When word reached Clark that morning of another determined attack by the Germans, he ordered the entire combat command to turn back to Arracourt and sweep the area. We figured we had a perfectly good boat. The day dawned with a thick blanket of fog shrouding the crest of the hill. The tank battle raged well into the afternoon as Company B arrived to help Abrams hold back the Germans. Patton celebrated the victory by stopping on a treadway bridge his men had built and relieving himself into the river. This crossing was an important step in bringing the conflict to a close on May 8th, 1945. ww2dbaseDwight Eisenhower expected the German troops, some elite including soldiers of the First Paratroop Army, would be prepared for such an invasion in the northern Ruhr area. events, and resources. The 37th Tank Battalion was sent to the rear to rest and refit. In addition, Wood ordered CCB to shift to CCAs right flank to cover the ground between Rechicourt and the Marne-Rhine Canal. Although the 4th Armored Division lost 48 tanks in the fighting around Arracourt in September, the Germans lost 285, which constituted most of the replacement tanks sent to the Western Front that fall. The Panthersknocked out three of the lightly armored HMCs in short order. This meant that two columns of tanks and half-tracks from the 113th would have to carry the objective themselves. On March 24, 1945, Patton approached a newly constructed pontoon bridge over the Rhine that his troops had placed two nights before and a Third Army division had already crossed. Significantly, none of the panzer brigades had either organic artillery or reconnaissance vehicles. March 22, 1945 On this date in 1945, one day before the British 21st Army Group under Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery was due to launch Operation Plunder, the long-awaited northern offensive across the Rhine River at Rees and Wesel in North Rhine-Westphalia, Gen. George S. Patton sneaked a division of his U.S. Third Army across the Rhine at Oppenheim, lower on the river and south of Mainz. Occupied Zone in Germany. After two days of hard fighting, the two sides braced for more of the same. This paratrooper operation was not a typical one where troops were dropped a distance behind enemy lines before the operation to disrupt communications; this time, Bernard Montgomery chose to drop the paratroopers immediately behind the enemy lines after the conventional infantry had already crossed the Rhine River under the cover of darkness. At daybreak, the 358th Infantry Regiment attacked the column with a wide range of antitank weapons including bazookas, 3-inch guns, and 105 mm howitzers. On the night of March 22, 1945, elements of the Third Army crossed the Rhine at the German town of Oppenheim. Join historians and history buffs alike with our Unlimited Digital Access pass to every military history article ever published (over 3,000 articles) in Sovereigns military history magazines. Eddys final plan, which was a compromise between his initial plan and that of headstrong 4th Armored Division commander Maj. Gen. John Wood, called for Brig. He did not expect to encounter substantial resistance until he reached the West Wall. This meant that CCA was now on the left flank of the Arracourt-Juvelize salient and CCB was on the right. We were surprised the Navy was there, he commented, and the Navy was surprised they were so far away from the ocean. The plan focused on Wesel, with multiple crossings set to occur along a 22-mile front on the evening of 23 March. The reversal of fortune gnawed at Patton from the outset of his service in France. To Allied supreme commander Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower he wrote: I have just pissed into the Rhine River. Still, Walkers XX Corps remained stalled before Metz, even though Eddys XII Corps had advanced well beyond its Moselle bridgeheads. His high hopes for a rapid advance to the West Wall would be dashed as heavy rains over the next two months restricted Third Armys tank columns to primary roads and sharply curtailed tactical air support. ww2dbaseTo Eisenhower's surprise, the crossing of the Rhine River north of the Ruhr was not met with fierce resistance, and he attributed it to the beginning of the destruction of German morale. The very notion was unpalatable to Old Blood and Guts. The 37th Tank Battalion would get no rest on September 20. Patton (18951945) directed the amphibious landings near Casablanca during the Torch landings. He believed that it would leave too long of a left flank vulnerable to German counter offensives. ww2dbaseFurther to the south, General Patch's Seventh Army crossed the Rhine River on the same day the Remagen contingent marched forward. 