Battle of Hürtgen Forest

Battle of Hürtgen Forest
Part of World War II

A farmhouse in Hürtgen served as shelter for HQ Company, 121st Infantry Regiment, 8th Infantry Division, XIX Corps, 9th US Army. They nicknamed it the "Hürtgen Hotel".
Date19 September – 16 December 1944[1]
Location50°42′31″N 6°21′46″E / 50.70861°N 6.36278°E / 50.70861; 6.36278Coordinates: 50°42′31″N 6°21′46″E / 50.70861°N 6.36278°E / 50.70861; 6.36278
German-Belgian border
Result German defensive victory[2][3][4]
Belligerents
 United States  Germany
Commanders and leaders
Omar Bradley
Courtney Hodges		 Walter Model
Strength
120,000 80,000
Casualties and losses
33,000[1][notes 1] 28,000[5]

The Battle of Hürtgen Forest (German: Schlacht im Hürtgenwald) was a series of fierce battles fought from 19 September to 16 December 1944 between American and German forces on the Western Front during World War II in the Hürtgen Forest about 50 sq mi (130 km2) east of the Belgian–German border.[1] It was the longest battle on German ground during World War II, and is the longest single battle the U.S. Army has ever fought.[6]

The U.S. commanders' initial goal was to pin down German forces in the area to keep them from reinforcing the front lines farther north in the Battle of Aachen, where the US forces were fighting against the Siegfried Line network of fortified industrial towns and villages speckled with pillboxes, tank traps and minefields. A secondary objective may have been to outflank the front line. The Americans' initial tactical objectives were to take Schmidt and clear Monschau. In a second phase the Allies wanted to advance to the Rur River as part of Operation Queen.

Generalfeldmarschall Walter Model intended to bring the Allied thrust to a standstill. While he interfered less in the day-to-day movements of units than at the Battle of Arnhem, he still kept himself fully informed on the situation, slowing the Allies' progress, inflicting heavy casualties and taking full advantage of the fortifications the Germans called the Westwall, better known to the Allies as the Siegfried Line. The Hürtgen Forest cost the U.S. First Army at least 33,000 killed and wounded, including both combat and non-combat losses; German casualties were 28,000. The city of Aachen in the north eventually fell on 22 October at high cost to the U.S. Ninth Army, but they failed to cross the Rur or wrest control of its dams from the Germans. The battle was so costly that it has been described as an Allied "defeat of the first magnitude," with specific credit given to Model.[7][8]:391

The Germans fiercely defended the area because it served as a staging area for the 1944 winter offensive Unternehmen: Wacht am Rein (later known as the Battle of the Bulge), and because the mountains commanded access to the Rur Dam[notes 2] at the head of the Rur Reservoir (Rurstausee). The Allies failed to capture the area after several heavy setbacks and the Germans successfully held the region until they launched their last-ditch offensive into the Ardennes.[2][9] This was launched on 16 December which ended the Hürtgen offensive.[1] The Battle of the Bulge gained widespread press and public attention, leaving the battle of Hürtgen Forest largely forgotten.

The over-all cost of the Siegfried Line Campaign in American personnel was close to 140,000.[10]

Background

By mid-September 1944, the Allied pursuit of the German army after the landings at Normandy was slowing down due to extended supply lines and increasing German resistance. The next strategic objective was to move up to the Rhine River along its entire length and prepare to cross it. Courtney Hodges′ First Army experienced hard resistance pushing through the Aachen Gap and perceived a potential threat from enemy forces using the Hürtgen Forest as a base.

The U.S. 1st Infantry Division arrived in early October, joining elements of the XIX Corps and VII Corps, which had encircled Aachen. Although the 1st Infantry Division called for the surrender of the German garrison in the city, German commander Oberst Gerhard Wilck refused to capitulate until 22 October.

It was also thought necessary to remove the threat posed by the Rur dam. The stored water could be released by the Germans, swamping any forces operating downstream. In the view of the American commanders, Bradley, Hodges and Collins, the direct route to the dam was through the forest.[11]:239

Some military historians are no longer convinced by these arguments. Charles B. MacDonald—a U.S. Army historian and former company commander who served in the Hürtgen battle—has described it as "a misconceived and basically fruitless battle that should have been avoided."[11]:239

Geography

Map showing the area of the battle
View to the west over the Kall Valley.

