Period:

Second World War (1939-1945)

Rank:

Unteroffizier der Reserve (Corporal of Reserves)

Unit:

Geschützführer 2./Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 259 / Heerestruppe

Awarded on:

November 2nd, 1943

Engel’s Knight’s Cross action took place on the 08.09.1943, near Laspa (southeast of Stalino). At 16:30 on the previous day the Soviets began an assault against the 3. Gebirgs-Division. By 17:50 they had broken through the thin lines of the defenders and were pushing forward towards the west and south. The Sturmgeschütz-Brigade 259 was put on alert and assembled near Nowo Laspa, 8 km west of where the Soviets had broken through.

Engel himself provides the following first-hand account as to the actions on this day that led him to receive the Knight’s Cross…

“At dawn we launched a counterattack with 7 Sturmgeschützen and 90 Gebirgsjäger. We already began taking fire after reaching a hill, and while peering through my scissors telescope I identified nothing but Russian tanks. We continued to drive, came directly into a Russian tank assembly area and took the enemy under fire. A few of their tanks went up in flames, and we carried on our attack in a southeasterly direction. All told 17 Russian tanks were destroyed, of which I personally took out 3.

However the Russians suddenly attacked us from the rear and to the left with about 50 heavy tanks! We took up the uneven fight. However since a few of our Sturmgeschützen were soon hit we were forced to pull back. The Zugführer’s vehicle received a direct hit in the motor area, and could no longer drive. We towed the vehicle back in a wide arc, coming between enemy infantry in the process (of which we took 25 prisoners). After we had refilled with ammunition and cold water (essential for the overloaded engine which had towed the busted Sturmgeschütz over rough terrain) and once again drove forward with my Sturmgeschütz into position.

We took the onrushing Russians under fire. Suddenly we received fire from four T-34s. Two came at us at full speed, and wished to drive past our Sturmgeschütz. The first succeeded, however the second was hit in the track and immobilized about 200 meters in front of us. The second shot struck the turret, the tank was burning! But a short while afterwards our infantry warned us of tanks coming from the ravine on the right! Quite a few must have been coming, as the infantry left their positions.

In order to operate more effectively I gave the order to drive further forwards, and a short distance away (about 700-800 metres) I saw 14 T-34s rolling forwards with infantry in-between. We made a half-turn to the right and opened fire! The first shot struck the track of the lead tank. I said to my gunner: ‘Hit the same one again! The lead tank must burn in order to throw the rest into confusion, otherwise we’re done for!’ The second shot was a direct hit, and the lead tank burned. As a result the rest became disordered, and some even stopped altogether.

Now we took one after another under fire. Unfortunately, because we had already fired so many rounds today (100 shots), the gun now jammed after every new shot. The loader and I had heavy work to do. Soon we had bloodied hands, but we repeatedly had to tear open the semi-automatic breechblock closure with our combined abilities. From the fifth shot onwards we could repeatedly declare ‘Direct hit, it’s burning!’ In this way one after another tank exploded with violent force.

Behind us were 3 Gebirgsjäger with their MG. They gained new courage in light of our successes, cheering along with us whenever a direct hit was achieved and personally fighting with their MG against targets of opportunity. Our loader meanwhile could not observe the battle, he loaded the AP rounds into the gun and only smiled. On the hill where we were positioned we took fire from artillery as well as the two remaining T-34s. However we continued the firefight, albeit becoming totally exhausted by constantly fixing the gun jams in the process.

After a quarter of an hour we could go no further. Skin hung from my right hand, and we could no longer open the breech. But 12 burning steel colossi lay in front of us. The 2 remaining ones pulled back into the ravine. I could still see the turrets jutting out, but we could not fire anymore. The black smoke from the burning T-34s lay thick over the entire landscape. Explosions continued to detonate, and these could be both heard and seen from kilometres away. I gave the following message to my Batterie commander via radio ‘Today we have destroyed 16 tanks, the last 12 within 20 minutes.’ He congratulated us and gave full recognition to me and my crew.”