Published on May 07, 1945
Torgau is a small German city (population in peacetime was 14,000), but it had its place in history long before last week. It was the scene of Frederick the Great's victory over Austria in 1760, as well as the concentration of Austrian and Russian troops against Frederick the following year. Last week, history repeated itself in Torgau.
At the beginning of last week, the city was almost empty. Marshal Konev's artillery fired at him across the Elbe. Only a few Germans, too overwhelmed to worry about what had happened, scoured the rubbish heaps and hunted for cigarette butts between the cobblestones. The rest joined the panicky crowds heading west towards the front line with the United States.
Two infantry and one panzer divisions of the American First Army halted along the narrow Mulde River, a western tributary of the Elbe. One morning, a patrol of the 273rd Regiment of the 69th Division set out to direct surrendering German soldiers and freed Allied prisoners directly to the rear, went beyond their officially prescribed range and ended up in Torgau. This patrol consisted of four Yankees in a jeep: Lt. William Robertson, a small, robust officer from Los Angeles, and three soldiers.
Mercurochrome * and ink
The Russians on the other side of the Elbe - members of Marshal Konev's 58th Guards Division - fired colored flares, a symbol for friendly troops. Robertson had no flares. He took a sheet from an apartment building, burst into a pharmacy, found mercurochrome and blue ink, roughly sketched the American flag, and waved it from the tower of a medieval castle. The Russians, who had previously been tricked by the Germans waving US flags, fired several anti-tank rounds.
Then Robertson decided to take a very bold step. He and his people confidently went out into the open on the bridge blown up by the Germans, along the twisted beams of which unstable bridges were laid across the river. The Russians decided that only Americans would do such a thing. Although Robertson's team made their way through the girders with great caution, two Russian officers emerged from the eastern edge. In the center, just a few feet above the fast-flowing water, Eisenhower's men and Stalin's men met. Robertson slapped the Russian on the leg and shouted: “Hallow, tovarish! Put it here!"
Feast and toasts
The Russians took four Yankees to their camp on the east coast, where they were greeted with joyful smiles, paid tribute to them, patted them on the shoulders, treated them to wine and German schnapps, and were excellently fed. Robertson arranged with the commander to send a delegation across the river to meet with the American authorities. Colonel Charles M. Adams, commander of the 273rd, welcomed the delegation to his regiment headquarters, and then at 2:00 am they departed for the Russian camp with a platoon of soldiers in 10 jeeps. When they arrived at 6 o'clock, there were even more smiles, military greetings, pats on the back, celebrations and toasts.
Later, the commander of the 69th Division, stocky, solemn, Major General Emil F. Reinhardt, crossed the Elbe in one of several small speedboats captured at the German dock. The next day, the commander of the 5th corps, Major General Clarence Huebner, arrived and saluted the riddled Soviet flag that had come a long way from Stalingrad. By this time, American soldiers were crowding in the square and noisy fraternization took place. Both US Army soldiers and US senior officers have learned that Russians are the most enthusiastic toast in the world, and they are also the most capable consumers. The vodka supplies seemed endless.
My dears, be quiet, please
The big meeting, so long awaited, has finally taken place. Moscow fired a maximum salute with 24 volleys from 324 guns; Joseph Stalin, Winston Churchill, Harry Truman issued loud statements. Time correspondent William Walton, who arrived in Torgau shortly after the first meeting, recounted the faltering speech of a Red Army lieutenant, who stood in the midst of the joyful hubbub and said:
“My dears, be quiet, please. Today is the happiest day in our lives, just as it was the most unfortunate in Stalingrad when we thought that there was nothing else we could do for our country but die. And now, dear ones, we have the most exciting days of our lives. I hope you will excuse me for not speaking the correct English, but we are very happy to raise a toast like that. Long live Roosevelt! " A comrade whispered Harry Truman's name; the orator looked at him with a blank look and continued: “Long live Roosevelt, long live Stalin! Long live our two great armies!"
