The 715th Division, which suffered huge losses, dragged its exhausted body to Babruisk. As division commanders and chiefs of staff, Schultz and Swager knew that they were not to blame.
insult.? ?
When they arrived at their destination, something unexpected happened. The two men were arrested. Due to a series of failures, the division, led by Schultz, suffered cumulative casualties of up to 8,000 people!
Even though this is a second-line unit, almost all of the casualties of soldiers come from combat. Of course, such losses are due to the enemy's unexpected combat strength. Putting the responsibility on the Soviets? This is simply a humiliation of their own incompetence. The German authorities identified it as the 715th Division.
The headquarters is as stupid as a fat pig.
Those who came to arrest these two men included members of the military court and the Gestapo in the field.
After recovering from illness, Schultz and Swager were ordered to rush to the army headquarters to report. They entered the command office but did not see the commander. There was a group of Gestapo standing in the room. They knew that these guys in black with huge badges were not
It’s easy to mess with. Although the army has its own set of rules and regulations, the army is actually controlled by the Nazi Party at the moment.
"Where is the commander? Why is he not here?" Swag realized something was wrong and asked loudly.
At this time, a fat Gestapo stepped forward, his leather boots clicking, and a Nazi armband hanging on his arm. He stood in front of the short Swager in a mighty and domineering manner. Then he lifted his hand with three strokes, five divided by two.
Collar badges, epaulettes, medals and hats.
"Based on your series of failures on the battlefield and your failure to complete defense orders, which resulted in the inability of communication lines to operate normally. You have been relieved of all duties."
Schulz also encountered the same situation. He joined the army during World War I. The army was disbanded at the end of the war. He sank for a while and finally returned to the army. He reached the level of division commander and was relieved of all his duties. His face was trembling.
, looking at the Gestapo with wide eyes.
"Why are you doing this? We received an order to withdraw the entire division for rest. The positions of the chief of staff and I will not change. This is an order from the commander of the group army! Besides, you have no power to remove us from our positions. You are not soldiers!"
"We can!" the Gestapo man said coldly.
This person showed his ID and continued: "The ID has proved our identity, and our position is relieved. We have the power to interrogate anyone in the occupied areas and domestic jurisdictions. Even if you have a high military rank, we still have the power."
Inspection. Moreover, our current actions are completely legal."
"Is it legal? I want to see the commander of the group army! I shed blood for the Second Reich! I defended the defense line for the Third Reich! There is no credit but hard work. I want to see the commander of the group army!"
"Save your worries!" the man scolded, an angry expression written on his face. "I don't have time to chat with you two. Whether it is merit, hard work, or crime, the court will give you a reasonable explanation. Now
The commander of the group army went to the east for an inspection, and he really doesn’t have time to see you."
As he spoke, the man took out another document and placed it in front of the two of them. "This is an arrest warrant signed by our superiors personally. The 715th Division lost face for the Third Reich during the war. We suspect that you have any relationship with the enemy."
It’s an unclear relationship.”
"What does this mean? Are you suspecting that we are traitors?!" Swag was furious, and his excitement was directly reflected in his body. His overreaction was directly suppressed, and he was knocked on the calf by the Gestapo holding a wooden stick.
"Attention! You have been relieved of all duties. Now you two are only equivalent to ordinary privates. I advise you to cooperate honestly!"
The document bears the signature of the Army Group Commander and the name of John Kube, the highest representative of the Nazi Party in Belarus.
Swag recognized the reality. Even with thousands of words of defense, he could not explain it clearly to this group of men in black wearing armbands. They were only loyal to the Nazis. In Belarus, they were only loyal to the "frontier officials" level.
John Cube.
"Okay, I'll go with you! I accept all punishments, but you said that we have relations with the enemy. This is a slander against us!"
"Is it a slander or a fact? The question will naturally become clear."
Swager stopped talking. He glanced at Schulz, who had the same confused expression.
The soldiers of the 715th Division still don't know that their division commander has been dismissed and is awaiting trial in a military court. An infantry division has only 8,000 people from its original strength of 15,000. Such casualties have led to the collapse of the army, and even
Cancel number.
When the officers and soldiers of this division came to Babruisk, they were met with contemptuous words and looks from friendly forces. Throughout Belarus, guerrilla activities were intensifying. In most areas, the German army was still able to suppress their sabotage activities. Through bloody and violent attacks,
The method is to control the most basic villages and cut off the supplies of the guerrillas. Most of the hidden resisters are declining day by day. Only southern Belarus is in another situation.
The 715th Division was stationed outside the city, and they were waiting for new orders. The commanders and battalion commanders of each regiment were ordered to stay at the camp. They were provided with enough bread and butter every day, and even a supply of cigarettes and wine.
Ordinary soldiers can't care about that much. The long battle is exhausting physically and mentally. It would be nice to lie down and rest, eat and drink, and forget about the bloody battlefield for the time being.
But the officers have been vigilant. Since the division commander went to the headquarters, he has not returned. It was also someone from the headquarters who gave the order to rest. There are rumors that the division commander and chief of staff have been arrested, and the army is temporarily managed by the deputy division commander. The officers believe
This is all true, and it is unbelievable that one would not be held responsible for such a huge failure.
In the original Babruisk Prison, prisoners might be pardoned for all crimes as long as they served Germany. Those prisoners who were sentenced by the Soviet authorities for criminal cases such as robbery and theft became Nazi minions one after another (those who did not comply were shot). Nowadays,
The prison became a place to imprison Jews, anti-German citizens in the city, captured guerrillas and criminal soldiers in the German army.
Swager and Schultz were imprisoned in a small cell. The narrow cell was like a tomb. The two of them already knew that the situation was over.
Swag couldn't help but lean against the wall and said to himself with a wry smile; "I also guessed that the superiors were cherishing talents. It was pity that we were working hard to resist the enemy's attack on the front line and would not punish our sins. I didn't expect that as soon as we got here, you and I would be punished."
imprison."
"They are afraid of trouble in the army!" Schulz said. "If we are relieved of our duties early, it will further damage the morale of the army. From a military point of view, our smooth retreat to Babruisk is not a rout. 7o7
The division also safely took over our defense line, and all actions were carried out in an orderly manner, so the Soviets had absolutely no chance to fish in troubled waters."
Swager shook his head: "At this point, we still have to think about ourselves! Think about how we should explain to those senior officers! According to their traditional concepts, we may be shot."
"Even if he is killed! It can be regarded as comforting our fallen soldiers!" Schultz sat up.
Looking back on the process of deploying defenses in southern Belarus to the present, the 715th Division has been fighting fiercely with the guerrillas. Now the identity of the enemy has been exposed. They are a Guards force, a force that Yuan ordered to be eliminated. Thinking of this, he suddenly had an idea.
.
"After all, we have lost too many people, and I deserve to die. But we must tell the truth to those pedantic officers. The enemy is much better at special operations than us. They appear and disappear in the forest and invest more troops, which can only bring more enemies."
die."
Swag nodded: "We are not the only ones who have suffered heavy losses. The 7o7 Division has been revised for half a year and is now facing the same Soviets. Can they perform better than us? I think their new division commander will still be on the battlefield.
Killed in action. We have three hundred divisions on the Eastern Front. If every division encounters the same situation as us, the Third Reich is destined to fail in this war. I'm afraid! Failure is already..."
"Stop talking!" Schulz stopped him. "Watch the Gestapo's ears." 8