50 Versus 300: Fallschirmjägers in Normandy
On the morning of the 22nd of July 1944, positions held by the men of the 6th Fallschirmjäger Regiment under Friedrich August Freiherr von der Heydte were attacked by elements of the US 90th Infantry Division. The Americans had received orders to advance toward St. Germain-sur-Seves and their attack was initially successful: After a heavy artillery barrage, the men of the 358th Regiment (of the 90th Infantry Division) burst through the German lines of defense and advanced nearly a mile before the lack of cover made them too exposed to carry on their attack!
The Counter-Attack Begins
By midday, the situation had stabilized. Von der Heydte believed the Americans had conducted a reconnaissance in force and that his own men only faced a few American troops. He therefore ordered a sergeant (Oberfeldwebel Alexander Uhlig) and a company of 32 men to counter-attack the Americans, push them back, and potentially take some prisoners… He did not have a clue that he was in fact facing a whole regiment (300 men)!
Uhlig launched an attack on the right flank of the 358th at 18:00, and after a battle that lasted 3 hours, had managed to push the American troops back 350 yards. Uhlig’s men had been unable to take on any American prisoners… As a result, the German Oberfeldwebel decided to press on his attack, but not before finding some reinforcements first!
The Reinforcement Strategy
Sergeant Uhlig spent the night probing his flank and rear in order to find other German units. He found a handful of Wehrmacht men with two MG-42s and made contact with a tank commander from the Das Reich SS-Panzerdivision who could supply him with three crewed tanks. Uhlig placed his men on the battlefield and waited until 07:00 in the morning to launch his assault. A reinforced company (50 men) versus an entire regiment… Although the figures alone do not tell the whole story: The German Fallschirmjägers had fought in Italy and on the Eastern Front. The men of the American 358th were mainly green, having only recently arrived in France to replace the losses incurred by the US 90th Infantry Division.
The Surprise Assault
The German assault was launched on the left flank of the American positions, taking the US troops by surprise (the German assault on the previous evening had been prosecuted on the American right flank!). Still, the American boys resisted hard enough that it took 3 consecutive assaults to dislodge them! As the Americans started to retreat, the two German MG-42s that had been hidden on their flank finally opened fire, mowing down anybody standing up and pinning down anybody hugging the ground. Unable to resist due to the German armored support and unable to retreat due to the well-placed MG-42s, the American boys had no other choice but to surrender.
The Aftermath: Surrender and Recognition
Sergeant Uhlig had been told to bring back a couple of prisoners to von der Heydte… He came back with 200 of them!
Also, interestingly, after having witnessed American chaplains running across the battlefield at the height of the battle in order to bring comfort to wounded and dying soldiers, Uhlig initiated a truce with his American counterpart. Both sides took the opportunity to exchange wounded prisoners.
Oberfeldwebel Uhlig was later awarded the Knight’s Cross for his actions near St. Germain-sur-Seves on the 22nd and 23rd of July 1944. Ironically, before the end of the Normandy campaign, he was to be made prisoner of war by… men of the US 90th Infantry Division!
Escape and Life After War
Uhlig was detained in Camp 23 in Sudbury (UK) from where he escaped on the 22nd of April 1947. He made his way to Hull, stowed away onboard a ship bound for Germany. Once on German soil, he slipped through Soviet and American patrols and by the 28th of April was at home in Leipzig! After 6 years of war (1938-1944), operations in at least 7 different countries and 3 years of captivity, Uhlig went back to university and gained a degree in engineering. He lived a long life and died in 2008.
-RBM.
