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The response was to a German letter threatening to annihilate over , US troops in what was to be known as The Battle of the Bulge. Seventy-four years ago on December 16, Adolf Hitler ordered what eventually would be the last major offensive of the Third Reich.
The plan according to some of my interviews with WWII veterans that were there, looked like it might work. The plan was to split, surround and capture—or kill the—US troops. They would use a surprise all-offensive attack known as a blitzkrieg. The thick Ardennes forest in Luxembourg and Belgium was the perfect location for the ambush.
It was a brutally cold winter, roads were either non-existent or impassable. Over a quarter-million German troops were moved into place as all hell broke loose as they advanced into Bastogne. After a week of battle, on December 22, at am, four German soldiers waving white flags approached the American lines. Major Wagner from the 47th German Panzer Corps requested to see the US commanding officer, he had a written message to deliver. The message was this surrender letter:.
Commander of the encircled town of Bastogne. The fortune of war is changing. This time the U. More German armored units have crossed the river Ourthe near Ortheuville, have taken Marche and reached St. Hubert by passing through Hompre-Sibret-Tillet. Libramont is in German hands.
There is only one possibility to save the encircled U. But they were still confused. Harper discussed how to explain the American slang with Pfc.
Ernest Premetz, a medic who spoke German. Instead, Premetz turned and faced the Germans. Despite the German threat, artillery fire never materialized. Then the German air force began a four-day bombing campaign that failed to dislodge the American defenders. But McAuliffe inspired his soldiers even further with a Christmas Eve message to his troops that explained the situation.
All true, but what has the proud Eagle Division accomplished with its worthy comrades the 10th Armored Division, the th Tank Destroyer Battalion and all the rest? The siege was finally broken on Dec. By Jan. But months before the Germans surrendered in May , an American intelligence report summarized what had happened on that cold day in Belgium, when the tables were turned and the Germans had the upper hand.
The catastrophic carnage of human lives resulting from the artillery barrage of astronomic proportions which was to be the fate of the defending troops failed to materialize. Reach out via email or find him on Twitter at paulszoldra. Contact the author here. The photo shows then-Staff Sgt.
Louis A. Capozzoli, and he is not on his way to steal your girl.
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