The WW2 Tank Battle Caught On Film! (WW2 Documentary)

on the 6th of March 1945 American tanks from the famous third Armored Division fought their way into the heart of the German city of Cologne desperately trying to repel the American advance and hold the vital bridge over the river Rhine were the last few tanks of the once formidable 106th Panzer Brigade What followed was a unique chapter in the second world war captured in real time by combat cameramen on the ground in this video we'll use the latest technology and wartime footage to follow the Epic action that is today known as the cologne tank Jewel by March 1945 the Western Front looked something like this with the Germans being pushed back towards the mighty Rhine all along the front including just here in Cologne Shattered by Allied bombers it was a shadow of its former self but nevertheless as Germany's fourth largest city still represented an important Allied objective let's wind the clock back to 1945 and blend the wartime aerial over the modern satellite image to see the city as it was then one key location is the impressive Cologne Cathedral which even today dominates the Metropolitan City Center and conveniently for us serves as both an orientation point and the American objective in the fight it was in the shadow of this Cathedral that the famous tank Jewel would take place but to get there we need to move westwards and back in time a little by early March U.S forces of the legendary spearhead division found themselves here on the outskirts of cologne having fought non-stop since Normandy leading the advance into the city were the tanks of Colonel Leander Downs task force x some 45 in total but in this video we'll follow just two this Sherman 76 commanded by 26 year old Wisconsin native Lieutenant Carl Kellner and Eagle seven a brand new Pershing tank commanded by Sergeant Bob early the Pershing in particular was important weighing 46 tons with 100 millimeters of frontal armor and a powerful 90 millimeter gun the five-man tank was a big step up from the far more common Sherman albeit a largely untested one in action all that would soon change but just why is this action unique in second world war history well it's thanks to these guys a group of journalists photographers and combat cameramen who were embedded within the leading elements as they Advanced meticulously capturing still images and footage along the way foremost amongst the most staff sergeant Jimmy Bates Leon Rosamond and Fred ramage who armed only with cameras ran all the same risks as their armored comrades so what exactly were the Americans facing in truth it's hard to be precise it was a chaotic time for the German Army but we do know that remnants of the badly Mall 363rd Volks Grenadier division were in place in the area we also know that at least three German tanks from Panzer Brigade 106 were in the vicinity on the far side of the rail bridge and were to be thrown into the fight last minute in the attempt to stem the advancing American tide the plan of attack was something like this units would push in on each flank of the city sealing off any Escape North or South whilst at the same time a central column led by the tanks of enf companies of a 30-second armored regiment would attack from the Northwest driving into the Heart of the City to capture the cathedral and hopefully the vital hohen zollin Bridge Over the Rhine our route in this video will follow this Central advance let's get straight down to the ground to the Village of pulheim to pick up the story we know that the Americans were here thanks to at least a few landmarks still standing in the area which can be traced today it was here at about 10 a.m on the 5th of March that cameraman Jim Bates captured footage of the American column advancing down this road at this time all the tanks of task force x revising down the same route and met Little Resistance until they reached cologne suburbs it was here that the Infantry came into their own advancing with the armor their role was to clear houses along their route of Advance it was a tough job requiring GIS on the ground with plenty of guts to be first in the door by mid-afternoon on the 5th of March The Wider part of the venlor Strasser a road leading directly to the city center was reached this exact location we can identify on film today is it allows us a unique opportunity to follow these leading tanks here we see the early's eagle 7 was firing towards the old Cemetery as they continue to clear a path eastwards by the end of the day the westernmost suburbs were cleared and those famous twin spiers of the cathedral were finally in sight albeit some way off it's likely that U.S forces held here for the night regrouping and rearming for the much Sterner test that was to follow on the other side of the city the Germans too were preparing late in the evening a Panzer Mark IV arrived from Southwest Germany at the Eastern Bank of the Rhine after a hellish Journey under continual Air Attack 18 year old Gunner Gustav Schaefer was glad just to be alive only to learn that the following morning he was to advance directly into cologne let's take a moment to understand the situation on the morning of the 6th of March it's likely at this time that the single group split and took two separate but parallel routes into the city one a group of four Shermans led by eagle 7 taking the suburata Strasser and a second group including kelner's 76 and a 75 millimeter armed Sherman continuing along the vinlo estrasse the aim being for both groups to converge on the Square in which the cathedral stood it seems that the camera team split two with Jim Bates and Liam rosaman following the group led by early's Pershing and another team including Clarence garrel and Fred ramage following the pair of Shermans along the second route only a few roads apart the tanks would remain in radio contact throughout let's return to Young Gustav's Schaefer shortly before 10 AM he recalled receiving the order to advance and describes what happened next we drove three tanks right over the one Solon Bridge into the city once there two tanks were immediately directed to the Central Station when we had crossed the bridge and the other two drove to the