Countdown to D-Day

by Peter Margaritis

  Rommel smacks one hand into the other for emphasis as he speaks. “Every opponent who sets foot on French soil must be thrown back into the sea in the first hours. That can only be done if our panzer divisions are stationed right by the coast and if enough fighters are in the air, so they can be thrown against those powerful Allied air forces.”

  They continue walking. “But Göring has let us down once before in Africa,” he says. “And at Stalingrad too, he failed to keep his promise to provide an adequate air bridge for the trapped Sixth Army. “And I don’t believe in the ‘thousand fighters’ that he intends to send here.”

  They go on discussing the situation for a few more minutes, before turning to lighter, personal items. They eventually walk back to Rommel’s study, and von Luck says his goodbyes.

  “All the best to you, Luck,” Rommel wishes him cheerfully, shaking his hand again. “I’ll be visiting your division quite often in the coming weeks,” he adds.

  Von Luck replies that he will look forward to the visits.

  “Remember,” Rommel says as they part, “we must do our duty.”

  That night, buoyed by von Luck’s visit, he writes Lucie about his new chief of staff and tries to be upbeat:

  Speidel arrived yesterday. he makes a good and fresh impression. I believe it will work out well.

  He still worries though, about Germany’s shadowed future.

  ***

  Von Luck unfortunately, is in for a surprise that evening: He has already been reassigned. When he reports to his commanding officer and friend, Fritz Baylerlein, he is told the bad news.

  “My dear Luck,” he tells him, “I had marked you down as commander of the panzer regiment; but I was told a few days ago to send you immediately to the reorganized 21st Panzer Division.”

  Seeing the surprise on von Luck’s face, he adds, “Seems like your commander, Generalmajor Feuchtinger, has more pull at the Führer’s headquarters. I really regret that I won’t be able to have an old African campaigner in my division.”

  Upset, von Luck reports to Feuchtinger’s 21st Panzer Division that night. He is to take over as commander of the division’s newly formed 125 th Panzergrenadier Regiment.

  As things turn out, he will now play a key role when the invasion comes.

  1See entry for March 26.

  2The date of the visit is uncertain. Von Luck indicates only that it was some time after the first of the month. But Gause’s remarks about initiating his successor put the arrival just after April 15, the date Speidel arrived at La Roche-Guyon. And Rommel was on the road for the following three days. Thus, the 16th is the most likely day for the visit.

  Von Luck had known Rommel for years. Rommel was one of his instructors at the Dresden Infantry School back in 1931 when von Luck attended as a cadet. In the spring of 1940, he had served faithfully under him in France as part of the recon battalion of Rommel’s famed 7th Panzer Division. After participating in the invasion of Russia, he had been transferred in April 1942 to North Africa, commanding the 3rd Panzer Recon Battalion of the old 21st Panzer Division. Von Luck’s battalion had been one of Rommel’s favorite units.

  3Bayerlein, now 45 years old, had been a private in World War I, rising to the rank of Feldwebel before the war’s end. He received a commission in the 21st Cavalry Regiment in 1922, and the start of world conflict had found him as General Guderian’s Ia3 during their headlong advances through Poland, France, and then on towards Moscow in 1941.

  Monday, April 17

  After a quick, early breakfast, Generalfeldmarschall Rommel briskly leaves his château, walking down the entrance steps, ready for another inspection tour. This trip is going to be up the northern French shoreline again, to the coastal positions along the Somme and Scheldt estuaries. This time, he is taking along with him Admiral Ruge and his new Chef, Hans Speidel. Gause will spend the next few days wrapping up loose ends and preparing to leave.

  As Rommel walks out the side entrance into the courtyard, he sees a three-car convoy ready, along with escorting motorcycles and a small entourage. The third car is for the four reporters—well, war correspondents1—that are tagging along. In the trunk of the third vehicle are a number of special gifts for the men in the field. The field marshal is resuming his habit of handing out small, special tokens to any outstanding men who have made exceptionally good progress in their work. These tokens include harmonicas, concertinas, 2 or other nice trinkets.

