DIARY ENTRY #6
By Don R. Marsh
August 10, 1944
Gathemo, France
On the 10th of August
1944, a Task Force consisting of the 2nd Battalion, 66th
Armored Regiment, 14th Armored Field Artillery Battalion, 1 Platoon
of Company “A” 17th Armored Engineer Battalion, 2nd
Battalion of 41st Armored Infantry Regiment (-1Co.), 1 Company of the
702nd Tank Destroyer Battalion and a detachment from Company “A” 48th
Armored Medical Battalion, attacked the town of Gathemo and east along a ridge
line on the flank of the German counterattack towards Avranches. Very heavy
resistance was encountered and the enemy massed heavy artillery and heavy
weapons fire from anti-tank guns in a desperate effort to stop the attack of the
Command. After heavy fighting, the balance of CC”A” joined the task Force on
13 August, took Ger and seized Hill 329 the next day.
On 20 August 1944, CC”A” began
an attack North and Northeast towards Elbeuf. We had taken Breteuil-Newburg and
were approaching St. Andre in a nighttime march. We were enroute to a crossing
at the Seine River at Mantes-Gassicourt in a double column that stretched for
endless miles behind us. It was 23 August, near 2100 hours and pitch dark as we
were trying to follow the vehicle in front, maintaining vehicle intervals
without tailgating. It takes all of your concentration to focus on the two small
taillights.
Without warning, suddenly we heard
an aircraft, a German JU88, circle over the top of us. He then climbed off in
the distance. After circling, he dropped a magnesium flare. We knew at once that
it was a Kraut plane and not one of ours. When I saw the flare drifting, with
its brilliant light, I thought, “Somebody is going to catch hell now.”
Little did I realize it would be us.
As the flare drifted closer
illuminating our miles of stalled columns, the plane passed overhead strafing us
with guns blazing, but not before dropping his bomb. It landed directly in front
of us about three vehicles forward almost on the road right next to the
Executive Officer’s Command half-track. After the terrific explosion, 27 year
old Lieutenant Colonel Benjamin Mart Bailey, Jr., West Point “M” Company
Class of 1939, was mortally wounded and died within moments after calling out,
“Help me. Somebody help me.” Other
members of the half-track crew were also severely wounded by the bomb blast and
fragments. A Master Sergeant lost his arm; I assumed that he died from trauma
and loss of blood. Others nearby were hit by bomb fragments and also suffered
concussion. We bailed out of our vehicles and ran into the nearby fields. Some
stayed on their .50 caliber ring mounted machines guns to fire at the plane,
when he made another and final strafing run at the road lined with vehicles
bumper to bumper. We had been sitting ducks. We recovered and the advance
continued throughout the night. General Collier replaced Colonel Bailey with Lt.
Colonel Wilson M. Hawkins from the 66th Armored Regiment as his
Executive Officer.
On 26 August 1944, the city of
Elbeuf, France was seized despite heavy resistance. During this action, The
Command advanced so rapidly that it ran off its maps and made the final assault
without them. The resistance was so aggressive that one column attacking from
the Southeast, consisting of primarily of the 2nd Battalion, 66th
AR, was cut off for two days and nights. After the city fell, Elbeuf was turned
over to the Canadian troops in return for a “receipt for the city” requested
by Colonel John H. “Peewee” Collier, Commanding officer of CC”A.” We
then moved to a new assembly area near Mantes-Gassicourt, crossing the Seine
River on 28-29 August 1944 and continued attacking northeast. The advance of the
division was so rapid that it moved with six columns abreast. What slowed us
down the most were the huge throngs of the local populations that turned out
enmasse to greet their liberators in every village and city. We witnessed young
women from many of the villages being rounded up in the town square to have
their heads shaved – payback time for having “associated” with the
despised German soldiers during their occupation.
The Command moved rapidly, crossing
the Somme River near Arras and Cambrai. XIX Corps issued orders on the night of
31 August 1944, to the 2nd Armored Division to capture the city of
Ghent (Tournai) within forty-eight hours. Earlier the XIX Corps had been
relegated to lesser role in Belgium, the honors being reserved for the British
under General Montgomery. The Corps directive to take the town by midnight was
met by CCA with two hours to spare. BG Collier radioed his command had arrived
at 2200 hours and was requesting new orders.
After cutting and crossing the
ARRAS-CAMBRAI road in the late afternoon of 1 September, the Combat Command
coiled and outposted both columns for the night; prepared to proceed in the same
direction the following day. During this drive, enemy units attempting to escape
tried to break through from the west, while the CCA columns were heading for the
Belgium border. These units, which included 2 Mark V tanks, 9 towed AT guns and
approximately 170 vehicles were engaged by our tanks and artillery and
destroyed. 450 prisoners were taken during this engagement.
1 September 1944 at LaChapelle,
France, an enemy artillery tree burst explodes wiping out friends on another
wire team. Killed outright is Bob Rosenberg and later Lowell P. Dillard dies of
wounds received. These two men and I sailed overseas together and traveled the
pipeline to these wire team assignments. This full wire team had to be replaced;
as the other men on the wire team—Joseph Harris, Edward Mickel, William G.
