While stumbling through the world of the MVPA, I ran into a fellow in Germany that was offering me some assistance in trying to bring a vehicle over to the US. While corresponding with him, he told me that he had a relative that had been in a field division of the Luftwaffe during the Second World War. Naturally, that perked my interest so I asked him if he knew which one. He responded that he hasn't been able to determine yet which division that it was, but believes it to be either the 1.Feld or 6.Feld, both of which were on the Russian front. He also said that he had his relative's journal and offered me a copy. Naturally I accepted. He e-mailed it to me today and I began my translating process. It begins with his training and runs through his ultimate surrender and imprisonment. For those interested, this is a snippet of what I've translated thus far:
In the morning 19 March went it from the front loosely. Only artillery, then "Urraeh", and they came! We fell again from the shelter, went into our foxholes, and then drauf which the carbine gave. Now also the howitzers, which I had seen behind the Kremlin wall, helped us. I believe it was caliber of 28. Those worked enormously, about 80 meters before us went those to breaking into apart. There no eye remained drying! The Iwan had to again give up, but he tried it this day still twice. With the last mark the brown ones came nearly without rifles. They had to gather the rifles of the pleasures and then further. It did not use anything, because we resisted so well we could. In addition, with us the gaps became larger. At night meal and ammunition came, wounded and dead ones were removed. Of sleep was not to be thought, because both sides shot at everything, which moved. When on the other morning the artillery began again, we crept first times again into our shelters, while a post at each side of the shelter observed the area. If then the brown shapes emerged again, was highest alarm. We ran by the ditch, everyone on conditions, had to hinschmeissen us occasionally, because garnet was too close to. Then the situation was pinpointed, the machine guns briefly held already drauf and then fires from all pipes. But this time it would have gone wrong nearly, because were simply too many. The section, on which the attack took place, amounted to about 400 meters, the area up to the Wolchow of 150 meters. This whole strip wimmelte from brown shapes. There the rescue came for us, but for the Russians it was cruel. A nebelwerfer battery (those are six cannons with six rockets) behind us had driven and sent their benedictions to the Iwan against. One thought, the world goes down!! Only this dreadful Geheul, then the firing tires over us, and immediately thereafter we saw only FIRE, FIRE, FIRE!
I'm planning on having a very enjoyable weekend making my way through the rest of the journal.
In the morning 19 March went it from the front loosely. Only artillery, then "Urraeh", and they came! We fell again from the shelter, went into our foxholes, and then drauf which the carbine gave. Now also the howitzers, which I had seen behind the Kremlin wall, helped us. I believe it was caliber of 28. Those worked enormously, about 80 meters before us went those to breaking into apart. There no eye remained drying! The Iwan had to again give up, but he tried it this day still twice. With the last mark the brown ones came nearly without rifles. They had to gather the rifles of the pleasures and then further. It did not use anything, because we resisted so well we could. In addition, with us the gaps became larger. At night meal and ammunition came, wounded and dead ones were removed. Of sleep was not to be thought, because both sides shot at everything, which moved. When on the other morning the artillery began again, we crept first times again into our shelters, while a post at each side of the shelter observed the area. If then the brown shapes emerged again, was highest alarm. We ran by the ditch, everyone on conditions, had to hinschmeissen us occasionally, because garnet was too close to. Then the situation was pinpointed, the machine guns briefly held already drauf and then fires from all pipes. But this time it would have gone wrong nearly, because were simply too many. The section, on which the attack took place, amounted to about 400 meters, the area up to the Wolchow of 150 meters. This whole strip wimmelte from brown shapes. There the rescue came for us, but for the Russians it was cruel. A nebelwerfer battery (those are six cannons with six rockets) behind us had driven and sent their benedictions to the Iwan against. One thought, the world goes down!! Only this dreadful Geheul, then the firing tires over us, and immediately thereafter we saw only FIRE, FIRE, FIRE!
I'm planning on having a very enjoyable weekend making my way through the rest of the journal.
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