Latrine communiques indicated that the regiment was going home, but a divisional order directed otherwise - for the present, at least. The end of the war seemed near, and according to General Gavin in a talk to men of the 504, "We want to be in on the finish." Most men agreed, but opinions differed as to where the regiment should spend the "finish" and how enthusiastically they endorsed the prospect of fighting to the last could not readily be determined.

Col. Tucker and the advance detail left Laon, France, on April 1, and jeeped north some 270 miles to Cologne, to establish the regimental CP at Longerich, in the city's outskirts. Three days later the regiment, after traveling most of the way in "40 and 8's", arrived and immediately took up positions along the West Bank of the Rhine River. The opponents this time were battered Wehrmacht forces who had been trapped in the Ruhr pocket.

Patrols 'sallied forth each night from the West Bank in boats to reconnoiter the opposite shore where, almost without exception, the enemy was contacted and brisk firefights developed. Casualties were inflicted upon the enemy, and also by the enemy. Only a few attempts were made by the Germans to reach the 504 side of the river, and these were quickly repulsed with disastrous consequences for those who still thought the Rhine was a German river.

On the other hand, it was not uncommon for 504 patrols to be fired upon by 20mm and machine guns while still in mid-stream, forcing the men to abandon ship and make for shore by means of the more primitive method of aquatic propulsion.

The Ruhr "sack" was ever being drawn more tightly by American divisions which compressed the isolated German pocket from the North, South, and East. On April 6, A Company was ordered to cross the Rhine to seize and occupy the enemy-held village of Hitdorf, which nestled on the east bank of the river.

In the larger sense, there was more at stake in this action than the mere capture of a comparatively unimportant German village. It was hoped by the tacticians of higher headquarters that this venture into what was considered the least heavily defended portion of the pocket would divert badly needed troops from the other hardpressed fronts.

Loading into assault boats in platoon waves, A Company crossed the Rhine at 0230 on the 6th. Upon reaching the east bank, the enemy was immediately contacted. Under heavy fire, and finding themselves in a minefield, the company momentarily lost control and the first wave split into two parts, each of which separately fought its way to the predesignated objective.

The two groups of the leading wave joined forces, knocked out several machine gun nests, and proceeded to establish a road block. Under conditions similar to those encountered by the first wave, the succeeding waves infiltrated through the enemy and subsequently entered the village.

Page 1 -

Page 2 -

Page 3 -

Page 4 -

Page 5