Wolfgang Bersch

Wolfgang Bersch (b. 9 November 1928 in Breslau, Schlesien) was a German veteran of the Wehrmacht in WWII as well as businessman, entrepreneur and author in the time afterwards.

Life

In 1930, his father took over the management of the tax office in Freystadt/Lower Silesia, where the family moved. In March 1933, his father was appointed as government council in the Reich Ministry of Finance in Berlin (Regierungsrat im Reichsfinanzministerium), which triggered another move to Berlin-Wilmersdorf. Here, like his sister, he went to elementary school and, four years later, to secondary school (Gymnasium). In 1943, the terrorist attacks on Berlin became more and more intense, so that Wolfgang Bersch was sent to Marburg an der Lahn with his sister to live with his grandmother. There he continued to go to school.

In 1944, he joined the Luftwaffe helpers in Berlin to work on the listening device, the searchlight and the radio measuring device. School lessons suffered from the daily air raids on Berlin and the surrounding area. In the final months of the war, Wolfgang Bersch was transferred from the Reichsarbeitsdienst service in Poland and Thuringia to the 326th Volksgrenadier Division of the Heer on the Western Front. On 28 April 1945, at the age of 16, Bersch returned safely to his mother and sister, who until then did not know where he had gone or if he was still alive.

326. Volks-Grenadier-Division

During the Ardennes Offensive, the division had suffered heavy casualties. The Grenadier Regiment 753 had been disbanded. In the course of rearguard action in January 1945, the division built up a line of resistance on January 26, 1945 along the St. Vith - Thommen road. Only two days later issued by the XIII. Army Corps ordered to go back to the so-called Our position. On January 30, 1945, US troops attacked the weakly manned German front and pushed it back to Bleialf. Heavy house-to-house fighting developed around the site. On February 2nd and 3rd, 1945, the division was then taken back to the West Wall. Just one day later, the US troops managed to break into the German main battle line (Hauptkampflinie; HKL) around a kilometer north of the Prüm - Bleialf road. A day later, the US units were able to extend the break-in area and take the town of Brandscheidt. The division was at the end of its strength. The 751st and 752nd Grenadier Regiments were combined into a Combat Group 752 and assigned to the 276th Volksgrenadier Division. The divisional staff was detached from the front area and given the task of reorganizing the division. On February 26, 1945, the division staff received the XIII. Army Corps ordered the replacement of the 340th Volksgrenadier Division deployed on the right wing of the corps. For this purpose, the division had formed a regimental combat group 751 from hawsers, with which the new HKL could only be manned very thinly. After the American attack on the new HKL on March 3, 1945, the division was smashed again. The remnants were able to settle on March 4 via Birresborn in the Kyll position. The infantry strength of the division was still 200 men. By March 7, the infantry strength had dropped another 150 men. In the fighting for Boxberg, the division was finally crushed and then no longer existed as a divisional association. With a few stragglers, the divisional staff made it to Cochem and reached Zell an der Mosel on March 11th. From there, the division, which had been melted into a combat group, was deployed in the Neiwied - Niederbieber section. On March 22, US units attacked Neuwied. Remnants of the division were able to hold out there until evening. In the days that followed, the attacking US units succeeded in tearing open the divisional front in the Engers and Vallendar area and conquering the high terrain of the Westerwald. On March 29, the divisional staff received the order to set up a new defensive front on the Eder. There she was to take over the parts of the 166th Infantry Division that had been brought in from Denmark. Just one day later there were serious street fighting and close combat in Fritzlar, at the end of which the so-called Eder position had to be abandoned. At the beginning of April 1945, the remnants of the division moved to a new front line on the Fulda. They were pushed back by US troops on April 3, 1945 during the battles for Kassel in the Overvellmar area. On April 7, the division reached the Werra on the Meensen - Witzenhausen line. On April 10th the remnants of the division were in Wollbrandshausen and on April 12th 1945 between Osterode and Herzberg. Another use of the division is no longer verifiable, only fragments of the division were used separately from each other under changing subordination.

Post-war

From 1953, his professional life was accompanied by diligence, success and a number of happy moments. He has lived in Bad Homburg since 1972. He finally ended his professional activity and retired at the age of 85 in 2014. Among other things, he was:

• Managing Director (Geschäftsführer) of "Schick" Eversharp GmbH in 5000 Köln
• Managing Director of Bela Unternehmensberatung GmbH, Bad Homburg v. d. Höhe
• Managing Director of BBB Verwaltungs-GmbH, Gräfelfing
• Proprietor/Partner of Boyden International Recruiting GmbH, Bad Homburg (liquidator 2009)
• Proprietor/Partner of Bersch & Lange KG, Bad Homburg
• CEO of the Kuratorium Bad Homburger Schloß. Verein zur Förderung des Historischen Erbes Schloss und Schlosspark sowie kultureller Veranstaltungen e. V.

He was afterwards active as a contemporary witness, especially visiting schools and telling his story, recentliy, in 2021, visiting the Schwarzwald-Gymnasium Triberg online (because of COVID-19 restrictions). These pleasant experiences convinced him to write a book for the German youth.

Family

Wolfgang Bersch was married to Margit, née Reichmann (1933–2020) for over 64 years. They had two daughters: Alexandra and Stefanie.

Writings

• An zerbrechenden Fronten: Mein Weg durch den Zweiten Weltkrieg, 2022