Geoff Walden

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End of the War for s.Pz.Jg.Abt. 653

   Schwere Panzerjäger Abteilung 653 (Heavy Tankhunter Battalion 653) was a late-war unit of Jagdtiger (Hunting Tiger) heavy tank destroyers. These huge 70-ton vehicles with 12.8cm main guns were very difficult for American tanks to knock out, and their large caliber guns allowed them to take on the enemy far beyond his own range. However, the Jagdtiger was heavy and cumbersome, suffered from mechanical breakdowns, and was never fielded in sufficient numbers to be very effective. Schwere Panzerjäger Abteilung 653 fought the advancing U.S. Army in March and April 1945 in the area south of Mannheim, from Neustadt an der Weinstrasse, past Speyer, to Heidelberg, and then retreated to southern Bavaria toward Austria. While few of their vehicles were knocked out by enemy action, several broke down, or had to be abandoned and blown up by their crews.

 

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Two 3.Kp. Jagdtigers were abandoned on Landauer Strasse in Neustadt an der Weinstrasse. The vehicles are shown here being examined by American forces, probably of the 12th Armored Division, about 23 March 1945.  (U.S. Army photo)

This modern comparison has been pulled back a little, to show the building across the street (in the left foreground), which is the building seen in the next set of photos.  (MapQuest Map Link)

 

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Jagdtiger 331 was left in the middle of the street, while Jagdtiger 323 was parked in a courtyard opposite. Both vehicles had been abandoned due to reduction gear damage, probably as a result of a battle in Neustadt on 22 March in which the 3.Kp. destroyed several U.S. tanks.  (U.S. Army)

The 1945 photo was shot from the second story of the building across the street; this modern view was shot from ground level (the building appears to be some sort of "house of ill repute," and no-one answered my knocks at the door). Jagdtiger 323 was parked in the immediate foreground of this photo.

 

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Jagdtiger 331 had suffered shot damage to the gun mantlet - a chunk was gouged out of the lower right hand side.  (U.S. Army)

This modern view again shows the building on the left of the curve.

 

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Jagdtiger 331 was shipped to the U.S. for testing, and is now on display at the U.S. Army Ordnance Museum in Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland.  (author's photo)

Close-up of the gun mantlet damage.
(author's photo)

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On 30 March 1945 a group of 1.Kp. Jagdtigers fought an American armored unit in Schwetzingen, near Heidelberg. Jagdtiger 131 was knocked out in the downtown area at about 200 meters range by a Sherman tank.  (Schwetzingen Stadtarchiv)

Little has changed, save for post-war reconstruction.
This scene is at the intersection of Heidelberger Strasse
and Mannheimer Strasse.  (MapQuest Map Link)

 

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The gunner Uffz. Klein was killed by machinegun fire while abandoning the vehicle, and the radio operator died later of burns. The driver was thrown out of his hatch and the vehicle ran into a house. (Schwetzingen Stadtarchiv)

The Jagdtiger ran into the building to the
right center of this photo.

 

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The impact of the gun tube with the building pushed the gun out of battery and damaged the gun mount.  (Schwetzingen Stadtarchiv)

This modern view appears not to match, because the upper floors of the building are missing in the 1945 view, having burned out in the resulting fire from the Jagdtiger.

Click here to see then-and-now views of a wartime Wehrmacht parade in Schwetzingen.

 

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This Jagdtiger was photographed by my father, U.S. Army Air Forces Lt. Delbert R. Walden, most likely in spring 1946. The vehicle had been destroyed when abandoned by its crew. For several years the location of these photos was unknown to me, but the research of Ulrich Mössner has established that this vehicle was destroyed by s.Pz.Jg.Abt. 653 on the outskirts of the village of Etterschlag, west of Munich, most likely on 28 or 29 April 1945. The photos below show corresponding modern views (the buildings are post-war - the vehicle sat where the tall grass appears).  (collection of G.R. and G.A. Walden; all rights reserved)  (MapQuest Map Link)

 

 

Third Reich in Ruins, http://www.thirdreichruins.com/

All contents copyright © 2000-2008, Geoffrey R. Walden; all rights reserved.  All photos taken by or from the collection of Geoffrey R. Walden, except where specifically noted.  Please respect my property rights, and the rights of others who have graciously allowed me to use their photos on this page, and do not copy these photos or reproduce them in any other way.

This page is intended for historical research only, and no political or philosophical aims should be assumed. 
Nothing on this page should be construed as advice or directions to trespass on private or posted property.

This page initially uploaded on 20 July 2000.
Last updated on:
  20 November 2007


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