All,
It's 1500, 1 Sept 1939, and KG Klink has regrouped. To review, on the movement towards Warsaw, the KG encountered defensive positions on the northern edge of Mokra, and the Recc elements fought a vicious battle, knocking the Poles out of their defensive positions there. This was followed by a mechanized attack on the northern edge of the town, which was defeated in vicious, close-in fighting. On the heels of that defeat the Poles launched a bold, armored counterstroke, which defeated panzers of the kampfgruppe. However, bold action by the Executive Officer, Major Schultz, exploited the gap between the counterattacking Polish armor and its supporting infantry, halting the infantry in more bloody fighting and allowing elements of 4th Panzer Division to pocket and eliminate the Polish armor in fighting to the southwest.
The 4th Panzer's commanding officer had decided to strike once more on the village of Mokra, where the Poles' final defensive line has consolidated on a railway embankment on the backside of the town (where, further to the south, 4th Panzer has had a hell of a time dealing with an armored train). LtCol Klink has decided to personally lead another mechanized attack on Mokra.
The opposing forces: once again we have dug-in guns vs tanks, which hasn't worked out well for the Germans so far…
The Poles have their CO, four 37mm ATGs, an MG, an 82mm mortars, and six rifle squads, while the Germans have their CO (Col Klink), the Panzer Co Commander (in Pz III, 1st Lt Bohm), 4th Panzer Platoon (led by Officer Cadet Kleiber, with 3 Pz IV and 2 PzII), the bulk of 2nd Gren Plt (led by 2nd Lt Klugmann, recipient of the Iron Cross 2nd Class, with his 1st, 2nd, and 4th Squads, led by Sergeants Aust and Hasselbach, and Cpl Lutz), and two squads from 3rd Gren Plt (Sgt Schlessinger's 1st Squad and Sgt Lowenstam's 2nd Squad, as Lt Tausch and Cpl Kamphaus were on flank watch).
Overview, north is up, Germans on the left (west) and Poles on the right (east), with Poles dug in defending the railroad embankment.
It all comes down to the Poles' fire stripping away the German infantry from their tanks, then rushing Cpl Kapp's Pz II, with Officer Cadet Kleiber's Pz III nearby, low on ammo (blue bead).
To see the whole report, please check the blog at:
link
While the KG carried its portion of the Polish defensive line, the 4th Panzer Division fell back at 1700, minus the 12th Schutzen Regiment, which remained in the village. However, due to 1st Panzer Division pressure in the southeast, the Poles withdrew during the night of 1/2 Sept 1939. Following the capitulation of Mokra the 4th Panzer Division regrouped until 4 Sept 1939, allowing several vehicles to be recovered and put back into action, as well as a reorganization to take place as the KG received no real reinforcements.
Thus ends KG Klink's fight at Mokra, and now on to the outskirts of Warsaw!
V/R,
Jack
goes to sea with the Terrain Mat.
