Dachau and the 45th

[Walt's Daughter]

Printed with permission granted by Russell Weiskircher.

 

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Marion:

 

There will be controversy as long as there are people. However, there is some truth and some error in almost any 60 year old tale. I was there, all day, right at LTC Colonel Sparks side so to speak. The camp was approached from several directions and penetrated almost simultaneously by elements of our battalion and later by troops from the 42nd Division. Anyone with the 157th Infantry at Dachau on 29 Apr had to see deliberate killings. Prisoners, guards that had surrendered, were huddled into the the area we called the coal bin. They were shot without reason other than the insane reaction of a justifiably upset young soldier with an air cooled 30 caliber machine gun. There were guards shot as they left the watch towers. There were guards killed because they were dumb enough to run into the inner compound among the prisoners. There were dead guards and kapos in the canal, river what ever you wanted to call that foul stream. The actual camp commandant, the SS colonel was NOT killed nor did he surrender. He and most of his staff got out of there before the troops arrived.

 

A low life group of left overs, the sick, lame and lazy and the kapos surrendered to elments of the 45th and the 42nd. War is hell and Dachau was hell. I saw Sparks literally kick the machine gun away from the young soldier who shot 17 guards/prisoners at the wall. I saw Sparks whip out his pistol, fire into the air, command attention and one man, single handedly put a stop to the wanton killings.

 

I am not making any excuses for the gang. I was part of it. I personally clubbed a German captain over the head amd fractured his skull because he refused to surrender to a non com. The arrogant ass demanded to surrender to a major and to stand away from enlsted prisoners.

 

I have no doubt that several officers, several non coms and some grunts could have been charged with cruelty to prisoners of war and could have been convicted. Thank God Patton chose to see it differently when it became a 3rd Army concern. Left to 7th Army and SHAPE or SHEAF, who knows what would have happened.

 

Dave Israel's book is not one of fabrication. If anything, he is generouus to a fault trying to justify the massacre. I say don't justify it-accept it as one more aspect of war, let it go! To deny the truth is unreasonable. No one was closer to the center of the action than I on 29 April 1945, and I agree with most of the new book.

I do not write from an inspedector's point of view or a ranking officer, I was a ground pounder with combat experience and despite all that I had seen, I tossed my cookies that day, several times. And I am no bleeding heart. If it were to happen again, I would do the same thing without hesitation. Evil breeds evil. War is evil. Wake up!

 

Russ Weiskircher