Alois "Bärchen" Klein
Brother of Assistant Gruppenfuhrer Walther Klein, Alois joined the Heer in the summer of 1944 after hearing news of the Normandy invasions. By the time he was sent to the front, it was already October and as luck would have it, he was deployed to the same sector of Aachen that his older brother was, but to a small detachment of the Panzer Lehr division as part of Kampfgruppe Heintz.
Alois, though small and thin, had the character of a lion. Despite this, a war was not a place for a boy his age. In his early days in combat, he was scared, as any man would be, and most of all, he missed home. This would all change soon enough as the war took it's toll on him. He slowly grew stronger as days and weeks passed, and became a valuable member of his squad.
It was only three weeks into his deployment that his squad was wiped out, leaving only Alois and two other men as survivors. As they retreated to their headquarters, they encountered Bodo Fehrmann's squad, and to Alois' joy and amazement, there was his big brother Walther. The brothers barely recognized each other at first, as the war had changed them both immensely. Alois and his two Kameraden from his previous detachment were welcomed into the squad by Bodo and Walther, and would soon prove their worth in combat.
One morning, just before dawn, Alois awoke from a dream. As he sat in his foxhole gazing out into the deep abyss which was the Hurtgen forest, he watched as Obergefreiter Fehrman rose to relieve himself. As Fehrmann walked across the small clearing where they were camped, Alois watched as a young man, younger than Alois, mistook Bodo for the enemy, and shot him in the back of the thigh. It barely grazed him, and Bodo was sent to a hospital in the rear for some much needed rest. He reported the incident as enemy fire.
While Fehrmann was in the hospital, almost half of the squad was killed by an exploding artillery shell as they slept. When Bodo returned, he was so distraught with the loss of his men, his friends, his comrades, that the wound he incurred from the boy seemed to be of little importance. Bodo was awarded the Black Wound Badge, but he never wore it, since he felt he did not truly deserve it.
Alois didn't last long after Bodo and Walther were killed. Bodo had become like a brother to him, since he was such close friends with Walther. He was downtrodden and became very depressed after the men were killed.
Alois' body was found in a ravine, a gunshot wound to the head. It was documented as a result of sniper fire, but the men of his squad couldn't help but think it was suicide. There was no third brother. The Klein bloodline came to an end when the brothers met their demise in the Hurtgen Forest.
Alois, though small and thin, had the character of a lion. Despite this, a war was not a place for a boy his age. In his early days in combat, he was scared, as any man would be, and most of all, he missed home. This would all change soon enough as the war took it's toll on him. He slowly grew stronger as days and weeks passed, and became a valuable member of his squad.
It was only three weeks into his deployment that his squad was wiped out, leaving only Alois and two other men as survivors. As they retreated to their headquarters, they encountered Bodo Fehrmann's squad, and to Alois' joy and amazement, there was his big brother Walther. The brothers barely recognized each other at first, as the war had changed them both immensely. Alois and his two Kameraden from his previous detachment were welcomed into the squad by Bodo and Walther, and would soon prove their worth in combat.
One morning, just before dawn, Alois awoke from a dream. As he sat in his foxhole gazing out into the deep abyss which was the Hurtgen forest, he watched as Obergefreiter Fehrman rose to relieve himself. As Fehrmann walked across the small clearing where they were camped, Alois watched as a young man, younger than Alois, mistook Bodo for the enemy, and shot him in the back of the thigh. It barely grazed him, and Bodo was sent to a hospital in the rear for some much needed rest. He reported the incident as enemy fire.
While Fehrmann was in the hospital, almost half of the squad was killed by an exploding artillery shell as they slept. When Bodo returned, he was so distraught with the loss of his men, his friends, his comrades, that the wound he incurred from the boy seemed to be of little importance. Bodo was awarded the Black Wound Badge, but he never wore it, since he felt he did not truly deserve it.
Alois didn't last long after Bodo and Walther were killed. Bodo had become like a brother to him, since he was such close friends with Walther. He was downtrodden and became very depressed after the men were killed.
Alois' body was found in a ravine, a gunshot wound to the head. It was documented as a result of sniper fire, but the men of his squad couldn't help but think it was suicide. There was no third brother. The Klein bloodline came to an end when the brothers met their demise in the Hurtgen Forest.
