Hitler's Brandenburgers

by Lawrence Paterson

  The Brandenburgers subsequently occupied their allotted areas, alongside their interpreters and occasional accompanying V-Leute assigned by Wagner. There was not a single documented case of British sabotage and the operation was deemed a complete success by the time the leading Wehrmacht troops began entering the country on 9 March; eleven and a half divisions were in situ along the Greek border within eight days.

  Wagner’s fears had been almost completely groundless. The British Minister Plenipotentiary in Sofia, George Rendel, strongly opposed any covert sabotage operations in Bulgaria by SOE, or its forerunner Section D, while Bulgaria remained a neutral power. He was eventually persuaded to allow MI6 agents to contact various dissident organisations in the country and disseminate a small amount of anti-German propaganda, but by the time of Bulgaria’s signing of the Tripartite Pact and subsequent arrival of the Wehrmacht, there had been no attempts at sabotage.

  In the meantime, the Allies had been steadily reinforcing Greece, therefore the conquest of peripheral Yugoslavia required quick decisive strokes with the Brandenburgers leading the way. Approximately 58,000 Allied troops had been moved to mainland Greece by 2 April as part of Operation ‘Lustre’. They comprised the British 1st Armoured Brigade, 2nd New Zealand Division and 6th Australian Division, followed shortly afterward by 7th Australian Division and the Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade.

  By the time of the planned attack on Yugoslavia, the Brandenburger 2nd Battalion was spread relatively thinly. While Buchler’s men had completed their Bulgarian assignments, Oberleutnant Kniesche’s 5th Company was engaged in protection of the Danube waterway and its oil transports to Germany, and Oberleutnant Meissner’s 6th Company continued to guard the refineries of Ploieşti. A liaison officer from the Brandenburger Regiment attended an operational briefing during the afternoon of 29 March in Vienna during which the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Generalleutnant Friedrich Paulus, outlined the final plans and timetable for ‘Marita’. Generalfeldmarschall Wilhelm List, commander of the Twelfth Army, was among those officers present and to him fell the task of conquering Yugoslavia. His troops had been assembled in Bulgaria for the invasion of Greece and List was compelled to hurriedly split his command, allowing Panzer Group 1 to launch a surprise three-pronged attack towards Niš, Kragujevac and Belgrade on 8 April, the capital timetabled for rapid capture and the three separate thrusts designed to hamper any orderly withdrawal of Yugoslavian troops. To the north, Generaloberst Maximilian von Weichs’ Second Army was tasked with limited spoiling attacks over the Austrian border to probe defences and take control of tunnels and bridges, before launching its own offensive on 10 April towards Belgrade. Though the conventional Yugoslavian military was vastly inferior to the Wehrmacht, the geography itself posed daunting problems for a mechanised invasion. The country was mountainous with limited communications networks. Roads in both Greece and Yugoslavia were poor, with only a few exceptions of highway areas centred on major cities. For the invaders, the most important roads were those that travelled roughly parallel to the railway lines through northern Yugoslavia, along the Vardar River to Salonika and from there onwards to Athens, hugging the Aegean coastline. The roads that meandered through the northern half of the Peloponnesus, those along the Yugoslavian Adriatic coast, the few that penetrated the Dinaric Alps and some others in western Greece would also provide the Wehrmacht with invasion routes. However, only some were properly paved, the remainder constructed of crushed stone and unable to support the sustained heavy vehicle traffic without constant maintenance. Three major water obstacles also faced an invader, the Mura and Drava Rivers to the north and the Sava River to the east of Belgrade, all tributaries of the Danube which flowed through north-western Yugoslavia and all swollen with melted ice from the spring thaw.

