4.
The pursuit of Marne
Dieter Luther, Gefreiter
We got the
BEF on the run and was asked to take the front fight towards them. The order
was changed from halt to attack. It was not so much a battle but a series of
skirmishes while we pursued the BEF. The BEF left small parties of their men as
the rear guards. They gave us hell with their ambushes despite their smaller
numbers, they displayed professional soldier's training in their fights...
The next
the town we hit was Fournaux, and it was like the previous one; all quiet yet
deadly. It was a house to house battle as rear guards troop stayed back to
harass our advance. The whistles blown by the officers never ceased to be heard
by all of us, and we had close our ears to it by now. I was without one so I
used my voice as my command.
"Otto,
cover me. I need to get across the street." Both of us are crouched
against the wall of the building trying to hide from the BEF troops who are
holed up in front at about a hundred yards in between some houses. We were
moving into this street when one of the men shouted he saw the BEF troops. Our
platoon gave chase without orders from the Sergeant. By the time he reacted,
half the platoon had run into the side street and we soon find ourselves
trapped in there. The first volley took down three of the men, with one injured
in the middle of the street. Both Otto and I took refuge on the right
while four others were on the other side. I could make out Rudy as he stands
behind a doorway. He was holding his rifle as if to shoot but I know he was a
hopeless shot at more than twenty yards. He was more useful in the bayonet
charge than shooting at running targets.
The injured
the guy is one of our new recruits; I think his name is Ben. He is shot in the legs
and is whimpering away at the pain. I need to pull him to safety or we would
all be demoralized by his cries. The other half of the platoon is held back by
the Sergeant from charging in.
"I am
going." I ran out to grabbed the injured man by his knapsack and pulled
hard. I dragged the man across the street while Otto offered me cover fire. The
others did the same when they saw Otto firing at the BEF. But I was surprised
that the BEF did not return fire or shoot at me. Somehow, I managed to drag the
injured man to the side and Rudy carried him up into the house. I shouted for
medic help but none dare to venture forth. I looked at the BEF site and could
not see any rifles protruding out. I presume they have left and we are shooting
at empty houses.
"Rudy,
there are no more enemies there. Can you send the others to recon the area? I
need to attend to the wounded." The Sergeant must have heard me for he sent
the rest of the platoon to search the houses where the BEF took cover. The Sergeant
later walked in on and saw the injured man. He gave me a drill down on my
conduct rushing in with the men. I explained I tried to stop them but the trap
was set in by then. He also reprimands me on the injured man. He said to shoot
the man if he does that again.
"I
have no rooms for heroes and boys who fearsome pain." Those were his
exact words and yet he risked his life more than once. The Sergeant rejoined
the men and despite the reinforcements from new recruits, our original eighteen
now stands at twelve with four more new lads. That is before the three that
died today and Ben, the one who cries would too often. It seems his wounds are
just superficial grazed shots on the leg.
"Sorry,
Gefreiter.
I am just scared" I looked at the lad and was in between killing him
myself or letting him go for his action. He could have got me killed for trying
to save him. I hauled him up and said to him to get ready for patrol. He
saluted me. The bullet took him in the back of his head.
"Sniper!"
I jumped for cover as the second shot rang out at where I was standing. Some of
the men shot at the general direction but no one got the sniper pinpointed.
Sergeant Bern came up to me and saw the dead man. He cursed under his breath
and shouted for us to move on. The rest of the patrol was without any incident
except some distance gunshots. Everywhere we go, the local folks gave us their
cold reception.
Soon we were
marching to Maubeuge; a city
by the France-Belgium Border on the side of the Sambre River. The city is known
for a large fort that used to serve the town well in previous conflicts. It
was considered as strategic that the Belgians actually reinforced the town with
fifteen batteries of over four hundred guns around it. It also has a complement
of thirty-five thousand troops of mixed French, Belgium and BEF army to defend
it. The town is also the main railway hub in the northern region with no fewer
than five railway lines. We were soon resorting to fighting for every foot into
the town, with door to door fighting.
