Opening Moves (The Red Gambit Series) (77 page)
Read Opening Moves (The Red Gambit Series) Online
Authors: Colin Gee
A monotone voice announced Von Papen as the next speaker.
A silence descended, heavy with the static of expectation, until a single steady voice spoke in his native tongue.
“Meine Herren, kinsfolk of Europe, Germany and her allies have endured much these past six years and we have been beaten in a war, enduring beyond the barriers of human endurance, giving all for our country and state, our nation and folk.”
“That we endured so much, gave so much and invested so much blood and sweat in such a faulty cause will be our national burden for generations to come.”
“The leadership of our nations, Germany and Austria, was faulty but these leaders were followed too readily and obeyed too easily for any of us to avoid the national guilt we now feel.”
“I speak to you at this hour as an appointee of the conquering powers, without mandate or common assent from my nation, placed at the head of a governing body, the Council of Germany and Austria. This body consists of leaders, political and military, known to you all these last few years.”
Pausing, Von Papen referred to his list, reciting the names in order of entry and including the military ranks where appropriate.
“These men have agreed to serve on the Council, in order to commence the process of returning our lands to the control of those who have lived and died here for generations.”
“I have been given the position at the head of this table, as Chancellor, to make some decisions, small admittedly, but ones made for Germans and Austrians by Germans and Austrians.”
A throat cleared and on he plunged.
“These last few years our countries have visited aggressive war upon our neighbours and that is a burden we must carry to the next millennium and beyond.”
Von Papen’s voice was rich with both pain and resolve.
“Crimes have been committed and those crimes must be atoned for by those responsible; there can be no other way.”
“Regardless of whether you pulled a trigger, drove a tank, or stayed at home enduring the bombs, our peoples have a collective responsibility to make amends for these excesses, to fully atone for our national actions before we can move forward as nations without the burdens of our past.”
“We come to this now, the start of our national atonement, at the moment of Europe’s darkest need, and when we are least capable of answering the call.”
Those in the radio room witnessed him stiffen as he gathered himself.
“In line with the request the Council has received from General Eisenhower, on behalf of the governments of the United States, United Kingdom and France, I now instruct the ……”
A silence descended, one that should not have been and across the continent millions of eyes bored deeply into radio sets, willing the speaker to press on.
Gathering himself, Von Papen pressed on.
“In line with those requests the Council requests that all capable persons, be they free living or presently detained, with the exception of ex-members of the SS, make themselves ready to serve in the military struggle to preserve Germany, Austria, Europe and the World.”
“Identify yourselves to the nearest allied personnel and do as you are instructed, observing your moral conscience at all times, representing your nation and state, and acting as a soldier and citizen of Europe.”
“As nations we, Germany and Austria, now have an opportunity to make good some of the harm we have done and to be in the vanguard that delivers freedom to our world.”
“To you all I say this. Stand tall, proud of your national identity, and know the man next to you, be he white or black, Christian or Jew, stands with you through choice in a great crusade for freedom.”
“Thank you and good luck.”
In the I.G.Farben building in Frankfurt, Eisenhower looked at his staff and whistled.
“Well if that doesn’t do the trick nothing will.”
The reception at the Schloss Gundorf was completely different.
Zhukov nodded gently, dissecting the broadcast, exploring the possibilities.
‘
Quicker than expected but practical? Resources? Organisation? Usefulness?
’
Malinin put both their thoughts into words.
“GRU and NKVD will be squirming Comrade Marshall. Not quite as they predicted is it?”
For two generals who had just been told that the enemy forces were likely to be receiving reinforcements in seven figures, both men seemed reasonably calm.
Calm with good reason as Malinin continued, thinking aloud.
“Provided we continue to push and keep them on the run this will not get off the ground on a large scale. There are intact German units in Norway and the French ports, and those in Denmark could be a small problem but the Western Allies do not have the resources for even their own forces at this time.”
Zhukov pondered some more and then spoke.
“We will proceed without change but delays will not be tolerated. We must press forward incessantly. Tired units must be rotated out and replaced with fresh ones and we must push, push, and push. Inform all commanders. Also, seek information from the GRU and NKVD on their assessment of the impact of this call to arms and what forces the new Germany can field, reasonably field I mean.”
With a wry smile between comrades, Zhukov added.
“And tell them to get it right this time.”
He then recalled something extra from the broadcast.
“They have held back from using the SS bastards though. That will be their loss and our gain Malinin. There may be some things that the NKVD can design to cause friction in their cosy little camp, disrupt the new brotherhood eh?”
Malinin grinned, confident once more.
“Yes Comrade Marshall. Their enterprise will die a death soon enough, at our bayonet point or their own.”
Soviet Aviation has been desperately searching for their number one target without success, ever since the ground attack planned upon it had failed. Photo recon, acquired at great expense by 193rd Guards Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment, had demonstrated the fact that the wrong target had been assaulted in any case and so a considerable amount of effort was being directed at locating it so it could be visited by bombers as soon as possible.
