#Wehrmacht Snipers

[msfbgraves]

After watching "Band of Brothers", and suddenly acquiring a taste for heroic company leaders guiding their men through battle ("F*** yeah! Tactics!") I wanted to see something like that from the German side, and remembered "Hey! Wasn't Wilhelm in "Generation War"* a company leader?" I mean, I would have watched the battle for the Grebbeberg - the only position in The Netherlands where the Dutch Army withstood the Wehrmacht effectively during the Nazi invasion - but we haven't made that movie, somehow. Too expensive, no doubt. So, time to see what it might have been like for my German grandfather in Russia instead, forced to enlist all of 17 years old. Was he Nazi? He was too young to vote for them, had he wanted to, but was raised by them during his entire adolescence. So here we see a boy his age, Friedhelm, sent to fight for Führer and Fatherland, and well, I wanted some scenes of camaraderie, not gonna lie. But what immediately struck me...

That scene in Band of Brothers where the German officer praises his men is all well and good but the reality this German series shows is much closer to what I've heard family talk about, and compared to the American series it is quite chilling.

First - nobody enlisted completely voluntarily. You could choose to become SS special forces, but you would have had to really have drunk the genocidal koolaid and I know many hadn't. So, like, morale outside of there? Decidedly lower. Secondly, this was a dictatorship. Which means you're constantly in danger from your own company. Anyone who disliked you could call you defeatist and have court marshalled for that reason alone. Thirdly, there was no safe home front, either, because dictatorship. "Loose lips sink ships"? (OK now, in Germany that was a positive in the U Boat war, but I digress...) Loose lips could get your sister killed, if she repeated anything and was hanged for "Wehrkraftzersetzung" (mental sabotage). Nice. Plus everything is still rationed. And then there's all the war crimes you get to facilitate when the SS comes to town. Also minefields.

Of course Opa didn't refuse being sent to Austria to study when he was wounded in Russia. It was probably the furthest you could get away from Nazi doctrine, and there is no "getting back to your buddies" when your buddy might be more dangerous to you than an enemy sniper. I'm sure they also bonded, but unless you were a sadist, I think there was absolutely nothing to fight for.

No wonder the only actual camaraderie was on a submarine. You can't shoot your crewmate for being defeatist, you'll drown. And no SS roping you into war crimes for the glory of the Third Reich until you get desensitised.

The Allied and the German soldiers fought very different wars.

*Unsere Mütter, unsere Väter - our mothers, our fathers

[farahfriday]

someone’s tags replying to someone elses tags… YOU JOKE BUT i’ve been wondering for a while if könig’s name and character lore are references to Erwin König, a Nazi sniper in the SS or Wehrmacht who may or may not have actually existed, orrr just been Soviet propaganda.

either way he featured in multiple books and movies, both nonfictional and fictional, in video games, has action figures made of him and is quite firmly cemented in pop history. some freak’s even made an AI chatbot. he’s got fanart on dA.

all that is to say that I would 100% believe könig from cod is either a reference to him or (worse lol??) he’s implied to have been inspired by him in some way with his callsign and trying to become a sniper.

please do NOT run with this shit as fact. that would drive me up the fucking wall. it’s also not my ~headcanon~ it’s just something about character inspiration that i am curious about

self harm can be getting into a video game series about the white male fantasy of slaughtering people from the Middle East when ur favourite character is an Arab woman and the fandom gets outraged if u suggest they don’t actually give a shit about her or the black man who is the other protagonist of the game and they will pull out a 50 mile long list of reasons why they are 20 million times more invested in konig, a character who doesn’t even have a personality or show up in the actual games, than the protagonists, and they will get even angrier at the idea that there could possibly be any kind of subconscious bias at play with their preferences, and you are calling them a RACIST MISOGYNIST every time you point out the insane skew towards the white men in the series, and trying to make them feel bad on purpose when nobody can help what characters they like. it can also be getting wasted

[uboottraummann]

Do you have a favourite battle from WW2?

this is such a basic answer but the siege of leningrad. the patriotic war in general is probably my favorite theatre to study.

one of my favorite autobiographies, "sniper on the eastern front", is about a bavarian-austrian who following anschluß, is conscripted into the wehrmacht as a sniper. in the book, he recounts how by the time his unit had captured the enemy soviet unit in leningrad, all that was left of the soviet unit was its officers, as they had cannibalized their enlisted.

people starved to death, froze to death, people were being bombed on the streets, people were eating each other. it was such a horrific battle.

[tehuti88-heritage]

Von NN Family Update

(March 17, 2025)

(This is in regards to a fictional storyline I've been brainstorming lately. As it occupies much of my time, I've decided to share it here.)

Got an outlandish & unsought-for idea last night while zoning out as I cath myself. (I often can't even remember cathing since I dissociate so much while doing so.) I have a character in my anthro story named Adel von NN (during the war he goes by the sniper nickname Ratdog); the "NN" is simply how I work around the fact that his full surname is never revealed in the story. He's a former duke, thus the "von," yet the family name has been effaced from everything in his abandoned castle when it's found by the army unit he's accompanying…oh Lord this is complicated for anyone not following my plot dumps in my art blog, which is everyone. ;_; Eh hm let's see.

Adel von NN is from a long line of farmer-nobles, I won't get into specifics but his family has some weird practices & almost completely goes extinct. His mentally disturbed sister kills their parents & runs off into the snow presumably to die herself so Adel's the only one left. Sis is the one who eradicated their name on everything in the castle BTW. Adel leaves his home & noble background behind, builds a house in the woods where these really rustic isolated ppl called the Waldvolk (forest folk) live, spends his days getting drunk & having one-night-stands on visits to the city. Gets a woman pregnant, she leaves the baby to him. He's a really sucky dad at first but learns to love the kid, names him Hans. Raises him alone.

Oh, right!--that's these 2 I posted previously.

War breaks out. Adel avoids conscription as the Waldvolk kind of scare the Wehrmacht forces. Hans is killed in a hit-&-run. A passing motorcyclist, Sgt. Eisen, says the culprit was a Trench Rat, American forces working in Germany (this is complicated enough to warrant its own set of posts). Adel takes up his rifle in revenge & becomes a sniper targeting Trench Rats. Earns the notice of a corrupt general named Schavitz, who requests a visit. Adel goes to his castle, meets Eisen, who works for him, then Schavitz. Schavitz says he can get him a sniper position in the Wehrmacht, bypassing all the hard work/promotions & avoiding getting in trouble for draft dodging, if he continues killing Trench Rats. Schavitz lost an eye to a Trench Rat so makes Adel--now named Ratdog--his personal sniper.

Ratdog, now a 1st lieutenant, requires a sort of chaperone/bodyguard as he has no military experience. He's assigned PFC Godfrey Klemper, a former child soldier & decorated--yet disgraced--war hero. Klemper is from a long line of peasant farmers & joined the Wehrmacht at age 13 after losing his parents & home. He was promoted to sergeant & became known as the "Hero of Zierenwald" for preventing a rogue Wehrmacht unit from torching the fictional village of Zierenwald; however, after being accused of a relationship with a male partisan, he was stripped of his command & demoted, barely escaping prison & possible death. He's disgruntled by Ratdog's easy promotion but takes the job as his "babysitter."

