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Cathedral and destroyed bridge Hohenzollenbrücke. Courtesy of Phil Curme. Phil's great website walkingthebattlefields.com | |
| Photo (216 K):
Hohenzollernbrücke. Courtesy of Phil Curme | |
| Photo (172 K): Cologne, aerial view. Courtesy of B26Marauder.com website
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| Photo (165 K): Cologne, aerial view southern city districts around church St. Paulus and Ulrepforte. At the bottom park "Volksgarten". Courtesy of B26Marauder.com website
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| Photo (165 K): Cologne, aerial view southern city from east to west around area Waidmarkt (at the bottom). Streets Blaubach, Rothgerberbach, Perlengraben, building "Alter Wasserturm". Courtesy of uk-us.org website
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| Photo (144 K): There's no description about the picture on the web - excepted it's Cologne - but it seems to be an air raid over Cologne's eastern city districts Kalk, Humboldt-Gremberg and Vingst. There's the Shunting yard Kalk-North and actually bomb explosions around a little train station within an industrial area. Courtesy of Issara Willenskomer via flickr-Website. Issara's flickr website
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| Photo (104 K): Air raid over Cologne. You cannot see the bomber but falling bombs at the top border of the picture. There are many clouds over Cologne at this day. The city center of Cologne is located at the bottom of the picture, one can see the river Rhine and Rhine river bridges in Cologne center but not the cathedral. On the Rhine river bridges they have fired smoke bombs to reduce visibility for the bombers in the city center. There are bomb explosions in northern city district Mülheim. Courtesy of Issara Willenskomer via flickr-Website. Issara's flickr website
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The following photos are courtesy of 56th Fighter Group in World War II website, by friendly permission of Nigel Julian |
| Photo (165 K): This and the next three photos were taken by John Zasadzinski after the war ended when the army organized sightseeing flights taking non-aircrew personnel for a flight over France & Germany to show them the results of the bombing campaign. The RAF called them "Cooks Tours". Cathedral and central station | |
| Photo (186 K): View from the south. Cathedral, at the bottom the area Hohe Strasse | |
| Photo (117 K): The area between central station and Rhine river, underpass Trankgasse | |
| Photo (139 K): The destroyed motorway bridge Cologne Rodenkirchen in the south of Cologne | |
The following photos are courtesy of The Third Armored Spearhead Division website, by friendly permission of Charles Corbin |
| Photo (32 K): The 36th. Armored Regiment clean up Cologne in house to house fighting with most of the building in rubble | |
| Photo (37 K): This is what's left of the Rail Road Station | |
| Photo (49 K): The destroyed Hohenzollern Bridge | |
| Photo (43 K): These are the Street Cars the Germans used to try to block the 3 AD advance | |
The following photos are courtesy of 70th Infantry Division Association website, by friendly permission of Steve Dixon |
| Photo (32 K): June 1945. The destroyed church St. Aposteln, view from street named Hahnenstrasse today | |
| Photo (21 K): The destroyed Hindenburg Bridge
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| Photo (32 K): Once again the destroyed Hindenburg Bridge | |
| Photo (17 K): Destroyed houses | |
| Photo (15 K): View from boat on river Rhine | |
| Photo (51 K): Cathedral and destroyed houses | |
| Photo (53 K): The destroyed Hohenzollern Bridge | |
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| Photo (66 K): Courtesy of Owen O'Malley & the RAAF 462 Squadron website, by friendly permission of Clancy Matthews
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| Photo (77 K): 3rd Armored Division tank, as they fired at the German Mark V Panther Tank that was parked in front of the Cathedral. This and the following pictures from Phil DeRiggi's webpage were taken by an Army frontline photographer, Sergeant Jim Bates. More information about the tank and the capture of Cologne can be found on Phil's page for his brother John, who passed away October 08, 2005. John was member of the crew. The crew of this tank: Assistant Driver, Homer Davis, Tank Commander, Robert Early, Gunner, Clarence Smoyer, Assistant Gunner, John DeRiggi, and Driver, William McVey. Photo courtesy of John DeRiggi's brother Phil DeRiggi. | |
| Photo (36 K): German Mark V, shortly after being hit with the first round from John DeRiggis's tank. Courtesy of Phil DeRiggi | |
| Photo (47 K): The German Mark V Panther, after being hit by three rapid rounds of 90MM, fired from John DeRiggi's M26 tank.
