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Post by Wing on Jan 17, 2007 6:33:04 GMT -5
I was reading Hans' book last night, yay, and guess what? When they were pulling out of France, a certain Fuhrer gave the hysterical order to "destroy everything!" in Paris. And guess who happened to be the Wehrmahct C-in-C in Paris at the time?
As I said...Hans OWNS...because, last time I checked, Paris was not a smouldering pile of rubble. ;D *pats Hans on the head*
Ooh! Picture idea, seeing as my laptop is still confiscated!
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Post by Qualerei on Jan 18, 2007 20:35:37 GMT -5
I can confirm, Paris isn't a smouldering pile of rubble, since I was there... uh... *mutters thoughtfully* about a week ago. So unless someone came and bombed it by then... Therefore, as the one and only French girl of this forum, I say officially : Thank you very much, Hansie ! You saved the Eiffel tower, the Ark of Triumph, the museum of the Louvres (well, whatever was left inside after Goering was done stealing it anyway) and my best friend's flat near the quai Voltaire. Oh, and also said best friend's school, lycée Louis le Grand. Though I'm not sure she would be so grateful for that one  Actually, I think Hans should get some kind of monument... maybe I should write to the President for that one. Although, maybe I'd better wait for the elections. This President won't care, since he's not going to be President much longer. I really, really gotta find that book. And I'm gonna get some money soon, too (well, suposedly to pay the rent, but, hem. Who cares about the rent ?) Care to remind me of the title ? Oh, and please do draw that pic ! Ah, that reminds me I have stuff to scan too, now that I'm done with the boring stuff (namely, my exams) but I have to find out how this scanner works first... |
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Post by Wing on Jan 19, 2007 6:53:27 GMT -5
I was going to say...heh...
Hans so should get a monument. You get on that right now. I don't see the elderly population of France taking to a statue of a German very well, but...*glares at them* Hans rules. I cannot wait to get my laptop back.
And the name of his book is Invasion 1944: Rommel and the Normandy Campaign. I suppose I could send it to you, but...
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Post by Qualerei on Jan 20, 2007 0:51:01 GMT -5
Ah... I'm afraid you're quite right. People the age of my grandmother lived through the war, and, well. She doesn't seem to like Germans very much, even though no one in our family died heroically for his country. Hmph. But one of my classmates, last year, told me about how her grandmother hid a German defector in her cellar and they fought against the nazis. His name was... Fritz. Try to mind a more German sounding name. And yeah, Hans should definitely get a statue... but I don't think I'd be able to convince the (future) president. The serious candidates for the elections are a socialist, someone from the right, and someone from the extreme right, and none of the three are likely to agree. So the only way Hans' gonna get a statue is if I make it myself and somehow convince the mayor it would be great to have it on the market place... As for the book, dun worry, I'll find it. Eventually I'll just order it or something, although I might check the library first. I just am so lazy, sometimes... |
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Post by Wing on Jan 21, 2007 16:37:21 GMT -5
*strokes chin* Perhaps we can get a statue of Hans in the US...yeah right...
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Post by Qualerei on Jan 23, 2007 19:27:30 GMT -5
uh... yeah... right near Eisenhower's statue, ne ?
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Post by Desert Stallion on Jan 23, 2007 20:02:25 GMT -5
Well, good little Hans. In a way, it was sad he wasn't on our side, and in a way, a good thing, as evidenced from the still-standing Paris. If Hans hadn't been a German, someone who was a typical Nazi might have come along and been in charge. Rommel's that way too, I guess.
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Post by Qualerei on Jan 27, 2007 18:34:46 GMT -5
Yeah, but it's sooo unfair Rommel got suicided ! I wish he had surrendered when he got the occasion...
One thing interesting is the story of Manfred, he deserted and became a translator for a French marechal, de Lattre de Tassigny (that's a bit long... imagine one of his men shouting a warning, the marechal would have all the time to die before the man's done saying his name...)
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Post by machiavelli-imp on Oct 2, 2008 19:54:25 GMT -5
So, you have two-right wing candidates and a socialist? No chance with the socialist, but couldn't you tell the right-wing candidates that Hans is an excellent poster-boy for their style of leadership: a cultured military man, capable of making his own decisions even if they are unpopular with his superiors, a non-evil German with respect for human life etc. etc.
...Okay, maybe that won't work.
Now I get to the interesting part of this message: I noticed in "L'Afrika Corps" by Erwan Bergot that...*drumroll*
15 Panzer Division
This division started arriving in Tripoli on 15 April 1941 and remained in Africa until May 1943. it was never reconstituted. It was nicknamed the 'Map-Making Division'.
Commander: Major-General von Prittwitz (killed 15 Apr. 1941)
succeeded by: Major-general Walter Neumann-Silkow
Chief of Staff: Colonel Hans Speidel
Staff Officer: Major Fritz Drescher
So it is entirely likely that Hand met Rommel while in Africa back in 1941, not in 1944, considering how much time Rommel spent chasing after his divisions. Moreover, Rommel didn't get on at all with the commander of the other division (5 Light/21 Pz.) so he probably avoided him as much as possible.
Now if Hans had been present when the 'victory or death' order had been given to Rommel, perhaps he could have talked him into withdrawing sooner, or at least started to push Rommel towards being a conspirator while still in Africa. yes, it's very unlikely, since as far as I know staff officers were supposed to stay *far* away from the front, but maybe they did meet earlier.
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Post by jilldragon on Nov 12, 2008 2:19:31 GMT -5
That didn't stop Rommel from sticking his nose in danger, and he often dragged his headquarters staff with him.  In a situation like N. Africa where the army is semi-nomadic and the HQ is prety much where ever Rommel wants to stop even as a staff officer you're a lot more exposed than you might otherwise be. Just look at the number of division commanders the army went through, a lot of them were killed, injured, or captured. That said I thought Fritz Baylerein (who was a cool guy in his own right) was the CoS of the Africa Korps during that time.  |
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Post by machiavelli-imp on Nov 27, 2008 21:56:06 GMT -5
In Erwan Bergot's book on the DAK (which I highly recommend, even though it's in French) he lists the order of battle for the various units. Fritz is listed as the CoS for Armeegruppe Afrika HQ except for the period in 1942 when he took temporary command of the DAK, i.e. 15 and 21 Pz.
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Actually, I think Hans should get some kind of monument... maybe I should write to the President for that one. Although, maybe I'd better wait for the elections. This President won't care, since he's not going to be President much longer.
