Frontpost

Frontpost
A U S G A B E S Ü D
Nummer 114 Nachrichtenblatt für deutsche Soldaten 9. März 1945
7 Alliierte Armeen am Rhein
Brückenkopf bei Remagen
Am 13. Tag der alliierten Grossoffensive im Westen standen nach Durchbruch durch zahlreiche Abschnitte des nördlichen Westwalls 7 Armeen am Rhein. Dies waren, von Norden nach Süden, die 1. kanadische, die 2. englische, die 9., 1., 3., u. 7. USA- und die 1. französische Armee. Drei deutsche Brückenköpfe bei Wesel, westlich Düsseldorf und bei Köln wurden stark eingeengt.
Köln: Am 5. 3. nachts rückten Truppen der 1. USA-Armee in die rheinische Hauptstadt ein. Schwächere deutsche Verbände leisteten vorübergehend Widerstand und zogen sich nach Süden, Richtung Bonn, zurück. Ungefähr 100 000 deutsche Zivilpersonen blieben in der schwer beschädigten Stadt trotz mangelnder Wasser- u. Elektrizitätsversorgung zurück. Türme und Schiff des Doms blieben ungeachtet der Luftangriffe der letzten 4 Jahre auf den Hauptbahnhof unbeschädigt.
In 3-tägigem Vorstoss östlich der Schneeeifel erreichte die 3. USA-Armee nach einem 75 km - Durchbruch am 8. 3. den Rhein nahe Koblenz.
Am gleichen Tag errichteten Truppen der 1. USA-Armee bei Remagen den ersten alliierten rechtsrheinischen Brückenkopf.
SUEDFRONT: An der Front der 5. Armee rücken amerikanische Truppen zwischen dem oberen Reno-Tal und dem Panaro-Tal 8 km vor und brachten über 1200 deutsche Gefangene ein, darunter viele erst seit 12 oder 24 Stunden im Einsatz stehende Soldaten. Brasilianische Truppen besetzten die 5 km von Vergato entfernte Ortschaft Castelnuovo.
Russen am Stettiner Haff
Die russischen Heeresgruppen Zukow und Rokossowsky setzten ihren Durchbruch im Pommern und westlich Danzig fort. Am 6. März besetzte die erstere Belgard, Treptow, Greifenberg, Kammin, Gülzow u. Plathe, am 7. Gollnow, Stepenitz u. Massow unweit des Stettiner Haffs. Weiter östlich besetzte die Heeresgruppe Rokossowsky am 6. Treten, am 7. Neue u. Preussisch-Stargard und am 8. Bütow u. Berent.
Hinter der HKL. wurden mehrere umzingelte deutsche Kampfgruppen vernichtet oder gefangen genommen. In dem am 6. erstürmten Graudenz wurden über 5000 Gefangene (darunter Festungskommandant Generalmajor Fritzke) eingebracht. Am
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Right side, vertical]:
Nr. 114 FRONTPOST, Ausgabe Süd 9. März 1945
gleichen Tag ergaben sich mehr als 1000 eingeschlossene deutsche Soldaten südöstlich Köslin mit Generalleutnant von Bülow u. s. Stab. Am 7. wurden südlich Schivelbein 8000 Mann (darunter Generalleutnant Krafte) gefangen genommen.
Oestlich Berlin wurden — laut deutschem OKW.-Bericht — starke russische Angriffe im Küstriner Raum zurückgeworfen. Die Meldung wird von russischer Seite nicht bestätigt.
In der Tschechoslowakei besetzten Truppen der Heeresgruppe Malinowsky am 7. März Schemnitz.
Ziele in Deutschland
(ohne Frontziele)
Unter Einsatz von bis zu 1500 Grossbombern pro Tag belegten alliierte Flieger Treibstoffwerke, Bahnanlagen und andere Ziele der folgenden Städte (gegen schwache deutsche Boden- u. Jagdab wehr) mit Bomben:
6. 3.: Mannheim, Schalke-Gelsenkirchen, Bohlen-Leipzig, Salzbergen b. Münster, Berlin, Hallendorf, Kiel, Lübeck, Hamburg, Hannover, Plauen, Fulda, Marburg, Wetzlar, Meckenheim, Sassnitz-Rügen.
7. 3.: Dortmund, Bielefeld, Soest, Siegen, Berlin, Castrop-Rauxel, Dessau, Harburg, Heide in Dithmarschen.
8. 3.: Gelsenkirchen, Dortmund, Betzdorf, Dillenburg, Siegen, Essen, Giessen.
Sender der 8. Armee
Musik und letzte Nachrichten in deutscher Sprache: jeden Mittag von 12.00 bis 14.00; und jeden Abend um 19.45 und 22.30 auf Mittelwelle 241.9.
» Ei ssörrender! « — » Hallo! «
Eine Geschichte von der 8. Armee
Ein kürzlich an der 8. Armeefront gefangener genommener deutscher Soldat erzählte folgende Geschichte: er hatte durch ein alliiertes Flugblatt die englischen Worte für „Ich ergebe mich", nämlich „I surrender" (ausgesprochen: „Ei ssörrender") gelernt und sie sich sorgfältig für den Moment ihrer grössten Nützlichkeit eingeprägt.
Als aber dieser Moment kam — hatte er die Worte vergessen. Er hatte nur die Geistesgegenwart, „Hallo!" zu sagen. Und traf damit — glücklicherweise — genau ins Schwarze!
Andere vor kurzem in Gefangenschaft geratene Deutsche berichten von Diskussionen unter den Kameraden über das korrekte Aussprechen des Wortes „surrender". Einige Landser waren der Meinung, Engländer sprächen es „ssörrender" aus, während Amerikaner „surrender" sagen, was nicht den Tatsachen entspricht: denn das Wort wird von beiden gleich ausgesprochen.
Weiter sind an den Frontabschnitten der 8. und 5. Armee alle nicht englisch sprechenden alliierten Truppen von der Bedeutung der Worte „Ei ssörrender!" dienstlich unterrichtet worden und angewiesen, sie sich sorgfältig einzuprägen. Daher kann jeder deutsche Soldat mit der Absicht, sich zu ergeben, diese Worte vertrauensvoll aussprechen ohne Unterschied der Nationalität der ihm gegenüberliegenden Truppen.
Brenner einen Monat blockiert
Das Hqu. der alliierten taktischen Luftwaffe in Italien meldet eine durch ständigen Bombenwurf vier Wochen anhaltende Dauerblockierung der Brennerbahn. Im Februar wurden etwa 2500 t Bomben auf verwundbare Stellen der Linie abgeworfen. Die Tarvispass-Linie sowie die Piedicolle- u. Postumia-Linien durch Jugoslawien sind ebenfalls blockiert.
Die Brennerblockierung beraubt die Deutschen ihrer besten Rückzugslinie von Italien. Sie drosselt praktisch den Nachschub. Eine sehr begrenzte Menge deutschen Nachschubgüter ersten Vorrangs scheint noch jetzt durch Umladung von Güterwagen in LKW.s an den blockierten Stellen durchgeleitet zu werden, doch schliesst die deutsche Benzinknappheit den Transport grosser Nachschubmengen auf diesem Wege aus.
Profetische Führerworte
Am 30. September 1942, als deutsche Truppen an der Wolga standen, sagte Hitler: „Wir waren uns darüber im Klaren, dass mit der Ausschaltung des Dnjepr, des Don und der Wolga als Verkehrsstränge für Russland ungefähr das Gleiche eintritt wie für Deutschland eintreten würde, wenn wir den Rhein, die Elbe, die Oder und die Donau verlieren würden."
Hitler schrieb in „Mein Kampf" (S. 104): „Wenn durch die Hilfsmittel der Regierungsgewalt ein Volkstum dem Untergang entgegengeführt wird, dann ist die Rebellion eines jeden Angehörigen des Volkes nicht nur Recht, sondern Pflicht."
Weiter schrieb Hitler in „Mein Kampf" (S. 593): „In einer Stunde, da ein Volkskörper sichtlich zusammenbricht, dank des Handelns einiger Lumpen, bedeutet Pflichterfüllung diesen gegenüber reinen Wahnwitz."
REICHSF[---]
Volkssturm nic[---]
Entgegen den An[---]
festung Köln » Ha[---]
Stein « verteidigt [---]
fast 800 000 Ew. b[---]
gefallen, ohne dass [---]
völkerung irg[---]
leistet hätten. Ein [---]
det, dass sich in [---]
Löwenich auf den [---]
Stunde nur noch [---]
gegen verlassen H[---]
Sturm die Stadt, [---]
Linien Schutz zu s[---]
Ein englischer [---]
der 1. USA Armee [---]
Aus den zerbruch[---]
fatlöchern in de[---]
Fahnen. Tausende [---]
steckt hatten, keh[---]
beladen zurück.
Bevölkerung ge[---]
In Krefeld, das [---]
genommen wurde, [---]
ungen von einer E[---]
[Column on far right, partially obscured]:
N
AU
Frontpost Beilag
Alle in diesem [---]
aus Deutschland sta[---]
antwortlichkeit — [---]
stehenden Nachrich[---]
den benachbarten L
Reichsregierung
Stockholm. Ein [---]
vertreter in Be[---]
Deutschland zurü[---]
richtet, dass Goeb[---]
Reichsminister ist [---]
Himmler lebt in [---]
der Ost-Front, Ma[---]
gaden, und Ribbe[---]
zeigen sich ebens[---]
ster Otto Meissne[---]
Prestigegründen in [---]
verschiedene Ausw[---]
ursprüngliche Plan[---]
regierung zu mach[---]
Luftangriffe vereit
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Top center]: The National Archives' reference AIR 27/271/3
[Left margin, vertical]:
NACHRICHTEN
AUS DER HEIMAT
Frontpost Beilage Nr. 36 9. März 1945
Alle in diesem Blatte enthaltenen Nachrichten aus Deutschland stammen — ohne jede weitere Verantwortlichkeit — aus den besten zur Verfügung stehenden Nachrichtenquellen in Deutschland und den benachbarten Ländern.
Reichsregierung hat Berlin verlassen
Stockholm. Ein ehemaliger schwedischer Pressevertreter in Berlin, der nicht wieder nach Deutschland zurückzukehren beabsichtigt, berichtet, dass Goebbels als Gauleiter der einzige Reichsminister ist, der noch in Berlin weilt. Himmler lebt in seinem Hauptquartier hinter der Ost- Front, Martin Bormann ist in Berchtesgaden, und Ribbentrop in Schloss Fuschl; sie zeigen sich, ebenso wie Dr. Ley und Staatsminister Otto Meissner, nur von Zeit zu Zeit aus Prestigegründen in Berlin. Das OKW ist in vier verschiedene Ausweichstellen übergesiedelt. Der ursprüngliche Plan, Dresden zum Sitz der Reichsregierung zu machen, wurde durch die alliierten Luftangriffe vereitelt.
