McAuliffe was commander of 7th Army at Heidelberg during the postwar occupation. My dad was stationed there at the time.
If I recall correctly McAuliffe had learned to speak German and made a point of cultivating good relations with the German people. He was well respected by the locals.
I have visited the main town square in Bastogne, very moving. Most people would be surprised at what is there: Two American tanks in perfect condition. A bust of General McAuliffe with the “Nuts” quote. And fresh flowers are put on the tanks and in front of the bust every day!
Nearby is an incredible museum of German equipment and personal items carried by the soldiers. I was with my WWII vet father. We had rooms in a nearby town but he wanted to stay the night in Bastogne. We went into a beautiful hotel and he asked the manager about a room. The manager said: “I’m sorry, we are full.” Then he noticed dad’s WWII vet hat. He said, “You’re an American WWII veteran?” Dad answered yes. The manager paused and then said, “You and your wife will stay in my manager’s room tonight.”
lol, what’s Pelosi’s problem, that her “husband’ is getting hammered while she is out of town?
Anyway, thank you for this thread. At this time of the year 79 years later, I give thanks to those men who fought and died in that unseasonably frigid winter in Belgium so that I could sleep in a warm, dry bed this December night in 2024.
I grew up across the street from a Battle of the Bulge infantry veteran, and his son remains a close friend. As Mr. W described his experience, the battle was a matter of being cold and hungry in the woods for several weeks, with his platoon assigned to various road blocks. Their instructions were to defend their position no matter what against the expected advance of German panzers. Mercifully, for him, the Germans did not appear and he lived to tell the story of his small part in a sprawling, confused battle.
I always mention my friend, he like me being Airborne because when he was a tanker at the Bulge and his tank was destroyed and he was hiding down in the mud underneath it with only his 45 and with 3 bullets left, paratroopers rescued him.
Even all the years later when I knew him you could still hear the sincerity in his voice about the situation he was in, and how grateful he was to have friendlies show up clearing the battlefield.
I think the 19,000 killed number includes both sides. That’s a lot of dead.
The Ardennes: Battle of the Bulge by Hugh M. Cole
one of the Green Books; downloadable
https://www.history.army.mil/html/books/007/7-8-1/index.html
also, The Bitter Woods by John Eisenhower
101st vet here, 81-84 at Ft Campbell, KY. Absolutely loved that assignement and the history that surrounded me every day I was there. The first Division Commander in his activation speech said, “You have no history but you have a rendevous with destiny” He could not have been more correct. God bless every soldier and veteran who has served as a Screaming Eagle!
My Grandfather was an pontoon Bridge buldiwr in Paton’s 3rd Army, and was wounded during the Battle.
My mom’s twin brother was 82nd airborne. Flew into Normandy in DDay….ended up well behind enemy lines. It took he and his platoon fourteen days to hook up with American troops. He later rode a glider into Holland for Operation Market Garden, barely getting out and then was relieved by the 101st in Bastogne…..he marched to St. Vith……his time in Europe wasn’t easy. He rarely spoke of any of his time there other than to say when he was behind enemy lines in Normandy they had to eat rats they cooked in the darkness…..
"Before The Battle of the Bulge, there was a Battle of The Bulge."
"To Save Bastogne: The Untold Story of The Battle of The Bulge",
Robert F. Phillips
Robert Phillips was a rifleman in the 110th Regiment, 28th Division.
Phillips writes from the perspective of an individual soldier, with emphasis on his own unit and the 687th FABN, which served as artillery support for the 28th Division at the time of The Bulge.
Unfortunately, there is no published unit history for the 687th FABN because the officer who was the designated unit historian was killed in a night attack at a place that 687th veterans called "The Crossroads".
The action at The Crossroads was east of Bastogne, as the 28th Division was fighting rear guard action and withdrawing to the west, toward a defensive line that included St. Vith to the north, and Bastogne. This delayed the krauts just long enough for the 101st Airborne and other aforementioned assets to arrive in Bastogne.
After the war, the 687th FABN received a unit citation for this action before being disbanded. The only unit history that exists is the occasional mention in history written by other observers, such as Robert Phillips.
Repost so links appear:
Partial Bibliography:
A Time for Trumpets by Charles B. MacDonald
Death Traps: The Survival of an American Armored Division in WW II by Belton Y. Cooper
WWII Armored Division
http://xbradtc.com/2008/10/24/wwii-armored-division/
10th Armored Division (United States)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._10th_Armored_Division http://www.combatreels.com/10th_Armored_Division.cfm
9th Armored Division (United States)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._9th_Armored_Division
Battle of the Bulge
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Bulge
Siege of Bastogne
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Bastogne
705th Tank Destroyer Battalion
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/705th_Tank_Destroyer_Battalion
Why the General Could Say, ‘Nuts!’
http://www.wsj.com/articles/why-the-general-could-say-nuts-letters-to-the-editor-1419984120
Because "Boobs" in combat wasn't A Thing back then?
-PJ
I’ve always wondered, did he really say “bullshit” or something like that and was the story re-told for the 1940s home front?