Know that the Battle of the Bulge was one of the great confrontations fought under drastic winter conditions for almost seven weeks during World War II and that it stood out as a great offensive by the German army, do not miss it.
What was the Battle of the Bulge?
The Battle of the Bulge was an armed conflict launched in the form of an offensive by the Germans from December 16, 1944 to January 25, 1945 in the midst of World War II.
It was fought within dense forests and mountains belonging to the Ardennes territory of Belgium; specifically in Wallonia and from there comes its name in French “Bataille des Ardennes” having France and Luxembourg as countries that made up the Western Front.
This warlike conflict was also identified within the United States as the “Ardennes counter-offensive” representing in this sense a German surprise thrust that required a great effort by the United States Army forces to be contained.
This German offensive in turn was supported by several strategic operations that were identified as Greif or the use of a false flag, Bodenplatte, through an air attack by the Lufwafle, force in charge and offensive Währung carried out by the troops at the front of his offensive in the Ardennes.
Development of the Battle of the Bulge
On December 16, 1944, when it was 5:30 in the morning, the Germans proceeded to deliver their initial assault by means of a large artillery barrage that lasted approximately an hour and a half, advancing about 130 kilometers over the territory in their hands. of the allied troops.
Immediately, great snow storms began to bury several regions of the Ardennes, which, on the other hand, allowed the Allied air force to remain on the ground without responding to this attack.
However, the weather conditions caused problems for the German army, which undoubtedly hindered their advance. Major traffic jams arose, in addition to fuel shortages to feed their forward units.
This battle was fought by Von Manteuffel’s Panzer Army which attacked at the level of Bastogne and Saint-Vith, road junctions of important strategic importance.
While another offensive was being carried out by Brandenberger’s army pressing towards Luxemburg to secure their southern flank in this way.
Ultimately, the Panzer Army overwhelmed the US troops in charge of defending the Ardennes and captured about seven thousand prisons in just one day.
Although no one on the allied side expected this attack, they were taken by surprise, in addition to the fact that the weather was in terrible conditions and most of their weapons were inaccessible.
The German army had the opportunity to carry out other attacks, such as from the north on the Elsenborn ridges, but the allied attack managed to create a bottleneck to hold back the advance of Dietrich’s Panzer troops, who intended to control many nearby towns such as Rocherath and Krinkelt.
Although the Battle of the Bulge was an armed contest characterized by gaining and losing ground by troops on both sides, it took place for approximately seven weeks, resulting in the loss of many lives.
This is recorded by events such as the massacres carried out by troops under the command of SS Sturmbannführer Werner Pötschke, who for no apparent reason opened fire on their prisoners.
An event that was known within the allied forces; resulting in the massacre of Chenogne that on New Year’s Day in 1945, the American soldiers decided to shoot their prisoners.
Despite the fact that these war operations continued on both sides, the Battle of the Bulge came to an end on January 25, 1945, with which the fate of the Third German Reich and the end of the Second World War would be sentenced.