  The Brandenburgers were tasked with familiar missions: the capture of bridges immediately over the border, neutralising defensive border bunker networks, sowing disquiet and confusion amongst enemy frontier troops and cutting communication lines in Yugoslavian rear areas. They would begin their missions on 6 April at 0515hrs, geographically spread from Austria to Bulgaria. Two ‘half-companies’ of 5th Company, under the command of Oberleutnant Kniesche were stationed in the region of Kärnten, Austria, fifty of his men from the 2nd Half-Company flown to Mehadic in Romania from where they travelled by truck to reinforce Oberleutnant Kutschke’s 7th Company. The latter were positioned near the ‘Iron Gates’ gorge. Yugoslavian border defences had been visibly strengthened in the area and trucks filled with sand and cement had been seen nearby, their presumed purpose to block or at least obstruct the narrow defile. The probability of Yugoslavian mining of the canalised area of the ‘Iron Gates’ also loomed large in Wehrmacht thinking. The 7th Company was to operate as conventional assault troops and became part of Oberst Richard Bazing’s assault group alongside the 2nd Company of 651st Engineer Battalion. Equipped with five assault boats and six large Flossäcke (rubber rafts), Bazing’s group were to cross the river south of Orsova – a kilometre wide at that point – and attack the Yugoslavian defences.3

  Buchler’s 8th Company was positioned with List’s Army at the ‘Dreiländereck’ – the meeting point of three countries, where the borders of Greece, Yugoslavia and Bulgaria intersect. Small reserves from the 2nd and 3rd Battalions were held in Baden, while expansion of the regiment was accelerated with Oberleutnant Fritz Babuke forming the 17th ‘Special’ Company at Baden Unterwaltersdorf and the regiment’s Ia, Oberleutnant Helmut Pinkert, the 14th Replacement Company, created as a training unit for 2nd Battalion from predominantly Buchenland Germans and based in Düren.4

  The Luftwaffe opened ‘Marita’ with a heavy air attack on Belgrade (Operation ‘Strafgericht’ – ‘Punishment’) and at dawn on 6 April the Brandenburgers went into action against Yugoslavian targets. Along the Austro-Yugoslavian frontier, Leutnant Gebbers led a small eight-man group from ‘Half-Company Hettinger’ (5th Company, the half-company commanded by Oberleutnant Otto Hettinger) to Rosenbach to seize the railway tunnel that stretched for nearly 8km beneath the Karawanks mountain range. Linking Austria with Slovenia, the tunnel had been opened in 1906 by Archduke Franz Ferdinand to encourage Austro-Hungarian trade through their primary seaport of Trieste. Gebbers’ unit comprised men who had received engineer training and were also linguists capable of speaking fluent Slovenian. Their operational instructions were simple: prevent destruction of the tunnel, remove any prepared charges and take control of the southern exit at Hrušica. It had been six days since the last train had passed through the passageway and Gebbers led his men slowly into the tunnel, reaching the presumed border at the approximate halfway mark without incident. Noticing no air movement, he surmised that at some point ahead, beyond their vision, the tunnel had been deliberately obstructed. The decision was made to leave the confined underground space and instead accompany troops of the 1st Gebirgs Division over the difficult terrain of the mountains above to take control of the tunnel from the other end.

  By early morning the following day they were within striking distance of the southern tunnel entrance and after sighting lights in the presumed guardhouse, immediately stormed the position and took the surprised Yugoslavians prisoner. There was little defence and the tunnel was soon secured, the suspected obstruction found to have been created by partial demolition of the tunnel ceiling only a matter of 150m from the entrance, completely blocking the railway line. Nevertheless, Gebbers’ men had achieved their objective and as German troops secured the area they marched towards Mojstrana, capturing a truck with Yugoslavian soldiers along the way. All eight men received the EK II on 9 April 1941. Other troops of the 5th Company would later form a small mobile reinforced platoon that advanced southwards into Croatia towards Karlovac before swinging west and linking up with advancing Italian troops at the Adriatic port of Fiume (now Rijeka).

  At dawn on the first day Bazing’s assault group that included the second halfcompany of the 5th crossed the Danube and attacked Yug
oslavian positions on the western bank. In fierce though brief fighting the assault brushed the Yugoslavian defenders aside and the small beachhead was quickly reinforced. After the battle had ended, Kutschke’s men remained temporarily in position comprising part of Sicherungsgruppe Eisernes Tor (Security Group Iron Gates) alongside the engineers and reinforcing light infantry troops, anti-tank units and men of the Luftwaffe’s ‘General Göring’ Regiment.

