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Hard Nosed Folks Both Good & Bad War

SS Division “LEIBSTANDARTE”. The Russians Tied Women to Their Tanks. Eastern Front.

If there was ever a truly EVIL fighting unit from Hell. Then these guys are a prime candidate for the title. So I can see why that anybody that went up against them, usually did NOT send any prisoners to the rear area for questioning. Grumpy

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Allies Soldiering War

Was This The Most Dangerous Man Of World War 2?

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One Hell of a Good Fight War

England’s bloodiest battle: 1461AD Historical Battle of Towton | Total War Battle

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All About Guns The Green Machine War

How Powerful is Javelin Anti-Tank Missile

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All About Guns War

Weapons that Changed Warfare: Smart Bombs

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All About Guns Paint me surprised by this War

What Does the Impact of a 16in Shell Look Like?

When my Dad was up near the Punchbowl during Harry’s Police Action. When he saw the handiwork done by The New Jersey. He said that one time a Hill was hit by a 16 incher and then quote “The Whole f*cking hill was just lifted up and then dropped back down!”

The other amazing thing was that when the New Jersey was on the firing line. A buck private could be able to call a full broadside in with no questions asked if he had the code book & a radio that worked.

Like my Dad, I almost felt sorry for those Commies, NAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Grumpy

Categories
This great Nation & Its People War

Americans in the Battle of Berlin – The Untold Story

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All About Guns Soldiering War

GERMAN K43 RIFLE: DEUTSCHLAND’S DMR By Will Dabbs, MD

Rottenfuhrer Friedrich Pouls was a tool, a small but lethal cog in a gigantic killing machine. He rested in the edge of a massive shell crater covered by his zeltbahn. This triangular water-repellent piece of camouflaged material was the best piece of kit the Wehrmacht had ever devised. Though he was himself a member of the elite Waffen SS, much of his equipment came from the same sources. Rottenfuhrer Poul used his to become invisible.

german k43 sniper rifle
A German sniper team watch for enemy movement in the Eastern Front of World War II. The soldier on the right is armed with a scoped K43 rifle.

Poul and his comrade Sturmmann Reist had worked together for nine months. On the Eastern Front nine months might as well have been an eternity. It was legitimately miraculous they had survived this long. Part of that was raw luck, but a great deal of it was also hard-won skill. To prevail in a place as dangerous as the Russian steppe in late 1944 demanded that a sniper team be both lucky and very, very good. Poul and Reist were indeed both.

The two men had made their way out to the crater in utter darkness. They had operated from this same crater once some 10 days before and remembered much of the route. They made a point never to shoot from the same spot on consecutive days. This was one of several reasons they were still alive.

german k43 sniper rifle
The K43 rifle in the hands of a skilled shooter could be a formidable opponent for Allied troops.

Unlike the vast majority of their mates, neither man smoked. This gave them an advantage in that they didn’t need to feed their addiction while in a hide. They also were not so easy to smell, as was the case with their smoking counterparts. Once again, it was the aggregate little things that had kept the two men warm and breathing this long.

Poul gradually glassed the pockmarked moonscape through the four-power ZF4 telescopic sight mounted atop his spanking new K43 sniper rifle. Reist did the same thing with his superlative Zeiss binoculars. The two men’s boots rested against each other deep in the crater. They communicated via a series of nudges. When speech was necessary it was brief, soft and concise. Reist saw him first.

german k43 sniper rifle
The K43, particularly when fitted with the 4X ZF4 scope, was well-respected by the German snipers who wielded it.

The Soviet KV-1 was an absolute beast of a tank. This particular example had fallen prey to an 88mm Flak 36 three days before. Wispy tendrils of smoke still curled from the open hatches atop the turret. Underneath the massive burned-out war machine nestled between the roadwheels, Poul saw the glint of glass.

The Soviet sniper wielded a scoped SVT-40 sniper rifle. Like his German counterpart, this man was the best trained and best-equipped sniper his military could produce. This fateful day, however, he was just unlucky.

german k43 sniper rifle
The ergonomics of the K43 were superb. The right-handed operator could run the action without taking his firing hand off the stock.

Poul could not see deeply into the shadows underneath the big tank, but he could just make out the muzzle of the rifle as it peeked out, sniffing for blood. He calmed his breathing, measured his heart rate, and nudged Reist with the toe of his jackboot. Poul centered the simple post of his ZF4 sight about five centimeters above the Russian rifle, held his breath, and gently squeezed the trigger.

