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…
16 December: At a Snail’s Pace
Read more: 16 December: At a Snail’s PaceIt is 5:20 in the morning when artillery fire from the 6th Army begins on the forward US positions, 10 minutes before H hour. Infantry of the 3rd Fallschirmjäger-Division and 12th Volksgrenadier-Division precede the Kampfgruppe to break US resistance along…
15 December: The Eve of Battle
Read more: 15 December: The Eve of Battle78 years ago today, marks the eve of Germany’s last major offensive in the west; the Ardennes Offensive. Initially planned as a “Wacht am Rhein” for November, the offensive was postponed until mid-December. By this time, it was renamed Herbstnebel.…