  The Brandenburgers led the way for List’s Twelfth Army to advance from southern Bulgaria into Greece and Yugoslavia. Jacobi’s men were launching what was codenamed ‘Einsatz Alex’ and achieved great success as the Wehrmacht largely outflanked the formidable, though undermanned, Metaxas Line. While most Brandenburger targets were bridges, Leutnant Lange captured the Greek border guard post No. 150 at dawn, achieving almost complete surprise and allowing German troops to pass unhindered onto Greek soil. Feldwebel Kirchner captured a bridge near Kula on the border, enabling panzers to head rapidly west to sever communications links between Greece and Yugoslavia before pivoting south towards Monastir. Unteroffizier Hass seized the bridge 2km west of the Bulgarian border over the Sturmica River south of the Macedonian town of Novo Konjorevo, while Feldwebel Wagner’s group took control of road and rail bridges near Dorjan Lake just over 22km to the south-west, permitting the 2nd Panzer Division to roll into action against a hastily shored-up Greek front line. Hauptmann Buchler and his small group penetrated far to the south and captured the bridge over the Gallikos River near Kristoni while Leutnant Hein led raiding parties disguised as Greek soldiers behind enemy lines to sow confusion and interfere with communications.

  To Siegfried Grabert fell the task of taking and holding the strategically important bridge over the Vardar River between Axioupoli and Polikastro. Few bridges crossed this major waterway that flowed from Macedonia to discharge into the Aegean at Salonika. Greek and Allied forces had begun to retreat from the area east of the Vardar River, and the river would provide a natural barrier to the German advance, albeit a temporary one, unless the bridge could be taken. Grabert and his men of the 8th Company wore Yugoslavian greatcoats and helmets as they boarded two trucks which accompanied an armoured reconnaissance unit of the 2nd Panzer Division on the initial leg of the journey towards their objective. After parting company with the Wehrmacht vehicles, Grabert’s men passed retreating Yugoslavian soldiers, asking directions to the crossing and even taking some aboard to act as guides. Reaching the wooden bridge, the two trucks slowed to a crawl as they became ensnarled in the traffic jam created by the flight of withdrawing enemy troops. They were finally brought to a complete standstill halfway across the 400m bridge, pulling to one side to make way for a truck travelling through the throngs of men from west to east. As the distant sound of German gunfire caused increasing levels of panic amongst the retreating Yugoslavian troops, through his binoculars, Grabert could clearly see at the far end of the bridge the unmistakeable sight of British Royal Engineers preparing the span for demolition. Grabert immediately leapt into action, taking some of his men and rushing on foot through the dejected Yugoslavs, scattering men with bursts from their submachine guns into the air. The Brandenburgers opened fire on the British engineers as soon as they were within range, driving them into cover and away from their task. With this bold attack, the western end of the bridge was taken and ninety minutes later the leading reconnaissance vehicles of the 2nd Panzer Division reached them and the German seizure of the Vardar River crossing was complete.

  The capture of the bridge allowed German forces to quickly reach the Aegean coast at Saloniki, entering the town on 9 April, the same day that other Wehrmacht units reached the Monastir Gap in Macedonia to begin crossing into northern Greece to outflank the defences of the Metaxas and Aliakmon Lines. Though later the Royal Air Force would destroy some northern bridges over the Vardar by bombing, it was too little, too late to seriously impede the inexorable German advance. For his bold capture of the bridge, Grabert was recommended for the Knight’s Cross, which he received on 10 June 1941, the second Brandenburger to be so decorated.

