ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THIS LISTING:
Devitt was a Minnesotan boy. Having attended St. Thomas military school, he is automatically commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the army. Then aged just twenty, he is assigned to E/330th, 83rd Infantry Division as a replacement officer in August 1944. He finds it a bit disconcerting to be appointed to command men who had already seen extensive combat in Normandy. Fortunately there is some time to aclimatise to his new situation and get to know his men.
He entered the front line in the Hurtgen Forest in December, when his unit replaced the 4th Infantry Division, whose men looked like ‘zombies’. They then spend over a week in the same foxholes being shelled. When they finally move forward the company has suffered 36 casualties and hasn’t seen a live German. His first experience in attack is successful but deadly. There is confusion about the front line, leading to an unexpected clash. There then follows much more extensive fighting in the houses and streets of Untermaubash. At the conclusion, there are only 40 men left out of the 180 who entered the forest.
Devitt’s unit is then transferred to Belgium for the closing stages of the Battle of the Bulge. He is wounded very early in this phase though and goes through the casualty process to England. The book concludes with his experiences of post-war trips to Europe and a couple of chapters dealing with acquaintances and their experiences on D-day.
The author is good at describing the many army terms. So it is a useful memoir for those new to the genre. Devitt gives reasonable insight into what he sees and experiences. For instance, the balance of taking risks personally and being alive to continue directing actions. He is honest and self critical in his appraisal of his actions and those of his men. Many comrades are named, some described in some detail, including some who don’t perform so well. He is though very quick to praise those who were courageous. There were several men whose loss affected him deeply. There is a bit of milder language and some clear descriptions of terrible wounds but it is a very accessible read. Overall, of reasonable value for the account of battle in the Hurtgen