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00:00SEPTEMBER 1944
00:04After months of vicious fighting, tanks from the US 3rd Armored Division reached the frontier of Nazi Germany
00:10Confident the war is in its final days
00:13The Allies did think that the war was going to be over by Christmas
00:21The German forces put up a furious defense of the fatherland
00:24And they just picked off our tanks 1, 2, 3, 4
00:30Just like they were in a shooting gallery
00:33Against battle-hardened opponents, the Americans quickly learned that invading Germany will be a long and bloody campaign
00:40The army was fighting to stop the enemy from entering the fatherland
00:46As both sides roll out their newest armored titans in the battle for Germany
00:51The tank that we got into was that one-of-a-kind tank
00:56It was a fight right on from the very end
00:59It was a fight right on from the very end
01:01In the close months of World War II, this was a scene of intense fighting
01:35Since the D-Day landings in June of 1944, American, British, and Canadian tanks have overwhelmed the Germans occupying France.
01:50Throughout the summer months, fierce armored battles steadily pushed the enemy back.
01:55The German withdrawal was very chaotic. The Germans referred to it as the void.
01:59There was a lack of communication. Units were fighting in isolation. It was very difficult.
02:04They all knew that they had to go towards Germany to find safety.
02:15And by September, the Allies are nearing the German frontier.
02:21The attack into Germany will be spearheaded by the U.S. 3rd Armored Division.
02:25The first obstacle they face is a series of defensive fortifications known as the West Wall, or Siegfried Line, that the Germans have built along the border.
02:35The Siegfried Line was similar to the Maginot Line that France had built.
02:43They would have had a number of bunkers, a lot of established fortifications that were there to turn certain areas into kill zones.
02:52Though it looks impressive, with hundreds of kilometers of anti-tank barriers known as Dragon's Teeth,
02:59advanced scouts from the 3rd Armored Division discover weak spots in the line.
03:04Then they come up with a simpler way to get through the German defenses.
03:08They brought up bulldozers and bulldozed dirt up over the Siegfried Line so the other tanks and trucks and everything else could run up over the top of it,
03:16just to push more material and more people into Germany.
03:22My tank was back about eight tanks.
03:24We weren't being shot at at the moment, so I could take my periscope and look around and see what was going on.
03:34I could see the dragon's teeth and that sort of thing, so I knew we were going on by them.
03:43We thought once we got through the Siegfried Line, you know, they'd say,
03:46well, you know, they're inside, we might as well quit.
03:50The Allies did think that the war was going to be over by Christmas. A lot of them did, at least.
03:59They are the first invading army to cross the German frontier in force since the age of Napoleon.
04:05So the Americans are uncertain of how the enemy will fight.
04:10By late 1944, much of Germany lies in ruins.
04:16Its cities have been bombed relentlessly.
04:18Its armed forces decimated.
04:22Now to finish the war and put an end to Hitler's Third Reich,
04:25the Americans assemble a massive invasion force from the U.S. First Army,
04:29with 100,000 combat soldiers,
04:33hundreds of artillery guns,
04:34and more than 1,200 tanks,
04:39including 850 of their armored workhorse, the Sherman.
04:43The M4A1 has a short-barreled, low-velocity, 75-millimeter main gun,
04:51with an effective range of just 800 meters.
04:55And with only 51 millimeters of frontal armor,
04:58it's vulnerable to German high-velocity cannons.
05:00All the way through training, I was just impressed with this tank.
05:08You know, it was 32 tons of steel.
05:12It would go about 30 miles an hour.
05:17You could crank it up.
05:18You know, inside, you felt like you were really secure.
05:26The Allied plan has British and Canadian forces pushing towards northern Germany,
05:30while the Americans take the southern route.
05:33The 3rd Armored Division is ordered to advance along the open corridor,
05:37south of Aachen, the first city over the border.
05:39That was a supposedly easy route to cross the Ruhr River,
05:44get to the Rhine, and then establish crossings,
05:46and then from there, it was, you know, going to be the end.
05:51At a road junction, tanks from E Company halt,
05:54as their commander decides which way to go.
06:00They told you in basic training a million times,
06:03don't stop at T intersections.
06:04Because the Germans always have it, uh, zeroed in.
06:14But I had to get out and smoke a cigarette,
06:16and sure enough, uh, while they're trying to decide
06:19where to go right or left out of that intersection,
06:21the Germans dropped in a whole bunch of artillery shells.
06:24My tank commander screamed at me to get back in the tank,
06:43which I did in a hurry, and then off we went.
06:48For a moment, there was, you know, almost a panic.
06:50Uh, you know, where else are they?
06:54The Americans have run into forward units
06:56of the German 9th Panzer Division.