Central Station an officer told us to drive further into the city we then ran for the restaurants passing the cathedral until we came to an intersection now we know that by 10 am on the 6th at least three tanks a mark IV and likely two Panthers Advanced into the ruins of cologne commanding one of the Panthers that day was Oberlin Wilhelm Battleboro an experienced tank commander holding the Iron Cross first and second class he was to take up position as per orders of course unknown to the advancing Americans in a tunnel just north east of the cathedral returning now though to the Pershing group accompanied by cameraman Bates they also Advanced directly towards the mark IV commanded by Ober Felder Rolf militzer with Schaefer at the Gun Site the nerves were incredible on both sides as the two tanks cautiously close distance slowly feeling their way through the rubble-filled streets a civilian vehicle driven by a local grocer Michael delling with his employee 27 year old Katarina Esser in the passenger seat came racing into view apparently trying to escape the approaching firefight in the almost deserted City they unknowingly drove straight between earlys and militar's tanks with tragic results tents with nerves and unsure who occupied the car both Clarence smoyer the gunner in the Pershing and Schaefer in the mark IV opened up riddled by Machine Gun fire the opal slew to a stop with delling dead at the wheel and young Katarina Esser mortally wounded beside him as is often the case in the fog of War civilians find themselves caught in the crossfire no one else in Cologne that day would have been shaken by an enormous explosion moments later as the Holden zolan rail Bridge the last possible Lifeline for the German armor in Cologne was blown up by German pioneers there was now no way out it would be a fight to the end with each tank now alerted to the presence of the other by Trace of fire smoya caught sight of the mark IV as it hastily reversed behind a building now out of sight for its location known smoya decided on a new course of action and repeatedly slammed armor-piercing rounds into the five-story building directly in front of the enemy tank the resulting debris which collapsed onto the Panzer blocked its turret from rotating surrounded outgunned and demoralized by the blowing of the bridge and the damage to their tank sergeant militar and Gustav Schaefer had finally had enough they exited the tank running down this road and into a side street before taking shelter in a nearby Hotel basement apparently determined to fight on the remaining three crews stayed in the damage tank and from here disappear from the pages of History with the path now clear the Pershing cautiously began to advance towards the cathedral with infantry and Camera team in tow by shortly after midday we've left the left Advance at least clear for some distance with the Pershing leading of firing as it moved on the right though things were so far were looking quieter both counters and the accompanying Sherman working as a pair had reached about this point identifiable clearly today by the remains of this Roman Tower by matching our on-the-ground view with the footage of that day we can see the same point and the way in which the tanks advanced all seem to go well until emerging onto this street just a few hundred meters from the foot of the cathedral a series of destroyed buildings blocked any further Advance watching on with his camera in hand was Clarence garrel and British photographer Fred ramage having called in a specialist Sherman bulldozer to clear the route the crews were waiting with girl slightly to the left rear of the second Sherman now pointed his camera directly down the street at a darker area amongst the rubble he wasn't to know it but hidden here in the railway tunnel was BattleBots Panther seconds later a 75 millimeter armor-piercing shell slammed into the gunshield of kelner's Sherman tearing through its armor and probably killing driver Julian Patrick an assistant Gunner Curtis spear outright about seven seconds later a second shell hit the Sherman and as Geral continued to film Lieutenant Kellner and Corporal John Gia Luca emerged from the smoking turret with kellner's left leg clearly having been lost in the explosion Gravely wounded Kelner made it just a few yards behind the tank before collapsing tragically he would die a short time later and is today buried in his hometown of Sheboygan Wisconsin he was just 26 years old shocked by what they'd seen and unaware of the enemy Tank's location the crew of the second Sherman began to reverse to cover behind a rubble pile when it too was hit this time in the right track by the concealed Panther with its crew abandoning though powerfully rather than fleeing the area several crew members ran to the aid of Kelner the moment being captured by Fred ramage's photograph which later appeared in Life Magazine in the space of less than a minute two Shermans have been knocked out by an unseen Foe and three men had lost their lives but where exactly was this enemy tank today we know from a letter written by battleborth himself that the panther had taken up position beneath this bridge close to the railway station and it was from here that they had spotted and hit the two Shermans taking the distance from the known points and the visibility along the street which by the way is much wider today than it was in 1945. we can calculate that the shots were fired from this exact location at a distance of some 340 meters we know from Clarence smoyer that a few minutes later f company's Commander contacted the commander of e-company who in turn contacted early informing him of what happened and asking him to go down and take out that tank now aware of the very present danger somewhere along his route of Advance early decided to get a better look from something like safety before risking his tank entering this building through these lower Windows he climbed the stairway to a mezzanine along with Jim Bates in the meantime the panther had finally broken cover and moved forward some 100 meters to take up a new position right here covering three lines of approach to the cathedral to the left Center and right it could command the