REICHSFESTUNG KOELN:
Volkssturm nicht im Einsatz
Entgegen den Ankündigungen, dass die Reichsfestung Köln » Haus um Haus und Stein um Stein « verteidigt werden würde, ist die mit fast 800 000 Ew. bisher grösste deutsche Stadt gefallen, ohne dass der Volkssturm oder die Zivilbevölkerung irgendwelchen Widerstand geleistet hätten. Ein alliierter Frontberichter meldet, dass sich in dem nahebei gelegenen Ort Löwenich auf den Volkssturmappell in letzter Stunde nur noch 3 Mann gemeldet hätten. Dagegen verliessen Hunderte von Kölnern vor dem Sturm die Stadt, um in den amerikanischen Linien Schutz zu suchen.
Ein englischer Rundfunkberichter, der mit der 1. USA Armee in Köln einrückte, meldete: » Aus den zerbrochenen Fenstern und den Granatlöchern in den Mauern hängen weisse Fahnen. Tausende von Deutschen, die sich versteckt hatten, kehren mit ihren Habseligkeiten beladen zurück.
Bevölkerung gegen Evakuierung
In Krefeld, das am 4.3. von den Alliierten genommen wurde, sind nach vorläufigen Schätzungen von einer Bevölkerung von 170 000 über 120 000 entgegen den Parteibefehlen zurückgeblieben. Zu Zwangsmassnahmen gegen die Bevölkerung war keine Zeit mehr. In M.-Gladbach, das am 2.3. genommen wurde, sind von 110 000 rund 75 000 zurückgeblieben.
In Krefeld stellten sich den alliierten Militärbehörden eine grössere Anzahl deutscher Soldaten, die ihre Uniformen gewechselt und sich in Zivil nach Krefeld durchgeschlagen hatten. In Neuss schwenkten fast alle Einwohner eine weisse Fahne oder ein weisses Tuch. In allen bisher besetzten Orten verhält sich die Bevölkerung ruhig.
In Breslau wird um jedes Haus gekämpft
Wie DNB meldete, waren am 25.2. schwere Kämpfe nördlich des Südparks im Gange, der in russische Hand fiel. Besonders erbittert wurde um die Kürassierbaracken am Südende der Hohenzollernstr. und den grossen Städtischen Kirchhof gekämpft. Das Viertel, in der die Jahrhunderthalle steht, ist bis jetzt verschont geblieben.
Der deutsche Kriegsberichter Megerlein meldete am 5.3.: » Der Kampf tobt hier, wo der Feind bedrohlich nach dem Stadtkern vordringt, um jedes einzelne Haus Der Feind lässt immer wieder Pak in den Strassen auffahren, trotz aller Verluste. Er setzt die Feuerstrahlen seiner Flammenwerfer gegen jedes einzelne Haus an. Er dringt nach einem Einbruch durch die eingebrochenen Kellerwände rasch in andere Häuser ein, um die oberen Stockwerke zu gewinnen. In manchen Häusern ist es zu stundenlangen Kämpfen gekommen, wenn in einem Stockwerk der Feind, in einem anderen wir sitzen, oder gar auf demselben Stockwerk sich unsere Grenadiere und die Sowjets in zwei verschiedenen Wohnungen gegenüberliegen. Zusammenstürzende Treppenhäuser begraben unter sich Freund wie Feind. Und wer sich wieder daraus löst, führt den Kampf im Keller weiter. «
Front-Alltag in Berlin
Stockholm. Ein Berliner Bericht der schwedischen Zeitung » Expressen « vom 2.3. besagt: » Das Leben hier gleicht dem an der Front, nur ohne Waffen und bei sehr schlecht funktionierendem Nachschub. Ein grosser Teil des Zentrums ist wie ausgestorben, ganze Viertel im Osten brennen noch, und dauernd hört man Explosionen. — Das Atelier des Sonderfotografen des Führers, Heinrich Hoffmann, in der Kochstr.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Top center]: The National Archives' reference AIR 27/271/3
[Right margin, vertical]:
NACHRICHTEN AUS DER HEIMAT 9. März 1945
wurde bei einem der letzten Luftangriffe völlig
zerstört. Sein neues Atelier befindet sich jetzt
in Steglitz. «
Beerdigungen auf Bedarfsschein
Ab 1.3. unterliegen nach § 3 des Reichslei-
stungsgesetzes alle in Berlin vorhandenen Be-
stände an Särgen der Beschlagnahme. Privat-
bestattungen dürfen in Zukunft nur auf Grund
eines Bedarfsscheines des Berliner Bürgermei-
sters stattfinden.
Der Transocean-Dienst vom 20.2 berichtete,
dass in dem Film über den Bombenkrieg in
Berlin Hilde Krahl, Marianne Hoppe, V. de
Kowa und Gustav Knuth die Hauptrollen spie-
len. - In dem gleichen Bericht heisst es, dass
aus einem Vorortzug aus dem Osten mehrere
frisch verbundene SS-Männer ausstiegen, die am
gleichen Vormittag in der HKL verwundet wor-
den waren. » Mehr als alle Panzersperren und
Volkssturmwachen vermittelte diese Begegnung
das Gefühl, wie nahe Berlin an der Front liegt. «
Lebensmittelunruhen ausgebrochen
Stockholm. Nach hier eingetroffenen Berichten
kam es auf die Ankündigung der Herabsetzung
der Zuteilungen am 28.2. im Bezirk Halle-
Merseburg zu Unruhen In Halle demonstrierten
Ostflüchtlinge, deren Karten für verfallen erklärt
worden waren, vor dem Rathaus. Parteifeind-
liche Rufe wurden laut.
» Stockholms Aftontidningen « berichtete, dass
am 21.2. in mehreren Städten Bayerns Krawalle
4 Wochen Ernährungslage
2.2. Reichsernährungsminister verlängert
Gültigkeitsdauer der Zuteilungskarten 72.
und 73. Periode von 8 auf 9 Wochen.
Streichung der Zuckerzuteilungen.
4.2. Kartoffelzuteilungen in Berlin und
anderen Städten um 1/2 kg wöchentlich
gekürzt.
15.2. Ausmahlungsquote für Weizen auf
100, mindestens aber auf 94 v.H. herauf-
gesetzt.
26.2. Haushaltungen und Selbstversorger
müssen ein Viertel der im Herbst einge-
kellerten Kartoffelmenge wieder abgeben.
28.2. Reichsernährungsminister verfügt
Herabsetzung der Zuteilungen für die 73.
Periode: bei Brot um 1 000 g, bei Nährmit-
teln und Fett um je 250 g.
1.3. Neuregelung des Verteilungsplanes
sieht Menge der Rationen je nach Zufuhren
vor. - Butterausgabe in Berlin und anderen
Städten durch Margarine ersetzt.
ausbrachen, bei denen die Menge Parteibüro
und Lebensmittellager zu stürmen versuchte. In
München soll es zu einem regelrechten Gefecht
zwischen SS und bewaffneten Arbeitern ge-
kommen sein. Eine Anzahl Ordnungspolizisten,
die sich weigerten auf die Menge zu schiessen,
wurde von der SS festgenommen.
Schwierigkeiten der Flüchtlingsbetreuung
Neuchatel. Wie dem » Feuille d'Avis « von der
Grenze berichtet wird, ist seit dem russischen
Durchbruch im Osten in den grossen Hotels und
Heilstätten auf der deutschen Seite des Boden-
sees kaum noch ein Platz zu finden. Der Leiter
des Sanatoriums Konstanzerhof bei Peterhausen
Dr. Büdingen, musste in letzter Zeit weitere vier
Villen mieten, um Raum für die aus dem Osten
kommenden Familien von Parteihoheitsträgern
zu schaffen. Unter den zuletzt Angekommenen
befinden sich Reichshauptleiter Cerff aus dem
Promi, Hauptmädelführerin Anna Dräger von
der BDM-Führerinnenschule Krakau und SS-
Obersturmführer Helmut Müller, der Leiter der
Polizei in Gdingen.
Hannover. In einer Anfang Februar gehalte-
nen Rede erklärte der Gauleiter von Hannover,
Lauterbacher: » Es ist eine Schande, dass in
manchen Kurorten die Flüchtlingskinder in un-
geheizten Räumen untergebracht werden, wäh-
rend grosse geheizte Räume für » Sondergäste «
reserviert bleiben. «
Kurzberichte
Wie DNB am 1.3. meldete, wurden 651 000 Ein-
wohner und Flüchtlinge aus Ostpreussen durch
die Kriegsmarine auf dem Seewege ins Reich
evakuiert.
Der Deutsche Soldatendienst berichtet, dass
Tausende von Wehrmachtshelferinnen in sog.
» Patenfamilien « in ihrer Freizeit ausgleichende
Entspannung und Erholung finden.
Ab 4. 4. ist das Halten von Gänsen, Enten,
Truthühnern und Perlhühnern in ganz Deutsch-
land verboten, da durch die Verwendung von
Futtermitteln erhebliche Mengen an Nahrungs-
mitteln verloren gehen.
Der ursprünglich für den 5.2. vorgesehener
Schulbeginn in Wien ist aus Kriegsgründen auf
unbestimmte Zeit verschoben worden.
KRIEGSEREIGNISSE
(Vom 1. - 7. März)
In Pommern Durchbruch zweier russischer
Heeresgruppen zur Ostsee. Köslin, Star-
gard genommen. Stettiner Haff bei Stepe-
nitz erreicht. Graudenz gefallen. - Im
Westen M. - Gladbach, Krefeld, Rheydt,
Neuss a.Rh., Trier und Köln von den
Alliierten genommen.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps / Lateral Text:
[Left margin, vertical]:
,, Ei ssörrender ! "
(auf Deutsch: ,, Ich ergebe mich ! ")
ANDERE NÜTZLICHE REDEWENDUNGEN
| DEUTSCH | ENGLISCH AUSGESPROCHEN | ENGLISCH GESCHRIEBEN |
|---|---|---|
| Wo seid ihr? | Uär ah juh? | Where are you? |
| Nicht schiessen! | Dount schuht! | Don't shoot! |
| Ich bin verwundet | Aim wuhnded | I'm wounded |
| Nehm euch meiner verwunde- | Tehk kehr of mai wuhnded | Take care of my wounded |
| ten Kameraden an | comreeds | comrades |
| Gebt mir Wasser | Let mih häw som uoter | Let me have some water |
| Haben Sie eine Zigarette? | Häw juh got e rsigaret? | Have you got a cigarette? |
| Kann ich Kaffee (Tee) bekom- | Kän ai häw koffi (tie)? | Can I have coffee (tea)? |
| men? | | |
| Gebt mir bitte noch eine Decke | Plies giw mih non moa | Please give me one more |
| | blänket | blanket |
| Danke schön | Sänk juh | Thank you |
7/P
[Handwritten marginalia/stamp at bottom, oriented upside down]:
(TRANSLATION)
ROOSEVELT | CHURCHILL
"As for Germany, that tragic nation which has sown the wind and is now reaping the whirlwind, we and our allies are entirely agreed that we shall not bargain with the Nazi conspirators, or leave them a shred of control - open or secret - of the instruments of government.