Ratdog & Klemper hate each other at 1st but eventually grow close. Again, that could fill up several posts.

Klemper's unit is the one to find Ratdog's old family castle, & Klemper finds defaced photos of Ratdog as a boy. Ratdog confirms to him it's his old home & he's a duke; given the geography, it's likely Klemper's ancestors long ago worked the farmland of his ancestors. Klemper's feelings regarding him remain unchanged.

After the war Ratdog/Adel & Klemper plan to spend their lives together but Klemper ends up shot by a child member of the Volkssturm, ironically. Adel basically loses everyone he loves throughout the storyline & eventually, after the birth of his grandson (named Hans), takes his own life, freezing to death presumably like his sister. Pretty depressing all around.

So…OK. That's the background. Now the outlandish idea. Adel's family name is never meant to be revealed, in the story because it feels cursed & he wants no part of it, in reality because it's supposed to be so rare nobody else carries it & I have no idea about rare names. So sister Edelgard erases it from existence before disappearing. If I were to reveal it I'd presumably have to completely make up a name.

Adel's & Klemper's families & fates are already linked through their shared geography, the vast eastern farmlands near the forest. Adel becomes even more closely linked to the Waldvolk after he moves into the forest himself although he's not one of them. The farming families, like Klemper's, aren't Waldvolk but are connected via trade & work. It's a delicate ancient association that persists over the generations.

As I zoned out, for some reason Adel's unknown name came to mind, does he even reveal it just to Klemper, as they're so close…? And then abruptly another association popped out.

Klemper is the Hero of Zierenwald. The villagers even dedicate a statue to him. Zierenwald is a made-up name I got from a random generator but very roughly it seems to translate to "Ornamental Forest." I assumed some liberties, like maybe the trees are pretty, thus the weird name, possibly corrupted over the years. I just wanted a German-sounding, not TOO nonsensical name.

I suddenly noticed the village name's connection to the Wald--the forest--possibly the same one the Waldvolk live in. The villagers are not Waldvolk but they're geographically close, is there an association…?

A possible connection between Zierenwald & the Waldvolk, bolstered by the likely connection between Adel's & Klemper's families. All of it seems connected…why not this?

Was Zierenwald once a bigger, more bustling settlement in the distant past? Big enough to lend its name to a duchy…?

😳

As I said…I wasn't seeking this, & it seems a bit outlandish. Yet not overly so, given that the connections between Adel, Klemper, the Waldvolk, & Zierenwald have already been placed. A major theme of this story is the unexpected & intricate ways in which everyone is connected to everyone else, & this would simply reiterate that. I can easily imagine Adel telling Klemper his name & Klemper exclaiming, "You're lying!" Yet Klemper is folkish & superstitious…it'd make sense to him.

The idea's getting stronger but I don't know if I can/should commit. I'm used to von NN. ;_;

A very belated postscript. Well hell, I forgot one of the most important details, not related to the name situation but anyway. Hans?--was not killed by a Trench Rat. Was killed by Schavitz's motorcycle, being driven by Eisen. In effect, Schavitz hires Adel to kill innocent ppl when Schavitz is indirectly responsible for Adel's son's death (he was wrestling with Eisen for control of the bike).

Eisen, BTW, after Schavitz's death ends up confessing all the lurid crimes the general involved him in, incl. Hans's death, before he too takes his own life.

I should clarify a crapload of major characters die in my story.

Anyway that's all for now.

[tehuti88-art]

1/3/25: r/SketchDaily theme, "Free Draw Friday." This week's character from my anthro WWII storyline is Volodymyr (no last name given), sans cap (top drawing) and with cap (bottom drawing). He's a Red Army member who assists the main characters in finding and accessing the Alpine Fortress. There'll be more about him later in my art Tumblr and Toyhou.se.

Regarding his design, he's one of only three bat characters so far (the other two being Papillon and Harricks), thus the giant ears and weird nose.

TUMBLR EDIT: I figured I should get around to Volodymyr or Yevgeny, the Red Army characters who don't appear until the final story arc, Ultima Thule. Originally, Volodymyr, a Ukrainian recruit, was going to be an airman, thus why I put off designing him, as I'd need to look up Red Army flight uniforms and UUUUUGGGHHHHH. But then the thought wormed into my head that he could be a different type of "flyer." As soon as I decided he would be a bat, parts of his character started falling into place, though I did waffle a bit at first determining whether he was truly Red Army, or a partisan or what. The Ukrainians' role in WWII was...complicated. (Some, for example, helped the SS guard the camps, though I think they were forced into it, still, they could be pretty brutal.) What I found about partisans seemed to indicate they fought against the Allies, though it was hard to understand. I decided it'd be easiest for him to just be Red Army, and not even necessarily an airman, though he can still fly.

Extensive personal background hasn't developed yet. The remaining Allies, upon learning of the Nazi presence at the Alpine Fortress after the war's end, are put in touch with Volodymyr, as he's considered one of the best reconnaissance scouts in the Red Army, and should be able to help them detect the holdouts' location from above. Volodymyr arrives and presents himself with papers to prove his identity, speaking broken English. Unlike Papillon and Harricks (neither of whom is part of this team), he makes zero attempt to conceal that he's a bat; he deftly uses hooks attached to his thumbs in place of hands, and carries his giant ears upright. The Allies are a bit nonplussed, but not dismayed; yet then Otto Himmel realizes something. He holds up his hand directly in front of Volodymyr's face and moves it from side to side; Volodymyr follows the motion with his head, yet when Himmel holds up a finger and asks, "How many fingers am I holding up?" Volodymyr grasps his finger with a hook before saying, "One." Volodymyr is functionally blind; he can discern light and shadow, but that's about it--everything else he detects by scent and by echolocation, at which he's so skilled the others can't even tell he's doing it (as opposed to Papillon and Harricks, who open and close their mouths--certain people like Kolten Himmel and Mahogany can hear them but most can't). This isn't a disability he's acquired, either--he's always been blind.

Adel--previously the Wehrmacht sniper known as Ratdog, and hated by the Soviets--is incensed: "They send us a blind guy to scout--? What sort of rubbish joke is this??" "Tie your tongue, Fritz!" Volodymyr retorts in German, "I get by just fine. You need a cliff to jump off, I find it." Volodymyr is equally displeased to learn who Himmel is--an ex-SS captain--and commences calling him "Fashy," though the moment he seems ready to call Kolten some sort of name Himmel (rather uncharacteristically, though this is Kolten we're talking about) pulls a knife and says he can call him any name he likes, but call Kolten anything and he'll slice his throat. Then Volodymyr meets Didrika and exclaims, "I didn't think Krauts let their women carry guns, too busy raising kids, you know?--Kinder, Küche, Kirche." Didrika, who'd normally knock somebody's head off for that, just looks confused.