In the town we met our first encounter with
the Belgian Tank, as we called it then; the Minerva Armored Vehicle which comes
with reinforced metal plates and a Lewis machine gun in the rear. The Belgian
used it as a scout car and on occasion as a raiding vehicle. It was superior to
our Calvary and their horses for the sides of the vehicle were steel-plated.
What the vehicle fears was a grenade down its top opening when lobbed by the
infantry troops.
The vehicle came storming from the side
alleys and razed us with the Lewis gun. By the time we reached, the vehicle
would be going around the next corner and out of sight.
“Bam and they are gone.” Otto cursed at the
departing vehicle.
“We will be better prepared for by then,” I
told the platoon. I had a plan in mind and discussed with the Non-Commissions
Officers.
After studying the plans, I decided to plan
a trap for this tank if it comes around. I got the rear guy hanging back a
little when we do the patrol. He would be ready with a stick grenade to release
on seeing the tank. The point guy would have peeked over any new streets or
alleys before we advanced past it.
We did not get to use the ploy then. Most
times we were covering ourselves from the barrage of cannon shots from the fort
where the French have taken refuge.
Peter Weiner, Hauptmann
"Bring
up the guns." I shouted to the Artillery squads to unhook their cannons
and lined it up on the Fort. The Skoda 30.5 Howitzers were proven at Liege and
would then be used here. We were going to compete with the 75mm French Field
Gun. The fifty-odd Howitzers lined themselves up for the firing parade. It was
a show of class for the Skoda scored more damages than the French pieces.
"Get
me 2nd Platoon." I grabbed hold of the runner and told him my
instructions. Half an hour later, Sergeant Bern was at my side. "I want a
recon on the walls on the south side. Can you send in your men?"
The
The sergeant did not question my orders at all but ran back to his squad. I was
exploring all possible breaks to end this siege on the Fort. It was our fourth
day and we were still on a stalemate.
1st
Platoon is already on recon at the right end facing north.
"Herr
Hauptmann, the Oberst wants to advise on the recon patrols." I looked
at the young runner and smiled at him. He was doing his job and if I would to
shoot him, it won’t be justified.
"Tell
the Oberst; the previous attempts have met with failure. I am sending in a new
squad and hope to get the results." It was not a lie for the two previous
patrols I sent have come back with half their numbers and no results. The young
messenger saluted me and left for the Command Post.
"Herr
Hauptmann, our supplies are getting low. We need to re-established
supplies." I know what the Sergeant there means. Our soldiers have been on
this siege with part of our cooking boys in the advance front line while the
rest of us stayed back. Not only was our food reduced, but our ammo was also in question
then. Most of the shooters were firing at the thick walls with no or little
casualties on the other side.
"Tell
them fire only once in an hour and collect the ammo from the dead ones. I will
get the others to locate the supply depot. And find me, Sergeant Bern. I need
him to find the ammo depot." The Sergeant ran off to tell his men of the
new orders and asked the messenger to deliver the message to the 2nd
Platoon.
Dieter Luther, Gefreiter
"He is crazy. He is expecting us to
recon and grabbed some ammo back. Do French soldiers use the same ammo as
ours? Or is it he wants to us to grab any ammo taken by the French
soldiers?" Sergeant Bern was muttering to himself as he was
briefing us when the messenger arrived.
"Frag it. We move out on the primary
task. Dieter, you take point with your squad. The other squad will follow me in
the other direction. We will meet at the rendezvous point. "
I nodded to the new command and got my men
together. I had Otto walking in front, followed by Dietrich and later Rudy
followed by the others. Ben has been replaced by a new recruit who was also seeing
action for the first time. I was walking behind Dietrich and keeping my eyes on
the fore and rear. We were walking through the same streets which we patrolled last
week but then we were supposed to be occupying the town.
"Sniper!" Otto shouted and all us
jumped for cover.
But Otto later shouted back; "False
alarm. We move now." It happened as the fore point may see something or
someone that resembles a sniper and reacted. It was a split-second decision but
on occasions, it may be untrue. But nevertheless, we took cover just in case. I saw
the bombed-out houses and partially demolished ones, which may not be evacuated
by the residents. These people who remained behind hid behind doors then stared
at us from the demolished walls.
"The walls."