Emerson, Maurice F. Hatfield and Julius V. Conn are severely wounded and
evacuated.
On 2 September 1944, at 0930 hours,
the 82nd Reconnaissance Battalion crossed the French-Belgian border
astride the ORCHIES-TOURNAI road near Rumes in
force,
becoming the first of the Allied Ground Forces to enter Belgium. Eleven minutes
later, CC”A” now commanded by now newly promoted, Brigadier General John H.
“Peewee” Collier arrived with the full CC”A” command representing the
largest force to enter at that hour. Major General Edward Brooks followed right
behind the 82nd Recon Battalion. When Brooks came upon Lt. Col.
Wheeler Merriam, 82nd Recon CO, stopped with his A and B Companies to
refuel, he asked Merriam why he had stopped short with his advance, only to be
told by Merriam that they were already ten miles inside the Belgium border.
Afterwards we learned that late
that same afternoon, 2 September, at 1630 hours, the 3rd
Armored Division entered Belgium. MG Maurice Rose graciously permitted BG Doyle
Hickey, one of his Combat Commanders, to be the first of that unit to cross the
border; mistakenly under the impression that they were the first to cross the
border. When the Belgium government recognized the 2nd Armored
Division as the first to enter and liberate their country, they erected a
monument on the spot and they awarded the full division the Belgian Fourragere
on 22 May 1945, ending that sibling rivalry and dispute about being “first.”
At 0230 hours, 3 September 1944,
Division Headquarters received a message from the Commanding General of the
British Guards Armoured Division “expressing hope that the 2AD understands
Tournai to be totally within the British Zone.”
4 September 1944. The entire
command moved to an area southeast of the Orchies-Tournai road in a boundary
agreement with the British Second Army and our American First Army.
This day was my 22nd birthday – resting in an apple orchard,
eating “C” rations, no cake, no candles, just another day closer to going
home. With the Krauts on the run, we speculated about being home by Christmas,
but that wasn’t in the cards – far from it. We remained in this area for two
days because we had run out of fuel. Refueled and rested, we moved to a bivouac
area between Diest and Hasselt, Belgium on 8 September 1944. Hasselt later
became the Division Rest Center. 12 September 1944 General Brooks turns over
command of the 2nd Armored Division to Major General Ernest Harmon
– “Old Gravel Voice” returns to once again take command. Buckle your
chinstraps; we’re in for a ride! “Profane Ernie” likes to ride up front in
armored cars and tanks with his troops!
Early on 13 September we crossed
the Albert Canal north of Hasselt and attacked in an easterly direction through
Maastricht, Holland crossing the Meuse River on 16 September. By personal
request from the Catholic Archbishop of Maastricht, the city was placed “Off
Limits” to all GIs, enforced and patrolled by Corps MPs. Not that the citizens
had any valid reason to fear us, just that the “old boy” wanted to protect
his young maidens who were eager to meet the wild and horny Americans!
Fifty-six
years later, in the year 2000, in doing serious research to coauthor a book, I
came in contact with a former German soldier, now active in American-German
Veteran Friendship Associations, Herr Hubert Gees, residing in
Salzkotten-Scharmede, Germany. In addition to providing me with extremely
valuable World War Two German records and documents, Hubert related that he had
personal experiences in Limburg Province, Holland with our 2nd
Armored Division during September 1944. Gees was a seventeen-year-old
infantryman in the 464th Infantry Battalion at Eschweiler, Germany,
on September 4th when he was sent to Limburg.
Gees
was the second of a two-man Panzerschreck (anti-tank) team, along with Werner
Bottcher. Their mode of
transportation was bicycles. They carried the Panzerfausts (stove pipe tubes) on
their shoulders and tied two wooden boxes each containing 4 rockets (7.5 cm) to
the bikes. They weren’t too confident going up against an American armored
division. At the moment, their biggest fear was the American P-51 fighter
planes, they called the “Jabos.” Their mission was to defend the Albert
Canal. This same Canal CC”A” of the 2nd Armored was approaching.
On
September 16th1 mile from the east end of Bunde and the hamlet of
Kasen, Gees was in his foxhole, accompanied by his friend Abelius, when the
first tanks came into view, firing machine guns at his position. Artillery fire
was landing in his field and fighter planes attacking targets on the ground. He
decided to make a run for the nearby woods as bullets followed him. He said he
literally dove through a thicket helmet first in desperation to escape. Hiding
in the woods he escaped and on Sunday, September 17th met with other
stragglers who were then collected in the village of Moorveld for transfer to
defend Geilenkirchen. Two months later he was captured in the Hurtgen Forest and
became a Prisoner of War. He wrote that he was thankful the tankers from the 66th
Regiment didn’t kill him, as his friend Werner died in that action. Hubert
Gees and I continue to exchange season greetings and correspondence – former
enemies, now friends.
