10 September 1943

10 September 1943 Standing order on artillery positions and concealment

Secret standing order. Corps headquarters, 10 September 1943. Recent major landings show that the enemy will seek above all to destroy artillery with heavy naval guns and air attacks using bombs and onboard weapons. Batteries must therefore either have permanent fortification protection or be concealed and camouflaged so that reconnaissance aircraft and ships’ observation balloons cannot discover them before battle, and for as long as possible thereafter. Wherever practicable, abandon positions meeting neither condition and occupy new ones.

Divisions, in consultation with Artillery Commander 118, decide which batteries must move. Prepare new positions immediately, chiefly hidden in the terrain and camouflaged, with field works and all-round infantry defence. Army coastal batteries employed against naval targets may move only with naval commander agreement; normally this is not contemplated. Special cases are settled between corps and naval commander. Nevertheless, survey fallback positions for wheeled army coastal guns so that guns and ammunition can be withdrawn by night if enemy action makes the original position untenable.

Batteries undergoing permanent construction, whose poorly camouflaged conspicuous sites are known and will attract bombers, must temporarily occupy well-camouflaged fallback positions. I have already ordered this for 1/655, “Brasilia,” 8/745 and 2/745 [unit notation partly unclear]. For fully mobile batteries, prepare alternate positions, build and camouflage them as above and occupy them periodically on special divisional order.

Do not occupy new, fallback or alternate positions until the battery can fulfil its missions from them, with ammunition and secure communications. Leave part of the ammunition and a rear party in temporarily vacated main positions. These and, where appropriate, abandoned battery positions may be used when infantry reserves are committed. Give particular attention to antiaircraft protection in all new field positions. Every battery must prepare dummy positions. Signed: Marcks, General of Artillery. Distribution includes 319th, 709th and 716th Divisions, Artillery Commander 118 and Naval Commander Normandy. 319th Division’s copy was sent on 9 September under top-secret number 1682/43 and is to be reclassified secret.

T-314 Roll 1604, T314_R1604_English_Translation.docx. 10 September 1943 | Source PDF pages 917–919. Selected island-related text; document or report date governs placement.