Real heroes. I see the one chap has an A for Airborne.
My granddad passed away about 6 years back. Lost the hearing in one ear when a German 88 MM artillery shell (I believe) exploded nearby.
God Bless those wonderful men...
My great-uncle died during this battle when he was just 19. It is still hard to comprehend the number of casualties of that war. Hundreds or thousands, daily. Just incredible.
God bless all of these American heroes.
When one compares the character and integrity of these men to that of the current administration (fighting to force homosexuality onto our children), it tells us something about how far we have fallen in the past 50 years. Tragic.
My father and three uncles all fought at the Bulge.
My last surviving uncle use to attend the reunions until his death in 2008.
Bless these men, brings tears to my eyes.
GOD BLESS THESE SAVIOURS OF OUR FREEDOM!!!!
“...biggest, bloodiest land fight in U.S. history...”
Not saying Bulge was any kind of tea party, it was a grueling, terrifying hell, but it probably wasn’t as bloody as Gettysburg by a long shot. Correction welcome.
My uncle went through and survived the battle of the bulge and many other campaigns in Europe. A very soft spoken and refined guy, he hardly ever made mention of WWII. As a 2nd Lt.platooon commander, he saw more than his fair share of action. It is only now that I am in my 60’s that I wish I could tell him how much I admired his valor and contribution to this country. Uncle Frank was always more interested in my Viet Nam combat experiences. As I look back on it, I kinda’ think it was his way to deflect my interest and probing in his experiences....and I was always very reluctant to share my experiences. I guess that is what combat does to folks, family or others. Discussion stalmate.
P.S. Even though I now live more than 1,000 miles from where he’s buried, I still have his grave decorated on the Holidays.
My dad was captured December 18th in Heurtgen Forest. He was 3rd Army. Spent 6 months in a German POW camp (most of that time loading and unloading barges outside of Dresden).
He witnessed the bombing of Dresden, and was liberated by the Russians.
The one thing Dad remembers the most is the intense cold. It was one of the coldest winters of the century in Europe.
Interesting, my daughter was born 40 years to the day after his capture.
If anyone is interested in a book dealing with the Bulge at the retail, grunt level I suggest:
Poorly organized and editted but this guy understands combat at the squad and platoon level. I can’t recommend it enough.
About 19,000 U.S. personnel were killed -- some by gunfire, others by the weather -- and about 62,000 were wounded.
“I consider it no sacrifice to die for my country. In my mind, we came here to thank God that men like these have lived rather than to regret that they have died.”
General George S. Patton
My FIL got a silver star and purple heart here.