But I should be false to the very foundations of my religious and political convictions, if I should ever renounce the hope — and evident it is — that in all peoples, without exception, there lives some instinct for truth, some attraction towards justice, and some passion for peace.
We bring no charge against the German race, as such, for we cannot believe that God has eternally condemned any race of humanity, and we know how many men and women of German extraction in our own country have proved themselves to be loyal, liberty-loving and peaceful citizens.
The German people are not going to be enslaved — because the United Nations do not traffic in human slavery. But it will be necessary for them to earn their way back into the fellowship of peace-loving and law-abiding nations. And, in their climb up that steep road, we shall certainly see to it that they are not encumbered by having to carry guns."
| "The President of the U.S. and I, have repeatedly declared that the enforcement of unconditional surrender upon the enemy in no way relieves the victorious powers of all their obligations to humanity, or of their duties as civilised and Christian nations.
We may now say to our foes: We demand unconditional surrender, but you know how strict are the moral limits within which our action is confined.
We are not the extirpators of nations or butchers of people. We make no bargain with you. We accord you nothing as a right. Abandon your resistance unconditionally; we remain bound by our customs and our nature.
If you surrender now, nothing you will have to endure after the war will be comparable to what you are otherwise going to suffer during 1945.
We Allies are no monsters. We faithful men trying to carry forward the light of the world, trying to raise from the bloody welter and confusion in which mankind is now plunged, a structure of peace, of freedom, of justice and of law, which itself shall be an abiding and bright shelter at the last for all."
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Left side vertical]:
Take good care of your trucks —
Why do we, your opponents in Italy, take the trouble to give you this urgent advice? Here are the reasons:
* We know, and you know, that the final German crack-up is drawing near.
* We know, and you know, that fewer and fewer supplies are reaching you from Germany. The Brenner has been out of action for some time now, and our bombers will keep it out of action. You are already living from hand to mouth; and, after the final crack-up, no supplies will come from Germany at all.
* From then on your food, and everything else you need, will have to come to you from the great Allied supply depots in Central Italy.
* We have sufficient supplies for you. Our transport, however, is designed only to cover our own requirements. You will have to provide your own.
That is why we say to all German soldiers in M. T. units: think of your comrades, whom you will have to look after. Let those who have no transport see to it that those who have are given this warning. If your officers order you to blow up your vehicles, or sabotage them in any way, refuse to do so. TAKE GOOD CARE OF YOUR TRUCKS:
—you will need them!
T/76
Handwritten Marginalia & Stamps:
* Top Right Folio Number: "133" (Handwritten).
* Archival Reference (Right Margin Stamped Label):
Take good care
of your trucks!
And keep this map. It will
come in useful too!
Brenner-Pass
Innsbruck
Tarvis-Pass
Villach
Rovereto
Trento
Bolzano
Bressanone
Vipiteno
Etsch
Piave
Tagliamento
Udine
Gorizia
TRIESTE
VENEZIA
Chioggia
Padova
Vincenza
Verona
Peschiera
Lonato
Brescia
Bergamo
Monza
MAILAND
Lodi
Pavia
Piacenza
Cremona
Mantova
Rovigo
Adria
Comacchio
Ferrara
BOLOGNA
Modena
Reggio
Parma
Sassuolo
Pavullo
Alfonsine
Ravenna
Forli
Imola
Faenza
Cesena
GENUA
Rapallo
Sestri
Castelnuovo
Alessandria
Tortona
Novi
Asti
Pinerolo
TURIN
Susa
Chivasso
Vercelli
Ivrea
Biella
Aosta
Novara
Domodossola
Locarno
Sondrio
Bormio
Pola
Handwritten Marginalia & Stamps:
* Archival Reference (Stamped Label):
The Voice
of the 8th Army
speaks to German soldiers on
the Southern Front daily
from 1200 to 1400
1945 to 2015
2230 to 2300 hours
Tune in on wave-length
241.9 metres, 1240 kilocycles
The fighting man's radio
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Top center]: 134 [Handwritten folio number]
[Right side vertical label]:
What are you specially interested in? News from all the
fronts? Daily report on your sector? Names of comrades who've
been taken prisoner? Then listen in to the « Voice of the 8th Army.»
Would you like to learn something about the big-shots
and officers? « Candidus » has a thing or two to tell you. He
speaks on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 2005 hours.
For those who find it more convenient to listen-in in the middle of
the day, we repeat this feature on Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays
at 1345 hours.
Do you like a laugh? The two Landser from Berlin, Stabs-
gefreiter « Gottfried » and Obergefreiter « Herbert » get together every
Sunday at 2005 hours. If you miss it, tune in on Monday at 1345 hours.
Form your own opinion of the value of our weekly military
survey, by Lt.-Colonel Macdonald. Wednesdays, 2005 and 2245 hours.
How are things at home? When people write to you, they
can't afford to tell you everything.
Our « News from Home » are under no Himmler or Goebbels cen-
sorship. Thursdays and Saturdays at 1345 hours, Fridays at 2005
hours, Mondays and Tuesdays at 2250 hours.
For sportsmen only: Saturdays, 2250 hours, our sports
preview, and Sundays, 2250 hours, our sports results and news.
Music is included in all programmes of the « Voice of the 8th
Army. »
T/86
Handwritten Marginalia & Stamps:
* Archival Reference (Stamped Label):
Deutscher Soldat!
DU
BIST DER GROSSE
KRIEGSVERLAENGERER!
Translation: German soldier, YOU are the great war-prolonger!
Germany is in flames behind you.
The Allied air-offensive against Germany has reached a new pitch of fury. Every day thousands of tons of bombs are dropped on German cities.
As a result of these air-attacks, and of the Allied advances in the East and West, millions of Germans have become homeless. Thousands of German refugees are dying daily on the roads.
Germany has lost Upper Silesia, the industrial area west of the Middle Rhine and a part of the Saar district. The Ruhr district is under shell-fire across the Rhine. Without these districts, Germany cannot wage a war. Over fifty nations — more than four fifths of the world — have declared war on the Third Reich. Its fate is sealed.
Yet you, German soldier, fight on — although you know that every further day of war only increases the destruction of German cities and the misery of German families. You are the great war-prolonger.
There are those of you who say: « I'm only a small Landser. » « I can't do anything about it. » « I'm stur. I have no time for such thoughts. » But one can't get away with it like that. It is the duty of each one of you — to your dear ones and to your Fatherland — both to think, and to act! In battle the German soldier has never lacked courage and initiative. It is your duty to use these virtues. True, each of you can do only a small part. But all these parts together can accomplish the great aim: to stop the war, and save what of Germany is still to save.
NUR DEUTSCHE KÖNNEN
DEUTSCHLAND RETTEN!
Translation: Only Germans can save Germany
T/84
Handwritten Marginalia & Stamps:
* Folio Number (Top Right): 135
* Archival Reference (Stamped Label):
(TRANSLATION)
STURHEIT
Untranslatable
he calls it, the German soldier who
fights on although he knows that the
war is lost and that Germany is in
flames behind him. Other words for it
are apathy, blindness and a criminal
disregard for the good of his country.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Left side vertical label]:
Targets in Germany
FROM FEBRUARY 9TH TO 23rd, 1945
Lüneburg
BREMEN
Elbe
Ludwigslust
STETTIN
Ülzen
Salzwedel
Celle
Stendal
Oder
Weichsel
BERLIN
Peine
HANNOVER
BRAUNSCHWEIG
Hildeshm.
MAGDEBG.
Halberstadt
Wittenbg.
Kottbus
Rheine
Osnabrück
Münster
Kreiensen
Nordhsn.
Göttingen
Sangerhsn.
KASSEL
LEIPZIG
Gotha
Weimar
Erfurt
Gera
Eisenach
DRESDEN
CHEMNITZ
Meiningen
Plauen
Fulda
FRANKFURT
Würzburg
Nordheim
Worms
MANNHEIM
NÜRNBERG
Ansbach
Crails-hm.
Regensburg
Treuchtl-gn.
STUTTGART
Augsburg
MÜNCHEN
Freiburg
Salzbergen
Rheine
Dortmund
Paderborn
Eschwege
Siegen
Hamm
Wesel
Boch
ESSEN
Gelsenkirchen
KREFELD
Solingen
M. Gladbach
KÖLN
Bonn
Koblenz
Darmstadt
Kitzgn.
Pirmasens
Kaiser-lt-n
Landau
Landau
Zweibrücken
Pforz-hm.
Neumkt.
Linz
Donau
WIEN
FPBM 2
All the towns shown here — principally communication centres and seats of oil refineries and synthetic fuel works — were in 14 days bombed, many repeatedly, by Allied air fleets from West, East and South. Allied aircraft flew up to 7000 sorties daily against targets in Germany.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Top center]: The National Archives' reference AIR 27/271/3
[Right side, vertical]: 136 [Handwritten folio number]
[Bottom label, inverted]:
“ If you lay down your
arms now, nothing that you
will have to endure after the
war will be comparable with
the sufferings you will have
to bear in 1945, if the war
continues. „
CHURCHILL TO THE GERMAN PEOPLE
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[The following items appear on a separate slip of paper or orientation below the main text, oriented upside down relative to the quote]:
(TRANSLATION)
To the people
of Northern Italy
W A R N I N G
LIEUTENANT General Mark W. Clark, Commanding General 15th Army Group, has sent the following message to the people of Northern Italy:
"People of Italy who are still under the yoke of Nazi and Fascist oppression:
"In this phase of the war — when in the East the Russian Armies are sweeping on Berlin, and in the West the Anglo-Americans are smashing through the Siegfried Line defenses — attempts by the Germans to withdraw from Italy become increasingly likely.
