5th
SS
Battlefieldat Uspenka, Ukraine
NOTE - This emblem of the 5th SS is NOT a Swastika with rounded legs. This is the ancient Germanic Sonnenrad - the German Sunburst.
5th
SS
Battlefield
at Uspenka, Ukraine
NOTE - This emblem of the 5th
SS is NOT a Swastika with rounded legs. This is the ancient
Germanic Sonnenrad - the German Sunburst.
In May this year (2008) Sharkhunters President
HARRY COOPER (1-LIFE-1983), was invited by some friends of Sharkhunters;
some veterans and some not - to accompany them to the battleground where the 5th
SS confronted the Red Army at the little town of Uspenka, Ukraine which is right
at the eastern border of Ukraine with Russia. This was as fearsome a
battle as that fought at Stalingrad, but perhaps not quite so well known.
To those who struggled there - it was very real. To those who lost loved
ones in the farmlands around Uspenka, it was very real. And to anyone and
everyone interested in the true and honest history of the men of the Waffen SS -
this is a very real place with very real history of brave soldiers and a valiant
struggle.
We are told by the residents of Uspenka that their village name is pronounced
oos-pee-YENK-ah in Ukrainian but in Russian, we are told, it is pronounced oos-pen-SKY-ah.
Okay - it is whatever it is, but it is a beautiful place with friendly people.
The travelers -
from the left
Harry Cooper - Sharkhunters President
'Sepp' Dorsch - WW II veteran
Gerhard Sellin - Combat veteran who fought here
Another veteran who fought here
Paul Rösch -
combat veteran who fought here
Dieter Bunge - his brother was killed in combat here
Oberstleutnant Heinz Keith - retired from the Bundswehr
The church they passed on the road was indeed beautiful.
Some collected holy water while the thirsty heathens (our group) walked across the parking
lot to the beer store.
After about 90 kilometers, we arrived Uspenka, and the village had turned out to
watch the children play soccer.
and our group was quickly and warmly welcomed as if we were part of the family -
which we quickly were.
HARRY slept on the fold-out sofa, and the meals were served in the next
room.
The meals were absolutely wonderful! They were delicious, and nobody left
the table hungry!
"Sepp", PAUL RÖSCH (7019-LIFE-2005) and COOPER enjoy
another great meal. Each man got such a pot filled with meat, potatoes, cheese
and onions then baked in an oven - it was fantastic!
A view to the garden of our host........and the red arrow points to the little
building where - well, you can figure it out. It appeared that none of the
homes in the village have indoor plumbing, but it was neat and clean and if one
is going to be an adventurer, one must get used to leaving some amenities back
in the city.
Then it was time to "invade" Russia! Crossing the border
from Ukraine into Russia is about as easy as crossing the southern border of the
United States. But there was no place to get free health care, free food,
welfare, free housing or anything like that. Actually, they learned that
if they were caught, they would at least go to prison if not be shot on the
border. Maybe they have an idea there................. Our "invaders"
merely drank a toast of vodka (there is a lot of that there!!!) and returned to
base.
The Battlefield
Actually, this entire area was the battlefield, and these veterans were
remembering some 65 years back in their memories.
It is almost as if they never left..........
They have found something..........
Yes indeed - almost as if they had
never left. Some of the old fortifications are still there.
.........in the village of
Uspenka
Our host, Serge, drives the school bus - this is it and it holds nine
passengers. One of the villagers walks past.
Rush hour on
"Main Street" is usually this busy. It is really peaceful, a
welcome change.
Another day - another great breakfast. The guys sure ate well!
The tiny Orthodox Church is the central point in town, and the bells rings for
the services.
The Memorial Service in the village cemetery for the local man who helped so
much between the Ukrainians and the German veterans. He only recently
passed away.
and back at the little church.......
