Posted on 12/19/2004 6:11:58 AM PST by WestTexasWend
BASTOGNE, Belgium (AP) — Amid snow flurries and a chilling wind, Belgium's King Albert II honored U.S. soldiers who died fighting Nazi Germany 60 years ago in the Battle of the Bulge, the largest land battle for American forces in war.
Veterans from across the United States returned Saturday to find this market town that was at the center of the fighting much as it was on that bitter cold December in 1944 — covered in snow and buffeted by wind.
The old soldiers, wearing military berets and caps, were greeted with warm applause, hugs and kisses from a grateful crowd that lined the streets.
"I'm very happy to see so many people come out for this event," said Miasy Dumont, 68, from nearby Ludelange, Luxembourg. "This is the last time I'm sure. In 10 years there will be no more veterans."
(Excerpt) Read more at lubbockonline.com ...
Feature that in today's America. The MSM would faint.
The New York Times editorial board would have condemned General McAuliffe's "Nuts!" response to the Germand surrender demand.
"Cashews!"
Gezuntheit!
Good article. It's nice to read something positive about US/European relations. We pd a very big price in ww2. Don't want to gloat, but if it weren't for American assistance in ww2, western europe would probably be speaking german.
And... Patton's 3rd Army
Two days after the Germans launched their Ardennes offensive, the 4tb Armored entered the fight (18 December 1944), racing northwest into Belgium, covering 150 miles in 19 hours. The Division attacked the Germans at Bastogne, helping to relieve the besieged 101st Airborne.
The above is slightly referenced in the movie "Patton" when G C Scott says he could get 'his' tanks there in time to 'save' the 101st. And IIRC the 4th entered Bastogne proper on 26, Dec 1944. This is also the famed Patton advance also mentioned during our rapid advance from Kuwait into Iraq.
Btw, my uncle Roy respected the HELL out of Patton. I never heard ONE bad word against Patton by my uncle. So all his troops did NOT hate his guts (but that does make good fodder for the 'media').
An aside:
The 4th Armored Division's discovery of the Ohrdruf camp opened the eyes of many U.S. soldiers to the horrors perpetrated by the Nazis during the Holocaust. The 4th Armored Division was recognized as a liberating unit by the U.S. Army's Center of Military History and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1985.
http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/dadswar/bulge/ But what about Bastogne? In popular thinking, the Battle of the Bulge is synonymous with the Battle of Bastogne. This is very unfortunate, since it ignores the real military keys (holding the northern shoulder and holding St. Vith) to the defeat of the Germans. Journalists hungry for some sign of American success at stopping the German onslaught played up the defense of Bastogne, where Gen. Anthony McAuliffe (101st Airborne Division) said "Nuts" to a German surrender demand and where the Third US Army (10th Armored Division) broke through the German Seventh Army's buffer to reach the surrounded town on Day 3 of the Battle of the Bulge. This was truly heroic stuff. But from a military strategy point of view (and this can easily be seen on the map above), while Bastogne was a strategically important major road junction for sustaining the attack, it was on the periphery of the attack and well behind the initial front lines. The German plan was to have the panzers bypass Bastogne and let the later echelons of infantry and artillery units clean it out. And the panzers did succeed in bypassing Bastogne, so that their plan in that sector was on schedule.
As a source for rallying U. S. spirits, the defense of Bastogne and McAuliffe's "Nuts" were a success. But from a strategic perspective, the German fate had already been sealed at St. Vith, when they could not take that critical supply center on Day 2 - nor on Days 3, 4, 5, and most of 6. Bastogne did not become surrounded by forces intent on taking it until the night of December 21, Day 6 of the Battle of the Bulge. And the famous "Nuts" did not come until December 22, Day 7. Heroic as the deeds of the defenders of Bastogne were, the defense of Bastogne is a very important secondary element but not one of the true strategic keys to the German failure.
Thanks to all for the pics, patches & links!
Glad they remember it over there...wish we'd remember it more over here.
Really neat interactive website for the Battle of the Bulge Museum Diekirch Luxembourg
http://www.nat-military-museum.lu/
The Germans call it "Nasskalt," which means "wet cold." The north wind blows down from the North Sea, and it penetrates you right to the bone. Somehow, it doesn't seem to matter how much insulation you are wearing. Wool, down, gloves... spend more than a few minutes outside, and lemme tell ya, none of them make much difference.
The longest I was outside was maybe two hours, getting a walking tour of Bonn. I remember the cold to this day even though it was ten years ago.
The soldiers of the Battle of the Bulge were out in much worse than I endured for weeks. They didn't have gloves lined with 3M "Thinsulate" super-fiber insulation. They didn't have goose-down parkas. Some were wounded and kept on fighting. Words are inadequate.
We drove in our rented Opel down from Aachen through Belgium, and down to Luxembourg, then back across into Germany at Trier (birthplace of Karl Marx).
Much of the drive through Belgium was through the Ardennes forest. Mile after mile of these little pine trees, oddly identical in form (like trees on a tree farm) and kind of sparsely distributed, not at all like a "shwartzwald" kind of forest. As I stole glances into the forest (I was driving, and paranoid about having an accident) I thought how difficult it would be to find cover from an attacker in there. I also thought about how d*mn cold it was.
(steely)
We're eating nuts at our house on Wednesday to commemorate General McAuliffe's "Nuts" response to the German demand for surrender.
My grandfather was in Patton's Third Army at the time of the Bulge. He died twelve years ago and I miss him at this time of year because he always appreciated Christmas so much due to the fact he survived that awful time in 1944.
Just looking at them makes me feel like shivering.
(steely)
Or perhaps Russian
I worked with an old man in a machine shop when I was a kid. He had been wounded at "The Bulge" as he called it on the rare occasions when he spoke of it. He was convinced that the only reason he lived through his wounds was because it was so cold, his blood oozed instead of flowing quickly. Tough guy, very tough guy
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