area but was also now far more exposed electing to face its strong frontal armor directly forwards towards the knocked out Sherman battleboreth seems at that time to have been unaware that the powerful Pershing was actually much closer and off to his right let's take a moment to understand the situation at this critical time so Bates and his camera along with early have climbed one set of stairs to get a view out of a window on the end of this building the Pershing minus its Commander for the moment is stationary here and a few meters to the rear and filming up the street is rosenmann the panther itself facing towards the two knocked out Shermans is approximately here it was just after 2 p.m when Bates photographer Jim Hines and early reached this window and standing well back into the room to avoid being seen spotted the panther side on some 120 meters away Bates later recalled his conversation with early he told me to stay there and he would come back in his tank and try to put the German tank out of commission and I could photograph it he had one of the new M26 pershings with the 90 millimeter gun Sergeant early said he would turn into the square under me stop and fire at the German tank returning to Eagle 7 and briefing the crew as to what they should expect they fired up the 500 horsepower Ford V8 and began to advance smoya a well-trusted member of the crew have been told not to wait for an order but to fire as soon as he got a shot hoping at this range that the pershing's powerful gun would knock out the panther with a single shot inside the panther Bartel Booth faced with three possible routes of Advance made a decision ordering his Gunner to Traverse to the right possibly having heard the engine of the approaching Pershing life and death for both Crews was now down to a matter of only milliseconds as the range closed and the Pershing cleared the corner building Bates having moved up one floor to get a better View and with rosaman in the street began to roll hesitation was the deciding factor as Bartel booth and his Gunner peered through the dust at the first signs of the emerging Pershing he reportedly called Don't Shoot knowing that Schaefer's mark IV was in the same vicinity and apparently not recognizing the silhouette of the Pershing hit the two unseen on the battlefield he believed it may have been one of his own tanks by the time he realized his mistake it was too late the Pershing had cleared the corner and without stopping slammed around from only 110 meters directly into the side of the panther jolted by the explosion and likely in fear for his own safety Bates a ducked at the moment of firing and missed the first impact but rosaman to the rear filmed the Pershing shot Bates rose again just a few seconds later capturing the second round smashing into the Panther's side armor and kept filming as smoke began to billow out knowing that further rounds were surely coming battleboard was already abandoning his tank with his crew following after the famous cologne tank Jewel was over but what became of This Crew captured on film as they fled their burning tank a detailed look at Bates 16 second film clip slowed down and stabilized when combined with the outstanding work of German historian dick lubker allows us to try and piece together the sequence of events the first clear frames in the bass sequence show the turret Cooper hatch opened and a crewman presumably barter both himself standing up we also see the impact hole of the first shell on the Panther's side for the next four seconds the tank commander struggles to roll onto the Panther's front deck before dropping to the ground the next frame show the tank commander running for cover and the radio operators still emerging from his hatch at the front right of the tank and also diving off the front deck as he disappears The Gunner begins to emerge from the same cupola hatch which the commander exited finally the driver emerges from his hatch at the front left about the same time as smoya's second round strikes the tank very likely killing the Gunner who is yet to exit over the total sequence we see four of the five-man crew in view with surviving records suggesting that battleborth driver kernig and one other man were late and taken prisoner a fourth Unknown man died of his wound after escaping the tank and a fifth was likely killed in action Bates footage is truly powerful it was then and it is now a snapshot of a moment in time which affected all of those concern for the rest of their lives Clarence smoyer was no different he reflected years later I never went to that tank and looked inside but they told me all of the crew perished there I thought about it many many times when we were firing I don't remember seeing them getting out it always did bother me that they all had to die I'm happy that some of them did survive very happy immediately following those actions the Pershing reversed stopping outside this building some 100 meters away leaving their position in the upstairs window Bates and rosenman emerged onto the street to join them it was here that this famous scene was captured showing the crew of Eagle 7. no doubt simply glad to be alive the battle for cologne was over Bob early Clarence smoyer and the men of third armored eventually went home as did Gustav Schaefer Wilhelm bartelborth many of their comrades didn't smoya himself never forgot that day at the Cathedral and returned several times after the war to visit the spot from where he fired those famous shots on one trip in 2013 he met Gustav Schaefer whom he had last seen through his Gun Site 68 years before they got on well and left his friends so that brings us to the end of this short video we hope you enjoyed it and want to send special thanks to diet lupka whose Research into this subject's been vital and piecing this incredible action together

Channel: Battle Guide

Views: 4,052,078

Keywords: tank, tanks, ww2, wwii, cologne, second world war, documentary, historical footage, tank vids, tank battle, armored conflict, M26 Pershing, Panther Tank, WW2 Panther, German Panther, German WW2, US WW2, Conflict, Military History, Tank Duel

Id: o_Uhx1YInQU

Length: 19min 36sec (1176 seconds)

Published: Sat Apr 01 2023