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Clash Over Remagen

Nicolas Trudgian

 

General Bradley's 1st American Army reached the Rhine at Remagen on March 7, 1945. Such was the speed of advance they arrived before the retreating German troops had time to blow the vital Ludendorff Bridge. The 9th Armored Division seized the opportunity, took the bridge intact, and immediately established a bridgehead.

Realizing the importance of the bridge to the advancing American Army, and the threat its existence posed to the German defences, the Luftwaffe were ordered in to destroy the bridge at all costs. Desperate efforts were made both to attack and to defend the bridge, and over the course of the following days the fighting on the ground and in the air became one of the legendary battles of the war.

American fighters, who had no suitable bases within reasonable range of the bridge, were unable to give support and the RAF was called in. Based in Holland, 274 Squadron's Tempest Vs had the range to cover Remagen, and these big, powerful low-level ground-attack fighters were soon pitted against the new German jets.

Fast as they were, the Tempest did not have the speed of the Me262 or the Arado 234, and so bravely took on the Luftwaffe jets head-on. With closing speeds in the order of 1000 mph they had little chance of shooting them down, but the highly dangerous tactic was successful in breaking up the enemy attacks on the bridge. Adding to the mayhem, every gun on the ground on both sides of the contest was pumping streams of lead into the air, and with bombs exploding all around the bridge, the scene was one of total conflagration.

Nicolas Trudgian's painting brings it all to life. Carefully researched and beautifully painted, this rendition becomes an important record and reminder of one of the fiercest battles of World War II. Two leading Tempests have flown right through the Luftwaffe formation, the high-speed aircraft missing each other by feet. The concentration of the desperate attackers is broken momentarily, sufficiently so that their bombs miss the target, but more Luftwaffe aircraft can be seen streaming into attack. With his remarkable talent Nick conveys a tension of almost unbearable proportions as he portrays this, one of World War II's epic battles. With each print in the edition signed by the last three surviving Luftwaffe Me262 bomber pilots who attacked the Bridge at Remagen, "Clash Over Remagen" is surely destined to become one of aviation art's great collector pieces.

Oberfeldwebel Rony Lauer
Rony Lauer joined the Luftwaffe in 1937, but was still in pilot training at the start of the war. In 1942 he was posted to join KG-30 flying the Ju88 on operations over England and later in Mediterranean theater. In June 1944 he transferred to I./KG-51 for training on the Messerschmitt 262 jet bomber, and first flew it in combat a few months later. Rony flew one of the lead aircraft in the attack on the Bridge at Remagen, and flew the 262 until the end of the war.

  

Overall Print Size: 34 1/2" Wide x 23 1/2" High.

A Limited Edition Print Featuring The Luftwaffe Attack On The Bridge At Remagen, March 1945.

Clash Over Remagen by Nicolas Trudgian
600 signed and numbered prints with THREE signatures.
US $175

 

The last three surviving Me262 pilots who flew the attack on the Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen have joined artist Nicolas Trudgian in signing this beautiful print. A unique opportunity for collectors of aviation art to acquire a remarkable piece of air combat history.

 

Hauptmann Georg Csurusky
After completing his pilots training, Georg was posted, in January 1943, to I./KG-51 on the Eastern Front, flying the Ju88 all weather heavy bomber. In August 1943 he converted to fly the Me410 Hornet. In 1944, I Gruppe KG-51 converted to train on the Me262 jet bomber, for the Western Front. Georg flew the 262 on the attack on the Ludendorff Bridge. At the war's end he had flown 209 combat missions on the East and West Fronts, 68 of which were in the Me262.

Oberfeldwebel Hermann Wieczorek
Hermann Wieczorek joined the Luftwaffe in 1935 and served as a flight mechanic before training as a pilot. Upon qualifying he served initially as a flying instructor before joining Oberbefehlshaber Süd, under General Kesseling, flying photo-reconnaissance missions in the Me110 and Ju88 over Italy and North Africa. In June 1944 he was transferred to I./KG-51 flying the new Me262 jet bomber on the Western Front. Hermann flew the 262 in the action against the Bridge at Remagen, and later until the final days of the war.