That day, the position I visited blocked Lake Garda's access in the Austrian Tyrol. This area was ethnically German but officially part of Italy since the end of the First World War. The pass was called the Brenner Pass, and it was one of the Austrian Tyrol’s main access routes, so we had it strongly defended.

  Dairy cattle grazed in alpine pastures just below our towering bunkers and defenses in the valley beneath the pass and on the mountains above it.

  The central section of the Brenner Pass covered a sizeable paved road and a double railway track connecting Bozen/Bolzano in the south and Innsbruck to the north. The village of Brenner proper was where our men were billeted. It needed to be defended at all costs. The 7th Mountain Division was entrusted with the responsibility, and I was impressed by their readiness status.

  Over 55 PAK44 guns were well camouflaged and dug in, covering firing positions, while many bunkers and trench-likes hideouts dotted the landscape. Two artillery regiments were positioned just north of Brenner, ready to pound the Allies to oblivion.

  The road itself had been completely gutted, and a huge anti-tank ditch had been built by our forces. 7th Division commander General Gaspar Blumeritt also had a heavy Panzer battalion (Maus IIs) at his disposal for a counter-attack if the enemy broke thru.

  The General himself escorted me, and we went about visiting most of the PAK44 emplacements. I was thus able to chat with the soldiers handling them. We, therefore, discussed the gun’s capabilities, and the men were happy to see their commander.

  The reason for my visit to this specific area was that the 7th commander had asked me to come to verify his claims that he didn’t have strong enough forces. An hour into my tour of the Brenner Pass, I gave orders to the staff accompanying me to send more troops to Brenner, as we had not near enough. Upon my return to theater HQ, I even asked OKW (and got) an additional Heavy Panzer Battalion for the position was critical and could not be lost.

  These additional forces would come in handy when the Allies came hard at us later in the year.

  CHAPTER 4

  The Goldap Offensive part 2

  Frontline, near Eastern Prussia, March 3rd to March 8th, 1947

  The Russians regarded East Prussia as the seat of German militarism. Many of the Wehrmacht’s top commanders came from the area, which had produced highly trained soldiers for centuries. It was from East Prussia that the Teutonic Knights launched forays into Poland and the Baltic regions in the 13th and 14th centuries. The Prussian state also had produced warrior Kings like Frederick the Great. For the Soviet victory over the Reich to be complete, it needed to be erased from the map.

  During World War I, the Russian Army invaded the province and had suffered decisive defeats in the 1914 Battle of Tannenberg and at the 2nd Battle of the Masurian Lakes in 1915. Driving the Tsar’s army back, German forces moved into Russia, eventually destabilizing the country enough to plunge it into a bloody civil war.

  Detached from the rest of Germany by the Treaty of Versailles, East Prussia was reconnected with the Third Reich after the defeat of Poland. The German Fuhrers, first Hitler than Goering, had directed the war in the east from the Wolfchanzze (wolf’s lair) in the Masurian woods, south of Konigsberg.

  During the opening days of the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1942 (Operation Barbarossa), East Prussia served as the jumping-off point for Army Group North’s drive to Leningrad. By March 1947, Army Group North no longer existed, and Cherniakhovski had received orders from Stavka (the Soviet high command) to continue his advance. It was time to enter the lair of the German beast.

  On March 3rd, Cherniakhovski sent the go-ahead orders to launch the attack, following Zhukov's instructions to do so. The time had come for the final offensive against Prussia. The calm was broken at 4 am, when the Soviet artillery pieces opened up, lighting the dark sky with heavenly lights. A five-hour shelling hit the German front, raining a hail of steel and explosives on the Axis positions. The intensity of the bombardment and follow-up bombing from the air (an epic air battle also raged overhead) shocked the German defenders. Such firepower had rarely been seen on the Eastern Front. Men were buried alive as trenches collapsed or were blown apart by the heavy mortar shells fired by corps and army artillery units. Frantic calls for help were cut short as communication lines were blown apart and the force of the concussions from the heavy shells shattered eardrums.

