My Memories of

*  *  *  W O R L D   W A R I I  *  *  *

Army Life from Shipping Out to VE Day.

My name is Robert Bradicich and I was born on Jan. 23, 1925, in Brooklyn NY,  I entered the U.S. Army right out of high school in March 1943.   I had basic training at Camp Blanding, Florida with the 66^th Infantry Division.  After basic training, the 66^th was split up and the men were sent to different divisions.  My buddies and I were sent to the 28^th Infantry Division, 110^th Regiment, 2^nd Battalion, Company E, which was the National Guard outfit from Pennsylvania that was mobilized.

Here is my account of the war as I lived it.

MY CRUISE TO ENGLAND

          In September, 1943, the 28^th Infantry division was sent overseas to Pembroke Dock, South Wales. They took us by train to Boston where we were going to debark from. The train stopped in New York for a very short time, and I remember some of the guys from NY wanted to get off and see their families one more time, but the MP’s were all over the place. Remember, we were going overseas and many of us would not be coming back. I don’t know if anyone got off or not, but the train started again and this time we stopped in the Boston area by the docks. As we got off the train with full back pack, we had to go out the door sideways.  We marched to the docks and they were playing the song “Over There” and the flags were waving; it kind of lifted your sprits. As we went through the checkpoint, we were greeted by the Red Cross with coffee and doughnuts.

          The ship that we were going over on looked like a freighter but we knew it better as a “Banana Boat.” We were double decked, some of the guys were below deck while the others were on deck. This would reverse every twelve hours. It was a sad sight for the guys on deck, of which I was one, to see the United States skyline disappear in the background. As the hours dragged on and the guys all got settled, I was tired so I stretched out on the deck and went to sleep. Hours later I woke up   freezing, as we were taking the northern route and it was cold. I went below deck to get warm, so much for the split shifts. I sat on the floor and tried to get some sleep, but it was hard to sleep when the guys were walking around and stepping over you, but somehow I managed to sleep a little.

          The next day we joined a convoy but came into some rough weather and this “Banana Boat” really pitched in the 50 ft. waves. At times when the boat was in the bottom of the swell, you could look up and see a wall of water. Then the boat rolled and you could feel the boat being lifted up to the top of the wave and roll over the other way and slide down the other side of the wave. Shortly after that, the order came down that all army personnel were to go below deck, the seas were getting too rough  (I don’t know how much rougher it could have gotten). There must have been about 95% of the men seasick. I’m happy to say that I did not get sick.

          Now it was time for us to eat (they must be kidding), well the mess hall was down on the second level. There were long tables and you stood up while you tried to eat your food. A lot of guys that were brave enough to try to eat, got sick and threw up. They managed to leave the mess hall and get to their bunks, (the hammocks were five high, attached to the wall of the boat).  They left their food trays on the table so when the next wave came, it sent them flying to the floor. This was certainly a “mess hall.” I managed to get some food down and keep it down. After about a day and a half the seas became much calmer.

          On about the fifth day there was an attack by a German submarine.  The US destroyers were all over dropping depth charges and I guess drove them away or sank them. By the way, those destroyers can really move.  The rest of the “cruise” was uneventful, except for the time we passed some mines. The sailors used their machine guns to fire at them and blow them up. If we hit one, it would be all over for all of us. Even with all this, they managed to keep us active. They had us assemble into groups on deck and do calisthenics, clean your rifle and inspections. While this was going on, they used a fire hose to wash down our sleeping quarters and mess hall. If there had been dirt on board they would have had us dig fox holes.

          Now, on the 7^th day we saw land. I think I know a little bit of what Columbus felt like when he saw America. After seven days out on the high seas with 95% of the men sea sick, I glad to see land, even if it was England and not America. We disembarked at Newport, England without fanfare and went immediately onto trains which were waiting for us to take us to Pembroke Dock, South Wales.

My stay at Pembroke Dock, South Wales

          Pembroke Dock is a quaint little town on the southwest part of Wales.  The people there were very friendly and thankful that we came over. The barracks were on top of a hill overlooking the bay where the amphibious aircraft took off in search of German Submarines.

          Once there, we got assigned to barracks and cots. We had our GI blankets but, for a mattress, they brought bales of straw which we had to put into a cloth bag the size of a mattress. We had to put enough straw to make it look like a mattress but not too much or the sergeant would make you take some out. This was our bed and it was changed periodically. Once we got settled we started the usual army routine like getting up at 5:00 a.m. and hiking about 5 miles. This was for starters. Sometimes we would walk about 5 miles and they would bring us breakfast in the field, then we continued to walk. Some days we would walk 20 or 30 miles. They also took us out by truck (which we thought was great) but then got us out of the trucks after about 30 miles from camp and make us walk back.

          Other times we would go on maneuvers for weeks at a time. When they did this, the kitchen usually came with us and we would eat in the field. On these maneuvers, they gave us blanks for our guns which really got them dirty. At times they would tell three guys that they were wounded and to lie on the ground and call for the medics. This was training for the medics to treat them and get them back to the field hospital.

          Once in a while we had dances on the base. The dances were held in our hall, which was also used as the chapel, meeting hall, etc. On this one night we were having a dance, my buddy. (George Miles from Altoona, Pa) was on guard duty at the front door. The brass allowed some British soldiers to attend the dance. At the beginning of the dance, they played our National Anthem followed by the British National Anthem. Well, I don’t know how it started, whether they were unconcerned when they played our anthem or we were unconcerned when they played their anthem. I think it was a little of both, but some words were said and before you knew it, a  brawl started. I heard one American soldier say to a British soldier, “Get lost, we had to come all the way over here to save your ass again.” Well it really started to get nasty. I saw George at the door and told him “he better do something.” He asked me what he should do. I told him to call for the sergeant of the guard. As luck would have it, the sergeant was making his rounds and was going to check in at the dance anyway. He saw what was going on and he called the MP’s. They came immediately and broke up the fighting. Amazingly, order was restored and the dance went on. I found out what one British soldier said, “You Americans are over paid, over sexed and over here.” Remember, we were Americans dancing with British girls and it didn’t go over too well with the British soldiers.

          At most of the dances, the British soldiers were not invited, but some guys would find something to fight over.

          When we got passes to go to town, we usually headed for the best watering hole in town at the bottom of the hill. Here we drank the warm lager beer, played darts, and then tried to make it back up the hill to camp. Some guys were in town without a pass and when we got to the gate, the guys with the passes kept the guard busy while the guys without passes went through. I really think they knew what was happening but didn’t say anything. They didn’t want to put their buddies in the guardhouse.

          This went on for the winter months and as the weather got a little warmer, things changed a little. We got into trucks and went to a town called Cardiff, where we did some amphibious maneuvers with the Navy. We would climb into a little boat called an LCI (Landing Craft Infantry) and storm the beaches of Wales. These LCI’s only held 30 men crowded together. We knew what we were training for and it wasn’t very comforting. In training the navy knew where the sandbars were, so they brought the LCI’s right up to the beach. They didn’t want to lose any men on maneuvers. If this was the real thing they would come in and hit the beach, the ramp would come down, and the entire platoon runs down the ramp to the beach. If it was a sandbar and the water was over your head, that was tough! With all the gear you had on, there was no way you could swim or stay afloat.

          On another occasion, they called reveille at about 0500 (5:00 a.m.)  We got washed, dressed, and assembled for roll call at 0530.  Then instead of having chow, we loaded on trucks and convoyed out of camp. We didn’t know where we were going, but then we never did know what was going on. The convoy was quite large, trucks as far as you could see. This could be what everyone was waiting for. Invasion talk started to spread. When we saw the names of the towns we went through, we felt better because we were going north. We stopped just outside of Fishguard, Wales, got out of the trucks, and they had breakfast for us. Just think, powered eggs, home fries and coffee. This we ate out on the lawn with the morning sun. Of course we had no chairs, we sat on the lawn. They didn’t have any plates so we ate out of our mess gear. We had a full half hour to stand in line for the food, eat, and then rinse our gear in ‘clear’ hot water. The first one to clean their gear had good hot water, but if you were last, the water wasn’t hot and not so clean.

          When we were finished, we thought we would get back on the trucks, but they were nowhere in sight. Then we knew we were going to march back to camp (Pembroke Dock). We estimated the milage to be about 30 miles, which would take about 10 hours. Well we marched and marched and marched. In some of the small towns that we went through, I don’t think they ever saw an American soldier. They appeared a little frightened. They thought we might have been German soldiers. When they found out we were American, they were happy and waved to us. Remember, there wasn’t any television in the homes in those days.

          After about the fourth “take 10” (10 minute break), everyone just plopped down on the side of the road, took off their packs, and laid down flat on their backs. As we got closer to Pembroke Dock, you saw the medics treating some guys on the side of the road for blisters. My feet were hot but I was fine.

