DECEMBER 16th 1944 Battle Of The Bulge

By the Fall of 1944 German options for stopping the Allies were rapidly shrinking. By the autumn of 1944, the German options for halting the Allied advance were rapidly diminishing. Adolf Hitler was convinced that he possessed limited ability to impede the vast Soviet armies in the eastern theater. Nevertheless, he harbored the hope that if he could successfully execute an offensive in the western region, he could compel the Allies to accept a separate peace settlement. This would then provide him with a window of opportunity to delay the Soviet advance.
Adolf Hitler committed all of his reserves to an attack in the Western Front with the objective of capturing Antwerp and splitting the Allied forces. He assigned the 5th and 6th Panzer Armies and the 7th Army to this task. The Germans attempted to replicate their 1940 Ardennes offensive against the British and French, launching an attack in the same region. The American forces perceived the front to be relatively quiet, resulting in a predominantly mixed composition of new and veteran troops being sent to the area for limited rest and recreation.
The German offensive achieved success on several factors, including surprise, unfavorable weather conditions that enabled them to overcome the overwhelming Allied air superiority, rapid advance, and the capture of Allied fuel. This was due to the German Army’s insufficient fuel reserves to sustain its armored forces. The Germans’ failure on these latter two points ultimately doomed any slim chance the attack had of succeeding.
The German offensive commenced with 406,000 troops and 557 tanks, while the Allied forces had 228,000 troops and 483 tanks. From the outset, the German strategy was flawed, as they were utilizing the last of their reserves. By the conclusion of the campaign, the Allied forces had amassed 700,000 troops and 2,428 tanks.

The German military achieved complete surprise. Although the Allied forces were aware of the German plans, they lacked knowledge of the specific location and scale of the operation. On December 16th, the German assault commenced with an extensive artillery barrage across the entire front. The Germans possessed a significant advantage in terms of surprise. In the central sector of the front, the Fifth Panzer Division advanced towards Bastogne and St. With. In the southern region, the Seventh Army launched an attack towards Luxembourg. In the northern part of the front, the Sixth Panzer Division, equipped with superior weaponry, was tasked with rapidly advancing towards Antwerp.

The American troops positioned in the northern sector offered substantial resistance, effectively hindering the German advance. This resistance proved pivotal in the German strategic plan. On December 17th, the northern forces captured a substantial number of American prisoners near Baugnez. Unfortunately, many of these prisoners were killed in what became known as the Malady Massacre.. The German military continued its slow advance westward and reached the town of Stavelot on December 18th. However, it took the Germans a full day to capture the town. Subsequently, they captured Stoumant after a protracted and challenging battle. In contrast, the American forces successfully recaptured Stavelot. Despite the Germans’ repeated attempts to recapture the town, they were unsuccessful. With the Americans holding Stavelot, the German advance troops were effectively isolated. American reinforcements were arriving, and the Germans were both fuel-depleted and devoid of viable options.
Simultaneously, Allied forces in the center and south of Europe were also effectively halting the German advance. The Americans held St. Vith until December 21st, whereupon they maintained control of the surrounding area. Despite a German breakthrough on December 23rd, which was six days behind schedule, the Germans continued their advance along a progressively narrower axis until they reached the town of Celles, overlooking the Meuse River. The Allies promptly assembled a hastily organized defensive force, effectively stopping the German advance at this point.

In the southern region, the Allies successfully halted the German advance at the town of Bastogne. Serving as a crucial transportation hub, Bastogne had fallen under German encirclement by December 21st. However, on December 22nd, favorable weather conditions allowed the Allied air force to conduct air drops of ammunition and essential medical supplies. In response to the German demand for American surrender, Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe famously responded with the defiant phrase “nuts.”

On December 24th, the Germans made a final attempt to breach American defenses, which were successfully repelled. On Christmas Day 1944, the first elements of Paton’s 4th Armored Division, which had been rapidly advancing north to relieve Bastogne, arrived, effectively ending the siege. While the Germans managed to launch two small counterattacks against the larger American counterattack, the German offensive had come to an end, and any German ability to hinder the Allied advance during the remainder of the war had been effectively curtailed. The Allied air force, combined with the now-available US armor, devastated the German troops who had initiated the attack, making it the bloodiest battle of World War II for American forces, resulting in 19,246 fatalities, 62,489 wounded, and 26,612 missing or captured.

 

 

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