Karl H. Timmermann

Karl Heinrich Timmermann (June 19, 1922 – October 21, 1951) was an American soldier and army officer.

Timmermann gained fame as the first U.S. Army officer to cross the Rhine River in Germany during World War II. He directed the assault across the bridge, helped remove explosive charges, and survived the German Army's attempt to demolish the Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen on March 7, 1945. He also saw action in the Korean War.

Family

Karl's grandfather, Arnold Timmermann, emigrated from Altenmarhorst/Twistringen, in the German Empire, to Cuming County, Nebraska, in 1871. By 1881, Arnold's parents (John Henry and Helena Dames), a brother (John Henry), and a sister (Anna) had also arrived and settled in the Pebble Creek valley, north of the village of Dodge. Arnold married Anna Wortman on July 6, 1876 in West Point, Nebraska. By January 1924, the couple had come back to the United States and were in Nebraska. On August 16, 1928, John was discharged from the U.S. Army.

In October 1942, the 3rd Infantry Division headed for Norfolk, Virginia, then sailed for Morocco and Operation Torch, the invasion of French North Africa. Timmermann did not go with them, as he had been noted for his leadership ability and was selected for Officer Candidate School. He became a second lieutenant on February 16, 1943 at Fort Benning, Georgia. He was sent to Fort Riley, Kansas for armored infantry training, and was assigned as a platoon leader in Company A ("Able") of the 27th Armored Infantry Battalion, 9th Armored Division.

Due to his length of service, he was given a furlough home. During this leave, he became "acquainted" with LaVera Meyer. Timmermann proposed to her by letter with an enclosed ring, and she accepted by mail. On May 25, 1944, the couple were married in Omaha, Nebraska. He was also told that Able company was going to be the advance guard for a push to the Rhine River.

At about 1530 hours, Timmermann was ordered to assault the bridge with his company in an effort to seize and hold it intact. Within five minutes, Timmermann was leading his under-strength company onto the bridge. Timmermann had designated half of his men to rush directly to the other side of the bridge to secure the east side and provide covering fire to the rest of the men. The other half swarmed the bridge, dodging machine gun fire, moving from girder to girder, and cutting wires and removing as many of the explosive charges as possible.

At about 1545 hours, one of Timmermann's squad leaders, Sergeant Alexander A. Drabik of Holland, Ohio, was the first American soldier to cross the bridge. Drabik ran the entire bridge with his squad through the settling dust and smoke from the explosion at the eastern end, without having a single soldier wounded or killed.

Drabik later said:

By about 1600 hours, Timmermann was isolated on the eastern side of the bridge. Friendly forces were trying to fill in the crater on the western side, while engineers were removing the last of the explosives. Other infantry units were moving up, but were being harassed by anti-aircraft weapons covering the western side of the bridge. Timmermann ordered some of his men up around the Erpeler Ley, a large hill just beyond the eastern end of the bridge, to destroy the weapons. The Germans abandoned their weapons and retreated. Timmermann's other men raced over the hill to cover the end of the railroad tunnel under the Erpeler Ley to prevent any enemy from reinforcing the Germans there. Within thirty minutes, these tasks were accomplished. Timmermann had 15 men with him in two shell craters and was waiting for reinforcements.

Unknown to Timmermann, about 300 German soldiers and civilians were hiding within the 325-meter long tunnel. In addition, they had four freight train cars loaded with ammunition and aircraft fuel. After a few attempts to escape, the Germans realized they were trapped. The German officers had orders to resist to the last man, but the soldiers became resigned to their fate, as did the civilians. Two German youths who had been enlisted as helpers for the anti-aircraft cannons, came forward out of the tunnel.

The first, named Willi Felten, yelled that they were surrendering and moved to the tunnel entrance; he was killed by a shot to the stomach. Another youth, named Karl Busch, stepped forward when a woman asked him to try to talk to the Americans. Busch knew some English from school and remembered a war film where the actor René Deltgen yelled "Stop firing" over and over to end the fighting. Young Busch cautiously went outside yelling "Stop firing!" in English over and over. The American shooting stopped and Lieutenant Timmermann asked him why. Busch said they wanted to surrender but were afraid of being shot. and "one of those bright opportunities of war which, when quickly and firmly grasped, produce incalculable effects on future operations". It remained functional, but weakened, despite the German detonation of a small charge and a stronger charge a few minutes later. The Allies used the bridge for truck and tank traffic, and eight thousand soldiers crossed it during the first 24 hours after capture.

Combat Command B of the 9th Armored was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation for capturing the bridge. The Ludendorff Bridge features prominently in the final mission of the game Call of Duty: Finest Hour, in which the player must cross the bridge in order to capture it. The Karl Timmermann Memorial Bridge over the Elkhorn River in West Point, Nebraska, Timmermann's hometown, is named after him. The post theater in Fort Dix, New Jersey, is named "Timmermann Theater" in his honor. The post theater in Ferris Kasserne (Barracks), Erlangen, West Germany, was also named "Timmermann Theater" in his honor.