Seated on the bench on the churchyard we see (from the left):
PAUL RÖSCH, HEINZ KEITH, "Sepp" Dorsch, Father Gabriel, Dieter
Bunge, Evgeni, Gerhard Sellin, HARRY COOPER
(please keep
in mind that the names of Sharkhunters Members are caps and bold)
Above left - bringing water from one of the few deep wells in town.
Above right - PAUL RÖSCH relives a moment from his past. As an
Oberleutnant, it is more likely that he rode in the sidecar some 65 years ago
rather than driving it. No, this is not a museum piece - there are a lot
of these old bikes with sidecars in this village. There are not so many
cars, but we counted at least half a dozen of these bikes.
Above left - village children swim upstream of the bridge;
Above right - cattle are in the river downstream of the bridge as PAUL
chats with the fishermen.
They sure ate well at Serge's house! This is not the breakfast for the
three guys staying with Serge - this is breakfast for EACH of them! Serge
on the telephone making the day's program.
The river figured prominently into the battles more than 60 years ago.
This bridge - no joke - really is the actual footbridge the villagers use to
cross the river..........carefully; VERY carefully!!
As these photographs clearly show - sometimes the results of battle are never
repaired.
When the visitors travel to the high ridge above the village, they find more
small homes. One is of particular interest.
The lady of the house wants to know who are these strangers and why are they
taking photographs of this house.
Our host Serge explains that the visitors are Germans who fought against the
Soviets here nearly 70 years ago. She is happy and calls out her husband
to have more photos taken. From the left: PAUL RÖSCH; Serge;
the lady of the house; HARRY COOPER; the man of the house and Gerhard
Sellin. PAUL and Gerhard are veterans of the 5th SS and they saw
heavy combat here.
And why is this particular house of such interest? During the battle in
this area, this was the HQ of General Steiner.
And on to more of the battlefields.......................
Serge has located the son of a man who lived here during the battles and he
loaned photos to the group of what it looked like back then. The son is
the young man with the bandaged arm standing between Gerhard Sellin and PAUL
RÖSCH - and for some reason, old ladies all over the world seem to love HARRY
as we see here while Serge stifles a grin.
Holding up the photos borrowed from the young man, they compare yesterday with
today.
They stand exactly where the sentry stood six and a half decades ago - and Serge
drives the group to the next place on the former battlefield. Who needs
roads? Serge drove across fields to the exact spot on the battlefields.
Serge and "Sepp" check the location and sure enough, when compared to the
old wartime photo - it is the same place.
The Soviet Memorial
to
the eight divisions of the Red Army thrown against the 5th SS
It can be seen from miles away. Gerhard Sellin, HARRY COOPER, PAUL
RÖSCH and "Sepp" Dorsch at the display. Gerhard and PAUL
saw heavy combat here. Gerhard still has a huge gap in his midsection -
the result of a Katushia rocket attack right here.
The Red Army won this battle - but the cost was very high. The names of
just some of their men who fell are on these markers.
Huge memorials to the infantry and the armored troops - and more names of the
fallen.
Memorial to the artillery and the Air Force...........and even more names of the
fallen.
Looking from beneath the statue of the soldier and from the other side, the
former battlefield stretches out for miles.
Never known for doing anything small, this Soviet soldier stands about thirty
feet (ten meters) tall and from this memorial at the top of the hill, one can
see for miles and miles in any direction.
Getting up to this memorial is no easy task - it is on the top of a mountain
with a very steep path of more than a quarter mile - UP!
PAUL RÖSCH, Serge, Gerhard Sellin and "Sepp" at the summit.
Above right - Serge sits in the control seat of the Katushia rocket vehicle.
Weren't these trucks made by Studebaker in South Bend, Indiana USA?
Our travelers encounter "Rush Hour" traffic here on the "Autobahn"
returning to Uspenka. Sure is peaceful!
Upper left - this truck delivers coal once a week in the village. Upper
right - the Uspenka bus stop.
