Communique Number 372 – 15 April 1945
Allied forces are clearing the last pockets of enemy resistance in Arnhem. Farther north, we reached the outskirts of Apeldoorn. Good advances were made between the Ijssel River and the Ems River and we reached the outskirts of Zwolle, Groningen and Winschoten. To the east, Friesoythe and Cloppenburg have been cleared of the enemy. Several counterattacks launched against our bridgehead over the Aller River near Rethen, were repulsed. We advanced 30 miles beyond Celle and are fighting in Uelzen. Our armor reached the Elbe River near Werben, north of Magdeburg. Iinfantry units following the armor reached Wittingen and Gladdenstedt, 30 miles north of Braunschweig, and the vicinity of Bismark, northwest of Stendal. We also have reached the Elbe near Tangermünde and are fighting in the town.
North of Magdeburg, we have taken Wolmirstedt and Barleben and we are on the river northeast of Barleben. We have made two crossings of the Elbe. Our forces on the east bank repulsed several counterattacks and we are receiving artillery fire. We reached Altenau and Breitenstein in the Harz Forest. Our armor, advancing up to 30 miles, is at a point three miles southwest of Dessau. Infantry units following the armor reached areas three miles north and four miles south of Halle. Zeitz has been cleared and our armor is 16 miles east of the town. Southeast of Zeitz we are meeting heavy artillery, small arms and bazooka fire.
Armored elements crossed the Mulde River and reached the vicinity of Meinsdorf and Hohenstein-Ernstthal, west of Chemnitz. We cleared the enemy from Jena and are fighting in Gera. Our infantry is mopping-up in the area south of Jena. Rudolstadt has been cleared, with the exception of a fortified castle, and we are in the area 16 miles east of Saalfeld. Our armor is fighting in Bayreuth and infantry is ten miles north of the city. Bamberg has been completely cleared of the enemy. Some 1850 prisoners were captured there. Our armor advanced 15 miles northeast and east of the city. To the southwest we are within six miles of Rothenberg. In the Heilbronn area our units advanced eight miles east of the city and six miles southward toward Stuttgart.
Near the Rhine River, we gained more than ten miles southwest of Baden Baden. Steinbach and Bühl were captured. Allied forces in the west captured 57.187 prisoners on Apr 13. In the Ruhr Pocket, we have cleared Dortmund and the enemy controls only five square miles north of the Ruhr River. Hagen has been entered by our forces, and we captured Eisborn and Asbeck. Lüdenscheid has been cleared and we took 3600 prisoners from the town. Enemy gun positions, strong points, and other installations in the Department of the Gironde area in France, near Royan, and an ammunition storage area north of Ulm in Germany, were attacked by medium bombers.
Rail and road traffic in the large triangular area formed by Dessau, Dresden and Nürnberg; rail yards at Schwabach, Schorndorf, Herbrechtingen, northeast of Ulm, and at Nördlingen; rail communications near Plzen, Rokycany, Beroun and Praha; objectives at Leitzkau, southeast of Magdeburg; airfields at Brandis, east of Leipzig; near Bayreuth and Nördlingen; fortified positions and strong points at Barßel Harkebrügge, and Kampe, west of Oldenburg; Stuttgart and Ingolstadt were attacked by fighter bombers. The communications center of Potsdam was heavily attacked last night by heavy bombers. Objectives in Berlin also were bombed.
Communique Number 373 – 16 April 1945
Allied forces completely cleared arnhem and advanced beyond the town to Deelen. Fighting continues in Apeldoorn. Farther north we occupied Zwolle, Meppel and Heerenveen. Reconnaissance elements have reached the sea north of Ternaard. We captured the southern half of Gröningen and occupied Winschoten. In our bridgehead over the Aller River north of Rethem we pushed four miles against determined enemy resistance. To the southeast we occupied Minsen on the right bank of the river and advanced north to Bergen. Heavy fighting continues in Uelzen. Our armored units now hold a 12 mile stretch of the west bank of the Elbe River near Seehausen. We cleared Stendal and advanced eight miles beyond. Our forces mopping up in the rear areas reached Wittingen and Salzwedel and cleared Bismark. Our armor withdrew from the northern bridgehead across the Elbe River because of heavy enemy pressure, but farther south infantry continues to expand its bridgehead in the vicinity of Barby.
