A Partial History
135th Infantry Regiment

34th Infantry Division

Approved for Publication
Allied Force Headquarters
Information News and Censorship Section

HILL 609 (pp. 9-12)

	On the morning of 26 April [1943], orders were received for the
135th Infantry to relieve the 2nd Battalion of the 168th Infantry of its
outpost position west of Hill 609 and to be prepared to make local
diversionary attacks to support the main attack of the Division which
was being made by the 168th Infantry on the Division left flank.  The
relief was started at 1300 hours and completed at 2000 hours.  The 3rd
Battalion moved to the vicinity of Hill 334; 1st Battalion to the
vicinity of Hill 533, and the 2nd Battalion went into Regimental reserve
on Hill 575.

	The general plan was for the 1st and 3rd Battalions to send one
company each forward immediately to secure the general line Railway
Station at Si Nair, Hill 375, and Hill 484 by 0200 hours, 27 April. 
This line was to be used as a line of departure for an attack by the
balance of the 1st and 3rd Battalions at 0415 hours the next morning
with Hill 490 as the 3rd Battalion objective and Hill 529 as the 1st
Battalion objective.  Company I reached Hill 374 at 0230; Company A
reached Hill 484 at 0300.  Due to the mountainous and extremely rugged
terrain, the Battalions did not reach the line of departure until 0530
hours and did not jump off until 0600.  The attack was made in daylight
and progressed very slowly.  By 0835, leading elements of Company A had
reached Hill 501 and were pushing patrols on toward Hill 529.  At 1050
hours the advance units of the 1st Battalion had reached a reverse slope
of Hill 529 and were meeting very strong resistance.

	Beginning at 0850, the 3rd Battalion had fought its way across the
road by 1005, and had reached the base of Hill 490 where they were held
up by heavy automatic fire, air burst artillery, booby traps, and
anti-personnel mines which covered the reverse slopes of Hill 490.  At
1115 hours, the 2nd Battalion was ordered to move by means of trails and
wadis to the vicinity of Hill 484 and be prepared for a counter attack
from Hills 490, 609, and 529.  No further progress was made that day.

	On 28 April the 135th Infantry was given the mission of supporting
the attack of the 1st Infantry Division, which was on our right, by
attacking Hill 609 from the direction of Kef el Guebli (Hill 529) and
Hill 490.  The attack was to start at 0500 hours, and the main effort
was to be made on the west slope of Hill 461, attacking Hill 609 from
the northwest.  To accomplish this, the 3rd Battalion was ordered to
make a night attack to secure the initial objective (Hill 490) which
they had not reached during the day.  These hills were to serve as a
line of departure for the 2nd Battalion which was to pass through them
at 0500, 28 April, and make the main effort toward Hill 609.  The night
attack by the 3rd Battalion was unsuccessful.  When the 2nd Battalion
approached the line of departure at 0500, they came under very heavy
machine-gun and artillery fire.  Fierce fighting ensued and heavy
casualties were sustained by both sides.  The enemy launched a strong
counterattack at 0950 which was beaten off, and the 2nd Battalion spent
the rest of the day knocking out enemy machine-gun nests and mopping up.
By 1500 hours complete control was obtained of both Hills 435 and 490.

	In the attack on Hill 490 Captain Vincent F. Goodsell of Company G
observed a hostile group armed with machine guns moving into a position
from which the Battalion would be enfiladed.  The Commander of Company G
personally led three of his men forward to intercept the enemy.  They
were seen by the Germans and brought under intense machine-gun fire, but
in spite of this Captain Goodsell drove home his attack, killing or
capturing the entire enemy group, and their three machine guns.  Thus a
serious threat to the Battalion was removed.  Captain Goodsell later was
awarded the Distinguished Service Cross

	Two more enemy counterattacks, one at 1605 hours and another at
1930, were repulsed.  The 2nd Battalion's Artillery Liaison Officer from
the 125th Field Artillery was killed in the morning's fight and the
Battalion fought all day without normal artillery support.

	The 1st Battalion had been ordered to demonstrate toward Hill 609
and then push on to Hill 529 and Hill 531.  Progress was slow and by
nightfall they held Hill 529.  At dusk the 3rd Battalion of the 133rd
Infantry began relieving the 3rd Battalion of the 135th of the defense
and responsibility for Hills 435 and 490.  The 3rd Battalion of the
135th was ordered to reorganize and clear the enemy for [from] Hills 367
and 434, and from the southwest slopes of Hill 609.  The 2nd Battalion
was to continue with the mission of the day before of attacking Hill
481, then southeast of Hill 609.  The 1st Battalion was to clear the
enemy from Hill 531 and from the east and northeast slopes of Hill 609. 
All operations were to begin at 0200 hours, 29 April.

	At 0845 the 3rd Battalion called for a rolling artillery barrage to
begin at 1030 to support the assault on the southwest slopes of Hill
609.  This support was given and the troops followed close in behind the
barrage and reached the escarpment on Hill 609.  When the barrage lifted
they were heavily counterattacked and driven back 400 yards.  By 1600
hours they were able to regain their lost ground and at nightfall were
at the base of the escarpment on Hill 609.

	The courage of the men of the 3rd Battalion was recognized when it
was cited by the 34th Division for its initiative and determination in
this encounter.  The men faced heavy machine-gun and mortar fire coming
from concrete reinforced caves and defiles, and bayonets and grenades
were used in the bitter struggle

	The 2nd Battalion met very strong resistance and was harassed by
enfilading fire from Hill 435 where some enemy troops had infiltrated
during the night.  Progress was very slow, and by nightfall the
objective had not been reached.

	The 1st Battalion was unable to make any progress.  An enemy
counterattack during the night had wiped out a battalion of the 1st
Infantry Division on Hill 523, leaving the right flank of the 1st
Battalion exposed and harassed by attacks all day.  A very heavy
counterattack was partly broken up by artillery fire directed by Lt.
Col. [Robert P.] Miller [1st Bn CO] from his observation post and
finally repelled by fierce hand to hand fighting by the 1st Battalion.

	The 1st Battalion of the 133rd Infantry and Company I of the 1st
Armored Regiment [1st Armored Division] were attached to the 135th
Infantry and ordered to attack the north and northwest slopes of Hill
609 to clear it of the enemy.  They attacked at 0500 hours, 30 April,
and at 0900 had reached their objective.  By 1100 hours they had
established contact with the 2nd Battalion of the 135th Infantry on
their left, which was to push forward at the same time and had taken
Hills 389 and 461.  With the 2nd Battalion of these two hills, and the
1st Battalion of the 133rd on the north and northwest slopes of Hill
609, the two Battalions coordinated the defense of this sector on Hill
461 to repel any enemy counterattack.

	The attack by the 1st Battalion of the 135th Infantry which started
at 0230 hours with Hill 531 as its objective, failed, and repeated enemy
counterattacks were beaten back.  Another attack was planned for 1530
hours with the mission of seizing and holding Hill 531, the Roman ruins,
and Hill 455.  Just as the attack was to start, the enemy began a
counterattack with a force estimated to be about a regiment.  Lt. Col.
Miller ordered his troops to go forward and then again directed Division
Artillery against the enemy attack, successfully breaking it up.  The
attack by the 1st Battalion made very slow progress, and only two
platoons of Company A were able to advance to the top of the northwest
tip of Hill 531.

	The 3rd Battalion sent an officered patrol around the west slopes of
Hill 609, and at 1540 hours had established an observation post on the
top of the hill.

	During the afternoon of 30 April, the 2nd Battalion of the 168th
Infantry had moved forward to an assembly area just south on Hill 609
and was attached to the 135th Infantry.  This Battalion was ordered to
move forward over the ridge between Hill 609 and Hill 531, clearing the
ridge of the enemy and clearing the north and northeast slopes of Hill
609 of snipers, then taking up a defensive position on the north and
northeast slopes of Hill 609.  Then they were to make contact with the
1st Battalion of the 133rd Infantry on their left and the 1st Battalion
of the 135th Infantry on their right.  This movement was to start at
2300 hours.

	As the Battalion was moving into position, they ran into about 30
Germans trying to infiltrate up the slopes of Hill 609 and in behind the
1st Battalion of the 133rd Infantry.  These Germans were driven off, and
just at dawn of May 1, a group of approximately 75 Germans was observed
advancing up the hill toward Company F, 168th Infantry, from the
direction of Hill 455.  Company F let them advance to within about 100
yards and then opened fire, driving them off.  A prisoner of war later
said that they suffered 50 per cent casualties in this attack.

	The 1st Battalion of the 135th continued to attack and mop up on
Hill 531, the Roman ruins, and Hill 455 during the night.  By 1500 hours
they had complete control of their sector.  The seizure of these
positions placed all of Hill 609 and neighboring strong points
completely in the hands of the 34th Division.  Over 70 enemy machine gun
positions were counted later on Hill 531 alone.  It was a victory that
was gained through growing experience and aggressiveness, and ranks as
one of the major battles of the Regiment.

	At 1518 hours, another German counterattack was seen forming by
observers on Hill 609.  Artillery of both the 1st and 34th Infantry
Divisions opened fire on them and broke up the attack.  The enemy
withdrew.  On 2 May the 168th Infantry relieved the 135th of
responsibility for the defense of Hill 609.  The 135th took over a
defensive position which had been held by the 168th, and then went into
Division reserve.

	On 3 May, 3rd Battalion of the 135th was detached under control of
II Corps and moved to the vicinity of Djebel Lanserine and there took up
a defensive position protecting the Corps' right flank.  On 4 May the
135th Infantry minus the 3rd Battalion was moved to an assembly area
about 10 miles east of Sidi Masour, and on 5 May the Regiment minus 3rd
Battalion again moved east to another assembly area in the vicinity of
Hill 202.  The 3rd Battalion returned to Regimental control on 6 May.

	On 8 May the Regiment was alerted to moved northwest of Chouigui to
mop up remaining enemy resistance, movement by shuttle to begin at 0800
hours, 9 May.  The 2nd Battalion was the leading Battalion and moved
into a hasty defensive position on Hills 325 and 350, sending strong
patrols forward which made no contact.  At 1340 hours we received
information that General Klauser had unconditionally surrendered all
enemy troops north of the Medjerda River and south of Bizerte at 1100
hours, 9 May.  The Regiment was ordered to continue their operations and
to pick up any enemy in the vicinity, but none were encountered.  On 11
May the Regiment moved into Division bivouac area five miles west of
Chouigui.  The African campaign was concluded.