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Special Preview: Marines in the Garden of Eden
By John
I'm pleased you bring you all a very special feature today, an OPFOR exclusive preview of Richard S. Lowry's Marines in the Garden of Eden. Richard was kind enough to send a few of the thousands of photos collected during his research into the book. From the text and photos below, you'll understand why Lowry's account of the Battle of Nasiriyah has become one of my all-time favorite reads. It'll make a fantastic Hollywood movie one day.
Following is a short excerpt from “Marines in the Garden of Eden” by Richard S. Lowry. To read the entire story of one of the bloodiest battles in our war in Iraq, purchase your copy today at www.marinesinthegardenofeden.com
Chapter 8
The Euphrates River
“Keep moving”
2d Marine Regiment Motto
THE TIMBERWOLVES
Shielein’s CAAT section and Gunny Howard’s Team Mech tanks crested the Euphrates River Bridge first. From his position farther back in the column, Grabowski watched as the tanks and HMMWVs disappeared from view. He thought out loud, “there’s no turning back now, we’re committed!"
The road to Nasiriyah burns
As soon as Shielein’s CAAT vehicles moved to the dusty streets on the north side of the bridge, all hell broke loose. Schielein’s field of view was filled with Iraqis running in all directions. He saw muzzle flashes for one-hundred eighty degrees in front of him. Bullets cracked all around his vehicle. Schielein immediately ordered, “There will be no TOW shots.”2 In a confined urban environment the TOWs can be more dangerous to the Marines than the enemy. Back wash from its rocket can melt the skin off a person in the blink of an eye. So the Marines in the TOW vehicles reached for their SAWs.
Schielein’s CAAT section came screaming down off the bridge with guns blazing. They were firing every SAW, every .50-caliber, and every MK19 they had. Drivers and loaders were firing their personal M-16s. Schielein’s Marines threw everything they had at the enemy. The MK19 grenadiers hurled grenades as fast as they could, leveling everything in sight.
The locals welcome Marines to Iraq.
At the base of the bridge, Schielein jumped from his Humvee into the middle of the street and began to lay down M-16 fire. As the rest of his section moved across the bridge, Schielein noticed an Iraqi Technical in the corner of his eye. The Iraqi gunner in the back of the pickup was swinging his heavy 12.7 mm machine gun in Schielein’s direction. Gunny Howard’s Lucille23 came clanking up and stopped between the Iraqi and Schielein. Howard’s turret was moving before the large tank ground to a stop. The turret completed its traverse and, BOOM! Schielein was knocked back from the concussion, ears ringing, and stars twirling in his eyes.
“Holy Crap!”4 Schielein shouted in surprise. Howard’s main gun had taken out the Iraqi Technical, saving his life.
Grabowski was still following behind Tim Newland and Dennis Santare who were riding in Bravo Company’s command AMTRAC. Dave Sosa followed his boss in another HMMWV. The battalion’s Alpha command track trailed Sosa.
A tank pauses in Ambush Alley.
As Newland and Santare approached the Euphrates River Bridge, Mouth could see a group of Saddam Fedayeen off to his right. The group was milling about a mortar on the southern bank of the river. Mouth quickly relayed his discovery to Cobra pilots overhead. As the Cobras swooped in, the enemy scattered. From the air, the mortar appeared unmanned so the Marines held their fire. Bravo Company continued forward up onto the bridge, leaving the enemy mortar undamaged. “The problem with being in the air is that you don’t understand the gravity of the situation on the ground.”5
The Iraqis were hiding nearby. As soon as the overhead threat was gone, they returned to their gun and resumed dropping mortar rounds into the city. Iraqis all over the battlefield were using this ‘shoot and scoot’ tactic to avoid the Marines’ withering fire.
B204 crossed the bridge and moved into downtown Nasiriyah. They turned right as enemy rounds continued to crackle overhead. Two RPGs narrowly missed Newland’s command track. Santare could see more black-clad fighters. They were hiding behind women and children and forcing families out into the streets to block the Marines line of fire. More gunmen were popping out of doorways and windows. They would unleash a few shots at the Marines and then they would disappear.
