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From D-Day to V-Day

April 1945

April 23, 1945 - D-Day + 251

Units from the British Second Army’s British XII entered Harburg.

The 29th Infantry Division under the XIII Corps continued to swiftly advance on the Elbe throughout the day. The 5th Armored Division’s Combat Command R occupied Dannenberg, and other division units mopped up their zones along the Elbe.

After the 3rd Armored Division under the US First Army’s VII Corps mopped up Dessau and the area, all organized enemy resistance in the Corps’ zone came to an end. Meanwhile, the 9th Infantry Division combed through its area in the Harz Mountains, and the 4th Cavalry Group (Mechanized) was deployed as a guard unit in the Quedlingburg – Aschersleben – Klostermansfeld area. The 69th Infantry Division’s 271st Infantry Regiment under the US V Corps finished mopping up Eilenburg.

The 4th Armored Division was reassigned to Patton’s Third Army. Meanwhile, the 11th Armored Division’s Combat Commands A and B under the XII Corps headed from the Naab River towards Cham, and occupied the town without much trouble. In the division’s zone, thousands of POWs clogged the roads. The 26th Infantry Division’s 328th Infantry Regiment occupied Schöngras. Battalions from the 90th Infantry Division’s 358th Infantry Regiment liberated the large concentration camp in Flossenbürg, occupied the local airplane factory and advanced towards Waldthurn. The American units also liberated a large number of Czechs at the camp. The division’s 357th Infantry Regiment conquered Albersried, Kaimling, and Michldorf, and the 359th Infantry Regiment took up positions south of Tirschenreuth. The 97th Infantry Division took over the Aš – Arzberg sector from the 2nd Cavalry Group (Mechanized), and the 11th Armored Division headed to the southeast to the German-Austrian border. Units from the 97th and 90th Infantry Divisions and the 2nd Cavalry Group (Mechanized) received orders to occupy the mountain passes along the Czechoslovak border, thus securing the left flank of Patton’s Third Army during its attack on Austria. The 3rd Cavalry Group (Mechanized) under the XX Corps advanced to the Danube. The 71st Infantry Division’s 5th Infantry Regiment mopped up Schwandorf, while its sister 66th Infantry Regiment launched an assault on Regensburg. Battalions from the 65th Infantry Division’s 261st Infantry Regiment went through the positions of its sister 259th Infantry Regiment and occupied Velburg, Hardt, and Neumarkt. The 14th Cavalry Group (Mechanized) under the III Corps advanced to the southeast, relieving units from the 65th Infantry Division in the hills south of Neumarkt. The 14th Armored Division commanded by Major General Albert C. Smith was attached to the Corps and immediately attacked to the south, followed by the troops from the 99th Infantry Division. Battalions from the 99th Division’s 394th and 395th Infantry Regiments advanced to the Allersberg – Hipolstein line.

The Fifteenth Army started to expand its zone so as to include the First and Ninth Army sectors east of the Rhine and the 6th Army Group sector, including the sections of the Palatinate, Saarland and Hessen west of the Rhine.

For the attack on Munich, the 20th Armored Division commanded by Major General Orlando Ward was attached to the Seventh Army’s XV Corps. The 12th Armored Division’s Combat Command A under the XXI Corps reinforced and expanded the bridgehead over the Danube in Dillingen, while Combat Command R occupied Lauchheim. The 4th Infantry Division’s 8th Infantry Regiment broke through Ellwangen to Westenhausen, and Task Force Rodwell conquered Aalen and Unterkochen. In the interim, its sister 22nd Infantry Regiment took up positions west of Aalen. Units from the 63rd Infantry Division mopped up the area north of the Rems River. After relieving 80th Infantry Division regiments in the Nuremberg area, the 3rd Infantry Division started to prepare for an attack against Augsburg. The 10th Armored Division under the VI Corps advanced along the Danube and started to cross the river near Ehingen and Erbach after midnight from April 23 till 24, 1945. The 103rd Infantry Division, currently reinforced by the 117th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron and the 781st Tank Battalion, blocked escape routes out of Stuttgart to the south. The 103rd Infantry Division’s 410th Infantry Regiment slowly advanced to Bad Urach and Münsingen. In the meantime, the division’s 411th Infantry Regiment conquered Neuffen, Metzingen, Reutlingen, Pfullingen, and Honau. Units from the 100th Infantry Division eliminated enemy pockets east of Stuttgart and north of the Neckar River during the day. The Century Division’s 397th Infantry Regiment crossed the river, conquered Köngen and cut off the A8 highway west of the city.

At the French port of Dunkirk, the Czechoslovak Independent Armoured Brigade’s anti-aircraft battery was attached to a special unit headed by Lt Col Alois Sítek. His task would be to advance into the Czechoslovak interior in cooperation with the US Third Army, thus symbolically supporting the Americans in their efforts to take over the area. The unit, which would later be called the Combined Unit, was composed of light anti-aircraft batteries, one motorized platoon and a team of track carriers. It started to convoy to Czechoslovakia soon afterwards, reaching the Czechoslovak border one week later.

In the night from April 23-24, 1945, several Czechoslovak crews from the No. 311 Squadron RAF took part in a special nighttime mission headed for the Skaggerak – Kattegat area. During the mission, the crew of the Liberator piloted by F/Lt Protiva attacked a large enemy surface ship. It responded to the bomber attack with defense fire. Protiva’s Liberator was heavily damaged, and one of the engines even caught fire. In many areas, the aircraft was riddled with holes. When they landed in Scotland many hours later, the airport commander inspected the aircraft and simply said: “You were damn lucky.”