Got to Naples,
Italy and we were assigned to the 517th
Parachute Combat Team. In November 1944 in
Southern France we got relieved and we partied
for three weeks "rest." Alex was a drummer and
was accepted into the 517th "Jump" band. Much
safer in Regimental Headquarters too. Manley and
I remained in E company. We went up North to get
replacements and prepare
for the jump into Germany in the Spring,
Christmas and lots of parties planned. But the
Germans had other plans and began what is now
known as the "Battle of the Bulge.""
Early February
1945, the 517th RCT found themselves on the
frontline near Bergstein in the Huertgen forest
and ready to attack. The area of Schmidt,
Vossenach, Bergstein and Kommerscheidt was
heavily fought over for many months, with
horrendous casualties to both the American and
German forces. Objectives were the Roer Dams
that, if blown, would inundate the Roer valley
and severely hamper the American advance into
the Rhineland.
The
initial attack was beaten off by the Germans
with incredible casualties to the US forces. On
February 6th, the
517th was to make a divisionary attack, in
support of the main assault.
A
unit history states: "On the 4th of February
Colonel Graves received orders to move the 517th
from Stavelot to Germany, and to join the 82nd
Airborne Division near Honfeld and Hesheim. Two
days later, the Regiment was attached to the
78th Division. The column moved out by truck
convoy, and within a few hours had passed the
idle tank traps and shattered pill boxes of the
Siegfried Line into Rotgen, and through the
Hurtgen Forest en route to Bergstein.
The Second and
Third Battalions moved out of Bergstein at 2400
hours of the 6th against a high ridge east of
the Roer River defended by the German First
Parachute Army. The 517th's mission was to
occupy this ridge cutting off the enemy's escape
route from Schmidt.
Numerous obstacles
had been thrown up to prevent the crossing of
the river and to help repel attacks. The Germans
had had six weeks in which to prepare their
positions and had made the most of them by
building reinforced cement emplacements, and
laying one of the largest mine fields ever seen
in Europe. The 596th Parachute Engineers worked
heroically while under heavy artillery fire
removing the mines, and clearing a path for the
517th.
The battle grew in
intensity and by twilight of the second day had
reached a violent pitch. An artillery duel was
being waged by both sides with the men in the
fox holes always on the receiving end. The cross
roads that had ,been in an insignificant sector
turned, over night, into the most hotly
contested area on the western front. The attack
continued with "A" Company assaulting Zerkall
and on the 8th, the Second Battalion cut through
a net work of trip wires to push almost to the
river where mortar and small arms fire halted
their advance."
Mr. Gene Brissey,
also in E Company and a good friend of Sgt.
Roger Bender wrote in his memoirs:
"In the pre-dawn
hours of the 6th of February 1945, we were
plodding through the mud on our way to
Bergstein, Germany, where Hitler's 1st Parachute
Army had been preparing for weeks to defend the
western approach of the Roer River. As we
sloshed along the very muddy road leading to
Bergstein, the Germans were all around us, or so
it seemed. They knew we were coming and shot
flares into the air in an effort to see us.
These flares would light large areas. When we
saw a flare going up we would stop "dead" in our
tracks. Somehow we got into the city and tried
to breakthrough the German lines, but could not.
The enemy poured all kinds of bullet shells into
us. In the impossible darkness we were helpless
and stumbled and fell over dead animals and many
other objects which we could not see. Obstacles
in our path were too numerous, so we had to pull
back to the outskirts of the town. We learned
that the Germans had been working six weeks to
improve their defenses along this line. They
were in concrete emplacements, and the whole
front of us was smothered in the largest mine
field ever found in Europe.
We spent the
daylight hours of the 6th hidden behind or under
anything we could find. I was with a group in a
piece of a stone building. There was but three
sides to the place and no top. The Germans
shelled us all day and our artillery shelled
them. A shell hit near our "rubble" hideout, and
a piece of metal (shrapnel) from the shell
bounced off all three walls like a crazy
bumblebee. It missed my head by a hair ... I had
short hair. We attacked again on the night of
the 6th but to no avail. We had about half of
our troops left, and the Germans had everything
going for them. During the day of the 7th, we
pulled further back and tried to dry our
clothes. I took my boots off and placed them
near a fire to dry. They got a little too close
and one of the tops was burned rather badly. No
problem, I put them on and was ready to go again
on the night of the 7th. At about midnight on
the 7th, our battalion cut through a network of
trip wires and passed through mine fields toward
the Roer River. We had orders not to shoot
because we were going to sneak through the
German lines. We might as well have been playing
drums because they knew exactly where we were.
They threw grenades at us as we crawled through
their lines. I saw one get up and run away, I'm
sure to tell his buddies that a bunch of idiots
were crawling around out there in the night. We
got within hearing distance of the river but
could get no further. We were ordered to pull
back ... retreat ... attack to the rear ... or
whatever was most honorable.
Just at
daybreak we were out of the woods and on a
little hill over-looking the river valley. We
were told to dig in there. This had to be the
most stupid order our officers had ever given.
