Battle of Bastogne
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| Battle of Bastogne | |||||||
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| Part of Battle of the Ardennes (World War II) | |||||||
 Map of battlefield movements during the Battle of the Bulge. Bastogne is near the middle. |
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| Combatants | |||||||
 United States |
 Germany |
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| Commanders | |||||||
| Anthony McAuliffe | Hasso von Manteuffel | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 101st Airborne Division, Combat Command B of 10th Armored Division | Nine German divisions (mostly Panzer) (estimated) | ||||||
The Battle of Bastogne was a smaller battle in and around the Belgian town of Bastogne, during the larger Battle of the Bulge. Success of the German offensive, seizure of the harbor at Antwerp with encirclement and destruction of Allied armies, required the German Army mechanized forces to use the roadways in order to maintain the speed of the offensive. All seven main roads in the Ardennes mountain range converged on the small town of Bastogne. Control of the crossroads of Bastogne was vital for both sides since Allied control acted to reduce the speed of the German advance while German control acted to increase the speed of their advance and improved resupply of the German columns as the poor weather conditions made cross country travel difficult. The battle lasted from mid-December 1944 to January 1945.
As Allied command determined that the German army was attacking through the Ardennes into Belgium, they began a series of troop movements to reinforce key points. As part of the troop redeployments to blunt and stop the German attack, the American 101st Airborne Division and Combat Command B of the U.S. 10th Armored Division were deployed to Bastogne.
The Allied forces were were soon surrounded by elements of the German Fifth Panzer Army, outnumbered and lacking cold-weather gear. Due to some of the worst winter weather in years, the surrounded Allied forces could not be resupplied by air nor was tactical air support available requiring the defenders to rely on their organic arms. However, the Germans attacked different points of the defensive perimeter in sequence, violating the military principle of "mass". This played into the American advantage of interior lines of communication and tended to dissipate the German advantage of superior numbers. Allied control of Bastogne was a major obstacle to the German armored advance and the morale of Allied forces elsewhere on the Western Front was boosted by news of the stubborn defense of the besieged town.
When the weather improved on December 23, Allied planes resumed flying, delivering much-needed supplies of food and ammunition to the Allied forces defending Bastogne as well as tactical air support through out the area. Elements of Patton's Third Army, the 37th Armor Regiment, succeeded in punching through to Bastogne, augmenting the defenders the day after Christmas.
The most famous quote of the battle came from the 101st’s acting commander, Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe. When awakened by an enemy request for his surrender, he replied “Nuts!” (his interpreter translated it as “Go to hell!”).
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[edit] Band of Brothers
The legendary Easy Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, U.S. 101st Airborne Division was one of the units present at Bastogne. Band of Brothers, an HBO miniseries based on a book of the same name by Stephen Ambrose, dedicates two episodes ("Bastogne" and "The Breaking Point") to its experiences there.
"The 101st Airborne still had a complaint. As the story of the Battle of the Bulge is told today, it is one of George Patton and his Third Army coming to the rescue of the encircled 101st, like the cavalry come to save the settlers in their wagon circle. No member of the 101st has ever agreed that the division needed to be rescued!" (Ambrose, 191)
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Ambrose, Stephen E. Band of Brothers. New York: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks, 1992.
- Turow, Scott. Ordinary Heroes. Farrar, Straus and Giroux (October 27, 2005)
[edit] External links
