NICOLUSSI-LECK'S ABHOLKOMMANDO 1945
02.04.1945
SS-Hauptsturmführer Nicolußi-Leck
(Platten/Bozen/Südtirol, 14.03.1917) and 150 men
were sent
to Germany to pick up new tanks at
Paderborn. On 02.04.1944 Nicolußi-Leck ('Nico'
to his men) sent a scouting party ahead,
SS-Obersturmführer Ola Olin (Helsinki,
18.07.1917 - Kassel, 11.01.1995) and 30
men, to find a safe way to get to Paderborn,
however, they encountered the lead elements of
the US 5th Armoured in Harsewinkel and the first
skirmishes took place.
Retreating through
Versmold and Melle they reach Lübbecke and
commandeer 3 Holz-gas trucks and continue to
Minden, which is already partially in the hands
of the Brits.
After unsuccessfully trying to
blow the bridge across the Weser, but
successfully destroying a Pz.IV the Brits were
employing using a Panzerfaust.
05.04.1945
They eventually continue their retreat to
Bückeburg (05.04) and find out from the local
populace that there are some armoured vehicles
nearby, laying unused in a Heer vehicle depot.
06.04.1945
The next morning they manage to acquire 13
Schützenpanzerwagen (SdKfz. 250/251) including 2
SdKfz. 250/9 with 2cm cannons.
07.04.1945
The next day they reach Hannover where 'Nico'
reports to the city’s Kampfkommandant
Generalmajor Paul Löhning. He is instructed to
take up defensive positions northwest of Stöcken
along Reichsstraße 6 so that he can cover both
the Weser-Elbe-Kanal Bridge and the
Reichsautobahn. This is where Generalmajor
Löhning is expecting the US 84 Infantry Division
to attack in order to take Hannover itself.
08.04.1945
On the morning of 08.04 a worker at Hanomag
informs 'Nico' that there are several brand new
tanks in the factory yard of the M.N.H assembly
facility at Hannover-Laatzen. The
SS-Hauptsturmführer immediately assembles a few
tank crews from the men in his group and rushes
to the factory to find 7 Jagdpanthers! The only
problem is they are missing a few vital parts as
well as fuel. He sends out a few trucks to
acquire the necessary parts (optics and
ammunition) and fuel from a factory in Scheuen
near Celle. The men return that afternoon and
before the day’s end the Jagdpanther’s guns have
been properly calibrated and test-fired. The 'Kampfgruppe
Wiking' is ready for action.
Major General Alexander Bolling, commander of
the US 84th Infantry has laid out his troops (Infantry
Regiments 333, 334 and 335, reinforced by
elements of a tank-destroyer battalion) for a
direct assault on Hannover. The 11th Cavalry
Group (Colonel Fierson) covers his left flank.
Bolling is relying on a captured map, which
shows all of the defensive positions in and
around Hannover including the strengths of the
units that have been employed. He is optimistic
that he has little to fear in the upcoming
battle for the city. He is completely unaware of
the potent armoured force that is awaiting his
advance.
With his powerful Kampfgruppe assembled,
Nicolußi-Leck not only takes up his assigned
positions but goes further and occupies
Frielingen and Ricklingen – he is now in a
position to combat any attempts to take the
Leine bridge at Ricklingen and to defend against
attacks from Bordenau.
Colonel Fierson’s lead elements are taken into
the crosshairs of 3 Jagdpanthers at the edge of
Ricklingen. The crews of these tanks are
veterans who have been hardened by years of
combat on the Eastern Front, always outnumbered
and without adequate supplies. This was
different, sitting in their brand new tanks and
well supplied, they were now fighting on German
soil. Every shot was a hit, despite the mounting
losses Col. Fierson takes up the challenge. He
calls in an artillery strike on the town itself
and moves up his men. The Wiking tank crews soon
can’t make out anything in the dust and debris
and withdraw to Horst. The Americans take
Ricklingen. The cavalry had won, but at a price.
