24/25 December: Breakout
Read more: 24/25 December: BreakoutIn the early morning of the 24th, Peiper was to break out of La Gleize on foot with his remaining men. The secret sign was the phrase “merry Christmas”. The wounded would stay behind, as would a small rearguard who…
23 December: Almost over
Read more: 23 December: Almost overThe 1st and 3rd battalions of 119 IR, which had already taken up their positions around La Gleize yesterday, launched their attack at 8:30. However, they ran into their own roadblock on the road to La Gleize, which in the…
22 December: Fortress La Gleize
Read more: 22 December: Fortress La GleizeLast night, Peiper mustered his troops in the small village of La Gleize. They occupied four defensive positions around the town, near Les Montis and Hassoumont to the north and Wérimont and Dinheit to the south. The Kampfgruppe suffers from…
21 December: Redrawing the Front Line
Read more: 21 December: Redrawing the Front LineDuring the night, US units regrouped around the Stoumont – La Gleize pocket with the aim of completely encircling the Germans.
20 December: Cut-off
Read more: 20 December: Cut-offPeiper was in a dire situation at the beginning of this day. He was forced to withdraw the exposed troops west of Stoumont station. The 119th Infantry Regiment and 740 Tank Battalion attacked and eventually reached the western edge of…
19 December: Terminus Stoumont
Read more: 19 December: Terminus StoumontPeiper’s options to reach the Meuse were now rapidly dwindling, and so were his supplies – especially fuel. In the early morning the attack was launched on Stoutmont, a village just west of La Gleize. A rearguard still defended Cheneux…
18 December: Bridges
Read more: 18 December: BridgesAt dawn, Peiper finally launched his attack on Stavelot. The aim was to secure the ascent to the bridge and cross it. In the meantime, American reinforcements arrived in the small hours by means of a company of the 526th…
17 December: Breakthrough
Read more: 17 December: BreakthroughEarly in the morning, around 4 o’clock, Peiper, together with 1./FJR 9, launched the attack on Honsfeld, with Panther and M4 Sherman tanks. The latter were part of operation “Greif” in which German soldiers disguised as Americans tried to cause…