So, the group is introduced to Volodymyr, who seems like a generally decent guy, just that he says what he means and means what he says. He's a bit of an acquired taste, but turns out to in fact be pretty good at what he does; once they reach the Alps, every so often he takes off into the air (usually scaring the bejeezus out of whoever is nearest), and returns a few moments later with a description of the landscape ahead. He can sense out every contour below and around him, and point out the location of every trail, ravine, and, yes, cliff ("Hey, Fritz!--you want to jump off this one?"), as long as it's not covered or obscured by anything else. He can also warn or notify them of any strangers in the area--and he always knows their nationality. Himmel, perplexed, asks him how he can tell whether a person walking far below, who he can sense yet not see, is a German or a Russian or a Swiss or what; Volodymyr replies that every nationality and race has its own distinctive smell, there are even regional differences. He says fascist Germans, for example, smell like the bratwurst they always eat. Himmel retorts, "I've never eaten a bratwurst in my life!" "Whatever helps you sleep at night, Fashy," Volodymyr replies. They never do figure out how he can tell the difference between, say, an enemy and an ally of the same nationality, except that he says their specific shapes "sound different." That's just so weird they stop trying to understand, he knows what he's doing, that's what counts.

Volodymyr is surprised to learn that Kolten can hear him when he echolocates; Kolten winces and covers his ears when he does so, saying the sound hurts. "Most cannot hear," Volodymyr admits; "What, you have some kind of fancy ears...?" He takes to calling Kolten this--when Himmel first learns of it, he looks ready to go murder him, yet Kolten insists the nickname doesn't bother him, "It means I hear well! I do something good, ja?--and he does not call me stupid." So Volodymyr lives to scout another day.

Another fact the group learns about Volodymyr is that he spent time in a labor camp as a prisoner of the Nazis, so, no wonder he isn't overly fond of Germans. Himmel asks him how long he spent there before being freed; Volodymyr says about a year. "How did you survive so long?" Himmel asks, knowing how difficult it was to last more than a few months in a camp. "Hard work," Volodymyr replies, "you work hard, they don't want to kill you. But also luck. And prayer." He peers skyward; Himmel, a pious Catholic, does the same. "And bribes," Volodymyr adds. "Probably mostly bribes, tak."

I have yet to get into Volodymyr's background, or all that he's intended to do while accompanying the Allies to the Alpine Fortress. There's definitely a lot of potential for interesting exchanges, especially if he gets a good look at what's going on in the Fortress, and who's behind it (SS Major Jäger). Earlier in the story (pre-Ultima Thule, during the war), Jäger is exposed to psychic Nixie's powers when she's temporarily in German custody, yet as seen in the relevant entry, even after this display he's more infuriated by another Nazi's contradiction of his orders than fascinated by what he just witnessed; well, as the story goes on and he grows ever more fanatical, I imagine a followup scene where he encounters Nixie again and offers her the chance to join his side, this time freely and not as a prisoner, to help usher in the Fourth Reich (he seems to believe that his promise of the fall of the Third Reich which treated her so abysmally will win her over). Nixie of course wants no part of that, not only because Jäger is obviously batsh*t by then (I think she stumbles across him while he's preoccupied with one of his heathen rituals, half naked, covered with painted symbols, horns on his head, and obviously high out of his gourd--his protégé Leopoldine might be with him, fully dressed but also high as a kite), but also because she knows his Reich is doomed to failure as well. She manages to escape this bizarre encounter unscathed, although with another promise from Jäger that there's no place in his Reich for dissent; the next time they meet, they'll be enemies.

WELL...given Volodymyr's skills, however mundane rather than supernatural, I imagine Jäger would be interested in him too; unlike his former fellow Nazis, he's willing to draw from a widely varied pool of talent, even to invite a so-called "Untermensch" along. Of course Volodymyr has no interest in helping him, though it just occurred to me, Project Ultima Thule appears to offer the ability to resurrect the dead (of course, there are some really big caveats involved, but Jäger is the sort to withhold just the right amount of info to get what he wants)...and maybe Volodymyr has a loved one who fits the bill...?

I'm too busy working on updating my site lately to focus much on character brainstorming (plus, this is a process that just occurs more in its own time than deliberately), but like I said, there's future potential.

[Volodymyr 2025 [‎Friday, ‎January ‎3, ‎2025, ‏‎12:00:30 AM]]

[Volodymyr 2025 2 [‎Friday, ‎January ‎3, ‎2025, ‏‎12:01:36 AM]]

[valkyries-things]

PVT. NATALYA KOVSHOVA // SNIPER

“She was a Soviet female sniper who fought in WWII. She fought with her friend Mariya Polivanova who acted as her spotter. She fought bravely throughout the war; she was killed fighting German Wehrmacht forces near Novgorod in August 1942. She was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union on 14 Feb 1943.”

(with Mariya Polivanova)

[olivia2010kroth]

Lessons of Russian History - Remembering heroic Soviet sniper Aliya Moldagulova, 80 years after her death

Lessons of Russian History: Remembering heroic Soviet sniper Aliya Moldagulova, 80 years after her death ln 1941, when the Nazi Wehrmacht invaded the Soviet Union, young people from all of the Soviet Republics took up arms, trained as fighters and participated in the Great Patriotic War to defeat the enemy and save the Motherland. One of those young people was the famous female sniper…

[moonlitkat]

I doubt Hughes supported the suicidal aspect of Roy's plan, but in any case, I don't think its success would've meant that Hughes was executed himself. Hughes was a normal soldier, so he didn't carry the same guilt that Roy and Riza did. We see in the manga how the war wasn't so one-sided from the point of view of the troops, since they were getting killed and facing real resistance.

Also, during her flashback, Riza mentions that a common soldier could just fire randomly at people firing at them, but snipers and alchemists knew they would kill anyone they targeted, and they specifically targeted civilians. So I think it's possible that Hughes didn't contribute to the genocide to the same degree as Roy and Riza, sort of like a Wehrmacht vs Waffen-SS situation. Like, still evil, but he could've reasonably been less a direct perpetrator and more a collaborator. So I think Hughes might not have felt the same traumatizing guilt that Roy, Riza, and Armstrong did, and he likely wouldn't have been tried as a war criminal anyway.

It really kills me how little we actually know Maes Hughes.

We mostly see him from the Elric brothers point of view, and he clearly regarded them as children and obviously wasn’t about to trauma dump on them. But he had the same upbeat attitude around Mustang who was simply irritated and knew that’s just how he is.

But I want to know how he remained so cheerful and optimistic after everything he went through in Ishval, how he worked through his own trauma and was able to still have a family without carrying the same guilt Roy and Riza do.

I want to know when and how he and Gracia met, how much he told her about Ishval, what he planned on (if ever) telling Elicia about Ishval, how close of a friend he considered Roy, his life outside of the military. Was Elicia even planned? Or did he feel that bringing life into the world could be a form of redemption?

Most of all, I wonder if he knew or agreed with Mustang’s plan to put the soldiers from Ishval on trial, if he was content with working towards his own death sentence, if that was how he justified his life leading up to it, or if he hoped to change Mustang’s mind, or if Mustang simply never told him (although that seems very ooc for Mustang).

I know the point is that he haunts the narrative but I wishhh we had more content to base his personality on. I wish we knew more about Ishval in general.

If the answers to this can be found in the manga or any other sources (or any good fics lol) please point me towards them!!

