The crew of this particular tank, which bore the name “Cuckoo” painted on both sides of its turret, methodically pummeled the castle’s defenders, selecting a window and then unerringly putting a round right through the opening and into the strongpoint’s interior.
The 95mm howitzers were much more successful, but one tank outdid them all. The smaller tank guns proved ineffective against the stout walls of this fortress with ramparts built to withstand the long bombardments of an earlier era of warfare. Equipped with various versions of the Churchill, the tankers sent rounds from 6-pounder and 75mm cannon, as well as the 95mm howitzers, crashing into the walls of Geijsteren. The British crews moved their Churchill tanks to positions within range of the castle and began to fire. Now, the brigade’s tanks would try their hand at knocking out the enemy position. The German troops garrisoning the fortress had held against attacks by infantry and heavy artillery bombardment. In late 1944, the castle was a strongpoint in the local German defenses and under attack by elements of the British Sixth Guards Tank Brigade. Geijsteren Castle sits north of the Dutch town of Venlo on the banks of the Meuse River.
0 kommentar(er)
