Under Rommel's Command – From the African Deserts to the Beaches of Normandy

Within the 15. Panzerdivision, at the age of 20 he served first as a simple Schütze of the Afrika-Korps in Egypt (at the Halfaya Pass, dubbed by British soldiers the "Pass of Hellfire"), then at Tobruk, in Libya. Promoted to Leutnant a year later, in the autumn of 1942, he was sent as a section commander to Tunisia, where he took part in one of the last battles fought by German troops on the African continent, with the 10. Panzerdivision. As a young officer, Höller received orders to lead an infantry attack, during which he was seriously wounded in a terrifying hand-to-hand struggle against British soldiers. Once recovered, he was sent to France for the reconstitution of the famous 21. Panzerdivision, within Pz-Gren.-Rgt. 192. Commanding a Panzerjäger section in Normandy, Höller received orders to retake the famous Pegasus Bridge from British paratroopers in the very first hours of D-Day. Concealed in a thicket near the majestic Château de Bénouville, he blocked every British attempt to advance towards Caen along the canal, and even destroyed three Sherman tanks on that 6 June 1944. Subsequently, this tough Austrian was involved in several months of hard defensive fighting around Caen (Hérouville, Cambes-en-Plaine in June), and barely managed to save his entire II. Bataillon during Operation Goodwood at the end of July 1944. In August, he fought fiercely near Mont Pinçon, then in the Falaise Pocket, from which he managed to escape. After a long retreat across France with the few remaining survivors of his section, Höller, eventually "surprised" in Lorraine, was captured by elements of Leclerc's 2e DB... In those moments of intense anguish, he owed his survival solely to his "Afrika" cuff title! Throughout those hard years, his supreme commander was almost always Erwin Rommel, the illustrious German Feldmarschall whom the Allies had respectfully christened the "Desert Fox." Rommel's decisions shaped the fate of Hans Höller and each of his comrades. Today, at 94, Hans remains in remarkable shape and his memory is still sharp. His numerous personal photographs and his accounts — at once moving, precise, authentic, and even critical — offer an unusual glimpse into the experiences of a young Austrian who, given the moment in history into which he was born, had no choice but to face them head on.