  Meanwhile, the German advance continued. They ran headlong into New Zealand and Greek troops on 10 April at Klidi Pass in northern Greece, breaking through a stubborn defence in a fierce attack launched by men of the 1st SS Regiment ‘Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler’. On 14 April, the Wehrmacht made contact in the east with ANZAC troops of the 4th and 5th New Zealand Brigades and 16th Australian Brigade who had established a strong defensive line across the only road leading to Athens from Saloniki, passing between Mount Olympus and the Aegean coast. The defenders held three narrow defiles; the area of the Platamon railway tunnel, the Olympus Pass and the Servia Pass inland. German attempts to force the main route skirting the sea failed and before long German Engineers had been despatched to edge around the defensive lines by traversing the mountainous interior and attacking the enemy from the rear, timed to coincide with another frontal assault. Leading the flanking manoeuvre were men of the 8th Company in Volltarnung, using captured British equipment. Led by Leutnant Mohler, the English-speaking Brandenburgers – including Unteroffizier Siemens who had been born and raised in Melbourne, Australia – had outpaced most of the heavily encumbered engineers by the time they reached the defensive line. They were behind schedule and the main attack was already underway as they prepared to reconnoitre the enemy positions. Using their disguise, Mohler led his men through thick barbed-wire entanglements, mapping machine-gun bunkers and trench lines along the length of the Allied position. Before long they detected a New Zealand patrol at some distance, Siemens casually greeting them, fully confident in his disguise, only to be answered by bursts of fire that sent the Brandenburgers scuttling for cover. A ten-minute battle ensued, the engineers adding their weight to the skirmish before the Germans withdrew. Captured documents later revealed that Allied troops had been warned to expect German paratroopers disguised in British uniforms. To aid identification, all Allied patrols beyond their front line had been ordered to carry a small piece of tin plate cut from a ration tin on their left battledress pocket and an armband worn on the upper right arm; the Brandenburgers were obviously unaware of this and were quickly revealed to be Germans.

  Though Mohler’s mission appeared only partially successful, the men’s presence alone was enough to force an Allied retreat as defensive lines in Albania collapsed under heavy German attack and the ANZACs were threatened with being outflanked and encircled. A general retreat of Allied forces was ordered from the Mount Olympus positions, leading to the capture of 20,000 Greek troops. On 17 April, after eleven days of fighting, Yugoslavia surrendered unconditionally and the Allied retreat in Greece had become a scramble for evacuation and a headlong German pursuit. Brandenburgers led an assault on the island of Euboea, travelling to the island from the captured port of Volos by boat on the morning of 14 April and encountering minimal resistance from demoralised defenders. Reinforced by motorcycle troops of the 2nd Panzer Division, they raced for the town of Chalcis from where they returned to the mainland to attempt to cut off the retreating New Zealand rearguard that had made a brief stand at Thermopylae.

  On 27 April 1941, Rittmeister Dr Jacobi and a small unit of Brandenburgers hoisted the German flag at the Acropolis in Athens. The only flag that they had was not the familiar Kriegsflage, but rather a curious version of the national flag with an oversized swastika. Shortly thereafter the much-photographed raising of the Kriegsflage by men of the 2nd Panzer Division’s motorcycle battalion would also take place and be reported around the world, but it was Jacobi’s Brandenburgers who had reached the prize first. A small unit of Brandenburgers raced to secure the bridge over the Corinth Canal, meeting Fallschirmjäger dropped for the same purpose and initially successful in the capture of the crossing until stray British shellfire hit and destroyed the bridge. By the end of April the last Allied troops had been evacuated from Greece and the battle of Crete loomed – another campaign ultimately lost by the Allies though at severe cost to Germa
ny’s Fallschirmjäger forces.

  Following the successful invasion of Greece, a Brandenburger platoon was used to guard Athens’ water supply, the so-called Marathon Reservoir that had been created by the construction of a dam at the confluence of the Charadros and Varnavas Torrents near Marathon in 1931. Before long the constituent units of the 5th Company had returned to their barracks at Baden bei Wein, followed shortly by the 7th Company. Siegfried Grabert now commanded the 8th Company and, together with Jacobi and the headquarters of 2nd Battalion, they were the final troops to return to Austria from the Greek battleground. Only Oberleutnant Meissner’s 6th Company remained on station in Romania, guarding the Ploieşti oilfields.

  It is interesting to note the experience of at least one recruit for the Brandenburgers during the Yugoslavian campaign. Thirty-year-old South Tyrolean Arthur Scheler had been drafted into the Wehrmacht on 3 December 1940. Enlisted into the Stabsbatterie of the Bavarian 82nd Artillery Regiment, he transferred to the Brandenburgers following the recruiting drive for experienced amateur Austrian mountaineers. Brought into the regiment, he took part in the Yugoslavian campaign, his wife recalling his passing through Zagreb and Celje before returning to the company depot at Bad Vöslau near Vienna, where they were housed in the Park Hotel. Arthur Scheler was only with the regiment until 30 June as he found it ‘difficult as a man of 30 years old to keep up with the much younger Gebirgsjäger of his unit’. On 1 July 1941, he returned to his old Munich battery.5