Bastogne: World War II battle and battlefield tours.
Latest hand-picked WWII news.
WWII officer Harry W.O. Kinnard suggested the reply "nuts" to Germans
Harry W.O. Kinnard, who suggested the famous answer "Nuts!" to a Nazi demand for surrender during the 1944 Battle of the Bulge, has passed away. Kinnard, who graduated from West Point in 1939 and spent 30 years in military uniform, was one of the men behind the Army's concept of helicopter use in Vietnam. He parachuted into Normandy on D-Day with the 101st Airborne Division. When Hitler launched an offensive in Dec. 1944, the 101st took over Bastogne road junctions and was soon encircled. When demanded to surrender Brig. Gen. Anthony McAuliffe remarked "Us surrender? Aw, nuts" and then wondered how he should reply. Kinnard suggested: "what you just said... nuts."
(nytimes.com)
A M4 Sherman tank confirmed to be the "Cobra King" - The first tank to reach Bastogne
A WWII-era M4 Sherman tank on display at Rose Barracks in Vilseck, Germany has been confirmed to be the "Cobra King," the first tank to reach encircled American troops holding Bastogne. U.S. Army officials announced the discovery, timed to co-occur with the Dec. 26, 1944, anniversary of the Company C, 37th Tank Battalion's famed arrival in Bastogne. The tank was id'ed by serial and registration numbers. Officially designated as an M4A3E2 Assault Tank, the Sherman "Jumbo" was built in mid-1944 at the Detroit Tank Arsenal. Only 254 of the tanks were built.
(stripes.com)
Bob Burdick restores WWII-era Jeep, travels European war route (Article no longer available from the original source)
One of Bob Burdick's greatest regrets is that he never served in the U.S. military. But rebuilding a World War II-era Jeep and driving it from Normandy to Bastogne came as close as he could get. "It was the trip of a lifetime," said Burdick, whose passion for military history became the foundation for spring's road trip. It also was a tribute to fellow Civil War buff, Richard Tonelli, whose father Rudolph drove a Jeep through France, Belgium and into Luxembourg as part of General George Patton's 3rd Army in 1944-1945. He spent a week in Normandy, where he helped lower the U.S. flag at the military cemetery at the end of one day.
(greenbaypressgazette)
Touring the Bastogne Region - Trail of Ardennes Offensive (Article no longer available from the original source)
I follow the signs - so did the tanks in December 1944 and January 1945. Near the Luxembourg village of Hamm is the American Cemetery. Most of the 5,076 U.S. soldiers here died during the Battle of the Bulge. One of the exceptions: General George S. Patton, who died in Dec 1945 in Germany and was buried here, with his Third Army troops. At Ettelbruck museum the signs and photo captions tell their own story of war. One photo is captioned: "Hitler Youth in front of Ettelbruck Primary School." Then there are the glass showcases full of helmets, weapons and gas masks. None cleaned and polished, but left crusted with the natural grime that come with burial.
(philly)
Belgians to restore historic American M4 Sherman tank at Bastogne
An American tank got blasted, though not by one of the usual suspects. Of all people, it was a group of Belgians, and they sprayed the armored vehicle hard enough to peel paint. One of the participants, a soldier, even called the experience a privilege. "I never thought that one day I would work on that tank," said Adjutant Daniel Libert, a maintenance chief at a Belgian military arsenal in Rocourt. If all goes as planned, the Sherman M4 tank, that has been absent from McAuliffe Square in Bastogne, will return by Memorial Day. Bastogne is linked to the largest land battle in U.S. military history: the Battle of the Bulge.
(estripes)
The untold story of the American soldiers and the battle of bastogne
In "Alamo in the Ardennes: The Untold Story of the American Soldiers Who Made the Defense of Bastogne Possible," historian John McManus provides a fresh insight into the legendary defense of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge. The story of the 101st Airborne Division`s defense of the road junction fails to acknowledge the role that small groups of outnumbered American soldiers, in units like the 28th Infantry Division and 9th Armored Division, played in slowing the German advance. It`s a story he learned when he worked as a tour guide and historian with Stephen Ambrose Tours, leading groups to various beaches in Normandy.
(newswise)
Signs of WWII battle - and gratitude - in the Bastogne, Ardennes (Article no longer available from the original source)
World War II foxholes remain in the forests of the Belgian Ardennes. For anyone with a sense of history and interest in WWII, this is a remarkable journey for anyone interested in the battles of WW2. The Battle of the Bulge was America's bloodiest battle ever. More than a million soldiers, Americans and Germans, clashed on Dec 1944. Signature battle of the Bulge: At Bastogne, a town of 5,000, where German Panzer units encircled the American 101st Airborne Division, which was under the command of Gen. Anthony McAuliffe. Four days later, the German siege was broken by a tank battalion from General George Patton's 3rd Army.
(bradenton)