The Battle of Britain Five Months That Changed History, May—October 1940 by James Holland (z-lib.org).epub

attacking around Bergues, it reported that it was unable to break through. A
lack of unity in command was hampering German efforts.
The men on the ground knew nothing about this high-level testiness,
however. Certainly the men of the Eighteenth Army attacking the eastern
end of the bridgehead believed they were doing all they could. The 56th
Infantry Division was now pressing on the bridgehead either side of Furnes.
The 171st Regiment was given the small town of Bulscamp, defended by
the 9th Durham Light Infantry and 1st King’s Own Scottish Borderers.
Amongst those attacking were Unteroffizier Hellmuth Damm and his
men. Just the day before they had passed a number of freshly dug German
graves and it had sent a chill down their spines. Neither he nor his men
were under any illusion that the attack that day would be a walkover. It was
now around 9 a.m. on the morning of the 30th. ‘When we moved into the
assembly position to attack,’ noted Hellmuth, ‘we saw Bulscamp and its
church towers in the morning mist, roughly three kilometres away, in the
uncanny silence.’ Hellmuth was now company leader for the attack. His
CO, Hauptmann Krusche, gave him company documents, maps, lists and
orders. He put two stick grenades into his boot legs, checked his rifle and
ammunition pouches and was then given the order to get into Bulscamp and
establish a company command post as soon as possible which could then
become the battalion CP. As the attack began, the infantry sped forward,
running with covering fire, then falling behind any cover they could find,
before moving forward again. Hellmuth’s heavy machine-gunners still had
to follow closely behind, giving the immediate fire support the infantry
needed. As leader, however, Hellmuth was at the front of his men, and was
surprised by the vast amount of abandoned material as they approached the
town. Equally surprising was the lack of enemy fire.
Reaching the edge of the town, the accompanying artillery observation
officer clambered into a church tower and Hellmuth followed him hoping to
get a better view. Nearby was a large building, perhaps a monastery, he
guessed; at any rate, it looked ideal for the new battalion command post.
Back down on the ground, he and one of his NCOs inspected the building.
It looked as though it had been a field hospital until recently – bandages and
medical equipment were strewn everywhere. Hellmuth was not sure it
should be the new CP, however, as it was facing west, towards the British,
with large windows, and rather exposed. He was back out in the yard and
was about to open a large garden door when artillery shells started hurtling