We reached our target and we start to
spread out to avoid being clustered together for a mass grave. The walls looked
ever magnificent although we see it almost every day. It towered us by many
heads and looked so formidable. We are on the side of the wall where the guns have
taken its toll on it. There were cracks and some places small holes but no big
openings. We proceeded ever slowly watching for any openings that we can use.
"Look";
Otto is tapping my shoulder. I looked at the walls. I did not notice the small
door on the side of the wall. It opened from inside as a Belgium Army Truck
reversed towards it. There is a Minerva Armored Vehicle parked some distance in
front of it with the Lewis gun at ready. Some men are loading the truck and
soon a man was escorted out into it.
"Leave
one man with you. I am going with the rest for the small convoy." I left
Otto there and moved with the rest of the squad. We ran ahead but soon found
the truck leaving and followed by the Minerva. We moved to intercept the convoy
as it passed by this street. We reached it just before the convoy arrived close
to our corner. It was touch and go situation and no way we had planned
anything.
"Rudy,
the Minerva and I will take the truck." Rudy took three men with him and
attacked the armored vehicle. They just took their stick grenade and threw it
at the armored vehicle. My section of the squad stood out at the front of the
truck, shooting their rifles. We took down the driver and co-driver first, and
then we surrounded the truck.
"Sortir avec vos mains de haut jusqu'à."
I shouted at the rear of
the truck. I was expecting shots but there was none. A French soldier came out
later with his hands on the back of his head. He was a Corporal and we hauled
him to the side. The men raised the rear flap of the truck and we saw the
contents of the truck. A German officer was sitting there among the crates
of ammo with the mark 'Mauser.'
"Hauptmann Richter, Second Army. Thank
you."
We took over the truck and drove it back to
our line. We handed over Hauptmann Richer to the Oberst. But much to our
surprise that we saw the rescued Hauptmann was later hauled to the wall and
shot dead. We were told he was a deserter and was later caught by the French
soldiers.
This war was getting to be complicated.
Abel Lenger.
Surgeon
I kicked at the
the dead man who was at my feet. I am too late to save him from his wounds but he was
not my first as that war dragged to no end on both ends. Men came in dying or
were dead by the time they were attended. What was worse was the officers with
their preferred patients.
They cut the
queues or placed their pressure on us to treat their friends. I ignored them
most times and continued my works. The officers will rant and rave on them
reporting me but none will do it. They need me more than them.
I got a new
the patient still breathing while I checked the wounds. It was fatal but he was a
younger recruit and was crying then. He was shot in the chest and was bleeding
hard. He may live if I could have removed the two bullets. I nodded to the
orderlies to take him to the tent. I made my way ahead but another set of orderlies
carried forward another patient.
“Make way.” The
orderlies called. “Officer in need of surgery.” It was an officer with a wound
that may not be recovered. The bullet had pierced the lungs and the blood was
flowing like the stream.
"Who ordered
this man to be brought here?" I asked of the orderlies.
"The
Oberst." So the name was to ring fear in me but I shook my head.
"Prepared
the officer." I told the nurses. They did with the usual practice in
countless other surgeries. But that time, I held the scalpel firm and did my
incision deep into the wound. The blood spurts out like water from the creeks for
the cut was deliberate into his main artery. Instead of clotting the flow, I
cut another to complete my task.
"Nurse, he
is bleeding and I can't stop it. Remove him and bring in my patient." The
orderlies came in and removed the dying man.
“Tell the Oberst,
the officer died from his wounds,” I called out and then asked for my earlier
patient. He was the one I want to save.
“He is dead. I
got another for you.” The orderlies told and moved another patient in. It was
another young recruit and he was shot in the right hip. That time my blade cut deep
but with a precise incision to remove the bullet from the hip area. I did as my
expertise allowed me and a life was saved but he won’t walk in his coming
years.
That day I saved
maybe countless but I also lost more.
It was near dawn when I stepped out of the
tent. I removed my apron and threw it to the nearby fire.
“Oberlieutenant, you did all you could for
the officer.” I looked at the nurse who was with me when I killed the officer.
She then looked away before leaving me there alone. I have just let a man die
because I did not like to do the operation.
This was not what I signed up for.
I was to be a healer and not a killer.
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