 3rd Battalion 506PIR's commanding officer, was killed in this battle. These events are depicted in the episode titled "Crossroads" in the Band of Brothers miniseries.



See also: http://www.army.mil/article/46037/


and: http://www.worldwar2history.info/Ban...s/company.html

[Panzer Rob]

Pages 2/3 and 4/5

[Panzer Rob]

Taken from the amazing website "The Wounding of Charlie Wilber" (http://thewoundingofcharliewilber.com) - an absolute wealth of information and a very fitting tribute (by Doug Wilber) to Charlie Wilber who was wounded on 5.October 1944 during the fighting in Opheuseden. I've spent hours reading (and re-reading) through this site and highly recommend anyone interested in the fighting at Opheuseden as well as in France and the Netherlands during 1944 and 1945:

"Early on the morning of October 5th the German 363rd Volksgrenadier Division augmented by tanks, artillery and a battalion of engineers, crossed the Neder Rhine and attacked Opheusden with the purpose of driving the Allies from the Island. The third battalion of the 506th, particularly Companies George and How borne the blunt of the attack. Because of this, Baker Company /326th, with permission from Divisional Headquarters, was converted to infantrymen and ordered west to determine the extent of the German drive. My Dad was led by Lt. Col. Robert Sink to the outskirts of Opheuseden and told to advance forward. The 1st platoon attacked under heavy fire and crossed the bridge leading to the small village. After passing the railroad station and several houses, they came upon an open field and used a ditch to cross open ground at a right angle to the advancing Germans…….."

Here's a photo of the Opheuseden railroad station:

[Panzer Rob]

...and a map that shows the attacks on the morning of 5.October (more here http://thewoundingofcharliewilber.com/page_9.html as well as another of Opheuseden, both from http://thewoundingofcharliewilber.com:

[Panzer Rob]

Judging from the dates of the award entries, Brämer more than likely received his EKI for the fighting in Opheusden, and considering his IAB was awarded about a month later, there's an extremely good chance some of those days which made him eligible for the award were from the fighting in Opheusden.

In late October Brämer was wounded (31a - bullet wound) and sent to Kriegslazarett Abteilung 613 in Utrecht. His wounds couldn't have been too serious or life threatening as Brämer was released on 15.November and presumably returned to his unit, 3./Gren.Rgt.957. Notice that Brämer had already been wounded twice previously as he received the silver wound badge on 11.June 1943. His discharge papers list that he had scars on his left hand, hip and chest due to combat injuries so Brämer was a hardened combat veteran... a true Frontschwein. His discharge documents also confirm that he was a platoon leader.



The last entry in Brämer's Soldbuch is a leave entry dated 8.Dec. 1944 (8.-12.Dec.1944) so it can only be assumed that he returned to his field unit and continued to fight until falling in to US captivity; there is a "31G 2305582" entry on page 1 in his Soldbuch indicating Brämer was eventually taken prisoner by the US Army.


When and where Brämer was taken prisoner will most likely forever remain a mystery however if Brämer did in fact return to his unit after being released from hospital on 15.November it's highly likely he went on to participate in the fighting on the Roer River at the Jülich Sportplatz, Hasenfeld Gut and then, against the US 1st Army during Operation Lumberjack.

By late November:

"...the 363.VGD was manning three small bridgeheads on the western bank of the Roer River at the Jülich Sportplatz, Hasenfeld Gut and a small patch of woods near the bridge on the Aldenhoven road. Incredibly, the defenders of the small German pockets helf off determined attacks by the 116th Infantry Regiment for a week - and dealt out heavy casualties. Minefields protected the German fighting positions. A tunnel complex at the Sportplatz allowed the defending Germans to move about in safety, and machine gun nests had superb fields of fire across the eight hundred yards of open ground outside the facility. The swimming pool alone had a machine gun in each corner, supported by an Assault Gun. Observation posts on the higher eastern bank allowed German artillery observers to provide extremely effective artillery support. On December 7, the task passed to the 115th Infantry Regiment.



Late on December 8, the 363.VGD reported that it could no longer hold the bridgeheads and requested permission to withdraw its five remaining companies (two at the Sportplatz and three at Hasenfeld Gut). Köchling refused.