[tehuti88-art]

4/12/24: r/SketchDaily theme, "Free Draw Friday." This week's character from my anthro WWII storyline is "Saint Olga" (real name never given), without garrison cap (top drawing) and with garrison cap (bottom drawing). She's a character too new to be on my "to-draw" list yet (sigh) though some backstory has emerged. She's a Red Army sniper whose single-minded motivation for revenge earns her the nickname St. Olga, after Olga of Kiev/Kyiv, who BTW is my 33x great-grandmother. There'll be more about her later in my art Tumblr and Toyhou.se.

Regarding her design, I wanted interesting/distinctive colors, these were inspired by the black/gold theme in some of St. Olga's art. Her hairstyle is loosely based on Roza Shanina's.

TUMBLR EDIT: Saint Olga is more of an occasionally appearing character, I can't really call her a background character, so I haven't delved a lot into deep development for her. What little info is available is given by characters like Boris, who've heard stories that she lost her husband to the Germans, who tortured and killed him (a sticking point for Boris, who was himself tortured and assaulted by Sgt. Lange and his guys). Her husband was a Red Army sniper; following his death, Saint Olga took up the rifle and assumed the role. Thus her nickname. German sniper Lt. Ratdog, who isn't especially big on book learning, doesn't understand the relation, so Capt. Himmel, who IS big on book learning, fills him in: Olga was a Viking princess, wife of Igor the Prince of Kiev (I'm using the historic name rather than the modern Kyiv, this was in the state once known as Kievan Rus'), who, following her husband's assassination by enemy forces, engaged in a brutal campaign of revenge which killed thousands. "And they made her a saint...?" Ratdog inquires, perplexed; Himmel tersely replies, "The church can be forgiving."

(And yes, this scary lady is one of my direct ancestors, through Anna Yaroslavna's/Anne of Kiev's marriage to Henry I of France, via a gateway ancestor of my maternal grandfather. Alas, I am not, so far, descended from Otto the Great...I'm descended from his sister Hedwig. *grumbles*)

Olga makes repeat, brief appearances throughout the story, never sticking around for long. She's fueled by nothing other than hatred and rage. She has a run-in with Ratdog, who is actually not much different from her--he's motivated to take up his rifle as a weapon following the death of his son, which he incorrectly blames on the Americans (based on false info fed to him by Wehrmacht sergeant Udo Eisen--actually, his employer General Schavitz is to blame)--yet, even though he empathizes with her for this reason and avoids killing her, she expresses no such magnanimity in return--her shot misses when her gun malfunctions, but she vows that she'll kill him the next chance she gets. Ratdog has a strict honor code that prohibits him from killing others under certain circumstances; Olga has no such honor code. Cross her, and you're dead.

Her relationship with other Allied characters is complicated in that she refuses to collaborate with them, and considers even some of them the enemy. Romani sniper Didrika is basically on her side, but Didrika is also German, and Olga despises Germans. Even worse is that Didrika, Ratdog, and Ratdog's companion PFC Klemper, despite being enemies, share a grudging respect for and occasionally even assist each other (Ratdog opposes the Nazi regime, and Klemper follows wherever he goes); to Olga, this makes Didrika a Nazi sympathizer, even though neither Ratdog nor Klemper is a Nazi. Lie down with (rat)dogs, as they say. Then there's Boris, a literal Red Army Russian. It isn't bad enough that he's taken up with Didrika. He did so after deserting the Red Army with some of his men, so although he's still loyal to the communist cause and hates most of the Germans himself, to Olga, he's no better than a traitor. Olga does give these two one pass, but just to give them a warning, that the next time they meet, they shouldn't expect any mercy. Didrika's reaction is much like Ratdog's; Boris, on the other hand, understands where she's coming from, and says that if he were in her shoes, "I would kill me, too."

Olga's spite isn't limited to combatants, either. When a German target uses a civilian woman as a human shield, Olga shoots and kills both without a second thought. On another occasion, she opens fire on a public gathering and just misses hitting Leopoldine Jäger (Himmel shields her and is slightly wounded in the process). Ratdog and company even come across evidence that she set fire to a homestead, shades of what Lange's company did to Klemper's and some other homes; difference is, even Lange never gunned down the fleeing occupants. Olga? She has no such qualms. The Germans and even the Americans (who are equally unsuccessful in getting her to work with them) find her brutality breathtaking.

Result of all this is that most of the other characters, Axis and Allied alike, are frequently mystified by Saint Olga's morals, since most of them have certain lines they won't cross, while Olga appears willing and ready to kill anyone at a moment's notice. There's no appeal to her better nature, no way to get on her good side, no means of working with her. She will either pass on by or consider you a target. Almost everyone learns to outright avoid trying to interact with her for this reason. Essentially, she's a chaos agent, and even the rest of the Red Army doesn't bother trying to rein her in.

Olga pops up at random throughout the story to target...pretty much anyone, and throw everything in disarray, which occasionally helps one party or other depending on who she's targeting, though of course this is never intentional. She never succeeds in killing Ratdog though this is based far more on blind luck and his own sniper skills combined. She does ALMOST kill him one time when he declines to try the same since she's wounded, and is spared only when Klemper tries taking the shot instead; Klemper is not a sniper, so he misses, and Olga escapes to go tend to her injuries. Klemper scoffs at the rattled Ratdog, "Your heart is too soft."

Olga eludes death numerous times, sometimes just barely, but at last, during a confrontation where Ratdog finally attempts to shoot her yet runs out of ammunition, someone else takes the shot--Olga lets out a small noise and drops to the ground. She's still alive, making it clear that her shooter isn't a sniper; Ratdog and Klemper hear bootsteps, and Maj. Jäger and Capt. Himmel appear. Jäger's gun is drawn--he's the shooter. The look on his face makes it pretty clear he hasn't forgotten nearly losing his beloved Leopoldine. He approaches the wounded Olga and looks down at her coldly. When he says, "This crusade you have, to avenge your husband at any cost; what exactly has it gotten you? Has it brought him back?" Olga, panting and bleeding, gives a weak laugh and replies, "You...you know nothing about family."

Jäger stares at her a moment, then lifts his pistol and shoots her in the forehead. Himmel and Ratdog flinch at the report. They and Klemper stand by silently as Jäger holsters his gun and turns away from Olga's body, saying, "And that's how you take care of pests," heading back toward his vehicle. Himmel hesitates briefly before crossing himself and following. Ratdog and Klemper are left behind; after a moment Ratdog approaches Olga's body and kneels to look her over. He carefully removes the medals from her breast; Klemper comes forward now and asks, "What are you doing...?"

"Maybe she has family somewhere," Ratdog muses, looking at the medals. "Maybe they'll want these back. Someday."

Klemper is briefly silent before saying, "She's probably like us, and has no family anymore," and turning away. Ratdog feels a pang--thinking of just how many of them have no one left, why Saint Olga fought as hard and as viciously as she did--then stands, pauses a moment more (he feels like he should offer a prayer, except he doesn't believe in God and doesn't know any prayers, so all he can do is offer a moment of silence), and follows Klemper away.