06:59The army was fighting to stop the enemy
07:03from entering the Faserland.
07:06They were defending Germany.
07:08They weren't Nazis at this point.
07:10I mean, it's, you're defending your homeland.
07:12You've got an invader coming in,
07:13and that's where the buck stops, at the border.
07:16The Americans quickly move on,
07:19away from the enemy guns, and continue their advance.
07:23Two platoons of tanks from E-Company
07:25approach a small town.
07:28This time, they are more cautious
07:30and split their forces in two.
07:33There was a small town.
07:34It had houses only on both sides of the road.
07:39Behind this row of houses, there was a hill,
07:41and on this side, there was a big open field
07:44and then a slag pile, uh, from the coal mine.
07:50Four tanks went on the outside of those houses.
07:53The four tanks that I was with
07:54went right up through the middle of town.
07:57So we were all just really alert.
08:01But the Germans have anticipated this American tactic.
08:04And all of a sudden, he heard firing,
08:07and he heard screaming and yelling.
08:12And the Germans had anti-tank guns
08:14dug into that slag pile.
08:18Targeting the Americans
08:19is the deadliest anti-tank gun of the war,
08:21the German 88.
08:23The 88-millimeter gun has armor-piercing shells
08:26that can penetrate 100 millimeters of steel
08:29at distances of up to 1,500 meters.
08:31More than enough power
08:33to penetrate the frontal armor of a Sherman tank.
08:42The one that everybody talked about
08:44was the German 88.
08:48He had a very high muzzle velocity,
08:51so their trajectory was almost flat.
08:56And they just picked off our tanks
08:58one, two, three, four.
09:01Just like they were in a shooting gallery.
09:10So my tank,
09:12we stopped hiding behind a house.
09:17And then they said,
09:18OK, back out of town.
09:19So we turned around
09:20and went back out of town.
09:24Half of E-company's tanks
09:25are destroyed in a matter of minutes.
09:27And the 3rd Armored Division's advance is slow.
09:34Fighting along Germany's western border
09:36is proving costly for the Americans.
09:39The 3rd Armored Division
09:40began their advance to Germany
09:42with 400 tanks.
09:43But enemy resistance has left them
09:46with less than 100 tanks
09:47that are operational.
09:48and they still have 650 kilometers
09:51between them and Berlin.
09:56October 1944.
09:58Fresh U.S. reinforcements arrive
10:01and the American 3rd Armored Division
10:03prepares to resume its assault on Germany.
10:05But the fighting near the border
10:08has delayed their advance
10:09and allowed the Germans
10:11to bolster their defenses.
10:13The first city inside Germany
10:15that the Allies plan to seize
10:17is Aachen.
10:19The Allies went through the Aachen area
10:22because it was considered
10:23a route through the heavily forested,
10:26heavily mountainous area
10:28of western Germany.
10:30That area, if it were under
10:32allied control,
10:33would have allowed
10:34the funneling of resources
10:36relatively easily
10:37into the Rhineland
10:39in central Germany.
10:41Most of its civilian population
10:43has been evacuated
10:44and the Germans have created
10:45fortified positions
10:46throughout the city
10:47as well as on the approach routes.
10:50For the defense of Aachen,
10:51the Germans have 18,000 troops,
10:54240 artillery guns,
10:56and nearly 60 tanks
10:58and assault guns.
11:01Hitler also calls up
11:03some 5,000 members
11:04of the local militia,
11:06the Volkssturm.
11:08Made up of boys and men
11:09aged from 16 to 60,
11:11they are poorly trained
11:12and only lightly armed.
11:15And Hitler gives the order
11:16that all of Aachen's defenders
11:17must stand firm
11:19against the Americans
11:20or die at their posts.
11:21We could not retreat,
11:26not even a meter.
11:28We had to hold our position
11:29and if we did not,
11:32we knew we would be shot.
11:36That is why
11:37we endured all this.
11:44The Americans have assembled
11:4580,000 troops
11:47and more than 300 tanks
11:48for their assault.
11:49They plan to encircle Aachen.
11:54The 2nd Armored Division
11:55will attack from north
11:56of the city
11:57while the 3rd Armored
11:58attacks from the south.
12:05Shermans from the 3rd Armored Division's
12:0733rd Armored Regiment
12:08are ordered to proceed
12:09towards Aachen.
12:12But first,
12:13they must face
12:13the battle-hardened veterans
12:15of the 116th Panzer Division.
12:17They were good fighters.
12:27Some of them
12:27have been fighting for years,
12:29you know,
12:29fighting the Russians
12:30and now they brought them
12:31back from that front
12:32and put them in this front.