Armored elements reached the Mulde River two miles southeast of Dessau and other units are on the main Dessau-Leipzig Railroad, eight miles south of Dessau. We are fighting in Köthen. Northeast of Nordhausen we entered Güntersberge and Siptenfelde. House-to-house fighting continues in halle and we captured Leuna. Our armor established a six mile front on the Mulde River, 20 miles north of Chemnitz. South of Leipzig our armored units are fighting in Hagenest and Altenberg, and infantry entered Ziegelheim and Glauchau. We reached the vicinity of Weißbach, entered Pillingsdorf and Rosendorf, northeast of Neustadt an der Orla, and we are in Bahren to the southwest. Our forces cleared Bad Lobenstein, entered Hirschberg, and captured Schlegel, all northwest of Hof.
Other units are in the area ten to 13 miles southwest of the city. Our armor captured Bayreuth and entered Weidenberg. In a 20 mile advance our armor reached Creußen, seven miles south of Bayreuth. We have closed to within 15 miles of Nürnberg. To the north, Forchheim was taken; to the northwest we are across the Aisch River, and to the west we reached Herrnneuses. On a wide front from north of Rothenburg o.d. Tauber to the Heilbronn area we gained several miles. Southeast of Baden Baden our advance extended to Besenfeld in the Schwartzwald Forest. Pushing along the Rhine River plain southeast of Kehl, opposite Strasbourg, we gained some eight miles to the vicinity of Offenburg. Allied forces in the west captured 87.779 prisoners on Apr 14.
The Ruhr Pocket was cut in two when our units advancing from the north and from the south met at Wetter. We are in the vicinity of Wuppertal. Hagen was cleared of the enemy, and we are near Iserlohn. Allied forces which launched an attack to clear the enemy from the Gironde Estuary in France captured Meschers, Semussac, Médis, and are one mile from Royan. Gun positions, strong points and other enemy installations on both sides of the estuary were attacked without loss by our heavy and medium bombers in very great strength. Enemy batteries at the mouth of the estuary were subjected to severe bombardment by an allied naval task force supporting the ground operations.
Rail lines between Bremen and Hamburg were severed in several places and motor transport on the west and east sides of the Elbe were attacked by fighter bombers. Rail yards at Hersbruck and Donauwörth, Günzburg and ulm were attacked by medium, light and fighter bombers. Rail and road transport in the areas of Dessau, Mühlberg, Leipzig, Borna, Dresden and Chemnitz, and airfields near Dessau, Leipzig and at Mariánské Lázne in Czechoslovakia, were attacked by fighter bombers which destroyed and damaged enemy aircraft on the ground. Enemy troops and strong points ahead of our ground forces in central Germany, and strong points in the Löwenstein area, at Neuhaus, and east of Stuttgart were hit by fighter bombers. Nineteen enemy aircraft were shot down during the day. According to reports so far received four of our fighter bombers are missing. Targets in Berlin were attacked by light bombers last night.
Communique Number 374 – 17 April 1945
Allied forces, breaking out from the Arnhem area, advanced beyond Otterlo. They also joined with units in the most northerly bridgehead across the Ijssel River in the area southwest of Zutphen. heavy fighting continues in Apeldoorn and in Gröningen to the north. We occupied Leeuwarden and reached the north sea coast at several places. Our armor broke out of our bridgeheads over the Aller River and advanced up to 15 miles, capturing Walsrode, Bergen and Müden. Fighter bombers attacked road movement over a wide area from the Zuider Zee to Emden, Bremen and Hamburg and heavily bombed road and rail transport in the Bremen-Hamburg-Berlin triangle. West of Oldenburg a number of targets, including infantry and pillboxes were hit by rocket-firing fighters.
