Filed under: 101st, 327th, 401st, Battle of the Bulge, Medics | Tags: Anniversary, Battle of the Bulge
A few years ago, while I was looking for information of Joseph H. “Bud” Harper, I found an interview in the St Petersburg Times of Ernie Premetz. During the Battle of the Bulge, Harper commanded the 327th Glider Infantry Regiment and when the Germans came to demand the surrender of Bastogne, they came into the 327th’s sector.
Everyone knows the basics of the story, about “Nuts”, but Ernie Premetz can say “I know what happened. I was there.” You see, Ernie was a medic at the time, and, based on his post-war profession, marine biologist, probably one of the smarter men standing in the snow on the 22nd of December. Ernie also spoke German, so when the two German officers and two German enlisted men approached American lines, Premetz walked out with a sergeant to find out what they wanted. After GEN McAuliffe responded “To the German Commander, NUTS!, The American Commander”, Harper was accompanied by Premetz to deliver the note to the Germans.
Needless to say, the Germans couldn’t quite figure out what it meant. To quote from Jeanne Malmgren’s interview with Premetz….
Harper and Premetz discussed how else to convey the message.
“You can tell them to take a flying s—,” Harper said to Premetz.
Premetz thought a minute. He knew he had to be clear.
He straightened up and faced the Germans.
“Du kannst zum Teufel gehen,” he said.
You can go to hell.
Those boys had some brass ones. If you talk to any veteran who was in Bastogne, Patton didn’t rescue them in Bastogne. They had the enemy right where they wanted them.
The Germans’ faces darkened.
“We will kill many Americans,” one of the officers said in English.
“We will kill many Germans,” Harper responded.
Filed under: 501st, Battle of the Bulge, Medics, Veterans | Tags: Battle of the Bulge, Eric Bradley, Leon Jedziniak
Being in the Battle of the Bulge was not easy. Being a paratrooper was not easy. Being a medic was not easy. Being a replacement was not easy. On 19 December 1944, Leon “Jed” Jedziniak, had all four of those challenges as a replacement medic in the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, going into his first fight. Eric Bradley wrote a great article about Jed in the Dialy Breeze out in Torrance, CA.
You tell people the story, Jedziniak said, and they don’t seem to understand.
That worries me. I know I’ll never quite understand because I’ve never been there, but as a military historian, I work to get as many of the stories as I can, in hopes that we can begin to understand.
Filed under: 101st, Paratroopers, Weekend Wanderings | Tags: Baseball, Battle of the Bulge, Japanese Internment, Resistance, Thanksgiving
I’m going to start accumulating the “best of the blogs” that I read each week and post them on Sunday for people to read.
- In The Bastogne March, Mark Nakazono relates his experience hiking around Bastogne, seeing Belgians reenacting American soldiers on the very sites the fought. Some very nice pictures if you follow his link.
- I found a nice article about soldiers of the 187th Infantry Regiment (101st Airborne Division) celebrating Thanksgiving in Afghanistan, which is a nice companion to John Carter’s Thanksgiving 1944.
- COL Henderson (my late father-in-law) would appreciate Craig Swain’s post about the new Don Troani print celebrating the 150th anniversary of his beloved Signal Corps.
- Bob Feller passed away this week. Brian at “Die Hard Night” notes that “He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962 and as of today he is still the only member to serve as a Chief Petty Officer in the US Navy.”
- On Amy Reads, there’s a review of an interesting novel on the French Resistance on the island of Jersey.
- Xiphos posted a quick explanation of the Battle of the Bulge, though his language is a little salty.
- On 17 December 1944, Japanese-Americans started to be released from the ‘relocation’ camps to which the government had sent them.
- While I hate the Yankees, the love of Freddy “The Fan” Schuman for his Yankees is being commemorated in a very classy fashion. Thanks to the Golden Age of Baseball for the link.
- I found a rather difficult WWII war movie quote quiz. I did very poorly….
