Battle of Bulge Anniversary Remembered at Tree Lighting

American Forces Press Service ^ | J.D. Leipold

[SandRat]

WASHINGTON, Dec. 4, 2009 – The Army’s chief of staff stepped back in history Thursday evening to Christmas Eve in Belgium 65 years ago by reading one of the most inspirational letters written by a commander to his troops.

Gen. George W. Casey Jr., chief of staff of the Army, reads the World War II Christmas letter from Gen. Anthony McAuliffe to his troops during the 13th annual Norwegian Tree Lighting Ceremony in Union Station, Washington D.C., Dec. 3, 2009. The tree is a gift from Norway and a symbol of the friendship between the United States and Norway. DoD photo by Myles Cullen  
(Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available.

“What’s merry about all this, you ask? We’re fighting – it’s cold, we aren’t home,” Gen. George W. Casey read to onlookers at the annual Union Station Christmas tree lighting ceremony and tribute to the 99th Infantry Battalion, a Norwegian-American World War II unit which rescued 52 U.S. soldiers in Malmedy, Belgium.

“All true, but what has the proud Eagle Division accomplished with its worthy comrades, the 10th Armored Division, the 705th Tank Destroyer Battalion and all the rest?” Casey continued reading of the letter written by Brig. Gen. Anthony C. McAuliffe.

McAuliffe was acting commander of the 101st Airborne Division between Dec. 16, 1944 and Jan. 25, 1945, when he and more than 800,000 Allied troops found themselves in a raging battle in Bastogne, Belgium, and the surrounding area. The nearly six-week battle pitted slow-moving, massive German Tiger tanks against nearly twice as small, nimble American Shermans with significantly less firepower.

The outcome of the Battle of the Bulge -- the German army’s last offensive drive to split the Allies in the Ardennes -- ultimately determined who would be left standing at the end of World War II in Europe.

Casey continued reading McAuliffe’s letter to the troops, many of whom that winter were still wearing clothing from the June 6, 1944, D-Day landing on the beaches of Normandy, France.

A special guest at the lighting of the 32-foot fir, 87-year-old Jarvis Taylor was a heavy weapons 30-caliber machine gunner with the 99th Battalion. He recalled in a phone interview how it was a treat to occasionally get shuttled by a jeep behind the battle line for a shower.

“I know it was a great relief to a lot of us when there was a quiet spell where we’d get a chance to have showers, and usually they would give you a change of underwear and maybe socks, but you pretty much had to make do with the uniform you had,” he said.

Casey continued with the Christmas letter in which McAuliffe talked about how the Allies had stopped the German advance, though he had conceded that the Germans had surrounded the Allies while “their radios blared our doom. Their commander demanded our surrender in the following impudent arrogance,” Casey read.

The German commander’s Dec. 22 letter to McAuliffe described how “the fortune of war was changing,” how the American forces were encircled and that there was only one way in which McAuliffe could save his troops from “total annihilation”… through “honorable surrender.” McAuliffe was given two hours to respond.

McAuliffe’s four-letter reply to the German commander: “NUTS!”

Norwegian Ambassador Wegger Chr. Strommen presented the Christmas tree as a gift for the 13th year to the people of the district. The tree bears hundreds of Norwegian and American flags and is accompanied by a ribbon honoring the 99th Infantry Battalion.

Like the troops far from home during Christmas 1944, Casey reminded the crowd that thousands of U.S. servicemembers are serving worldwide this holiday season.

(J.D. Leipold writes for Army News Service.)

Taylor Jarvis, representing World War II veterans of the 99th Infantry Battalion, holds a "hero" teddy bear presented to him by a youngster during the 13th annual Norwegian Tree Lighting Ceremony in Union Station, Washington D.C., Dec. 3, 2009. This year's theme honors the Norwegian and Americans of the 99th Infantry Battalion who fought at the Battle of the Bulge and freed 52 Americans at Malmedy during World War II. DoD photo by Myles Cullen   Download screen-resolution    Download high-resolution

[ConorMacNessa]

Lamh Foistenach Abu!

[Liberty Valance]

A wonderful remembrance of another time when everybody was pulling the wagon in the same direction at the same time. God Bless all our Heroes, those who made it back and the far too many who did not.

Thanks for posting SandRat.

[GoldenPup]

...more than 800,000 Allied troops found themselves in a raging battle in Bastogne, Belgium...

Methinks a slight exaggeration.

[Deo volente]

Actually, it’s a slight underestimation. The Allies had over 840,000 men committed to the fight.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Bulge

[dfwgator]

“How do I feel about being rescued by Patton. I’d feel real peachy about it, except for one thing....We didn’t need to be f’ing rescued by Patton....you got that?” - Joe Toye (From Band of Brothers)

[Reagan Man]

That is right. There was an allied force of over 840K, American, British and Canadians that fought a force of over 500K Germans in the Battle of the buldge. The US suffered 19,246 killed, 47,500 wounded and 23,000 captured or missing.