Heavy fighting occurred near
Valkenburg, Holland, which fell 17 September. The following day, 18 September,
the Command crossed the border into Germany at Wehr and Hillensberg near
Geilenkirchen. Until 30 September, CC”A” remained in a defensive position
southwest of Geilenkirchen defeating, with heavy casualties, German
counterattacks with armor and infantry. Total prisoners taken 67, killed 220, 22
vehicles destroyed and 12 assault guns. At that time the Command assembled in
the rear of the front line to prepare for the breakthrough of the Siegfried
Line. We were relieved by the 115th Infantry Regiment. The 2nd
Armored Division crossed the German border on 18 September 1944 at Schimmert to
take up defensive positions.
Every so often in a soldier’s
life, you get a decent break. Our break was being assigned to the Dutch village
of Brunsuum, Holland. If there ever was a “soldier’s dream spot” – this
was it. The population could not have been more hospitable and openly friendly
to their liberators, in every way. They showered us with food and beverages.
Most spoke English as a second language. We were welcomed into their homes and
made friendships that lasted for decades long after the war. Many of our troops
returned to marry their Dutch girlfriends. One comes to mind, Charlie Boss and
his Wilhelmina, who found true love.
By this time, the original wire
crew had lost two members, Fred Newland and here Joe Elfer. Elfer being the
driver of the ton & ¼ wire truck, we requested a replacement from the
Signal Company, but were told none was available. So Lt. Moll asked for and
received a driver (TDY) from the Division Services Company – one Private
Charles Boss. He was short in stature, about 5 foot 2inches and wiry, but
boisterous and out-going. Charlie fit in immediately. His “I don’t give a
damn” attitude was a great example of GIs who had reached the point after two
years service where rank – their own (or lack thereof) or others – no longer
made a difference. Charlie could be borderline insolent in dealing with officers
as he came close to the line, but always spoke to them with a disarming smile on
his face. He flourished in our circle as a hot dog, but never showed any fear as
a driver.
Nearby
Brunsuum, was the city of
Heerlen. We learned of hot showers available at the coalmine employee’s locker
room with endless hot water, a luxury we had missed for months and we took full
advantages of the premises. Besides, cleaning up improved your chances with the
young local gals, of which there was no shortage at Café Juliana, eager to meet
the Americans. As it turned out, it worked well for all concerned. Brunsuum was friendly,
no doubt about it. To save you from asking or wondering – her name was Edith
and she was a stunning nineteen-year-old redhead!
Other nearby cities and places of
interest included the small community of Vaals; the only location where three
countries’ (Belgium, Holland and Germany), frontiers intersect at a common
border. Vaals had been an important holiday resort. From Vaalsserberg, the
highest hill in Holland, you could get a good view of Aachen, to our south. Just
east of Aachen, the 3rd Armored Division had pierced the Siegfried
Line and was in a stalemate at Stolberg, Germany.
Forty years later Hans Kramp of
Linnich, Germany, a German veteran contacted me. He was the author of the World
War Two historical book “Rurfront 1944-45” -- inviting me to attend the site
to commemorate the deaths of the fallen soldiers of both armies on this field of
battle. Now every year on the first Sunday of October the local parish priest of
St. Martin’s Church of Linnich conducts a field service at the site in honor
of the men who fell in service of their countries. The site borders Lindern,
Holland and Linnich, Germany. It is called the “Hubertuskreuz” (Hubert’s
Cross) and was first erected in 1844 to commemorate the historical battle
between the medieval legions of the Duke of Julich (Germany) and the Duke of
Geldern (Holland) on November 3, 1444, called St. Hubert’s Day. Thirty-five
years after the famous WWII battles for the Roer (Rur) River 1944-45, the local
citizens of both countries decided to pay respects to the dead of all who died
here by placing a huge stone at the same site. Actually, the two stone memorials
are placed at the same site commemorating the significant land battles that took
place on that spot 500
years apart – 1444-1944. American units on the stone memorial plaque are the 2nd
Armored Division, 29th, 30th, 84th, 102nd and 104th US Infantry
Divisions.
After
the end of the war, the U.S. Government constructed the only American Cemetery
in The Netherlands. It lies in the village of Margraten, 6 miles east of
Maastricht. It contains the remains of 10,023 men, including Major General
Maurice Rose, Commanding Officer of the U.S. Third Armored Division, Killed In
Action on 30 March 1945 at Hamborn, Germany.
A special medal was awarded to the
2nd Armored Division on October 6, 1982, in Washington, DC, by the
Netherlands Government; represented by Dr. J. H. Lubbers, the Netherlands
Ambassador to the USA. In attendance was the Secretary of the Army, John O.
Marsh, Jr. The medal, The Netherlands National Resistance Cross, was awarded to
the 2nd Armored Division for its participation in the liberation of
Holland from Nazi occupation. Only two other American Army divisions, the 82nd
Airborne and the 101st Airborne were awarded this honor.
Publication
or reproduction, in part or whole, is prohibited without written permission from
the author, Don R. Marsh. All rights remain the sole property of The Marsh
Family Trust.