We control the west bank of the Elbe River, except for a few small pockets, from Wittenberge to the Elbe River – Saale River junction, south of Barby. Magdeburg is not yet clear of the enemy. Our bridgehead across the Elbe is five miles deep. Our armor entered Bernburg and reached a point two and one-half miles southeast of Dessau where the autobahn crosses the Mulde River. Köthen was cleared. East of Köthen, our units moving south met others advancing north, thus closing a long narrow pocket of about 350 square miles which extends westward into the Harz Mountains. Infantry units mopping up behind our armor reached Hasselfelde in the Harz Mountains and cleared Alsleben, south of Bernburg. Our armor is at Bitterfeld, north of Leipzig.
We are still fighting in Halle. Merseburg, to the south, has been cleared. East of Leipzig our armor reached the outskirts of Wurzen, the vicinity of Stockheim and Borna to the southwest, and cleared Colditz. Our armored units occupied Altenburg, and after a 23 mile advance are in the area north of Chemnitz. Southwest of Ronneberg we entered weida, Linda and Wildetaube and to the east we cleared Glauchau, except for a small pocket of resistance. We cleared Schleiz and reached the vicinity of Jössnitz north of Plauen. We reached Grobau north of Hof, which has been cleared and to the south our infantry is in the vicinity of Schwarzenbach and Weißenstadt.
Rail and other communications targets at Wittenburg; Zerbst, northwest of Dessau; Herzberg and Riesa, northwest of Dresden; and in Czechoslovakia were heavily attacked by medium, light and fighter bombers. Heavy road movement was bombed around Riesa, Dresden and Chemnitz. Objectives ahead of our forward Ground elements near Dessau and Leipzig were attacked by other fighter bombers. Our infantry entered Nürnberg after a 20-mile advance from the northeast. Our forces are just northeast of Rothenberg after a gain of five miles. Southwest, towards Heilbronn, gains were made on a wide front.
Fighter bombers attacked targets ahead of our ground forces in the Heilbronn and Schwäbisch Hall areas. In the Schwartzwald Forest north of Freudenstadt, a six-mile gain put our units in Igelsberg. In the Rhine River Valley we took Offenburg and several other towns to the northwest toward Strasbourg. Forward elements drove 12 miles to the vicinity of Kürzell. Allied forces in the west captured 66.767 prisoners on Apr 15. In the Ruhr Pockets our armor reached Hilden and Haan. The one-time crack German Panzer-Lehr-Division, including its commanding general, his staff and 3000 men surrendered to us at Iserlohn. An enemy corps, consisting of the remnants of three divisions and including four generals, 23 other officers and 5000 men, also surrendered. On the French West Coast the town of Royan is now in our hands. Our infantry and tanks are clearing the fortified area surrounding the town. The Médoc Peninsula is being mopped up.
In the Pointe de Grave sector our units forced the enemy to withdraw beyond the Ste Vivien l’Hopital Line. An allied naval task force operating off the mouth of the Gironde continued to bombard enemy positions. Spotting aircraft directed the warships’ fire. Artillery positions northwest of la Pointe de la Coubre and other targets along the estuary were attacked with high explosive and fragmentation bombs by strong formations of medium bombers. In southern Germany, medium, light and fighter bombers hit rail yards at Gunzenhausen, Reutlingen, Ulm and Herbertingen, and an ordnance depot at Kempten some 60 miles southwest of München. In attacks on enemy airfields, fighters and fighter bombers destroyed at least 827 aircraft on the ground and damaged a large number of others. During the day 47 enemy aircraft were shot down. German naval units at Swinemunde, on the Baltic Coast were attacked by escorted heavy bombers. Last night heavy bombers in strength attacked railway targets on each side of the German-Czechoslovak border. Targets in Berlin were bombed by light bombers.
