by Leo Barron
24 “Ten minutes later [0910]… The remaining Mk IV, the covering tank which put both TDs out of action, surrendered intact in HEMROULLE” (Andrews, 1945, 2–3); “As the Germans came over the hill… it was learned that they had knocked out the two tank destroyers after the running battle engagement” (Phillips, 1948, 24–27); “The two TDs with the 327th Regt had been hit and destroyed by this tank onslaught… at about the same moment the guns were turned against Company C’s flank” (Cassidy, 1945, 10); “25 December… 0905 Fr[om] D/90. Quite an armed action taking place back of our daylight pos[itions]. Cherry will run into it on road” (Radio Journal of the Combat Command B, 10th Armored Division, December 1944); (Photo of StuG III outside Hemroulle 1944); The photo shows a StuG III with a significant penetration on its westward side, facing the Lane of Trees. This could have only come from Schmidt’s section of Hellcats. History of 705th, TD history, Breder interview, etc. Sadly, this was the same George N. Schmidt who had put up a historic fight on the twentieth outside of Neffe. In that fight, Schmidt held off attacking German infantry with the M18 .50-caliber machine gun, firing some 2,000 rounds at the attackers. Little information is available on how Schmidt or the remaining crew of the two tank destroyers were killed or wounded on the twenty-fifth. Through a newspaper obituary, graciously given to me by Ray Bankers of the Pardeeville American Legion Post #215, I was able to verify that Schmidt was definitely the commander of one of the destroyed Hellcats. His mother was presented with his posthumous silver star in August of 1945. Also, the 705th records list the following members wounded on Christmas Day, 1944 (all were from B Company’s 1st Platoon): Corporal Richard J. Ellner, Tech 4 Lawrence W. Frye, and Sergeant Phillip Hopkins. Along with Schmidt, Private First Class Manuel Rivas Jr. was reported KIA that day. Since the 705th participated in no other major actions anywhere else around the perimeter or lost any other TDs that day, it is assumed that the rest of these men were the crews of the two tank destroyers destroyed in the assault. (Although there is the remote possibility that some were wounded or killed by artillery, etc., in Bastogne, as the 705th had a great number of support personnel in the town.) Colonel John C. “Jack” Dibble Jr., of Satellite Beach, Florida, who succeeded Templeton to command the 705th after Templeton was killed March 1, 1945, said in an interview in March of 2010 that he knew of Schmidt’s demise, and said only that he had heard “he [Schmidt] did it in the classic style—he got several tanks and the last one got him.”
25 “And we just were in a long line more or less of guys set up… everybody was firing at once, and there were lots of flashes, you’d fire at flashes” (Elson, 1998, 59).
26 “The tanks were coming forward, boldly now, firing as they moved, with no effects of accuracy…. More enemy infantry came out of the woods to be caught in the line of American fire” (Phillips, 1948, 25).
27 “We opened up at the same time… as if the only thing that mattered was saving the tanks” (Black, The Last First Sergeant, 1998, 246).
28 Photo of Panzer Lustmolch, 1944; “In the first 15 minutes we [the 463rd] had disabled 8 tanks, hit ten tanks… but put a white undershirt on the tube and wait for me” (Cooper, Interview with Colonel John T. Cooper, unknown); “…the western tank defenses engaged four medium enemy tanks area (52.9-59.5)…. This same party also captured two officers and twelve enlisted men on the same patrol” (C. T. Moran, 1944, 2); “The team leader of the German tanks escaped towards Hemroulle only to be captured. From the prisoners of this enemy tank, it was learned that they had knocked out the two tank destroyers after the running battle engagement” (Phillips, 1948, 26–27). There is a good chance, based on our research, that “Lustmolch” was Hauptmann Schmidt’s command tank and crew.
29 “By now the situation took a complete turning as Company C’s first fire cut among the German infantry riding on the tanks… the infantry riding on the tanks were cut to pieces by the automatic rifle fire” (Cassidy, 1945, 10).
30 “It was close in, immediate [the battle on Christmas morning]…. That private had the stuff of which good soldiers are made” (Hanlon, 1962).
31 “Two mortar crews had combined and set up one mortar near the Rolle command post… before Major Haire, Regimental S-4, stopped the action to keep his ammunition from being depleted of the last one hundred rounds” (Phillips, 1948, 25–26).