- I was laughing out loud at the end of Joe’s blog on Zack Greinke. It’s precisely the quality of writing that made me add him to the blogroll…
Filed under: WWII
I found an interesting article about the German debacle at Stalingrad. Remember that war is suffering for all sides, Mitch Williamson notes “The panzer and motorized divisions suffered worst of all, because they had no horses to eat.”
Filed under: Leadership, Officers, Veterans | Tags: 1944, Colmar Pocket, Leadership, Lessons Learned, Veterans
At the Colmar Pocket seminar, GEN Fred Kroesen spoke about his experience as junior officer during World War II. He spoke at length about the fighting, relating that he started as the weapons platoon commander, but as each other platoon commander was wounded (oddly, each was wounded while standing next to Kroesen), his role expanded. He almost got to give back command of the 3rd platoon, but as he was bringing up that Lieutenant (who’d recovered from his wounds), that Lieutenant got wounded again. After a short R&R trip to Paris, he returned to take command of the company, as the only other officer left standing had been promoted to battalion XO.
He related two major lessons: trust your junior officers and war is a collective effort.
When I was a Scoutmaster, I relied on those two lessons.
Tell the junior leaders what needs to get done and get out of their way. If you’ve trained them properly, they’ll get it right. I knew that if the boys who held the leadership positions didn’t make the decisions, they would never learn to be leaders themselves, and, quite frankly, they’d get bored and quit. As the General says, the man (or boy) on the ground is going to have the best handle on what’s happening there and how to handle it. If you step and tell him how-to-do-it instead of just what-to-do, he’s going to expect you to always tell him how-to-do-it. Then, when you’re not around, which is certain to happen, he’s likely to do nothing or do the wrong thing. You have to give him the training, provide some direction and observe. Of course, good followup – perhaps with after-action reviews – can provide further insight, using each action as a training opportunity.
The General relates that war is a collective effort and it surely is. Highly motivated soldiers (or Boy Scouts) working together accomplish far more than a handful of heros acting individually. Team effort is actually a force-multiplier. Those leaders who can get everyone on the same page, working together, accomplish far more than any other leader. When I worked in a warehouse after I got out of college, the plant manager was able to get everyone very motivated for about four months. We all felt part of the team and we truly produced. Somehow, he let us lose that feeling and the productivity simply disappeared. He’d gotten it right, but lost sight of his methods, failing to treat us like members of a team and… everyone realized how they were being treated and responded accordingly. I see it all the time at competitive events in Scouting those that work together win, regardless of how talented individuals in other groups might be.
At the seminar, I met a couple of active duty Generals. I don’t think you can find two more motivated, sincere leaders of men than Major General Randall Marchi (28th ID) and Major General Eldon Regua (75th ID). I had an opportunity to talk with each of them for a few minutes and they each expressed how honored they were to meet and show their respect for the veterans of World War II. Those veterans are truly a treasure and I urge everyone to take full opportunity to meet them and to listen and learn. They are a treasured resource that is disappearing far too fast.
Filed under: 517th, Officers, Paratroopers | Tags: Bob Bowen, Edson Raff, Gerald Astor, Leadership, Ralph Ingersoll, Richard Seitz, Veterans
I attended the local gun show recently and ran across a great book-dealer, Jack Long (jacklong1945@verizon.net), who had a great batch of books on display. I really lucked out, scoring a 50th Anniversary copy of Edson Raff’s We Jumped to Fight, Ralph Ingersoll’s The Battle is the Payoff, Gerald Devlin’s Paratrooper, and Bob Bowen’s Fighting with the Screaming Eagles (on 1/401 GIR). However, I started by reading Gerald Astor’s Battling Buzzards, since I’ve met several men who served in the 517th PIR. It’s quite a book.