Courtesy of Phil DeRiggi | |
| Photo (44 K): John DeRiggi and fellow crew members, checking out the German Mark V Panther they had destroyed the previous day at the cathedral.
Courtesy of Phil DeRiggi
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| Photo (74 K): The destroyed German tank outside Cologne Cathedral. Courtesy of Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society, by friendly permission of Dr. Douglas Day | |
| Photo (73 K):
Cpl. Luther E. Boger, Concord, N.C., skytrooper, reads a warning sign in the street. This street leads to the Rhine River and is under observation of the Germans who occupy a stronghold there. Cpl. Boger is with the 82nd Airborne Division. 4 April 1945. The German tank is burnt out. Photo courtesy of US-Army history images | |
| Photo (66 K): Infantrymen of the 36th. Armored Infantry Regiment following John DeRiggi's tank into Central Square. Courtesy of Phil DeRiggi | |
| Photo (59 K): John DeRiggi's tank, an M26, heading for Central Square in Cologne, coming from street Gladbacher Strasse crossing street Kaiser-Wilhelm-Ring driving to street Christophstrasse. Sergeant Early is pictured at left, John DeRiggi is pictured at right.
Courtesy of Phil DeRiggi | |
The following photos are courtesy of the private archives Nachtsheim/Betz, Cologne |
| Photo (82 K): Ruins and the Cathedral | |
| Photo (85 K): Look at the old town next to rhiver Rhine. Under construction: the McNair-Bridge next to the destroyed Hindenburgbridge | |
| Photo (106 K): The destroyed romanesque church St. Ursula. Comparison: St. Ursula before WWII / today | |
| Photo (107 K): Ruins next to the church St. Ursula too | |
| Photo (60 K): Look at the square Friesenplatz in direction Cathedral | |
| Photo (55 K): The bridge "Hohenzollernbrücke" | |
| Photo (73 K): Ramp bridge "Hohenzollernbrücke" | |
| Photo (83 K): Destructions street "Eigelstein" | |
| Photo (85 K): Street "Eigelstein", look at the "Eigelstein-Torburg", a medieval town-gate | |
| Photo (120 K): The "Trümmerbahn", the ruins train, at street "Eigelstein" transports the ruins | |
| Photo (66 K): "Trümmerbahn" | |
| Photo (96 K): The tram rails become removed at street "Eigelstein". Still many ruins. Photo taken in the fifties. | |
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| Photo (45 K): Cologne 1951. Courtesy of Miroslaw Ignacy Wojciechowski Website, by friendly permission of Jan Wojciechowski. | |
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NEW Cologne at the end of the war - Then and Now
More than 70 pictures are available now, old war pictures and actual pictures composed together in one new picture. Follow the US Army on their advance in the modern Cologne city.
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Two aerial photos, comparison Cologne before and after WWII: Panoramic photo (208 K) - Detail photo (131 K), Collages from pictures courtesy of 303rd Bomb Group (H) Association and Bernd Fromader
And here's an actual aerial photo (141 K) by U. Ernser, Stadt Köln.
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| One interesting website about the thousand bomber raids can be found here:
History Learning Site
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| On the
Internet Archive / Movie Archive website you can watch a movie clip / newsreels (download or stream), which shows the capture of Cologne (duration about 3 minutes). There are some scenes showing the destruction of the german Panther tank at the cathedral too
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The german publishing house Emons Verlag has published an interesting DVD by Hermann Rheindorf. It shows Cologne at the end of WWII: 1945 - Kriegsende in Köln - ISBN 3-89705-382-9, length 85 min. What does the DVD show ?
The DVD (in german language only) shows Cologne before WWII.
In the main movie you can see the advance of the US troops in Cologne. You can see the tank duel at the cathedral and other battle scenes.
Within two days 40.000 US-soldiers occupy Cologne, which was the third largest city of the Deutsches Reich before WWII. Now it was called a "Dead City". The movie shows the first weeks after the occupation.
In addition there are several scenes in color and the US-propaganda movie "Battle of the Peace.
It's a fascinating DVD about Cologne at the end of WWII with lots of interesting historical scenes.
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Another interesting video link:
youtube Video, U.S. 3rd Armored Division in Cologne
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