‘A Bitter Irony’

West Wall Scenario No.1

Near Aachen 13th September 1944

Scenario played : 23rd November 2009

Nazi propaganda Minister, Dr Joseph Goebbels had promised to turn Aachen into America’s Stalingrad, but Gen. Gerhard Von Schwerin did not agree. On the 13th September he drafted an appeal for the humane treatment of all civilians and issued instructions to hand over Aachen to the first American officer entering the city. He expected that to happen the next day, but the Americans had other ideas.

Some miles outside the city, 350 German Grenadiers of the 116th Panzer Division had set up a thin, but obstructing defensive line along their assigned position on the higher ground in order to prevent any simple advance by the 1st US Infantry Division and to deny the use of the road network to their enemy. Behind them at about kilometre intervals were two areas of entrenchments. The first of these were already manned by the only available MG platoon. The other, occupied with their sole mortar platoon. Both entrenchment locations would be designated as fallback points.

At 0700 hours, the American infantry began to push towards the German positions. A screen of infantrymen kept the German line occupied whilst the main body of GI’s fanned round the German right in an attempt to outflank. American artillery also pounded the German dug-in line. Taking a few casualties from the shelling and sensing that the Americans were going to actually outflank them, the German troops began to retire in a generally orderly fashion. However, around 0800, American persistence began to really strain on German resources as the 725 strong American force was able to take advantage of its own firepower capability. No less than 75 Grenadiers became casualties over a 15 minute period, but, by using the well wooded terrain, the Grenadiers managed to send men back to the first entrenchment area to support their MG platoon that was now also coming under American attack.

The Americans gathered engineer units and plenty of HMG’s to assault the entrenched defenders whilst the rest of their number raced forward to empty the other known entrenched area one kilometre further down the road. Retreating Germans from the left flank also raced back knowing that the mortar unit could not hope to hold off determined enemy infantry. Back at the first entrenchment, the Americans were finding it tough. Each time they launched an assault, either German OBA would disrupt or the defending infantry would demoralise their specialist troops. The GI’s also were now taking casualties in what had suddenly become an erstwhile struggle. For 90 minutes the US 1st pummelled, fired and bravely charged their intended target, but was simply never left alone by the Germans to conduct a textbook assault. The final effect always being just a desultory shadow of what had been intended.

At the other entrenchment, sheer guts by the mortar team was enough to save the day. These men, seeing more than enough of the GI enemy advancing toward them, left their 81mm tubes, picked up a schmeisser or Mauser and a grenade or two and manned the edge of the entrenchments. Surprised at the determined resistance found, the Americans balked at first and then led a second makeshift assault on the enemy. With stiff morale, the mortar crews stood firm, even if a few of their number had fallen. It was enough to hold the Americans back. Even if these ‘Landsers’ hadn’t inflicted many casualties they had at least made it tough for any further advance for their olive clad enemy. Just in time, a grenadier platoon that had fought its way through from the front-line managed to join them in the entrenched position and helped mightily to hold off the Americans. For the valour shown, the mortar crew’s reward was for most of them to become casualties of war.

From 0945-1000, the local American commander had one more throw of the die at each position. Small-arms fire, artillery, assaults and a bitter testing of the German resolve was in the end unable to demoralise the defenders and they were left to cling on for a little while longer. A tactical victory for the Germans, but the ‘Amis’ would be back. To keep the road closed to the enemy for this 3 hour period had been high for the 350 German defenders. 190 of them had become casualties. American totalled about 90 or so.