32 “German infantrymen rushed out of the farmhouse to catch a ride on the tanks. Many of them were cut down by our rifle fire, now crossfire of the Second, First and 3rd Platoons of ‘C’ Company” (Black, The Last First Sergeant, 1998, 246).
33 “By this time Cassidy’s runner had arrived… they left a completely exposed flank turned toward the TDs and they went into action” (Cassidy, 1945, 10).
34 “Our platoon sergeant Don ‘Moe’ Williams came up. He told the paratroopers, ‘Don’t worry about it—we’ll get those sons of bitches for you’” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Tony D’Angelo, 2010).
35 “I was walking along near the edge of the clearing in line with the potato pile by now… he taught the Germans a small lesson in tank warfare” (Black, The Unedited Manuscript of Layton Black’s Memoirs to George Koskimaki, n.d., 345).
36 “Saw four our five tanks coming down the road. Certain they were Mk IVs all. Had turrets” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Tony D’Angelo, 2010); “Yes, their flanks [German panzers] were to us…. Our guns worked best at that close range” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Sergeant Anthony “Tony” D’Angelo, June 4, 2010).
37 In many published accounts, the distance of D’Angelo’s and Vallitta’s shots has been mentioned as four hundred yards or more. Based on the location of the destroyed armor in the photographs, I believe most of the shots were much closer, almost half that distance. After all, the distance from the position of the two M18s in the woods to the Lane of Trees (which would have represented one of their farthest shots) is barely three hundred yards. Most of the destroyed armor was little more than two hundred yards from their position. See penetration ammunition tables for the M18 Hellcat in Osprey Book, M18 Hellcat (Zaloga, M18 Hellcat Tank Destroyer 1943–1997, 2010).
38 “Yes, their flanks were to us. That’s what made it such a perfect shot. They were going by slow, I guess. Two got by” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Sergeant Anthony “Tony” D’Angelo, June 4, 2010).
39 “I told him to take the last tank first, and then one at a time on up the line and fire when ready” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Tony D’Angelo, 2010).
40 “He [Vallitta] told us to take the lead tanks…” (Stoling, 2010).
41 “And me and him stayed outside the TD… there was two more still coming” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Tony D’Angelo, 2010).
42 “We backed up and repositioned the TD for a better shot. Well, I don’t know how many we got…. Vallitta hit one…” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Tony D’Angelo, 2010); “My gunner, Corporal Sam Dedio, was kind of new. He was a replacement, so he didn’t really have a lot of time on the gun” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Sergeant Anthony “Tony” D’Angelo, March 4, 2010); “I’ll tell you, my gunner was a replacement. Larry had the better gunner on his TD. Clark was his name. He was one of the best shots in the battalion” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Sergeant Anthony “Tony” D’Angelo, June 4, 2010).
43 “Vallitta hit one, had a round cook off in the breech and had to back out. They took a rammer and rammed it out” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Tony D’Angelo, 2010); “Yes, it cooked off in the tube. We backed up and put a rammer staff down it to clear it out” (Stoling, 2010); “The second tank destroyer, Larry’s tank [Vallitta]… It had cooked in the tube” (A. D’Angelo, n.d.).
44 “I think we fired about five to six rounds at about that many German tanks. Again, I am sure we got three, maybe four, though. Larry’s gun got at least one before they had that jam” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Sergeant Anthony “Tony” D’Angelo, 8 June 2010).
45 “The TD next to me fired six shots. Two hit big trees, four hit tanks, and four
were knocked out. It was the best I ever saw” (Black, The Unedited Manuscript of Layton Black’s Memoirs to George Koskimaki, n.d., 345).
46 “My gunner [Dedio], he took a shot at one of those last panzers at the treeline… he would have hit him in the gas tank!” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Sergeant Anthony “Tony” D’Angelo, June 4, 2010). Though Black claims the TDs destroyed four tanks, Chappuis and Cassidy credited the TDs with three kills and an unknown bazooka man from C Company with the fourth kill. “In the next few minutes Stone’s group got one tank with a bazooka [Jackson]… and the infantry riding on the tanks were cut to pieces by automatic rifle fire” (Cassidy, 1945, 10). Despite who killed whom, the count was four Mk IVs destroyed in vicinity of the captured 1/401st headquarters along the Champs road.
47 “Sam’s [CPL Dedio] round, last one, hit the back of one of those tanks… but it was a German crewman engulfed in flames” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Sergeant Anthony “Tony” D’Angelo, June 4, 2010).
