In front of the war memorial.

At the front of a local memorial recognizing the sacrifice of local German soldiers who died during World Wars I and II, a small stone plaque notes the sacrifice of U.S. soldiers of the 397th Infantry Regiment, 100th Infantry Division who died in fighting in the area in and around Sinsheim-Dühren during 1-3 April 1945 -- then Easter Weekend -- at the end of World War II in Europe. In addition to a short inscription, this plaque also includes the coat of arms of the 397th Infantry Regiment.

In November 2008, local officials and U.S. Chaplain LTC Joel Harris from the U.S. Army Europe Chaplains Office unveiled the plaque as part of observances for the German Day of National Mourning (Volkstrauertag), which commemorates those who died in World Wars I and II. This ceremony honored not only German soldiers who died, but also the American soldiers killed in the area while clearing towns on their march toward Heilbronn in 1945.

Memorial does not list any U.S. casualties by name, and no remains of U.S. soldiers are interred at the site. Although at least eight 397th Regiment soldiers reportedly died during this period near Sinsheim, others were missing or could have died later from wounds sustained in the area combat.

Source of information: en.wikipedia.org, worldwartwoveterans.org, www.denkmalprojekt.org

Source of photo: api.army.mil

Im Gedenken an die

in Dühren und Umgebung

in der Zeit vom

1. bis 3. April 1945

gefallenen

amerikanischen Soldaten

des 397th Infantry Regiment

English translation:

In memory of the American

soldiers of the 397th Infantry

Regiment who fell in Dühren

and the surrounding area

between 1 and 3 April 1945