          We got to Pembroke Dock at about 1900 (7:00 p.m.). When we approached the place where all the brass was watching, the sergeant got us all whipped up, marching by the numbers, shoulders back and chest out, so when we passed them we looked like soldiers, instead of how we really felt.

          When we got back to the barracks, I found out that there was a dance in the hall, so I quickly did the three sss’s and went to the dance. I can say that I was really in good shape.

The next day we fell out for reveille, all were reported present, however, the daily sick call was quite high. The guys still had the blisters. After reveille we went out behind the barracks where we got instructions on the BAR (Browning Automatic Rifle). When you hold the trigger, it will keep firing as long as you have ammunition in the clip, which held about 20 to 25 rounds. This can be fired from the hip if at close range, or it had two “legs” at the front so it could be shot from the prone position for more accuracy. That way it was used like a light machine gun.

Usually another rifleman was always with the BAR man and he carried more clips,                     so he wouldn’t run out of ammunition.

          While in South Wales, we ate most of our meals in the Battalion Mess Hall. This was different from the “Company Mess.” Company chow was much better and we had the best cooks, because our cooks did something to the powdered eggs which made them taste almost like eggs. But when it came to powdered potatoes, there’s nothing they could do to make them edible. The only meals we ate outside of the mess hall was when we went to town, Pembroke Dock, which was at the bottom of the hill. Well the Battalion Mess Hall got really bad and I got sick. I was sick enough to go on sick call in the morning, which means you cleaned the barracks that day. I could not eat anything for three days, but somehow I managed to clean the barracks, except for the last day. Oh yes, each day that I went on sick call, they gave me two aspirins and sent me back to the barracks. The last day my buddy cleaned the barracks for me and told me to try to eat something. I tried to but I could not keep it down. When he saw how sick I was, he went out and luckily he saw a jeep with a doctor riding in it. I say lucky because this was Sunday when most everyone was in town. He asked the doctor if he would come in and look at me, which he did. When he saw my yellow eyes and yellow skin, he went out and had an ambulance come and take me to the hospital. I had Yellow Jaundice. I was in the hospital for about two weeks and, while I was there, I heard that one day all the guys took their soup bowls, that had about a quarter of an inch of grease on top, and turned them upside down and walked out of the mess hall. Well, this brought the officer in charge of Division Mess to our Battalion Mess Hall. Upon inspecting the conditions, he promptly closed it down. It was still closed when I got out of the hospital, so we had to go over to the 1^st battalion mess hall to eat. They eventually opened our Battalion Mess Hall after it was all cleaned up, painted and passed inspection. However, the best meals came from our company mess when it was open. We also had the best cooks.

          I remember another episode where a few of us went to a dance given by the NFS (National Fire Service) on some small island just off the coast of Pembroke. We were taken there by a small British boat and were told that the last boat would leave at 2300 hours sharp, be there. We had a good time and when it was time to leave, some of us, including me, took too much time and got to the dock after 2300 so we missed the last boat. The guys said they were going back to the party but I was going to try to find a way back. I knew that, if I didn’t get back that night, I would miss reveille in the morning and be marked AWOL. This meant that, when you returned, you went to the brig. Checking around I found a National Fire Brigade boat with some guys aboard. I told the guys my story and that I had to get back to the mainland or I would be AWOL. They said they couldn’t take me across at night because of the curfew. They also told me that a British patrol boat was on the other pier and I should try them. I went over to the patrol boat and again explained my predicament to them. After identifying myself to them that I was indeed an American soldier, he called someone, then told me to hop in and they would take me across. When we got to the other side, I was immediately detained by British Guards.  Here I had to identify myself all over again. I was kept there until they called my base and got clearance. I thought, “what did I run into.” My pass was up at 2400 and I thought I would be thrown into the guardhouse anyway. Well, to my surprise I got cleared and they not only let me go, but drove me to the camp gate in a British lorry. (I guess they wanted to make sure I was truly an American soldier). We got out and the British soldiers escorted me to the guard on duty and I presented my pass to George Miles, who was on guard and, I knew. He told the British that everything was ok and they left. Do you know that, when I think back, the British never let me out of their sight all the time. Even though I was about an hour and a half late, George let me through without any problem.

          We took hikes regularly, at least two a week, which are of 5, 10 or 15 miles but this I remember well. We assembled outside after chow at 1900 on June 5, 1944. We were told to assemble with a light pack, this included a shelter half, blanket and a shovel on your pack. Well, we walked and walked for about 20 miles. (3 miles per hour x number of hours walked). It was about 0100 when we pitched our tents. We no sooner hit the sack when we were told to break camp and fall in ready to move out. When we assembled and were ready to move out, they told us that we had invaded France, the invasion had begun. We were all happy it had started and we were not in the initial wave, but we all knew that this was for real this time. We all knew that the only road home was across the channel and through Berlin.

          This march was at a forced march pace, 5 miles per hour. Halfway back to camp, trucks came and picked us up to take us back. This was the first time a march was terminated and we rode back to camp. I guess they wanted us back in a hurry to be ready when the orders came to move to the coast.

          Day after day we waited, but nothing. We just sat around waiting, some guys wrote letters home, other guys sharpened their bayonet, while others played cards. I remember  sharpening my bayonet and thinking that I don’t want the bayonet getting stuck in some German and another German coming at me. I kept thinking about the newsreels of WWI and the charges from trench to trench. However, I didn’t think this “modern” war would be like that. (I hoped) We requisitioned almost anything we wanted and we got it. My buddy Clay, had a tough time getting shoes because he never wore shoes on the farm where he came from. The trouble was his feet were as wide as they were long, I never saw anything like it. His hands were the same way, just as wide as they were long.

          The news from the invasion wasn’t that good, some guys landed on the wrong beach and couldn’t link up with the paratroopers. They had too many guys on one beach and not enough on another. Reserve regiments had to be used to plug the gaps. We thought for sure we would be going, but more days passed.

          At chow one night the orders came that all passes were cancelled and everyone was to have everything packed and ready to move out on trucks by 22:00. This is what we all were waiting for and why we were here in the first place. We were never in combat yet and we didn’t know what it was like so we were all “Gung Ho”. Now we were going to show “Jerry” what the 28^th Division was made of.

          I never saw so much activity going on at one time. Trucks and jeeps were all over the place. We got our things packed and I mean anything you wanted to keep had to go into your backpack. We only took what was essential and what we were taking into battle, plus they gave us two extra belts of ammunition. Our overcoats and other winter gear we left behind. All the trucks were loaded and we headed for Southampton. We stayed there for about a week, I guess it takes that long to move a Division. Finally, we loaded on boats for our “cruise” across the English Channel to France, where the Germans were waiting for us to give us a big reception. It wasn’t a big ship and we were not assigned any bunks, so we knew we would not be on this ship very long. Well, we were there all night and all the next day. This was just like the army, “hurry up and wait.” Maybe they didn’t need us after all, but no such luck, the ship left that night (or I should say early the next morning).

          When dawn came and I was on deck with everyone else we could see the French coast. I felt an eerie feeling coming over me, it was very quiet the last few miles as we approached closer to the landing area. As we got some distance from shore, a lot of activity was going on. By this time it was lighter and we could see the small boats coming closer to our ship. They were LCI’s (Landing Craft Infantry). The order came down to load the LCI’s but I didn’t know how they were going to get us down there, I did not see any ramp. Then it dawned on me, they had a rope net that hung over the side of the ship and we were going to climb down the rope net to the LCI’s. I have acrophobia or something (a fear of heights) and they wanted me to go over the side of this boat and climb down that rope net while this boat was pitching in the waves. No way! Well George told me they would force me down one way or another so I agreed to try. George got over the side first, then two other guys helped me over the side. They told me not to look down as I went down to the bouncing LCI. (I already did look down and the height made me freeze).

I did not look down again as I slowly released one hand to begin the descent. I began to think to myself, (that, if I fell and landed in the metal boat, I would probably break every bone in my body, or if I missed the boat, I  would land in the water with my backpack and my rifle over my shoulder, I would immediately sink to the bottom). I tried to dismiss both of these thoughts from my mind and concentrate on climbing down very slowly. It seemed like forever, but to my delight and surprise, I made it down to the boat. I guess I’m glad I didn’t go into the Navy. Attacking the German lines would be a snap after this (so I thought). As one boat got full, it pulled away while another pulled up.  