The Hürtgen Forest occupies a rugged area between the Rur river and Aachen. The dense conifer forest is broken by few roads, tracks and firebreaks; vehicular movement is restricted. In the autumn and early winter of 1944, the weather was cold and wet and often prevented air support. Ground conditions varied from wet to snow cover.

The German defenders had prepared the area with blockhouses, minefields, barbed wire, and booby-traps, hidden by the snow. There were also numerous bunkers in the area, mostly belonging to the deep defenses of the Siegfried Line, which were also centers of resistance. The dense forest allowed infiltration and flanking attacks and it was sometimes difficult to establish a front line or to be confident that an area had been cleared of the enemy. The small numbers of routes and clearings had also allowed German machine-gun, mortar and artillery teams to pre-range their weapons and fire accurately. Apart from the bad and very cold weather, the dense forest and rough terrain also prevented proper use of the Allied air superiority, which presented great difficulties in spotting any targets.

The American advantage in numbers (as high as 5:1), armor, mobility, and air support was greatly reduced by weather and terrain. In the forest, relatively small numbers of determined and prepared defenders could be highly effective. To exacerbate matters, as the American divisions took casualties, inexperienced recruits were brought up to the front as replacements.[8]:454, 468–69

The densely forested terrain also limited the use of tanks and provided cover for German anti-tank elements equipped with panzerfaust shaped-charge grenade launchers. Improvised rocket launchers were made, using rocket tubes from aircraft and spare jeep trailers. Later in the battle, it proved necessary to blast tank routes through the forest. Transport was similarly limited by the lack of routes: at critical times, it proved difficult to reinforce or supply front-line units or to evacuate their wounded. The Germans were hampered by much the same difficulties, worsened because their divisions had already taken heavy losses on the retreat through France and were hastily filled up with untrained boys, unfit for service, and old men. Transport was also a problem, because of the difficult roads and the lack of trucks and fuel. Most supplies had to be manhandled to the front line. But the German defenders had the advantage in that their commanders and many of their soldiers had been fighting for some years and had learned the necessary tactics for fighting efficiently in winter and forested areas, whereas the Americans were often well-trained but inexperienced.

The tall forest canopy also favored the defenders. Artillery fire was fused to detonate as tree bursts. "Tree bursts" is a technique of using air bursts by timing artillery shells set to go off in the treetops. This causes hot metal shrapnel and wood fragments to rain down. Since American soldiers had been trained to react to incoming artillery fire by hitting the ground, the technique proved particularly deadly, until American GIs changed tactics to "hug a tree" during bombardment. While defenders were protected from shell fragments (and wooden splinters from the trees) by their dug-in defensive positions, attackers in the open were much more vulnerable. Conversely, U.S. mortar platoons needed clearings in which to work: these were few and dangerous, being pre-ranged by German troops, so mortar support was often unavailable to rifle platoons.

Opposing armies

The Hürtgen Forest lay within the area of the U.S. First Army under the command of Lieutenant General Courtney Hodges. Responsibility fluctuated between the V Corps and VII Corps.

At the start, the forest was defended by the German 275th and 353rd Infantry Divisions; understrength but well prepared—5,000 men (1,000 in reserve)—and commanded by Generalleutnant Hans Schmidt. They had little artillery and no tanks. As the battle progressed, German reinforcements were added. American expectations that these troops were weak and ready to withdraw were over optimistic.

