STORY ALAN HEBDEN ART OLIVERA COVER JANEK MATYSIAK
T THE END OF THE THIRD WEEK OF A MAY 1940 GERMANY’S HEADLONG ARMOURED RUSH ACROSS NORTHERN FRANCE CAME ITS CLOSEST TO BEING DERAILED. OUTSIDE ARRAS BRITISH TANKS LAUNCHED A CONCERTED COUNTER-ATTACK TO CUT THE ENEMY SPEARHEAD.
4
MATILDA TANKS WERE SLOW AND CUMBERSOME, BUT THEIR TWO-POUNDER GUNS FIRING ARMOUR-PIERCING SHELLS WERE A MATCH FOR ANYTHING ON THE GERMAN SIDE.
HIMMEL, WE CAN’T TOUCH THEM!
CRUCIALLY, THEIR IMMENSELY THICK ARMOUR WAS IMPERVIOUS TO THE GUNS OF THE EARLY PANZERS AND THE LIGHT ANTI-TANK WEAPONS EMPLOYED BY GERMAN INFANTRY. IN SHORT ORDER THE BLITZKRIEG WAS STOPPED IN ITS TRACKS.
5 THE DEVELOPING BATTLE WAS WATCHED INTENTLY FROM NEARBY HIGHER GROUND BY BRIGADIER JOHN FIELDING. HIS AIDE, CAPTAIN PETER HUNT, WAS OPTIMISTIC, BUT JOHN WASN’T COUNTING HIS CHICKENS JUST YET.
I SAY, SIR, THEY’RE REALLY GIVING THE HUN A THRASHING! THEY HAVEN’T GOT ANYTHING TO STOP THE MATILDAS!
WE’LL SEE.
THE SAME BATTLE WAS ALSO BEING OBSERVED BY THE MAJOR-GENERAL COMMANDING THE GERMAN FORCES INVOLVED. A COLONEL WITH HIM WAS BECOMING CONCERNED. WE DON’T HAVE THE ARTILLERY AVAILABLE TO STOP THEIR ACCURSED PANZERS, HERR GENERALMAJOR!
BUT WE DO, OBERST KOHLER, OR AT LEAST OUR LUFTWAFFE ANTI-AIRCRAFT UNITS DO. IT’S TIME THEY STARTED SHOOTING AT SOMETHING LOWER DOWN THAN AIRCRAFT!
6 AN HOUR LATER IT BECAME CLEAR FROM RADIO TRAFFIC THAT THE ATTACK HAD RUN INTO UNEXPECTED TROUBLE. IGNORING HIS AIDE’S ADVICE TO STAY PUT, JOHN INSISTED ON DRIVING TOWARDS THE FIGHTING, WHERE HE WAS SHOCKED TO FIND SEVERAL WRECKED MATILDAS. THE JERRIES HAVE BROUGHT UP ARTILLERY, SIR!
IMPOSSIBLE! ARTILLERY CAN’T KEEP PACE WITH A PANZER SPEARHEAD.
LET’S SEE FOR OURSELVES.
ONCE MORE IGNORING HIS AIDE’S ADVICE, JOHN DROVE INTO THE THICK OF THE FIGHTING. HE COULD SEE THAT THE DAMAGE TO THE MATILDAS HADN’T BEEN DONE BY GERMAN TANK GUNS. DEFINITELY THE WORK OF ARTILLERY…AND THERE IT IS!
7 THE ARTILLERY TURNED OUT TO BE POWERFUL 88mm ANTI-AIRCRAFT GUNS WHOSE VERSATILE DESIGN ALLOWED THEIR BARRELS TO BE LOWERED TO THE HORIZONTAL. THIS IMPROVISATION TURNED THEM INTO POTENT ANTI-TANK WEAPONS.
FEUER!
THE JERRY COMMANDER’S CERTAINLY PULLED A RABBIT OUT OF THE HAT, AND WE DON’T HAVE ANY ANSWER TO IT. CONTACT H.Q. I’M RECOMMENDING WE CUT OUR LOSSES AND BREAK OFF!