Communique Number 375 – 18 April 1945
Allied forces south of the Ijsselmeer in Holland captured Barneveld and Voorthuizen and occupied Apeldoorn. In north Holland we captured Harlingen and cleared the last of the enemy from Groningen. North of Friesoythe in Germany we established a bridgehead over the Küsten Canal against which the enemy launched two unsuccessful counterattacks. South of Hamburg, our armor advanced across the Lüneburg moor and captured Schneverdingen and Ebstorf. Fighting continues in Uelzen, but we have advanced beyond the town to the northeast. Our infantry and armor launched an attack on Magdeburg following heavy bombardment by artillery and medium, light and fighter bombers. In the bridgehead area south of Magdeburg our forces east of the Elbe repulsed a heavy counterattack, and destroyed 15 to 20 of the estimated 30 enemy tanks participating.
There were no changes in the Dessau area where we are meeting resistance from German civilians as well as troops. Farther south, our forces advanced to Bitterfeld, where we have been held up by enemy tank and artillery fire. Halle is half cleared. Our units are enveloping Leipzig from the west, south and east. The enemy commander at Chemnitz refused a surrender demand by our forces, which are two miles west of the city. To the southwest, we have taken Werdau and cleared Greiz after heavy street fighting. Our units have entered Netzschkau, captured Plauen, and cleared Oelsnitz.
In the Hof area we advanced to within four and one-half miles of the Czechoslovakian border. In the Harz Pocket, our forces on the north side captured Wernigerode and are meeting stiff resistance as they pushed southward from the town. Other elements advancing from the southern edge entered Braunlage and pushed four miles northeast from Güntersberg. Our armor reached Hopfenohe, 15 miles southeast of Bayreuth, in and advance of some ten miles. Nürnberg was almost encircled while stubborn resistance continued in the outskirts. To the north, Erlangen was captured. Rothenburg was taken after negotiations for surrender failed. Farther west, gains up to five miles were made against varying resistance. Strong points near Rothenburg and in the Heilbronn and Schwäbisch Hall areas, and a troop concentration northwest of Crailsheim were hit by fighter bombers.
Southwest of Stuttgart, Nagold was reached after and advance of some 12 miles. In the Schwartzwald Forest and the Rhine Plain up river from Strabourg further gains were scored. In the Maritimes Alps several peaks have been taken and Briel, near the italian border was entered. Allied forces in the west captured 112.033 prisoners on Apr 16. In the Ruhr the enemy has been confined to a single pocket of about 125 square miles in the Düsseldorf area. We are fighting in the eastern section of Düsseldorf. To the northeast our armor advanced to a point just south of Kettwig and met our units moving from he north.
On the French Atlantic Coast the enemy pockets at la Pointe de Grave and at la Pointe de la Coubre were subjected to heavy artillery concentrations and were bombed by medium bombers. Our ground forces made a deep penetration into the La Coubre Forest where enemy resistance was broken and mopping up is proceeding rapidly. The German admiral, commanding enemy forces in the Royan Pocket, and his entire staff were captured.
Rail targets in the Dresden area, at Falkenau, Karlsbad, Beroun, Kladno and Usti]; and an oil storage depot at Raudnitz, north of Praha were attacked yesterday by escorted heavy bombers in very great strength. The escorting fighters destroyed a large number of enemy aircraft on the ground in both Germany and Czechoslovakia. Heavy rail movement in an area south and east of Bayreuth; rail yards in the area from Dresden to Plzen and others at Nördlingen, Esslingen, Epfendorf, northest of Rottweil, and at Püttlingen, and airfields at Nördlingen and in the area of Cheb were attacked by fighter bombers. Ammunition dumps at Altendettelsau and Gunzenhausen east and southeast of Ansbach; warehouses and rail communications at Aalen, Tübingen and Weingarten were targets for medium and light bombers. Road and rail transport in Holland and in northern Germany near Schwerin and in the area of Wittstock and Kyritz; enemy shipping in the Frisian Isles area; and gun positions and troop concentrations west of Oldenburg were struck at by fighter bombers and rocket-firing fighters. Last night light bombers attacked targets in Berlin.
