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From D-Day to V-Day

April 1945

April 26, 1945 - D-Day + 254

Except a small area on the coast and at the mouth of the Ems River, the First Canadian Army’s II Canadian Corps mopped up the entire northeast section of the Netherlands. At the same time, the British Second Army’s British XXX Corps finished occupying Bremen. Divisions from the British XII Corps were deployed along the Elbe across from Hamburg, and the US XVIII Corps started to move out of the Ruhr and Cologne area towards the Elbe.

The Ninth Army’s 102nd Infantry Division relieved 35th Infantry Division units from their positions along the Elbe; the 35th Division then deployed to Hanover, where it took over the occupation administration.

A patrol from the 104th Infantry Division under the US First Army’s VII Corps met Red Army units at Pretzsch. Meanwhile, the 3rd Armored Division took up positions in the Sangerhausen area. In the operational sector of the US V Corps in Torgau, the Commander of the 69th Infantry Division, Major General Emil F. Reinhardt, met the Soviet 58th Guards Division Commander, Major General Rusakov. 272. In the interim, the 69th Infantry Division’s 272nd Infantry Regiment secured the Eilenburg – Torgau highway.

After occupying Kreuzberg, the 11th Armored Division’s Combat Command A under the US Third Army’s XII Corps headed south towards Freyung and east in the direction of Grainet. CCA’s vanguard units crossed the Austrian border at Lackenhäuser, while CCB conquered Waldkirchen and pushed on towards Wollaberg. During the day, the 26th Infantry Division advanced to the area between Ruhmanfelden and Deggendorf. The 90th Infantry Division’s 357th Infantry Regiment blocked the roads leading south and southeast out of Cham, while units from its sister 359th Infantry Regiment and 90th Reconnaissance Company continued to advance to the southeast along the Czechoslovak border. After a bitter fight, the units occupied Waldmünchen and subsequently advanced to the Furth im Wald – Ränkam line. In the meantime, the 2nd Cavalry Group (Mechanized) expanded its operational zone into the territory of Czechoslovakia. On April 26, 1945, save for a couple of lone footholds, the 97th Infantry Division conquered Cheb.

Because the initial phases of the attack against the city the previous day had not been successful, the decision was made to give the Germans a lesson in the form of artillery shelling. After this, the troops went on the attack. Battles were fought for each and every foothold, right up until late that night. On April 26, the fighting on the streets of the city continued. But once it was possible – with a stroke of luck – to take out the commander of the military defense, Major Geissler, the enemy’s resistance slowly started to wane. After one p.m., the Mayor of the city finally signed the surrender. On April 26, 1945, units from the Big Red One, entering the Cheb area from Františkovy Lázně, also got involved in the battle for Cheb. Just two days later, Sudeten German leader Konrád Henlein would attempt to recapture Cheb with assistance from SS units. His futile attempt to turn back the course of history was halted near the Cheb suburb of Podhrad.

Combat battalions from the 65th Infantry Division’s 260th and 261st Infantry Regiments under the XX Corps started to cross the Danube southwest of Regensburg at 0200 hrs. They overcame the strong defense on the opposite bank, and built bridgeheads in Matting, Grasslfing, Oberndorf, Niedergebraching, and Lengfeld. For now, poor terrain and strong enemy resistance held back the 71st Infantry Division, but at 0400 hrs the division’s 14th Infantry Regiment launched an attack across the river in the section between Donaustauf and Sulzbach. The division’s 5th Infantry Division did likewise near Frengkofen. The 13th Armored Division moved out of Eschenau to the Parsberg area and prepared to cross the Danube. The 14th Cavalry Group (Mechanized) under the III Corps secured the bridge structures. The 14th Armored Division’s Combat Command B crossed the Altmühl River in Beilngreis, while Combat Command A went across the bridge in Gungolding. Combat Command R later went across the same bridge, and soon all three combat commands launched an attack towards the Danube to the south. Combat Command B advanced to Neustadt, CCA to Menning and CCR to Mailing. Battalions from the 99th Infantry Division’s 394th and 395th Infantry Regiments swiftly advanced from the bridgehead over the Altmühl River to the Danube. The 86th Infantry Division’s 341st Infantry Regiment crossed the Altmühl River in Gungolding, while its sister 342nd Infantry Regiment did the dame near Eichstatt. Meanwhile, the 343rd Infantry Regiment conquered Ingolstadt and started to cross the Danube.

The 45th Infantry Division under the Seventh Army’s XV Corps crossed the Danube at Merxheim and Bertoldsheim, and regiments from the 42nd Infantry Division did the same near Schäfstall and Altisheim. The 12th Armored Division’s Combat Command A under the XXI Corps handed the bridgehead at Dillingen over to units from the 3rd Infantry Division. At the same time, units from the 101st Cavalry Group (Mechanized) reached the Wertach River in Hiltenfingen and took charge of an intact bridge. The 3rd Infantry Division expanded the bridgehead at Dillingen to the east and southeast towards the Werk Canal and Augsburg. The 4th Infantry Division advanced to the Dinkelscherben – Horgau area. The division’s 22nd Infantry Regiment left one battalion behind in Laingen to secure the local bridge, and went to assemble south of the Danube. The 63rd Infantry Division made an assault crossing of the Danube between Leipsheim and Günzberg, and occupied Bubesheim. Units from the 10th Armored Division’s Combat Command A under the VI Corps and battalions from the 44th Infantry Divison’s 71st Infantry Regiment crossed a newly constructed bridge over the Iller River in Vöhringen, and broke through Bubenhausen to Mindelheim. Meanwhile, Combat Command B advanced to the south along the Iller Canal to Memmingen, and Combat Command R attacked Landsberg am Lech. The 44th Division’s 324th Infantry Division finished mopping up Neu Ulm. Meanwhile, the 103rd Infantry Division crossed the Danube to the northwest of Ulm. The division’s 409th Infantry Regiment headed towards the Guenz River near Ellzee, its sister 410th Infantry Regiment advanced to the Asch – Weszenhorn line, and the 411th Infantry Regiment remained in reserve south of the river.

The French First Army’s French I Corps was deployed along the Swiss border from Basel to Lake Constance, and at the same time finished enveloping German forces in the Black Forest. Task Force Le Bel entered Konstanz.

The war in the air over the western part of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia continued, intense as ever. In the course of the day, American fighter bombers attacked a number of targets. The raid on the Holýšov train station in the district of Domažlice was particularly dramatic. At the time of the attack, wagons filled with munitions produced at the local ammunitions plant Metallwerke Holleischen I and II were standing at the station. The wagons caught fire and the ammunition inside started to explode. The consequences were tragic. The explosions seriously damaged the train station building, and a shock wave ripped through the nearby barracks. A number of civilians remained lifeless on the ground.

In nearby Klenčí pod Čerchovem, American fighter bombers also wreaked havoc. Not long before the attack, air reconnaissance observed German troop movements on the village green in Klenčí. Shortly afterwards, a group of fighters from the 362nd Fighter Group came down on Klenčí like a swarm of bees. The bombs reduced many of the buildings to rubble. A fire completed the destruction.