JCSM Shareware Collection 1996 September

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* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * THE WAR MOVES INTO A NEW YEAR * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * The arrival of the new year found me still in Luxembourg. Although we continued to follow the terrible fighting to the north of us, there was nothing we could do but wait for orders. Command changes made as a result of the German offensive left us in Patton's Third Army, a new experience. Well aware of his reputation for driving his troops hard, we wondered when he would call upon us. While waiting, I found time to exchange views with my parents about the German offensive. From their letters and the press, it was clear that this had come as a rude shock to the American public. After our successes during the summer, it had decided the war in Europe was all but over. As the clock passed midnight, I wrote a short letter home. Dear Folks, 00:15 January 1, 1945, Luxembourg The New Year is here. Let me send to all of you wishes for the best possible happiness during the coming year. Love, John In mid-morning, I was driving along a road when I saw an infantry unit conducting an exercise. As a part of simulating an attack on the town of Wecker, which was well behind our lines, it was shooting up flares. Suddenly a group of American aircraft began to bomb and strafe the town. Fortunately, the bombs fell short of the houses, and there were not many casualties. If there was any doubt that the war had not ended, Hitler soon erased it. He chose January 1 to launch Northwind to the south of us, an offensive less well known than the one in the Ardennes. Unfortunately, the French forces had failed to eliminate a pocket of Germans in the Colmar area, south of Strasbourg. These coordinated an attack with one by German forces north of Strasbourg. At one point, Eisenhower seriously considered abandoning that city. This invited another threat from de Gaulle to withdraw French forces from Eisenhower's command. It proved possible, however, to defeat the German attack without precipitating a crisis in French-American relations. We were at the time unaware of these political maneuvers. Since the fighting did not affect me directly, I was more concerned with my father's efforts to adjust to civilian life. Then approaching fifty, his years in China (as adviser to the Chinese on railway construction), Alaska (where he commanded a railroad), and North Africa (where he selected railway targets for the Air Force) had been too much for him. After a lengthy hospitalization at Valley Forge, the doctors decided that his health would not permit him to continue in the army, and he was retired. Dear Dad, January 2, 1945, Luxembourg Your letters of December 12 and 14 have arrived. I noted especially your change of jobs to make a climb up the ladder of the railroad business with some pride. Certainly you would be foolish to fail to capitalize on your World War II experience. Your negotiations with the firms interest me no end. By all means, do keep me informed on developments. You know, I'm promoting your return to China like wildfire. Besides, this gives me a continuous thread on which to tie myself when things don't go well here. Boston, Richmond, New York. Well do I remember that trip with you when I was a child. The Woolworth Building, the subway, the Holland Tunnel, many exciting moments for a small boy. From the clipping I sent mother, you will see that our unit, after a difficult fight in Hurtgen, took the left wing of the offensive and held it. But that's the sort of thing that's duck soup for our men. They love to get a Jerry coming across an open field, with them in the hole, for once. We worked them over quite well. Many of us feel that had we been at the center of the German drive, they'd probably have gone through us as they did the others, but we'd surely have given them a tussle, believe you me. But, as it was, we had to be content with catching only the poor buzzards who were making the containing attack on the flank. General Patton has said this was our best action. If he thought that, he ought to have seen us on a couple of our others. Incidentally, I was interested in learning of your job as rail bombing officer in the Mediterranean. I had not known of this before. Your son, John Dear Folks, January 10, 1945, Luxembourg The packages have been literally rolling in. All of them have been excellent. Glad you included tea balls in your last. I was out of them. Did I tell you I gave a T/Sgt. Stockely your address and phone number? He's on his way home on furlough, after being in a rifle company since D-day, the only one in his company who has not been wounded. He lives in Kensington. You might invite him out when he calls. He could tell you much of what we've been doing. HOW TO APPROACH A WAR THAT SEEMS TO GO ON FOREVER Dear Dad, January 5, 1945, Luxembourg One time you said that one should approach each battle as though it would be the last, and one day this would be so. For five fights, I've lived and fought in hope that it would be the last. None have been. Each just paved the way toward the next. Each was harder than the last. This factor alone insures that some day one of us must break. The German offensive in the Ardennes was a set-back. We may be able to turn it to advantage by destroying Rundstedt's forces, but it was an effective blow nevertheless. Personally, I feel sure it is either the first of a series of such attacks, or it is the only attack he could muster, and he is using strong patrol activity and small scale attacks to make us fear another, while he digs in for the next fight. But this is beside the point. What I wanted to say was this. For myself I am about to conclude that the wisest approach to this business is a resignation to many more fights, many more months of war. If this should prove over-pessimistic, anything less would be bonus. But I feel I need to adopt a little more realistic and a harder approach to the whole subject. This war will not end because it is difficult and inconvenient for me. Whether I get back to school or even survive to do the many things I hope to matters very little. It will only be when we have fought hard enough and long enough that we shall crush the German army. And I truly believe this is the only way we shall end this struggle. There is nothing to indicate