9th AID M3 Half-tracks advancing through Engers, Germany, 27 March 1945. The Panzergrenadiers methodically fought their way up the southern slope, clearing Americans from their foxholes. Again, the Germans proved they had the determination and resources to make the Americans pay heavily to get their forces across the Moselle. This was the first crossing of the Rhine River by boat by an invading army since Napoleon Bonaparte. By September 10, Baades 35th Infantry Division was in force along the western bank of the Moselle south of Nancy. This dramatic entrance to the battle by CCA caught the Germans off guard and paid large dividends. When a column of 11 panzers appeared out of the mist that morning, three were immediately knocked out at close range by Shermans belonging to 1st Platoon, Company C, of Abramss 37th Tank Battalion in concealed positions. Photo Credit: Men of the U.S. 5th Infantry Division hug the walls in one of the suburbs of Metz in early September 1944. Dwight Eisenhower, Crusade in Europe On 26 Mar 1945, these troops marched southward toward Patton's troops. The Sherman crews could do little to deter the advancing Panthers because of the excellent sloped and thick frontal armor the enemy tanks possessed. George Patton's US 5th Division crossed the Rhine River during the night of 22 Mar 1945, establishing a six-mile deep bridgehead after capturing 19,000 demoralized German troops. To descend the ridge and maneuver against the Panthers would have exposed the Shermans to the Panthers highly effective guns. The 37th Tank Battalion, led by the hard-charging Lt. Col. Creighton Abrams, brushed aside German resistance and turned north to gain the east-west road leading to Nomeny. Crossing the Rhine. After the war Eisenhower was appointed Military Governor of the U.S. All rights reserved. Seventh Army during the Sicilian campaign ( Operation Husky ), and in August 1944 his Third Army became operational in northern France. The flames were transparent orange, rising with startling swiftness. Having reached the Moselle as early as September 5, the 80th Division attempted to gain a foothold on the eastern bank at Pont-a-Mousson. Balck expanded the fight by committing units from Knobelsdorffs First Army to the battle on September 24. We are now fairly started on that phase of the campaign which I hope will be the final one. By September 7, U.S. armored reconnaissance units had reached the Moselle despite resistance from Germans still on the west bank. Because of the heavy losses the Germans had sustained after the Normandy breakout, the Allies enjoyed a substantial advantage over the Germans in equipment, which amounted to a 2-to-1 advantage in artillery and nearly a 20-to-1 advantage in tanks. As blue skies gave way to rainy spells signaling autumns approach, the U.S. Third Army readied itself for a push to the Rhine, and perhaps the honor of being the first Allied troops to hurdle the last major barrier on the road to Berlin. . His pleas fell on deaf ears, and he prepared to make do with the untrained and understrength units he had been given. 20th Century Timeline Of World History: What Happened? Indeed, the advance of Haislips XV Corps prevented German forces from assembling for their attack on the west bank of the Moselle, where they might cut off the forces on the east bank. On the night of March 22, 1945, with no artillery preparation or air cover, assault boats of the 5th Infantry began their quiet crossing near Oppenheim. Patton's troops beat Montgomery across the Rhine by one day. The Germans attacked again in the vicinity of Rechicourt in the afternoon, but after losing another nine tanks they broke off the action. On September 12, engineers had laid a 168-foot pontoon bridge across the Moselle that enabled the rest of the 35th Infantry Division and the remaining tanks of CCB to cross to the east bank, Two days later, CCB had pushed through light enemy resistance to reach the Marne-Rhine Canal seven miles beyond the Moselle. Our orders were to get the infantry to the east bank, then push our boat back into the river and let it float downstream., To prevent beached boats from blocking follow-up waves, the engineers were ordered to push as many boats back into the river as possible and then gather up the rest of the engineers who landed and pile into a single boat to return. This was the greatest airborne operation of the war. Operation Plunder landed over 16,000 British and American troops across the Rhine River region, allowing link ups with advancing British 21st Army Group's 4 bridgeheads. The type of close-range fighting that day is exemplified by an encounter between an M18 Hellcat of the 704th against a pair of Panther tanks. After suffering significant casualties from heavy anti-aircraft fire, the airborne infantry landed and participated in direct