"During this phase, therefore, the full might of Allied air power is being turned against the supply and communication routes of the enemy leading out of Northern Italy, in order that any attempts at a German withdrawal may be made as costly as possible to our ruthless enemy.
"As you know, in my instructions to those among you who under my command are actively fighting the enemy, stress is laid on their primary task — that of attacking communications, to deny the enemy freedom of movement by road and rail.
"The efforts of the Italian 'patriot fighters are designed to coördinate with and supplement the Allied air forces in their task of destroying the enemy's communications.
"It is an inevitable and regrettable part of the inexorable struggle to defeat the invader that these air attacks must to some extent affect the civilian population, as well as the enemy against whom they are directed.
"Just as in France, Belgium, and Holland before the invasion, the civilian population were warned that the Allied air forces would
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Top Right]: 137 [Handwritten folio number]
[Right Side Vertical]:
take every possible precaution to restrict their attacks to military
targets, it is not always possible to avoid civilian damage and casualties.
"So I give this warning to the people of Northern Italy — to
keep away from roads, railways, communication centres, bridges, and
also all industrial targets, to the fullest extent possible. Restrict all
civilian travel and traffic to an absolute minimum, because the enemy's
use of the Italian communication system makes it impossible to
distinguish between military and civilian transport. And those who
travel by road and rail must do so at their peril. This applies also to
those who live near such targets, who should now, wherever possible,
move away from such areas.
"I would like the people of Northern Italy to know how deeply
we regret that the presence of the Nazis and Fascists in North Italy
makes it inevitable that civilian life and property should be lost
through Allied air action.
"And I call upon each one to do whatever he or she can to help
us in the defeat of the Nazi-Fascist oppressors, on whom alone the
responsibility lies for the sufferings of the Italian people."
16th February, 1945.
Mark W. Clark
COMMANDER IN CHIEF, 15 ARMY GROUP.
W A R N I N G
IT/18
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
(TRANSLATION)
Frontpost
A U S G A B E S Ü D
No. 118 FRONTPOST, Southern Edition March 23rd, 1945
Saar, Palatinate taken
Saarbrücken, Neunkirchen, Zweibrücken, Kaiserslautern, Neustadt, Worms, Pirmasens, Ludwigshafen fallen
With the capture of the above named cities west of the Rhine the big offensive opened on March 17th by Lt.-General Patton’s American 3rd Army had in great part achieved its object. The German 7th Army and many formations of the 1st Army and the 5th Panzer Army were destroyed or captured. On March 20th and 21st alone 40,000 German prisoners were taken in the Saar-Palatinate sector: 30,000 by troops of the American 3rd Army and 10,000 by the American 7th Army.
After the taking of the Saar basin, of the northern Palatinate (including Ludwigshafen) and of Rhine-Hessen (including Worms), the town of Pirmasens, which the Germans had for three days toughly defended to hold open their retreat across the Rhine, fell on the evening of the 22nd. Kaiserslautern had previously been stormed on the 20th. On the 21st Allied armoured formations had captured Ludwigshafen, and threatened from the rear the deeply echeloned fortifications of the Westwall as well as the steadily shrinking German-held corridor. On the night of the 22nd this corridor was about 75 km long and, on the Rhine, about 50 km wide. The last towns held by the Germans in the Palatinate were under artillery fire.
Broken line shows front at opening of offensive
Farther north the Allied bridgehead opposite Remagen had been strengthened by the construction of several pontoon bridges—replacing the Ludendorff bridge, which after eight days of use had been put temporarily out of operation—and had been extended to the Sieg. Beuel, on the Rhine opposite Bonn, was taken on the 22nd. Honnef was taken on the 21st. The bridgehead was about 40 km wide and 12 km deep.
Kesselring C.-in-C. West
Field Marshal Kesselring, since September, 1943, C.-in-C. Southwest in command of the German 10th and 14th Armies in Italy, has taken over Supreme Command in the West as successor to Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt.
Offensive in Silesia
In Silesia the Army Group Koniev, opening a double offensive west and south of Oppeln, on March 22nd had broken through the German positions in both directions to a dept of 40 kilometres. South of Oppeln Krappitz, Kosel, Ober-Glogau, Neustadt, Zülz and Steinau were taken, and west of Oppeln Falkenberg. The two Russian attacking forces joined up near Neustadt, thus encircling large German formations, which were annihilated. 30,000 Germans were killed in this area and 15,000 captured.
In East Prussia the Army Group
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
138 [Handwritten folio number, top right]
(TRANSLATION)
No. 118 Newspaper for German troops March 23rd, 1945
Vassilievsky on March 20th took
Braunsberg, near the Frisches Haff.
The German forces in East Prus-
sia now hold only small areas round
Heiligenbeil and Königsberg.
Farther west the Army Group
Rokossovsky continues to close in
on encircled Gdynia and Danzig.
In Pomerania the Army Group
Zhukov on March 20th took Alt-
damm, a few kilometres east of
Stettin.
Targets in Germany
Fuel-plants, railway and other
targets in or near:
20/3: Berlin, Hamburg, Hem-
mingstedt, Recklinghausen, Hamm,
Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Münster,
Bocholt, Dorsten, Geseke, Pader-
born, Kassel, Ahlen, Handorf,
Haltern, Gütersloh, Lippstadt,
Böhlen.
21/3: Berlin, Bremen, Dülmen,
Bocholt, Dorsten, Anhalt, Haltern,
Münster, Hopsten, Rheine, Achmer,
Ahlhorn, Hesepe, Handorf, Witt-
mund, Marx, Plauen, Isselburg,
Borken, Ahaus, Creden, Stadtlohn,
Haltern, Uetze, Darmstadt, Emmin-
gen, Scharmbeck.
22/3: Berlin, Wesel, Bocholt,
Dorsten, Dülmen, Hildesheim, Bre-
men, Ruhland, Brunswick, Frank-
fort on Main, Darmstadt.
Up to 7000 Allied aircraft daily
took part in these attacks.
Targets in your rear
Ammunition dumps, railway
bridges and other targets in:
19/3: Bruck (on Salzach), San
Michele, Po, valley, Brenner.
20/3: Amstetten, Korneuburg,
Wels, Spezia, Sestri Levante, Udi-
ne, Campoformido, Po valley,
Brenner.
21/3: Novska (Yugoslavia), Ve-
nice, Brenner, Po valley.
Germany faces hunger
Representative of the U.S. Con-
gress Albert Gore, who has been
serving with various units of the
Allied Military Government in oc-
cupied Germany, has addressed an
8000-word report to the Congress.
« If the Germans persist in figh-
ting on for several more months »,
writes Gore, « widespread starva-
tion will be inevitably. Even in the
fertile Rhineland, a food shortage
is already present.
« The United States, which them-
selves have various shortages and
have to supply the urgent needs of
their allies, have no choice but to
leave Germany to her fate ».
« By surrendering now the Ger-
mans could greatly lessen their own
suffering during the desperate
months ahead ».
"Turnip-cellars"
On March 17th General Eisen-
hower, Allied Supreme Comman-
der in the West, issued a special
announcement to the civilian po-
pulation of the districts of Frank-
fort-on-Main and Mannheim-Lud-
wigshafen, in which he stated that
these districts would be relentlessly
bombed and called upon the popu-
lation to leave the danger zones.
For years the Allies have known
about the so-called « turnip cel-
lars » or underground factories,
camouflaged airfields and other
projects « secretly » prepared by
the Nazis, through the Reich La-
bour Service, especially in the Rhi-
neland and the Palatinate, ever
since 1936. What was happening,
for example, in the region of
Mannheim-Käfertal, in Sandhofen,
by the Heidelberg Memorial Ceme-
tery and near Schwetzingen was
more of a secret to the Germans
themselves than to the Allies.
In this connection the RAF’s
new ten-ton bomb, designed with
its increased penetrative power for
use against underground targets,
and other rotatory projectiles of
the Allied air forces will be of
great use.
Ditching the swag
The Portuguese Government has
issued a special decree by which
all Germans who wish to transfer
securities, funds or other valuable
to Portugal must prove that these
are their own property.
This decree was made necessary
by the growing scandal concerning
German individuals and Party or-
ganizations that have transferred
to Portugal vast quantities of wealth
stolen in occupied Europe.
It has, of course, ever since Hit-
ler’s seizure of power been a cri-
minal offence for Germans to take
securities, or more than a very
small quantity of money, out of
Germany. This has, however, never
prevented the high Party leaders
from « ditching their swag ».
8th Army Radio
Music and latest news in
German. Midday from 1200 to
1400 hours and every evening
at 1945 and 2230 hours, on
medium wave 241.9.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
(TRANSLATION)
No. 118 Newspaper for German troops March 23rd, 1945
Vassilievsky on March 20th took
Braunsberg, near the Frisches Haff.
The German forces in East Prus-
sia now hold only small areas round
Heiligenbeil and Königsberg.
Farther west the Army Group
Rokossovsky continues to close in
on encircled Gdynia and Danzig.
In Pomerania the Army Group
Zhukov on March 20th took Alt-
damm, a few kilometres east of
Stettin.
Targets in Germany
Fuel-plants, railway and other
targets in or near:
20/3: Berlin, Hamburg, Hem-
mingstedt, Recklinghausen, Hamm,
Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Münster,
Bocholt, Dorsten, Geseke, Pader-
born, Kassel, Ahlen, Handorf,
Haltern, Gütersloh, Lippstadt,
Böhlen.
21/3: Berlin, Bremen, Dülmen,
Bocholt, Dorsten, Anhalt, Haltern,
Münster, Hopsten, Rheine, Achmer,
Ahlhorn, Hesepe, Handorf, Witt-
mund, Marx, Plauen, Isselburg,
Borken, Ahaus, Creden, Stadtlohn,
Haltern, Uetze, Darmstadt, Emmin-
gen, Scharmbeck.
22/3: Berlin, Wesel, Bocholt,
Dorsten, Dülmen, Hildesheim, Bre-
men, Ruhland, Brunswick, Frank-
fort on Main, Darmstadt.
Up to 7000 Allied aircraft daily
took part in these attacks.
Targets in your rear
Ammunition dumps, railway
bridges and other targets in:
19/3: Bruck (on Salzach), San
Michele, Po, valley, Brenner.
20/3: Amstetten, Korneuburg,
Wels, Spezia, Sestri Levante, Udi-
ne, Campoformido, Po valley,
Brenner.
21/3: Novska (Yugoslavia), Ve-
nice, Brenner, Po valley.
Germany faces hunger
Representative of the U.S. Con-
gress Albert Gore, who has been
serving with various units of the
Allied Military Government in oc-
cupied Germany, has addressed an
8000-word report to the Congress.
