Mortar Gunner on the Eastern Front: The Memoir of Dr Hans Rehfeldt: Volume II - Russia, Hungary, Lithuania, and the Battle for East Prussia

by Hans Heinz Rehfeldt, Gilberto Villahermosa (Foreword by)

Overview

Returning to his old unit, the grenade launcher, in May 1944, he experienced the heavy defensive battles in Romania as a platoon commander and from August 1944 in East Prussia and Lithuania. After being transferred by ship from Memel to Königsberg in late 1944, he took part in the battles for Ostprussen in the winter of 1944/1945. Constantly exposed to the attacks of Russian bombers and fighter planes and severely wounded by shrapnel on the leg, he manages, with the help of a Russian volunteer and a horse-drawn vehicle from Balga to Rosenberg, from there by ship transport via Pillau to Świnoujście and by train to Schwerin.

Fleeing the impending Russian imprisonment to the west, he falls into American captivity on 3 May 1945 and is released in July 1945 in the home.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781784383657
Publisher:	Pen and Sword
Publication date:	12/12/2019
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Dr Hans Heinz Rehfeldt was born on 21 April 1923 in Hagen/Westphalia. He left for the Front on 27 October 1941, at which point his story begins. He went on to receive several awards for valor in the face of extreme adversity. He went on to become a veterinarian following his studies of veterinary medicine. He died in 2017.

Gilberto Villahermosa is a retired U.S. Army Colonel with more than 30 years of military service as an Armor Officer, Master Paratrooper, Strategic Intelligence Officer, Foreign Area Specialist (Russia, Eurasia, and the Middle East), and U.S. Army Historian. He has served with NATO in Europe and Afghanistan, as well as in Russia, Eurasia, Central Asia, and the Middle East. Colonel Villahermosa is the author of 'Honor and Fidelity. The 65th Infantry in Korea', 'Hitler’s Paratrooper. The Life and Battles of Rudolf Witzig', and 'Hitler’s Paratroopers in Normandy'.

Table of Contents

Foreword Colonel Gilberto Villahermosa v

Translator's Note ix

Author's Introduction x

Acknowledgements xii

1943

1 Defensive Fighting in the Achtyrka Area 3

2 Retreating as Far as Kremenchug 6

3 Crossing the Dnieper Towards Kirovograd 13

4 Transfer to Seleni 18

5 At the Front Again 22

1944

6 To the Army Veterinary Academy - Hannover 47

7 Operation Margarethe I-The March into Hungary with Reinforced Infantry Regiment (mot.) 1029 Grossdeutschland 51

8 Through the Wild Carpathian Mountains 60

9 Securing the Carpathian Passes 87

10 Through the Minefield of Orsoaia! 101

11 Out from the Front 115

12 On the Way to East Prussia 138

13 The Battle for the Memel Bridgehead 147

1945

14 From Memel to Königsberg: The Journey Continues 181

15 Attack and Defence Around Jäskeim 198

16 A Last Attempt 224

17 East Prussia - Cut Off From the Reich 241

18 In the Mehlsack - Heiligenbeil - Zinthen Pocket 250

19 Operation Ordensritter 272

20 The Russians Break Through 283

21 My Second Wound 291

22 And God Remained Silent 298

23 My Escape from the Pocket 323

24 Always One Step Ahead of the Russians 327

25 Into American Captivity 331

26 Freedom Again 337

27 Home at Last 340

Editorial Reviews

"Mortar Gunner on the Eastern Front’s soldier’s-eye view of combat, without reference to the larger operations or strategy of the fighting, makes it an interesting read."

Military Review

"Ably translated into English by Geoffrey Brooks and featuring an informative Foreword by Gilberto Villahemosa and unreservedly recommended for both community and academic library World War II History & Biography collections..."

Midwest Book Review

"...one of the more interesting aspects of this volume are the many photos of propaganda leaflets by both the Soviets and Germans, trying to entice the other to surrender..."

WWII and other Book Reviews