SINCE PROMISED FRENCH SUPPORT FOR THE ORIGINAL ATTACK HAD FAILED TO MATERIALISE H.Q. AGREED WITH JOHN’S RECOMMENDATION AND ORDERED A FULL WITHDRAWAL. AS AN OFFICER WHO PREFERRED LEADING FROM THE FRONT THE BRIGADIER INSISTED ON WAITING UNTIL THE MOVE WAS FULLY UNDER WAY.
WE’RE PRACTICALLY WITHIN SPITTING DISTANCE OF GERMAN POSITIONS, SIR. WE HAVE TO MOVE BACK.
STOP FUSSING LIKE AN OLD MOTHER HEN, MISTER HUNT. WE’LL GET GOING IN A FEW MINUTES.
8 THE GERMAN COMMANDER BEHIND THE INSPIRED IMPROVISATION WASN’T CONTENT SIMPLY TO SEE THE ENEMY OFF.
THEY’RE PULLING BACK. BEGIN AN IMMEDIATE PURSUIT! KEEP SNAPPING AT THEIR HEELS! JAWOHL, HERR GENERALMAJOR!
JOHN WAS JUST PREPARING TO LEAVE WHEN’S HIS AIDE’S WORST FEARS WERE REALISED AS A PAIR OF MkII PANZERS BURST OUT OF THE SMOKE OF BATTLE ALMOST ON TOP OF THEM.
GREAT HEAVENS ABOVE! IN THE CAR, SIR! DRIVER, STEP ON IT! OOOF!
9 EVEN AS THEY SPED AWAY THEIR RADIO LORRY RECEIVED A DIRECT HIT FROM ONE OF THE GERMAN TANKS.
GETTING CLEAR DIDN’T SEEM TO BE ON THE CARDS, THOUGH. ANOTHER SHOT EXPLODED RIGHT NEXT TO THE CAR CAUSING THE DRIVER TO LOSE CONTROL AND SWERVE INTO A DITCH.
UUURF! APOLOGIES, MISTER HUNT, I SHOULD HAVE LISTENED TO YOU.
NEVER MIND THAT, SIR, LET’S JUST GET CLEAR.
THEY WERE DAZED AND STUCK. AID WAS CLOSE AT HAND, THOUGH UNFORTUNATELY FOR THOSE THEY HELPED FROM THE CAR, THE HANDS BELONGED TO GERMAN PANZER GRENADIERS. ACH, EIN ENGLANDER BRIGADIER!
WELL SPOTTED, YOUNG MAN.
10 THE TROOPS WHO HAD CAPTURED THEM SUDDENLY STRAIGHTENED UP AS A GERMAN GENERAL GOT OUT OF A STAFF CAR WHICH HAD HALTED BESIDE THEM. THE GENERAL’S GAZE THOUGH WAS DIRECTED AT JOHN.
IT IS YOU, ISN’T IT? THE MAN I KNEW AS LEUTNANT JOHN FIELDING!
IT CERTAINLY IS, HERR GENERALMAJOR. WE’VE BOTH COME A LONG WAY SINCE YOU WERE AN OBERLEUTNANT.
WHILE HUNT GAPED IN AMAZEMENT, THE GERMAN COMMANDER OF THE PANZER DIVISION AT THE FOREFRONT OF THE BLITZKRIEG ORDERED JOHN’S CAR TO BE CHECKED FOR DAMAGE.
A FEW SCRAPES AND DENTS, HERR GENERALMAJOR, BUT NOTHING TO STOP IT RUNNING.
IN THAT CASE, HAVE IT TOWED OUT OF THE DITCH IMMEDIATELY AND BRIGADIER FIELDING CAN BE ON HIS WAY!
I WASN’T EXPECTING THAT, HERR GENERALMAJOR, BUT I’M CERTAINLY GRATEFUL.