Last year, one of the veterans at the Operation Dragoon commemoration was none other than the CO of 2/517, Richard Seitz. Never having read anything about the 517th before that event, I had no idea who he was. His posting as battalion commander of 2/517 a few days before his 25th birthday made him one of the youngest battalion commanders during the war. The trust that COL Lou Walsh had in his abilities was proven wise during the Battle of the Bulge, as Task Force Seitz helped clear the way into St.Vith. Years later, Seitz rose to command the 82nd Airborne Division, retiring as a Lieutenant General in 1975. If you look at the Airborne battalion and regimental commanders in World War II, you can find a cadre that built and maintained our Airborne and Special Forces troops for the next thirty years. I’ve been considering writing a volume akin to D.S. Freeman’s Lee’s Lieutenants covering all of these men – perhaps Ridgway’s Lieutenants….
Well, the 517th had started at Camp Toccoa, like the more famous 506th, with new recruits getting their basic training within the regiment. Like every other regiment at Toccoa, training was tremendously difficult and wash-outs were common. Despite this, Colonel Walsh was a picky man. Every potential member of the regiment was interviewed before joining the regiment to determine whether they belonged. One of Seitz’s interview questions (though not given to every candidate) was “Can you put your first through that wall?”
Filed under: 517th, Operation Dragoon, Paratroopers, Veterans | Tags: 1944, Operation Dragoon, Thanksgiving, Veterans
As I sit here in my living room, on the couch, with the puppy snuggling next to my hip, the rain outside doesn’t affect us. Of course, for the men in the airborne in 1944, Thanksgiving wasn’t necessarily so comfortable. At the Operation Dragoon event this August, I met John Carter, who served in an Airborne Engineering Company and an Airborne Signals Company. John Carter was attached to the 517th Parachute Infantry Regiment and, for Thanksgiving 1944, situated along the Italian border, protecting the right flank of the 6th Army Group as it marched north.
On November 23, 1944, this Thanksgiving message from General Eisenhower was broadcast on the home front.
In this great war theater millions of America’s fighting men and their Allies are, by their courage, endurance and suffering, making daily headway against a fanatical enemy. They are surmounting unbelievable hardships and obstacles to insure to all of us the future right to live as free people. Mud, bitter cold, bullets and minefields cannot stop them if they are plentifully supplied and supported from the homeland. They need myriads of shells and tires and blankets and guns and planes – a thousand things to enable them to keep up the incessant pressure. These they must get from the money you lend to the government.
Another thing – they are entitled to the constant assurance of your understanding, of your resolution, and of your unflagging zeal in the cause for which they are offering their lives. To keep faith with them none of us can permit our minds and hearts to stray for a single second from the great task we have before us. In the current war bond drive, you once again have special opportunity to give these men the things they require and by so doing, reassure them and the whole world that the United States is a single, determined unit in working and fighting for complete victory.
There is just one way to gain the peace we want; each of us must work with ever increasing devotion and effectiveness up to the day the enemy capitulates.
We here – all of us – count upon you to over-subscribe the war loan and then to transform the money quickly into vital fighting equipment. It is needed, now.
Eisenhower also apparently decreed that every serviceman in the European Theater of Operations have turkey for Thanksgiving dinner. John Carter had volunteered for the Army. John Carter had volunteered for the Airborne. On Thanksgiving 1944, John volunteered to cook a Thanksgiving turkey on the front lines….
John’s wife, Fran, who is quite the pistol, says that John is allowed to cook at home despite the adventure of his 1944 Thanksgiving turkey. Fran built B-29s in Birmingham, Alabama, while John fought the Germans across France. After the war, they married and became professors at Samford University in Birmingham. In 1998, on the anniversary of Pearl Harbor, Fran founded the American Rosie the Riveter Association. There’s a great article about them in American Profile magazine.
On this Thanksgiving, I’d like to give thanks to John and Fran Carter, as well as the rest of the Greatest Generation, for their efforts. The spirit that they embody lives today in our service men and women, serving at home and abroad with little thanks or recognition. God bless John and Fran. God bless our troops. Happy Thanksgiving to all….
