Chapter 196: The Friedrich Rocket Launcher

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“Elevation 35!” a soldier shouted, reporting after adjusting the angle of the launch rail.

“Ammunition ready!” another soldier reported loudly a moment later.

“Fire!” the commander shouted the attack order.

“Whoosh! Whoosh-whoosh! Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!” The flames spewing from the rockets’ tails kicked up dust from the nearby ground, mixing with the thick smoke from the combustion, instantly engulfing the entire rocket launcher position in a dense cloud of smoke and dirt.

This was Germany’s newest Friedrich rocket launcher. It could deliver 32 rockets to a target area in a single salvo, enough to heavily damage an un-deployed enemy battalion-sized unit. The divisional artillery of the 9th Motorized Infantry Division had a battalion equipped with this super artillery weapon, a full 20 of these rocket launch vehicles.

This was the first recorded combat firing of the Friedrich rocket launcher. 320 rockets were fired into the target area in one go. The cost of this single salvo was equivalent to manufacturing the hull of a Panther tank.

However, this weapon was very popular with the artillerymen, because it allowed an artillery battalion to deliver the firepower of two artillery divisions in just 25 seconds. Many Wehrmacht infantry units had been equipped with this new weapon, but it had been kept in reserve as a secret weapon.

This time, they had encountered a once-in-a-lifetime target, so they were no longer reserved about any secrecy regulations. Thus, this historic moment finally arrived: the first time in warfare that humanity had used truck-chassis self-propelled rocket launchers on a large scale.

The assembling Polish army had not yet realized that their doom was at hand. Soldiers leading cattle and horses were transporting shells and bullets, clogging the crowded roads. The tanks, lacking fuel, had to wait in groups by the side of the road, letting the cars and livestock that were blocking the highway go first.

The Polish commanders, having assembled such a large force for the first time, now knew that the slight chaos at the beginning of the German blitzkrieg was the result of a level of skill that had been learned and understood over ten years and honed to perfection over five—it was the pinnacle of the art of war that only the Germans, known for their precision, could achieve.

And Poland, which was learning on the fly, now knew just how difficult all of this was to learn. Fuel needed to be allocated and transported, ammunition was consumed at a much higher rate due to the more intense firepower, and the organization and direction of the front lines all required experienced people—all of these aspects required professionals, and Poland did not have a single such person…

But with the arrival of the German army’s attack, all these problems no longer needed to be considered. A rocket hit a donkey carrying artillery shells, and the explosion turned the surrounding area into a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. Before the stunned onlookers could even react, a second rocket landed in the crowd. In an instant, severed limbs and internal organs flew everywhere. Only then did everyone realize that they were under attack by enemy artillery.

But it was all too late. As the second rocket flew into the crowd, a third, a fourth… one after another, the rockets exploded in the crowd, hitting cars and tanks and kicking up a storm of steel. The Poles were in a complete mess. On both sides of the highway where they were and on the nearby hills, violent explosions were everywhere.

No one knew how many cannons the German army had used. When the Polish soldiers who had luckily survived the sea of fire climbed out of the mountain of corpses and sea of blood, the Polish Łódź Army’s mixed task force, which had just been 5,000 men and dozens of tanks strong, was now almost non-existent.

This round of rocket attacks ended the tank battle that should have continued. The Poles had thrown all the tanks they could find in the southern region into an attack on the German 3rd SS Panzer Division.

A total of 273 tanks were used by both sides (Germany: 73 – 31 Panzer IIIs, 44 Panthers). 157 were destroyed (74 Polish tanks were destroyed by German armor; the remaining 83 were abandoned or destroyed in the rocket barrage).

The next day, when the panzergrenadiers of the German 9th Motorized Infantry drove through here in their armored cars, they were stunned by the gruesome sight before them. On the ground, which was covered in shredded meat, flies were swarming in groups, just like the German Air Force. German soldiers leaned against telephone poles and vomited continuously, cursing at the Friedrich rocket launcher units that were rumbling past.

“How many tanks did you destroy that day?” Marcus asked, standing next to Rein, his chest puffed out high. He did not turn his head to look at Rein, but kept his gaze fixed straight ahead. “Did you hear? About the Friedrich rocket launcher…”

Rein did not answer, as if he had fallen asleep with his eyes open. But everyone knew he was not asleep, but was seriously thinking about something. After a long while, he said slowly, “I heard. It’s a very formidable weapon.”

“That’s… that’s it?” Marcus was a little unwilling to let it go. He had finally found a topic of conversation and really didn’t want Rein to spoil it so easily.

“Of course. What else do you think I should say?” Rein snorted. “Our tanks are also very formidable. Do we need others to say that?”

“You’re right about that,” Marcus said, thinking for a moment and agreeing with Rein’s view.

Suddenly, a soldier at the door announced loudly, “General Model, Commander of Army Group D, has arrived! Corps Commander Guderian has arrived!” The room, which had been filled with a low murmur of conversation, fell completely silent after this announcement.

“Congratulations, everyone!” Guderian said with a smile as he walked into the room. He looked a little darker than when Rein had first seen him at the Sell Bridge bridgehead.

He walked up to Rein, glanced at him, and then continued with a smile, “I have been ordered to award these medals to you all: the combat participation medal for the artillery, and the Iron Cross 2nd Class for several of the tank commanders.”

The German Iron Cross had had its ranks revised by Führer Akado. It was to be awarded to soldiers who had performed meritorious service. The Iron Cross 2nd Class could be awarded at discretion, and then the ranks were upgraded in sequence: Iron Cross 1st Class, Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross, Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, and Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords.

However, for Rein and the others to receive the Iron Cross 2nd Class at such a young age was already a very outstanding achievement. Many young German soldiers had waited until their hair turned white without ever having the chance to receive such an exquisite Iron Cross.

“The awarding of the Iron Cross 2nd Class was originally supposed to be presided over by me,” Guderian said with a smile, pointing to the Commander-in-Chief of Army Group D, General Model, beside him, and introducing him solemnly. “But my superior wanted to give you all greater encouragement, so he has decided to preside over the first medal ceremony of this army group. Please give him a round of applause.”

All the soldiers began to applaud. Although there were not many of them, and the sound of their clapping was not uniform, everyone was very excited, and the applause was very enthusiastic.

Waiting for the applause to stop, General Model finally spoke. “General Guderian is a brilliant young general! I am proud to have such an outstanding subordinate! Most of you are his outstanding soldiers. I sincerely hope that one day you can be as outstanding as General Guderian!”

He pressed his hands down, indicating that he had more to say, and then spoke again. “So the main reason I have come this time is to let you all know that I know of every one of your achievements! I hope you can all continue to maintain this spirit of devotion to the fatherland and become the pillars of your respective units!”

He first awarded the combat participation medals to the artillery soldiers, rewarding them for their bravery in annihilating the enemy. He then shook hands cordially with each recipient. He continued this way until he came to Rein.

“I hear your name is Rein?” Model asked curiously as he pinned the Iron Cross 2nd Class to Rein’s chest.

“Heil Führer! Reporting to the General, I am Rein!” Rein replied at attention.

“A very reassuring young man,” Guderian said with a smile from the side. “He is now the number one tank ace in my corps.”

“He is!” Model chuckled. “To destroy 11 Polish tanks in one battle is a remarkable achievement! Was that battle tough?”

Remembering that difficult battle, Rein raised the corners of his mouth. “I have sworn an oath to shed my last drop of blood for the Führer.”

“A truly good soldier,” Model said, nodding in praise.

“Thank you for your praise, General!” Rein said, standing at attention and giving a German salute.

On September 28, 1937, at Führer Akado’s birthday party, a telegram announcing a great victory arrived from the front. The content was very clear: “Heil Führer! The 3rd SS Panzer Division has repelled a frantic Polish counter-attack, killing 9,700 of the enemy and capturing 1,100.”

Without a second word, Akado announced this victory at the party. The aristocrats and celebrities present all cheered, and for a time, shouts of “Long live Great Germany!” and “Heil Führer!” rose and fell.

“This Rein is very interesting,” Akado said, staring at the file in his hand and smiling at Mercedes beside him. “His parents died of illness when he was young, and he became a little beggar in Berlin. It was Reinhard who sent him to the Wolf Rider Class One of the Panzer Command Academy.”

“I think you should call your secretary, Cindra, and have her arrange your work schedule as soon as possible. You should go to Poland as soon as you can to meet with your generals and also to meet the grassroots soldiers. They must be very eager to see their Führer, and the Führer should indeed take some pictures standing with his soldiers.”

“You’re right,” Akado said with a nod. “I should go to the Polish front to let those generals know that I haven’t forgotten about them! It’s just…”

“It’s just that I won’t have time to go to Poland. Tomorrow, I have to fly to Munich to attend the opening ceremony of a new synthetic oil processing plant,” Mercedes said, smiling at the embarrassed Akado. “For something like a trip to the front, of course you have to take Fanny with you… and, of course, you still have to take Anna to protect you!”