« If the Germans persist in figh-
ting on for several more months »,
writes Gore, « widespread starva-
tion will be inevitably. Even in the
fertile Rhineland, a food shortage
is already present.
« The United States, which them-
selves have various shortages and
have to supply the urgent needs of
their allies, have no choice but to
leave Germany to her fate ».
« By surrendering now the Ger-
mans could greatly lessen their own
suffering during the desperate
months ahead ».
"Turnip-cellars"
On March 17th General Eisen-
hower, Allied Supreme Comman-
der in the West, issued a special
announcement to the civilian po-
pulation of the districts of Frank-
fort-on-Main and Mannheim-Lud-
wigshafen, in which he stated that
these districts would be relentlessly
bombed and called upon the popu-
lation to leave the danger zones.
For years the Allies have known
about the so-called « turnip cel-
lars » or underground factories,
camouflaged airfields and other
projects « secretly » prepared by
the Nazis, through the Reich La-
bour Service, especially in the Rhi-
neland and the Palatinate, ever
since 1936. What was happening,
for example, in the region of
Mannheim-Käfertal, in Sandhofen,
by the Heidelberg Memorial Ceme-
tery and near Schwetzingen was
more of a secret to the Germans
themselves than to the Allies.
In this connection the RAF’s
new ten-ton bomb, designed with
its increased penetrative power for
use against underground targets,
and other rotatory projectiles of
the Allied air forces will be of
great use.
Ditching the swag
The Portuguese Government has
issued a special decree by which
all Germans who wish to transfer
securities, funds or other valuable
to Portugal must prove that these
are their own property.
This decree was made necessary
by the growing scandal concerning
German individuals and Party or-
ganizations that have transferred
to Portugal vast quantities of wealth
stolen in occupied Europe.
It has, of course, ever since Hit-
ler’s seizure of power been a cri-
minal offence for Germans to take
securities, or more than a very
small quantity of money, out of
Germany. This has, however, never
prevented the high Party leaders
from « ditching their swag ».
8th Army Radio
Music and latest news in
German. Midday from 1200 to
1400 hours and every evening
at 1945 and 2230 hours, on
medium wave 241.9.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
(TRANSLATION)
NEWS FROM
THE HOME COUNTRY
Frontpost Supplement No. 40. 23rd March 1945
All news from Germany given here is taken -
without further guarantee - from the best available
news sources in Germany and adjacent countries.
Führer honours Hitler Youth
Führer’s H.Q. Hitler, accompanied by the Reich
Youth Leader, received a deputation of 20 member-
of the Hitler Youth, who had distinguished themsel-
ves in the defence of their homeland, in individual
combat, patrol activity or the blowing of important
points in Pomerania and Upper and Lower Silesia.
Various of these 15, 16 and 17 year-old youngsters
had been surrounded by the enemy for days. The
German Wireless Service declared that by receiving
them the Führer was doing honour also to their
comrades who had lost their lives.
OCCUPIED EASTERN ZONES
Schwerin is being reconstructed
Moscow. The Moscow radio reports that the work
of reconstruction is going ahead in all Russian-occu-
pied zones of Germany under the supervision of the
Russian military authorities. In Schwerin (Branden-
burg) the C.O. issues orders each day on the work
to be carried out and notifies the completion of each
task. Since the population follows orders willingly,
Schwerin is soon taking on the appearance of a town
far behind the front.
In Landsberg-on-Warthe the large engineering fac-
tory is again in operation and the machine-repair
shops are being put in order. The municipal tele-
phone system has been restored.
The Russian Army newspaper « Red Star » reports
that one of the most difficult problems in Russian-
occupied Germany is the collection of the thousands
of head of cattle turned loose. Russian and Ukrainian
girls who had been employed by German farmers as
foreign labourers have been installed as overseers
in the newly established dairies.
Tightening control of refugees
Berlin. The D.N.B. announced on March 9 that
everybody who has changed his place of residence
and has not yet reported himself to the police at his
new place will be regarded as a deserter and handled
as such. To assure control and immediate posting to
duty of all members of the Wehrmacht, workmen and
officials who have found refuge in the Reich in recent
weeks, the following regulations have proved nece-
ssary: members of the Wehrmacht, who are not with
their units, have to report to the nearest military
authority; all civilians to the nearest police station
and those of the 1884-1929 age group, in addition, to
the next Wehrmacht enlistment depot. In future only
those who can produce such report certificates will
be entitled to the issue of ration cards, to receive
payments, or to obtain lodging, even for one night.
The regulation further states that it is the duty of all
who hear that anybody is suspect of dodging military
service of work to report him immediately. »
Frankfort/Main and Mannheim,
declared « air danger zones »
The Supreme Allied Commander in the West
on March 17 declared the towns Frankfort/Main
and Mannheim, and the surrounding areas with
their great munitions industries to be an
immediate danger zone. Workers and civilian
residents there were advised to leave the dan-
ger zones immediately. Particular instructions
were issued to munition workers to go on to the
land, take their foreign colleagues with them
and not to sacrifice themselves senselessly in the
Volkssturm in the last weeks of the war.
Kreuzlingen. Swiss correspondents on the
German frontier report that the number of
those who fled from the regions concerned within
the first 24 hours is estimated at 60,000. Many
large industrial plants are on holiday because
only about a quarter of the employees have
appeared for work.
Allied reconnaissance planes circle continually
over the area.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
139 [Handwritten folio number, top right]
NEWS FROM THE HOME COUNTRY No. 40. 23rd March 1945
BEHIND THE SCENES
Speer-Ley manpower compromise
The protracted dispute between Reich Minister Speer and Dr. Ley over claims for a manpower comb-out of Party officials in their respective spheres of competence, the armaments industry and the D.A.F. (German Labour Front) has ended in a compromise. An equal number of officials are to be released from each for the Wehrmacht. To harmonise future relationships a senior D.A.F. official will direct the Labour Organisation Department in the Reich Armaments Ministry while other nominees of Dr. Ley will serve on regional armament production sub-commissions. The Armament Inspections and Commands are to remain but the Armament Supply Department has been dissolved and its functions of regional supervision distributed amongst five other departments, charged with various aspect of production control and the re-allocation of labour and material with a view to reducing the vulnerability of armament works to Allied air attacks.
Arrests in the Film world
Some 50 prominent figures in German film and theatre world have been arrested, including Karl Ludwig Diehl, Willy Fritsch, and Marika Rökk, following denunciations alleging that they discussed at a Potsdam party the idea of taking down Hitler's portrait at the U.F.A. studios at Neubabelsberg and writing slogans against the Party on the walls. Klaus Schmidt was executed. Dr. Goebbels then summoned a meeting of the film and theatre trade associations and as their official patron exhorted them to uphold morale, declaring « We artists must be the first to fight the Bolshevists. » He was interrupted by protests against the Gestapo's action and demands for release of the arrested artistes. « But this is revolution! Such action is Himmler's responsibility », declared Dr. Goebbels but in view of the unanimous indignation he promised « to do what he could ». Telegrams of protests were also sent to Hitler by, amongst others, Karl Ritter, the producer, and Paul Hörbiger. All protests have so far proved unavailing. It is reported that Rudolf Forster, Hans Moser, Emil Jannings and Veit Harlan have also been arrested.
13-17 year old boys for O.C.T.U.
The « N.S. Zeitung Westmark », Party organ for the Saar region, published the following on February 19: « Attention: boys of 13 to 17. Based on an order by the Führer, the Reichsführer SS, Heinrich Himmler, has ordered the amalgamation of all recruiting offices for the training of new leaders in the Army and Waffen SS, under the new title « Replacement Unit of the Army and the Waffen SS ». All boys of the age group from 13 to 17 years who wish to become active officer candidates, reserve officer candidates, active N.C.O. candidates, Waffen SS leader candidates, as well as Army volunteers, may report for acceptance at the regional office of the Replacement Unit of the Army and the Waffen SS. »
Hitler Youth's 1945 Sport Plans
The D.N.B. reports that the Hitler Youth will hold a preliminary programme of athletic events beginning with spring cross-country running between April 21 and May 20. The Reich Sports Competition will be held on May 26 and 27 and weight lifting and wrestling matches on June 9 and 10. The Reich Swimming Competition is to take place between July 14 and 29. The athletic events of the individual Banne are planned for July and August. Because of the claims of war duties on the Hitler Youth, competitors in all these events will be drawn chiefly from the younger age groups.
News in Brief
The German Soldiers' News Service reports that in the past 8 months 300,000 suggestions for improvements in munition production were received by the Reich Commissioner for utilization of war potential.
In Kiel and other towns all bicycles have been confiscated under the National Emergency Act.
THE WAR THIS WEEK
(March 15—21)
Saarbrücken, Kaiserslautern, Ludwigshafen, Worms, Homburg, Bingen, Coblence occupied by Americans. Street fighting in Mainz. 40,000 Germans taken prisoner in 2 days. — In the East: Altdamm near Stettin, Kolberg in Pomerania, Braunsberg in East Prussia fallen. Targets in Germany daily attacked by up to 7,000 aircraft.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Left Margin vertical label]:
(TRANSLATION)
Frontpost
A U S G A B E S Ü D
No. 117 FRONTPOST, Southern Edition March 20th, 1945
In the rear of the Westwall
On both sides of the Rhine Allied armies are hourly gaining ground in the rear of the Westwall fortifications. The bridgehead across the Rhine established east of Remagen on March 7th has been secured, and had by the 19th been extended to a width of about 28 kilometres and a depth of 13 kilometres. The American 1st Army had crossed the Wied and had taken Windhagen, Dinkelbach, Lorscheid and Niederdollendorf and several kilometres of the Cologne-Frankfort autostrack. The American 3rd Army, attacking along the Moselle has overrun the whole Rhine-Moselle triangle from Coblence to Bingen.
Coblence was taken on the 17th. After raising the American flag in the « German Corner » opposite the fortress of Ehrenbreitstein, the 3rd Army advanced into the Hunsrück. Boppard, Simmern, Kirchberg, Rhannen, Sobernheim and Bad Kreuznach were taken in the two following days. Bingen fell on the afternoon of the 19th.
In the Palatinate
Other troops of the American 3rd Army from March 17th to 19th carried out a pincer-movement along a front of 80 kilometres, with the Saar river as the western line of departure, which threatens the whole area of the Palatinate. Merzig, St. Wendel, Krettnich, Birkenfeld, Berkingen, Dillingen were taken. Saarbrücken and Neunkirchen have been outflanked. On the 19th American troops were 26 kilometres from Kaiserslautern and 8 kilometres west of Pirmasens. In the Hardt mountains Stürzelbronn, Ludwigswinkel and Wingen were taken on the same day. East of Trier, Beuren and Raschheim fell.