I don't know what becomes of Saint Olga's body. Some time after the war has ended, Ratdog--now mourning Klemper's death (by sniper fire) and going by his civilian name, Adel--at last has the chance to return the medals to Olga's cousin, the closest member of her family still surviving. He asks the woman what was Olga's real name. She pauses before replying that Olga is now her real name; her cousin effectively died when she lost her husband, so Saint Olga is who she became. Adel, who gave up his own name while his heart was full of hate, understands, and doesn't press further. Before she leaves with the medals, Olga's cousin pauses and addresses him by his German nickname, Rattenhund--this was the name Olga had used to refer to him, as an exact translation was lacking in Russian. She had mentioned her enemy and counterpart, the German sniper, before; while it couldn't be said that she respected him, still, she'd heard of the death of his son, and she understood him. "One thing that make you two different," her cousin says in stilted German, "she lose her heart for good...you get your heart back." She taps her fingers against Adel's chest. "Look after it," she says, thanks him again for the medals, and leaves.

Adel, whose heart is no longer full of hatred yet is still raw from loss, finds he has no words left to say.

[Saint Olga 2024 [‎Friday, ‎April ‎12, ‎2024, ‏‎12:00:17 AM]]

[Saint Olga 2024 2 [‎Friday, ‎April ‎12, ‎2024, ‏‎12:00:28 AM]]

[army-of-idiots]

Worlds best snipers……Vasily Grigoryevich

Zaytsev (RussianMarch 23, 1915 - December

15, 1991) was a Soviet sniper during World War

I, notable particularly for his activities

between November 10 and December 17,

1942, during the Battle of Stalingrad. He killed

225 soldiers and officers of the Wehrmacht

and other Axis armies, including 11 enemy

snipers.

Prior to November 10, he had already killed 32

Axis soldiers with the standard-issue Mosin-

Nagant rifle.[1] Between October 1942 and

January 1943, Zaytsev made an estimated

400 kills.

[saviorangell2]

Wehrmacht sniper

[jiejie-eonni-onee-sama]

THE BASTERDS’S ANGELS

Somewhere in a safe place in the French countryside, a group of armed men prepared themselves for the mission they were sent for: killing Nazis and sending fear through the ranks of the Wehrmacht based in France. 

And until now, they managed to accomplish their work, as the German soldiers only knew them as The Basterds. 

Led by Lieutenant Aldo Raine, those volunteers took pleasure in killing and terrifying their foes, as many of the Basterds were Jewish. 

Looking at his men, Aldo smirked: he could not wait to hunt down new Nazis. 

"I know that look. Looking for new scalps, darling?"

Smiling, he turned and saw the woman he cherished the most. 

"You know me too well, honey."

"That's why we're husband and wife!"

"Ya damn right, Winona."

The woman named Winona was, indeed, Aldo's wife. Born in the Cherokee tribe, this woman was the embodiment of the Native American female warrior: athletic, wise, loyal, and brave.

Moreover, she was the only woman in this group. Some people would think that a woman had nothing to do in the U.S. Army.

But quoteth Donny, "She kills more nazis in one day than I kill in three days."

The Cherokee woman has already won the respect of her peers since the first day in France. Besides, she gained a gruesome reputation among the Nazis based in France. They called her "The Cherokee Amazon."

The Apache and the Cherokee: a match made in heaven who took their enemies in hell...

Aldo put his arm around her shoulders:

"Can ya believe it, honey? You and I, in France, killing fascists... How pleasant it is!"

"I agree."

"It's like our honeymoon!"

Winona laughed at this statement.

"Well, a very blood-thirsty honeymoon. But honestly, I would never imagine killing Nazis without you, Aldo!"

"Aw, sweetie! Ya know how to talk to me!" he grinned before kissing her.

A sweet moment interrupted by the booming voice of Donny Donowitz, aka "The Bear Jew."

"Aw, look at those lovebirds!"

"Damn ya, Donny! I was enjoying this moment!"

"We have noticed!" smirked Wicki.

Raine rolled his eyes but smirked. His men are the best among the best, especially when it comes to killing Nazis.

They all came from different backgrounds, had various faiths, but for sure, they were more than ready to wipe out the Third Reich. 

Of course, among his men, there was Donny Donowitz, a sturdy chap from Boston and the other leader of the group. This man gained the nickname of "Bear Jew" after he bashed the skull of dozens of Nazis with his prized baseball bat.

Then, you have Wilhelm Wicki, who fled his native Austria after the Anchlüss. Probably one of the oldest members of this group, his remarkable marksmanship made him a feared sniper.

Sitting next to Wicki was Hugo Stiglitz, a former German soldier. He hated the regime to the core, and he managed to kill 13 Gestapo officers. The Basterds get him out of his jail, and now, Hugo became one of them. More silent than some of his teammates, he easily scared people around him.

Near them, a young man was quietly reading a book, enjoying this peaceful moment. This young man was Smithson Utivich, another Jewish-American soldier. Like his friends, he enrolled in this group to save the remaining European Jews from Nazism's clutches. Even if he was not the most impressive, he excelled at killing Nazis.

The one next to Utivich, who was taking a small rest, was Omar Ulmer, his best friend. A remarkable soldier, Private Ulmer often works along with Smithson and Donny during his missions. Fast and efficient, the Nazis did not stand a chance against him. 

Not far from Omar, his friend Gerold Hirschberg was laughing with his comrades. Hirschberg was considered a loyal and cheerful friend by his fellow Basterds. However, his hot-tempered character made him the official trouble seeker of the group, as he often found himself in danger.

The other man talking with Hirshcberg was named Michael Zimmermann. He has the two roles of driver and explosives expert. The Germans muttered that he was a crazy man who escaped from an asylum. But the truth was that Michael only became mad when he saw a swastika. But for the Basterds, he was a pleasant companion and a joyful friend.

Sitting at his right, his best friend named Simon Sakowitz was tidying his medical stuff. Before the war, he was a brilliant medicine student, but he decided to put his studies on hiatus to enroll in the army. Simon was a skilled and efficient doctor in his group and also an appreciated friend.

Smoking a cigarette, Andy Kagan smirked while looking at his teammates. The young Mister Kagan came from a wealthy family and started a promising acting career in Hollywood until he decided to rescue his people in Europe. He was the spy of the group, a master of manipulation and charm. 

Leaning against a tree, Archie Hicox looked at his allies with a mixture of puzzlement and amusement. This British officer was the last addition to the group. In the beginning, the MI5 spy did not get along with the Basterds, as he saw them as a bunch of crazy rednecks while the others considered him as a snobbish man. But the more they worked together, the most they trusted each other, and mutual respect started to settle between them.

All those men were here in France for one reason: killing Nazis.

Something they excelled, as they did earlier, as they exterminated an entire patrol an hour ago.

Now, they enjoyed a moment of calm to relax before reaching another town. 

Suddenly, Aldo gently stroke Winona's cheek and said:

"Get ready, my lady. We're gonna move!"

"At your orders, Mr. Raine!" smirked the woman as she started to pick up her belongings.

Smiling, the Lieutenant turned to his men and exclaimed:

"Get up, boys! We move!"

"Uh? What? What's going? Are we attacked?" asked Omar, startled.

"Nah, Omar. The Lieutenant just said we're moving. Get up now!" explained Donny.

"Where are we going?" asked Simon.

"Probably somewhere near Fontainebleau. At least, we have to get closer to Paris," replied Utivich.

"Exactly, Smitty! I hope I will have time to pay my debt off once we got there!" sighed Zimmermann as he finished packing up his stuff.