  Sometimes he gives away presents that have been sent to him by admirers back home. Occasionally, he will hand out packs of cigarettes or bags of cookies to those in the field as he asks them how they are doing or how their families are faring. For ranking officers, his gifts often include alcohol, of which he of course has little use for. If he finds out that a soldier comes from his native Württemberg, he will informally converse with them in their common Swabian dialect. They might share a laugh over a good joke, especially if only someone from that area would appreciate it. One of his favorites is, “What is the difference between a ‘Schwob’?” and a ‘Schwob?” The answer is, “A Schwob is a Schwab who calls another Schwab a Schwob.”3

  Rommel briskly walks out through the main doors wearing his raincoat, baton in hand. Everyone is assembled around the shiny black vehicles, telling stories, talking about the war, or commenting on the weather. The war reporters have already taken the opportunity to engage the new chief of staff in conversation, feeling him out.

  The field marshal comes down the steps and approaches the group chatting quietly next to the vehicles. He briefly greets each of them. Then they are off.

  They leave La Roche-Guyon and head down river. Turning east at Rouen, they travel up to the coast and on to their first stop, the town of Ault. There they hold a conference with General der Artillerie Sinnhuber, commanding 67th Infantry Corps, one of his divisional commanders, Generalleutnant Paul Seyffardt, commanding the 348th Infantry, and their senior officers. Progress over the last three weeks has been significant, and the field marshal expresses satisfaction with the recent improvements, noting various types of obstacles set into the shoreline. He hands out three concertinas to the staff.

  More inspections follow as they travel northeast up the coast. They stop around noon for lunch at St.-Valery-sur-Somme on the southern bank of the Somme estuary. Despite his rank, Rommel (and thus, his staff) settles for a simple meal from the local field kitchen. Wasting no time, they are off again, crossing the Somme, moving up the coast to the positions of the 344th Infantry, and then those of the 49th Infantry.4

  Rommel’s staff enjoy an amusing moment in the 49th Division area when the field marshal and his entourage come upon an unsuspecting guard. Startled, the man clearly is not expecting to be approached by so high-ranking and famous a general. Losing his composure and in a panic, he addresses the Desert Fox standing before him as “Herr Major.” The field marshal wryly stares back at the guard and mercifully says nothing to him, although when he glances at Ruge a moment later, there is a twinkle in his eye.

  At each stop, Rommel listens to more reports. The inspection party notes new obstacles, mines, and barriers up, but not nearly as many as they had seen earlier. More effort is obviously needed here. Rommel records in the army group’s Daily Report:

  The difference in the progress of the divisions in the completion of the offshore obstacles is astonishing and depends on the division commander’s initiative.

  They finally stop at Le Touquet5 for the night.

  1The reporters were famed Lutz Koch, 52-year-old General der Infanterie Hans Gert Freiherr von Esebeck, and two other reporters named Ertel and Podewils. The baron (as a newly-promoted Generalmajor) had in the spring of 1941 been given command of the 15th Panzer Division under Rommel in North Africa. Unfortunately, he was severely wounded in the face shortly thereafter and evacuated to Europe. Despite wanting to return to Africa, he was sent to Army Group Center on the Eastern Front, until he had in mid-February, 1944 been attachéd to OB West for “special duties.” On April 1
, he had been transferred to the Führer Reserve, and now served as a war reporter, sometimes accompanying Rommel on his tours.

  2See footnote for April 5.

  3“Schwab” was the regular, or high German term for a native of Swabia; “Schwob” [pronounced “Shwobe”] is the same term in the Swabian dialect.

  4Generalleutnant Felix Schwalbe commanding the 344th, and Generalleutnant Siegfried Macholz commanding the 49th.

  5Located next to the coast, about 20km south of Boulogne, on the southern bank of the Canche River.

  Tuesday, April 18

  Rommel, on an inspection tour along the northern French coast, is up early at his quarters in Le Touquet. Accompanying him, Ruge, and Speidel today, will be the local corps commander, General Sinnhuber.

  The group gets an early start, beginning with Generalmajor Heinz Furbach’s 331st Reserve Infantry Division, located in from the coast. After Furbach gives his status report, Rommel repeats his plans. Sure, he argues, it would be great if units did not have to move for a good 24 hours. But war is never fought under ideal conditions, and the men must be ready to react immediately.

