Chapter 6

Rommel and the Panzerarmee Afrika, as it was now called, prepared for the coming battle with 8.Armee near Gazala. The question was which side could build up more supplies and strike first. Rommel won the race.

31.Mai 1942, the DAK swung around the end of the British fortified line at Bir Hacheim and drove into rear of the British armee. Dieter’s III.Battalion/104 Mot. Gren Regiment was part of the long, dusty caravan of vehicles pushing into the 8.Armee’s rear areas. British panzers harassed the flanks of their columns as they drove north in a massive cloud of dust. Panzers from both the 15.Panzer and 21.Panzer clashed near a fortified box the British called “Knightsbridge.” DAK got a shock. The British had new panzers, with better guns and stronger armor than they faced a few months earlier. These new, US built “Grant” panzers were tough to beat.

The French troops in Bir Hacheim refused to surrender to the Italiens surrounding their position. They even sent raiding forces out at night and stopped supply convoys from reaching DAK, deep in the rear of the 8.Armee. Benzin was short. The battle was reaching a crisis point and Rommel’s grand plan was looking like a failure.

The General ordered his troops to fall back and form a hedge-hog defense circle in the rear of the British 150.Infantrie Brigade’s fortified defense. The desperate DAK troops attacked the British fort while a panzer and PaK screen stood off and destroyed the flower of British panzers. The 104 Mot. Genadier Regiment was sent in on 1.Juni 1942. They rode trucks and half-tracks within a few hundred meters of the fort before debarking. The men rushed forward by leaps and bounds, dropping for cover briefly before bounding forward again. Pioneeren probed for mines and cleared the way for the others.

Dieter was directing Oskar, Willi and the new junge, Heinz Ritter, forward when a mortar shell exploded almost on top of the half-squad. Shrapnel ripped through Dieter’s left leg, breaking his thigh bone as it tore through him. Oskar’s quick action stanched the blood flow. Oskar and Willi pulled their gefreiter back to safety, where he was evacuated to a field dressing station.

Fortunately for Dieter, the 104.Regiment broke the backs of the British 150.Brigade, who surrendered late that day. Dieter was on one of the first ambulances to head west for the deutsche rear and a good, well-equipped hospital. Doctors operated and were able to reassemble the Dieter’s thigh bone. They stitched him back up and put his leg in traction, to help it set properly as he healed. The efficient deutsche staff sent a telegram to the Pfeiffer family, reporting Dieter’s wounds.

Dieter was heavily sedated for a few days as he began to heal. Fresh food and clean sheets on his bed helped the tired landser begin to recover his health and put on some weight. He was down 9 kg from his normal weight thanks to the harsh conditions the DAK soldaten labored under. He felt up to writing letters a week after his wounding.

The Gazala battle continued as Dieter recovered from his wound. Replenished and fueled up, the DAK slowly broke the backs of the British Panzer troops. The stubborn Free French at Bir Hacheim were reduced and pounded into submission. 13.Juni broke the back of the British. They lost 230 of their 300 panzers in a very black Samstag. The 8.Armee called for a retreat. They left a division of Süafrikaners [South Africans] to hold the Tobruk fortress as the 8.Armee retreated for Äegypten.

The Leck Scharr of the Hitlerjugend had been “drafted” a couple months earlier to fill support roles like carrying ammo, doing custodial work and other things to free up the Flak gunners to concentrate on shooting down the growing number of British bombers.

Rommel’s Panzerarmee surrounded the Tobruk fortress on 17.Juni 1942. Rommel assaulted the fortress at dawn, three days later. The once mighty fortess fell the following day. Victory in Nordafrika appeared imminent.

Dieter was in his bed after therapy on the afternoon of 22.Juni when his ward received an unexpected visitor, their commander, Erwin Rommel. Rommel visited each bed and talked with the wounded landsers. Rommel was almost finished visiting when he reached Dieter’s bed at the far end of the ward.

Dieter tried to come to attention as he lay in bed and give the proper salute to his commander.

“This is an honor, Herr General...” Dieter sputtered before seeing the new epaulets on Rommel’s uniform. “Herr ... Herr ... Feldmarschall ... I hadn’t heard ... of your promotion.”

The feldmarschall smiled. “The rank is new. The Führer announced my promotion this morning.”

“It is a well-deserved promotion, Herr Feldmarschall,” Dieter said. “Is the battle going well?”

“The English are fleeing back to Äegypten,” Rommel replied, smiling. “We are after them. I expect we will fight them again around Mersa Matruh and we will beat them.”

“That is excellent, sir,” Dieter replied.

“Where are you from, landser?” Rommel asked.

“A small town in Schleswig ... Leck,” Dieter answered. Rommel inquired about his unit and his health.

“I/104 Schützen Regiment, Herr Feldmarschall,” Dieter replied. “My leg is improving. They have me walking a little.”

“I am visiting to award you your Verwundetenabzeichen [Wound Badge],” Rommel said. He pinned a silver pin to Dieter’s gown.

“Silver?” Dieter asked. “This is my first wound.” The Wehrmacht awarded black Wound Badges for the first or second time a soldier was wounded.

“Are you sure?” Rommel asked. The aide beside him looked flustered at having given Rommel the wrong badge.

“Would they count scratches?” Dieter asked. “I got a scratch from a piece of rock kicked up by a bullet at Marsa El Brega.”

“They would,” Rommel confirmed. “And?”

“A scratch from the wire around Tobruk from 14.April?” Dieter added. Rommel nodded and smiled.

“Silver is the correct badge, Gefreiter Pfeiffer,” Rommel said. “If you first wound was at Marsa El Brega, I assume you have been in Afrika almost from the start.”

“You watched our battalion unload in Tripoli Februar, a year ago,” Dieter responded.

“Get stronger, Pfeiffer,” Rommel replied. “We need experienced soldiers back in battle.”

“I’ll do my best,” Dieter promised. “Thank you for visiting. It was good to see you...” Rommel had turned to move to the next bed as Dieter thanked him. “ ... again.” The feldmarschall stopped abruptly and turned back.

“We have met before...” Rommel asked as he glanced at Dieter’s chart for his name. “Pfeiffer?”