[Roos_Girl]

Grandpa faught in The Bulge. He died a few years ago. Never talked to us about that time, but gave a recount of some of it to a woman from the VA that we all read after h passed. Amazing. And I surely miss him every day.

[Man50D]

My father was there. It was the coldest winter in fifty years.

[CTGOPPER]

My father fought and was wounded in the Battle of the Bulge. He never talked about it. He passed many years ago but I am proud to display his Purple Heart.

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

I did a route march in the area in Belgium, as part of a tour offered by a local expert. I noted first of all, that the Belgians still haven’t completely cleaned up the place, and that there were artifacts of the war still around in some abundance, and even some depressions where foxholes used to be.

I viewed where many Americans fought and died during the Battle of the Hurtgen Forest, and it made me mildly sick to my stomach. The command was seemingly oblivious to the terrain elevation lines on the map. This resulted in US soldiers fighting up a mountain of slick, wet plates of shale rock, through heavy forest, while artillery rounds exploded in the trees over their heads, blowing deadly splinters at them. Against heavily defended and prepared German positions at the top of the mountain.

The Americans fought and died for literally inches up the side of that mountain. The longest single battle ever fought in US history. From September 19, 1944 to February 10, 1945, over barely 50 square miles. 32,000 Americans died in that battle.

I also saw where the Battle of the Bulge began in earnest. In an area about the size of, and flat as, a football field. In the densest fog Europe had seen in hundreds of years.

On one side of the “football field”, was an American antitank company. A sergeant was in a foxhole with two privates when he heard something in the fog bank in front of their position. So he walked out to investigate. Eventually he saw someone in the fog.

A German soldier. They could only tell who the other were by walking up to each other, face to face, at less than a foot, so that they could see the others’ uniform. When he realized he was looking at an American, the German soldier laughed, then indicated that there was a tank right behind him.

The American NCO took off, jumped into the foxhole to tell the two privates that a tank was coming, and to get their bazooka ready, then he jumped out the other side to tell the Company Commander.

That was the lead tank in a huge German advance column. They kept coming, as the American Commander kept calling for reinforcements. Soon the “football field” became a pitched hand-to-hand battle, as two men would run up to each other with knives and pistols, then desperately look at each others’ uniforms before deciding to kill or not. Illuminated only by the fires of burning tanks.

For over two days.

In an area the size of a football field, and just as flat. A memorial is there today.

Here are the tales of the Medal of Honor recipients in the Battle of the Bulge.

http://www.worldwariihistory.info/Medal-of-Honor/Bulge.html

[Reagan Man]

>>>>>32,000 Americans died in that battle.

Not true.

"The battle claimed 24,000 Americans; killed, missing, captured and wounded, plus another 9,000 who succumbed to trench foot, respiratory diseases and combat fatigue." Link

"The Hürtgen Forest cost the U.S. First Army at least 33,000 killed and incapacitated, including both combat and noncombat losses..." Link

[Stonewall Jackson]

I just read the history of the 106th Infantry Division, the "Golden Lions". A brand-new unit, they had just arrived at the front on Dec. 11, five days before they were hammered by the full force of the German Army. Heavily outnumbered, they fought a desperate holding action before the town of St. Vith, stopping the German advance for three days before two of the division's infantry regiments (the 422nd and 423rd) were forced to surrender. The surviving regiment, the 424th, attached itself to the 7th Armored Division and served with distinction throughout the rest of the campaign.

After thirty-four days of combat, the division was pulled off the front lines and sent back to France for restructuring. The 3rd and 159th Infantry Regiments were assigned to the division, which returned to combat, supporting the 66th Infantry Division for the duration of the war.

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

My error, reporting casualties as killed.

[SuziQ]

LOL! That series is one of our favorites!!

[SuziQ]

I remember seeing a TV special on the Battle in the Hurtgen Forest, and it turned out that one of the groups of soldiers was made up of men of Japanese descent, who were American Citizens. They had a strong impetus to prove themselves in battle for their adopted country.

From what I remember of the Battle it was one of the most poorly managed engagements of the war.

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

Some really awful stuff happened around there. From one ridge line we were shown another mountain. Where we were standing was one US unit, that through the dense fog saw movement on the other mountain, assumed it was German and called in artillery fires on another US battalion.

Our tour guide was a Scotsman who owns, or at least owned, one of the museums/military artifacts stores in the area. He often played host to US veterans who remembered where they had fought down to the square foot, in the innumerable small actions that were very critical to the major battle.

[NonValueAdded]

65th Anniversary bump and to the current Commander In Chief, I say “nuts!”