Alfred Riekstiņš - Knight of the Knight's Cross

It is the middle of March 1945. Kurzeme has been moaning under shells for almost half a year. Thousands and thousands have fallen in five great battles. The great epicenter of the war vortex has spilled over to the outskirts of Berlin. The outcome of the war is clear to both of them. Only days, weeks, and in the worst case a few months are counted, but the Kurzeme fortress is still holding. The Soviet High Command does not spare its own - it sends more and more regiments of soldiers to their deaths in senseless battles. Legionnaires defend every Latvian homestead, hill and birch grove.

In the middle of March, everything shows - the defenders of Kurzeme will have to face another big battle - the sixth, as it will turn out later - the last. This time, the opponent plans to do it at the entrance of Saldus on the Remte side. How important it is to the Russians is shown by the fact that Marshals Vasilevsky, Chistyakov, Commander of the Baltic Fleet Yeryomenko and General Staff representative Frolov are coming to Kurzeme. On March 17, the Red Army broke the front line in a rapid attack from the side of Pilsblīdene near the houses of "Kīpu" and gained the Saldus-Kandava road, opening an excellent opportunity for Russian tanks to break into Kurzeme. As usual, the command sends the shock battalion of Major Laumans to eliminate such risky breaks. Also this time, the major receives a similar order - at 19:00, after a well-corrected artillery fire, to recover the previous positions and eliminate the breach. It seems that there is something special - the men of the Laumans battalion stood up in such counterattacks, liberating not a single Latvian homestead. However, this battle has gone down in the history of Kurzeme battles as the most unusual. Every historian of the war describes this in his memories and studies of the battle path of the 19th Division, because the result of this battle, however incredible, was determined by the resourcefulness, courage, selflessness and audacity of one man. Major Laumanis sends the first company corporal Alfred Riekstinas with eleven men to scout. He knows what to send - Riekstiņš is an experienced warrior, he passed the battle route of the 19th division from Leningrad to his native Kurzeme without a single scratch. Until recently, in the battles near "Rumba" with the strikers of their platoon, they destroyed seven Russian tanks buried in the ground with tank fists and freed the houses of "Gibel".

Laumanis gives a combat mission - from the nearby highlands at the Saldus-Pilsblīdene intersection, observe the "Kīpi" house and later adjust the artillery fire. They set up a telephone with the headquarters. Riekstiņš sees in the distance three Russian tanks, anti-tank guns and heavy machine guns parked in the courtyard of the house - their owners feel safe, moving without any caution, like a whole regiment in front of his own, which went in the direction of the Laumans battalion. Alfred decided on a daring step - not to wait for the artillery fire on the "Kīpa" houses at 19:00, but to occupy them with his own forces. He knows - suddenness and audacity have helped more than once in decisive moments. It turns out that some men - Braun, Cilpins, Danberg - know how to handle Russian heavy weapons. Along the edge of the forest, the men sneak into the yard, then a sudden attack, a bloody, cruel melee. Well, the tanks' barrels are turned in the opposite direction , and this time they open fire on their own. The Russians flee in confusion and panic. The contacts extend the telephone from the highlands to "Kīpa" and reports that artillery fire should not be aimed at "Kīpā" - there is their own. The commander of the 19th division is in a misunderstanding - there is no need for artillery fire on "Kīpa", how did their own people appear there, if the Russians were there until recently? Little by little, everything becomes clear. The ingenuity and courage of one person decided the outcome of a battle, saving the lives of many soldiers, at the same time, as it were, closing the gate of the enemy's further incursion into Kurzeme.

For the daring operation, Alfred Riekstinas is awarded the Knight's Cross, thus he becomes one of the twelve Latvians who receive the highest award of German officers. The cross was presented to him on April 5 in Remte Palace. Later, however, the Germans find that they do not raise ordinary soldiers in the order of Knights and send Riekstina to officer courses. Shortly before the capitulation, he becomes a lieutenant.

The heroism of Riekstinas is also appreciated by the German press. The newspaper "Tēvija" writes: "In order for a Latvian corporal to enter the Order of Knights, he had to do something extremely unusual and unimaginable. Riekstiņš eliminates the enemy's breakthrough and fiercely defends himself. He saves the position of the wing of the entire division." It seems to have been the only case in the history of German warfare when a corporal received an officer's award. It is interesting to note that it was also the last Knight's Cross presented in the Kurzeme fortress. Lieutenant Freimanis, who was nominated for the Knight's Cross at the end of April, no longer receives it - the Germans have run out of supplies.