U.S. divisions and formations

German divisions

Battle

First Phase

The 9th Infantry Division's ultimate objective was Roer River crossings at Düren. On September 14, 1944, an attack by the 47th Infantry Regiment captured Schevenhütte, on the northern fringes of the forest, with few casualties. The division had surprised the Germans, but lacked the strength to push on as two of their regiments were committed to the south. Attacks on and around the Höfen-Alzen ridge by the 39th and 60th Infantry Regiments met with heavy resistance and were pushed back. The 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 39th captured Lammersdorf, but could not dislodge enemies entrenched in the woods behind the village; the 3rd Battalion suffered heavy losses attacking Hill 554, near Lammersdorf. In these early engagements, the 9th Infantry Division was unable to eject the Germans from the periphery of the forest, and decided to push through it to the northeast and capture Hürtgen and Kleinhau. The engagement began on September 19, 1944. Repeated probes entered the forest toward their objective, but were beaten back by the terrain and Germans dug into prepared positions. On October 5, the 39th and 60th Infantry Regiments attacked towards the town of Schmidt while the 47th held a defensive position. The Monschau-Düren road was quickly cut, but both regiments were slowed by defenses and suffered significant casualties: the 60th′s 2nd Battalion was reduced to a third after the first day. The 39th was halted at the Weisser Weh Creek; there were problems with narrow paths, air bursts in trees, and fire breaks which were blocked or enfiladed. Evacuation and supply was difficult or impossible. By 16 October, 3,000 yd (2,700 m) had been gained at the cost of 4,500 casualties. The U.S. 28th Infantry Division—a Pennsylvania National Guard unit arrived on 16 October, to relieve the battered 9th.

The 28th Division was reinforced with the attached 707th Tank Battalion, tracked M29 Weasel transport and air support. Of its three regiments, one was deployed to protect the northern flank, another to attack Germeter, and the third to capture Schmidt, the main objective. The area had terrible terrain with the Kall Trail running along a deep river ravine. The terrain was not suited to tanks, despite the need for armor to support the infantry.

A track from a U.S. armored vehicle that was hit and burned in the Kall Valley. The track section has melted into the road.

The attack by the 28th Division started on 2 November; the defenders were expecting it and were ready. The U.S. 109th Infantry Regiment, assigned to capture the woods north of Germeter, was impeded after 300 yards by an unexpected minefield (the "Wild Pig"), pinned down by mortar and artillery fire and harassed by local counterattacks. Just one mile was gained after two days, after which the 109th dug in and endured casualties. This initial attack was nearly all the ground the 109th would take during the battle. The U.S. 110th Infantry Regiment had to clear the woods next to the Kall River, capture Simonskall, and maintain a supply route for the advance on Schmidt: again, these were very difficult tasks due to weather, prepared defenses, determined defenders, and terrain. The weather prevented tactical air support until 5 November.

The U.S. 112th Infantry Regiment, attacking from Germeter, took Vossenack and the neighboring ridge by the afternoon. The 112th was then halted by strong defenses and difficult terrain. The 1st and 3rd Battalions of the 112th moved across the Kall Valley and captured Kommerscheidt and Schmidt, respectively, on 3 November. The German supply route to Monschau was cut, but American supply, reinforcement, and evacuation were very limited as the Kall Trail had poor terrain and was infiltrated by the Germans. At dawn on November 4, a strong German counter-attack by tanks of the 116th Panzer Division and a chance encirclement by troops from the 89th Infantry Division rapidly expelled the 3rd Battalion from Schmidt, and they were unable to counter-attack. The battalion disintegrated after constant shelling and a fierce attack by the 116th Panzer Division and some men inadvertently fled east, to be captured by the Germans.[12] The rest of the battalion retreated to Kommerscheidt to join the 112th's 1st Battalion. Realizing the gravity of the situation, eight M4 Shermans of Company A, 707th Tank Destroyer Battalion attempted to cross the Kall Valley, but only three actually made it across to support the beleaguered 112th. The 116th Panzer Division again attacked with tanks and infantry several times. The American tanks, along with infantry and air support, destroyed five enemy tanks. At Vossenack, the 112th's 2nd Battalion was nearly forced out of the town on November 6 by a fierce German counterattack, but were assisted by engineers in retaking the western part of the town. The Americans across the Kall Valley at Kommerscheidt held on until November 8, when an order to withdraw was given.[13] The positions at Schmidt and the Kall Trail were abandoned. It wasn't until February 1945 that the 82nd Airborne Division permanently captured the Kall Trail and Schmidt.

