[Cz-L] Retreat 1944

The Tiger tank on the Russischegass.

 1944 promised to be a good year.
  The newspapers wrote about shortening of front lines. This meant retreat.
   Marshal Konew troops were coming closer and drove the Wehrmacht to the
West.
    In January ,the Russischegasse the main road from the East , trafic was
not as usual.
     More and more army trucks came up the road.
      In February the trickle became a stream.
      The Feldgendarmerie (military police) called chain dogs ( Kettenhunde)
because of their steel collar gorgets suspended by a collar chain were
everywhere.
http://is.gd/5DYyd
  On motorcycles ,directing trafic putting up road signs.
    In February the trickle became a stream : Germans , Rumanians ,
Hungarians,
   Italians , Russian Vlassov troops in horse driven carriages with families
and small
   children , all moving to the West.
    In this retreat the Germans would stop stop and hold the front for a
time.
     In Iassy thy put up a fight for some months and the Russians shelled
the town to bits.
     Fortunately Czernowitz was not chosen to be a fortress and go down in
history
    as a token of german bravery , among the remaining debris.
   German soldiers in rags were everywhere.
    They were looking for food , cigarettes and women.
    "Wir verkaufen euch den Hitler " was often heard meaning they sell us
Hitler.
      In '44 nobody would buy.
   Then came the tank columns, ruining the pavement. Everytime the big
     tanks made a turn the cobblestones came out leaving mud puddles.
      Then one morning , in front of our house , stood a tank. Abandoned.
    A 40 ton Tiger tank with a long cannon. The turret was as high as the
first floor balcony.
http://is.gd/5DYEZ
      I immediately ran down to Berti our " Bande" leader suggesting we take
the tank
      and hide it in our cellar. Berti didnt think this a very good idea.
      Then one morning the tank was gone.
         Beginning March the flow of retreating troops stopped and silence
came to our street.
         Then came the Russians.
        Hardy
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Received on 2009-12-28 05:30:57