On this day in 1945, the WWII Battle of the Bulge was considered , by most authorities to be an Allied victory.... although it was the 25th of January before the Allies gained back all the land the Germans had taken. THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE.... Hitlers last great offensive of the war. It was his plan to break through the allied lines in the area of the Belgium Ardennes Forest, achieve a breakthrough to the west, and then turn north to Antwerp and capture the important port there. The battle started on 16 December, 1944, with the largest German artillery barrage of the war, at 0500 in the morning. The attack and the killing on both sides went on for 4 weeks. At the on set of the battle, 16th of Dec. 1944, each sides strength was: 83,000 Allied troops , 200,000 German troops - 1452 Allied tanks and assault guns, 1361 German tanks and assault guns - 8,607 Allied troops killed, 11,171 German troops killed, ALL THIS ON THE FIRST DAY! By the end of the battle 4 weeks later nearly 555,000 Allied and 600,000 German took part in this campaign. The Allies lost close to 20,000 killed and 49,000 wounded. The Germans lost between 67,000 to 100,000 killed, wounded, or captured. In addition, 3,000 civilians were killed. Of significance in the battle were the American acts of bravery at the Elsenborn Ridge and the town of St. Vith - the murder, by the Germans, of 100 American prisoners at Malmady - and the siege of Bastogne where 14,000 American paratroopers and soldiers were surrounded against overwhelming odds. There were finally relieved by the tanks of George Patton. Typical of the American fighting man, after they battle they claimed they had the Germans whipped, and they didnt;t need Pattons tanks! Visit the USS LST 393 Veterans Museum to learn more about this campaign.
Posted on: Mon, 12 Jan 2015 19:59:51 +0000
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