The heavy marksman’s rifle rocked back in recoil and immediately returned to target. There was some mad thrashing underneath the tank, and Poul noticed a second shape jerk back from the dying Soviet sniper. That would be his spotter. Poul picked an opening some two roadwheels over and repeated the process. When he saw the shadow pass between the wheels he squeezed again and killed the second half of the Soviet sniper team.

german k43 sniper rifle
The K43 offered a similar increase in portable firepower to Wehrmacht and Waffen SS troops to what American grunts enjoyed with the M1 Garand.

Poul and Reist glassed the tank until they were sure there was no further movement and then stayed another two hours just to be sure. Reassured that the threat was eliminated, they slid like snakes back out of the crater and along the faint path back to the company area. The password got them back through their sentries. In short order, the two SS snipers were filling their bellies with black bread and ersatz coffee. They debriefed with the battalion intelligence officer and wandered off to grab some rack time. There would undoubtedly be more work to do tomorrow.

The Rifle

K43 is Kraut shorthand for Karabiner 43. The same weapon was also known as the Gewehr 43. A relatively simple gas-operated design, the K43 was the German answer to our M1 Garand. However, manufacturing pressures and a suboptimal design conspired to keep the K43 from reaching its full potential.

german k43 sniper rifle in hands of german soldier
The K43 rifle was ultimately employed by all ground combat elements of the German armed forces during WWII. Note the period Fallschirmjager paratrooper uniform shown here.

The K43 was an evolutionary development of the previous G41. Produced as the G41(M) from Mauser and the G41(W) from Walther, these two rifles suffered from an inexplicable design mandate that German engineers craft the weapons without drilling a gas port in the barrel. The end result was a gas trap design that was front-heavy, cumbersome, heavy and unreliable. About the time the Wehrmacht was convincing itself that the G41 was a dry hole, they encountered the Soviet SVT-38 and SVT-40 self-loaders in combat on the Eastern Front.

The subsequent G43/K43 featured a more conventional short-stroke piston-driven action with a flapper locking mechanism. Much of this rifle’s entrails seem eerily similar to those of the Soviet SVT-40. This system was easier to manufacture, more reliable and fairly robust. The weapon was semi-auto-only and fed from detachable 10-round box magazines that could also be charged from the top via standard stripper clips.

The K43 was designed to be relatively easy to build in bulk. The trunnion is a fairly rough casting, while many of the gun’s accouterments were stamped steel. The stock on my gun appears to be laminated birch.

german k43 sniper rifle
The K43 was a mature and effective combat rifle. The exigencies of unfettered war made manufacturing these guns in quantity a challenge.

The G43 was first issued in October 1944. The nomenclature change to K43 took place the following year. The two weapons were essentially otherwise identical. 402,713 copies were produced at three major manufacturing facilities by the end of the war.

Designated Marksman Rifle

The original intent was to issue 19 K43 rifles to each Wehrmacht infantry company along with ten ZF4 4X scopes. The company armorer was to exercise all 19 rifles and assign the optical sights to the 10 most accurate of the lot. The reality was that the chaotic supply situation at the end of the war precluded a full issue in most cases. Even if the weapons had been available, German infantry companies were getting chewed to pieces so quickly in the closing months of the war that they were seldom, if ever, at full strength.

german k43 sniper rifle
Equipped with period-correct clothing and weapons, it is easy to see that a German trooper armed with the K43 was a threat not to be taken lightly.

Once an optic was matched to a rifle, the sight was serialized manually by the armorer. As a result, most of the vintage ZF4’s available on the surplus market will have a seemingly random number inscribed via electropencil. My rifle came with the scope mount but no optic. I found a period scope online to complete the package.

There was a prototype grenade launcher and sound suppressor designed for the K43, but neither saw production. After the war, the K43 was pressed into service in Czechoslovakia as well as East Germany. German snipers were instructed to destroy their rifles at the end of the war, so a great many were captured with splintered stocks.

