1942 - US Army Center Of Military History

[ 28 APRIL 1945 ]
12th Army Group: In U.S. Ninth Army’s XIX
Corps area, 329th Inf of 83d Div occupies Zerbst, E
of the Elbe, from which 125th Sq of 113th Cav
Gp will move eastward to establish contact with
Soviet forces.
In U.S. First Army area, VII Corps takes command
of V Corps sector and of 2d and 69th Inf
and 9th Armd Divs at 1800.
In U.S. Third Army’s XII Corps area, 11th Armd
Div patrols actively and moves arty forward for
drive toward Passau. 26th Div continues SE to general
line Hengersberg–Roggersing–Stracking–Thurmansbang.
90th Div continues to probe along
Czechoslovakian border and clears Fichtenbach, N
of Furth; organizes TF for drive on Nyrsko. 2d
Cav Gp gains ground E of Eisendorf in Czechoslovakia.
In limited attack, 387th Inf of 97th Div
seizes Cheb airfield and neighboring villages, concluding
action in this area. 1st Div, VIII Corps,
begins relief of 97th Div. In XX Corps area, CCB
of 13th Armd Div drives quickly SE along the
Danube to the Isar at Platting. CCR and CCA
cross the Danube in sectors of 71st and 65th Divs,
respectively, CCR closing in Dengling area and
CCA near Thalmassing. 71st Div, with 5th Inf on
left and 66th on right follows armor SE toward the
Isar on left flank of corps. 80th Div, in order to
follow armor in zone to right of 71st Div, is relieved
in Nuremberg by 16th Armd Div; RCT’s 318 and
319 assemble S of Regensburg, passing through
65th Div. 3d Sq, 3d Cav Gp, crosses the Danube
in zone of 71st Div and takes up positions on right
flank of that division; 43d crosses in 65th Div zone
and moves forward to protect right flank of corps.
65th Div polices Regensburg. In III Corps area, 14th
Cav Gp assembles S of Ludwigs Kanal and the Altmuhl
in order to cross the Danube in 99th Div zone.
14th Armd Div crosses the Danube and continues
rapidly SE toward the Isar; CCA, in the
lead, takes Steinbach and approaches Moosburg.
99th Div expands Danube bridgehead to line Abensberg–Muehlhausen–Geibenstetten.
341st Inf, 86th
Div, completes its crossing of the Danube and with
3434 advances toward the Isar; by end of day, forward
elements are within 5 miles of the river. 23d
Cav Rcn Sq, 16th Armd Div, is attached to 86th
Div to protect its right flank.
6th Army Group: In U.S. Seventh Army’s XV
Corps area, 20th Armd Div opens drive on Munich,
passing through 42d and 45th Divs, which then
follow. CCA and CCB, CCA on right, drive rapidly
southward over parallel routes. In XXI Corps area,
12th Armd Div, with attached 101st Cav Gp leading,
starts across the Lech to block passes into
Bavarian Alps to SE. Using rail bridge at Landsberg
as soon as it is repaired for vehicular use, 101st Cav
Gp crosses and drives E to Ammer See and SE
[ 521 ]
along Weilheim road to Rott. At 2030, CCA starts
across bridge behind cavalry. CCR crosses the Wertach
at Hiltenfingen. 15th and 7th Regts of 3d Div
converge on Augsburg and capture it with little
difficulty; 30th Inf crosses the Lech near Gersthofen
and starts toward Munich. At 2225, 3d Div is detached
from corps and attached to XV Corps for
drive on Munich. 8th Inf, 4th Div, maintains Lech
bridgehead at Schwabstadl while 12th continues
southward toward the Lech in same area and prepares
to cross upon completion of bridge. 22d Inf
moves SE to cross the Lech. 36th Div takes responsibility
for 63d Div zone in right sector of corps.
Fr 2d Armd Div, en route to corps zone, is attached
to corps. In VI Corps area, all elements of
10th Armd Div reach the Lech and search for
crossing sites while engineers work on bridges;
right flank elements cross Austrian border near Fuessen.
CCB, continuing pursuit throughout night 27–
28, gets one column to Fuessen in morning;
another column crosses Austrian border to reach
heights S of Fuessen. CCA maintains positions in
Schongau while awaiting bridge construction and
reconnoiters for crossing site as far S as Lechbruck.
CCR follows CCA to Schongau. 71st and 114th
Regts, 44th Div, speed S behind armor, 71st Regt
assisting armor at Fuessen and elements of 114th
crossing Austrian border in vicinity of Steinach;
elements of 324th Inf are released from reserve and
help French capture Wertach, W of Fuessen. 103d
Div loses contact with enemy on left flank of corps:
411th Inf completes capture of Landsberg; 409th
assembles at Schongau; 410th reaches the Lech near
Lechbruck.
In Fr 1st Army area, 1st Corps opens final drive
toward Vorarlberg (Austria, advancing SE with
1st Armd Div followed by 2d Moroccan Inf Div on
left and 4th Moroccan Mtn Div followed by 5th
Armd Div on right. From Biberach, left column
drives to Leutkirch. Right column thrusts from Pfullendorf
to Ravensburg.
ITALY—Benito Mussolini is intercepted by partisans
while fleeing Italy and executed by a firing
squad in a village on Lake Como.
15th Army Group: In U.S. Fifth Army area,
Alessandria, on Highway 10, falls to 92d Div. In
IV Corps area, 1st Div of BEF relieves 34th Div in
Piacenza area on Highway 9 and continues to mop
up trapped enemy units. 34th Div moves N to
Brescia area to round up enemy remnants to W.
1st Armd Div reaches Lake Como, near Swiss
border. 10th Mtn Div is placed under army control
as it continues clearing E shore of Lake Garda.
In II Corps area, 88th Div clears enemy from
Vicenza. S African 6th Armd Div starts crossing the
Adige at Legnago.