12:35And they fought
12:36to the last man,
12:38you know,
12:38to keep you out.
12:39The terrain south of Aachen
12:46provides a defending army
12:48with many positions
12:49from which to ambush attackers.
12:57The Americans advance cautiously,
13:00unsure of where or when
13:01they may meet the tanks
13:02at the 116th.
13:13The Panzer IV
13:15is the most widely used tank
13:16in the German arsenal.
13:18It is armed
13:19with a high-velocity 75mm gun
13:21and boasts 80mm
13:23of frontal armor,
13:24more than the Sherman.
13:26But its sides
13:29are vulnerable
13:29to the American tank,
13:31having only 30mm of armor.
13:36You were hoping
13:37you didn't have to have
13:38a battle with them head-on.
13:40What we were trying to hit
13:40was the side of them.
13:43What you hit them front-on
13:44was a waste of your ammunition.
13:49You had to get them
13:50from the side.
13:50The tactic was
13:56to get somebody over here
13:58to start shooting
13:59at the German tank.
14:04And in order for him
14:05to shoot at this tank,
14:06he had to maneuver
14:07his tank around
14:08to get some protection.
14:15And when he maneuvered
14:16his tank around,
14:16then somebody else
14:17on this side
14:18had a better shot.
14:20The side shot
14:27misses the Panzer IV.
14:31A Sherman approaches
14:32head-on,
14:33and the German crew
14:34capitalizes
14:35on this opportunity.
14:37All of a sudden,
14:38a lieutenant showed up,
14:40Lieutenant Bear,
14:41and said,
14:42told my tank commander
14:43to get out
14:44that he was going
14:44to take over that tank.
14:50Lieutenant Bear
14:51had lost two tanks
14:52that day already.
14:58When he got into my tank,
15:00he just stood there
15:01for a minute.
15:05We looked at him,
15:06and the man was just
15:07completely battle for take,
15:09really.
15:12And all of a sudden,
15:14one of the other sergeants
15:15called over the radio
15:17and said,
15:18Lieutenant,
15:18back up.
15:18They're shooting at you.
15:24When he said that,
15:25I turned my periscope
15:27around like this,
15:28and I saw a big fireball
15:29go by me.
15:33And then,
15:34finally,
15:34he reached up,
15:35and he had to squeeze
15:35this little mic
15:36so he could talk.
15:38And he said,
15:39Driver,
15:40back up.
15:41I could see
15:45the driver had it
15:45in reverse
15:46and was gunning
15:47the engine.
15:51And as soon
15:52as he said that,
15:53bang.
15:58Shell hit
15:59and went right
15:59through the gunner
16:00and right through
16:01the tank commander
16:01and killed them both
16:02instantly.
16:08The tank driver
16:10had gotten out,
16:11and so I dove
16:12out of the turret
16:13down into the tank
16:14driver's seat
16:15and out over the side.
16:19And just as I went
16:20out over the side,
16:22the tank got hit
16:22the second time,
16:23and this time
16:24it started to burn
16:25and explode.
16:33We would have had
16:3410 tanks,
16:36and we ended up
16:37after that battle
16:38with only four.
16:41The Americans
16:48fight their way
16:49into Aachen
16:49on the 13th of October.
16:53The Germans
16:54suffer 5,000 casualties
16:56and more than 5,000
16:57captured trying
16:58to hold the city.
17:00But on October 21st,
17:02Aachen surrenders
17:03to the Americans,
17:05the first city
17:06in the fatherland
17:07to fall to the Allies.
17:09Now,
17:10central Germany
17:10lies before
17:11the 3rd Armored Division.
17:13The thought
17:14kept going
17:14through your mind,
17:15well,
17:15they'll quit now.
17:16When they didn't,
17:16that was what really
17:17came as a surprise.
17:19In November,
17:26American troops
17:27encounter some
17:27of their worst
17:28combat of the war
17:29in the Hürtgen Forest,
17:30southeast of Aachen.
17:36With their troops
17:36tired from months
17:37of fighting,
17:38their invasion
17:39of Germany stalls.
17:43A stalemate
17:43sets in
17:44on the front lines.
17:45The 3rd Armored Division
17:48works to repair
17:49damaged tanks
17:50and prepare
17:51for the next phase
17:51of the war.
17:54On December 16th,
17:561944,
17:57it is the Germans
17:58who launch
17:59a massive armored offensive,
18:00taking the Allies
18:01by surprise.
18:03The Battle of the Bulge.
18:11The German plan
18:12is to slice
18:13through enemy lines
18:14and drive towards Antwerp,
18:16trapping more than
18:16a million Allied troops.