The 11th Cavalry tries to continue their advance,
first due east, then northeast and finally north.
All their attempts to continue the advance are
stopped. Col. Fierson has lost 20 armoured
vehicles but he also knows that Bollinger cannot
risk an attack on Hannover if the cavalry can’t
secure the flank and the bridges over the Leine.
He sends a couple of companies north to Bordenau
where the British have already captured the
bridge.
His men make the crossing at Bordenau and press
on to Frielingen, but once again they draw the
shorter straw. The lead tanks take fire from the
remaining four Jagdpanther’s (firing at maximum
range). Although it is not known how many
armoured vehicles the 11th Cavalry loses in the
battle, the only Jagdpanther to be destroyed was
credited with six kills before it met its fate.
In addition a Schützenpanzerwagen is also lost.
Col. Fierson calls off his attack.
09.04.1945
Maj. General Bollinger has redeployed his forces.
The 335th Regiment is still facing east, facing
Hannover itself. The 334th has come up over
Ricklingen to strike southeast and the 333rd is
crossing at Bordenau to outflank the unexpected
resistance that has been encountered.
After bringing up the 334th Regiment Bollinger
again presses ahead and tries to take Horst.
Three more Shermans are lost and Bollinger
orders heavy artillery strikes on Horst and
Frielingen. Kampfgruppe Wiking is forced to
withdraw to Godshorn, Vinnhorst and the
Weser-Elbe-Kanal. The meager forces available to
defend Hannover are no match for a reinforced US
infantry division and Generalmajor Loehning
knows it. He asks permission to clear the city
but is ordered to fight or face a court martial.
10.04.1945
During the night Bollinger starts his attack on
Hannover. First he has the artillery pound known
enemy gun emplacements and positions. His men
begin their attack before daybreak and it is
perfect weather for an attack, fog. The fog is
thick enough to cover his advancing soldiers and
with minor exceptions they make almost
completely unopposed progress. The 333 Regiment
is at the far left, north of Hannover heading
south (having managed to find a crossing over
the Weser-Elbe-Kanal), the 334 Regiment is in
the center attacking from north-west and the 335
is attacking east (frontally). Both the 333 and
334 bypass the Kampfgruppe Wiking, unaware of
its whereabouts.
Only after the lead elements had passed did
anyone notice a Jagdpanther at the Autobahn
underpass. The second battalion bypassed the
Jagdpanther and continued to the state forest,
the following units surrounded the tank and
captured the five-man crew. There were
apparently asleep, their guard having been
overwhelmed before he could sound the alarm. The
US 84th Infantry Division took Hannover almost
without a fight.
As the morning progressed Nico realized he could
not make contact with any of the German forces
in and around Hannover and ordered his men to
retreat to Hannover. Travelling at the head of
the column he came across the chief of the fire
department who told him the Americans were
already in the city but he would try to lead
them through. At the edge of the city civilians
told them the Americans were already at the
train station. After a few detours “Nico” (riding
in an open vehicle) reached a square (Kröpke)
and the Americans immediately ordered him and
his companions to surrender. As the following
Jagdpanther came around the corner it opened
fire with its machine gun and “Nico” was able to
escape and climb aboard
Ola Olin’s
Jagdpanther. The column continued at high speed
encountering further groups of American tanks
but clearing out before anyone could get a good
bead on them.
After leaving Hannover “Nico” was determined to
try to link up with German forces further east,
however, he could not know that he would not
succeed.
11.04.1945
On April 11, while elements of the US 84th
Infantry Division continued their advance
eastward following the capture of Hannover, a
German column was marching on side roads towards
them, if neither side changed direction they
were destined to meet in and around Langlingen.