As he picked his backpack, Hirschberg noticed Hugo, who trimmed his knife in his bag. Smirking, the young Basterd came nearer to his comrade. A little game that Andy and Wicki had noticed.

"Oh my Lord! Here we go again! Will Hirschberg never learn his lessons?" sighed the Austrian.

"I wonder how it will end this time: will Hirschberg have a kicked butt or a broken nose?" smirked the American.

Meanwhile, Gerold was close to Hugo and said with an authoritative tone:

"C'mon, Stiglitz! Hurry up! We have to go!"

The German deserter turned and glared at his teammate:

"Lass mich in Ruhe, Hirschberg."  (Leave me alone, Hirschberg).

"Why do I fear the worst?" sighed Simon as he pinched the bridge of the nose.

He counted how many times he healed the bruises on Hirschberg after the latter tried to pick up on someone stronger than him.

At the same time, Hirschberg teased Hugo while the latter tried to contain his anger. But his patience was running thin... 

"Ich werde es dir nicht zwei mal sagen." (I won't tell you twice).

"Aw, come on! Don't look at me like that! I am trying to tell you that you're a bit slow!"

"Stop that, Gerold! You're going to regret it!" smirked Andy.

Indeed, Hugo was pissed off by Gerold. Fuming, he took his knife and put it on Hirschberg's throat.

"Leave me alone. Now!" growled the German man.

Gulping, the young Basterd raised his hands in defeat.

"O-OK, Stiglitz. I stop. Can you lower your knife, please?"

Growling, Hugo put his knife back in his vest while Gerold ran away.

"We told you that you're going to have trouble, Geri!" snickered Michael.

As for Wicki, he turned to Hugo and asked:

"War es notwendig, Hirschberg einen Schrecken einzujagen, Hugo?" (Was it necessary to scare Hirschberg, Hugo?)

"Er ist eine Nervensäge." (He is a pain in the ass.) snarled Hugo as he walked towards Donny and Omar.

Wilhelm rolled his eyes and muttered:

"Ich schwöre bei Gott, die würden mich wahnsinnig machen!" (I swear to God, they would drive me crazy!)

"C'MON, BOYS! WE HAVE A LONG ROAD!" yelled Aldo as he led the march along with Winona.

Soon, all the commando started their long road across the French countryside. Unbeknownst to them, they were about to make an encounter that would change their lives for a long time...

Meanwhile, Maddie and Ada wandered through the forest, looking for shelter.

A little earlier, they had almost been spotted by a German patrol, which had scared them.

Now, their priority was to find a safe place while they waited for help.

As they walked through the woods, Maddie saw a cave:

"Look, aunty! A shelter!"

"Well done, Maddie! Let's go!"

They rushed to the hiding place and checked that nothing was inside.

Once assured that they were alone, Ada ordered her niece:

"Listen to me, Maddie: you're going to stay here and make no noise, okay?"

"What about you? What are you going to do?" asked the little girl.

"I'll try to find something to eat. Keep quiet, do you understand?"

Maddie nodded. Smiling, Ada stroked her head:

"I'll be back soon, I promise!"

Then, she walked away while Maddie hid behind a rock.

The young girl hated being alone. Of course, she knew that it was necessary. But the truth was that she was scared.

She was afraid to be alone, at the mercy of the Germans. After all, what could a seven-year-old girl do when faced with armed soldiers?

And then, who knew what could happen to her aunt?

Well, the little girl knew that Ada was capable of defending herself. But if anything happened to her, she would not be able to survive.

Suddenly, she heard voices and footsteps approaching the cave. Covering her mouth and trying to be as hidden as possible, Maddie tried to figure out who had just arrived.

She kept her ears open and listened to the conversation:

"Great, guys! We can stop here!"

"Finally, it's about time! We must have been walking for hours, and my legs are killing me!"

"Stop complaining, Gerold!"

"Oh no! You're not going to start bickering again!"

Maddie was intrigued: these people seemed to be speaking in English. Well, at least she wasn't dealing with Nazis, which was good news.

But what were these people doing here?

Lost in her thoughts, she didn't hear anyone enter the cave until a man's voice asked:

"What on earth are you doing here?"

Horrified, she looked up and saw a medium-sized man staring at her with a surprised look.

As for Omar, he did not expect to find a child alone in a place like this.

He called his boss:

"Lieutenant, come and see!"

"What?" asked Aldo, who arrived in his turn and saw the little girl.

"Look at that! It's quite funny!"

"What's going on?" asked Wicki.

For all answers, the two men came out of the cave, escorting Maddie. The little girl was looking at the rest of the group with a frightened look.

"It seems that our hideout already had an occupant!" declared Hicox.

"But who's crazy enough to leave a kid all alone in the wild?" exclaimed Michael.

"I don't know," muttered Andy.

Simon, in his role as a doctor, walked over to the girl:

"I need to check her out. Who knows, maybe she needs treatment?"

"Do your job, doc!"

Sakowitz kneeled in front of Maddie and asked her:

"Do you speak English?"

She hesitantly replied with a small voice:

"Y-Yes, doctor!"

"Aw, ain't she cute?" smiled Donny.

"Low your voice, Don. She is scared!" said Winona while looking at the young girl.

Meanwhile, Simon carefully examined Maddie. He realized that she might suffer from malnutrition.

"Oh God, look how thin she is!"

He turned to Aldo.

"Lieutenant, do we have some food to give her?"

"For sure! Omar, gimme some bread, would ya?"

"Right now, sir!" replied Ulmer as he threw a piece of bread.

Raine caught it and handed the bread to Maddie.

"Here, ya can have some!"

Hesitantly, the little girl took the bread and muttered:

"Thank you!"

"Cute and polite: you must be a lovely little person!" smirked Archie.

Maddie took a bite and ate slowly, enjoying the taste of the bread.

"Poor little thing! She must not have eaten for days!" declared Wicki.

Winona came nearer and asked:

"What's your name, little one?"

Once she finished her mouthful, the little girl replied:

"Maddie Mandelbaum!"

"Okay, Maddie. Now, tell me: what are you doing here, all alone?"

Looking around, Maddie replied:

"It's because I flee!"

"What do you flee?"

For an answer, Maddie picked her necklace and showed a silver Star of David.

That's all it took for the Basterds to understand what Maddie was trying to escape.

"I see... You're a Jew, right?"

The little girl nodded.

"I see... But what are you doing by yourself?"

"I'm not alone: my auntie went to get food."

"Well, okay. And what's your auntie's name?" asked Smithson.

A female voice answered:

"Why don't you ask me?"

Everyone turned to Ada, who was holding a bag over her shoulder.

The young woman looked suspiciously at this troop. Even though they were not wearing Wehrmacht uniforms, she did not want to take the risk of crossing paths with Gestapo soldiers.

"Well, I guess you're the famous aunt?" asked Omar.

"Indeed. I am Adela Mandelbaum. And you?"

"We are American... with a German deserter, an American-Austrian soldier, and a British officer," replied Andy.

Sighing with relief, Ada put down her bag.

"At least there's some good news in this mess!"

Maddie rushed to her aunt and said:

"Ce sont des gens bien, tata. Ils m’ont donné du pain!"  (They're good people, Auntie. They gave me bread!)

