European Resistance Archive/European Resistance Archive (ERA)

It was their mighty army against ours. They waited until morning to attack.

I immediately offered to go, and three more men were equally enthusiastic to go with me up against the German tanks with hand grenades.

We imagined it was just a matter of throwing the grenades, we would simply kill the Germans

and blast everything to ruins. Older and more experienced Partisans told us to calm down.

There would be many more opportunities to fight. They clarified that it’s not that simple to destroy a tank.

They’re not made of paper, rather of steel, and also the Germans were not sleeping.

We were atop this hill. There was also a bit of forest around.

The Germans approached in a dense line of ‘shooters’ followed by a display of tanks, slowly advancing in the rear.

We then recognized the horror.

We were all novices, it was our first fight, except for a few leading cadres.

On the basis of my four grades of high schooling, I was named right off as the Political Commissary of a unit;

without any previous fighting experience. I had to take care of my men.

We had these dugouts or shelters made from stones.

During a fight we were to defend ourselves from behind the shelters.

The command was to remain quiet and calm and to wait until the commander yelled charge (‘juris’).

We were to wait for the enemy to approach within 20 meters and then each man was to pick his own target enemy.

We would all charge together. Then something unexpected happened.

Of the 300 men on our side the enemy was expecting at least 100 to die.

But when the Germans approached, not 20 meters away but rather 40 meters,

the guy behind the machine-gun started firing the machine-gun too soon.