The German column was that of the SS-Kampfgruppe
“Wiking” led by Hauptsturmführer Nicolussi-Leck,
which had regrouped in Lehrte and was planning
to march North and then Northeast towards
Wittingen and ultimately Wittenberge on the Elbe
river. The Kampfgruppe consisted of 9
Schützenpanzerwagen, 6 Jagdpanther and one
Bergepanzer at this time. Contact with the enemy
was not to be avoided; but sought. Just outside
of Lehrte there was a short firefight with 4
Sherman tanks, 2 were knocked out by the
Jagdpanther of Untersturmführer Karl Jauss. In
Abbensen the Kampfgruppe met up with tanks from
the Lehrabteilung, but they did not want to join
the group. Continuing on to Langlingen via Uetze
they captured 2 American fuel trucks and
captured approximately 50 men, Nicolussi-Leck
let them go that evening.
12.04.1945
The Kampfgruppe made it to the forest East of
Sandlingen on the morning of April 12 with all
its armoured vehicles and over 100 men,
including a growing number of stragglers.
Immediate reconnaissance showed that the bridges
across the Mühlengraben and the Aller near
Langlingen were destroyed. A heavily armed
Schützenpanzerwagen (equipped with a 20mm gun
and commanded by an Obersturmführer) was
dispatched to Wienhausen to determine if the
bridges there were intact and to hold them until
the Kampfgruppe arrived. The
Schützenpanzerwagen’s crew was primarily made up
of Heeres troops included a few officers and
NCOs, all told, 12 men. At noon the
Obersturmführer reached Wienhausen and
discovered that the bridges were intact and
already equipped with explosive charges. The
Schützenpanzerwagen (SPW) took up position on
the northern bank of the Aller River, under the
bridge; on the outskirts of Oppershausen. The
bridge was not big enough to completely conceal
the vehicle, which was to have consequences. The
crew took up their positions around the bridge
at 14:00h. At the same time the US 333 Regiment
arrived in Wienhausen, enroute from Bockelskamp.
The American column was not visible from
Oppershausen, but the noise would not have gone
unnoticed. The scout cars at the head of the
column slowly drove through the deserted streets
of Wienhausen. When they reached the fork in the
road leading to Oppershausen they stopped and
observed that the bridges were intact and then
noticed the rear of the Schützenpanzerwagen
protruding from under the bridge. They
immediately opened fire and the SPW was hit. The
SPW crew thought that their own tanks were
shooting them at, they were not expecting any
American troops this far to the East. Feldwebel
Ehrbeck jumped on a bicycle and wildly waving a
white cloth, rode towards Wienhausen. By now
Capt. Bradford’s 9th Company had gone into
position at the outskirts of Wienhausen. The
Feldwebel having closed the distance to the
Americans to 150 meters realised his mistake and
jumped off the bicycle and tried to escape on
foot. He was “cut down by a rifleman”. The rest
of the German SPW crew took up the firefight
with Capt. Bradford’s company from across the
Aller River. As this engagement was unfolding an
artillery battalion arrived in Wienhausen and
took up firing positions to assist Capt.
Bradford if needed. Capt. Bradford still hoped
to take the bridge intact and ordered his heavy
machine guns to pin down the Obersturmführer and
his men so that he could get a few men close
enough to disarm the charges and take the
bridge. But as the GIs approached the
Obersturmführer gave the order to blow the
bridge, despite his orders to hold it for the
rest of the SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking”. Capt.
Bradford continued his attack on Oppershausen
and the SPW crew. The men under the
Obersturmführer fought off the American attacks
for nine hours. They were opposed not only by
the 9th Company but also the 11th and the
artillery battalion. Oppershausen was virtually
destroyed and at least six of the Germans were
killed in the fierce fighting. The fate of the
remaining five, including the Obersturmführer is
not known. Some may have perished in the burning
houses others may have escaped or been taken
captive. In the meantime, the 1st Battalion of
the 333 US Regiment passed through Wienhausen
bound for Offensen, the Aller bridge at
Schwachhausen and ultimately Nordburg. Now the
bridges to the Northeast and Southeast of the
SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking” were either destroyed or
in the hands of the Americans.
