Posted on 12/16/2018 9:42:01 AM PST by Leaning Right
THESE incredible colourised World War Two photographs reveal the brutal hell soldiers endured during the Battle of Bulge.
This war was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during the war.
(Excerpt) Read more at thesun.co.uk ...
Thanks
Visited many of those areas in May of this year, I was on a Band of Brothers Tour, stayed overnight in Bastogne....
ping
Thanx my dad did reconaisance for this battle, but they called it scouting.
Appreciate the post. FReepers who are interested should look into the Battle of the Hurtgen Forest, which lasted 45 days and killed 24K US GIs.... PRIOR to the last ditch Bulge operation of the Nazis. The Hurtgen Forest was not covered much-— because it was superseded by the Bulge.
Absolutely horrific what happened to our men at Hurtgen— and, with the exception of winter coming on, and the nazis having any further strength to put in— it could have wiped out our forces in that region.
thanks for that...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jx8InfzkHYI
M8 Greyhound vs King Tiger 1944
Outside St. Vith, an M8 Greyhound armored car armed with only a 37mm gun took out a German Tiger II heavy tank.
My Dad fought at Hurtgen Forest. Was wounded and evacuated before the bulge.
I always wanted to do that. How did you like it?
In memory of my late Uncle Fred, 84th. Infantry Division. Wounded 1/3/45, Soy, Belgium. In memory of them all.
Hmmm, sounds familar, where have I heard that before...?
My grandfather was a medic during that battle. He refused to talk about it because of how horrific it had been. While getting his papers in order, we found out that he’d been awarded 2 bronze stars, and even had a letter of commendation from the president.
I often wish we could have found a way for him to meet one of the people he saved. He suffered from severe depression most of his life, and I think that might have helped. I tried searching several times, but his name was so common it was hard to get anywhere.
One of the stupidest decisions by American commanders in the entire war. The Hurtgen Forest battles achieved nothing. The death toll is actually closer to 30,000. Remains of American GIs are still being found there. The attacks, which began in mid October, 1944 were finally called off on December 14, 1944. Two days later the Germans came roaring though the Ardennes.
I suppose water can keep you going in the heat, but cold will get you one way or another without protection. Misery either way.
That’s WAY cool! I’d absolutely LOVE to do that. Must have been simply amazing.
My dad fought in the Battle of the Bulge and received a Purple Heart. He’ll be 93 on December 28. He was just 19. They patched him up and sent him back out when he was out of the hospital. 26th Infantry Yankee Division. He was the bugler. His division liberated a concentration camp but doesn’t remember which one. He does remember the Americans forced the townspeople to line up and walk through the camp. They were cocky and in light spirits going in, but on the way out, it was quite another story. The women were sobbing and the men hung their heads when they had seen what they had allowed.
Grandfather was there, 2nd/3rd wave.
Never talked about it. Few years ago, figured why:
By that time, almost the entirety of the first and second wave had been decimated by artillery and freezing temperatures. Very few of them had winter provisions. Anyways, he most likely arrived watching entire trucks filled with bodies heading back behind lines. I can only imagine the feeling.
He was shot, through and through, and survived. Lived til his early 90s but was dead long before that.
My Father’s Battalion was cutting timber in the Ardennes when their commander was asked if he could cease that operation and move to another blocking the Germans.
He replied that they could and did. As it turned out they missed just about all the combat. Another combat engineer battalion, the 291st did end up right at the tip of the spear.
The Battle of the Hurtgen Forest was actually unnecessary and it’s disgraceful and immoral what they put our troops through.
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