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From D-Day to V-Day

October 1944

October 2, 1944 - D-Day + 118

In the course of the day, Field Marshall Montgomery decided to advance to the southeast out of Nijmegen and towards the Ruhr River. As a result, the path to the north through Arnhem remained closed. General Eisenhower called on the British Second Army to relieve two American divisions that were temporarily under British command from its contingent.

Following earlier air raids that were not particularly successful, precise artillery fire eliminated enemy anti-aircraft artillery positions in the US XIX Corps zone. This assault was carried out before the 30th “Old Hickory” Division launched an attack on the Siegfried Line. The division crossed the shallow Wurm River between Aachen and Geilenkirchen, and the Old Hickory’s 117th Infantry Regiment crossed the river in Marianberg. At the same time, the regiment took control of a number of enemy fortified posts and went on to occupy Palenberg. Its sister regiment, the 119th, crossed the river near Rimburg, but heavy fire out of Rimburg Castle and the nearby forest made it impossible to cross the railroad embankment. Muddy terrain on the east bank of the river stopped the tanks that attempted to assist in the assault in their tracks. Enemy counterattacks continued up until midnight, but were deflected by concentrated fire. The 29th Infantry Division’s 115th Infantry Regiment attacked the enemy in an attempt to distract them away from the neighboring units in the area northwest of Geilenkirchen. Despite strong enemy resistance, the regiment occupied Hatterath, Birgden and Kreuzrath and penetrated through to Schierwaldenrath. With aerial and US and British artillery assistance, tank columns from the 7th Armored Division continued with mopping up operations in the corridor west of the Meuse Rover. A task force from Combat Command B took control of Vortum, but was unable to conquer the Dutch village of Overloon. The Germans carried out a number of counterattacks here, and the fighting dragged on for weeks. The Battle of Overloon was later called “the forgotten battle.” The grim battle in Overloon is now commemorated in an exceptionally well-conceived museum called Liberty Park. The collection of historical US military machinery presented in Liberty Park is one of the most extensive in all of Western Europe.

To the south, the Belgian 1st Brigade was forced to halt its mission in the Wessem area as they were outnumbered by the Germans. While advancing to Roermond, the 113th Cavalry Group (Mechanized) crossed the Saeffler Stream and built a small bridgehead at the site. Heavy artillery fire supported the corps units throughout the day. The command of the US V Corps issued an order to attack through the Siegfried Line towards Bonn.

Part of the 319th Infantry Regiment from the US XII Corps’ 80th Infantry Division continued with their limited attack in which it conquered a strong foothold in the farm buildings. In the meantime, their sister 318th Regiment failed in their attack on Serriéres, and the 317th Infantry Regiment took up positions to launch an attack on Sivry. Due to the fuel shortage, the armored units were forced to halt and the enemy had time to build a new defense line in the Forét de Chateau-Salins and along the western slope extending down towards Chambrey.

The 79th Infantry Division from the Seventh Army’s XV Corps fought against strong resistance in the Forét de Parroy with support from light tanks from the 106th Cavalry Group (Mechanized). In the course of the day, the division mopped up the northern section of the forest. At the same time, the 179th Infantry Regiment from the VI Corps’ 45th Infantry Division conquered Grandvillers.

The No. 311 Squadron sent four crews out over the North Sea to “hunt” for submarines. The men in F/Sgt Matějka’s crew had a particularly alarming flight after their aircraft, flying near the cost of Norway north of Bergen, was hit by precise enemy anti-aircraft fire. Although the airplane took a number of hits, it continued to fly and returned to base. A number of similar incidents took place over the North Sea through the entire course of the war, but not all of the Czechoslovak pilots were lucky enough to enjoy a happy ending.