  A few hours into the mighty barrage of fire and iron, Colonel-General Kuzma Nikitovich Galitskii’s 11th Guards Army, composed of nine rifle divisions and an armored regiment, was ordered to hit the Germans in an area around Edytkau, about 40 kilometers west of Gumbinnen. To his left, the 31st Army (seven rifle divisions) under Col. Gen. Vasilii Vasilevich Glagolev was to advance on the Rominte Heath to the town of Goldap. On the 11th Guards’ right, Lt. Gen. Ivan Illich Luidnikov’s 39th Army (eight rifle divisions, an armored brigade and regiment, and an assault gun regiment) would breach German lines around Schirwindt, located about 55 kilometers northeast of Gumbinnen, and head for Schlossberg. He would be supported by Lt. Gen. Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Luchinskii’s 28th Army (nine rifle divisions, an armored division, two armored regiments, and two assault gun regiments).

  Colonel-General Nikolai Ivanovich Krylov’s 5th Army (eight rifle divisions and an armored brigade and regiment) were held in reserve to exploit any breaches in the German line. In addition, the 1st Baltic Front had Maj. Gen. Aleksii Semenovich Burdeinei’s 2nd Guards Tank Corps (three armored divisions and a mechanized brigade) operated independently. It attacked northward on a direct course to Konigsberg itself, further spreading the German defenses.

  In the south, the 2nd Bielorussian front also launched its offensive, but against Army Group Center and its leader, the famous General Guderian. The objective there was to prevent the Wehrmacht from sending forces north to help defend Eastern Prussia.

  Facing Cherniakhovski were the superb divisions of General Walter Model’s Army Group Prussia, tasked with the ultimate defense of the Fatherland. Since retreating into East Prussia, these troops had been busy repairing long-neglected fortifications. However, East Prussia was now the front, and the men worked feverishly to improve positions that might stop the Russians.

  So as the Soviet bombardment moved to the rearward German positions, the Red Army troops advanced on the Axis divisions. Because of the attack’s powerfulness, they expected to find only corpses and dazed survivors and the shattered remains of the German defenses, but they received an entirely different experience. Rising from the rubble, the soldiers that had been fighting like the devil for the better part of the last nine years greeted the advancing Soviets with a withering fire. As the shelling passed on (artillery moved westward as the Soviet soldiers advanced), men struggled to right machine guns and mortars, while others dug up buried comrades, still alive. They rubbed off the excess dirt and picked up their weapons to shoot at the Russians. Two-man details were also sent to repair damaged radio lines that had been cut. As more men were put back into action, the divisional and corps artillery battalions, guided by surviving forward observers, brought down a wall of fire on the advancing Red Army. The Nazi guns were no pushovers and could give back equally what the Soviets sent them.

  Within the first hour after the barrage, Model sent in two of his best Panzer divisions, the 11th, and 12th. The battle’s intensity raised up a few notches as the Red Army responded in kind with their own tanks.

  While soldiers at the front struggled to hold a cohesive line, the Red Air Force struck German supply lines in the rear, again and again, incurring crippling losses to the mighty Luftwaffe. But they sent so many planes that they simply overwhelmed the German air defenses with their numbers, so bombs rained down on the beleaguered Axis defenders. The town of Gumbinnen felt the full fury of the Soviet airmen as fighter bombers smashed the rail line that ran through it. A follow-up by medium bombers caused more damage, almost destroying the entire town that was, by the end of the first intense day of battle, a big bowl of fire where hundreds of thick, dark smoke columns rose high in the sky and rubble covered its streets.

  But the Germans held the line. By sheer luck, willpower, and a good dose of reinforcements, General Model was able to keep the situation under control, inflicting countless casualties on the Soviets and taking attrition he knew he could not sustain as long as the Red Army.

  Frustrated by the first day’s action, Cherniakhovski urged his generals to make better progress, and on March 4th, opened with another massive bombardment. The East Prussians of General Schittnig’s division, which occupied positions in and around Schirwindt, were once again the object of Luidinikov’s 39th Army. The 1st Division stopped the initial attack of the day dead in its tracks, and the Russians fell back eastward.