combat during daylight to attack the German defenders from both sides. Tom Tucker was one of the first men from Pattons Third Army to cross the Rhine River, the last natural barrier to the heart of Germany. Day 6. Near Moncourt, just east of Arracourt, a platoon of Mark IVs and towed anti-tank guns ambushed Abramss Company C, leaving a half-dozen M4 tanks mangled. The historic city of Metz included an extensive system of man-made fortifications from previous wars. Lieutenant-General Brian Horrocks of XXX Corps commented later that, although they heard stories of German soldiers surrendering in their thousands at other places, the German troops encountered in XXX Corps' area were extremely fanatical in defence of their homeland. This operation to cross the northern Rhine River launched in the night of 23 Mar 1945. For the crossing 8,000 Royal Engineers came under command of the C.E. Whats more, his decision to advance on a broad front ran contrary to the general understanding that it was necessary to concentrate forces to create a sizable breach worthy of exploiting in the enemys main line. Desperate to achieve their objective, the Germans toiled throughout the day to construct strongpoints and establish camouflaged positions on the southern slope to support their attack. Bradley quickly exploited the opportunity and expanded the bridgehead into a full-scale crossing. But his cajoling paid off, as Bradley had been working hard to ensure that Haislips XV Corps, which had been helping to clear the lower Seine of German forces, would join Third Army on its southern flank. (Back in Berlin, Adolf Hitler urged the Wehrmacht to attack the Allied bridgehead at Oppenheim, only to be told that no reserve forces were available to embark on such an operation.) They swooped in at extremely low level, catching the German tank crews by surprise. While waiting for fuel to arrive with which to resume his eastward advance, Patton received good news from Bradley on September 4 that he would soon receive reinforcements in the form of Maj. Gen. Wade Haislips XV Corps, which would guard his right flank against German forces retreating up the Rhone Valley. As Third Army firmly established itself on the east bank of the Moselle at Nancy, capturing not only crossing points but also key crossroads on the east bank, the Germans had to postpone their counterattack several times and continually revise it to adjust to new events. McLain issued orders for the nearest infantry regiments to converge on the enemy column. ww2dbaseWith the German defenses along the Rhine River falling apart, the industrial region of Ruhr was enveloped, depriving Germany's war manufacturing capabilities. The 9th Armored Division quickly expanded the bridgehead into a full scale crossing. But by the time Eddy was ready to resume his advance, Manteuffels Fifth Army had materialized as if out of thin air. Patton simply used ad hoc tactics to push the 5th Infantry across. Manteuffels goal, as head of the 5th Panzer Army on the Western Front, was to transform Lunville into a base from which to roll up Third Armys flank on the east bank of the river. Two days earlier, Patton had told Maj. Gen. Manton Eddy that his XII Corps would lead the way. and useful information about WW2. Days of Combat: 91. Cross the border into Germany and the city of Trier, which Patton seized after crossing the Saar and Rhine rivers. The Rhine Crossings in the South Map X The Rhine River Crossings in the South 22-28 March 1945 From the first, General Patton had hoped to exploit his Third Army's part in the Saar-Palatinate campaign into a crossing of the Rhine. Copyright 2004-2023 Lava Development, LLC., all rights reserved, See all 47 photographs of Crossing the Rhine, Message from George Patton to US 5th Infantry Division. When he reached the other side of the river, Patton pretended to stumble, imitating William the Conqueror, who famously fell on his face when landing in England but transformed the bad omen into a propitious one by leaping to his feet with a handful of English soil, claiming it portended his complete possession of the country. Patton began drafting plans for Third Armys advance east toward the Rhine as early as September 14. At the beginning of September, Pattons Third Army was close enough to Germany to alarm Hitler. Activated: 15 July 1942. US First Army attacked Paderborn, Germany. A spearhead of the 317th Infantry Regiment crossed the river in boats, but the following morning they were bombarded by German artillery and mortars, which forced them into their foxholes. However, Patton was aware that this would be obvious to the Germans, and therefore he and his staff made rapid plans for another site at Nierstein and Oppenheim, about 12 miles south of Mainz. With the vise tightening on