Books photos about executed POWS June 1944

[Mark W. Tonner]

Putot - 8 Jun 44:

Source: The History of the 12. SS-Panzerdivision Hitlerjugend, by Hubert Meyer, p. 50 & 51:

"II./26, commanded by Sturmbannfuhrer Bernhard Siebken, assembled during the night 7/8 June in and around le Mesnil-Patry."

"The first attack objective of the Battalion was the village of Putot-en-Bessin, 1.5 km north of le Mesnil (measured from church to church). The battalion The Royal Winnipeg Rifles had prepared for defense at the southern edge of Putot and along the railroad line with three companies. D-Company was located immediately east of the village, where the battalion command post had been set up, as reserves.

At approximately 06:30 hours, a battle-ready scouting party of the II./26 experienced the first contact with the enemy A-Company when it tried to push into the village across the railroad embankment. It was thrown back. This indicated clearly that the enemy was ready to defend. The Battalion assembled for the attack with 7. Kompanie, led by Leutnant August Henne, on the right and 6. Kompanie on the left. No information can be given on the initial action of 5. Kompanie which was commanded by Obersturmfuhrer Karl Gotthard. 8. Kompanie (heavy) took up positions so that it could support the initial attack across the open terrain, to follow later. Details on the artillery support are not known. the self-propelled heavy infantry gun Kompanie was probably not yet ready to fire since it marched with the tracked vehicles of the III. Battalion which moved at a slower speed.

The body of II. Battalion arrived to late to attack before dawn together with I. Battalion. When Schmolke was briefed at the Battalion and received his attack orders he asked the commander when the start of the attack was to be. "Half an hour ago", Siebken replied"

"Obersturmfuhrer Schmolke reports on the development of the attack: "Our first attack objective was the railroad line Caen-Bayeux, our second was the road Caen-Bayeux. The attack carried quite well to the railroad line. My point platoon took a lot of prisoners. Because of the time pressure, I could not interrogate them myself. They were sent directly to the rear. An infantry platoon of the Panzer-Lehr-Division attacked together with us and put itself under my command. I also met a Hauptmann (capt.), a battery commander, who supported the attack with fire."

"Oberscharfuhrer Paul Dargel, commander of III. Zug of 6. Kompanie, remembers the further progress this way: "The first target was the railroad embankment. Heavy artillery and rifle fire greeted us from the embankment. My Zug had the sector to the left of the road and of the underpass. Our II. Zug was the first to reach the railroad embankment. During the second stage behind the embankment we took some prisoners who were moved to the battalion command post. At 15:00 hours we observed thick clouds of dust in front of the sector of the Panzer-Lehr-Division. They were probably approaching columns of enemy tanks. Since we had now pushed our way into the positions, the artillery fire stopped. Also, there was hardly any rifle fire from the enemy lines."

"Through the cooperation of all companies of the battalion, where the 7. Kompanie of Leutnant Henne had to do most of the fighting in town, the three Canadian companies "A", "B", and "C", were completely encircled in Putot in the early hours of the afternoon. They tried to withdraw under cover of artificial smoke when ammunition was running out. Only few men managed to make their way to "D" Company which was still fairly intact and had set up defensive positions to the east of the village. At 14:20 hours, the commander of the Winnipegs still believed he could master the situation with his own forces. In the course of the afternoon the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division received reports that the troops in the right sector had been cut off by enemy Panzers. This was a wrong impression. Very likely, the armored personnel carriers of the III./26 which had pushed into Brouay, had been mistaken for Panzers. An anti-tank gun of the III./26, in position near a railroad bridge east of Brouay, repeatedly fired on targets in Putot."

it goes on to state that:

"They had suffered 265 casualties, among them 105 dead" (RWR)

and:

"The II./26 of the"HJ" Division lost three NCOs and 16 men dead, one officer, eight NCOs and 49 men wounded, one officer and 20 men missing. Total losses of the Battalion were 98."