18:24But after six weeks
18:25of bitter fighting,
18:27the German offensive
18:28grinds to a halt,
18:29blunted by Allied
18:30reinforcements.
18:33Hitler's gamble
18:34proves costly,
18:35losing hundreds
18:36of much-needed
18:37panzers
18:37in the fighting.
18:39After the Ardenne
18:40offensive,
18:40that essentially
18:41expended Germany's
18:42operational capacities
18:43on the Western Front,
18:44the remainder
18:44of what was
18:45defensive and reactionary
18:46as opposed to
18:47actually initiating
18:48and setting the tone
18:50for momentum
18:50or an attack.
18:53As the Germans
18:54retreat in the West,
18:55the Soviet Union
18:56launches its own
18:57offensive on the
18:57Eastern Front.
19:00The Red Army
19:01smashes its way
19:02through German lines
19:03in the Bulges,
19:04East Prussia,
19:05and Poland.
19:07By early February,
19:09Soviet tanks
19:09are just 80 kilometers
19:11from Berlin.
19:17On the Western Front,
19:19the Allies now resume
19:20their invasion of Germany.
19:22Their first objective
19:23is to seize bridges
19:24over the Rhine River,
19:26the last natural barrier
19:27to central Germany.
19:30Tanks from the First
19:31Canadian Army
19:31are to advance
19:32through what's known
19:33as the Hochwald Gap
19:34and capture
19:35key bridges
19:35on the Rhine
19:36near the German
19:37town of Zanten.
19:39But as the Canadians
19:41move into Germany,
19:42they must overcome
19:43fierce resistance.
19:48You have to take
19:49into account,
19:50here's the Germans.
19:52Their very livelihood
19:54depends on
19:56preventing the Allies
19:58from seizing
19:59the bridges.
20:01If the Canadians
20:02seize the bridges,
20:03it's no time
20:04until they surround
20:06the Ruhr
20:07and their lifeline
20:08is finished.
20:10And they were able
20:12to hold a force
20:15five times their size
20:17at base
20:18for 31 days.
20:21After weeks
20:22of intense combat,
20:23the Canadians
20:24overcome German resistance
20:25and their armor
20:26finally reaches
20:27the Rhine River.
20:32And as they cross it
20:33and move deeper
20:34into Germany,
20:35they see the effect
20:36of the war
20:36on the civilian population.
20:40We were approaching
20:41this small town.
20:43It was called Weisholm.
20:45Prior to us
20:46arriving there,
20:48the British
20:48or Canadian
20:49Typhoon rocket plane
20:50came in
20:51with their rockets
20:52and strafed the town
20:54and they just
20:55messed that town
20:56up terribly.
20:57and we were walking
21:01through the town
21:02at the time
21:03and, man,
21:05we couldn't believe it.
21:07Rubble on either side
21:09piled up.
21:10The homes were totally gone.
21:12What people were around,
21:14they had carts
21:15and they were picking
21:16the bodies up
21:17and putting them in carts.
21:19The bodies
21:20looked like mannequins,
21:22you know,
21:22like statues,
21:24like you see in the store.
21:25and they were all in the debris
21:28and everything else.
21:31In the first two months
21:32of 1945,
21:34the Germans lose
21:35close to 1,000 tanks.
21:37Over half a million soldiers
21:38and civilians
21:39become casualties
21:40as they try to prevent
21:42total defeat.
21:43a lot of the Germans
21:47that were coming up
21:48to the front
21:48were passing through
21:50a lot of the urbanized areas
21:51that had been bombed
21:51by the U.S. and Britain
21:53and that added to their resolve.
21:54They'd seen what they'd done
21:55to civilians,
21:55they wanted a little payback,
21:57so some of these groups
21:58were motivated.
21:58My fellow soldiers,
22:06whose homes
22:07had been destroyed,
22:08they said,
22:09what am I supposed
22:10to do at home?
22:11I would rather take
22:13another American
22:13with me to the grave.
22:20And it is German troops
22:22like these
22:22that the U.S. 3rd Armored Division
22:24must now face
22:25as they resume their advance.
22:28They are tasked
22:31with helping to capture
22:32the biggest allied target
22:33in western Germany,
22:35Cologne.
22:36By seizing this city
22:37on the Rhine River,
22:38the division can open
22:39a route into central Germany.
22:42We knew that
22:43when we got back
22:44into combat
22:44it was going to be
22:45to head towards Cologne.
22:48It was quite an objective
22:49and the Germans
22:50didn't want to give it up.
22:52We had a real battle
22:53on our hands
22:53with the tanks.
22:57The Americans
22:58will make a frontal
22:58assault on Cologne,
23:00Germany's third largest city,
23:02with tanks leading the way.
