IT NEVER S N O W S IN SEPTEMBER

hands the plan was feasible. General EugenFelix Schwalbe was given the responsibilityfor directing the evacuation of FifteenthArmy across the Scheldt. In 16 days nineshattered infantry divisions - 59, 70, 245,331, 334, 17 Luftwaffe Field, 346, 711 and712 - were evacuated. The task was com-plete by 21 September. In the process65,000 men, 225 guns, 750 trucks andwagons, and 1,000 horses were saved. Noserious attempt was made throughout thisperiod by the Allies to push on beyondAntwerp and cut the base of the BevelandIsthmus, to deprive Fifteenth Army of itsonly reasonable escape route.As a result two badly battered and poorlyarmed divisions of these troops becameavailable, appearing in Brabant on 16 and 17September: the 245 Division under ColonelGerhard Kegler and the 59th under General-leutnant Walter Poppe. The latter, for exam-ple, still retained up to 1,000 good infantrymen, a few engineers, a field replacementbattalion, 18 anti-tank guns and aboutthirty 105mm and 150mm howitzers. Theywere to play an important role in futureoperations.Erich Hensel, a 23-year-old Feldwebel(Sgt) in a divisional 'Nachrichten' (signals)company, retreated from Normandy toBelgium at the beginning of September. Hisunit, commanded by a lieutenant, himselfand one other sergeant, numbered about 30men. Well-trained and armed, the unit hadthus far managed to keep together. Self-sufficiency had been the key. Air defencewas provided by a twin 20mm lorry-borneanti-aircraft cannon. Casualties in Nor-mandy had been light, although Hensel hadbeen 'heartbroken' by the loss of a friend, acorporal, to a low-flying 'Jabo'. FollowingFifteenth Army's escape route, the journeyto the Scheldt proved to be perilous. Civil-ians were not friendly. A Belgian priest hadto be coerced into decently burying thecorporal. On another occasion, whenbriefed to check the demolition of a bridge

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by his company commander, Henselreturned to find a British tank astride it,and victory celebrations in full swing. Iso-lated by cheering Belgian civilians he onlyescaped the melee by threatening to openfire. His officer from Duesberg was a goodcommander and kept the unit together.They were a close-knit band, as Henselcommented: 'In Normandy we learned thatwe would survive only if we kept together.'Joining the Fifteenth Army evacuation pro-cess, the signals company was loaded on toone of the many ferries to be taken acrossthe Scheldt Estuary.

'On the Sheldt an army Lieutenant-Colonel arrived with a truck filledwith booty, champagne and twowomen. "Give me that boat!" hedemanded. The corporal skipperingretorted indignantly: "You're stayingthere!", and off we sailed. Ourcompany commander, a decent man,was ashamed that we should witnesssuch a scene. He had previously toldus about the assassination plot againstHitler in terms of "Thanks to God hewasn't killed". I was not so certain Icould go so far as to agree with that!'

Hensel, despite his youth, was alreadyregarded as one of the Alte or veterans. Hehad already fought on the Russian front.Normandy, however, had opened his eyes:

'Discipline was normally very good.The retreat from France was the firsttime I had ever seen demoralisedGerman units.'

Their troubles, even on crossing the Scheldt,were not over. Some of the company march-ed on foot, whilst heavy equipments werecarried on the lorry. Suffering from a gre-nade shrapnel leg wound, Hensel had toride one of the bicycles. There were con-stant delays en route. After crossing the

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