Pfc. Uberseder Arrives in France (20 OCT 1944)
Hans Uberseder was drafted into the U.S. Army in March 1943. After training at Camp Beauregard, Louisiana, Uberseder, having received a music education degree from Lebanon Valley College, was assigned as a horn player for the 411th Infantry Regiment Band at Camp Claiborne. Though he hoped to spend the rest of the war with the band, reorganization within the 103rd Division led to his reassignment to Company A, a rifle company. On Oct. 5, 1944, Uberseder left New York aboard the USS Santa Maria enroute for southern France and arrived in Marseille fifteen days later. The division moved into central France and, by late November, was positioned in the Vosges Mountains.
The son of Austrian immigrants who had fled during the First World War, Uberseder grew up knowing the German language and was frequently called upon by various units within the 411th Infantry to help secure barracks, coordinate with local officials, and question German prisoners during the regiment’s operations. His activities were soon brought to the attention of 1st Battalion commander Lt. Col. Charles McMackin. In Maisonsgoutte in late November, he had Uberseder reassigned to Headquarters Company as his interpreter.
While at headquarters in early December 1944, Private Uberseder was able to observe German prisoner interrogations. During one interview, a prisoner indicated Hitler “was preparing to use some mighty weapon and maneuver which would quickly win the war for them.” At the time, the Army believed the Germans to be largely in retreat, and the battalion intelligence officer gave the statement little attention. Days later, the regiment found itself attacking the Siegfried Line during the last great German offensive campaign on the Western Front.
In March 1945, the 103rd Division took part in Operation UNDERTONE during the Allied invasion of Germany. As the division prepared for operations east of the Rhine, the 103rd CIC Detachment was in search of a translator. Uberseder had proven himself a capable linguist and, on Mar. 30, was reassigned to serve as CIC Special Agent Louis J. Cortes’s interpreter.
The 103rd CIC Detachment was responsible for clearing suspected enemy spies and saboteurs out of captured villages. Following behind the division, Uberseder provided translations for interrogations and security operations as the detachment made its way across Germany and into Austria. In his unpublished memoir, Uberseder recounted several encounters with notorious Nazi officials and their informants during the final months of the war.
For three months, Uberseder served as a temporary CIC agent. He applied for permanent reassignment to the CIC at the war’s end, but he did not receive final approval before being recalled to the infantry and assigned to the 45th Division in preparation for deployment to Japan. However, Uberseder suffered a leg injury and missed his opportunity to leave with the division while he was hospitalized. He instead moved between units in France, serving at the Port of Le Havre as American troops were beginning to make their way home. He returned to the U.S. and was discharged in February 1946.
Uberseder went on to attend Teachers College at Columbia University and received a graduate degree in music and music education. He taught at several schools in Pennsylvania and performed with various local orchestras and musical ensembles. He passed away in June 2004.
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Article by Erin E. Thompson, USAICoE Staff Historian. New issues of This Week in MI History are published each week. To report story errors, ask questions, request previous articles, or be added to our distribution list, please contact: TR-ICoE-Command-Historian@army.mil.
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