          We circled around with the other LCI’s until they were all loaded at which time we all headed for the beach. I found out later that it was Omaha Beach that we landed on. We trained many times for this landing, but with all the training, there was nothing like the anticipation of the real thing. I can only think of the guys that went in on the first wave and be thankful that we were going in much later. I believe this was D-Day+21. Our instructions were to hit the beach and get inland as fast as possible because the beaches were still being shelled, and German fighters could strafe us on the beach. Well, the LCI hit the beach, the front of the boat came down, and we all ran off the ramp and into the water which was just below our waist. We ran onto the beach and up a 15 ft, bank, and onto a road. This road ran past a house, which was white, had a door in the middle with windows on both sides, but the right side was bombed out. There were pockmarks all over it from bullets and shrapnel. I wondered why this house was still standing, especially when nothing was standing anyplace else. I also wonder why I remember this house. The German concrete bunkers, which overlooked the beach, were blown off their foundations and completely bombed out. These bunkers were made of reinforced concrete about 10 ft. thick. The barbed wire was piled up on the side of the beach along with concrete pilings, which were in the water to stop our landing crafts from reaching the beach. If a landing craft hit one of the pilings, which was submerged, and the front came down, the men would run out of the LCI into water over their heads and drown.

          My platoon, the rest of Company E, and the other companies got organized and we began our march towards St. Lo and the front lines which were just on the other side of St. Lo. As we marched it didn’t take us long to get to St. Lo. What I saw I could hardly believe! This was a pretty large city, but I did not see one building standing.  Everything was in rubble. The few people that remained there were living in these bombed out buildings, if you call all this rubble, buildings. But they were extremely happy to see us. They came out of the rubble and waved to us. One woman gave me a glass of water, so I thought, it was hot so I took a big gulp, and then I found out that it was cognac. I couldn’t talk for about five minutes. As we marched on further through the city streets, which were cleared of debris by the engineers, we started to leave the city proper and came to the outskirts where the engineers hadn’t cleared yet. I was stepping over some of the rubble when I saw my first dead soldier. It was some sight, something that I will not forget for the rest of my life. It was a German soldier in the middle of the road, but he was stiff and burned beyond recognition in a sitting position as if he was killed while driving a truck or a half-track. His face was black and the skin was almost burned off. It looked like a skeleton with burned skin on it. I knew now that we were getting nearer to the front. I could also hear the artillery shells exploding up ahead of us. 

          As we got nearer to the front, we stopped for a break and the word came down that we were going to relieve the 29^th Div. and take over their positions. We were told to keep our eyes and ears open and let our sergeant know of any strange things going on. It was getting late in the afternoon, the air was still, and there was a strange and eerie feeling in the air. You could “smell” the stillness and the powder, which came from the guns and the exploded artillery shells. There was something strange that I noticed, there were no birds around anywhere. Why I noticed this I don’t know. We saw an occasional cow that was dead and swelling up in the field.

          We now split up and the different squads went into the fields to get to the 29^th positions. When we got up there, we took over the foxholes from the guys and they told us where the Germans were and to watch for any movement by them. We chatted for a while and they asked us if we were in combat before. We told them no, that this was going to be our baptism of fire. He said, “Oh Shit, a green outfit, let me get the hell out of here.” But he wished us luck.

          It wasn’t long before the sun was going down, and suddenly someone started to shoot at the ridge and shrubs across the way. I didn’t see any Germans, but we were receiving return fire. We were ready to get our first Germans when the word came down to “hold your fire.” We found out that we were firing at our own positions. All of us were on edge and you might say “trigger happy”.  One of our guys was hit but not seriously and he was sent back to the aid station. He was our first casualty and it had to come from “friendly fire.” The rest of the night was quiet, except for an occasional shell from the enemy.

          NOTE: My buddy told me that he thought it was me that he shot, but I assured him it was not.

Mines and booby traps were set in front of us in case the Germans sent a patrol towards our positions. Our guards were set and the rest of us were told to get some sleep. They must be kidding, the first night at the front and we’re going to sleep!!  Sometime between 0400 and 0500 we heard some tanks coming down the road behind us, and we took these to be our tanks (hoping). They were the 2^nd Armored Division, which was going to be attached to the 28^th Infantry and spearhead an attack on the German positions to start a major breakout of the Normandy beachhead and on the road to Paris. (Maybe we were attached to the 2^nd Armored?) I don’t want to offend anyone from the 2^nd Armored Div. as they were great.

          Prior to jumping off, I remember that the sky became full of B17’s (American Bombers) which dropped their bombs on the German positions. We heard later that some of the bombs were dropped on our positions. The positions that got bombed were further down the line, we were ok. Then our artillery fired at the Germans. I found out later that it was all the artillery of our Div. that opened on the Germans. When the bombers left, the p47’s started to strafe the enemy positions. I was thinking “I hope they do a good job so they’ll be less Germans for us to fight”. I knew that it would be us, the infantry, that would go in and get the job done.

          When the artillery started to let up, the 2^nd Divisions armored tanks moved out in force with us right with them. I noticed that, on the back of the tanks, right behind the gun turret, was a large bright colored marker which was there to show the American fighter planes that these were American tanks. We didn’t want them strafing and dropping bombs on us. This marker was not put out when we did not have air cover. The obvious reason was not to tell the German Air Force, if they came over, which tanks were American.

          Sgt. Balock gave us the order to move out and I remember Joe Faye looking at me and I looked at him and we said “Well, let’s get them.” As we got through the hedgerow in front of us, we were in sight of the enemy, and we immediately began to receive heavy small arms fire, (rifle & machine gun).  I dropped down on my stomach to see exactly where the rifle fire was coming from. Then I saw a German soldier behind some bushes. I brought my rifle up and aimed it right at him. I saw him in my sight, and I was squeezing the trigger when I looked beyond the sight and saw his face. He was a young kid, like myself, who also looked scared. I remember thinking “I wonder if he thinks he is fighting for a just cause the same as I believe I am fighting for a just cause.” I also wondered if he had a family at home that was worried about him (this all happened in a split second). Well, a cold sweat came over me and I could not pull the trigger. Now I began to think, here I am in the infantry, my first battle and I couldn’t pull the trigger. What am I going to do? Then I heard the sarge yell at me, “Come on Bradicich, this is no time to go to sleep, get the ‘lead out’ and get after them” (If he only knew?).                 

          Well, I did get up and go after the enemy, this time as I advanced I used my rifle without looking at who it was, as long as it had a German uniform on. It’s true what they say, “The first is the hardest.” 

          Going over the next hedgerow, we started to cross an open field when we  started to get heavy rifle fire. The Lt. saw the spot we were in and called for the tanks of the 2^nd Armored. Well, they came over and they did a job on the German positions. Then we advanced on the Germans and found that they had little fight left, so they gave up after little resistance.  This was our first battle and I will admit  that I was scared, but when I looked at these German soldiers that were surrendering, (they were told that the Americans would kill them if they surrendered) they also looked scared. As we moved up, the Germans started to attack on our left flank, so we formed a skirmish line and went after them. As we got closer, Jim Cole, on my left, went down and yelled, “I’m hit.”  I pulled him behind a bush because a German machine gun was still racking the field. I yelled for a medic, and when one came, I wished him luck. He was hit in the upper part of the leg. I told him that he would be back in England tomorrow. I crawled up to my outfit but we were pinned down by that machine gun. I remember one of the guys putting his grenade launcher on his rifle and putting the grenade on the end of the rifle, but he didn’t have a blank to shoot the grenade. He yelled over to see if anyone had one, and someone threw one over to him. Well, he fired it at the machine gun, but it fell short. Our tank came back and opened fire on the machine gun and got them with the second round. We sprayed the position with rifle fire and charged their position. After awhile the shooting subsided and we got to where the Germans were. They were dead or wounded. The remainder surrendered. You could still hear the tanks out in front firing. The Sgt. sent the prisoners back with two guys and the rest of us continued to go forward after the Germans. The tanks really routed them and they were in full retreat. We had to keep after them so they could not regroup and mount a strong counter attack. The other platoons went right and left to insure that there were no more counter attacks. One thing I found out was that the tanks draw a lot of enemy artillery. Remember, they are inside the tank, we are outside and the concussion & flying shrapnel from the exploding artillery shells is devastating. I saw a piece of shrapnel, the size of my hand, take off the side of a soldiers face. It was not a pretty sight. Believe me when they say, “War is Hell.”

          We had to keep going and not let the tanks get too far ahead or they could be cut off. As we caught up to the tanks, the artillery started again and we came across two American tanks that were knocked out. One guy from the tank was outside but was dead the others were probably dead inside the burning tank. We kept going and finding pockets of resistance, which we attacked. We now had the overwhelming firepower, so as we moved closer. The Germans put up stiff resistance, but finally surrendered or retreated. Some were killed or wounded, our medics patched them up and sent them to the rear under guard.

          Note: I found out what a bullet sounds like when it’s fired at you, it sounds like a crack of a whip and, when you hear that, you know it’s too damm “close for comfort.”