Communique Number 376 – 19 April 1945
All organized resistance in the Ruhr Pocket has ceased and allied forces have virtually completed mopping up the last enemy stragglers in this area. In Holland our forces advancing from the Arnhem area have occupied Wageningen and Ede and reached the Zuider Zee north of Barneveld. West of the Ems River near its mouth, and around our bridgehead over the Küsten Canal the enemy is offering stiff resistance. Beyond the Aller River, Verden and Soltau have been captured and our columns advanced ten miles north of Schneverdingen. Uelzen, now almost cleared of the enemy, has been surrounded and we advanced north of the town to the outskirts of Lüneburg, and east to Rosche.
Our units attacking south into the Harz Mountains gained two to four miles. Magdeburg has been cleared to the Elbe River. In the bridgehead across the Elbe we repulsed two small counterattacks. We entered Leipzig from the west with infantry and tanks and reached the west bank of the Elster Canal. In the Chemnitz area our units encountered small arms and bazooka fire at Auerswalde. Our infantry gained up to 12 miles on a 14 miles front in the Zwickau area and Zwickau and Lengenfeld have been cleared. We met strong resistance at Lengenfeld from dug-in tanks and infantry. South of Lengenfeld we cleared Treuen. East of Zwickau we reached the vicinity of Wildenfels and cavalry elements are near Thierfeld. Farther south we reached the vicinity of Sachsgrün and our patrols advanced six miles east, crossed the Czechoslovakian border, and reached Gottmannsgrün. South of Hof we entered Schwarzenbach and Weißenstadt.
In Nürnberg, our units which entered from the north and from the east joined, and other elements drove into the city from the south. Resistance decreased as we knocked out enemy gun positions. The suburb of Furth and a nearby airfield were captured. South of Nürnberg we reached Schwand, and to the west, Ansbach has been largely cleared. Farther west towards Heilbronn we reached Jochsberg, Westheim and Grab. South of Pforzheim we reached Horb, on the upper Neckar River. Freudenstadt, communications center in the Schwarzwald Forest, was captured and the advance extended five miles farther south.
In the Rhine River Plain, our units pushed as far south as Dinglingen. Enemy resistance in Oberkirch was overcome and long-range guns which had been firing on Strasbourg were silenced. Allied forces in the west captured 37.427 prisoners Apr 17, bringing the total prisoners captured in the west since d day to 2.093.002. On the French Atlantic Coast we have cleared the entire north side of the Gironde Estuary. The attack continues on the southern side of the estuary where we have pushed the enemy into his last defensive positions on the Verdon Plain. The naval base and fortress Island of Helgoland and an airfield on the Island of Düne, near Heligoland; rail yards, transformer stations and other rail facilities at Rosenheim, Traunstein, Passau and Straubing in southern Germany and at Holín and Plzen in Czechoslovakia were attacked by escorted heavy bombers in very great strength.
Fighter bombers hit targets ahead of our ground forces and attacked rail targets elsewhere in northwest Germany; rail and road transport and airfields in central Germany and as far east as Plzen and Praha in Czechoslovakia, and rail targets in southern Germany including the yards at Gunzenhausen, Eichstätt, Ingolstadt and Denkingen. Enemy barracks at Oldenburg were attacked by medium bombers; an oil storage depot at Neuburg, communications targets at Jüterbog and Falkenberg were hit by medium and light bombers, and enemy airfields in the Ulm area were attacked by medium and fighter bombers. Targets in Berlin were attacked last night by light bombers.
