The Rhine Crossing near Rhineberg Germany

Posted on by Thor

After visiting my distant cousins Nini Thorspecken in Koblenz Germany, I drove back up to the Rhineberg Germany area to get a sketch of the Rhine River where my father 1st Lieutenant Arthur Thorspecken might have crossed the river in March of 1945. I found a parking spot at the trailhead of a long hiking trail that followed the river northwards. The first mile of so of the trail the river wasn’t visible but then the trail went up a steep hill which might be man made to keep the floodwaters from getting to the fields and the town.

I was dreading the crossing. I imagined the industrial Ruhr area to be a wasteland of endless factories. When I stopped to  sketch that dread was reinforced. The nuclear facility I had sketched down river was still visible and surrounding it were a vast cluster of smoke stacks and cranes. There were train tracks right near the river’s edge and the cars were covered in graffiti. I noticed on the drive down to Koblenz Germany that graffiti is predominant along the autobahn. Rather than accepting the graffiti as a sign of artistic expression, I saw it as a song of cultural decay.

I am satisfied that this sketch site is straight west of Rheinberg Germany. I could have done another sketch further north along this trail, but there was a huge heard of sheep grazing and I decided I would not scatter the herd so I turned around. This sketch represents what might be the southern most of the three sites that the 75th Infantry Division might have crossed the river at. The middle site would have looked quite similar to this, so I was fine with focusing my attention on reaching the northern most site which was Buderich Germany.

As part of OPERATION PLUNDER, the 75th Infantry crossed the Rhine river between March 26th and March 31, 1945 under the cover of engineering smoke. The 75th was assigned to work along side the 8th Armored Division which was the first armored unit over the Rhine in the 9th Army sector. The crossings were proceeded with a huge artillery bombardment. 1st Lieutenant Dick Sassin said this of the crossing of the Rhine, “We were involved in a major attack across the Rhine, but the bridge at Remagen had been found intact, so troops could move across. It must have been hell to be on the receiving end as the concussion on our side was so great that it would lift the roof tiles  and they would fall back with a clatter of tiles that did not reconnect.”

Koblinz Germany: The Patron Saint of Artillerymen

Posted on by Thor

This sketch marked a deviation from the military route of the 75th Infantry Division. I drove several hour south to Koblenz Germany to visit with my very distant cousin Nini Thorspecken-Friebe. To help cut the weight of my travels at the start, I shipped 6 empty sketchbooks to Nini from America. That saved considerably on the weight I would have to carry when I flew into Europe. Since I decided that a car rental was the only way to accomplish this sketch project, I could pick up the six sketchbooks and keep them in the trunk of the car.

On day one of this trip I had my identity stolen with someone trying to buy a plane ticket to Amsterdam using my credit card information. I had to cut the credit card in half and Seacoast Bank refused to work out a way that I could access the money I had saved for travel expenses. The only way the bank would allow expenses is if I had the new credit card they were sending out. The problem of course was that I was constantly on the move in Europe. I had that card shipped to my brother in Connecticut and then he sent it to Nini where I picked it up on September 28. I had to be clandestine about the process since the bank was treating me as if I was a criminal. That first month of travel was rough, but I always found something to eat. Apples and and pears were plentiful in the Netherlands. I would always throw fruit in my art bag if I saw them roadside.  The first month was certainly a lesson in keeping expenses low. The habit persists. If a breakfast buffet has apples in a bowl, one will always leave with me.

In Koblenz, I stayed in an Air B&B which was in the old city. Built in the 1600s the place was constructed in the traditional style with large wooden beams and stucco. The top floor room I had wasn’t build for someone who is six foot two. I bumped my head a few times and started to walk hunched over. A block away was Mozart’s childhood home. There was so much history in such a small cramped area.

The Barbara Monument is only a block or so from where Nini and her husband Raoul live in Koblenz. The Barbara-Monument features the central figure of Saint Barbara holding a gun barrel and palm branch, flanked by two allegorical figures representing War and Peace. Saint Barbara is the patron saint of artillerymen. I didn’t realize there was a patron saint of artillerymen. Besides being a monument it also functions as a fountain, although the water feature was off when I did the sketch.

Nini and Raul treated me to a very traditional German breakfast. Small breads rolls are called brötchen in German. There were meats and cheeses, jams and Nutella, and locks. The royal touch is a hard boiled egg prepared just right so the yoke is semi solid but a bit runny. The egg top is cut off and a tiny spoon is used to scoop out the egg white and yoke. I made it a point to try and find places that offered such a delicious spread to start the day.

Raoul really seemed to appreciate my project. He is in the German military as a medic. He is an anesthesiologist. He showed me his military backpack which I absolutely envied. I asked him about where he thought I might see the dragons teeth which were set up on the western front before World War II to stop an allied advance into Germany. He had plenty of suggestions. When he saw my sketch of the Sherman tank decked out as a mine sweeper, he pulled up YouTube videos that showed the vehicle in action. When Raoul saw sketches of beautiful Belgian cities with historic buildings surrounding a large square, he lamented that Germany once had such beautiful city centers before World War II saw them all destroyed.

He and Nini are world travelers. They have a map in their apartment that shows all the countries they have been to. It is an impressive display. I should set up a color coded map some day. Nini took me up in a lift which went across the Rhein River to the Koblenz Ehrenbreistein, which is a huge fort that acted as a military barracks. I had a-ent many days looking for a route across the Rhine River and now I found myself floating over the river on a lift.

Koblenz is on the confluence of the Moselle and the Rhine River so it is importantly militarily. That evening after the sun set, I walked a long path down from the fort, not exactly sure where the path would lead me to. Descending that dark path as the sun set behind the Koblenz skyline on the opposite shore of the Rhine, I felt this really was an adventure. I was hoping to resolve the tech issue with my laptop refusing to power up, and the financial problems of dealing with SeaCoast Bank. I couldn’t solve everything in the one weekend but at least the wheels were in motion. For this one moment, walking in the dark, I felt at peace.

During World War II Koblenz hosted the command of German Army Group B and, like many German cities, was heavily bombed and rebuilt afterwards. From March 16-19, 1945, it was the scene of heavy fighting by the U.S. 87th Infantry Division in support of Operation Lumberjack. The 75th Infantry Division was much further north fighting in the Ruhr pocket of Germany at the time.

The sketch opportunities in Koblenz were endless, but I needed to get back north and on the trail of the 75th Infantry Division’s movements into the heart of Germany.