Those Germans knew exactly where we were and
knew exactly how to blast us out of there. Just
as we started to dig holes for protection a
green flare was shot into the air. We knew this
was the signal for artillery to fire ... German
artillery that is. The first barrage landed in
our position just seconds later. The first blast
got the guy who was digging a hole with me. I
moved to a shallow hole with two men, and we
fired our guns at nothing because we could not
see the enemy. I recall a boy, we called Woody,
was lying right out in the open firing his
machine gun like crazy. The Germans kept firing
artillery and machine guns at us. Bullets were
hitting the ground in front of my face and a
bursting shell hit another man who was lying
beside me. A piece of shrapnel had hit him in
the face. At about this time someone in
authority directed us to retreat back to
Bergstein. I told my group to get back, and they
started moving, and fast. Bullets were flying
all over. This influenced Kreycme, our mortar
man, to throw down his mortar and run like a mad
man. Could be that he was just smart, because he
did make it back. When I was sure that all the
men were out of that hell hole I picked up the
mortar and moved out as fast as I could. The
mortar was heavy and slowed me down a lot, but I
didn't want to leave it for the Germans. I ran a
little and fell into a shell hole to rest. I
repeated this exercise a few times and was back
to the edge of town where I jumped into a ditch
to rest.
After a short
rest, I picked myself, the mortar and my rifle
from the mud hole and started plodding through
the mud to the safety of a large building a few
yards away. I was happy to have made it back and
said to myself ... well, I've scored again.
Then, without warning, I was blasted from the
war. A shell landed right near me and shrapnel
hit me in the right thumb, in the left chest
right over the heart and in the right leg. I was
lying face down in the mud and the hot shrapnel
was burning me something awful. To make things
worse the shells were still falling all around
me. I placed the mortar in the mud on one side
of me, my rifle on the other ... I wouldn't be
needing them any more. I then moved my legs ...
they seemed to be able to carry me, so I got up
and ran a few yards and fell over. Two troopers
picked me up and helped me to a big building
nearby. It contained the aid station. As they
dragged me to the door, some of my buddies, my
men, were standing there watching. I heard one
of them say, "Oh no, not Gene too. " It was then
that I learned that Roger Bender had been killed
as we made that senseless effort to dig in on
that hill overlooking hell or the Roer River,
whichever you prefer."
Mr. Martel
continues:
"We went through
the some pretty rough battles in E company and I
still thank my lucky stars. But on the last day
of the Battle of the Bulge, for us, February
8th. in Germany, they sent us on a suicide
mission though we didn't know it at the time.
And I still don't really know what we were
supposed to be doing. I read it in one of the
books, that in one instant, one of our officers
refused to lead his men into what he considered
certain death and got court-martialed.
Everything is two units in front, and one in
reserve. The first and second battalion were in
front and the third battalion was in reserve. I
don't know about the first but the second
battalion had E & F company in front and D
company in reserve. Somehow, the first battalion
was getting too much fire and requested a
withdrawal to plan a new attack. That left E & F
companies holding the entire regimental front.
We had gone into the Bulge with almost two
hundred men. The Colonel writes in his memoirs,
"the companies that had gone into Bergstein with
40 men were now down to 20." We were getting
intense machine gun and mortar fire in our
sector.
Usually you dig a hole and as long as you are
under the ground level you are pretty safe.
Anthony Manley was radio man and runner for
Sergeant Bender (at the time with battlefield
commission of Lieutenant). They were in the same
hole and as luck would have it the mortar fell
in the hole.
We were relieved later that day and I sure was
glad to get the hell out of there. Going through
the "Battle of the Bulge" was the most traumatic
experience of my life. I got back from the line
and I almost expected to have headquarters
waiting with coffee and doughnuts. I met up with
Alex who I was trying to avoid. He got to me and
told me how everyone had been on the radios and
they wanted to see what was left of E & F
companies.
Naturally he asked about Manley. I tried to show
him the new Luger P38 pistol I had acquired but
he suspected something was wrong and grabbed
both my arms. "What about Manley?" I had to tell
him. "Manley is still back there." I saw the
tears in his eyes but he just let me go and
turned away from me. He may have cried somewhere
on his own without anyone being aware. Manley
was his best friend, if he made it home he would
have to face Manley's family. The war was
officially over on May 12th and I got home in
September, just in time to celebrate my 20th
birthday on September 12, 1945. I saw Alex
several times in Los Angeles but I haven't seen
him now for over 40 years."
Shortly after Pvt
Manley and Sgt Bender were killed in their
foxhole, the town of Schmidt was taken by the
78th Infantry Division and the 517th was
relieved by the 508th Parachute Infantry
Regiment. The 517th were taken off the line and
to France to recover from the battles of recent
weeks and did not see combat again. The regiment
had lost over 200 men killed, wounded and
missing, about a third of their strength.
'Bergstein' would live on in the memory of all
those who fought there.
Private Anthony
Manley
is buried at Margraten American Military
Cemetery, Plot G Row 15 Grave 17.