Communique Number 377 – 20 April 1945
Allied forces in Holland occupied Harderwijk on the Zuider Zee, and reconnaissance patrols to the northeast entered Kuinre and Kampen, virtually the whole of northeastern Holland is liberated. Defense positions, gun and infantry concentrations in the Papenburg area were hit by fighter bombers and rocket-firing fighters. An enemy barracks at Leer was bombed by medium bombers. The enemy has maintained his pressure on our bridgehead over the Küsten Canal but to the east we took Adelheide and closed up to the outskirts of Delmenhorst, six miles west of Bremen. At Oldenburg a counterattack which was forming was attacked by rocket-firing fighters. Strong points and troop entrenchments ahead of our forward positions in the area were hit. East of the Aller River the enemy suffered a decisive defeat on the Lüneburger Heide and though we are still experiencing heavy opposition inside the village of Visselhövede, our armored units advanced to within ten miles of Hamburg and are along the Hamburg-Bremen autobahn for a distance of more than 12 miles.
Rail targets between Hamburg and Bremen were bombed. Armored columns captured Lüneburg and pushed on to the Elbe River south of Lauenburg where the enemy is offering strong opposition. In the area 35 miles northeast of Braunschweig the enemy launched a counterattack in approximately division strength, supported by 25 tanks, half-tracks and self propelled guns. Attacking rapidly to the southeast, enemy task forces bypassed our units and penetrated 15 miles in the direction of the Klötze Forest before our forces brought the situation under control.
We repulsed two small counterattacks in our bridgehead across the Elbe River south of Magdeburg where our fighter bombers attacked enemy armor and troop positions. South of Zerbst, in the bridgehead area, fighter bombers destroyed or damaged a large number of enemy fortified building and five heavy guns. Enemy pockets of resistance west of the Elbe River between Lüneburg and Wittenberge were hit with bombs and rockets. In the Harz Forest Pocket we entered Quedlinburg, Elbingerode, and Ballenstedt. South of Dessau we are near Bobbau Steinfurth after heavy fighting. An enemy counterattack near Bitterfeld was repulsed. Our units cleared Halle, and Leipzig is almost clear of the enemy. We reached the area of Chemnitz and our infantry entered Oberlungwitz southwest of the city. South and southeast of Hof we cleared Schwarzenbach and Weißenstadt, and entered Pilgramsreuth and Kirchenlamitz.
Farther south we entered Bischofsgrün and reached an area five miles northeast of Bayreuth. Our units advancing from the west and from the east made contact eight miles south of Nürnberg to completely encircle the city. Inside Nürnberg the enemy has been driven into an area one mile square where house-to-house fighting is in progress. Southeast of Nürnberg our units reached Neumarkt. We captured two airfields near Furth, west of Nürnberg, and to the southwest we reached Merkendorf. We captured a number of towns in a five-mile advance south of Rothenbürg. East of Heilbronn we captured Fichtenberg and Mittelrot. Between Heilbronn and Nürnberg we captured 8101 prisoners in 24 hours including three generals, 150 firemen who were in Nürnberg defense units, and a train load of German women auxilliaries.
Tübingen, southwest of Stuttgart was captured. We hold a 20 mile stretch of the upper Neckar River and the road from Strasbourg to Tübingen, through the Schwartzwald Forest, is in our hands. In the Maritime Alps we made additional progress in the area of the town of Briel which we captured. Allied forces in the west captured 50.626 prisoners on Apr 18. On the French Atlantic Coast our units clearing the Gironde area continue to make progress. Additional gains have been made in the la Pointe de Grave sector over flooded, marshy ground and against stubborn resistance.
Rail facilities at Falkenburg and Alserwerda; between Berlin and Dresden; at Pirna, southeast of Dresden, at at Karlsbad and Usti in Czechoslovakia, were attacked by escorted heavy bombers in strength. Rail targets in the Torgau area and along a broad front southeastwards to Praha were hit by fighter bombers. Rail yards at Ulm and Neu-Ulm, an ordnance depot at Neu-Ulm, a rail bridge at Donauwörth on the Ulm-Nürnberg line, and a supply depot at Donaueschingen, 50 miles southeast of Strasbourg, were attacked by medium and light bombers. At pasing, near München, escorted heavy bombers attacked a transformer station serving electric railways leading to the Bavarian Mountains. Gun positions and ammunition dumps at Dunkerque were attacked by medium bombers. Shipping on the Zuider Zee and around the Ems estuary was hit by fighter bombers and rocket-firing fighters. Two ships were left sinking and another was damaged. Objectives on the Island of Helgoland were attacked with 12.000 pound bombs. A number of enemy airfields were bombed during the day. In addition to many enemy aircraft destroyed on the ground, 30 were shot down in combat. According to reports so far received six of our heavy bombers and 13 fighters are missing from the day’s operations. Targets in Berlin were bombed last night by light bombers.