the war will end with less. And there is little to indicate we can end the war for many months. If this sounds reasonable after further consideration, I shall set next summer as the time to look forward to. Our spring offensive will be the one to finish Hitler off. A winter offensive into Germany is still possible, but more remote. To be sure, we are not above destroying German forces in Belgium, but I am dubious. Jerry surely is capable of one more such drive, especially if he sacrifices inferior forces and extracts his best forces from the Bulge. Anyway, the Wehrmacht's recuperative powers are amazing. There are many unknowns in this that only tomorrow will reveal, but the bald facts don't permit a rosy picture. Meanwhile, fighting Jerry at times becomes almost a pleasure. An admiration for cleverness almost turns to a dislike for ruthlessness. Killing them becomes a game - a pleasure. No doubt they feel the same way. We shall see. Your son, John Dear Folks, January 11, 1945, Luxembourg Sounds to me as though the late German Ardennes offensive has somewhat depressed you all. What an inaccurate impression to have. Let me give you a few reasons. As the war was going, we were only making satisfactory progress in the number of Jerries we were killing. This may have led to a breakthrough, but maybe not. As things developed, we probably inflicted as many casualties on them in the Ardennes as any other place. To be sure, they stalled our hard won Duren opportunity and perhaps others. But as to whether that is good or bad remains to be seen. The most they got out of this attack was time. The land meant nothing and is being taken back. If they hoped to do more, they failed. Certainly, if they hoped to discourage our soldiers, they failed miserably. You should have watched our men's reactions. Many regretted not being more in the direct path of the offensive. It was a real opportunity to get Jerry out of his hole. As it was, we had to be satisfied with holding the left wing of his attack. Surely, no one was the least concerned, all being quite confident the push would be stopped before it could do much damage. We realized the war wasn't over when we made first contact with the Germans in Germany. We knew there were several fights ahead. Our leaders knew this also. If it wasn't recognized, it was by John Q. Public. He was buying civilian cars, looking for civilian work, preparing for V-E Day. A few men here will suffer for this, but what is done is done. The war here will go on indefinitely. At least one more difficult fight lies ahead. Perhaps the winter will be spent in small attacks to regain lost ground and positions. Maybe a big drive can be made before spring. We shall see. Germany is not beaten. We have not earned a victory. But don't worry about it. Our nation went to war, knowing this. If they didn't, let them remember it next time. Love, John Dear Folks, January 15, 1945, Luxembourg Wanted to send you the enclosed newsprint. It's the division news bulletin, which comes out every day. In addition to this, we receive the Stars and Stripes only a day after it is published in Paris. My Time reaches me about eight days after printing. Thus, I am pretty well able to keep up on the situation. Saw a good GI stage show last night. A bunch of men from an aviation engineer regiment put it on. I've been seeing several movies lately. None particularly good, but who am I to be particular? The news about the world sounds better than it did this time last month. We've got to work on the Bulge, and it shouldn't be too long before things are going a bit more our way. The Burmese campaign seems to be progressing. The Luzon landing begins a long, difficult fight there, and no one should expect it to go fast. However, we're back where we started and much better set in materiel than several years ago. General Marshall visited us about four days before the Leyte landing and told us a landing was coming up there that could cut off many Japanese troops in the Indies, and it surely did. All goes well. My love to all of you. John Dear Dad, January 26, 1945, Luxembourg You seem concerned with our welfare during the German attack. All outsiders seem to think we had such a bad time of it. This was not true. It was a mild action compared with some in which we have engaged. For myself, with the action now over, I feel that the German army gave us a definite setback in the Ardennes. That is, they halted the First and Third Army offensives. But this must be looked at from several sides. If the war of attrition were going to continue for several months, the Jerry offensive was a break, since I believe we've killed more enemy and destroyed more materiel in the Bulge than we would have on line. Thus, he may have thrown himself sufficiently off balance to permit us now to effect a penetration and breakthrough. However, if the First and Third Army drives were about to push more rapidly, he dealt us a terrific blow by stopping them. But when all is said, if this was a victory for us, it was a negative victory, giving us no credit for brilliance. Yes, we learned much from the experience with that breakthrough. Next time, if there is a next, our defense will be better. However, don't forget, we held them at the 4th, and we feel that, if we had been in the center of it, we'd have given them a much better fight. Perhaps not. Frankly, I don't think much of all these boys at the rear headquarters. No doubt some of them work hard, but the rest don't know what it's all about. You don't have to get very far behind the lines to see a soft approach toward the war. The rear echelons live in comfort, are well paid, and are often in no particular hurry to end the war. I often feel that, if we could get all headquarters out into the snow, this war would end a hurry. So you wanted us to go to the Rhine. That's what we wanted when we got to Germany and through the West Wall. The fighting troops were ready, but supply services weren't. This probably wasn't all their fault, but an 8 hour day attitude didn't help. Russia - I'm pessimistic. Looks more like a German withdrawal than a breakthrough. Hope I'm wrong, but surely the Germans will hold them at the Oder. Let's all hope this thing will soon end. We are expending all our youth, which cannot be replaced. John A ONE DAY PASS TO LUXEMBOURG CITY Many letters have been rolling in. Now that we have completed our latest attack, it