48 “We [Jackson and others] had originally put mines in the road but… They drove off on the side and exploded our mines” (Astor, 1994, 330–31).
49 “A second German tank making a break to follow the first one met its doom near the Rolle crossroads as Sergeant Schuyler Jackson (Demolition Platoon) made a cleancut hit when he rushed forward to fire his loaded bazooka” (Phillips, 1948, 26); “Sgt. Schuyler Jackson was in the barn cellar… killed all the infantrymen. I got the Silver Star for that one…” (Ferretti, 1984, 1); “There was a bridge in front of us…. We had to shoot them” (Astor, 1994, 330).
50 “We [Jackson and others] had enough ammo at our spot…. Somebody else destroyed it” (Astor, 1994, 331); “One Mark IV tank made a break for Champs…. This gave the Mark IV tank a clear run into Champs” (Phillips, 1948, 26). Phillips did not identify the failed bazooka gunner, but it was likely Jackson, since the stories are so similar—the biggest difference being that the surviving tank escaped before the second tank failed to make it past the crossroads. Jackson claims the story was reversed.
51 Some of the veterans I interviewed (D’Angelo, Asay, Stoling, etc.) speculated that the “rogue tank” may have found a temporary haven in the wood plantation between Champs and Rolle. Both authors have traveled through the woodlots in these woods, including the area known as “Aviator Woods,” and have been amazed at the myriad maze of clearings, trails, and clumps of trees where it is entirely possible to hide a full-size tank.
52 “Four German tanks were in sight… and all that happened was a loud clang when it hit the tank” (Ferretti, 1984).
53 “0928 [25 December] Sit[uation] improving. Inf[antry] trying to regain positions. En[emy] t[an]ks have pulled off OP” (Radio Journal of the Combat Command B, 10th Armored Division, December 1944).
54 “Some of the guys went to go check out the knocked out German tanks. I didn’t want to see that. I mean, that’s still some mother’s son” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Sergeant Anthony “Tony” D’Angelo, June 4, 2010).
55 “After the fight, we ‘mopped up’ the battleground area… not that he had done so” (Black, The Last First Sergeant, 1998, 247). Although this incident was certainly callous and cruel, it is by no means unique. After Americans got word of the Malmedy massacre—where SS troops had gunned down unarmed American prisoners on Dec. 17—many soldiers had made personal vows not to take any German prisoners.
56 “Our ‘C’ Company took thirty-five prisoners and killed sixty-seven Germans for our part in that Christmas morning fight” (Black, The Last First Sergeant, 1998, 246–47).
57 “Well, I [D’Angelo] felt relieved” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Tony D’Angelo, 2010).
58 “We were great marksmen [705th TD BN] and Templeton had trained us well when we were back in the States” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Sergeant Anthony “Tony” D’Angelo, March 4, 2010).
59 “By the grace of God, we got our rounds off before the Germans, or it would have been a different story” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Tony D’Angelo, 2010).
60 “Colonel Templeton came up to me and said, ‘Job well done… As a matter of fact, I had a good [Christmas] day after that” (A. D’Angelo, Interview with Tony D’Angelo, 2010).
Chapter Eleven
1 Fradin, 2011, 32.
2 “I think it was about 6-7 Christmas morning… we only had rifles” (Hesler, 2011).
3 “The days prior to Christmas began to pass about… we had another gun that would have a side shot at the tank” (Cooper, unknown).
4 “There were generally four to a crew… but I don’t know for sure” (Hesler, Second Interview with Ken Hesler, 2011).
5 This data (total number of enemy tanks destroyed during the battle near both Rolle and Hemroulle) comes from many different sources, reports, and claims, and many of those sources are at odds with one another. It may truly be impossible, in all certainty, to determine who was responsible for destroying how many and which enemy vehicles, especially since many of the accounts are contradictory, even from the same unit. “During the fire fight in the battalion’s northern sector, at approximately 0730 hours… where it was captured by Battalion Tank Stalking party…” (Moran, 1944, 2).
6 “Everyone was prepared for the worst… in case we were overrun by the enemy” (Tofany, n.d.).
7 “A little after dawn on Christmas morning… we could have guns covering any field of fire” (Lyons, 2011, 259).
8 Positions ascertained from a letter and hand-drawn map supplied by John Mockabee, D Btry, 463rd PFAB, after the war (Mockabee, n.d.).
9 Streeter, 2011.
10 “There were generally four to a crew… but I don’t know for sure” (Hesler, Second Interview with Ken Hesler, 2011).