Aldo walked over to Ada and introduced himself:

"Lieutenant Aldo Raine, nice to meet ya. So like this, you're the one who manages survival?"

"Yes, indeed."

"I see. And how long have ya been alone?"

"I don't know. I'm more concerned about escaping the Germans than counting the days."

Aldo nodded before replying:

"And I suppose you're hiding because you're Jewish, Imma right?"

Ada sighed.

"Exactly."

Donny spoke up:

"Lieutenant, we can't leave them alone. They'll get caught by the Krauts!"

"But they're civilians: we can't afford to have potential targets with us!" grumbled Hirschberg.

Hugo glared at him:

"Put yourself in the kid's shoes: would you like to be left at the mercy of those sickos? I don't think so."

Simon added:

"Besides, if they stay with us, they'll be safe. What do you think, Lieutenant?"

Raine massaged the back of his neck, doubtful.

"It's true that having two civilians with us can be a problem..."

He met his wife's gaze as she stared at him pleadingly. And if there was one person who could make Aldo Raine give in, it was Winona.

He sketched a smile:

"But as ya seem to me two brave women, it seems logical to me that ya stay with us!

This decision was greeted with enthusiasm by the rest of the team.

"I thank you for your help."

"No worries. After all, several of my guys are Jewish."

The young woman asked:

"Before I forget, Lieutenant Raine..."

"Yes, Miss?"

"What is your mission here?"

At these moments, she saw all the Basterds sketch a toothy grin. And the Lieutenant's answer did not hide their intentions:

"We parachuted into France for one mission and one mission only: to kill Nazis!"

Hugo asked:

"Doesn't that cause you problems?"

At these words, he saw a gleam in Ada's eye that he knew all too well. He could see the sorrow and hatred for the Nazis in her brown orbs.

And the determined tone of her voice confirmed his impression:

"On the contrary, it pleases me to hear that my people are being avenged. Hitler's foot soldiers stole my life and threatened my niece. I lost my family, and I don't know if they are alive or if those Gestapo goons shot them!"

She turned to Aldo and declared:

"Lieutenant, I know I look like a simple damsel in distress, but I want revenge. I want to make them pay for the evil they've done."

Impressed by this sudden determination, Aldo asked:

"What can ya do?"

"I'm an excellent shot, and I can fight."

"That's not so ladylike, coming from a young woman!"

Ada smiled:

"Who said I was ladylike?"

"My aunt is the best in the world... right after Mom!" pointed Maddie.

Aldo smirked and held out his hand.

"In that case, welcome to the team, Ada! Just so you know, if you join this commando, you owe me 100 Nazi scalps!"

Without hesitation, Ada grasped the outstretched hand and shook it in agreement.

"I will settle that debt, Lieutenant. And I will die trying if I have to!"

"That's what I like to hear!"

"But I want you to promise to look out for Maddie, no matter what!"

"PROMISED!" exclaimed the Basterds.

At that moment, Maddie's face lit up with an adorable smile that seemed to shine through the dim light of the Fontainebleau woods. Now she had nothing to fear from the Germans because now she had found guardian angels armed with guns and baseball bats. 

As for Ada, it was a new life for her that began. She was not a prey anymore. Now, she was the predator. 

The Germans better start running because she won't have mercy. And Ada Mandelbaum always kept her words... 

Thanks for the reading!

Stay tuned for the next chapter!

@sergeant-donny-donowitz​ @marilynmonroefanfics​ @velvet-waltz​ @ocfairygodmother​ @redrosewritingsstuff​ @empress-writes​ @jokersqueenofchaos​ (whom I thank for the German translation) @fandoms-are-my-friends-1321​ @knives-out17​ @multific​ @cherryplasmids​ @askthebasterds​ @nataschalena2​ 

[stealth-skills]

A look inside Wehrmacht sniper school in 1944.

[greatworldwar2]

• Battle of Castle Itter

The Battle for Castle Itter was fought in the Austrian North Tyrol village of Itter on May 5th, 1945, in the last days of the European Theater of World War II.

The castle was seized from it's owner Franz Grüner by SS Lieutenant General Oswald Pohl under the orders of Heinrich Himmler on February 7th, 1943. The transformation of the castle into a prison camp was completed by April 25th, 1943, and the facility was placed under the administration of the Dachau concentration camp. The prison was established to contain high-profile French prisoners valuable to the Reich. Notable prisoners included tennis player Jean Borotra, former prime ministers Édouard Daladier and Paul Reynaud, former commanders-in-chief Maxime Weygand and Maurice Gamelin, and Charles de Gaulle's elder sister Marie-Agnès Cailliau.

On May 3rd, 1945, Zvonimir Čučković, an imprisoned Yugoslav communist resistance member, who worked as a handyman at the prison, left the castle on the pretense of performing an errand for the prison's commander Sebastian Wimmer. Čučković carried with him a letter in English seeking Allied assistance he was to give to the first American he encountered. Čučković pressed on up the Inn River valley towards Innsbruck 64 km (40 mi) distant. Late that evening, he reached the outskirts of the city and encountered an advance party of the 409th Infantry Regiment of the American 103rd Infantry Division of the US VI Corps and informed them of the castle's prisoners. They were unable to authorize a rescue on their own but promised Čučković an answer from their headquarters unit by morning of May 4th.

At dawn, a heavily armored rescue was mounted but was stopped by heavy shelling just past Jenbach around halfway to Itter, then recalled by superiors, Only two jeeps of auxiliary personnel continued. on May 2nd, the prison's commander Wimmer feared for his life and abandoned his post after a suspicious death occurred. The SS-Totenkopfverbände guards departed the castle soon after, with the prisoners taking control of the castle and arming themselves with the weaponry that remained. Failing to learn of the result of Čučković's effort, prison leaders accepted the offer of its Czech cook, Andreas Krobot, to bicycle to Wörgl mid-day on May 4th in hopes of reaching help there. After making contact with a local resistance operative. He was taken to Major Josef Gangl, commander of the remains of a unit of Wehrmacht soldiers who had defied an order to retreat and instead thrown in with the local resistance, being made its head. Gangl sought to maintain his unit's position in the town of Wörgl to protect local residents from SS troops that had taken over the town.

Gangl's hopes were pinned on the Americans reaching Wörgl promptly and surrendering to them. Instead, he would now have to approach them under a white flag to ask for their help. Around the same time, a reconnaissance unit of four Sherman tanks of the 23rd Tank Battalion, 12th Armored Division of the US XXI Corps, under the command of Captain Lee, had reached Kufstein, Austria, 13 km (8 mi) to the north. Asked to provide relief by Gangl, Lee did not hesitate, volunteering to lead the rescue mission and immediately earning permission from his HQ. After a personal reconnaissance of the Castle with Gangl, Lee left two of his tanks behind but requisitioned five more and supporting infantry from the recently arrived 142nd Infantry Regiment. En route, Lee was forced to send the reinforcements back when a bridge proved too tenuous for the entire column to cross once, let alone twice. Leaving one of his tanks behind to guard it, he set back off accompanied only by 14 American soldiers, Gangl, and a driver, and a truck carrying ten former German artillerymen. Along the way they defeated a party of SS troops that had been attempting to set up a roadblock.

