"Things Are....A Bit Sticky" WTO (id:#62985)

(Dispatches from the Bunker #44 ID: DBOT1)   [next]   [previous]

Rees, Germany 1945-03-24 (29 others)

Overview:

After much delay crossing the Rhine and approaching Rees in the darkness, the 1st Gordons two lead companies found themselves in a tough spot. Major George Morrison’s B Company was held up in the Housing Estate by a company of Fallschirmjäger that, broken into small groups, was fighting fiercely for each house. Meanwhile, Major Alec Lumsden’s C Company had managed to gain a slim foothold in the outskirts of Rees and was pinned down by sniper and machinegun fire. One of C Company’s platoons was hit by mortar fire while crossing the dike, its officer killed and men broken and scattered. Major Petrie, the commander of D Company, was sent with a reserve platoon to rally the C Company platoon. When he arrived on the scene, Major Petrie reported to H.Q. that he found “things are….a bit sticky”. The hope for a rapid clearance of Rees was slipping away. With the arrival of daylight it became obvious the situation was indeed sticky given the predicament that 1st Gordons’ two lead companies found themselves in, and the commanders of B and C Companies could be heard bickering about it over the radio net. With B Company held up in the Housing Estate, this left C Company in an exposed position, made worse when a group of Fallschirmjäger flanked them. Major Lumsden was considering withdrawing C Company from its narrow foothold in Rees, but decided to hold on, and eventually B Company was able to clear out the Housing Estate and secure the area up to the cemetery. C Company managed to hold on to the buildings on the outskirts of Rees, but with daylight the German snipers and machineguns now held the upper hand. It was now apparent that the conquest of Rees was going to be a slow and difficult task.

Defender: German (Sturm-Bataillon der 1. Fallschirmschirm-Armee and Sicherungs-Bataillon 1073, Fallschirmjäger-Division 8)  

Errata (source)