The Beast of Omaha

[Lt. Stephenson]

http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=62104

[enigma]

totaly un needed name, ive seen this guy on docs ... he doesnt deserve the name.

He like many other men was doing his job ....

hes completely messed up by what happened and since the 60s has been in contact with an American who landed in front of his position there friends now ...

:mad:

[Lt. Stephenson]

totaly un needed name, ive seen this guy on docs ... he doesnt deserve the name.

He like many other men was doing his job ....

hes completely messed up by what happened and since the 60s has been in contact with an American who landed in front of his position there friends now ...

:mad:
I know, but I was just going by his nickname, don't get offensive towards me, honestly, if you took that many lifes in a day, you'd be affected by it.

[krAzu]

I read the original german article in the "SPIEGEL" 2 years ago (It was part of a huge report about d-day's 60th anniversary) and was searching for it recently. Thanks to you, I found it again :)

[Sgt So and So]

Wow... that's just... wow....:eek:
He doesn't deserve that name. He did his country service, and that's all. The fact that he had the courage to meet a fellow soldier from the same battle- on the opposite side, no less- amazes me even more.

[aag567]

Touching story, it seems that the bonds between men in war go beyond what I thought they were like and how strong they can be.

[[Txn]hockey]

the real "Beast of Omaha" are all those who died - they were the ones who unflinching exceed human emotion and fought with their lives. Amazing he and that soldier know each other so well.

[Lt. Stephenson]

Very touching, best friend with the man he shot.

[Lord Justin]

You guys are saying that he doesn't deserve that nickname, but I don't think it was given to him personally. I think the Americans on the beach took note of a particularly fierce machine-gunner and only later he found out it was him.

I also think the Beast of Omaha was not Mr. Severloh as a man, but is a name for his fierceness and boldness at his post. So I think the article is about the Beast of Omaha, being the unflinching machine-gunner and not Hein Severloh. If that made any sense.

[ApeX]

You guys are saying that he doesn't deserve that nickname, but I don't think it was given to him personally. I think the Americans on the beach took note of a particularly fierce machine-gunner and only later he found out it was him.

I also think the Beast of Omaha was not Mr. Severloh as a man, but is a name for his fierceness and boldness at his post. So I think the article is about the Beast of Omaha, being the unflinching machine-gunner and not Hein Severloh. If that made any sense.

I understand that 100%.

I can not even imagine, sitting there with a mg and mowing down the people, but it was what they were told and basically forced to do. Addrenaline pumping through them, and all. It's so amazing that they became friends, even after the guy getting shot 3 times in chest!

Amazing story.

[J.Santos]

If i shot a guy three times....and he survived...i would be his friend :P

[[Txn]hockey]

i doubt the man shot in the chest was shot by that MG. and I'm surprised three MG bullets didn't kill him.

[Lord Justin]

Hockey, it said the shots may have come from Severloh. Maybe there were like two gunenrs left when the American was shot, and so they don't know if it was Severloh or the other. And I'm sure he knew what he was shot by, from either surgeons seeing any bullets stuck in him or he remembering being poured on by an MG.

And three chest shots by an MG42 isn't a 100% chance of death. It all depends on where you're hit :D

[[Txn]hockey]

Hockey, it said the shots may have come from Severloh. Maybe there were like two gunners left when the American was shot, and so they don't know if it was Severloh or the other. And I'm sure he knew what he was shot by, from either surgeons seeing any bullets stuck in him or he remembering being poured on by an MG.

And three chest shots by an MG42 isn't a 100% chance of death. It all depends on where you're hit :D

no i know it isn't always death, I'm just saying he got a lucky spread.
an mg-42 bullet - 7.92 x 57 mm. nasty suckers
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/2c/8mm.jpg

[biggles]

The nickname "the beast of Omaha" is very unfair of course, but not unexpected. It's the effect of the allied "victory" on D-day and the rest of the war. If D-day had failed, he'd probably been called "the hero of Omaha", but noone would call him that today since he was a German, and since Germany lost, they became the "bad guys" in the war. If Germany won then the movies would have showed us heroic germans that defend there homeland, attack the dangerous enemy, etc,etc......

[McCoy [1st RB]]

Very touching, best friend with the man he shot.
your best friends with the guy he shot?

[[BEF]-R!G4M0RT!Z]

No, the "Beast of Omaha" is best friends with the American he (possibly him, anyway) shot.

[JordanC]

I don't think it's that strange that he became friends with the American he may have shot. As it said, he didn't want to be there, he didn't want to shoot them. I have nothing against the Wehrmacht, but it's the High-ranking SS officers we should be hating. But that is an amazing story!

[[BEF]-R!G4M0RT!Z]

Agreed :)

[larme113]

i understand this was said lightly, but he was a soldier and as a soldier you serve your country to kill the enemy and that is what you do. Any american GI behind that machinegun facing germans would have done the same exact thing, the difference is the side he fought on lost.