Wednesday, 12 August 2026

Die Deutsche Wochenschau – Newsreel No. 655, 24 March 1943


1. Germany.

 

A day of mourning in Berlin, dedicated to the memory of soldiers who fell on the Eastern Front.

 

The Führer arrives at the Arsenal building, where he is met by Göring.

 

– Adolf Hitler steps out of the car and greets Field Marshal Keitel, Rear Admiral Dönitz, Reichsführer-SS Himmler, Field Marshal von Bock and Field Marshal Milch.

 

A solemn gathering.

 

– Adolf Hitler, Göring, Keitel and others are seated.

 

A symphony orchestra performs Beethoven’s 7th Symphony.

 

– Adolf Hitler’s speech (narrated by the commentator) on the treacherous plans of Bolshevism and the merits of German soldiers.

 

The Führer leaves the Arsenal building; on the steps, the Commandant of Berlin, Lieutenant General Paul von Hase, approaches him with a report.

 

On the right flank, a guard of honour with 30 banners of the old army and navy and 30 new Wehrmacht banners.

 

A military parade, with the Führer inspecting the ranks of soldiers and sailors.

 

– Adolf Hitler and Hermann Göring.

 

– Adolf Hitler visits the pantheon tomb of the fallen heroes.

 

Four recipients of the Knight’s Cross lay a wreath on behalf of the Führer in the pantheon.

 

Bowed banners.

 

Berliners with their arms outstretched in the German salute.

 

The Führer greets the wounded and disabled veterans of the First and Second World Wars, shaking hands and speaking with them.

 

Disabled veterans in wheelchairs.

 

The ceremonial march of the honour guard company.

 

Standard-bearers.

 

Weapons of the Wehrmacht and sailors marching past.

 

– Adolf Hitler and Hermann Göring reviewing the parade.

 

2. The Atlantic.

 

A German submarine in the northern part of the ocean during a storm.

 

This submarine belongs to a flotilla deployed against a large British transport convoy.

 

The crew on deck in waterproof overalls.

 

Huge waves.

 

The lookout.

 

Alarm on the submarine.

 

The crew take up their positions according to the battle station order.

 

The crew’s actions.

 

Diving.

 

The commander observes through the periscope.

 

The periscope is retracted.

 

The submarine evades the enemy destroyer.

 

A depth charge explosion.

 

Damage to the electrical wiring.

 

Assessing the damage.

 

Restoring the electrical system.

 

The commander at the periscope.

 

The submarine fires a torpedo.

 

The submarine surfaces.

 

The sinking of an enemy vessel.

 

A German submarine.

 

The sinking of an enemy vessel.

 

3. Greece.

 

The deployment of additional Wehrmacht units to Greece.

 

German tanks on the streets of Athens.

 

Tanks.

 

Artillery.

 

Tanks and other military equipment being loaded for dispatch to the islands.

 

A naval transport ship sets sail for the island of Crete.

 

Escort destroyers.

 

A German convoy at sea.

 

4. Crete.

 

A view of the island.

 

Construction of coastal defences.

 

A German artillery battery.

 

An airfield.

 

Pilots boarding an aeroplane.

 

Aeroplanes taking off.

 

5. The USSR. The Battle of Kharkiv.

 

Tanks and motorised units of the Waffen-SS advance through the snow towards Kharkiv, where the Bolsheviks have taken up defensive positions.

 

Tanks and motorised infantry launch an attack on one of the settlements near Kharkiv.

 

A firefight ensues with Soviet troops.

 

Tanks advance.

 

Infantrymen carrying the German flag.

 

A motorcyclist rides up to a tank and receives a parcel.

 

Following a sudden thaw, the roads have turned into quagmires.

 

Motorcycles ride along a waterlogged road.

 

Anti-aircraft batteries are clearing the approaches to the city.

 

German infantrymen on the attack.

 

German troops storm the city from the north and east.

 

Germans in the suburbs of Kharkiv.

 

Scenes of street fighting.

 

German machine-gunners and artillery are firing.

 

Wounded Soviet soldiers in a barracks, abandoned by retreating Soviet units.

 

The Germans in the city; soldiers resting after the battle, eating.

 

Fritz Witt, recipient of the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and commander of a motorised regiment, talks to a scout in camouflage uniform whilst looking at a map.

 

German tanks and infantry on the streets of Kharkiv.

 

Soldiers march past the park’s fence.

 

Street fighting continues throughout the day.

 

Almost every house has to be stormed following artillery preparation.

 

Burning buildings.

 

Soldiers carry a wounded man on a stretcher; the wounded are taken to the medical unit through courtyards and over fences.

 

The red flag is taken down from the sentry box.

 

A gun fires. On 14 March, Kharkiv was recaptured.

 

Luftwaffe bomber squadrons bombing the retreating Bolsheviks east of Kharkiv

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