Advancing into the Palatinate from the south the American 7th Army on the 19th took Lauterburg and Bottenbach.
Battles for Königsberg, Danzig, Stettin
In East Prussia the 3rd White Russian Army Group, fighting on the Frisches Haff south-west of Königsberg, took Brandenburg on March 17th and on the 18th Deutsch-Thierau and Ludwigsort. The remaining German forces in East Prussia are split and Königsberg is cut off.
Farther west the Army Group Rokossovsky has continued to close in on Gdynia and Danzig, which were encircled since March 12th.
In Pomerania troops of the Army Group Zhukov on the 18th took the naval port of Kolberg. 6000 Germans of the garrison were captured. Other troops of this Army Group, advancing on Stettin, took Greifenhagen on the 16th and Winterfelde and Ferdinandstein (the latter about 10 km south of Stettin) on the 17th. Amongst German prisoners taken in this area was Lt.-General Freiherr von Schleinitz.
In Silesia the Army Group Koniev continues its battle for the annihilation of the garrison of Breslau, encircled since February 18th.
Offensive in Hungary — OKW
On March 19th the OKW reported a new Russian offensive between Lake Balaton and the Danube. This offensive follows on the failure of the previous German forestalling counteroffensive in Hungary, into which the OKW had committed strong armoured forces.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
140 [Handwritten folio number, top right]
(TRANSLATION)
No. 117 Newspaper for German troops March 20th, 1945
Targets in Germany
Fuel plants, railway and other targets in or near:
16/3: Mannheim, Erfurt, Weimar, Jena, Zossen (Army Supreme Command), Ahrensberg, Berlin, Ruhland, Nürnberg, Würzburg, Schweinfurt, Mainz, Heidelberg.
17/3: Böhlen, Ruhland, Hanover, Münster, Dortmund, Hüls, Mödlitz, Berlin.
18/3: Berlin, Tegel, Henningsdorf, Boehen, Hattingen, Bocholt, Haltern, Borken, Dortmund, Siegen, Wetzlar, Giessen, Marburg, Würzburg, Worms, Neustadt, Landau, Witten, Hanau.
19/3: Baumenthal, Neuberg, Leipheim, Ahrensberg, Bielefeld, Osnabrück, Münster, Gelsenkirchen.
On the 18th 1300 American heavy bombers escorted by 700 fighters carried out the heaviest daylight attack yet on Berlin. Over 3000 tons of bombs were dropped.
Targets in your rear
Ammunition dumps, railway bridges and other targets in or near:
16/3: Vienna, Floridsdorf, Schwechat, Moosbierbaum, Wiener Neustadt, Amstetten, Korneuburg.
17/3: Brenner.
18/3: Trento, Vicenza, Udine, Milan, Gorizia, Brenner, Po valley, Zagreb, Maribor, Villach, Graz, Wiener-Neustadt.
Ruhr cut off
The Ruhr area is cut off from the Reich. The following six main traffic routes in the Ruhr district have been cut: the Bremen-Hagen railway, the Hanover-Münster line, the line from Paderborn to Dortmund, the line from Siegen to Essen, the viaduct near Bielefeld and the Dortmund-Ems canal.
Fürstenberg and Remagen
Gaps in the Reich defences
The war of movement waged by the Allies on German soil against an elastic German defence strengthened by natural obstacles (such as the Rhine and the Oder) has produced two classical episodes showing the decisive importance to both sides of the moment of surprise.
On February 6th, 1945 the German OKW communiqué reported a feat by Pioneer Justus Jürgensen, of the Crossen Engineering Replacements and Training battalion. When tanks of the Army Group Zhukov took the German Command unawares by breaking through to the Oder and were seeking to force a crossing into Brandenburg — which was later achieved at another point — Jürgensen saved the critical situation by his personal courage. The demolition squad's connections to the explosive charges under the Fürstenberg bridge failed to work, and the pioneer blew up the bridge, at the cost of his life, just before Russian tanks reached the runway.
On March 7th, 1945, there was no Pioneer Jürgensen at Remagen. The Ludendorff bridge was not blown, and the moment of surprise worked in this case to the advantage of the Allies, who in ten decisive minutes established a bridgehead across the Rhine.
8th Army Radio
Music and latest news in German. Midday from 1200 to 1400 hours and every evening at 1945 and 2230 hours, on medium wave 241.9.
THE LUDENDORFF BRIDGE AT REMAGEN. The OKW report that four German officers who failed to blow up the bridge have been executed for cowardice and neglect of duty.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
(TRANSLATION)
NEWS FROM
THE HOME COUNTRY
Frontpost Supplement No. 39. 20th March 1945
All news from Germany given here is taken -
without further guarantee - from the best available
news sources in Germany and adjacent countries.
Germany’s third tourist steamer sunk
Berlin. One of the largest German tourist ships,
the 22,000 ton steamer « Deutschland », formerly the
« Robert Ballin », ran into a mine in the Baltic Sea
and sank. The steamer, which was loaded with muni-
tions and food supplies for German troops in Cour-
land, is the third of these tourist steamers to be lost
recently. A few weeks previously the K.D.F. (Strength
through Joy) excursion steamer « Wilhelm Gustloff »
sank in Danzig Bay with 11,000 refugees from East
Prussia on board, while the « Robert Ley » was set
on fire in Hamburg docks during an air attack and
burned out.
WAR THEATRE GERMANY
Königsberg fights, short of ammo
Königsberg. The Reich Wireless Service reported
from Königsberg early in March that the town had
recovered its fighting spirit « after the first days of
bewilderment and egoism. The women of Königsberg
jealously play their part, collecting food stocks from
abandoned houses, running public canteens and first-
aid stations. The output of improvised factories sup-
plements the ever diminishing supplies of munitions.
Old boilers where formerly soap was boiled and spirits
were distilled today explosives and gunpowder are
prepared. It is all home-made but the result is already
perceptible ».
Cellar combat inside Breslau
Moscow. A front-line correspondent of « Istvestia »
describes the street-fighting in Breslau as « no simple
matter ». The Russian shock troops do not advance
through the open streets but fight their way through
the houses from cellar to cellar. « The cellar walls
are breached by T.Ds and so the infantry makes its
way slowly but surely into the heart of Breslau ».
The correspondent narrates his impressions of a jour-
ney through the part of the town where the battle is
still raging: « The houses present a picture of com-
plete destruction. We pass the Hindenburgplatz. The
roar of battle is not stilled for a moment. The smell
of burning, plaster dust and gunpowder fill the air ».
FROM MUNICH
What a Swiss girl saw
Berne. The « Bund » publishes the following ac-
count of Munich by a young Swiss woman who re-
cently returned here: « It is already dusk as our
train moves slowly along the single track into what
remains of the shattered central station of Munich.
Many streets are barred and trams only ply in the
suburbs. An indescribable, reddish coloured filth
crusts on our shoes. Progress is slow, as though
walking across a ploughed field. Munich had its last
air attack two days previously. It is icy cold. Snow
mingles with the falling rain. Nothing but heaps of
rubble, dirt everywhere, and neglected people ».
« Our first night is disturbed by a visit of enemy
bombers. The whole neighbourhood as far as the Isar
valley is as bright as daylight, lit up by tracer shells
and flares. The first bombs fall with dull thud. At last
the sirens scream. — Next morning in the town,
always the same picture. Heavy smoke clouds brood
over the town and flames tower like giant torches
above the vast region of ruins. Women, children, old
people wander through the streets. Nobody pays any
attention to others, for death is hard on the heels of
all. People are only shocked when it is somebody
they know who has perished. They have no strength
left to worry about strangers ».
Riots on Heroes’ Memorial Day
Stockholm. Swedish newspapers reported on March
12 that clashes occurred between groups of civilians
and the SS. in Munich on Heroes’ Memorial Day.
The Order Police, however, were conspicuous for
their inactivity. Tanks were sent to the Sendlingertor
and Karlsplatz. The disturbances continued until the
late evening.
« Stockholms Tidningen » published the following
impressions of a British journalist, who fell into Ger-
man hands on the occupation of Guernsey in 1942
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
141 [Handwritten folio number, top right]
NEWS FROM THE HOME COUNTRY No. 39. 20th March 1945
and, as the result of an exchange of internees, arrived
at Gothenburg from Southern Germany: « Trams have
almost disappeared from Munich but they have suc-
ceeded in keeping a couple of bus services going. I
saw long queues for water. The factories for construc-
tion of tanks at Ulm were in such a state after the
heavy air attacks on February 25 and March 4 that
24,000 workmen were standing about almost idle ».
BEHIND THE SCENES
Fortress prepared in Bavarian Alps
A German soldier, who was recently taken priso-
ner on the Western Front, related: « I was in
Southern Germany till the middle of January. There
I saw columns of trucks going in the direction of
Oberstdorf in the Allgäu region, laden with machine-
guns, automatic rifles and pistols, 2 cm, 8.8 cm,
10.5 cm and 4-barrelled A.A. guns, as well as with
munitions, food stores, medical supplies and, above
all, petrol. All these stocks are being stored in
hundreds of cellars, often 200-300 metres long and
built into the mountains in the Allgäu and Bavarian
Alps. In many instances these cellars are constructed
in threes, linked with one another. My wife told me
that for nearly a year these transports have been
going past, two or three times in the week, bound
for the mountains. Local people privately discuss
these preparations of the Party to make a final stand
here with the Waffen SS, after the general collapse.
Herr « Panchino » plans for the future
Basle. A local stock jobber has drawn attention
to the fact that a sum equivalent to 40,000,000
Reichsmarks has been transferred from Swiss banks
to the Banco Aleman Transatlantico and other banks
in Buenos Aires in the name of Pedro Rodriguez
Panchino. Siegfried Hauser, the German Consul in
Madrid, who is acting as intermediary for these and
other transfers of funds to Argentine banks is known
to be a confidential agent of Reich Minister von Rib-
bentrop. These precautionary measures have been
taken in view of the Swiss Government’s decision to
« freeze » German funds deposited in Switzerland.
VST’s voluntary status abolished
Berlin. The regional Volkssturm Staff H.Q. an-
nounced on March 8, in order to obviate misun-
derstandings, that « service is the same for all VST
units not yet mobilised. The various levies merely
denote differences in the individual physical capa-
cities ». Those grades only « conditionally fit » can
be detailed for guard and security duties. Complete
exemption from Volkssturm duties on grounds of
occupational deferment, as with the Wehrmacht, does
not exist ».