Communique Number 378 – 21 April 1945
Allied forces in Holland advanced in the sector west of Barneveld, despite stubborn enemy opposition, and captured the village of Hoevelaken, two miles east of Amersfoort. West of Bremen we captured Delmenhorst and closed farther around the defenses of Bremen. East of the Weser River, allied armored elements in a series of cutflanking thrusts took Visselhövede and Hemslingen, cut the main railway north of Rotenburg, and rushed down the Hamburg-Bremen autobahn for more than 20 miles. We are in the vicinity of Zeven, about midway between Bremen and Hamburg. Our armor is on the outskirts of Harburg, just south of Hamburg, we captured Winsen, thus extending our hold on the Elbe River. Rail lines between Bremen and Hamburg; road and rail transport in the Bremen-Hamburg-Berlin area; enemy shipping north of Wangerooge; fortified positions and strong points near Papenburg, west of Oldenburg, and near Stade were hit by fighter bombers and rocket-firing fighters.
Northeast of Braunschweig the enemy counterattack of estimated division strength, launched to the southeast in the direction of the Klötze Forest on Apr 19, has been sealed off and our troops are attacking to regain lost ground. South of Dessau our armor and infantry elements are fighting in Bobbau-Steinfurth, Wolfen, and the vicinity of Bitterfeld against strong enemy resistance including self propelled guns. Our cavalry elements captured a 94 car enemy railroad supply train near Halle.
Leipzig is now completely in our hands and our armored units northeast of the city gained 1500 yards to reach a point on the Mulde River south of Eilenburg. Southeast of Hof our infantry cleared Selb, Thiersheim, and Wunsiedel and advanced to the vicinity of Redwitz a.d. Rodach. Farther south other elements reached the vicinity of Kemnath while our armor captured Grafenwöhr. Our infantry captured an enemy airfield nine miles southeast of Bayreuth seizing some bombs and other equipment. In the Harz Mountains Pocket our units south of Halberstadt have taken Thale, Quedlinburg, and Ballenstedt. West of Thale we entered Hüttenrode where an enemy counterattack was repulsed. All organized resistance in Nürnberg has ceased.
Twelve miles to the southeast we are encountering stubborn resistance in Neumarkt i.d. Oberpfalz. Southeast of Rothenburg o.d. Tauber, we captured Feuchtwangen, after a six mile advance. Stuttgart was virtually encircled as armored units from the northeast advanced 25 miles to Ohmden, east of Kirschheim unter Teck, and other forces swung north to Aich, ten miles south of Stuttgart. To the southwest, a broad wedge was pushed 20 miles to Rottweil, north of the Swiss-German border, and more than 25 towns were taken in the area. Gains up to five miles southward were made in the Schwartzwald Forest and south of Lahr.
In the Rhine River Plain, we advanced to Forchheim. Allied forces in the west captured 64.667 prisoners on Apr 19. On the French Atlantic Coast all resistance in the Gironde Estuary Pocket ceased and the german commander and his staff were captured. Rail yards and other rail facilities at Neuruppin, Oranienburg, Nauen, Wustermark, Brandenburg, Seddin and Treuenbrietzen were attacked by escorted heavy bombers in strength. Other escorted heavy bombers made a heavy attack on a fuel depot at Regensburg, and at Klatovy, Zwiesel, and Mühldorf. Rail and road traffic near Jeßnitz, Riesa, Dresden, Plzen, and Wittenburg; rail yards at Aulendorf, north of Weingarten; Memmingen, Nördlingen, Wittenburg, and Ebenhausen, south of Ingolstadt, were hit by medium, light and fighter bombers. Fuel depots at Annaburg, Deggendorf; an ordnance depot at Staubing, and an ammunition dump at Ingolstadt, were attacked by medium and light bombers. A large oil storage dump near Torgau was hit by fighter bombers. Enemy airfields near Ludwigslust, Brandenburg, Riesa, Dresden, Plzen, Ulm, Ehingen, Laupheim, Augsburg, Ingolstadt, and Riem, east of München, were bombed and strafed by medium and fighter bombers. Many aircraft were destroyed on the ground and others were damaged. Targets in Berlin were attacked last night by light bombers.
