Opening Moves

7th Battalion, The Black Watch had been temporarily detached from its parent formation to bolster the southern area of Hamburg. Each of its companies was sent to a different hotspot. In the case of the Rathaus, it was B Company, under the command of Major John Ramsey VC that arrived in the nick of time and helped drive off the surviving Russian troops.

Major Llewellyn automatically deferred to Ramsey but, as was his style, Ramsey made sure the young man knew that the Black Watch was there to assist and that the Welshman was firmly in command.

The few junior officers left were scurrying around the positions, ensuring wounded were either tended to or evacuated to an aid station, and that ammunition was distributed as needed.

An orders group was called for 1530 hrs, convening, without any intended humour, in the Bürgerschaft, the meeting chamber of the Hamburg Governing body.

Eight attendees represented the CO’s of the units defending the area defined by JungfernSteig to the northeast and StadthausBrücke in the south-west, encompassing the Rathaus, Hamburg’s Exchange Building and all the area within the northern confines of GroßeJohannisStraße, all in all an area of less than half a square kilometre.

Major Llewellyn introduced himself and then went round the group, asking each to identify themselves in turn.

Ramsey had already attracted much attention, as much for the kilt he sported and the cane he carried as for who he was and what he displayed on his chest. He needed no introduction, not even to the German Officer commanding the 4th Hamburg Defence unit, as Maior Perlmann’s 8th Fallschirmjager Division had fought the 51st Division in the Reichswald.

His unit was a true anomaly, an intact throwback to the Wehrmacht of May 1945. Originally the 3rd Batallione, Fallschirmjager Regiment 22, it had been captured and disarmed, then rearmed on 9th May and employed by the British at Bad Segeberg, sweeping the forest for armed Soviet foreign workers who were causing mischief amongst the local populace.

Perlmann was not the only man there who found it a little bizarre that a decorated Major of German paratroops, in full uniform, was stood in a briefing with British officers.

Captain Arthurs of the 1st Manchesters certainly did, for he had lost a brother at Dunkirk and an uncle on the arctic convoys. Forgive and forget was not in his nature but he understood the needs of the present crisis, so bore the hated German’s presence as best he could.

The artillery observation officer, 1st Lieutenant Ames, had already proven that he was top-notch at his job, despite being tapped by a piece of shrapnel that made it hard for him to sit down.

1st Lieutenant Ramsey, attempting humour, confirmed he was no relation to the great man and apologised for the absence of the anti-tank battery commander who could not be located.

CSM Richardson, senior rank in the ad-hoc platoon comprised of survivors of the 555th Field Company, R.E., was not cowed by being the only NCO in the room. A lot of people he had spent years with had died in the last few days and he was there to even the score, and made sure the officers all understood that.

Finally, clad in the giveaway one-piece tank crew oversuit, Acting Major Frederick Brown QC, Cambridge Blue and Olympic Polo silver medallist from the 1936 Berlin Games, capped the introductions with a flourish.

A tray of corned beef sandwiches was strategically placed to one side, and it had been drawing the attention of hungry men, the nearer the man, the more obvious the attention.

Llewellyn decided that they could work and eat. The nearest man to the prize was Ames.

“Grab a sarnie Lieutenant and pass the plate on.”

There was no need to repeat that order and the plate moved swiftly anti-clockwise, ending up with Llewellyn and offering a choice from the three left.

In an almost surreal display, all heads slowly swivelled towards the sound of one of the number enjoying the feast with a little grunt here, a contented ‘mmmm’ there.

Perlmann suddenly became aware he was the centre of attention.

He grinned widely, displaying teeth covered with the detritus of his meal and spoke in accented schoolboy English.

“It is beating horse my man!”

They could not help but laugh and the moment of levity eased the tensions of their situation. Major Ramsey later argued that it was a pivotal moment in the brief existence of what became known as ‘Llewellyn Force’, despite his own run-in with Perlmann later.

^{Fig#28 – Hamburg – Llewellyn Force positions}

^{1M – 1st Manchesters, 4RWF - 4th Royal Welch Fusiliers, FBP – Fallschirm Batallione Perlmann, ERYY – East Riding of Yorkshire Yeomanry.}