Opening Moves

16th US Armored Division was an untested unit that had heard a few angry shots in Czechoslovakia at the war’s end, and the fury of the Soviet assault was more than many could stand. Some units just ran away, others just raised their hands as waves of Russian infantry swept forward. According to a bewildered Brigadier General Pierce, cohesion was lost and although some of his units were showing signs of resistance, he could not hold.

Information pieced together suggested that 64th Armored Infantry, with some tanks and artillery, was trying to retain a foothold on Wernberg but with little success.

To Eisenhower and his Generals there seemed to be a major breakthrough in the making east of Nurnberg and, combined with the issues north of the city, made this the most dangerous area of their front at the moment. The line from Coburg to Weiden including Bayreuth seemed to be in danger of being nipped off around the flanks.

This was compounded by the withdrawal of the 102nd US Cavalry Group from its blocking positions northeast of Cham. It was already heading back as fast as it could in the direction of Regensburg closely pursued by what the reports described as hundreds of Soviet tanks. Not that anyone there or in the SHAEF Headquarters knew the Soviet units by name as yet but as the major in charge of 102nd had quaintly put it when asked for more information on the enemy units and why he was retreating, ‘a tank is a tank, and hundreds of the fuckers painted green with red stars on coming at you at speed are to be avoided at all costs so we bugged out.’ 102nd Cavalry had in fact been sitting astride the main route of advance of the huge 5th Guards Tank Army so their resistance would have been extremely brief had they stood their ground.

At Bayerische Eisenstein, units of the 29th Tank Corps equipped with American Sherman Tanks had bluffed their way through the lines of the 90th US Infantry Division, driving hard for Regen and Deggendorf. Either side of the route of advance Soviet artillery harassed the confused American troops.

Reports from the 26th US Infantry Division Commander indicated Soviet formations approaching Passau on the Donau, already having penetrated nearly 20 miles behind that morning’s lines without any reported fighting.

Mixed news came from Kefermarkt, north of Linz in Austria. Soviet troops had again plunged deep into allied lines without any real combat but had stumbled into the early morning exercise of the 63rd Armored Infantry and 41st Tank Battalions of 11th US Armored Division, being supervised by their commander Major-General Dager. Casualties in tanks had been high due to a surprise air strike. The Soviet 49th Army was tasked with this assault and its lead formation, 70th Rifle Corps, suffered grievous casualties as the unsupported infantry were faced with alert and well-equipped experienced infantry. Dager’s men had successfully executed a set-piece ambush and the assault was bloodily handled.

That action was ongoing but it seemed the red arrows there had been stopped.

At Enns, the Russians had crossed the river and were fighting their way through the 317th Regt, 80th US Infantry Division, who were slowly giving ground as they fell back towards Asten. Elements of the 305th Engineers had blown the bridge at Enns as the attack started but the enemy had crossed in boats and, unknown to the briefing officer, had already started work on a permanent structure capable of carrying tanks.

Other units of the 305th Engineer had been overrun near Sterninghofen, and 318th Infantry Regt was falling back in front of a huge armoured assault, seemingly aimed at outflanking Linz to the south.

South of that, there were no reports of any activity whatsoever.

As the Brigadier-General finished and the next officer stood to speak more reports arrived, condemning part of his outline to the bin as the situation changed yet again.

That would be the way of it for some time to come.

1035 hrs Monday, 6th August 1945, Headquarters of Red Banner Forces of Soviet Europe, Schloss Schönefeld, Leipzig.

At Schloss Schönefeld similar activity was taking place, although everyone was a lot more relaxed as the attacks were going extremely well in the main.

Zhukov received reports of the success of Operation Kurgan sceptically, encouraging Malinin to harry the air commander into firming up the figures his regiments were claiming.

None the less, he was pleased, for if the Kurgan reports from air and ground attack were only half-right then severe blows had been dealt to the allied tactical air forces throughout Europe, with relatively light casualties themselves.

The destruction of the British warships had caused much celebration amongst his naval liaison team but that was pretty much a sideshow to the Marshall. As long as they kept the allies off the North German shoreline that was all he worried about.