Communique Number 379 – 22 April 1945
Allied forces reached the line of the Eem River northwest of Amersfoort. East of the Ems River, Papenburg was entered. We enlarged our bridgehead over the Küsten Canal despite strenuous opposition. Our forces closed in Nearer to Zeven and Rotenburg and repulsed a counterattack in the vicinity of Elsdorf. Mopping up operations continue in the areas west of Lüneburg. In the area west of Wittenberge our forces have gained up to seven miles in the Gartower Forest, capturing Prezelle. Northeast of Braunschweig, we have pocketed the enemy force which counterattacked us on Apr 19. We have retaken Diesdorf and Abbendorf. In the Harz Mountains Pocket we captured Blankenburg. All organized resistance in the pocket has ceased.
Enemy swimmers failed in an attempt to blow a bridge leading to our bridgehead across the Elbe River and some of the swimmers were captured. Farther south our armored task forces entered Dessau. South of the city we cleared Bobbau-Steinfurth and Wolfen and entered Jessnitz and Greppin against stiff resistance. We are fighting in Bitterfeld. Northeast of Leipzig our armor occupied Krostitz and our troops are mopping up along the Mulde River. In Czechoslovakia, we cleared Aš, and advancing to the east reached a point five miles north of the Town. In Germany, south of Aš, we entered Schirnding and cleared Arzberg. Farther south we entered Fuchsmühl, Erbendorf and Pressath, and entered Riggau. Mopping up in Nürnberg has been completed. More than 14.000 allied prisoners were liberated when we cleared a concentration camp in the area. In the Rothenbürg area, our armor drove 18 miles southward to Bopfingen, Crailsheim, from which we withdrew two weeks ago, was captured and we made further gains southward.
A four-mile gap remained in the link around Stuttgart with approaching columns at Kirchheim and Unterensingen. A score of towns were taken in the area as we drove towards Stuttgart from all sides. Forward elements were at Esslingen. South of Stuttgart, our units thrust 18 miles to Donaueschingen, on the headwaters of the Danube, ten miles north of the German-Swiss border. Tuttlingen and Mühlheim a.d. Donau, farther east, were also taken. In the Schwartzwald Forest several more towns fell to our forces. In the Rhine River Plain, Breisach was reached in a five-mile gain. Between the Rhine and Nürnberg, more than 11.000 prisoners were taken in 24 hours. Allied forces in the west captured 46.334 prisoners on Apr 20.
The rail center at Oldenberg was attacked by medium bombers. Rail communications between Praha and Plzen; motor transport between Nürnberg and Augsburg; enemy strong points east of Heilbronn, southeast of Stuttgart, and east of Strasbourg; and a number of airfields were attacked by fighter bombers. Many enemy aircraft were destroyed on the ground and a number were damaged. Fifty vehicles were destroyed in a depot in the Nürnberg-Augsburg area. Rail yards and facilities at München and Ingolstadt and an airfield at Landsberg, 30 miled west of München, were bombed by escorted heavy bombers. Light bombers hit a rail yard at Attnang-Puchheim, 35 miles northeast of Salzburg. Five enemy aircraft were shot down in the day’s operations. According to reports so far six of our heavy bombers and two fighters are missing. Targets at Kiel were attacked last night by light bombers.