The Timberwolves continued to pour into the city. They rolled in so fast that the enemy couldn’t have broken contact if they wanted to. Cobras were buzzing overhead as vehicle after vehicle rolled up onto the Euphrates River Bridge. Mouth directed his Cobra’s out away from the urban area. He sent them east of the city to spearhead Grabowski’s thrust onto the salt flats.
Bravo Company moved into Ambush Alley and Grabowski drove up on the bridge around 1300. He expected it to blow at any second. The bridge remained intact and as soon as Grabowski reached the north bank of the Euphrates River, he realized that the first objective was now in his control. Elated, he immediately radioed Bailey, “We got RCT Objective 1! It’s ours now!”6
As soon as they came down off the northern side of the Euphrates River Bridge, the Timberwolves were greeted with a flurry of RPGs. Fortunately, they were not well aimed or the grenadiers had neglected to remove the arming pins. Had the Iraqis been trained, dozens of RPGs would have landed home and many tracks would have been damaged. RPGs bounced off the tanks and tracks. Others skidded across the ground or snaked wildly through the air. Team Mech’s tanks, then Bravo and the Battalion Forward Command element took a hard right turn into the narrow streets that led east between the mud block buildings of Eastern Nasiriyah.
Lowry's battlemap of Ambush Alley.
Again, you can purchase Lowry's gripping tale at www.marinesinthegardenofeden.com. It's one of the best books you'll read all year.
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Comments
excellent sneak peak, John. Thank you. I'm embarassed to admit that I'm not too familiar with this battle, other than what the MSM reported (which was all Jessica Lynch related...typical).
The first, introductory part of the book is a little fawning -- every marine is handsome, devoted to family, superbly talented, the pride of the Corps, and every mother's dream son -- but once the action gets going, the narrative is quite good and the purple largely absent.
Was there any mention of the Army PSYOP units attached? A reservist in a sister company was awarded a Bronze Star w/"V" BY THE MARINES for his actions at an-Nasiriyah.
Joel,
Sorry. I did not mention any Army PSYOP units. There was a Marine PSYOP unit, using old army equipment at the Euphrates River Bridge, but I was not aware of any Army PSYOP teams in the immediate vicinity of Nasiriyah during the battle.
That does not mean that they were not there, I just never ran across them during my research.
Richard S. Lowry
wow this is excellent!
John could you please forward my AKO address to Mr. Lowry for me?
Mr. Lowry could you please e-mail me at that AKO address? Id be interested in talking with you offline about this.
Your book looks really good. The chapter you have up is well written.
fowarded.
Great Read! cant wait to pick up this book..I posted this link on the forum I post at to spread the word! God Bless
Thanks Bridget
thank you Amazon overnight. I received my copy 3 hours ago and it makes for perfect on the porch fall reading.
Uncle Rico et al,
I have signature plates. They are simply a sticker with my name and the name of the book. If you send me a mailing address I will sign one and mail it to you. All you have to do is fix the sticker on the inside front cover and you will have an autographed copy.
Richard S. Lowry
www.marinesinthegardenofeden.com
very interesting read ... when I get money I'll buy :(
Finished the book today. The accounts are very detailed and seemed a little tedious at times, but fine for the factual, chronologically correct and historical nature of this book. The detail is important and all comes together when needed. The very last paragraph in the book was a fitting and emotional end to the story of our Marines in the beginning of the war. This book provides an unusual insight into the true nature of the war in Iraq and why it has progressed to where it is today. The Iraqi people are a paradox of influences, both good and bad. Follow this with "We Were One" for another terrific read.
Was even better when we saw that our son is in the story
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I found this line to be particularly telling:
Santare could see more black-clad fighters. They were hiding behind women and children and forcing families out into the streets to block the Marines line of fire.
You sold me John. I'm headed to B&N tomorrow to see if they have it in stock.