23:04Cologne has been bombed repeatedly.
23:08Street after street
23:09lies in ruins,
23:10providing the defending
23:11German troops
23:12and their Panther
23:13and Tiger tanks
23:14countless number of positions
23:15from which to ambush
23:16the Americans.
23:18There was so much
23:20bomb damage.
23:21The buildings
23:22were all collapsed
23:23and the streets
23:24were very narrow
23:25and we had obstacles
23:27all over.
23:29Everything was bombed,
23:30except the cathedral.
23:32That was good shape.
23:35I recall
23:35our lieutenant
23:37said,
23:39gentlemen,
23:40I give you a Cologne.
23:41Let's knock the hell
23:42out of it.
23:43The Germans
23:47zeroed in on us
23:49with artillery.
23:54At first,
23:55I thought they were bombing us.
23:57There was such big explosions
23:58all around.
24:00The Sherman tanks
24:01are outgunned
24:02by Panther and Tiger tanks
24:03defending Cologne.
24:04But the Germans
24:06don't realize
24:07the Americans
24:07of the 3rd Armored Division
24:09will be attacking
24:09with a new weapon,
24:11the Pershing tank.
24:14The T-26E3 Pershing tank
24:17is America's answer
24:18to Germany's fearsome Tiger.
24:20This heavy tank
24:21boasts an impressive
24:22100 millimeters
24:23of frontal armor
24:24and a lethal
24:2590 millimeter main gun
24:27with a killing range
24:28of 1,500 meters.
24:31But the Pershing
24:32has not yet been tested
24:33in urban combat.
24:35On March 6, 1945,
24:37it gets its baptism
24:39of fire
24:39in the streets
24:40of Cologne.
24:41We finally moved
24:42into this intersection.
24:49A German tank
24:50had come into
24:51the intersection
24:52to my left.
25:00And just far enough
25:02that he saw us
25:03and he backed away.
25:04I fired armor-piercing
25:08shells through
25:09the building.
25:13I figured maybe
25:14I will get
25:15a lucky hit.
25:19The top of the building
25:20collapsed
25:21and fell
25:22on top
25:23of the German tank.
25:24They couldn't turn
25:30their gun.
25:31They couldn't rotate
25:33the turret.
25:34There was so much
25:35rubble on there
25:36that they abandoned
25:37the tank
25:37and were captured.
25:43The Americans
25:44continue to advance
25:45towards the city center.
25:47They are guided
25:48by the towers
25:49of the medieval
25:49Cathedral of St. Peter
25:51that loom
25:51over Cologne.
25:53You could see
25:54that from a distance.
25:55You know,
25:55you could see
25:56the spirals
25:57up from the top
25:59of the cathedral.
26:02As they near it,
26:04the Americans' progress
26:05is hindered
26:05by a deadly enemy tank.
26:07The Panther
26:10is armed
26:10with a high-velocity
26:1175-millimeter
26:12main gun
26:13capable of hitting
26:14targets
26:15over 1,000 meters
26:16away.
26:17It has 80 millimeters
26:19of frontal armor,
26:20but sloped,
26:21this becomes
26:21effectively
26:22145 millimeters
26:24in protection.
26:27We headed down
26:28toward the cathedral.
26:32As we got closer,
26:35found that
26:36the German tank
26:37had fired
26:38from the plaza
26:40in front
26:40of the cathedral
26:41and knocked out
26:43one of our tanks.
26:48Our Sherman tanks
26:49were not very good.
26:53They were no match
26:54for the Panthers,
26:55anyway.
26:58The Americans
26:59bail out
27:00of their burning tank,
27:01but three
27:02of the five crew
27:03die.
27:06To defeat
27:09the enemy tank,
27:09the Pershing
27:10must outflank
27:11the Panther.
27:13D Company
27:14radioed over to us
27:16and asked us
27:20to go down
27:20and get the German.
27:28Supposedly,
27:28his gun's pointing
27:29toward them,
27:30not at us,
27:30you know.
27:31as we went
27:38into the intersection,
27:40the driver
27:45had his
27:45periscope turned
27:47looking up
27:48toward the German tank.
27:53As he came
27:54into the intersection,
27:55he saw their gun
27:56coming around
27:57to meet us.
27:58and instead
28:02of stopping,
28:03he floored
28:04the throttle down
28:05and went roaring
28:10right out
28:11into the middle
28:11of the intersection.
28:15Unlike its opponent,
28:16the Pershing
28:17is equipped
28:17with a gyro stabilizer,
28:19a device
28:19that allows
28:20the main gun
28:21to be fired
28:21with accuracy,
28:23even while the tank
28:23is in motion.
28:24as soon as I could,
28:28I fired once.