The « Nationalzeitung », of Basle, stated on Janua-
ry 25: « The age groups — between 16 and 65 years
old — originally laid down for the Volkssturm, have
been exceeded long ago, as low as 14 and upwards
to 70. In a Rhine town a Party propaganda organiser
told a VST rally: « Sickness is not considered, only
death frees men from the Volkssturm ».
Austria VST’s first glimpse of tank fists
Zürich. On the relationship between Party and
Volkssturm in Austria the « Züricher Tagesanzeiger »
reported on March 7: « Although according to the
words of Gauleiter Koch « every German should have
a tank fist in his cupboard », the Austrian VST is only
equipped even with rifles. At the end of January a
tank fist was first displayed to large numbers of the
VST but only in instruction periods. As the si-
tuation in Hungary became more threatening to Vien-
na, the Party Leadership wanted to have reinforce-
ments brought from Bavaria, rather than put the
VST into action. Many Austrian VST men declared
openly after the first mobilisation order that they
knew all right whom they would bump off first, but
it would not be a Russian ».
News in brief
Dr Harry Hoffner, formerly Public Prosecutor in
Kattowice, has been appointed Chairman of the
« People’s Court » in succession to Dr Roland Freisler,
who lost his life during an air attack on Berlin.
D. N. B. reported on March 10 that the well-
known German film actress Dorothea Wieck was
killed in the Allied air attack on Dresden.
Summer Time will come into force in Germany on
April 2.
THE WAR THIS WEEK
(March 11 - 17)
Western bank of Rhine from Bingen to
Emmerich in Allied hands. Bridgehead at
Remagen extended north and south. The
Cologne-Frankfort auto-road cut. Ameri-
can advance into Saar Palatinate. Nahe
river crossed. Bad Kreuznach fallen. In
the East: fierce battle for Königsberg.
Danzig, Stettin. — Küstrin, Kolberg fal-
len. Heaviest daylight air attack of the
war on Berlin.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Left Margin Vertical Label]:
(TRANSLATION)
Frontpost
A U S G A B E S Ü D
No. 116 Newspaper for German troops March 16th, 1945
Two Rhine bridges
All German forces between Nijmegen and Coblence have been wiped out or withdrawn, and the battle for the right bank of the Rhine has begun. After troops of the American 3rd Army had encircled and annihilated parts of the 7th Army and 5th Panzer Army north of the Moselle, the American 1st Army, which on the 7th had made a surprise crossing of the Rhine, was from the 13th onwards able to reinforce its bridgehead over two bridges. In addition to the Ludendorff bridge at Remagen, which the Americans took by a coup-de-main, Allied engineers had built a new pontoon bridge.
On the 14th attempts made by the German Luftwaffe to knock out the bridges, and thus prevent heavy armour from crossing the Rhine, were unsuccessful. Of 100 German aircraft committed 41 Stukas and Messerschmitts were shot down by Allied A.A. and fighters. The American 1st Army was thus able, despite very strong German resistance, considerably to extend its bridgehead, especially north-east of Honnef and, farther south, on the Wied. On the 13th Allied troops entered Honnef, on the 15th Kahlenborn and Hortscheid. The Cologne-Frankfort motor-road came under machine-gun fire.
In the course of mopping up the last German units in the Moselle region, the Allies from the 13th to the 15th occupied the following towns and villages: Kues, Trittenheim, Minheim, Eller, Bremm, Morscheid, Hetzerath and Frommersbach.
On the Saar the town of Wehrden, opposite Völklingen and 8 km west of Saarbrücken, was taken on the 15th by troops of the American 3rd Army.
Southern Front
On the 5th Army sector American troops have taken Monte Spigolino, about 60 km south-west of Bologna.
Battles of annihilation
In East Prussia the 3rd White Russian Army Group — which consists, according to the OKW communique of March 14th, of seven infantry armies and strong armoured forces — has broken through to the Frisches Haff south-west of Königsberg, thus splitting the German forces on this sector.
Farther west, the Army Group Rokossovsky is closing in from the north-west and south-east upon Danzig and Gdynia.
In Pomerania, the Army Group Zhukov continues its battle for the annihilation of the German troops.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
142 [Handwritten folio number, top right]
No. 116 FRONTPOST, Southern Edition March 16th, 1945
encircled in the eastern part of
Kolberg.
In Küstrin, on the Oder east of
Berlin, which was captured on the
12th, over 3000 Germans were taken
prisoner.
In Silesia the Army Group Ko-
niev continues its battles for the
annihilation of the encircled garri-
sons of Glogau and Breslau.
In Czechoslovakia the Army
Group Malinovsky on the 14th took
Altsohl.
New 10-t bomb
RAF Bomber Command reports
that Lancaster heavy bombers on
the afternoon of March 14th drop-
ped bombs weighing ten tons. This
weight is nearly twice that of any
bomb previously used by the RAF,
and ten times that of the war-head
of the German « V 1 » and « V 2 »
projectiles.
Targets in Germany
Synthetic fuel plants, railway and
other targets in or near:
13/3: Berlin, Wetzlar, Stendal,
Magdeburg, Halle, Gelsenkirchen,
Herne, Regensburg, Bremen,
Frankfort-on-Main, Barmen, Rhei-
ne, Freudenstadt, Freiburg - im -
Breisgau, Munich, Lengerich, Bor-
ken, Westerberg, Türkismühle.
14/3: Bielefeld, Zweibrücken,
Homburg, Bochum, Recklinghau-
sen, Berlin.
15/3: Arnsberg, Essen, Castrop-
Rauxel, Münster, Berlin, Hagen,
Misburg, Oranienburg, Ruhland.
Targets in your rear
Ammunition dumps, railway
bridges and other communications
targets in or near:
13/3: Vienna, Brenner, Treviso,
Lake Garda, Po valley.
14/3: Wiener-Neustadt, Agram,
Po valley.
Shrinking war-economy
In estimates officially published by Swiss economists concerning the
productive capacities of the various belligerent countries, Germany's
shares in the production of steel, coal and wheat have been given as
follows:
Steel Coal Wheat
1938: 23,208,000 t 186,179,000 t 111,562,000 qtls.
1940: (after the German occupation of France and Belgium)
29,382,000 t 232,679,000 t 300,000,000 qtls.
1942: (after the German occupation of the Ukraine, etc.)
35,500,000 t 325,000,000 t 420,000,000 qtls.
1945: (after the loss of the Ukraine, France, Upper Silesia, the
the industrial Rhineland, etc.)
12,500,000 t 115,000,000 t 100,000,000 qtls.
Considered together with the lowering of German heavy industrial
production caused by the Allied air offensive against German plant, and
especially against synthetic fuel works, the above figures give an insight
into Germany's situation after 5 1/2 years of war.
Felber succeeds Brandenberger
Artillery General Brandenber-
ger, former commander of the
German 7th Army, which last sum-
mer was nearly wiped out and has
again suffered the same disaster,
has been relieved of his command.
His successor is Infantry General
Hans Felber, who until March,
1944, was G.O.C. in Serbia. Felber
is accused of responsibility for
atrocities committed against Yugo-
slav civilians. After the war he will
be sent back to Yugo-slavia for
trial.
8th Army Radio
Music and latest news in
German. Midday from 1200 to
1400 hours and every evening
at 1945 and 2230 hours, on
medium wave 241.9.
[Photograph of a street in a ruined city with a tank and soldiers]
Allied tanks in Cologne
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
(TRANSLATION)
NEWS FROM
THE HOME COUNTRY
Frontpost Supplement No. 38. 16th March 1945
All news from Germany given here is taken -
without further guarantee - from the best available
news sources in Germany and adjacent countries.
Bad Godesberg under German fire
Bad Godesberg. When the American troops ap-
proached this Rhine health resort, a delegation of
citizens, headed by the Swiss Consul, went out to
offer formal surrender and secured a promise that
it would not be fired on, because it contains 14
hospitals. Since the town has been occupied by the
Americans, however, it has been under persistent
German artillery fire.
Godesberg was the scene of the meeting between
Adolf Hitler and Mr. Neville Chamberlain in
September 1938.
OCCUPIED WESTERN ZONES
One-fifth of Reich occupied
By March 10 about one-fifth of pre-war Germany
was occupied by the Allies. Before the occupation
of Austria and Sudetenland the entire territory of
the Reich amounted to more than 460,000 square
kilometres. Today about 75,000 sqkm. in the East
and 15,000 in the West are in Allied hands.
What Trier and Bonn look like
A front-line report from the Mosel region states:
In peacetime Trier had a population of about
80,000. Today the population might be estimated
at perhaps 1,000. Many inhabitants fled to the sur-
rounding countryside and are now beginning slowly
to return. The town itself has suffered severely. Not
merely house after house but street after street lie
in ruins. The famous « Porta Nigra » has remained
undamaged, as though by a miracle. The ancient
Roman Mosel Bridge has also been preserved,
because the crew of an American tank removed the
explosive charges just in time. The roof of the
cathedral is rather badly damaged but Masses are
still able to be held ».
Another report dealing with the university town
of Bonn says that about half of the houses have
been damaged but that almost the entire population
have remained. The authorities and Party officials
fled in such haste that they forgot to take the
municipal funds and 8,000,000 Reichsmark lying on
deposit at the banks. There are ample food supplies
in Bonn. Beethoven's birthplace house is almost
undamaged.
Miners saved pit from being dynamited
Uebach. The BBC spokesman Gordon Walker
reported on his return from the Aachen coal-mining
region: Thanks to two miners the « Karolus Ma-
gnus » pit was saved. One of them, an old trades
unionist, whom I met on his way back from work,
said: « A few days before the Americans arrived
the Gestapo came to me with some inquiry and that
was how I heard that the pit shaft was to be blown.
I says to myself, we must prevent that at all cost.
One of my mates was tipped off to cut the charge
connection and I made sure that the most important
colliery buildings aboveground were barred and
bolted. It all clicked. Today the pit is flourishing
and keeps thousands of miners in work and food. »
BERLIN SURVEY
Why housewives welcome air alarm
Geneva. According to a Berlin dispatch in the
« Tribune de Geneve » of March 5: « The pa-
radoxical situation has arisen that Berlin house-
wives wait impatiently for air raid alarms because
then the electric current is switched on and they
can quickly cook a warm meal. Current is otherwise
only available in the early morning and on Sundays.
