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Heavy battles and clashes in Sicily and Southern Italy. D-Day, the massacre at Omaha Beach, the Battle of the Ardennes Forest. The siege of Aachen and the breakthrough into the depths of German territory.

We all know that during World War II, Americans and Germans engaged in fierce confrontations. However, few know that during the war, Americans and Germans fought on the same side.

Yes, you heard it right: American soldiers and Wehrmacht personnel fought together, side by side.

It all began in early May 1945, just a few days before the capitulation of the Third Reich and the official end of the war in Europe.

Somewhere remote in the Austrian Alps, one of the strangest and most unlikely battles of the entire war took place.

Stay with us to find out more about this little-known chapter of history!

Place of Battle

(Beautiful scenery of the Austrian Alps, small medieval castle]

Narrator:

Let the stunning landscape and breathtaking views not deceive you. Just outside the Austrian town of Tirol, there’s a small medieval castle, Castle Itter. But what many don’t know is that this castle was once a part of Dachau, the infamous Nazi death camp.

The Nazis converted Castle Itter into a prison to hold various VIP prisoners. These were inmates considered valuable enough to be bargaining chips by the Germans.

Among the prisoners were French generals and ministers opposed to the Vichy regime, as well as the French tennis champion. There were women, too, including the sister of Charles de Gaulle.

After the liberation of Dachau, its commander escaped to Castle Itter. Facing inevitable defeat, he took his own life. By May 4, the German guards had abandoned the camp, leaving the remaining 14 prisoners free to leave.

But the area was still crawling with SS troops. And, unfortunately, one unit was heading straight towards them, Itter Castle. Their intent was to execute the prisoners.

Preparations for Defence

Help came in the most unlikely form: Josef “Sepp” Gangl, a highly decorated rogue Wehrmacht Major who had become disillusioned with Nazi ideology.

[images of a WWII American tank battalion or military vehicle]

When a nearby U.S. tank battalion, led by Captain Jack C. Lee Jr., agreed to aid Gangl and his small group of troops, they prepared to defend the prison and its inmates against an impending attack.

Taking command of the castle defence, Captain Lee rallied his small force to withstand a siege. They relied heavily on the help of Gangl’s men, as well as Captain Kurt-Siegfried Schrader, a Waffen-SS officer who, like Gangl, had come to reject Nazism.

For the first and only time recorded during the entire war, Americans and Germans found themselves fighting side-by-side.

The Battle

[Visual: Images of soldiers preparing for combat]

The expected Waffen-SS assault came on the morning of May 5, 1945, five days after Hitler’s suicide and just two days before Nazi Germany’s surrender.

Some of the prisoners helped defend the castle, wielding small arms left behind by their guards.

[Transition: brutal combat scenes, gunfire, explosions]

The Waffen-SS attackers shot and killed Gangl, destroyed Captain Jack Lee’s tank, one of the four available to the defenders, and damaged the castle walls.

By the afternoon, news reached the 142nd U.S. Infantry Regiment, which immediately organised a rescue unit.

[Footage: American troops rushing to the castle, rallying]

Narrator:

As the defenders’ ammunition was running low, the cavalry arrived.