11 “The number 3 pack howitzer with [Clifford] Wolfenberger, Silvas and Peplowksi… We wait knowing to fire now would invite disaster, powder snow, smoke, a real give away” (Peplowski, 1988).
12 “The Germans got out of their tanks and made coffee… they were being observed through the tube of a 75 pack howitzer…” (Cooper, unknown). He said that guys like Childress (who were closer to the Germans” told him the Germans were cooking. Hesler, though, was not there himself, said that he believed the Germans had “gone to ground while it was still somewhat dark.” The breakfast story he heard from a few other guys afterward besides Childress, but he said it is “one of those things that I can’t testify to,” since he didn’t witness it.
13 “Our Battery Commander was Capt. Ardel E. Cole and our Executive Officer was a young Lt. by the name of Joseph Lyons…. Capt Cole called again and said, ‘Sgt. Smith, if you are going to get up it had better be now’” (Smith, 1980).
14 Moran, 1944, 3.
15 “I was not in a gun section… and the gun had to be moved down the slope slightly to get the tube depressed sufficiently to get the tanks in the gun sight” (McMorrow, n.d.); “The mission of the First Airborne Task Force was completed…. General Eisenhower presented the Division with the Presidential Unit Citation” (Barrett, 2012).
16 “Once the tanks got in range… We waited about three or four minutes and then started to fire” (Lyons, 2011, 259).
17 “Once the tanks came into view… we knew we were facing German tanks” (Lyons, 2011, 259); “Then I heard the tanks west of me… they might be Patton’s tanks” (Gerhold, 1991).
18 “The enemy infantry action to the right indicates that a tank swing to the left is inevitable to make a fire team…. Wolfenberger is gunner, a cool, calm, efficient and accurate one” (Peplowski, 1988).
19 “On Christmas Day, at daybreak… His burns were minor” (Koskimaki, 2011, 277); (Bellaza, 1988).
20 “I came out of my foxhole on the run…. We destroyed three tanks and dispatched a ground crew out and captured the tank’s crew” (Smith, 1980).
21 “As the Germans began to make a move… The S-3 gave the order, ‘Let the shit hit the fan!’” (Cooper, unknown); “About daylight Capt. Ardelle E. Cole advised me… which was the code for direct fire
” (Garrett, Letter to George Koskimaki, n.d.).
22 “No, I did not, but we could hear it… so I could make out our guns firing” (Hesler, Second Interview with Ken Hesler, 2011).
23 “Well, we were taught that the back of the German tanks were greasy…. I can also get you the numbers for how much WP was fired in that action” (Hesler, Second Interview with Ken Hesler, 2011).
24 “During the battle word came that tanks were coming up from the rear…. I was a member of that 50 caliber machine gun team” (Mockabee, n.d.); (Mockabee, John Mockabee “D” Battery, 463rd Parachute Field Artillery—Letter to George Koskimaki, 1989).
25 “In the predawn hours of 25 December 1944, T/4 Corsen ‘Booger’ Childress, Joe Pimlott and myself were assigned as supporting infantry… the tanks were driven back to our lines by Childress, Pimlott and myself” (Hazzard, 1988); (Koskimaki, 2011, 278); “(1) Destroyed with AP and WP two medium tanks, proven by line of hits… (4) Captured fourteen assorted infantry and tank crew members” (Sherburne, 1944); “… destroying two and damaging one to such an extent that it withdrew to a hull down position… capturing eight enlisted men who were turned over to the 502nd Parachute Infantry” (Moran, 1944); “The positions remained the same until 25 December 1944… and by these actions repelled the attack on Hemroulle” (Seaton, 1944, 1–2); (Mockabee, Hand-drawn Map to George Koskimaki, n.d.); “In the first 15 minutes we had disabled 8 tanks… but put a white undershirt on the tube and wait for me” (Cooper, unknown). Again, there is a good chance the wounded German tank commander was Hauptmann Schmidt.
26 “Upon returning, he [Schmidt] told Andrews that he had seen 2 Mk IVs and 5 SP guns… and Cpl. Richard Ellner was seriously wounded” (Andrews, 1945, 2–3); See photos from Donald Pratt Museum.
27 “Christmas morning I had been making my usual rounds to the different gun positions…. A-Btry took no prisoners” (Gerhold, 1991).
28 “We had a real Christmas Day Turkey Shoot… unless you see his boots go up higher than his head” (Stolmeier, 2011).