German K43 Rifle Specifications

Caliber 7.92x57mm
Weight 9.7 pounds
Length 43.8 inches
Barrel Length 21.5 inches
Action Gas-operated, short-stroke piston
Feed Ten-round detachable box, five-round strippers
Sights Iron/detachable ZF4 4X optical

Ruminations

The Nazis lost the war the moment they invaded Russia. While the Germans brought us some of the most revolutionary military advances in history, they were most typically too little, too late. The fanciest combat rifles in the world aren’t much good if your manufacturing centers are being pummeled by sky-filling bomber raids, and your enemy enjoys a limitless supply of trucks, tanks and fuel.

german k43 sniper rifle
Although the gun was introduced too late in the war to shift the tides of history into German favor, its influence can be felt on the modern battlefield.

In the K43 sniper rifle, we see the beginnings of a stark paradigm shift. The robust nature of the design ensured it rendered reliable service, while the semi-automatic action made it a fearsome killer on the battlefield. The influence of this revolutionary weapon is still felt even today, in firearms such as today’s DMR (designation marksman rifle) and more.

Special thanks to WorldWarSupply.com for the cool period gear used by our reenactor.

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All About Guns Allies Soldiering War

By Fire and Steel – The History of the British Infantry Weapon

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Real men Soldiering The Green Machine War
After the Battle of the Wilderness, near Fredericksburg
Library of Congress

It was 1861 when Michigan’s legislature dismissed the idea of George Copway — a popular Methodist minister and Chippewa — to recruit a regiment of Great Lakes Native Americans who he claimed were “inured to hardships, fleet as deer, shrewd, and cautious.” However, much had changed in the span of two years, including the imposition of a federally imposed draft, quotas to be filled by each state, and the already-spilt blood of thousands of Michiganders. As such, Michigan began to seek out Native American soldiers to support the Union war efforts.

Col. Charles V. DeLand, a veteran of the 9th Michigan Infantry, and a troop of eager recruiters were particularly interested in finding stealthy men with acute marksmanship to join a regiment of sharpshooters — particularly, in Company K of the 1st Michigan Sharpshooters. But these recruits needed an incentive, like the promise of payment, meals, and the possibility of negotiating the protection of their traditional homelands from outsider incursion.

In a time when Native Americans feared losing their homes, military service spurred a glimmer of hope. Saginaw Chippewa Chief Nockkechickfawme gave the young men of his tribe even more motivation when he sharply warned of a Confederate overtaking where “there will be no protection for us; we shall be driven from our homes, our lands, and the graves of our friends.” Ottawa Chief Pawbawme drew from his fellow chief’s influence, sparking the enlistment of approximately two dozen more men with his fiery oration.

Upon their departure by steamer, the Ottawa-Ojibwa men were seen off by a great majority of their community. Among these departing warriors was Antoine Scott, who would later be recommended twice for the Medal of Honor but would never be awarded the great recognition.

Another was Thomas Kechittigo — known to many as “Big Tom” — who had originally been refused enlistment in 1861 but would climb the ranks to become a sergeant in Company K. Recruits came from Oceana County, Bear River, Little Traverse, Charlevoix, La Croix and near Saginaw.

Of those who drove enlistments, a shining star was Second Lieut. Garrett A. Graveraet. A young man of only 23, the multi-talented Graveraet became an officer and led an impressive recruitment drive to strengthen the ranks of Company K. He even signed up his own father, the 55-year-old Henry Graveraet, who shaved off 10 years from his true age during enlistment and was the company’s only non-native soldier.

Garrett Graveraet 2nd Lt Index Card
Service record for “2 Lt” Garrett A. Graveraet in Company K of the 1 Michigan Sharp Shooters. National Archives

Following recruitment, the men of Company K were met with vigorous training. So, while veteran Colonel DeLand and part of the Michigan regiment sought out the Confederate raider John Hunt Morgan in Indiana, Graveraet — along with Capt. Edwin V. Andress and First Lieut. William Driggs — drilled the recruits of the new company into shape.

They were so effective that upon DeLand’s return, mustering officer Lieut. Col. John R. Smith noted that the recruits were “the stuff, no doubt, of which good sharpshooters can easily be made.” And these native troops were promised the same benefits as white soldiers, such as $13 pay a month — outweighing the $10 monthly pay that U.S. Colored Troops (USCTs) received until equal pay was mandated.

Despite that difference, those in Company K began their wartime service by defending military storehouses and guarding Confederate prisoners — a path reflective of many USCTs’ entry into military service.

