The events of March 1945 near Remagen drew much attention from both sides of the forces waging war. The taking of the Ludendorff railway bridge on March 7th became the "Miracle of Remagen" for the Americans. The German "Wehrmacht" considered it a lasting failure which accelerated the breakdown at the western front. Many legends and stories are entwined around the first Rhine crossing of the Western Allied Forces, in fact, a movie glorifies the military coincidence as a heroic deed. The Miracle of Remagen had many fortunate outcomes for the victors, but on the German side a multiplicity of mishaps and shortcomings. This historical guide summarizes the essentials in 14 chapters and ought to clarify the incidents which probably shortened the war in Europe by a couple of days or weeks. Unique photographs, maps and documents demonstrate the military activities in the Rhineland in the spring of 1945. Wolfgang Gückelhorn was born in 1947 in the Rhineland. He is dedicated to the subject of "The Bridge of Remagen" since 1994. As head of a "reserve comradeship" he organized a military-historical excursion in the area of Remagen with other reserve officers and NCOs for the first time in 1995. Since then, he conducts this event annually and permanently upgrades his knowledge of local history. He owns an impressive archival collection from this period. His documentation is based on a sound military expert knowledge. He served in an Armored Battalion in Koblenz from 1968 to 1970. He also successfully served as a reserve officer until the end of 2007 in staffs and last as Chief of a District Liaison Command for a Civil-Military Corporation.weiterlesen