          As we continued after the retreating Germans, the terrain started to change dramatically from fields to hedgerows, (see note below) which were all over Northern France. Here the fighting took a turn for the worse. Each field was bordered by the hedgerow and the field could be 50 ft long or 100 yards in a square or any shape lot. These hedgerows became natural defensive positions for the Germans and we had to take them one at a time.

          Note: A hedgerow is a boundary of a field which consist of about a 3 or 4 foot mound of dirt with a two or three foot hedge growing on top of this mound. This hedgerow went completely around each field, it was one field after another. These fields usually had an opening at one side of the field so the cows could get through. You don’t want to go through these openings because the Germans usually had them zeroed in with mortars or machine guns. There was usually a road winding through these hedgerows.

          We went into the “Hedgerow Country” in the approach march until we met the enemy. The approach march is walking two abreast, one on each side of the road and about five to ten feet between each guy. (We walked this way so that, if an artillery shell landed in the road, it should only get one or two guys.) These roads were only about 8 or 10 ft wide. We also had scouts out front a few hundred yards who would send word back to the column when they saw or encountered any enemy troops. On this particular day, the word came back that they observed some movement that looked suspicious, coming from a farmhouse which was located by the side of the road.  My squad got the task of going up to find out if there were any Germans in the farmhouse, and if so, what was their strength. We got up to the scouts and they explained that they thought they saw some movement in the yard by the house. Half of the squad, including myself, went up the road while the other half stayed there to give us covering fire in case we needed it. As we approached to about 100 yards, a woman came out of the field on the other side of the road. She didn’t know who we were and began to speak to us in French. We told her we were Americans and asked her if there were any “borst” (Germans) at the farmhouse in the best way we could, in English. Something happened that set her off, maybe when she saw the soldiers on the side of the road with their rifles pointed at the farmhouse, but she started to get excited and began yelling in French about something, pointing at the house. Then she turned and started to go towards the house. The Sgt. yelled to stop her and the soldier up ahead grabbed her but she continued to yell in French. The Sgt. thought this would alert the Germans if any were at the farmhouse and yelled to shut her up. Then someone hit her with his rifle that knocked her to the ground. She began to cry and kept pointing to the farmhouse and talking in French.

          Note: When I went to the reunion in 1993, I discussed this incident with George Form and another guy, who was there with me. George said to me, “Bob, don’t you remember, that was you that hit her with your rifle.” Could I have done this, and for some reason, subconsciously put it out of my mind all these years. I just don’t remember??

          A GI from the main group, that could speak French, came up the road and he talked to her. He told us she said there were no Germans there and her father was an invalid who was in the farmhouse alone. He explained to her that we were only after Germans and would not harm her or her father. While “Frenchie” talked to her, the rest of us cautiously approached the house. We saw no movement in the yard and two guys went up to the front door. Normally we would throw a grenade in first, then rush in, but it didn’t look like any Germans were in the house so they opened the front door and went in very cautiously. We came out shortly and said it was clear. Her father was in the house and indeed an invalid. We sent the word back to the main column and we continued on our march after the enemy.

          In advancing down these roads, the Germans would fire mortars at us. Remember, these roads had high embankments on both sides, so when the mortars dropped in the roads, the concussion was intense. This also meant that the Germans could see us advancing. All we could do was lie down and hope one didn’t get you. You could hear the shrapnel flying through the air and hit the dirt around you. As I was lying on the ground, a piece of shrapnel hit my rifle, which was next to me. It took quite a chunk out of it. If my rifle wasn’t there, that chunk would have been out of my leg. On second thought, that might have been the million dollar wound, which would send me back.

          Note: The battle, which I will attempt to describe, is one of the most horrible battles that I was in. These scenes are etched in my mind and I will never forget them. This battle was one of my nightmares, which woke me up many times after I got home. I will try to describe it as I remember it.

          The town we were coming to was Percy, which was about five kilometers down the road.  If the Germans could see us they probably were getting ready to give us some reception. As we marched down the road, which wound through the hedgerows, we heard a tank coming. We knew it wasn’t ours because there was nothing out in front of us but Germans. We climbed up the dirt embankment and went into the fields which had the hedgerows all around and took up positions ready to engage the enemy. The bazookas that were in the company were brought up to get the tank if possible. An anti-tank gun was also being readied to fire when the tank came around the bend in the road. The bazooka team fired at the tank but they were too far away and missed the tank. The Germans knew what was happening and fired their 88, point blank at the position where the bazooka was fired from, which was next to me. The exploding 88 shell took out part of the hedgerow and the bazooka with the GI that fired it. The concussion also knocked me back and flat on my back. I thought this might be it for me but, miraculously, I got up and seemed to be ok, except I could not hear too well. Meanwhile, the anti-tank guys got off a round at the tank, but missed. The tank now focused their guns at the anti-tank gun and they fired a round at them, which took out the gun. I don’t remember what happened to the gunners (those ‘88’ from the tanks were deadly accurate). In the meantime, we engaged the German infantry that was with the tank. We got a lot of them but they also got a lot of us especially with the machine gun from the tank. A lot of our guys were hit in the road and the tank kept firing its ’88’ at us. It got so bad that we were being driven back. As we were falling back to the next hedgerow, the German tank kept coming with the infantry. I saw one of our guys with his leg badly mangled, in the path of the approaching tank. He was yelling and trying to get out of the way, but these road were so narrow that there was no way to escape. As the tank got closer one of our guys aimed his rifle and shot the GI. We then fixed bayonet and another bazooka team came up and took aim at the tank. The round exploded right next to the tank. Our mortar squad behind us was starting to throw a lot of shells at them now. We were not going to retreat. As the Germans were receiving all this firepower, they started to retreat. Now we were in the attack with fixed bayonets and the tide of battle started to turn.

          We started to regroup in a hurry to go after the retreating Germans. Company ‘F’ was brought up with us and we were ready to move out when we started to get an artillery barrage like we’d never seen before. The Germans must have us pinpointed by the report from the tank that was attacking us a while back. I hit the ground and crawled to a foxhole and rolled onto somebody. I didn’t know if he was dead or alive and I didn’t care. I knew we took a beating from the artillery and mortars because I could hear some of the guys calling for the medics. As the shells burst all around us, you could hear parts of the metal casing whining through the air. You could only hope that this shrapnel did not rip into you. The shells exploded all around us like rain and the concussion hurt your ears. I was lying there pulling my helmet down over my head as far as it would go and hoping that one of the shells would not land in my foxhole. I have already seen what happens when an artillery shell lands in the same foxhole you are occupying, it’s no pretty sight. You just hope they can find your dog tags. I imagine we all prayed a lot, I know I did. We also knew that, when this barrage stopped, we would be in for an all out German attack.

          As the artillery let up, F Company went forward while we again regrouped. We could hear the fierce fighting ahead of us and the Sgt. told us to get up. We were going up to help F company which needed our support. We were all quite exhausted but we got up and ready to go. As we went up the road, we came upon a knocked out German tank, the one that was attacking us, because the roads were very narrow, it blocked our advance. We then had to go through the fields and climb through the hedgerows the best way we could. When we got over the second hedgerow we came upon many GI’s who were being treated by the medics. As we proceeded up the slope we had to actually step over the bodies of dead GI’s and many German soldiers. The smell of powder and burning flesh was in the air and, a little further up, was another German tank which was completely destroyed with the tracks blown off. There was also a dead German soldier who was hanging halfway out of the tank. His face was covered with blood and his arm was bloody and mangled. I found out that F Company knocked the treads off the tank, but it kept firing its machine gun so they tossed some grenades at it. The Germans were shot as they tried to get out and surrender. We proceeded around the tank, stepping over many German soldiers. The Germans were putting up a fierce battle.

          If you noticed in this battle, which lasted most of the day, there were no prisoners. Anything that moved was shot, whether they were trying to surrender or not. You don’t surrender in the heat of battle. You can’t stop and take a prisoner while the other Germans are firing at you, so you shot him and continue on after the other Germans. “War is hell.”

          Note: If I was told to describe hell, those are the scenes that I would describe. I wanted my nephew, who paints, to paint a picture of this scene, but I guess he could not capture the horror that I saw and remember. The above battle was one nightmare I had many times over when I got out of the service.

          We now joined up with F Company but there weren’t too many guys around. Some of them just sat by the side of the road and stared out into space while others were in small groups smoking cigarettes. We took over the point* and I understand F company was sent back to regroup and get replacements.

          * (The lead squad, that is out in front of the main force).