Hence, when there is an alert, many people take
the risk and remain at home. »
Stockholm. « Aftonbladet » reported on March 7
that « at least till the middle of February there was
scarcely any damage worth mentioning in some
quarters of Berlin, while other quarters were so
destroyed that the trams travelled past without
stopping because nobody lives there. The chain
restaurants run by Aschinger and Schultheiss are
almost all destroyed. In their place what are
popularly known as « restaurants in the ruins » have
been improvised. But there are still de-luxe re-
staurants with their own clientèle, elegant women
wearing makeup and expensive furs and a certain
sort of well-dressed men.
Handwritten Marginalia & Stamps:
* Folio Number: 143 (Handwritten, Top Right)
* Archival Reference:
NEWS FROM THE HOME COUNTRY No. 38. 16th March 1945
BEHIND THE SCENES
Party fears another 20th of July
Writing in a Württemberg newspaper on February 11 Hermann Hirsch stated: « The military consequences of the events of July 20 cannot be revealed today, not because we want to conceal anything from the German people but because, in so doing, too much would be revealed to the enemy. » The « Nationalzeitung » of Basle, on February 21 said that despite official assurances that « only a small clique of generals were involved and were promptly eliminated » the Gestapo know well enough that a large number of conspirators have still not been traced. A 20th of July amongst the workers seems to the Party to offer greater danger than any new movement among Army officers. An underground organisation, the « Stalingradbund », started by people convinced that the Stalingrad reverse spelt the end of Germany's chances of victory, has taken root amongst the ruins of much-bombed big cities in the Reich. Other opposition groups operate under the cloak of innocent-sounding organisation. The Gestapo continue to compile lists of such suspects in confidential folders bearing the code name « Roland » and have planted in various factories espionage units called « Betriebsstosstrupps ».
Himmler reorganises Security H. Q.
The Reich Security H. Q. is being reorganised with a view to improving precautions against possible surprise developments. Great importance is attached to the rounding-up of person evading military service, 386,598 having been apprehended in 1943, according to a confidential report from the Security H. Q. This action has been greatly handicapped by the loss of archives in air attacks, as shown by the fact that the names of approx. 96,000 missing persons did not appear in the new edition No 313, of Reich C.I.D.'s « Wanted List ».
The SS. Reichsführer complained at a confidential conference of high Party officials at Bad Schachen last autumn of having to make plans for internal security « on the basis of untrue or at least partly inexact reports, which have become in the war years one of our worst nuisances. »
The need for reorganisation of the Gestapo was further indicated by the disappearance of SS. Untersturmführer Rudolf Hein, former staff assistant of the SS. Reichsführer, and others held for interrogation in the Security Service's Berlin prison, when its north wall was damaged during the air attack of February 3. Meanwhile the round-up action is being conducted provisionally by SS. Obergruppenführer Dr. Ernst Kaltenbrunner in addition to his other functions as Chief of the Security Police, since the former head of the Reich C.I.D., SS. Obergruppenführer Arthur Nebe, has been missing since July 20.
German fuel plants hit
From February 9 to 16 the following German fuel plants were badly damaged by Allied air attacks: The « Fischer-Tropsch » plants of the Krupp Fuel Co, Ltd. in Wanne-Eickel (annual output 132,000 tons).
The Pölitz Hydrogenation Plant Co (annual output 600,000 tons) which was about to resume production.
The Bergius hydrogenation plant of the Gelsenberg German Fuel and Oil Work Co in Lützkendorf b. Mücheln (present capacity: 75% of annual output of 265,000 tons).
The Bergius hydrogenation plant of the Brabag Coal Benzine Co at Magdeburg-Rothensee (present capacity: 50% of annual output of 200,000 tons) attacked on four successive days.
The carbonisation plant of the German Petroleum Co (coal and tar feedstocks, Diesel fuel), which had resumed production in December last.
'News in Brief'
The German Soldiers' News Service reports that numerous factories which produced goods not vital for the war effort have been closed down. Tens of thousands of workmen have thereby been diverted into the munitions industry.
The « Völkischer Beobachter », Munich edition, pointed out at the beginning of February that swedes were not regarded by the general public as a first class vegetable. That, said the newspaper, was a mere prejudice. Since swedes are today « royal vegetables », they should be doubly appreciated.
Eugen Hadamovsky, Chief of Staff of the Party Reich Propaganda Office and former programme director of German wireless, has been killed on the Eastern Front.
THE WAR THIS WEEK
(March 7—14)
Americans cross the Rhine at Remagen. Bridgehead established March 14, 16 km broad and 8 km in depth. Bonn taken. American 3rd Army before Coblence after 75 km advance. — In the East: Kolberg, Gdynia, Danzig cut off. Küstrin fallen.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Top Center]: The National Archives' reference AIR 27/271/3
[Left Margin Vertical]:
(TRANSLATION)
Frontpost
A U S G A B E S Ü D
No. 115 Newspaper for German troops March 13th, 1945
Küstrin fallen
On March 12th troops of the Russian Army Group Zhukov occupied, after several days of bitter street fighting, the city and fortress of Küstrin, which lies on the right bank of the Oder about 80 kilometres from the centre of Berlin.
On the same day troops of the Army Group Rokossovsky, closing in on Danzig, took Dirschau, on the Vistula south of the city, and Neustadt and Putzig, to the west.
East of Stettin, a large encircled German force surrendered on March 9th. 3000 men were taken prisoner, amongst them Lt.-General Raithel, commander of the « Dortmund » Infantry Division. On this sector the Russians have been supported by American heavy bombers operating from the west, which attacked communication targets at Swinemünde and other points in the German rear.
In Hungary the Germans have continued their counter-offensive east of Lake Balaton.
Southern Front:
On the 5th Army sector German forces offered strong resistance to American troops approaching the Bologna road 3 km north of Vergato. Other Allied units occupied two mountain positions, Monte Belvedere and Monte Valbura, about 6 km south-west of Vergato.
5000 tons on Essen, Dortmund
On March 11th heavy bombers of the RAF, including Czech and Polish squadrons, carried out the heaviest daylight attack of the war. The target was the Krupp works in Essen, on which approximately 5000 tons of bombs were dropped in 30 minutes. No German fighter defence was encountered.
Since the beginning of the war over 50,000 tons of bombs have been dropped on Essen. RAF Bomber Command reports that over half the town has been destroyed. Amongst other heavily damaged Ruhr towns are: Bochum, 83% destroyed; Düsseldorf, 65%; Dortmund, 46%.
On March 12th Dortmund also received nearly 5000 tons of bombs.
Rhine bridge-head extended
By March 12th the bridgehead that the American 1st Army had secured five days earlier opposite Remagen had been extended to a width of 18 kilometres and a depth of nearly 10 kilometres. On the 11th traffic across the bridge was twice interrupted by German artillery fire, but American supplies and reinforcements continued to enter Erpel, on the east bank of the Rhine. The village
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
144 [Handwritten folio number, top right]
No. 115 FRONTPOST, Southern Edition March 13th, 1945
of Rheinbreitbach, Henneberg and
Linz were taken on the 10th. On
the 11th there was fighting in
Honnef, and on the 12th in
Hönningen. East of Linz the auto-
road leading to the Ruhr came
under artillery-fire. Bruchhausen,
Ohlenberg and Unkel were taken.
During the last three days troops
of the American 3rd Army have
cleaned up the whole north bank
of the Moselle from Kochem to
Coblence, and on the 12th were
in front of Coblence itself. Güls,
Winningen, Kobern, Hatzenport,
Karden and Kochem were taken.
North of Wittlich a considerable
number of survivors of the German
7th Army were surrounded.
8th Army Radio
Music and latest news in
German. Midday from 1200 to
1400 hours and every evening
at 1945 and 2230 hours, on
medium wave 241.9.
Targets in Germany
10/3: Berlin, Dortmund, Soest,
Paderborn, Scholven-Buer, Datteln-
Ruhr, Grünstadt, Bad Dürkheim,
Schifferstadt.
11/3: Hamburg, Bremen, Kiel,
Berlin, Gelsenkirchen, Essen.
12/3: Dortmund, Siegen, Betz-
dorf, Dillenburg, Marburg, Fried-
burg, Berlin, Swinemünde.
Targets in your rear
10/3: In Austria: Graz, Klagen-
furt, Brenner. In Yugoslavia:
Laibach.
11/3: In Austria: Drauburg,
Linz, Klagenfurt. In Italy: Cre-
mona, Bologna, Pontremoli.
12/3: Brenner, Ponte di Piave.
Deserters are not named
German prisoners-of-war taken on
this front report that with increas-
ing frequency German officers are
telling their men that deserters
are mentioned by name in Allied
radio broadcasts and leaflets.
Allied 15th Army Group Head-
quarters has therefore officially is-
sued the following statement: In
accordance with the Geneva Con-
vention the names, ranks and num-
bers of German troops falling into
the hands of the Allies are reported
to their homeland via the Red
Cross, and not by any other means.
The details of how they fell into
Allied hands are not reported, or
used for any purpose ».
The Remagen bridge
The German omission to blow
the great Remagen railway bridge
over the Rhine, which enabled the
American 1st Army on the late
afternoon of March 7th to establish
a bridgehead on the right bank of
the river, was one of the few major
mistakes committed by the German
command during the western cam-
paign. According to latest Allied
reports this fateful event occurred
as follows:
An American armoured force of
the 1st Army, carrying out its or-
ders to establish contact with troops
of the 3rd Army advancing from
the north in the area of Ander-
nach, and thus to cut off six divi-
sions of the German 7th and 5th
Panzer Armies on the Ahr, in a
surprise thrust entered Remagen.
To their own surprise engineers of
the advanced force found the Lu-
dendorff bridge, with its steel fra-
mework superstructure and two
buttressing towers, intact. It was
shortly before 1600 hours. A Ger-
man soldier who had just been cap-
tured informed the Americans that
the fuses of the explosive charges
under the bridge had been set for
1600 hours. The explosion might
occur at any moment.
Whilst American sappers in haste
set about disconnecting the char-
ges, an infantry company that had
arrived on the Rhine at 1530 hours
doubled across the bridge. Mean-
while a charge that had not been
disconnected in time went off,
without, however, causing serious
damage. Two German soldiers on
the bridge were taken prisoner. A
number of others, in a boat moo-
red under the bridge, called out
to the Americans that they wished
to surrender. At 1610 hours the in-
fantry company had established
itself in the little town of Erpel,
on the right bank of the Rhine.
The bridge was at once given A.A.
and fighter cover, and by the eve-
ning — despite an attempt by the
German Luftwaffe to bomb it —
the Erpel bridgehead had been en-
tered by American 1st Army troops
in divisional strength. By exploi-
ting one chance in a thousand Al-
lied troops were on the east bank
of the Rhine.
Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
[Stamped Reference, Left]: