Chapter 10 Chapter III Operations of the Army Group in the South

When our troops crossed the Polish border at dawn on September 1, 1939, the personnel of our army group headquarters were naturally still in the Holy Cross monastery in Lech.This is a training institution of the Catholic Church, located on the outskirts of the city, because it has many classrooms and dormitories, so it is really an ideal station for the high command in wartime.We lived a spartan life and ate like ordinary soldiers.I do believe, however, that the dinner menu needs to be improved, since the daily diet of army bread and hardened bacon is an abuse to us elderly gentlemen.Fortunately, the monks often provide us with their vegetables.Sometimes at night, the commander-in-chief of the army group and his senior staff would also chat with the abbot in the monastery. He told us the story of self-sacrifice of missionaries in remote areas of the world. The plot is as follows: Quite moving.Although this is only a short-term slack, it is a good adjustment to the current hot issue.

September 1, however, brought the conversation to an end.Since then, we have been busy fighting all the time.In fact, it is unnecessary for us to sit in the office so early.For several hours had to pass before we could get any important news from the various armies under our command.Anyone who has served in a higher command will have the experience that at this stage, all the operations have already begun, and we can only wait for their development. The soldiers on the front line knew that their nerves were the most tense before the attack was launched, and the platoon leaders were all looking at their watches, waiting for the scheduled time to arrive.But since the attack was launched, the soldiers on the front line were completely busy with the battle around them, and they didn't care about anything else, so they felt at ease.For the personnel in a command, it is completely opposite, the more advanced the more so, the beginning of the attack is also the beginning of the waiting period.During this period, they are restless.Subordinate units resented the constant inquiries from superiors about how the battle was going, which they regarded as a kind of insanity.So it's best to sit back and wait for the good news.One point is worth explaining. It is generally said that bad news spreads faster, but in the military field, this statement is not correct.When the battle is going well, the news is often sent back quickly.On the other hand, if there is a setback in the offensive, there will be silence on the front line, either because the traffic is cut off, or because the lower units are unwilling to report to their superiors immediately, hoping to wait until the situation improves before reporting the good news .

So it was necessary to wait until the first reports came in, for better or for worse, before the tension could be relieved in the High Command.Before they report, we can only sit and wait.Can the troops we have worked so hard to build (but their training is too fast), can they live up to our expectations?In particular, the organization and use of large armored units, whose organization and use represent a somewhat new conception, will not disappoint their founder, Gen. Guderian, and ourselves?Can the German headquarters, especially our own Army Group headquarters, control the opening of such a campaign?Is it possible to achieve a complete victory west of the Vistula, with the complete annihilation of the enemy forces, and eliminate any danger of a two-front war?During this tense phase, these questions have been swirling in our minds.