          They finally brought up some light tanks for our support (a little late), but they had a real tough time trying to get through the hedgerows. The tanks took a running start and hit the hedgerow but they couldn’t go through on the first try. Sometimes it took two or three tries in order to get through. We got a new Lt. (I remember he was short and fat) and he said “The hell with the tanks” and ordered us forward without the tanks. He was brave and fearless, but he took a hit at the next hedgerow, and the medics carried him back. That Lt. only  lasted less than a day.

          The fighting was fierce and slow, one hedgerow at a time. We had to climb over them and run to the next hedgerow. In doing that, each GI was exposed to German rifle and machine gun fire. You either made it or you were shot before you got to the next hedgerow. As I watched, I saw the first guy go over, he made it. So did the next two. The next guy went over and made it halfway to the next hedgerow, but only got to the middle of the field when he got it. The next one over almost made it but he went down on his stomach and started to fire at the Germans. The guys that made it yelled at him to keep coming. He got up and started to run zig-zag across the field. He made it. Now it was my turn to go. I intended to get myself near the top, then jump over and run zig-zag as fast as I could go. When I jumped over, my foot got caught and I tripped over the hedge and fell to the ground below. As I went down and was lying on the ground I could hear the bullets bouncing all around me. When I fell, I landed on my rifle and hit my knee. However, at the time I thought I was shot in the knee. I knew I couldn’t run very fast this way so I just laid still and prayed. Someone up there must have been watching over me, because the bullets stopped. I guess they thought they got me. It was still light and I couldn’t move a muscle or I’m sure the Germans would start shooting at me again. One of the guys was wounded pretty bad and was lying in the middle of the field calling franticly for a medic. Why the Germans didn’t shoot him again I don’t know. I heard the Sgt. call the medic and told him to go out there and help this wounded soldier. The medic refused to go but the Sgt. ordered him to get his ass out there.

          Note: Medics wear a big red cross in the front and back of their helmet. Also, there is a red cross on both sides of his helmet. This is done according to the Geneva Convention rules. They do not carry a rifle, sidearm, grenades, etc. and they care for all wounded whether Americans or Germans.

          The medic went out there, got to the wounded soldier and was dressing his wounds. He was not being shot at and both sides stopped shooting while he tended to the wounded soldier. When he was finished and was helping the soldier back to our lines, the Germans opened fire and shot both of them. I can imagine how the Sgt. felt. Well, he yelled at the rest of the men to get those (@#%!@&) and everyone fired whatever they had at the German lines. I was still lying there just below the hedgerow and our guys were firing their rifles just over my head at the German positions. The concussion from the rifles was deafening and they kept it up for about half an hour. It was now getting dusk and I was ready to get up and run across the field when the guys who ran across the field started to come back. I joined them and, when we got back, we called the battalion for an artillery strike against the German positions. This came in about five minutes and, if any Germans were left after our rifle fire, I’m sure the artillery barrage got the rest. I couldn’t hear and had a terrific headache the rest of the night. This is how I became deaf in my left ear. We stayed there that night and continued the attack in the morning.

          In the morning we continued our advance, and they came up with a good idea in getting the tanks through the hedgerows. They welded a large flat fork like metal piece onto the bottom of the tanks. These tanks now ran into the hedgerow and the fork ripped into the base of the hedges. This ripped a gapping hole in the hedgerow and we all went through, another problem solved. The guys in the tank must have taken quite a jolt when the tank hits the hedgerow.

           That morning another Lt. was sent up to take over. This was the complete opposite of the last Lt.. He seemed scared, and when we heard our shells going out he hit the ground. I remember telling him that was “outgoing mail.” (Our shell going out to the enemy) I was getting to be the veteran up there. Well, it made me feel better that someone else was more frightened than I was. The fighting let up and we had time to relax a little. Even mail call came and I remember receiving a package from home. (Yes, we do get mail at the front, sometimes.) I opened it up and there was a fruit cake. It had a little green mold on it but who cared. Whatever it was, it was better than the “K” rations we were eating. I ate the cake and shared it with my buddies. It was delicious.

          We put out guards and were told to “dig in” and stay alert. I was very tired and didn’t want to dig another foxhole so I looked around and saw a trench that was dug into the side of the hedgerow. However, there was a dead GI in the foxhole, so I rolled him out and  curled up and tried to get some sleep. I knew we would be going after the Germans again in the morning.

          The next morning at dawn we proceeded on our way to Mortain. We were walking down the dirt road towards the town when we came upon mines in the road. We were lucky that the lead guys saw them before we walked over them. The Germans did a poor job in hiding them. We had to hold up our advance in order to locate the mines and remove them or destroy them. This was taking too much time, so we were ordered to stay off the road and proceed through the fields. We did this and a short time but, later one of the guys out in front stepped on a personnel mine and was killed. Two other GI’s who were near him were hit with shrapnel from that mine. This particular mine was called “bouncing betsie”. When it is set off, it bounces up in the air about 4 feet, then it explodes. Anybody in the area could be hit by the exploding pieces of metal that are in the exploding canister. We were told in training that when you step on this kind of a mine, you should remain standing on it for a few minutes and it will not explode. By standing on it, you prevent it from popping out of the ground and the pressure that pops it out will dissipate. Then you can dig it up and mark it for the guys to take it away. I never saw anybody remain standing on one, the moment you hear the click or pop you automatically dive for the ground or any cover.

          Now we knew we were in a minefield and we all remained where we were. We waited for the crew to clear a path through the mines. They put a strip of gauze through the minefield for the guys to follow. It’s tough to keep your balance while walking on a narrow white strip on the ground. (try it) Well, one guy lost his balance and stepped off the white gauze and stepped on a mine. He got it pretty bad. It just about blew his foot off. He laid there yelling for a medic. The medics were there with us, so he got attention right away. The medic gave him a shot of morphine to ease the pain. You could see that his foot was not in line with his leg and there was blood all over his leg and clothes. I did not know him; he must have been a replacement we got along the way. The rest of us were extremely careful getting through. The medic stayed with him until they could bring up a stretcher to take him back to the aid station. You just hope and pray that some day that’s not you. Each day you survive and each battle you make it through is one day closer to the day you can go home.

By this time they brought up a mine clearing tank. This is a tank with a roller attached to the front and chains attached to the roller. This roller revolved and beat the ground in front as the tank went forward, exploding any mines in front of it.

          Now we could continue our march to Mortain on the road which went through the hedgerows.  As we marched around the turn in the road and could see the town, we started to receive shelling from German tanks “88” and from small arms fire from the soldiers defending Mortain. They caught some of us out in the open and they were throwing mortar shells at us pretty heavy. With artillery shells you can hear them just before they explode, but mortar shells you don’t hear them coming but you can hear them explode. We were pinned down by the shelling but we were lucky two P47’s came over and strafed the enemy positions and dropped a bomb into their positions. God bless those fly boys. We called for artillery fire on their positions, which came in a few minutes. As our artillery let up, we attacked their positions, under the cover of the smoke from the artillery shells and the bomb the P47 dropped. The smoke started to clear and, as we came upon their positions, they were retreating. The ones that were wounded surrendered

We were now told to change our direction and head north over the hills. Well, we went cross-country for a few miles which wasn’t the easiest under foot, but we were the “foot soldiers.” After a few miles we came over a hill and we saw a column of Germans soldiers walking east. They were in full retreat and we were sent there to cut them off. We attacked them and they immediately set up a defensive position. Our attack continued for about half an hour when some tanks came up to give us some support. These tanks came from Patton’s army and I found out that we were attached to the 3^rd army. The tanks led the charge and we followed the tanks. The Germans put up a fierce fight but, as the tanks got nearer, they started to retreat. This attack by us was so one sided that, as we got closer, we had to jump over German bodies. They were retreating in the beginning and we were cutting off their escape route. Therefore, there was no organized resistance, and it was like shooting in a shooting gallery. I found out later that this was called the “Falice Pocket.”

A German General was in this pocket and he finally surrendered his command to the allies. There was thousands of German soldiers captured, which I’m sure helped to shorten the war.

          We rested for the remainer of the day, but we used this time to clean our rifles and get more ammunition. Something new was distributed to us and that was “C” rations. We actually got some Spam and Franks & Beans in a can. What will they think of next!! Well, next to “K” rations this was like gourmet food! We actually

started a fire and heated the “C” rations cans. It was fantastic. One of the fellows put his can into the fire and in a short time it blew apart. He didn’t open it first.  We all got a good laugh out of that.

          The next morning we were back chasing Germans on our way to Paris. Well, those thousands of German soldiers must have been the whole German army that was protecting Northern France, because we walked for days without seeing any Germans. However, we found out the hard way that they were still around. We brought some jeeps up but, as the jeeps went between towns, the Germans put piano wire across the roads. As the jeeps went down the road, they ran into the wire which was high enough to hit the driver and passenger in the neck and decapitate them. Well, the jeeps were extremely careful after that. A metal angle was attached to the front of the jeeps, which would break the wire on contact.