  Luidinikov then sent armor and infantry to outflank the town from the north and south. Once again, the antitank guns of the 23rd anti-tank battalion destroyed several Soviet tanks, but the move was effective. The Russians were able to enter the town, and the battle deteriorated into house-to-house fighting. The Germans had evacuated the city by evening, leaving many of Schirwindt’s 1,000 inhabitants dead in the streets.

  By the end of the second day, the Soviets had made decent progress, and the German forces retreated under the relentless pressure of too many guns firing on them and too much ordinance falling on their heads.

  On March 6, heavy fighting erupted to an even greater level as Gumbinnen came under attack. Model sent an entire Panzer corps into the fury of the battle, while the Soviets responded with their new toy, the T-54 main battle tank. These new tanks weighed 45 tons fully loaded and had up to 205mm of armor for protection. They were armed with a 100mm gun, which made them dangerous opponents, as several Tigers and Maus found out that day, for they routed an entire German armored division for one of the first time in the war. The weapon’s penetration capability was well over the best armor the Panzer had (239mm), so any of them hit by the ordinance lit up like a Christmas tree.

  By the end of the day, the Soviets had pushed even farther westward. Cherniakhovski, frustrated by the continued German resistance, released his reserves, Burdeinei’s 2nd Guards Tank Corps. Moving quickly, Burdeinei’s 25th Guards Tank Division and 4th Guards Mechanized Assault Division swept toward the Angerapp River and took the crossing at Nemmersdorf. After occupying Nemmersdorf, the Soviets set up defensive positions on the western edge of the village.

  Gumbinnen fell on March 8th, and by then, Model let go and retreated westward to a new line of defense, while more reinforcements were rushed to his aid. The Russian spearhead was finally less than 80 kilometers from the Fuhrer’s headquarters at the Wolf's Lair. Some of Goering’s aides urged him to evacuate it, but he refused. He was worried about the effect on the troops' morale if it appeared that he had abandoned them. But on the morning of the 9th (the very next morning), his courage disappeared, and he climbed in his armored train to leave for Berlin.

  The outlook was not good for the Third Reich, and while the Fuhrer’s HQ was in danger, it was the same for Konigsberg.

  The Battle for Anatolia

  March 2nd to March 6th, 1947

  As foreseen by German General Rommel, Patton's offensive did indeed go for Gaziantep. The Americans planned to take the city and then swing west toward the mountain passes and spill out into the valleys beyond to take the city of Adana ultimately. Once there, it was only a short hop to Ankara, the Turkish capital, and their surrender.

  Fortunately for the Axis forces, their defenses were well-prepared and in very rugged terrain. Anatolia and its mountains were not the best places for a modern war. The Germano-Turkish forces could use every stream, ravine, mountain, or rocky outcrop as a strong point. Tanks would have great difficulty moving thru the rough, rocky ground, and only infantry could attack in many places.

  Patton 11th Army included three full corps of American troops (one armored), two Brazilian divisions, one Indian, and two Canadian units. Over 600 planes, including Meteor jets and half of them tactical bombers like the B-26 Mitchells and the Thunderbolt tank-killers. Some more units were also part of the offensive, namely the 6th CAV division and several other units formerly of General Bradley’s defeated Army at the Battle of Alexandria the year before.

  His forces were scattered along the frontline from the Mediterranean Sea (by the Golf of Iskenderun) to the rugged Syrian/Iraqi hinterland, all the way to the Anatolian foothills.

  Patton concentrated five of his divisions and two of his armored for the Gaziantep drive. But the battle for the mountainous terrain slowed the Allies considerably, and after a couple of days of a grinding and attritional struggle, he returned to his starting positions. The Germans had solid defenses and heavy artillery, so they could not be pushed back. In some Allied units (especially the two Brazilian divisions that participated in the assault), casualty levels reached staggering numbers, with over 30% dead or wounded.

  The Germans won the exchange for once since they lost no ground and had very few losses. The Turkish government rushed three additional divisions from his reserve army near Ankara to bolster the line.