28:31I hit him
28:32and I fired
28:33again.
28:38And again,
28:39to make sure
28:40nobody's gonna
28:41be firing back.
28:50After the third shot,
28:51they pushed it
28:52in flames.
28:52The Panther tank
29:07burns for two days.
29:13By March 7th,
29:15the Americans
29:15mop up
29:16the last pockets
29:17of resistance
29:17and Cologne's
29:19defenders surrender.
29:22March 7th
29:25is a fateful day
29:26for the Third Reich.
29:28The same day
29:29Cologne is captured.
29:31A crucial bridge
29:32over the Rhine
29:32is seized
29:33at nearby Remagen.
29:37And American armor
29:38is soon pouring
29:39across it
29:40to the eastern side
29:41of the river,
29:42including tanks
29:45from the Third
29:46Armored Division.
29:46And the fighting
29:53got closer and closer
29:54and read the bridge
29:56at Remagen,
29:57we were thinking
29:58it is over.
30:02The Third Armored Division
30:03is now less than
30:04600 kilometers
30:05from Berlin.
30:07But between them
30:08and the German capital
30:09is the Ruhr Valley,
30:11Germany's industrial
30:12heartland.
30:12and half a million
30:15Nazi troops
30:16determined to protect
30:17their nation
30:18at all cost.
30:22March 23rd, 1945.
30:25The Allies launch
30:26their offensive
30:26into the rural region.
30:29The attack
30:30will be a classic
30:31pincer movement
30:32with the 9th U.S. Army
30:33attacking from the north
30:34and the 1st U.S. Army
30:37attacking from the south.
30:38If they succeed,
30:41over 350,000 soldiers
30:43from Germany's
30:44Army Group B
30:45will be trapped.
30:47But the Germans
30:48are led by one
30:49of the finest
30:49defensive commanders
30:50of the war,
30:51Field Marshal
30:52Walter Modell.
30:54To defeat him,
30:55the Americans
30:56must destroy
30:57his Panzer Forces.
30:58So the Third
30:59Armored Division
31:00is ordered to make
31:01a dash
31:01towards the city
31:02of Paderborn.
31:04Paderborn
31:05was an important,
31:07a very important
31:08post for us.
31:10That's where
31:10the main
31:11Panzer schools
31:13were.
31:14That's why
31:14we were headed
31:14up in that direction.
31:17The Americans
31:18fear the German
31:19Panzers based
31:20at the Paderborn
31:20Training Center
31:21will mount
31:22a counterattack.
31:23So the city
31:24must be captured
31:25and quickly.
31:27This drive
31:29from Marburg
31:30to Paderborn,
31:32about 90 miles,
31:34144 kilometers,
31:36and we did it
31:37in one day.
31:39I believe
31:40it was the
31:41longest drive
31:41of any armored
31:43formation for the
31:45U.S.
31:45during World War II.
31:51March 30, 1945,
31:54a unit of Sherman
31:55supported by a
31:56Pershing from the
31:563rd Armored Division's
31:5732nd Armored Regiment
31:59spearhead the assault.
32:00We attacked
32:02early in the morning.
32:08Off and up the road
32:10as fast as we could go.
32:12The Germans were surprised.
32:14They weren't expecting it.
32:16Along the way,
32:18going up toward Paderborn,
32:19there was a large,
32:21large gun.
32:23I was setting up
32:30on our right side.
32:36I fired and hit it.
32:44I took off again
32:45and drove
32:47on our helmet
32:49down the road.
32:54We kept moving
32:55and moving
32:56so we wouldn't be
32:57a sitting target.
33:01In their haste
33:02to advance
33:02to Paderborn,
33:03the American tanks
33:04have bypassed
33:05a powerful German
33:06Panzer Group
33:07that now
33:07counterattacks.
33:08So you had a lot
33:11of units
33:12that were in training
33:13that just went
33:13right to the fight
33:14from Paderborn
33:15and were able
33:16to kind of
33:17get in behind
33:17the spearheads,
33:19create some confusion.
33:22The tank commander
33:23grabbed me
33:23by the shoulder
33:24and said,
33:25it's like a tank.
33:29Here's a Mark V
33:30German Panther
33:32coming down
33:32behind us.
33:35So I had HE,
33:36an explosive shell
33:37in the chamber.
33:38I turned the turret
33:42as hard as I could
33:43to come around.
33:46I fired
33:47the explosive shell.
33:53I got an
33:54armor-piercing shell
33:55in,
33:56came around
33:56and pulled
33:59the trigger
34:00and hit him
34:03right dead center
34:05in the front.
34:08right at the heavy
34:10part of the armor
34:10and it penetrated.