Here it gets all mulled up with politics. The 24^th Div got to the outskirts of Paris but were held up. General De Gaulle talked Gen. Eisenhower into letting him, with the French Militia, liberate Paris. As far as I was concerned this was wrong. However, the 28^th went into Paris and bivouac in some park, but to stay alert and be ready if needed. The Germans were trying to get out of Paris, but some were caught by the French militia and were literally beaten to death by the French. They also shot the French men who were collaborators. The French women who associated with the Germans were brought out to the middle of the square and had all their hair cut off. We watched some of this from where we were and it looked like a riot in the streets of Paris. We had orders not to interfere, unless we were threatened. This near riot lasted all day, but by evening things started to quiet down.  I guess the day of reckoning came for the people of Paris.

          The next day the whole 28^th Div. marched down the Champs Elysees. This was on Aug. 26, 1944. This picture of the 110^th regiment became famous and was later put onto a US stamp. I can now say that my picture was on a US stamp.

          During the march, the French women were throwing flowers and kissing the GI’s that were nearest to the sidewalk. I had to be stuck in the middle, some luck. We marched 24 abreast, accentuated with jeeps and tanks. It must have been quite impressive. As we were marching, my buddy George Form was shot by a sniper. He received a bullet wound in the elbow. He was taken to a hospital, got patched up and joined us near the end of Paris. The parade continued to the Arc de Triomphe. We passed the reviewing stand where all the Generals were standing along side of Charles de Gaulle. As we got near the Arc de Triomphe, we had to march around it because de Gaulle did not want any soldiers marching through the Arc as long as there were any Germans on French soil. I was tempted to break ranks and run through the Arc de Triomphe but that would have gotten me in serious trouble. Now I wish I had. 

          The parade marched around the Arc and continued on out of Paris and right back in combat after the retreating Germans. We did not get to celebrate in Paris with the “Rear Echelons”. (the troops in the back) 

          We walked between 15 and 25 miles a day to catch the retreating Germans. As we “liberated” each town, the French people saw that we were Americans and came out in the street yelling “Barsh Kaput” & “vie va America.” They also gave us a lot of wine. I know because they had to change the “Point” a few times as we went through these towns, since the guys at the “Point” got plastered. They could have been court marshaled, but the Lt. had them walk it off with the main group. Remember, if they got themselves captured or killed by the Germans, the main body of troops would be walking into an ambush. That’s the reason to have the point out in front, to warn the main body of any Germans in the area.

          We walked for five days like this and we all agreed that this was the right way to fight a war. As we marched and marched, the toll started to mount. Many of the GI’s were starting to get blisters and exhaustion was setting in. We stopped to rest for a few hours, in fact we stayed there and slept till morning. Needless to say that the towns were “off limits” to all personnel. I remember Bill Bates saying, “I bet this war is over and we’re waiting for trucks to take us back.” They also brought up “HOT” chow for dinner. What is this army coming to!! This is the first time we had hot chow since before Paris. As I got my chow in my mess gear, I looked around for someplace to sit and eat. There was a bombed out building by the side of the road. I headed for this building which had no roof and only a few sides of the structure remained. I had my mess gear in one hand, my canteen cup in the other, and my rifle over my shoulder when I walked into the ruins. As I turned around one of the brick walls, I came in contact with a German soldier. I didn’t want to drop my food so I just stopped in my tracks. The German was sitting behind the wall and was saying “comrade, comrade” which means surrender. I received quite a shock. He had been wounded, and I don’t know how long he was there, but he had a hole in his leg the size of a silver dollar. I called the medic over to take care of the wound but the wound was not bleeding and it was all black which was gangrene. The medic saw it and told me that he would lose his leg. I found out that he got wounded from a raid by an American fighter plane and he was hiding there for two days. He was completely out of this war by now so I gave him some of my crackers and meat from my mess gear. The way he ate it I don’t know when he had his last meal. He was crying and saying “danker” which means thanks. He thought we were going to shoot him. I called the Sgt. and we got him onto a stretcher, and loaded him onto a jeep which took him back to the aid station.

We were feeling pretty good by now and some of the guys found a couple of motorcycles in town, got some gas from the jeeps and began riding them all over. The officers were back for some kind of briefing but I’m sure they would bring this to a halt. Before they came back, one of the GI’s was riding the bike through a field and hit a land mine. The GI was badly hurt but not killed. I did not know him and I didn’t know what happened after that, except no one was riding any bikes after that. I did find out that he was going to be court marshaled but the Lt. managed to see that the report went in that he stepped on a mine (in line of duty). That Lt. earned a lot more respect from us for doing that. He could have gotten in a lot of trouble, but he reamed out Sgt. Bozzi for letting this happen.

          In the morning we got “HOT” breakfast. Two hot meals in a row, I didn’t know if my stomach could take it, but I was sure going to find out. This didn’t happen since we landed in France. When we finished with breakfast, we saw them bringing up trucks and parking them along side the road. We didn’t know what to think, were we being relieved and they were sending us back, or was the war really over. We loaded the trucks and started to travel down the road but in the direction of Germany. We found out that the Germans were retreating towards their homeland, and we were going after them in trucks. In front were jeeps, which had 50 caliber machine guns mounted on them.

          We rode that morning and part of the afternoon waving to the French people as we went through the small towns. We were getting tired of riding and we were coming into St. Quentin where I hoped we would stop for a rest. It was tough sitting on those wooden seats, all day, with the truck bouncing on the dirt roads.      

The trucks were coming into the outskirts of St. Quentin when we ran into a fierce artillery, mortar and small arms fire. Yes, we ran smack into an ambush and there was utter confusion. Some trucks received direct hits and were burning fiercely, and most of the GI’s in those trucks were killed outright. We all jumped out of our trucks and ran into the ditch at the side of the road and started to return their fire. I noticed a rocket that was fired from the farmhouse on the other side of the field and I started to fire in that direction. The other guys that were with me also started to fire at the farmhouse. With all this going on, the Germans were firing mortars at us like it was raining. They caught us “flat footed.” The guy next to me yelled ‘tanks.’ I looked down the road and I saw two German tanks coming down the road from the direction of the town. We yelled for bazookas but didn’t know if we had any in the group or how far back they were. In about five minutes, two bazooka teams came up and readied their bazookas at the tanks. The tanks were about 100 yards from us now when the bazooka fired. Two of the rounds fell short and they immediately started to reload. The tanks didn’t wait and fired their 88 right at us. It landed real close, I felt the concussion and a lot of dirt was thrown over me. The tank also opened up with their machine gun, which kept us pinned down. I thought this was going to be it. All the while the tank was getting closer and they were machine gunning the guys in the ditch along side the road. In those few seconds I thought of my parents getting the telegram telling them “your son was killed in action.” Why I thought of this I don’t know. The guys with the second bazooka got it ready and fired at the lead tank. It stopped the tank dead in it’s tracks and  started to burn. The second tank fired their 88 at us and also their machine gun. This kept us busy while the Germans from the tank that was hit scrambled out of their tank quickly and ran back toward the town. The second tank fired one more round at us and then withdrew toward the town.

The small arms fire was still coming from the farmhouse, which we returned with our own. We still had no tanks, mortars or artillery of our own. (They were in the process of moving everything up.) The order came down to launch an attack at the farmhouse. I didn’t like it, the enemy had artillery, mortars, and infantry, while we only had us “foot” soldiers. The order was changed and we were to pull back and consolidate (someone got the orders “fouled up”). As we were pulling back, we managed to get our wounded out by running across the road and use the protection of the empty trucks. The first platoon stayed there to engage the enemy while the rest of us pulled back. I was helping one GI from the truck that got a direct hit, and he asked me if he would make it. I told him “he sure would.” Then he asked me how his arm was because it hurt and he had no feeling in his hand. I looked at his arm and it was all bloodied. If he didn’t have his sleeve buttoned, his arm would not be there. It was blown apart and I didn’t know if any part of it was still attached. I just about carried him back to the aid station which they setup very quickly. I called for a medic (there are no doctors at the front), and he immediately gave him a shot of morphine. It seemed odd that, when I was bringing him back, he couldn’t feel his arm but he didn’t seem to be in that much pain. I guess he was in shock. 