Upon Lee's arrival at the castle, prisoners greeted the rescuing force warmly but were disappointed at its small size. Lee placed the men under his command in defensive positions around the castle and positioned his tank at the main entrance. Lee had ordered the French prisoners to hide, but they remained outside and fought alongside the American and Wehrmacht soldiers. Throughout the night, the defenders were harried by a reconnaissance force sent to assess their strength and probe the fortress for weaknesses. On the morning of May 5th, a force of 100–150 Waffen-SS launched their attack. The Sherman tank provided machine-gun fire support until it was destroyed by German fire from an 88 mm gun; it was occupied at the time only by a radioman, who escaped without injury. Meanwhile, by early afternoon, word had finally reached the 142nd of the desperation of the defenders' plight, and a relief force was dispatched. Aware he had been unable to give the 142nd complete information on the enemy and its disposition before communications had been severed, Lee accepted tennis star Borotra's offer to vault the castle wall and run the gauntlet of SS strongpoints and ambushes to deliver it. He succeeded, then joined the force as it made haste to reach the prison before its defenders fired their last rounds of ammunition.

The relief force arrived around 16:00, and the SS were promptly defeated. Some 100 SS prisoners were reportedly taken. The French prisoners were evacuated towards France that evening, reaching Paris on May 10th. For his service defending the castle, Lee received the Distinguished Service Cross. Gangl died during the battle from a sniper rifle bullet while trying to move former French Prime Minister Paul Reynaud out of harm's way and was honored as an Austrian national hero. The battle was fought five days after Adolf Hitler had committed suicide and only two days before the signing of Germany's unconditional surrender. It was the only battle where Americans and Germans fought alongside one another during the war.

[alexar60]

La bataille du château d’Itter (histoire vraie)

C’est un château qui ne paye pas de mine, perdu au fond de l’Autriche. Son apparence médiévale ajoute une touche de coquetterie au paysage du Tyrol déjà très beau. Les mille habitants d’Itter sont fiers de leur château. Cependant, on ne raconte pas son histoire mouvementée dans les livres. En effet, les nazis réquisitionnèrent la place en 1943, décidés d’en faire une annexe du camp de concentration de Dachau. Ainsi des prisonniers de guerre importants y résidèrent. Parmi eux, le tennisman Jean Borotra, pourtant ancien ministre de Pétain, les anciens premiers ministres Edouard Daladier et Paul Reynaux, les généraux Gamelin et Weygand qui signa la reddition de 1940 dégradant peu après le général De Gaulle en colonel pour son refus de revenir de Londres. D’ailleurs, il y avait aussi Marie-Agnès De Gaulle, la sœur du Général. Le résistant nationaliste François De La Roque et Léon Jouhaux, qui devait se demander pourquoi lui le secrétaire général de la CGT était enfermé avec des politiciens aux idées opposées. A moins que ce soit ça son enfer. Et durant quelques mois, le président Albert Lebrun. Il y avait donc surtout des français dans cette prison de luxe car c’était une prison de luxe, loin des camps de concentration puisque ses occupants étaient libres de leur temps à l’exception de quitter le château.

Le 29 avril 1945, l’armée américaine libéra le camp de Dachau. Prévenus de la situation anarchique dans le Tyrol, les prisonniers envoyèrent Zvonimir Cuckovic un résistant qui travaillait à l’entretien du château avec une lettre rédigée en anglais à donner au premier américain rencontré afin d’obtenir de l’aide. Seulement, il évita les villages proches occupés par les nazis qui massacraient les habitants défaitistes ou les déserteurs. Après avoir parcouru une soixantaine de kilomètres il rencontra l’avant-garde d’un régiment de l’armée US. On dépêcha le lendemain un groupe dont le blindé dû rebrousser chemin à cause de bombardement, laissant seulement deux jeeps secourir les prisonniers qui n’arrivèrent jamais.  

Pendant ce temps, les gardes SS quittèrent le château d’Itter, abandonnant les prisonniers à leur sort. Ces derniers se réveillèrent un peu confus par la fuite de leurs geôliers. Puis, ils hissèrent le drapeau français et récupérèrent quelques armes oubliées par les nazis dans le but de se protéger au cas où d’autres, plus violents, viendraient. Ne voyant pas le retour de leur messager, le cuisinier Andrea Krobot proposa de partir contacter les alliés. Bien que surpris par des échauffourées dans la petite ville de Wörgl, il réussit à prévenir la résistance autrichienne qui l’amena au major Joseph Gangl commandant les restes de la Wehrmacht et qui avait décidé de s’opposer aux massacres commis par les Waffen-SS. Après réflexion, Joseph Gangl prit la lettre destinée aux américains et partit accompagné de son aide de camp apporter lui-même ce courrier. La voiture fit de nombreux détours, traversa plusieurs champs pour éviter les barrages de fanatiques nazis ainsi que les terrains minés et un bombardement américain. Enfin ils rejoignirent une unité de reconnaissance commandée par le capitaine John C ’Jack’ Lee. L’américain resta stupéfait d’entendre les explications du major allemand et du contenu de la lettre. Surtout que l’officier de la Wehrmacht se porta volontaire pour commander l’expédition. Lee obtint l’accord de son Etat-major pour intervenir.

Les français accueillirent dans la plus grande incompréhension leurs sauveurs : Un char, quatorze soldats américains et dix soldats allemands. Ne pouvant traverser le pont, le tank bloqua l’entrée du château tandis que Lee organisa la défense de la forteresse dont les prisonniers participèrent contre sa décision. Arrivés dans la nuit du 5 mai 1945, 150 waffen-SS préparèrent le siège du château puis attaquèrent à plusieurs reprises afin d’évaluer les forces en présence ainsi que les positions les moins bien défendues. Dès le petit matin, les nazis assiégèrent la forteresse durant des heures.  La mitrailleuse du char offrit un appui-feu redoutable jusqu’à ce qu’il soit détruit par un canon sans avoir de blessé puisque l’équipage s’était déjà retranché peu avant. Les combats furent acharnés, les nazis gagnèrent du terrain obligeant les assiégés à se barricader dans le donjon. Les défenseurs résistèrent malgré l’amenuisement des munitions. De même tout semblait fichu lorsque Jean Borotra tenta le tout pour le tout ; il réussit à quitter le château et rejoignit d’autres troupes américaines proches. Guidées par l’ancienne star du tennis, elles arrivèrent aux environs de 16h et pilonnèrent immédiatement les positions nazies au grand soulagement des assiégés. Plus d’une centaine de Waffen-SS furent fait prisonniers tandis qu’on comptabilisait un  seul mort parmi les assiégés : Le major Joseph Gangl fut abattu par un sniper nazi pendant qu’il protégeait l’ancien premier ministre Paul Reynaud. Le héros de guerre du 3e Reich est mort en combattant avec des américains pour libérer des prisonniers français. Il fut gratifié du titre de héros national autrichien pour son alliance avec la résistance autrichienne. Les français quittèrent rapidement le fort et rejoignirent Paris le 10 mai 1945.

Ainsi eut lieu la bataille d’Itter, qui allia soldats américains et allemands contre des waffen-SS.

Alex@r60