34:12It went right
34:12on through,
34:13knocked him out.
34:18It was a tough fight
34:20all the way.
34:26Out of all the tanks,
34:28we had 15 tanks
34:30attacking down there.
34:31Only two of us
34:32made it.
34:42The battle
34:43for Paderborn
34:44is fierce and bloody.
34:46But after three days
34:47of fighting,
34:48the Americans
34:49overwhelm its defenders,
34:50who surrender
34:51on April 1st.
34:52That day,
34:56U.S. forces complete
34:57their encirclement
34:58of the Ruhr region,
34:59sealing the fate
35:00of Army Group B.
35:05The commander
35:06of the defeated
35:07German forces,
35:08Field Marshal
35:08Walter Modell,
35:09commits suicide
35:10rather than surrender.
35:11The capture
35:14of the Ruhr
35:15industrial region
35:16in western Germany
35:18would have crippled
35:19what was left
35:20of the Germans'
35:21ability to manufacture
35:22aircraft, tanks,
35:25pretty much their ability
35:26to conduct the war.
35:29The days
35:30of the Third Reich
35:31are now numbered.
35:32Soviet artillery
35:41begins to shell
35:42Berlin on April 20th,
35:44the birthday
35:44of Adolf Hitler.
35:48He calls
35:49for reinforcements
35:50in a last-ditch effort
35:51at holding off
35:52the Red Army.
35:54With the resources
35:55being diverted
35:57to the Eastern Front,
35:59it was very difficult
35:59for the Germans
36:00to compete
36:01on an equal footing
36:02with their American
36:04and British counterparts.
36:06As they move
36:07eastward
36:08and closer to Berlin,
36:09the Third Armored Division
36:10encounters little opposition
36:11in the small villages
36:13and towns
36:14as many enemy troops
36:15simply surrender
36:16at the sight
36:17of American tanks.
36:20The Americans'
36:21next objective
36:22is Dessau,
36:23the last major city
36:24protecting the highway
36:25to Berlin.
36:29It is just 130 kilometers
36:31from the German capital
36:32and defended by some
36:34of Hitler's most fanatical troops.
36:37April 21st, 1945.
36:40Troops and tanks
36:41of the Third Armored Division
36:43prepare for the assault
36:44on Dessau.
36:45When we were making our move,
36:47the whole task force
36:49was going.
36:51And I had never seen them all
36:53at one time.
36:55Our own 32nd armored
36:57was in the northeast
36:59and that's where the last
37:01remnants of the fighting
37:04was going on.
37:06Though Dessau is in ruins,
37:08the German garrison here
37:09has been reinforced
37:10with Hitler's most powerful tank.
37:12The King Tiger
37:15is the largest tank
37:16the Germans have built.
37:18Also called the Royal Tiger,
37:20it weighs 70 tons
37:21and has 150 millimeters
37:23of frontal armor
37:24and is armed
37:26with a high-velocity
37:2788-millimeter main gun
37:29that is more than
37:30six meters long.
37:33Hitler believes
37:34the King Tiger
37:35can outmatch
37:35any Allied tank
37:36and help turn
37:37the tide of war.
37:39Though immense,
37:40it is surprisingly agile.
37:43And in the ruins
37:44of Dessau,
37:45one waits
37:46to ambush the enemy.
37:49The 33rd Armored Regiment
37:51of the 3rd Armored Division
37:52slowly makes its way
37:53into Dessau.
37:55And with the Americans
37:57is their own
37:58iron giant,
38:00the Super Pershing,
38:01America's answer
38:02to the King Tiger.
38:04The Super Pershing
38:05was definitely
38:05the next stage
38:06of the evolution
38:07of American armor.
38:09only one Super Pershing
38:11was used in combat
38:12in World War II.
38:14The Super Pershing
38:15is an upgraded version
38:16of the Pershing tank.
38:18It has 140 millimeters
38:21of frontal armor
38:22and a new long-barreled
38:2390-millimeter main gun
38:25that can penetrate
38:26more than 200 millimeters
38:27of steel.
38:28The tank that we got into
38:36was that one-of-a-kind tank.
38:42This was a case
38:44where this Tiger Royal,
38:47this is the big guy,
38:49one of the few
38:49that I saw
38:50at this end of the war.
38:52And he was the one
38:53that was waiting for us.
38:54For the only time
38:56in the war,
38:57a King Tiger
38:58is about to face off
38:59with a Super Pershing
39:00in a duel.
39:03And they fired at us
39:04as we came
39:05around the corner.
39:08Fortunately,
39:09their shot went high.
39:15And so I fired at them
39:16and I hit them.
39:17Glanced a pretty serious blow.