My platoon organized and we started to move toward the large group of trees on our left. From here we were going to slip around and come out on the other side of the farmhouse where the Germans were “holed up.” Well, when we got near the woods, we were surprised by the Germans, who were waiting for us. They let us have it with small arms fire and a machine gun. We were caught in the open and took a lot of casualties. There we were, we could not advance or fall back. I must have emptied 3 or 4 clips at their positions when finally two of our light tanks came up to help us. Where they came from I don’t know, but I was glad to see them. As they were pouring their 75mm guns (I think) at the German positions, I saw two German (Mark IV) tanks come from around the tree line to engage our two light tanks. The German Mark IV is a huge tank with heavy armament, which made our shells bounce off. They made a direct hit on one of our tanks which at that close range actually blew it apart. The guys in the tank just had no chance. The other US tank and us soldiers did a hasty retreat. There was enough smoke from the exploding shells and that burning tank which afforded us the chance to fall back to our original lines. I never saw a tank go so fast in reverse as that light Sherman tank. We called for artillery but most of the batteries were still in the process of moving up closer to the front. We were moving up quite fast after the enemy and we didn’t give time for the supplies to catch up.

We were in the 2^nd Battalion and our Lt. told us that the 3^rd Battalion was coming up behind the enemy to help us out. We got ready to mount another assault at their lines, but this time the order was to assault with fixed bayonets. Everyone knew what this meant, there was no falling back this time. I wanted to wait for the 3^rd Battalion to get behind them. This might drive them to retreat or surrender but I was not running this war. This was the second time in this damn war that I had to attack with fixed bayonet. The first time we didn’t have to use them. This time I was a more seasoned soldier but I didn’t know if I could push that cold steel bayonet into anybody, maybe if in the “heat of battle.”  I didn’t want to find out.

Our mortar squad laid down a heavy barrage on their positions including some smoke shells. We had a great mortar squad, I remember back a little ways, they could get 6 rounds in the air before the first round exploded. The order came and we jumped off toward the enemy positions which was about 100 yards away. With the smoke, the enemy could not see us coming but that did not stop them from firing through the smoke. As we got closer the shelling stopped, and I remembered that I hoped the smoke would not clear and get us caught out in the open again. This time I knew we would not call off the attack. You could hear the Germans firing at us through the smoke and I think my guardian angel was working overtime, I was still on my feet. The guy on my right went down but you can’t stop to help him, you must keep going. Going towards the enemy with fixed bayonet, you are scared! I don’t care how seasoned you are, you are still scared. That fixed bayonet seems to change the entire complex of the attack. As the smoke started to clear, the rifle fire from the Germans almost stopped. We were almost on top of them now, but they seemed to be firing the other way. The 3^rd Battalion came in the nick of time. The Germans were getting it from both sides and, in the confusion, they were surrendering. The brass finally got something right. They held out and fought hard, but getting outflanked ended the battle. There were many dead Germans. I imagine their orders were to hold at all cost but, when their officers were killed and many of them killed, they knew it was hopeless and surrendered.

The prisoners were rounded up and sent back for interrogation, for this seemed more than just a delaying action. I thanked my guardian angel again for getting me through another tough battle. I don’t know what happened to the German tanks.

The fighting seemed to be getting tougher the closer we got to Germany. Let me tell you that the battles were starting to wear me down, all that shelling and killing. I was wondering if I was getting shell-shocked, because I found myself actually hoping I’d get wounded so I would be sent back to the hospital for some rest. Little did I know that the worst was yet to come. It was getting so that when someone cocked the bolt on their rifle, I jumped and grabbed my rifle and listened. The saying goes you’re “nervous in the service.”

We stayed there the rest of the day, regrouped, and got some replacements. Our positions were set-up on the outskirts of the town. Here we dug foxholes and prepared our defense in case the Germans launched another attack. We had one scout out in front to warn us in case of an attack. I was out there for the second two hour shift. Let me tell you this, you don’t know what loneliness is until you are out in front of the front lines, by yourself, at night, waiting to see or hear any Germans sneaking up in preparation for an attack. You are out there and you are expendable. Usually there are two of us out in front as scouts but we lost quite a few guys in that last attack, so there I was by myself. After two hours, my relief came up to take over. When I heard someone coming, my heart really started to beat. I was ready to shoot anything I heard or saw. He called out softly “Bradicich”, then I felt sure it was my relief. I called out the password and he said the correct reply. I told him things were quiet and I went back to the main body, found my squad and a foxhole.  I got into it and I actually fell asleep.

At 0600 we were awakened and told to assemble on the road. That foxhole wasn’t that bad or I was very tired. They were bringing up trucks and we were told to get on board. I kind of remembered that we were on trucks yesterday and we were ambushed. Why are we using trucks again?  Well, to my surprise they told us we were going back for some "R & R" (rest & relaxation). I wouldn’t believe that until it happened. Well it did happen, we were taken back a few miles by trucks to a field where rows and rows of tents were set up. We got off the trucks and our Sgt. was calling out the company & platoon to keep us together. Then they assigned us to tents where we had a bunk. I didn’t believe that I was actually going to sleep on a cot and not on the ground. This would be the first time in about 3 months. We were told to fall out in 10 minutes and to leave all our belongings here, and we were going for a shower and a complete change of clothes and, then come back here.

After about 5 days of this R&R, with HOT meals, showers and some good nights sleep, the trucks came back for us. That was a fast five days but the war didn’t stop while we rested (but for us it did). I was wishing that the war was over and the trucks were here to take us back to England and then the USA. No such luck! As we packed up and lined up, I could not believe what I saw. A bunch of clean shaven soldiers with clean uniforms. I thought when we get back to the front, the Germans are going to whistle at us. However, most of these were replacements and I could not find Sgt. Balock, Joe Faye, Frank, Ray and James Gray, these were all new faces. I thought I was in the wrong outfit. Then I saw Sgt. Bozzi, a tough Sgt., but a real nice guy. We talked a while and he told me that some of the guys got wounded and were sent back while Al, Joe and Frank got a direct hit on the truck they were riding in at St. Quinten. Capt. Coldwell came up and told the Sgt. to get the men ready for boarding. We all got on the trucks and headed back to the front.

Belgium & Luxembourg

We rode for hours until we got near a town called Neuf Chateau. I remember this because we just crossed over into Belgium. We started to ride through the 7^th Armored guys who were resting on the side of the road. As we rode by we indeed got a few whistles. We gave them a few of the sign language that was appropriate at that time. After the trucks cleared through the 7th Armored we got down from the trucks and started to go after the Germans in the “approach march” that means one line on each side of the road and at least 5 feet behind the guy in front of you. We were now out looking for the enemy and I hoped they all went back to Germany. This was nothing like WW1, where you fought from trench to trench, this was open country warfare. The closest to WW1 was in Normandy where you fought from hedgerow to hedgerow.

Walking down the road, I took notice of the landscape. It was all rolling hills with fields of patches of different colors. A small road carved through these peaceful hills. Belgium is a beautiful country. Now man is here to wage war and destroy all this.

 As we got closer to the town, the scouts sent back word that there was rifle fire coming from the town. We immediately took up defensive positions and slowly advanced on the town. There was a lot of yelling and commotion at the edge of the town. A few civilians came out of the town waving a flag. We found out that this was a Belgium flag. The Capt. got a jeep with a 50 caliber machine gun mounted on it and went to meet the people.

I saw what was going on up there, and the civilian told the Capt. that they chased the Germans out of the town and it was ok for us to come in. Well, the Capt. told the civilian to sit in the front seat of the jeep and, if there were any Germans in the town, he would be the first to die. As it turned out, he was right and we entered the town which was cleared of Germans. We searched the town for any sign of Germans but it was clear. Needless to say, we got our share of wine and cognac.

We pushed to keep going down the road and this time I was out at the point with Jim Coles. We were told that we would be coming up on a town.  Well, as Jim and I approached the town, I looked through my field glasses at the homes just at the beginning of the town. What I saw made me stop, the windows of the homes were boarded up and there was no one around, I mean no civilians. To me this meant that the Germans were still in control of the town. I didn’t like the looks of it and I used the walkie-talkie to alert the main body. If I was right, the Germans were probably watching us and waiting for us to get closer so they could pick us off. Well, Lt. Gellette sent one squad around to the right and another squad around to the left. As we got closer the Germans opened up with machine gun fire from the ground floor windows of the nearest house. We returned the fire and our BAR (Browning Automatic Rifle) man poured it through the window where the machine gun fire was coming from. With this covering fire we managed to get closer. From here I threw a grenade at the window but, with my aim, I missed and it hit the door next to the window. However, it did blow the door in. Lou then took his grenade, pulled the pin, and threw it right through the window. When it exploded, we rushed the house to finish off any Germans that might be left. I was really taken back when we entered the room. We found the dead Germans that were firing at us but we also saw a women and her small son that were also killed. Why they were in the same room with the Germans, I do not know. I’ve see dead and wounded German and American soldiers, but when you see this it gets you in the pit of your stomach. I couldn’t tell if they were killed by the Germans, by the hand grenade, or the BAR.