  They continue up the coast to the lovely, historic port of Boulogne, then around Cap Gris Nez, and onward to Otto Elfelt’s 47th Infantry Division. Construction of offshore barriers here is coming along well, although for this area, stakes are more difficult to set than tetrahedrons because of offshore crosscurrents. Still, the 47th is luckier than most divisions along the coast, because it has its own 40-man concrete factory nearby. Even so, the firm is hard-pressed to keep up with demands for concrete supplies, and shortages often cause delays in shipments.

  Rommel continues up the coast to Calais, where the High Command expects the Allies are most likely to land. Here, many formidable offshore barriers are well placed by now. The party stops for lunch, and then continues. As they move on, Rommel notes with satisfaction certain areas where man-made swamps have been created at spots along the shoreline, and in certain draws leading inland.

  Still more inspections. The field marshal is relentless in his schedule. He is told that the 18th Luftwaffe Field Division1 has had problems putting up anti-invasion barriers, mainly because there is just not enough help around. Most of the local residents have already moved away, “just in case.” He suspects though, that part of the problem is their motivation. They are, after all, Luftwaffe personnel.

  That day, Rommel notes in his diary:

  Am carrying on with my inspection tour in the area of Calais, which I consider the most dangerous point. Here too, they could have achieved much more in strengthening our coastal defenses. I have indeed the feeling that the unit commanders have not yet recognized their responsibilities, which is the reason why I am so meticulous about details. I cannot stress enough to these commanders that it is in the West that the war will be decided.

  As the busy day stretches into the late afternoon, the inspection party finds itself approaching Dunkirk. They stop along the road that bypasses the town to admire the view. Dunkirk—where they had trapped the desperate British troops just four years ago, pushing them back into the sea. Now though, the small group stands and watches the port undergo an air raid.

  They are mostly silent as they observe Allied bombers fly in, one wave after another, and make runs on the harbor facilities. The formations, coming in at 3,000 to 4,000 meters, meet a heavy curtain of accurate anti-aircraft fire as they approach their targets. Still, the awesome airpower of the enemy is certainly being brought home to all of them as the aircraft press on and the town gets pounded. Rommel marvels at how the explosions continue almost ceaselessly. If only the Reich still had that kind of power at its disposal…

  Suddenly, one of the aides, acting as a lookout, shouts a warning, pointing excitedly out to sea. They all look out over the Channel where he is gesturing, Rommel with his binoculars. While they have been busy watching the bombers unloading over Dunkirk, a formation of some eighteen aircraft has peeled off from the next approaching main force and is now headed their way, seemingly focused directly on their own little group. Shouting directions to each other, the entourage scatters for cover.

  A number of them run headlong into a ditch along the side of the road. General Sinnhuber groans loudly as he unfortunately lands on a pile of broken glass. Admiral Ruge and the new chief of staff get their uniforms scratched (to say nothing of their pride) as they scurry into some bushes and then struggle with the thorns. Naturally, sharp-eyed Rommel has found himself a nice thick patch of tall grass to disappear into.

  Luckily for the group, no bombs come anywhere close to them, but they are rattled by the enemy aircraft passing low overhead. Embarrassed, they soon emerge from their hiding places, shaken up, rueful looks on their faces, cleaning or dusting themselves off. Rommel assures everyone that he is fine. Once again, they observe the continued bombing. The next wave approaches the town, and they note with smug satisfaction that a couple aircraft are shot down, landing in the sea. A few enemy air crewmen are lucky enough to bail out, and soon a harbor craft sails out to fetch them.

  When the air raid finally ends, the disheveled spectators load up into their cars and continue on their way towards Neumann’s 712th Grenadier Division.2 They make their inspection and note with approval that a good deal of effort has been made here. They then continue on to Generalleutnant Casper’s 48th Infantry43 in the Ostende area. There the anti-invasion barriers are only being constructed in certain limited coastal areas. Rommel notes in his daily report:

  I was shaken to discover that entire strips of the coast... did not have any defense strongpoints whatsoever. If only commanders would travel more often, they would realize how much more there is to be done.