Of note, a German regimental doctor, Hauptmann Günter Stüttgen, managed to negotiate an unofficial ceasefire with the Americans at the Kall Bridge from 7–12 November, in order to attend to the wounded of both sides. The lives of many American soldiers were saved by German medics.[14]

Second Phase

The second phase was part of Operation Queen, the Allied thrust to the Rur River. In this phase, the U.S. 4th Division was to clear the northern half of the forest between Schevenhütte and Hürtgen, capture Hürtgen and advance to the Rur south of Düren. From 10 November, this would be VII Corps′ responsibility and it was part of the main VII Corps effort to reach the Rur. The 4th Division was now fully committed to the Hürtgen, although its 12th Infantry Regiment was already mauled from its action at Schmidt, leaving just two fully effective regiments to achieve the divisional objectives. U.S. VII Corps was opposed by German forces, mainly from the LXXXI Corps, consisting of three understrength divisions. In the Hürtgen, there was the 275th Infantry Division — 6,500 men with 150 artillery pieces. They were well dug-in and prepared.

The abstract of a U.S. report describes what happened:[15]

The VII (U.S.) Corps, First Army attacked 16 November 1944, with 1st Inf Div, 4th Inf Div, 104th Inf Div, and CCR 5th AD to clear Huertgen Forest and the path of First Army to the Rur River. After heavy fighting, primarily by the 4th Infantry Division, VII Corps' attack ground to a halt. V Corps was committed on 21 November 1944. Attacking with 8th Inf Div, and CCR 5th AD, the V Corps managed to capture Huertgen after stiff fighting on 28 November 1944.

The attack started on 16 November. The two infantry regiments attacked in parallel columns: the 8th along the northern edge of the forest towards Düren, the 22nd further south in parallel. The open flanks invited infiltration. Similar tactics elsewhere in Hürtgen had "invited disaster".

A German heavy mortar firing in defense against a U.S. attack on 22 November 1944 in the Hürtgen forest

Attacks by the 8th Infantry Regiment on Rother Weh Creek hit heavy resistance and were repulsed with heavy losses. The 22nd failed to take Raven′s Hedge (Rabenheck), beaten back by heavy machine-gun and artillery fire along the fire-breaks. After three days, there were 300 losses, including officers and NCOs.

By 18 November, tanks were deemed essential, so engineers blasted tank routes through the forest. Communications and logistics remained a problem, so the next day the attack paused to allow re-supply and evacuation of the wounded. German reinforcements arrived from 344th and 353rd Infantry Divisions and resistance stiffened further.

Responsibility was returned to V Corps and, on 21 November, 8th Division attacked the Weisser Weh Valley, continuing toward Hürtgen. The 121st Infantry Regiment hit heavy defenses immediately. Despite armored support from the 10th Tank Battalion, daily advances were less than 600 yd (550 m). Hürtgen was taken on 29 November and the battle continued to Kleinhau, 1 mi (1.6 km) north.

The final action in the Hürtgen Forest was at Langerwehe-Merode, on the northeastern edge of the forest. Two American companies took the village, but they were later destroyed in a German counter-attack. Later, the secret daily report of the Supreme High Command of the German Army (Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH)) of 27 November, stated that in the old Langerwehe penetration area, the U.S. Army (enemy) won terrain.[16]

Elements of the 8th and the 28th Infantry Divisions then advanced on Brandenberg. The 28th Division—just like the 9th before it (and the 4th Infantry Division, which would relieve the 28th)—also took heavy casualties during its stay in the Hürtgen Forest. On 14 November, the 2nd Ranger Battalion arrived to relieve elements of the 112th Infantry Regiment. On 6 December, the Rangers moved on Bergstein and subsequently took the strategic position of Hill 400 from defending troops from 980th Grenadier Regiment of the 272nd Volksgrenadier Division. Shortly thereafter, on 12 December, the towns of Gey and Strass were taken by American Forces. On the last day of the Hurtgen battle the Germans retook the hill from the 13th Regiment who had replaced the Rangers. The U.S. Army would not seize Hill 400 again until February 1945.[17]

Military actions at the Siegfried Line up to 15 December alone brought death, injury or captivity to more than 250,000 soldiers from both sides. The First and Ninth U.S. Army suffered 57,039 battle casualties (dead, wounded, captured, missing in action); 71,654 non-battle casualties, i.e. accidents, diseases such as pneumonia, trench foot, frostbite, and trauma. German Armed Forces are presumed to be 12,000 dead, 95,000 captured (documented), and an unknown number of wounded.[8]:616