We were now coming to the city of Bastogne, which is a major crossroad in Belgium. So far the Germans were only putting up delaying action, but we expected some strong resistance from the Germans.

As we approached the outskirts we started to receive some small arms fire and artillery fire. It seemed to be 88’s, which are usually on tanks or self propelled guns. This held us up momentarily. The Sgt. came up and told us that they are sending a patrol around the flank to try to estimate the strength of the enemy. As we were in a ditch alongside of the road, we heard a vehicle coming up the road behind us at high speed (not by today’s standards). It was a German half-track, and where it came from I do not know. But as it came up the road, it was firing it's machine gun and another German soldier was throwing out hand grenades into the ditches. As it came passed I hoped, (no I prayed), that I would escape getting hit by the machine gun or the hand grenades.  If a grenade landed by me, I was ready to grab it and throw it into the field on my right. Well, my guardian angel was there again, I was ok. When it passed, I readied my rifle to shoot him but somebody beat me to it. The German went down on the mounted machine gun and then fell backwards into the back of the half-track. The half-track made it to the outskirts of Bastogne. As it got to the first house, we heard a roar go up from the German soldiers. I guess they were glad that the half-track made it. We were now getting heavy small arms fire along with the machine gun on the half-track.

We were returning their fire and the Sgt. called back for artillery support. It’s great the way they do that. They call the coordinates from a map they have and the artillery battery fires one shell. Then the Sarge tells the battery to adjust right or left, forward or back. Another shell is fired. When the shell that’s fired hits the target, they tell the battery to fire for effect. This means that the entire battery, which are all aimed at the same place, fires all the artillery shells.

The Capt. sent another squad after the patrol. They were to join up with the patrol and attack from the flank. We took turns firing and then crawling up a few yards. This takes time to get up to the enemy’s position but it’s better than a frontal assault. We would lose a lot more men with a frontal assault. The Germans were starting to fire some mortars at us now. The way I saw it now, we were to charge their positions or pull back but I wasn’t running this war. The Sgt. passed the word to get ready to charge, which means we were going to rout them out of their positions or die trying. Just before we got the order, the half-track moved over into the field and a tank came out of the town firing its 88 and machine gun. This, along with the half-track’s machine gun, was too much to charge so the order came to pull back to the tree line. This we did but took a lot of casualties. As I was running back, I could hear the bullets winging passed me. As I got to the tree line, I just fell down and  said to myself “I made it.” But an infantry’s battle is not over until one side is defeated. We called again for artillery to get the tank and it came quickly. The tank did not come out too far because it did not have infantry support but, when the artillery came, the tank did a hasty retreat back into the town. The Capt. sent for the  anti-tank guns to get into position. The Germans were stronger than anticipated. Two anti-tank guns were set up on both sides of the road and aimed down the road where the tank came from. We again went into the attack. I ran maybe 10 or 15 yards and then dropped down and fired at the Germans while the other guy ran up further. As we were doing this, the tank came out of the town again firing its 88 and machine gun at us. I remember thinking, “When are those anti-tank guns going to fire.” We could not advance in the face of that tank. Well, finally it fired, and it knocked part of the tank’s tread off and, with one tread, it turned a little bit sideways. The other anti-tank gun then fired and caught the tank on the side, and that was the end of the tank. We all yelled and got up and charged the enemy position. The anti-tank guns now fired at the half-track which took off back into town.

The Capt. now called the squad, which he sent out prior to all this happening, and released them to attack from the flank. As we got closer to their positions, there was less firing coming from their lines, and I heard one of them yelling “nien” “comrade” which meant he wanted to surrender. We found most of them wounded, as the ones that weren’t wounded had already taken off. I thought we would be in for house to house fighting. But many of those that took off were shot by the civilians of Bastogne.  

This is how we liberated Bastogne. Little did we know what an important part this town would play in December of that year. We pushed the Germans out and we received a hero’s welcome from the civilians. Everyone came out and hugged us. The girls hugged and kissed all the soldiers and gave us wine. I saw Sgt. Bozzi come out of a house with a cigar in his mouth and three bottles of wine under his arms. Someone brought out a phonograph machine and we were dancing in the street. Needless to say, we had a great time. The Capt. had to keep his head and he sent a squad of men to the end of the town to be sure the Germans weren’t coming back. The squad he sent out was the squad that was supposed to attack the Germans from the flank but somehow never got there.

The Siegfried Line

We now were coming close to Germany and we had to go through the Ziegfried Line which is a fortified defensive system. This line was about 5 to 10 miles deep, with “Pill Boxes” arranged systematically, so that the two “Pill Boxes” on either side were protecting the one in the middle. Each “Pill Box” was built of reinforced concrete about 5 feet thick. In front of these “Pill Boxes” were concrete boulders which came up to a point. These were called “Dragon's Teeth.” The small ones were in front and the larger ones in back. This prevented the tanks from passing, because if they tried they would get hung up on the “teeth.”

As we approached Germany we could see in the distance the “Dragon’s Teeth.” We knew that the German boarder was just up ahead. We stopped and were briefed about what to do when we entered Germany. They told us that we were going into the enemy’s homeland and we were the conquering army. All cp’s (command posts) were to be set-up in any home that could overlook the countryside in front. If there were any Germans in the house, they were to be told to get out and go someplace else. We were told, you must never allow any Germans to remain in the house while you are there. Remember, we are conquering, them not liberating them like France or Belgium. These are our enemies, so be on the alert at all times and no fraternizing with the civilians.

The Captain came up and used his binoculars to see if he could see any Germans. It seemed mighty strange that, as we approached the border of Germany and the Ziegfried Line, which was the most powerful defensive position on the German border, there were no soldiers. He sent a patrol out to see what was up ahead. The patrol came back and reported that there were no soldiers in the bunkers. We then got up and proceeded to go through the Ziefried Line. As we got near the first bunker, I was sent up to check out the inside of the bunker. As I approached the bunker, I was expecting the Germans to start firing at us, but nothing. We got to the side where the door was situated and, as I opened it, the two guys with me were ready to shoot anything that moved. To our surprise nothing moved so we went in and found it empty. The inside of the bunker was round and had concrete walls all around with slits through the concrete for the Germans to fire machine guns or rifles. We went to other bunkers and they were also empty. The way I saw this, it was a big German blunder, they could have stopped us cold with the field of fire each bunker had, and each bunker protected the one on its right and left.

Captain Dobb sent word back to Headquarters that the Ziefried Line was unoccupied. To this day, I cannot understand the decision that was made. We were to pull back to the Dragon’s teeth and wait for armored support. We were already through about 5 or 6 German bunkers so, WHY pull back? Probably someone  higher up wanted to get the credit. “Armored spearhead drives through the Ziefried Line.” Well, to their suprise, the bunkers were occupied by the time the armor came up and we started toward the bunkers. Now the orders came to break off all engagements with the enemy. What was going on? Well the 28^th Div. was being taken out of the line and was being sent to the Hurtgen Forest. The 7^th Armored Div. was relieving us.

We pulled back a few miles and got replacements, and the next morning we got onto trucks which drove us north to the Hurtgen Forest. Here we got off the trucks and started our march to the front. The weather was miserable, very cold, muddy roads, and snow  managed to seep through the heavy trees of the forest. The thick covering of pine needles  managed to keep the mud underneath from freezing. Walking through the forest your feet got wet and, with the zero freezing temperature, it went right through to your bones. Just walking to the front, I was ready to leave. If this was not enough, we had to contend with Germans and the 88’s which always exploded high in the trees. These were called “tree burst.” The tops of the trees were broken off and came falling down, you hoped not on you. Along with the branches and the tops of the trees, the exploding shells rained shrapnel down on top of you. To sum it up, I was fighting the cold, the wet under foot, the snow, the tops of the trees, the 88’s, the shrapnel and let us not forget the Germans. These were the worst conditions I ever had to fight under. We didn’t have any artillery support because they couldn’t hit the bunkers, and the shells would explode in the trees which was where we were. Something to do with the angle the shell comes in at, and you can’t fire mortars in a forest. This was the hellhole of all hellholes. I don’t think hell could be this bad.

We didn’t have long to wait when the order came to move out at the German positions. But first we had to make sure out rifles were in working order and not frozen. The bolt on my rifle was hard to pull back but I managed to get it working. The guy next to me couldn’t get his to move. so I told him to put the rifle butt on the ground and I took my rifle butt and banged down on the bolt to free it. It worked. Now we started our advance and, as soon as the Germans saw us, they started to throw those 88’s at us. I heard someone yelling and, as I looked up. I saw the top of a pine tree that was blown apart by an 88 shell. I tried to get out of its way but it caught me, hitting my helmet and my back, knocking me sprawling down in the mud. Two guys cam