13.04.1945
On the morning of April 13 the SS-Kampfgruppe
“Wiking” found itself deep behind enemy lines.
With the US 333rd Regiment to the north and US
334th Regiment to the south, they were
outnumbered on either side 20:1. Their plan was
to hold out until the first wave of US troops
had cleared the area and then attempt to cross
either of the intact Aller crossings. But it was
also a Friday. The 3rd Battalion of the 334th
Regiment had spent the night in Langlingen,
where the bridge over the Aller was destroyed.
At daybreak they started driving along the train
tracks in a westerly direction in search of a
suitable crossing. After 3km they came upon the
destroyed bridge across the Mühlengraben. They
immediately set their engineers to the task of
repairing the bridge and sent out patrols to
establish a protective perimeter. The patrols
quickly ran into the SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking” in
the forest and after a short exchange of gunfire
the entire battalion set out to comb through the
forested area. Nicolussi-Leck avoided being
drawn into a fight where his tanks could not be
brought to bear. Besides they were outnumbered
5:1 and there were several other US battalions
near by. Nicolussi-Leck and his men broke out of
the forest, heading Northwest across the railway
tracks and towards the wooded area on the
outskirts of Wienhausen. They reached it shortly
before 11:00h. Meanwhile the US artillery
battalion was moving out of Wienhausen to take
up new firing positions further East. Their path
crossed that of the SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking”.
Nicolussi-Leck had his Jagdpanthers open fire at
1,000 meters, setting 5 trucks alight with the
first volley. The artillery battalion
immediately turned around and took up positions
in Wienhausen again. The SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking”
bypassed Wienhausen to the south and headed
straight for Bockelskamp. From there they fired
on a US supply column and destroyed another 4
vehicles. Nonetheless the end seemed in sight.
The 3rd Battalion of the 333rd Regiment and the
3rd Battalion 334th Regiment formed a semicircle
around the SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking” from the
south and the to the north was the Aller River.
While the artillery battalion kept a steady
barrage of shells raining down on the
SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking”, Nicolussi-Leck and his
men searched the town for anyone who could point
them to a ford in the river. A young woman told
them she knew of a place not far up the river
and the Kampfgruppe headed out. The Jagdpanthers
had no problems crossing the river; the last two
each towed a Schützenpanzerwagen behind them.
But then the artillery fire set in again and it
was pretty accurate. The remaining
Schützenpanzerwagen made a dash for it but all
ended up getting hopelessly mired in the
riverbed. One soldier was killed and 10 wounded.
The SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking” regrouped and spent
the night in the wooded area East of Ostersloh.
14.04.1945
On the morning of April 14 Nicolussi-Leck
ordered his troops to continue their march East
in hopes of still linking up with their own
lines. Following the loss of so much of their
equipment he ordered his men to avoid further
engagements with the enemy. He did not know that
the US 84th Infantry Division, whose sector he
was operating in, had already reached the Elbe
River. The SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking” cautiously
moved from one wooded area to the next, making
frequent stops to observe their surroundings for
the telltale signs of enemy troops. They skirted
Oppershausen to the north, something that was
only made possible by the fact the 3rd Battalion,
333rd Regiment had not yet realised that the
SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking” had already vacated
Bockelskamp. Nicolussi-Leck and his men were
headed towards a swampy area but the
Schützenpanzerwagen that were scouting the way
for the Kampfgruppe managed to find the only
available crossing point for many kilometers,
allowing them to continue their march towards
the Elbe. Upon reaching the wooded area of the
Halzhorn, 3 km south of Hohne, they could hear
plenty of motorised traffic to the South from
Müden (the armoured elements of the 102nd US
infantry Division) and straight ahead to the
East was the impassable bog of the Hahnenmoor.