Photos were compared against possible location lists and three possible locations in the Frankfurt area presented themselves. Without assets on the ground to confirm or disprove it was decided to hit all three, and the sooner the better, as Soviet ground forces would surely cause the enemy to displace in the near future.
22nd Guards Bomber Division was given the task and assigned one full bomber regiment to each of the targets, and each bomber regiment being given its own fighter regiment for cover with an additional fighter regiment held back to reinforce as needed. A formidable force indeed, and it was already airborne and crossing no-man’s land.
At the conclusion of the broadcast, Eisenhower took further briefs from his staff and issued whatever instructions were required.
Then, checking in with Bradley dead on 1800 hrs and finding the General ready as expected, SHAEF temporarily handed control of Europe to Bradley’s Twelfth Army Group Headquarters.
Taking a final look around, Ike ordered the move to commence and was immediately rewarded by bustling staff officers and earnest looking soldiers, brought in to speed up the loading process.
Some personnel and items would be going by road overnight. Key personnel and important records had places booked on a number of C-47 flights out of Frankfurt and, in order to ensure the safety of the valuable personnel, USAAF fighter squadrons were in the air already, ready to keep the Soviet aircraft away.
1820 hrs Wednesday, 8th August 1945, Airborne over Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany.
On his way south to the airfield, Eisenhower was shaken from deep thought by the hammering of anti-aircraft weapons nearby. First looking at the firers, he saw a number of stationary M-15 Anti-aircraft gun halftracks firing furiously skywards. The unit had been on its way to Frankfurt’s main airfield to stiffen up defences but the enemy was here, and here right now. Turning his head, he was startled to see Soviet aircraft heading for the same airfield, preparing to bomb one of their suspected targets into submission.
In the last few days, Soviet pilots had developed a healthy respect for the quadruple .50cal mounts carried on the M-16 halftracks or on trailers, and had learned to stay out of MG range to avoid taking punishing hits.
The aircraft flying overhead belonged to the 11th Guards Bomber Red Banner Air Regiment and were all experience pilots who had learned this lesson well.
However, the M-15 was a different animal altogether, and had a sting that had cost many a Luftwaffe pilot his life. Having learned the range of the .50cal and then learned to stay out of it, a large number of German pilots had been shocked to find their aircraft disintegrating under the impact of 37mm cannon shells. Experienced US gunners often only used the two machine guns until the target came closer, then surprising it with burst of 37mm shells from their triple gun mount.
11th Guards also acquired this knowledge the hard way as three Shturmovik were flayed from the skies in under a minute with no chance for any of the crews to escape.
Eisenhower’s driver pulled the car over into a place of safety from where her charge could observe the air battle.
Fighters came flitting overhead and, with eyes shielded, both driver and General could see Soviet and allied aircraft engaged in a twisting low-level dance of death in which there were losers on each side, marked by the black of smoke, the red of fire or the orange bloom of an explosion.
At the airfield itself, the Shturmoviks pressed home their attack, desperate to destroy the hangars and office buildings that were considered a possible SHAEF location.
More fell victim to a new arrival on the European battlefield, the M19 GMC, a converted M24 Chafee tank sporting twin 40mm cannon. Two such weapons were situated at each end of the main runway and each claimed a Soviet bomber in short order. Unfortunately, having broken through the fighter cordon and into the IL-3’s, an American P-51D Mustang was hacked from the sky in a tragic case of mistaken identity, wreckage ploughing into an air-raid shelter on the perimeter and claiming another eight allied lives.
Of the fifteen aircraft the 11th had committed to the attack, only nine released their bombs over the target. The tenth, commanded by the Regimental Commander himself, carried its bomb load remorselessly on further into allied territory, unusually steadily, dead hands holding the controls in perfect balance.
The strike was very accurate and much damage was done to the facilities they targeted, and even to two parked C-47 transports being refuelled nearby, both of which were transformed into inferno’s before the regiment turned for home.
The 339th Bomber Air Regiment attacked their allocated Frankfurt target with eleven remaining IL-3’s, successfully tumbling much of the building to the ground and raining death and destruction on the poor unfortunates within. This target had been selected on the basis of the number of vehicles going back and forth rather than military certainty. That it was the St Elisabethen Krankenhaus was of no concern to those planning the raid and the aircrew executing those plans were not aware of the fact that they were bombing a civilian hospital and sending over three hundred innocents to an early end.
The 220th Guards Stalingrad Red Banner Air Regiment were most successful and actually hit their intended target of SHAEF, spreading their high explosive over both the I.G.Farben building and the nearby Gruneberg Park prison camp, used as a transit centre and troop accommodation as well as still containing a few ex-POW US aircrew waiting their turn to go home.