On 16 December 1944, German forces began the Ardennes Offensive, more commonly known as the Battle of the Bulge and as a result further fighting in the Hurtgen ended.[1]

Aftermath

A U.S. halftrack of the 16th Infantry Regiment/1st U.S. Division in the Hürtgen Forest, 15 February 1945

The battle of the Hurtgen ended in a German defensive victory[2][3][4] and the whole offensive was a dismal failure for the allies.[1][18] The Americans suffered 33,000 casualties during the course of the battle, including 9,000 non-combat losses and represented a 25% casualty rate.[1] The Germans had also suffered heavy losses with 28,000 casualties - many of these were non combat and prisoners of war.[5]

The surprise German Ardennes offensive caught Allied forces off guard. The Germans attacked with nearly 30 divisions; including the 1st SS, 2nd SS, and the 12th SS Panzer Divisions, with the northernmost point of the battlefront centered on Monschau.[19] They forced a large salient in the American lines almost sixty miles deep at its maximum extent, but never attained their key goals in the northern sector of their attack.[20] The key to the German advance were Rollbahns in the north that would take them directly to Antwerp. These routes were never opened. SS-Oberstgruppenführer Sepp Dietrich's 6th Panzer Army had been selected to make the main effort.[21] It was entrusted with the offensive's primary objective, capturing Antwerp. However, the Germans never came close to their objective, held up by the 1st, 2nd, 9th, and 99th Infantry Divisions, who refused to yield ground in the battle for Elsenborn Ridge. The 1st SS Panzer Division — and its spearhead formation, known as Kampfgruppe Peiper — of the 6th Panzer Army never got more than halfway to the Meuse River.

To the south, the Germans had somewhat more success. They swept over the vastly unprepared 106th Infantry Division, overrunning two of its regiments who surrendered virtually intact, and finally capturing the key road and rail network in St. Vith. But they didn't get far beyond the village, as the 7th Armored Division and the remaining regiment of the 106th Infantry Division—with elements of the 28th Infantry Division and the 9th Armored Division—held firm outside that town. They never captured the key town of Bastogne and were forced to bypass it, and, although they got within a few miles of the Meuse River, their advance was stopped by the 8th and 104th Infantry Division, and the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions.

The Ardennes Offensive came to a complete halt in early January, when German forces in the northern shoulder of the bulge were blocked by a strong American defence, the destruction of bridges by American engineers, and a lack of fuel.

In early February, American forces attacked through the Hürtgen Forest for the final time. On 10 February, the Rur Dam was taken by American forces, although the Germans had jammed open the dam's floodgates a day earlier, flooding the Rur Valley and delaying the U.S. advance to the Rhine for two further weeks, until 23 February, when the flood waters had receded.

Legacy

There is a stone monument, with a bronze plaque, at the Hürtgen Military Cemetery, dedicated by veterans of the U.S. 4th Infantry Division to the memory of Friedrich Lengfeld (29 September 1921 – 12 November 1944), a German lieutenant. Lengfeld died on 12 November 1944, of severe wounds sustained while helping a wounded American soldier out of the "Wild Sow" ("Wilde Sau") minefield. It is the only such memorial for a German soldier placed by his erstwhile opponents in a German military cemetery.[22]

A memorial sculpture on Kall Bridge recalls that moment of humanity amidst the horrors of war. It was officially dedicated on the 60th anniversary of the ceasefire on the Kall Bridge, November 7, 2004. It was created by Michael Pohlmann, who commented:

I didn't want to create a monument to heroes, no theatrical representation, no pathos, but wanted to appear more unassumingly with a frugal shape, hewn in stone, dignifying the actual place of the incident. A place perhaps, at which once everything may have started rationally, then however, became more and more irrational and totally out of control until a return to sanity—or was it still emotion?—made a humanitarian encounter come true.

The plaque was created by the sculptor Tilman Schmitten, Eupen. The memorial sculpture and plaque were endowed by the Konejung Foundation: Culture[14]

A memorial in Vossenack dedicated to the battle by Father Laurentius Englisch, OFM 
A marker in a Germany Military Cemetery honouring German Lieutenant Lengfeld who gave his life trying to save a US Soldier. 
The sculpture on the Kall Bridge. 