is possible to write to you all. Our last operation was a river crossing, as you no doubt know. This is a very difficult and risky maneuver. However, we were quite fortunate, lucky, and quite successful. Last evening Capt. Joe Gude, commander of C Company, Lt. Bill Woodruff, his executive officer, and I got together and made a trip to Luxembourg City. As always, we had an excellent time, real fun and relaxation. These are great boys. Woody has been with us since D-day, twice wounded. Gude (pronounced Goody) joined us at Cherbourg, has been wounded once, has the Silver Star with two oak leave clusters. I always feel proud to be in their company. We got into the city about 14:00. There were a few bad hours when we were trying to find a place to sleep. However, by five we not only had a very nice room in a private home but dates with Red Cross girls for the evening. How we got the room is cause for a story. You see, in any such city as this all the hotels are taken over by the army. If you are on orders, its OK. On pass, it's a different matter. So - we tried everything. We were driving by a group of houses, and I suggested, "Surely in such a place of this size there must be a place where we can stay." Just then an elderly couple emerged from a house. "There. They should have a room for us." We stopped the vehicle. I approached the couple. "Trois officiers desirent une chambre pour ce soir. Est-il possible?" "Mais non. Nous n'avons pas une chambre. Mais - " Well, while they didn't have one, their neighbor did. And what a room. Positively luxurious. And that bathroom. And a flush toilet. The lady of the house was very kind. She made us feel right at home. Woody and Gude were overjoyed. They hadn't seen such comfort since they were in the hospital. We cleaned up and dressed. Having rushed away from our area, we had had no dinner. The first thing to do was to eat. We got out a ten in one ration, and the madame cooked it for us. The old gent donated a bottle of white wine. And we feasted. Dinner over we went to the girl's home. It was a private home that had been requisitioned. The other half of our ten in one, a bottle of scotch, a bottle of cognac, the radio, the rug pulled back, and we had an excellent party. As the other girls would drift in they'd drop by us, and all had a fine time. They were a fine bunch of girls, all very pleasant, congenial, and unusually attractive. I've been on passes before, but Joe and Woody haven't. We slept late, had breakfast, and returned to our work. There's nothing like a break like this to help one's disposition and attitude. Without them, I feel I should go completely off at times. They're infrequent, but it helps to get away. Now they are giving passes to Paris, leaves to the States, and talk of leaves to the Riviera and England. One of my men left today for the States. Really tickled. I hope one day to get a pass to England and would prefer this to Paris. We shall see. All my love, John As I reread this letter, it makes me sad. Gude survived the war, but Woody did not. Just before the end, he was walking by a tank. Suddenly, its turret blew off and landed on him. After all the combat he had seen, what a strange way to die. SOME CONSEQUENCES OF THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE On January 28, the German offensive was declared officially over. It did not actually end, however, until January 31. On that day, Private Eddie Slovik was executed. He was the first American soldier executed for desertion since 1865 and the only one during World War II. During the bulge, there had been a great many desertions and self-inflicted wounds in the 28th Division. Eisenhower decided that an object lesson was needed. The only unit informed of Slovik's execution at the time was the 28th. Had I not read about it in David Eisenhower's book about his grandfather, I would not know about this event even now. Another casualty of the Ardennes was Maj. Gen. Raymond O. Barton, commander of the 4th Division. His ulcer finally got the better of him, and he returned to the US for medical treatment and retirement. Brig. Gen. Harold W. Blakeley, until then commander of the 4th Division Artillery, replaced him and got another star. Barton was well respected in the Division. What a terrible combination, responsibility for the lives of thousands of men and an ulcer. THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE A HALF CENTURY LATER With a perspective of nearly half a century and experience after the war with military matters, my views regarding the Ardennes offensive can be reduced to a few simple statements: First, I can understand Bradley's decision to leave the Ardennes lightly defended, so he could concentrate his forces in more favorable terrain. I can also, if barely, forgive US intelligence for failing to detect what was going on. What I find inexcusable is the failure of commanders to insure that the divisions in the Ardennes had as strong a defense posture as possible. If they had, they probably would have been overrun anyway. It would have taken the Germans, however, longer to do it. This would have given more time to deploy forces to counter the penetration. It could also have reduced casualties, which were extremely heavy. (There were about eighty thousand, with about ten thousand dead.) As always with such things, there was plenty of blame to go around. No one above division level lost his command. Nevertheless, Maj. Gen. Troy H. Middleton, commander of the VIII Corps, should have insured that the artillery was in a defensive posture. Furthermore, he should have verified that bridges were prepared for demolition. Eisenhower was right in handing over US forces north of the bulge to Montgomery temporarily. It is just a pity that this testy general had to gloat publicly. Had it not been for Churchill's praise of US forces in the House of Commons, Montgomery's untimely press conference could have seriously disrupted the alliance. (Montgomery made no reference in his memoirs to the disputes over strategy and command.) There is no way of knowing how the war would have gone had Hitler not ordered this offensive. The reality, however, was that the German Army was not able thereafter to put up a serious defense, and the generals knew the war was lost. As Danny S. Parker notes in his Battle of the Bulge, even Hitler lost interest in the western front and concentrated on the eastern.