The only roads that angled to the east would
surely lead the Kampfgruppe to another encounter
with the Americans, so Nicolussi-Leck decided to
continue through the forest and to attempt to
sneak through the open area between Hohne and
Ummern to the North. Major-General Bolling had
moved his headquarters from Hannover to Hohne
the day before and he was not alone in Hohne,
the US 771st Tank Battalion was being held in
reserve in there. Given that the town was
secured to the north by the Wiehe River and to
the south was largely bog and woods, the 20
Shermans of the 771st Battalion secured the area
by guarding the only access points, which were
primarily facing South, from where no attack
could be expected. And yet, suddenly the sounds
of tank tracks could be heard coming from the
edge of the bog. Nicolussi-Leck had sent his 2
remaining Schützenpanzerwagen along with 3
Jagdpanthers to recon in force while the other 3
Jagdpanthers covered their advance. The Shermans
waited until their opponents were only 1,000
meters away before opening fire. Both
Schützenpanzerwagen and one Jagdpanther were
immediately hit and caught fire. One Jagdpanther
managed to break through while the rest of the
German tanks opened fire on the Shermans. Even
the burning Jagdpanther of Untersturmführer
Schüßler, their fourth victim, continued to
return fire for a short while. Using their 8.8cm
guns and 8cm thick frontal armour to their
fullest advantage the remaining 3 Jagdpanthers
kept up a steady barrage of shells on the 771st
Battalion until they had all but suppressed the
determined American defence. An attempt by
Untersturmführer Jauß to recover the Jagdpanther
of Untersturmführer Schüßler failed and resulted
in the loss of the Bergepanzer as well. Now with
a final victory in his grasp, his tanks
surrounded by the wounded infantrymen,
Nicolussi-Leck ordered a withdrawal into the bog
of the Hahnenmoor. The remaining Sherman tanks
breathed a sigh of relief when they saw the
Jagdpanthers head South. One Jagdpanther was
lost a short distance into the bog to
transmission failure. But the men of the
SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking” had not yet given up.
After handing off their wounded to a local
shepherd, they formed a raiding party to scare
up needed fuel for their Jagdpanthers. During
the night they captured 2 American trucks and a
Jeep. After driving a short distance into the
bog they let their captives go. When the raiding
party reached the rest of the Kampfgruppe they
checked the contents of the trucks. To their
great disappointment, the trucks were carrying
flower and sugar, not the fuel they so
desperately needed. Nicolussi-Leck and the last
men of his Kampfgruppe, now down to about 30
strong, knew that they would not make it back to
their own lines.
Epilogue
Nicolussi-Leck made his final command decision
on the morning of April 16. He turned to
Obersturmführer
Olin and said: “We have flower and need
bread. I will look for a baker.” Olin knew what
Nicolussi-Leck meant to do and shook his hand
one last time. Nicolussi-Leck and his adjutant
walked back the way they had come and
surrendered to the Americans in Hohne. Command
now fell to Obersturmführer Olin who ordered the
2 captured trucks driven onto the nearby rail
tracks and set alight. The remaining 2
Jagdpanthers were driven a short distance into
the bog where they would sink from their own
weight, the remaining ammunition, only 10 rounds
were left, was buried elsewhere. 4 men carrying
machine pistols and Panzerfausts occupied the
only remaining vehicle, the captured Jeep. Their
plan was to try and reach southern Germany.
Their adventurous journey was ultimately
successful. The rest of the men made their way
on foot. The Jagdpanther that had broken through
at Hohne 2 days earlier was knocked out between
the towns of Süderwittingen and Ohrdorf, 5
kilometers South of Wittingen. Four of its crew
perished on April 16 and the remaining
crewmember, Georg Perchtold, ultimately met his
fate on the 20th. When by Hauptsturmführer
Nicolussi-Leck surrendered in Hohne and told his
interrogators who he was and that it was his
Kampfgruppe that had been a thorn in
Major-General Bolling’s side, they did not want
to believe him. They had expected to have been
opposed by a tank regiment, or at least by a
battalion, their opponent a Lt. Colonel, not a
lowly SS-Captain. The SS-Kampfgruppe “Wiking”
covered a total distance of 250 kms before
ceasing to exist.