Eric Wittenburg, is not only a great writer, but also a man who clearly recognizes good writing when he sees it. He posted some battlefield reflections from his friend, Dave Lingenfelter, which are definitely worth reading.
Filed under: Officers, Veterans | Tags: 12th Armored Division, 28th Infantry Division, 36th Infantry Division, 3rd Infantry Division, 75th Infantry Division, Anniversary, Colmar Pocket, First French Army, Veterans
From the energetic folks who put on the annual Operation Dragoon Commemoration, this year they will hold a Battle of the Colmar Pocket Commemoration and Seminar. There will be a number of Colmar Pocket veterans attending, including GEN (ret.) Frederick J. Kroesen who will discuss his experience as a platoon leader and company commander in the 254th Infantry Regiment during the battle, and MG (ret.) Lloyd B. Ramsey who served as 3/7th Infantry Regiment battalion commander. They have invited veterans of the 3rd Infantry Division, 28th ID, 36th ID, 75th ID, 12th AD of the XXIst Corps of the US Army and the First French Army.
The event is open to the public, with a $30 registration fee (waived for Colmar Pocket veterans, of course). It will be held at the Hyatt Arlington (1325 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22209) and provide ample opportunities to interact with the veterans as well as for oral history during the sessions. The schedule is as follows:
3 December 2010
1300 — 1600 Registration (fee $30)
1800 — 2030 Seminar
4 December 2010
0900 — 1130 Seminar
1130 — 1300 Lunch (OWN)
1300 — en route to Arlington National Cemetery
1400 — Memorial Service at Amphitheater
1515 — Wreath laying at Tomb of the Unknowns
1830 — Banquet ($35)
5 December 2010
0900–1100 Seminar — Closing session
For further info, contact Monika Stoy, President, Association of the 3rd Infantry Division, Outpost Europe
monikastoy@yahoo.com, PH: 001 703 912 4218
Filed under: Normandy, Tours | Tags: Allan Bryson, Battlebus, Bayeux, Dale Booth, Normandy, Paul Woodadge, Tours
I got terrible news in Normandy. Battlebus has broken up. Paul had built the business from a one-man shop to six guides and mini-buses, but, from what I understand, he and the other guides will each become to being one-man shops starting in the spring. I toured with Dale Booth and Allan Bryson while in Normandy last month, then exchanged messages with Paul before he made the announcement on the 1st of November. While it will make it more complex for people to book tours with these gents, the good thing is that Paul will be back out giving tours on a regular basis.
I loved a number of things about Battlebus:
- Consistency & Competency: You know that Paul wouldn’t hire anyone unless they were good guides and they would follow the general process and format of his tours.
- Simplicity: It gave you access to several excellent guides through one email address, one scheduler and one process. It was also easy to remember – I’ve run into people who absolutely remember they used Battlebus, but can’t be certain who the guide was.
- Location: By basing out of Bayeux, they were centrally located to go to either the US or British beaches. It’s also just a fantastic area in which to stay. It made giving advice about where to stay in Normandy easy for me. “Just stay within 10k of Bayeux and everything else falls into place.”
- Collegiality: Since I kept in touch with them, I knew that in the off-season, these guys were studying and travelling to other sites together, further enhancing their knowledge of Normandy and the war as a whole. Battlebus was more than the sum of its parts.
I think it’s a shame that Battlebus itself has gone away, but at least they will continue to give tours as individuals. I heartily recommend all of them, though I’ve only toured with three.
Paul’s is at paul@ddayhistorian.com and his new website is http://www.ddayhistorian.com
Dale’s email is dboothholidays@sfr.fr and his website is http://daleboothnormandytours.com
Allan’s email is allan.bryson@orange.fr and his website is http://firstnormandybattlefieldtours.com
We're not lost, Sergeant, We're in ... France 