Nancy, Blaskowitz ordered the 553rd Volksgrenadier Division to pull out of the Nancy pocket before it was cut off. That remained the case in the first months of 1945. World War Two Timeline From The Great War To Germanys Surrender. In response to the changing circumstances, Patton issued orders on September 24 for CCA to pull back from Juvelize to Arracourt to lessen its exposure to any subsequent enemy attacks. I want the world to know Third Army made it before Monty starts across, he shouted. Another 2,153 fighters supported the ground operations. The Shermans therefore attempted to use the ridge for cover and engage the Panthers head-on, with disappointing results. The pause that refreshes. The general told the troops around him. With their high-velocity guns, the Panthers easily knocked out the Yanks vehicles. Most of CCA had shifted north to prepare for an advance east in the direction of the West Wall, leaving artillery and other support units at Arracourt. Patton, not wanting to compromise his armys success with publicity, telephoned Omar Bradley the following morning and uncharacteristically told him to keep it a secret. The plan called for a diversionary attack at daybreak by elements of the 11th Panzer Division against the 10th Armored Infantry Battalion atop Hill 265, another key position held by the Americans. By mid-September 1944, the U.S. Third Army was poised to strike at the soft underbelly of Adolf Hitlers Third Reich along a fabled corridor in northeastern France used for centuries by armies tramping across Europe. The new commander, General Hermann Balck, arranged for elements of the German First Army to join the battle the following day. Throughout the night of 23 Mar and the next day, 80,000 British and Canadian troops crossed the 20-mile stretch of the river. From there, Third Army would advance along a northeast route of march toward the fortified West Wall. To learn more,click here for our comprehensive guide to General Patton. But the Americans stood their ground. ww2dbaseAll this, plus the assembly of vast amounts of troops, assault boats, Buffaloes, guns etc. As the Americans prepared to resume their push east, the vanguard of CCA shifted north toward Chateau-Salins. Click here to see our comprehensive article on World War 2. The crossing was led by a heavy artillery shelling and supplemented by an airborne operation (Operation Varsity) by the American 17th Airborne Division and the British 6th Airborne Division. Patton told Wood to strike east the following day in the belief that it would keep the Germans off balance. This is Part One of a Three Part look at Pattons Lorraine Campaign. That evening German artillery brought down the bridge, and the 104th Panzergrenadier Regiment attacked with armor support in the dark of night, overrunning the bridgehead. Nevertheless, the Germans established strong defensive positions in two dilapidated French fortresses that effectively blocked the western approaches to the city. Control of the crest of Hill 318 shifted back and forth on September 28. . Terms & Conditions; Privacy Policy To succeed in Lorraine, Patton would have to exercise careful planning, make quick tactical adjustments, and adjust his goals and expectations when the weather failed to cooperate. Total losses for the day were five Shermans and more than 40 Panther and Mark IV tanks. By dawn the Germans had seized the crest of Hill 318. To their credit, the RAF despatched fifty specialist within twelve hours and promised that a further 300 volunteers good be made available if required. In addition, the Royal Navy provided a team to construct an anti-mine boom upriver to prevent the Germans from floating demolitions down to destroy the bridges after they had been constructed. He was confident that Eddys 35th Division, with close support of the 4th Armored, could achieve a breach and hold it open to allow Third Armys armored divisions to punch through the wall. From there, the vehicle fired an armor-piercing shell into the side of a Panther in a field 300 yards away. In addition, Eisenhower and Bradley had decided to transfer Haislips XV Corps to Lt. Gen. Jacob Devers Sixth Army leaving Patton once again with just two corps. 2nd Lt. Richard Buss, commanding a platoon of M18s, ordered one of his vehicles to take up a well-protected position behind a railroad embankment with only its barrel visible. Having mustered 50 tanks for the attack, Manteuffel ordered Wietersheim to capture Moyenvic and inflict as much damage as possible on CCA. Within three days Patton's troops were rapidly approaching Frankfurt, Germany, capturing bridges in tact as the German defenses began to fall apart. Pattons troops beat Montgomery across the Rhine by one day. 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