By: Jay Lance
Viktor Eberhard Gräbner was born on May 24, 1914 in Leipzig. He joined the Allgemeine SS as a SS-Mann (private) in 1937, about the same time he entered military service in the German Army. At the outbreak of World War II, he had advanced to the rank of Leutnant (Second Lieutenant). In 1941, he participated as front line soldier during "Operation Barbarossa," the invasion of Russia. On October 1, 1941, he was promoted to Oberleutnant (First Lieutenant) in command of the 2nd Company, 256th Reconnaissance Battalion, of the 256th Infantry Division and participated in the Battle for Moscow, which started the following day. He was awarded the German Cross in Gold in May 1942, probably in the Battle of Rzhev, as his unit was listed in that area during that time.
In January 1943 he transferred to the Waffen-SS and into the newly formed 9th SS Panzer Division “Hohenstaufen” with the equivalent rank of SS-Obersturmführer (1st Lt) and in March 1943 he was promoted to Hauptsturmführer (Captain). In June, his division was moved to Normandy and was involved in heavy fighting during the Battle for Caen, followed by a series of battles in France. In July 1944, he was awarded the Close Combat Clasp in Bronze, for 15 battle days of close combat. In August 1944 he was given command of SS-Aufklärungs Abteilung 9 (the division's reconnaissance battalion) and on August 23, 1944 he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his actions in July, following a recommendation signed August 6, 1944 by his commander, Oberführer Friedrich-Wilhelm Bock, and approved by Obergruppenführer Willi Bittrich, head of the II SS Panzer Corps. He did not receive the award until September 17, 1944, the day before he died.
Hauptsturmführer Gräbner is best known for his part in the Battle of Arnhem (Operation Market Garden). On September 17, 1944, the 40-vehicles of his reconnaissance battalion was ordered south, to carry out a reconnaissance of the allied airborne landings between Arnhem and Nijmegen. On his return to Arnhem, the bridge across the Rhine had been captured by Lt. Col. John Frost's 2nd Battalion, Parachute Regiment. Gräbner was informed that enemy paratroopers had captured the northern end of the Arnhem bridge. Leaving behind a few of his vehicles from his unit in the town of Elst, Gelderland, midway between Arnhem and Nijmegen, he took it upon himself to clear the area around Arnhem bridge of whatever paratroopers where there. He traveled during the night north towards Arnhem, and arrived 9:30 a.m. on the morning of September 18. Hauptsturmführer Gräbner ordered his battalion, numbering about 22 armored cars, half-tracks, and a few trucks with infantry, to assault the bridge. The first five German armored cars of the column managed to make it across the bridge unscathed due to the fact that they took the defenders by surprise. The British had laid mines on the bridge's approaches and these were expertly avoided by the speeding German drivers. In the resulting two-hour battle, the battalion was beaten back with heavy losses and forced to retreat back to Elst where it played no further role in the fighting around Arnhem. Of the 22 armored vehicles that were involved in the assault, 12 were destroyed or knocked out and over 70 men killed, including Gräbner.
His body, along with those of his men killed in this battle, were originally buried in marked graves at a temporary location near where they fell. Sometime later, they were relocated to Ysselsteyn German war cemetery, where sadly, their individual identities were not properly documented, which resulted with each man being buried with a cross bearing the words "EIN DEUTSCHER SOLDAT" (a German Soldier) and the date 18.9.44.
Sources :
Photo collection John P. Moore
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/142308104/viktor-eberhard-gr_bner?fbclid=IwAR3vMZRGK73BB9aEvNf-JSXF4udfJ8QOe32lzC27E_Xi96nnQOtrc1iiNuw
http://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/showthread.php?t=167653