  They stop for the night in the port of Breskens, splitting up to stay in different quarters. That evening, after rehashing the story of the enemy bombers outside Dunkirk, Rommel somberly reflects on the exercise of air power that he has today witnessed. It reconfirms for him what large numbers of aircraft can do to fortifications. And he knows what tactical bombers can do from personal experience, because he has personally been attacked by enemy aircraft several times. Most certainly he will be again.

  How long will his famed luck hold out?

  1Generalleutnant Joachim von Tresckow, commanding. The 18th Luftwaffe Field Division was created in Soissons, France, under the command of Oberst! Ferdinand-Wilhelm Freiherr von Stein- Liebenstein zu Barchfeld. It consisted of two Luftwaffe jäger regiments, an artillery regiment made up of captured Russian and French artillery, a small panzerjäger battalion, and some engineers. It was moved to its area between Dunkirk and Calais in April of the year before, assigned to the 82nd Corps. After the division was committed to battle in mid-August of 1944, it sustained substantial casualties, and OKW officially declared the 18th destroyed as a fighting unit on September 16.

  2Fifty-five-year-old Generalleutnant Friedrich Wilhelm Neumann, commanding. Neumann took over command in April 1942.

  3Fifty-one-year-old Generalleutnant Karl Casper, who took over at the beginning of February. The 48th was created on February 1 in Holland from the 171st Reserve Division.

  Wednesday, April 19

  It is a lovely but brisk spring day. Rommel, in the Belgian port of Breskens, is up early, as usual. A quick breakfast at his assigned quarters, and then he and his group are off. They assemble at 7 a.m. at the docks. They meet 89th Corps commander General von Gilsa and the local port commander, Kapitan-zur-See Frank Aschmann.1

  The weather is cold, and an easterly wind has buffeted water out of the Scheldt. Because of this low water level, the “flagship” of the area, an armed yacht called the Sarah (supposedly once owned by ex-Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain), cannot carry them out to Vlissingen on Walcheren Island as planned, since its deep draft prevents it from crossing over to get them. The group must take the ferry. The waters are choppy, so the ride over is a bit rough.

  They disembark and are taken to Vlissingen, where the conferences begin with Aschmann. While
he has nothing prepared, he is acquainted enough with his island command to be able to answer questions. Rommel is satisfied with him.

  Next comes Generalmajor Wilhelm Daser, commanding the 165th Reserve Infantry. He reports that over half of the 500 bunkers planned have been finished.

  Rommel sees a number of problems. There are shortages that could have rectified by von Gilsa a while ago had he exercised better management. The new version “nutcracker” mine is just being started up here, and they are being laid too thinly and in some spots too close to the naval batteries. The concussion of the guns firing might accidently set them off.

  Also, the unit commanders do not seem totally committed to his stop-them-on- the-beaches doctrine. Calmly and clearly, he spells out what he expects of them. One particularly slow army artillery commander is given a “heart-to-heart” talk by the field marshal.

  They go back over to Breskens at 11 a.m. on the Sarah. Admiral Ruge is somewhat nervous during the crossing, because as they travel across the Scheldt, he notices that an enemy reconnaissance aircraft is spying on them. Yesterday’s run-in with the enemy bombers outside Dunkirk is no doubt still fresh in his mind. Rommel is not worried, but they are all thankful when they make it back over without incident.

  They depart southward for Brugge for another conference with 48th Division commander General Casper. Then they have lunch at the soldiers’ mess.

  As they eat, they listen to the radio. As is his custom, Rommel wants to hear the BBC newscast. A few of the men dining nearby are pleased that their field marshal will listen to an enemy radio broadcast with them.

  National pride notwithstanding, they, like him, do realize that this can be a primary source of intelligence. General information about the war for line commanders is hard to come by, particularly now that the war is going against Germany.2 Rommel has often in the past been attachéd to OKW and was thus privy to all the military activities of the Third Reich. Now though, he is cut off and badly informed about the general progress on the war. So he regularly listens to enemy radio broadcasts to glean some idea (even if it is colored by the Allies) of what is happening on the other fronts, and to get a sense of how his enemy is feeling.