The GIs needed all day on December 8, and the help of Shermans from the 747th Tank Battalion, to clear out the rearguard at the rearguard at the Jülich Sportplatz. Twenty-four Germans surrendered there, surrounded by the bodies of forty-two of their comrades. Köchling appealed to von Zagen over the senseless waste of the companies and requested permission to withdraw them. By the time approval came down, it was nearly too late; all contact had been lost. Ten men exfiltrated on inflatable bladders or by swimming from Hasenfeld Gut, and fifty-five (mostly wounded) from the Sportplatz.



By nightfall, the 29th Infantry Division controlled the entire west bank in its sector. To get there, the division had lost more than five hundred men killed and some eighteen hundred wounded."

Some information on Operation Lumberjack:

"Operation Lumberjack was a military operation conducted in the last stages of the war in Europe during World War II. It was launched by the First United States Army in March 1945 to capture strategic cities in Germany such as Cologne, and to give the Allies a foothold along the Rhine River. With the 21st Army Group firmly established along the Rhine, Bradley's 12th Army Group prepared to execute Operation LUMBERJACK. General Omar Bradley's plan called for the U.S. First Army to attack southeastward toward the juncture of the Ahr and Rhine Rivers and then swing south to meet Patton, whose U. S. Third Army would simultaneously drive northeastward through the Eifel. If successful, LUMBERJACK would capture Cologne, secure the Koblenz sector, and bring the 12th Army Group to the Rhine in the entire area north of the Moselle River. The 12th Army Group also hoped to bag a large number of Germans.



During the operation, the U.S. First Army controlled the III, V, and VII Corps. III Corps had the 9th Armored Division and the 1st, 9th, and 78th Infantry
Divisions attached. V Corps had attached the 2nd, 28th, 69th, and 106th Infantry Divisions attached as well as the 7th Armored Division, although the 7th was not committed to the operation and had transferred to the III Corps by March 7. The VII Corps controlled the 3rd Armored Division and the 8th, 99th, and 104th Infantry Divisions.


From north to south, the attacking U.S. forces were confronted by the LXXXI (9th and 11th Panzer Divisions, and the 476th, 363rd, and 59th Infantry
Divisions) and LVIII Panzer Corps (353rd and 12th Infantry Divisions, as well as the 3rd Panzergrenadier Division) of the German Fifteenth Army, and the LXXIV (85th and 272nd Infantry Divisions, as well as the 3rd Airborne Division), LXVII (89th and 277th Infantry Divisions), and LXVI Corps (5th Airborne Division) of the German Fifth Panzer Army.



Bradley launched LUMBERJACK on 1 March. In the north, the First Army rapidly exploited bridgeheads over the Erft River, entering Euskirchen on 4 March and Cologne on the fifth. Simultaneously, the Third Army swept through the Eifel to the Rhine. The distance advanced by U.S. units during LUMBERJACK varied between about 10 to 40 miles. In the north, the U.S. VII Corps advanced to the banks of the Rhine River in Cologne, while its neighbor to the south, III Corps, advanced to positions near Bonn and into Remagen. Further south, the V Corps pushed about 10 to 20 miles into the High Eifel. In the First Army area, a task force of the 9th Armored Division—commanded by Lt. Col. Leonard Engeman—advanced toward Remagen as part of the LUMBERJACK offensive. As the armored task force reached the edge of the city, it discovered that the Ludendorff railroad bridge over the Rhine was, surprisingly, still standing. Engeman attacked and, although the German defenders attempted to destroy the span, took the bridge on 7 March.


The Allies finally had a bridgehead on the Rhine. In the Battle of Remagen over the coming days, the Germans tried desperately to destroy the bridge, but to no avail. General Dwight D. Eisenhower told Bradley to push five divisions across the Rhine to secure the bridgehead, but he did not let the 12th Army Group take immediate advantage of the opportunity offered. Instead, on 13 March, Eisenhower ordered Bradley to limit the expansion of the Remagen bridgehead to a maximum width of 25 mi (40 km) and a depth of 10 mi (16 km), lest it detract from the main effort by the 21 Army Group. Although the Ludendorff bridge collapsed on 17 March, the Allies had built several pontoon bridges across the Rhine by then and had a strong bridgehead on the east shore."

[Panzer Rob]

A few more scans of Brämer's Soldbuch:

[Panzer Rob]

...and the Hospitalization pages:

[Panzer Rob]

...a few more:

[Panzer Rob]

Brämer's awards: