CORPORAL ROBERT DE ROOS
Tanks were introduced into warfare during the First World War. In an attempt to tip the scales in the stalemate of the static trench warfare of WW I, newly developed tanks were brought into the stand-off to cross killing zones and break into enemy defenses. By the time WW II began, the role of the tank had changed dramatically from an important weapon in the static war of WW I to a useful tool in the mobile war of 1942. The German army (Wehrmacht) seemed the most adept at building a tank and using it in battle. The allies were continually trying to catch up. To counter the German tank threat, the Allies created the tank destroyer battalion. One of the soldiers manning 100+ battalions was Robert (Bob) DeRoos of Springfield, SD.
Bob DeRoos was inducted into the Army on December 17, 1942 at Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. He took his basic training at Camp Bowie, Texas and was assigned to the 814th Tank Destroyer Battalion and took advanced training at Camp Hood, Texas. He was involved in the 1943 Louisiana Maneuvers. On February 14, 1944, the 814th Tank Destroyer Battalion left the United States for Gorack, Scotland landing on February 22. After about six months of advanced training and about two months after the invasion of Normandy, the 814th Tank Destroyer Battalion and Bob DeRoos crossed the English Channel and joined the 7th Armored Division.
Bob, as a light truck driver, and the rest of the 814th joined the chase as the Wehrmacht fled across northern Europe to the German border where it stopped and set up defensive lines. The two sides sat still across from each other until December 16 when all hell broke loose as Hitler tried to change the momentum of the war with a breakout in the Ardennes Forest (Battle of the Bulge) in an attempt to reach Antwerp, Belgium and secure a port.Chaos was ubiquitous as enemy and allied units were everywhere. In the mayhem, on December 23, Bob and twelve men found themselves behind enemy lines with all routes out blocked. Avoiding the normal route through Salm-Cateau, the group took the S-2’s advice and found an alternative route through St. Maire where Bob and the other twelve soldiers were able to find their way back to the American side.
Bob and the 814th were assigned to various units and stayed with the 7th Armored Division involved in various actions till the end of the war. At the end of the war, Bob was involved in occupation duty until Thanksgiving Day in November of 1945; at which time Corporal Robert DeRoos set sail for the United States and arrived on December 1, 1945.
The war was over for Bob. He was awarded the European–African Eastern Theater medal and the Good Conduct medal. Corporal Robert DeRoos reentered college and spent the rest of his life as a small business owner of a mechanical repair company followed by instructing at the local college.
Dick Martin
Bob DeRoos was inducted into the Army on December 17, 1942 at Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. He took his basic training at Camp Bowie, Texas and was assigned to the 814th Tank Destroyer Battalion and took advanced training at Camp Hood, Texas. He was involved in the 1943 Louisiana Maneuvers. On February 14, 1944, the 814th Tank Destroyer Battalion left the United States for Gorack, Scotland landing on February 22. After about six months of advanced training and about two months after the invasion of Normandy, the 814th Tank Destroyer Battalion and Bob DeRoos crossed the English Channel and joined the 7th Armored Division.
Bob, as a light truck driver, and the rest of the 814th joined the chase as the Wehrmacht fled across northern Europe to the German border where it stopped and set up defensive lines. The two sides sat still across from each other until December 16 when all hell broke loose as Hitler tried to change the momentum of the war with a breakout in the Ardennes Forest (Battle of the Bulge) in an attempt to reach Antwerp, Belgium and secure a port.Chaos was ubiquitous as enemy and allied units were everywhere. In the mayhem, on December 23, Bob and twelve men found themselves behind enemy lines with all routes out blocked. Avoiding the normal route through Salm-Cateau, the group took the S-2’s advice and found an alternative route through St. Maire where Bob and the other twelve soldiers were able to find their way back to the American side.
Bob and the 814th were assigned to various units and stayed with the 7th Armored Division involved in various actions till the end of the war. At the end of the war, Bob was involved in occupation duty until Thanksgiving Day in November of 1945; at which time Corporal Robert DeRoos set sail for the United States and arrived on December 1, 1945.
The war was over for Bob. He was awarded the European–African Eastern Theater medal and the Good Conduct medal. Corporal Robert DeRoos reentered college and spent the rest of his life as a small business owner of a mechanical repair company followed by instructing at the local college.
Dick Martin