Heinrich severloh autobiography of miss
| Heinrich Severloh | |
|---|---|
| Nickname | "The Beast of Omaha" |
| Born | ()June 23, |
| Died | January 14, () (aged&#;82) |
| Place of birth | Metzingen, Weimar Republic |
| Place of death | Lachendorf, Germany |
| Allegiance | &#;Nazi Germany |
| Service/branch | Wehrmacht |
| Years&#;of service | &#; |
| Rank | Corporal |
| Unit | 19th Light Artillery Division , st Artillery Regiment, nd Infantry Division |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Heinrich Severloh (23 June - 14 January ) was a soldier in the German nd Infantry Division stationed in Normandy in , sometimes referred to as The Beast of Omaha. He become known when he claimed in his autobiography that as a machine gunner in a foxhole, he inflicted over 1, casualties to American soldiers landing on Omaha Beach on D-Day.
Early life[]
Severloh was born into a farming family in Metzingen in the Lüneburg Heath area of North Germany, close to the small city of Celle.
Service in the Wehrmacht[]
Conscripted into the Wehrmacht on July 23, , at the age of 19, Severloh was assigned to the 19th Light Artillery Replacement Division in Hanover. He was then transferred to France in August to join the 3rd Battery of the st Artillery Regiment, where he trained as a dispatch rider.
In December , he was sent to the Eastern Front and assigned to the rear of his division to drive sleighs. As punishment for making dissenting remarks, he was forced to perform physical exertions which left him with permanent health problems and necessitated six-month convalescence in hospital. After this, he went on leave to his family's farm to help gather the harvest.
In October , Severloh was sent for non-commissioned officer training in Brunswick, but was recalled after less than a month to rejoin his unit which had been reclassified as the nd Infantry Division and was stationed in Normandy.
Omaha Beach and Widerstandsnest 62[]
Omaha Beach extends for 5 miles (8&#;km) from east of Sainte-Honori German soldier (–) Heinrich "Hein" Severloh, also known as the Beast of Omaha, (23 June – 14 January ) was a soldier in the German nd Infantry Division stationed in Normandy in Severloh became notable for a memoir he published in the German language WN 62 – Erinnerungen an Omaha Beach Normandie, 6. Juni , in and translated into English as WN A German Soldier's Memories of the Defence of Omaha Beach, Normandy, June 6, , in In the book, Severloh claims that - as a machine gunner - he inflicted over 1, and possibly over 2, casualties to the American soldiers landing on Omaha Beach on D-Day. However, Severloh's claim is not viewed as credible by either US or German historians. Total US casualties (killed, wounded, and missing) from all sources along the five-mile length of Omaha Beach on D-Day are estimated at 2, Severloh was born into a farming family in Metzingen in the Lüneburg Heath area of North Germany, close to the small city of Celle. Conscripted into the Wehrmacht on 23 July , at the age of 18, Severloh was assigned to the 19th Light Artillery Replacement Division in Hanover. In August, he was transferred to France to join the 3rd Battery of the st Artillery Regiment, where he trained as a dispatch rider. In December , he was sent to the Eastern Front and assigned to the rear of his division to drive sleighs. As punishment for making dissenting remarks, he was forced to perform physical exertions that left him with permanent health problems and necessitated six-month convalescence in a hospital. After this, he went on leave to his family's farm to help gather the harvest. In October , Severloh was sent for non-commissioned officer training in Brunswick, but was recalled after less than a month to rejoin his unit which had been reclassified as the nd Infantry Division In the early hours of June 6, , a year-old German soldier hurried to his post at Wiederstandsnest 62 (WN62) overlooking Omaha Beach to man his MG 42 machine gun. Tossed around in the English Channel in front of him were over 34, American troops waiting for their chance to land on that beach and earn their place in history. Thanks to Cornelius Ryan, this date will always be remembered as “the longest day,” but for many of these young troops, it was to become the shortest day of their lives. For Heinrich “Hein” Severloh, son of a farmer from Baden-Württemburg who had never fired a shot in anger, it was the day he became “The Beast of Omaha.” This is an account of how he conducted himself for nine hours on that day and how he lived with the consequences of his actions for the next 60 years. “Hein, it’s starting!” The voice of his lieutenant, Bernhard Frerking, woke Private Severloh from his slumbers in a small French farmhouse a few kilometers inland from the coast. Everyone from the nd Infantry Division had been expecting something to happen for weeks and knew how to respond. Field Marshal Rommel had always said that when the inevitable invasion occurred, the enemy had to be repulsed within 24 hours or the war would be lost. At this moment, however, Rommel was on the other side of Normandy celebrating his wife’s birthday, and the Führer was enjoying a night’s sleep that nobody dared to disturb. WN 62 was the strongest of the 15 strongpoints overlooking what was to become known as Omaha Beach. They stretched from WN 60 above the Cabourg Draw (codenamed Exit F-1) near the cliffs at the eastern end to WN 74, four and a half miles to the west, just beyond the small coastal village of Vierville. WN 62 was approximately meters square and was located on the northern slope of the bluffs, giving it an excellent field of fire down onto the beach. It contained emplacements for two 75mm cannons, two 50mm antitank guns, two 50mm morta .Heinrich Severloh
Early life
Service in the Wehrmacht
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