Another of those motorcycles - they sure built them to last! And another
fantastic breakfast at Serge's home.
Another Rush Hour in Uspenka
PAUL finds a friend
"Downtown" Uspenka.......the general store, snack bar, tavern,
clothing store, fresh fish shop and everything else of interest all contained in
this one building.
This little village lost some of their sons in World
War II as well. The Memorial in the village.
..........to the School
These warm-hearted veterans did not just come here for the battlefield.
They do a great deal for the local school too.
Evgeni begins to bring the goodies to the Headmistress of the
school then Dieter adds more.
The headmistress
proudly shows the soccer (fußball) banner the school won.
Gerhard peers in at the 6th grade then we visit the computer lab.
More of the computer lab as PAUL looks on
In the hallway, Gerhard, PAUL and Evgeni check
the map while in the classroom, the teacher beams proudly.
In the classroom, students proudly show their work to the group.
The group visited many classrooms.................
Several foreign languages are taught in every class.
.................and in each
classroom, the students were pleased with their visiting friends.
The poster in the
lunchroom tells about the proper food - and the ladies are preparing the lunch.
from the left: HEINZ KEITH (seated), Dieter Bunge, their host
Serge, HARRY COOPER (seated), two lunchroom ladies, PAUL RÖSCH
(seated), 'Sepp' Dorsch (seated) and Gerhard Sellin. The ladies
served cookies and coffee with sweetened milk.
It would seem that every culture has their fairy tales of the handsome prince
coming to capture the heart of the fair princess and Ukraine is no different.
This painting hangs in the school's main hallway. Below left - the
school's fresh water well. Below right - one of the students waves
farewell to the friends of their school from a former enemy nation.
Not only the School, but the
Kindergarten as well......
These veterans also help the local kindergarten. Once having 120
little children, they now have an enrollment of only about 25.
Upper left - the kindergarten. Upper right - the children eagerly
watch their new visitors.
Below left - when it is naptime. Below right - for playtime.
Above left - the medical supply area leaves much to be desired. Upper
right - the cooking facilities are meager.
Both photos below - in the kitchen
Like anywhere in the world - little
children love playtime. "Sepp" with a child as Evgeni looks on.
What the
heck is this?
Well - it was built by Germans before the First World War.........the broken
windows have been replaced with stone over the years but what is this black
granular stuff? You're not gonna' believe it................
Well, that 'stuff' goes down this chute..........Serge watches as it runs
through the system.......but what is it?
The operator watches the chugga-chugga machine as
it processes this stuff.............whatever it is.
"Sepp" tries it and says it is tasty - TASTY? WOW, this is some
kind of prepared food. HARRY and PAUL weren't hungry and
HARRY said something about not wanting to eat anything that was moved about
on a conveyer belt and served on a shovel.
"Food" going up the conveyer...............and our group says farewell to
the food processing plant.
New meaning to "Hands
Across the Oceans"
The lady who runs this store chats with "Sepp".
You can buy all your food here from beer to fresh fish.
She joins us for a beer and.........no, it is not what you think - well, maybe
not. "Sepp" is merely straightening the pin on her blouse.
Back to
Auto Shop 101..........
The "CCCP" on the engine tells when and where Serge's "Mosquva" car was
built. Every so often, the car would just stop and Serge would open the
hood, do something in the engine room - and the car was off and running again.
Amazing..............
The veterans who stayed in Evgeni's house ate really well, too.
Father
Gabriel and PAUL chat while the rest of the group enjoys the sumptuous
meal.
The next morning - the last morning
in town.....below left Serge prepares to pick up the kids for school.
but some (upper right) live near enough, they walk to school.
And now, sadly, friends (PAUL, Serge and 'Sepp') must say their
goodbyes. This is the last day.
And why are we bringing all this history to you, other than to show you a
beautiful and historic part of World War II? Believe us, there is a really
good reason! We are adding photos soon, so please keep checking back and
you will understand.