39:30And then I got ready
39:31to fire and hit them again.
39:35They were coming
39:36toward us
39:37and they were coming up
39:38over a pile of rubble.
39:47And the underside
39:49of their tank
39:50was completely exposed.
39:54And when I hit that thing,
39:57it exploded
40:00with all that ammo
40:01and everything.
40:05It destroyed that tank.
40:08Tank commander,
40:09he was surprised.
40:10He said,
40:10great shot, kids.
40:13You really did it.
40:17As the clash
40:24of these armored titans
40:25ends,
40:26the crew of the Super Pershing
40:27has little time
40:28to savor the victory
40:29as the battle
40:30for Dessau
40:31continues to rage
40:32around them.
40:39In the final days
40:40of World War II,
40:42the Americans
40:42control much
40:43of the city of Dessau.
40:45Yet the German defenders
40:47still hold out,
40:48knowing that
40:49if the city falls,
40:50the road to Berlin
40:51will be open.
40:53We're well into Germany.
40:54We're past the Rhine.
40:56You know,
40:57surely they'll quit.
40:57We didn't.
40:58You know,
40:59it's just,
41:00it was a fight
41:00right on to the very end.
41:04The battle becomes
41:05street to street.
41:06American 3rd Armored
41:08Division tanks
41:08support infantry,
41:10clearing out
41:10the last pockets
41:11of resistance.
41:12We continued to do it.
41:15You know,
41:15it wasn't the end
41:16of the war for us.
41:17I mean,
41:17we were still in Dessau
41:19and we were taking
41:20the city to the end.
41:27As we were driving,
41:28we got fired on
41:29by a panzer.
41:35And it did glance
41:36a blow-off bus.
41:37Now,
41:42they had to
41:43turn their turrets around.
41:48They didn't have
41:49a power traverse
41:51like we had.
41:52And so it took time.
41:54And so while
41:55he was doing that,
41:57I told our driver,
41:59I said,
42:04let's get out of here.
42:05I want to get it located.
42:06But we want
42:07to get that guy.
42:14There was a big
42:15factory there.
42:21We just backed
42:22into that.
42:29So we'd be
42:30out of the way.
42:31We were in the building
42:32itself.
42:35And we could sit there
42:39and we'd watch
42:39for the tanks to come.
42:46And that's when
42:47I fired.
42:55I hit that
42:56drive sprocket.
43:01And they stopped.
43:02And then I didn't
43:07waste any time.
43:08My loader
43:09told him to load it.
43:12And then I
43:13hit him a second time.
43:18And that
43:19destroyed that tank.
43:20The city of Dessau
43:33surrenders to the
43:33Americans on
43:34April 23rd, 1945.
43:38Seven days after
43:39the Americans
43:40take Dessau,
43:41Adolf Hitler
43:42commits suicide.
43:43And the next day,
43:49the Russians
43:50capture Berlin.
43:55On May 8th, 1945,
43:58the war in Europe
43:59ends with Germany's
44:00unconditional surrender.
44:03For the Americans,
44:05the campaign has been
44:06long and bloody
44:06against an enemy
44:08who didn't relent
44:09from the beaches of Normandy
44:11to the streets of Berlin.
44:13The casualties
44:14the U.S. suffered
44:14in April 1945
44:16were about the same
44:18as what they suffered
44:18in June 1944.
44:20Around 10,000 deaths.
44:22So even though
44:22it seemed like
44:23the war was over,
44:23the Germans were giving up,
44:24they're still fighting
44:25to the end.
44:27For the 3rd Armored Division,
44:29their place
44:30at the vanguard
44:30of the 1st Army
44:31earns them the nickname
44:33Spearhead Division.
44:34The 3rd Armored Division
44:39was the first one
44:40to go through
44:40the Siegfried Line,
44:41first one to fire
44:42an artillery sheriff
44:43on German soil,
44:44first one to shoot down
44:45a German plane
44:46on German soil.
44:49We really earned
44:50that name of Spearhead.
44:51That's all there was
44:52to it.
44:53And being at the Spearhead
44:55comes with a cost.
44:57The 3rd Armored Division
44:58lost over 600 tanks,
45:002,500 killed,
45:0410,000 who were injured.
45:07More tanks and more men
45:09than any other
45:10armored division
45:11in World War II.
45:14I lost my loader,
45:16a good friend,
45:17and some other buddies,
45:19and I realized,
45:20they grow up.
45:23I was an 18-year-old kid,
45:26and I became
45:27an 18-year-old man
45:28in a short time.
45:30I was an 18-year-old kid,
45:32and I was a died
45:34in a short time.
45:36.
45:58.
45:58Gracias por ver el video.
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