A Machine Gunner's War: From Normandy to Victory with the 1st Infantry Division in World War II

by Ernest Albert "Andy" Andrews Jr, David Hurt (With)

“In a strong new volume, A Machine Gunner’s War, one of [those poor foot soldiers], Ernest Andrews Jr., tells the tale of his own struggle to fight and survive as an unheralded infantryman.” ― The New York Times

Ernest “Andy” Andrews began his training as a machine gunner at Fort McClellan in Alabama in July 1943. In early 1944, he arrived in the UK for further training before D-Day. Andy’s company, part of the 1st Infantry Division, departed England on the evening of June 5 on the USS Henrico. Due to a problem with his landing craft, Andy only reached Omaha Beach on the early evening of June 6, but still had a harrowing experience. Fighting in Normandy, Andy was nicked by a bullet and evacuated to England in late July when the wound became infected, before returning to participate in the Normandy breakout. Following the race across France in late August, Andy participated in the rout of several retreating German units near Mons, Belgium, and his outfit approached Aachen in mid-September. For a month, Andy's squad defended a bunker position in the Siegfried Line against repeated German attacks, then after Aachen surrendered, the unit fought its way through the Hurtgen Forest to take Hill 232. Early on the morning of November 19, Andy engaged in his toughest battle of the war as the Germans attempted to retake Hill 232. Andy was wounded in the shoulder.

After surgery and a month convalescence he rejoined H Company in time to fight in the Battle of the Bulge. His unit then participated in the fast-moving Roer to the Rhine campaign, then the battle to expand the Remagen bridgehead. Breaking out from the Remagen bridgehead, Andy's squad stumbled on a German tank unit and Andy narrowly escaped getting killed. Following a rapid advance up to the Paderborn area, Andy's unit races to Germany's Harz Mountains, where the Wehrmacht was trying to organize a last stand. Andy's outfit ends the war fighting in Czechoslovakia, where Andy witnesses the German surrender in early May. Following occupation duty, Andy returned to the States in October 1945. The war shaped Andy's postwar life in countless ways, and in 1994, Andy made the first of three return visits to the European battlefields where he had fought.

This vivid firsthand account takes the reader along from Normandy to victory with Andy and his machine-gun crew.

Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE
FOREWORD
INTRODUCTION
PRELUDE TO INVASION (Dawn, June 1 - 8:30 a.m., June 6, 1944)

CHAPTER EASY RED BEACH (8:30 a.m., June 6 - Night, June 6-7)
CHAPTER HEADING TOWARD WAR (July 1923 - July 12, 1943)
CHAPTER FORT McCLELLAN (July 12 - Early August, 1943)
CHAPTER TRAINING AS MACHINE GUNNERS (Early August, 1943 - January 17, 1944)
CHAPTER ENGLAND (January 17, 1944 - June 1, 1944)
CHAPTER THE BATTLE FOR NORMANDY (June 7 - July 27, 1944)
CHAPTER VICTORY IN NORMANDY (July 27 - August 25, 1944)
CHAPTER THE RACE ACROSS FRANCE (August 25 - September 7, 1944)
CHAPTER TO THE GERMAN FRONTIER (September 7 - 14, 1944)
CHAPTER THE STOLBERG CORRIDOR (September 14 - 23, 1944)
CHAPTER ON THE SIEGFRIED LINE (September 23 - October 22, 1944)
CHAPTER THE HÜRTGEN FOREST (October 22 - November 18, 1944)
CHAPTER HILL 232 (November 18 - 19, 1944)
CHAPTER A BREAK FROM WAR (November 19 - December 22, 1944)
CHAPTER THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE (Dec. 22, 1944 - Jan. 15, 1945)
CHAPTER WINTER WAR (January 15 - February 6, 1945)
CHAPTER THE ROER TO THE RHINE (February 6 - March 18, 1945)
CHAPTER BREAKOUT FROM REMAGEN (March 18 - April 6, 1945)
CHAPTER THE HARZ TO CZECHOSLOVAKIA (April 6 - May 9, 1945)
CHAPTER PEACE (May 9 - October 19, 1945)

THE POSTWAR YEARS (October 19, 1945 - Present)
A Word to the Hürtgen Forest
FINAL NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Genres: History, Military History, World War II, War

376 pages, Hardcover

Published June 20, 2022

Reviews

[Sarah Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this at lunchtimes to my boys. I will forever be grateful that I did. It taught us about D-day but also about war and the unspeakable tragedies that accompany it from a Christian Soldiers perspective. His faith and trust in God are themes woven throughout the book. For older teens, as sex and women are spoken of, but always from the perspective that Andy has made a commitment to wait until marriage. His love for his fellow man, even though on opposite sides of a war, are quite evident.

[David Gramley · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Andy” Andrews has written an honest, insightful, thoughtful memoir of his extraordinary experiences in WW2. I was able to attend a presentation of this book, and mostly an introduction to Andy, in nearby Montreal, for which I am grateful. He is remarkable and so is this book.

I’ve read other firsthand accounts from WWII, notably Ernest Sledge’s The Old Breed. The insight they share is powerful. Whereas The Old Breed is from a Marine assigned to a mortar unit serving his country in the South Pacific, Andrew’s account is from an Army private assigned as a machine gunner in Europe. Both are frontline positions of great casualty rates. Their stories are similar but different, I believe Andrew’s account is more personal with his Christian faith woven into his daily thoughts. And he is able to tell stories of the small towns they liberated in France, Belgium, and Germany and the people he encountered. As Andy has noted, his battles were not individually headline stories. No matter. His story is that of many, and being able to share it so that the memory will be lasting in others, especially to pay tribute to those who gave their lives for the freedom of others, and it is a gift.

[Robert M. Roth MD · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent memoir

Truly a n amazing memoir of a World War II machine gunner who is part of the Normandy invasion and survives numerous battles, including the Hurtgen Forest and the Bulge.

Despite the horrors he witnessed, the deaths of his fellow soldiers, the amazing part is that he never loses his humanity. A devout Christian, he abides by his faith throughout the war while doing his best to help win the battles. Vividly portrayed is the day to day life of a soldier on the front lines.

The book goes into a lot of detail about his Army training, which I found very interesting as most memoirs tend to gloss over this phase. There is a nice description of his post war life as well.

[Jim Bentley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating, sobering and redemptive

This is a brutally honest account of front line warfare in WWII. Andrews faith gives redeeming value to the sacrifices made and tells a less common tale of integrity and hope in the middle of misery. The highly accurate timeline and details of troop movements can be tedious so I sped through some of that. It is a real pager turner otherwise.

[Dave Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Very Modest True American War Hero

A great account of an infantryman's war. The author was in every major campaign in the Northern European Theater. HiS vivid description of the daily misery of a combat infantryman is spot-on, having served in that same role a couple of decades later in a subsequent war.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another well told story of the life of one of the greatest generation that are becoming fewer and fewer everyday. A man true to his convictions even during some of the toughest battles during the European campaign in WWII must have made his family proud. It was also great to hear that all of his brothers returned from the war as well. An enjoyable read well worth the time investment.

[David Hymas · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Detailed summary of the author’s experience in World War II. Very detailed but lacks the broader narrative impact that the best of the era included (e.g., Helmet For My Pillow, With the Old Breed, Parachute Infantry). Still a worthwhile read and a unique perspective of a machine gunner using the old water-cooled .30 caliber machine gun of World War I vintage.

[Seth Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good and honest look at WW2 from a footsloggers point of view.

[Skoal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rate as 3.5

[Bob]

great book