  The Allies renewed their assault on the fourth, even coordinating their efforts with Auchinleck’s British forces near Mosul that tried to break out near Lake Van. The Germano-Turkish forces proved too well prepared and too strong there as well for any gains to be gained for the English and Indian units.

  By the 6th of March, both Allied commanders and their armies reported back to Eisenhower in London that they could not move the Axis defenses on inch backward with the state of their forces and the strength of the enemy’s defenses. Strong reinforcement and better supplies would be needed (artillery shells were in short supply). Or perhaps (in their opinion) the attack should be conducted elsewhere in Auchinleck’s sector.

  While the Western Allies certainly had potent armies in the Middle East, they just didn’t have the planes or artillery to pulverize firmly held fortifications. The overall Allied commander didn’t worry too much about it since these forces were cut off from the Reich and bottled up in an area that wasn’t critical for the war’s conclusion.

  Rommel’s forces could rot for all he cared. So he decided that he needed his best offensive general back in Europe. On the 7th, he sent down the orders to recall General George Patton back to France, where Eisenhower deemed him more beneficial for the conflict’s conclusion.

  British General Auchinleck was named overall commander of all Middle East Theater forces, from the Mediterranean to Persia, and was tasked with safeguarding the border. He also received loose objectives to somehow break into Turkey. The British officer would certainly try, and there were reasons to believe he had better chances of success in the Lake Van sector of the frontline.

  The assault on the Brest-Litovsk Fortress

  The Russians attack, March 3rd to 7th, 1947

  The storming of the fortress, the city of Brest, and the capture of bridges across the Western Bug and Mukhavets were entrusted to the 45th Rifle Corps and the 119th Tank Guard Corps under the command of Major General Constantin Popov (about 80 000 soldiers) with reinforcement units. To conduct artillery preparation during the first two hours of the assault, mortar divisions of the 31st and 34th infantry divisions of the 12th Army Corps of the 2nd Bielorussian front were attached. Several battalions of Katyusha rocket artillery battalion were also brought forward to bombard the old Austro-Hungarian fortress.

  In addition to the impressive gun line-up, nine light and three heavy batteries, a high-power artillery battery (two super–heavy 400-mm self-propelled mortars), and a division of 210-mm were also called to the fore. The total planned consumption of artillery ammunition amounted to over twenty thousand rounds with a caliber of 100 mm and above.

  Soviet artillery began their massive bombardment of the western outskirts of the city of Brest, and at 04:15, the fire was transferred to the fortress and the northern town. The destruction brought about by the massive attack was incredible. Warehouses were destroyed, the water supply system was damaged, communication was interrupted, and severe damage to the garrison was inflicted.

  At 03:23, the assault on the Volynsky, Kobrin, and Terespolsky fortifications began. The attack led to the garrison's inability to provide a unified, coordinated resistance because of the heavy shelling and was split into several separate centers. The Soviet assault detachments of the first wave, advancing on the fortress, stormed the northern gates of the Kobrin fortification against withering fire, and it was repulsed. However, their second attempt succeeded in overwhelming the defenders in a gory battle where horrendous casualties were taken on both sides. In the end, it even came down to hand-to-hand bayonet attacks.

  The 35 000 strong Axis defenders (there were two Ukrainian volunteer divisions in the central fortress itself) fought toes and nails to stay alive and stave off the Red Army’s powerful assaults. Brest-Litovsk held a strategic and critical position within the Guderian’s defensive setup, but at the same time, the famous general had not put all his eggs in the same basket. His views on the matters were that the fortress was old and the Wehrmacht was better served with defending it but keeping most of its force mobile and out of range from a possible encirclement.

  The German plan was quite simple. Let the Soviets attack the fortress and hope the assault would grind down its offensive power. Army Group Center was well stocked in Panzer divisions, so Guderian’s overall intention was to counter-attack the Russians after they took the Brest if they ever did. To make this happen, he’d kept an entire Panzer corps and six infantry divisions (mostly mechanized) about twenty kilometers at the rear. The goal was, of course, to retake the fortress but to avoid the initial shock of most Red Army offensives: the artillery and air shelling.