Historical analysis

Historical discussion revolves around whether the American battle plan made any operational or tactical sense. One analysis[11]:240–241 is that the Allies under-estimated the strength and determination remaining in the psyche of the German soldier, believing his fighting spirit to have totally collapsed under the stress of the Normandy breakout and the reduction of the Falaise Pocket.

American commanders, in particular, misunderstood the impassability of the dense Hürtgen Forest and its effects of reducing artillery effectiveness and making air support impracticable. The better alternative of breaking through south-east out into the open valley where their advantages in mobility and airpower could come into play and then head northeast towards the actual objectives seems not to have been really considered by the higher headquarters.[23]

In addition, American forces were concentrated in the village of Schmidt and neither tried to conquer the strategic Rur Dams nor recognized the importance of Hill 400 until an advanced stage of the battle.[24]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ The figure of 33,000 includes 9,000 friendly fire and non-combat casualties during the battle
  2. ↑ The Rur Dam holds back the Rurstausee and is the major structure in a network. Upstream are other, smaller, structures: the Paulushof Dam holding the Obersee and the Urft Dam holding the Urfttalsperre. If the floodgates were opened, the resulting surge would flood low-lying areas downstream and temporarily prevent forces from crossing the river.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Zabecki p. 1537
  2. 1 2 3 MacDonald (1984), p. 594
  3. 1 2 Zaloga (2007), p. 91
  4. 1 2 Bergstrom p. 42
  5. 1 2 Miller (1995) p. 188
  6. ↑ Regan, More military blunders, p.178.
  7. ↑ Whiting, Battle of Hurtgen Forest, pp.xi-xiv, 271–274.
  8. 1 2 3 MacDonald, Charles B. Siegfried Line Campaign Center of Military History, United States Army, 1984.
  9. ↑ Whiting p. 274
  10. ↑ The Siegfried Line Campaign. Charles B. MacDonald. Ch.27
  11. 1 2 3 Neillands, Robin (2005). The Battle for the Rhine 1945. London: Orion Publishing Group. ISBN 0-297-84617-5.
  12. ↑ Miller (1995) p70
  13. ↑ Miller (1995) p83-84
  14. 1 2 Konejung Stiftung: Kultur
  15. ↑ (PDF). http://www.dtic.mil/. 1984 http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a151627.pdf. Retrieved 2007-02-03. Missing or empty |title= (help); External link in |publisher= (help)
  16. ↑ Fabianek, Paul (2012). Folgen der Säkularisierung für die Klöster im Rheinland – Am Beispiel der Klöster Schwarzenbroich und Kornelimünster. Aachen: BoD. ISBN 978-3-8482-1795-3. pp. 25–26 incl. picture of the daily report of the Supreme High Command of the German Army
  17. ↑ Marino, James (October 3, 2016). "Taking Hill 400: Army Rangers vs Fallschirmjägers". Warfare History. Retrieved 19 April 2017.
  18. ↑ Miller (1995) p. 1
  19. ↑ Cole, Hugh M. (1965). The Ardennes: Battle of the Bulge (LC: 65-60001 ed.). Washington, D.C.: Office of the Chief of Military History Department of the Army. p. 86.
  20. ↑ Cole, Hugh M. (1965). The Ardennes: Battle of the Bulge (LC, 65-60001 ed.). Washington, D.C.: Department of the Army, Office of the Chief of Military History. p. 651.
  21. ↑ Cole, Hugh M. (1965). U.S. Army in World War II: The Ardennes: Battle of the Bulge (Chapter 5) (First ed.). Office of the Chief of Military History, Dept of the Army. Archived from the original on 7 August 2010. Retrieved August 12, 2010.
  22. ↑ de:Bild:Lengfeld memorial.jpg
  23. ↑ Richard Atkinson (2013). The Guns at Last Light. pp. 320–324.
  24. ↑ "Hopes Dashed in the Hürtgen" by Edward G. Miller and David T. Zabecki August 16, 2005, originally an article in World War II magazine

Bibliography

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