Ordered to guard prisoners of war at Camp Douglas outside Chicago, the company experienced the bitter taste of camp life, as they faced not only boredom but also disease and desertion. Additionally, fellow soldiers and Chicago civilians were fascinated by the culture that accompanied Company K.

It wasn’t until March 8, 1864, that orders came in, directing the 1st Michigan Sharpshooters to Annapolis, Maryland, where they would rendezvous with Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside’s IX Corps of the Army of the Potomac. Arriving as Lieut. Gen. U.S. Grant started upon the Overland Campaign, the sturdy soldiers of Company K were inserted into the whirlwind of battle.

Their first foray into combat came with the Battle of the Wilderness on May 6, 1864, when the native soldiers engaged with Confederate forces south of Saunders’ Field. They used the brush and mud of their surroundings to camouflage their uniforms and, with an acute aptitude for sharpshooting and skirmishing, dove into battle with great determination. Mortally wounded in the fighting, Sergeant Charles Allen was the first casualty of war to come out of Company K.

However, the dark side of war only intensified for Company K, as days later — on May 12, 1864 — they were attacked by North Carolinians under Brig. Gen. James H. Lane during the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House. Ten more of the company’s men were lost as a result of the fighting.

By June 17, 1864, the Army of the Potomac had moved south of the James River and Company K was again swept into combat when the 1st Michigan were included in Brig. Gen. Orlando Willcox’s poorly executed attack on a Confederate salient around Petersburg, Virginia.

While the sharpshooters obtained possession of Confederate breastworks, they were also isolated and soon-to-be surrounded by enemy forces under Brig. Gen. Matthew Ransom. The already dissipated native soldiers battled on, engaging in hand-to-hand combat that covered the retreat of their fellow soldiers, but were ultimately overwhelmed by the Confederates.

Company K suffered two casualties from the incident, including Oliver Arpetargezhik and the young, bright Lieutenant Graveraet. The young Graveraet fell only days after the combat death of the elder Graveraet.

However, the impact of the June 17 fighting brought about a fate worse than death for more than 80 soldiers from the 1st Michigan, including 14 men from Company K, who were captured by the enemy. Prisoners of war, these soldiers were sent to the notorious Andersonville Prison, where about 50% of these men didn’t make it out alive.

For those who avoided Andersonville, the following month was full of picketing, sniping, and digging, and overall unsavory conditions around Petersburg. But despite the monotony, the native sharpshooters didn’t fail to impress their fellow soldiers. There was a certain instance in which Lieut. Freeman S. Bowley witnessed the sharpshooters intently watch a mile-far chimney for hours, waiting for the enemy force to show themselves. When it seemed like no development was in sight, a sudden shot was fired and a Confederate was seen falling from the chimney, after exposing a portion of his body.

By the end of July 1864, the Union Army was hell-bent on breaking the stalemate in Petersburg and devised a plan to dig a lengthy tunnel under the Confederate defenses, and then fill this space with explosives. On July 30, the Federals detonated the mine, blowing a gap in the Confederate defenses. The 2nd Brigade from Brigadier General Willcox’s division, which included the 1st Michigan, was the third unit to charge into the crater. There, they encountered masses of dazed and confused Federals, many of whom failed to reach enemy lines. They also came across Confederates who, after regrouping, fought back.

On the far left of the Federal charge, the native sharpshooters had gained a foothold on the Confederate defenses, but the circumstances prevented them from overcoming enemy forces. As those opposing soldiers rained fire into the crater, the Native American forces remained composed and determined amidst an impossible situation.

Accounts of the 1st Michigan’s actions at the Battle of the Crater are far and few between, but the regiment’s current-day historian successfully put the puzzle pieces together to understand its final actions at the fateful site. As Federal forces attempted to retreat, sharpshooters — including Sidney Haight, Charles Thatcher, and Company K’s Pvt. Antoine Scott — covered their comrades. Scott was among the last to remove himself from the chaos and was recommended twice for the Medal of Honor for his astounding bravery, but the Chippewa soldier passed in 1878 and never received recognition. At the Crater, it is estimated that Company K lost three men in battle, plus one wounded and six captured. In total, the 1st Michigan lost approximately 45 soldiers in the assault.

Following the immense devastation of the Crater, Company K’s native sharpshooters were present at the battles of Reams StationPeebles’ Farm and — in the final year of the Civil War — Hatcher’s Run and final operations around Petersburg. Throughout the course of the conflict, about 150 native soldiers served in Company K.