Thanks for watching our penultimate video of the year! Do you think the Ardennes Offensive was doomed to fail from the beginning, or do you think it could have worked? Let us know!

@chrishoff402

2 жыл бұрын

I recall reading, one of Hitler's top generals was handed the plan and told to lead attack. He looked at it and asked if portable bridges were available to cross the Meuse River. He was informed there were no portable bridges, he was expected to capture the existing bridges intact. He stated that at that point he immediately knew the offensive would fail because the bridges would be destroyed by the allies long before they could be reached.

@williampaz2092

2 жыл бұрын

When they saw the plan Field Marshal Gerd von Rudstundt snapped “ANTWERP? If we reach the Meuse River we should fall to our knees and thank God!” Field Marshal Walter Model snarled “This damn plan doesn’t have a leg to stand on!”

@dcmkeudnf

2 жыл бұрын

Hitler's plan had zero chance of success. 1. If we make the outrageous assumption that Nazi forces make it to Antwerp, they could not have taken it. Stalingrad held out against the whole Sixth Army, when the Red Army did not have air superiority, back up with navel guns, and relatively easy resupply through a port like Antwerp. 2. Hitler expected to substantially weaken or destroy the British troops in the north causing the British to panic. But they could have been supplied by the heavy bombers of the Eighth Air Force and Bomber Command for long enough, if not forever. 3. Nazis around Antwerp could not have been supplied. Bridges over the Meuse river would have been bombed out faster than they could have been built. And the same for any other bridges. 4. The Germans would have quickly been surrounded and destroyed. Hitler was defeated at Stalingrad when the Red Army pierced through its flanks, which were weakly defended, in Operation Uranus. There were simply not enough Germans to attack a major city and hold the flanks of the corridor leading to it from the main German line. This was even more true in the Ardennes Offensive. The weak 7th Army was to hold the left flank against as much of the American First and Third as could be deployed against them? And what was to hold the other flank against the British?

@malcolmboyd3503

2 жыл бұрын

Even if the offensive had gone better for the Germans, by this stage in the war, they were heading for a catastrophic defeat. Unfortunately, they were not aware of that evidentiary fact.

@henrivanbemmel

2 жыл бұрын

Yes, the German Offensive was foolish and doomed to fail and resulted in the Soviets coming far further into Germany than might have been otherwise. Hitler was past delusional and this time and I believe thought if he messed up the Western Allies, he would then be able to further concentrate on the East. He did not have the reserves for that. He did not have the gas for this or the air power. If you are going to create a large salient like this one then you have to expect counter attacks on your flanks. He was hoping the terrain would prevent this, but the US had too much of everything for this. Given the situation in late 1944, I think the Germans should have put token resistance in the West and put there resources to the East. The Germans knew they had been 'bad masters' in the East and so with the coming of the Red Army the German populace was naturally going to suffer many indignities and I think it clear from Stalin's general mindset they were not going to go home for a long time given the cost in blood they paid. I do not really understand why especially after Falaise that the Germans decided to push so hard in the West. They were not going to win that (or in the East), but it cost so many lives for not much on the German side. If by not doing the Bulge and putting comparatively token resistance in the West, perhaps the true meeting of the two sides might have been the Oder instead of the Elbe. Now, the Yalta agreement might have stood, but it is hard to say whether Truman would have allowed the Russians into central Europe if they had not conquered part of it. Interesting Question. I played numerous SPI war games of the Bulge when I was young and even with the 'all out German effort option' I really think they had no chance. I was never able to breakthrough anywhere near to the extent that the Germans did. That may properly reflect on my Generalship, but the logistics of the German situation were perilous and the Allies had (a) endless artillery and (b) uncontested air power. So, basically, using historical weather you have to win this in a week (ie before Patton's weather prayer took effect) or the USAAF will neutralize you. Not discounting any of the Allied troops heroism and sacrifice, but Germany as much lost WW2 as they were beaten. If they had not invaded Russia. If Doenitz had his 300 submarines, if Goering had run the Luftwaffe properly, if the enigma machine had not been broken, had the US not had FDR, the British Churchill, if the Germans had used all their battleships at once instead of singly and so on, aside from the Bomb, I don't know if Hitler could have been displaced. I have been told that the Germans never lost a battle (not a firefight) where they had a numerical superiority. I am so glad the Nazi's lost, but holy cow, this could have gone differently. I recently rad Speer's autobiography and to me it is clear that the whole thing was a gangster rule from the beginning with more in common (save the uniforms) with Al Capone than a respectable government. I thought that disinformation would never have the traction it did them due to aggressive control of the media. However, along came the internet with so many undocumented news sources that people simply gravitate to one that agrees with them. Not sure where we go from here.

I was a 19 yr old replacement - grandma's boy raised in sunny Fla, - and ended as a replacement in a foxhole in the Ardennes! I complained I couldn't feel my feet. The medics told me I'd feel them again come spring! If you're still alive, they added. I did and I was so here I still am. Just survived a prostate operation and feel like new - now 96yrs - next pause: 100!

@patlevv7382

Жыл бұрын

GLAD u made it thru🥺😬

@edgarvalderrama1143

Жыл бұрын

@@patlevv7382 Thanks!

@GSXK4

Жыл бұрын

That's awesome

@CynthiaLSimmons

Жыл бұрын

Thank you for your service!

@treylem3

Жыл бұрын

👍

One of the reasons so many vets settled in Florida is because of this battle, and others throughout that winter. One of them stating "I will never be cold again a single day of my life."

@shirtless6934

2 жыл бұрын

😄

@Au60schild

2 жыл бұрын

Impressive history which I did not know. Thumbs up.

@americaisacontinent.

2 жыл бұрын

lol here in Canada we love the cold.

@kramchancel1266

2 жыл бұрын

This is not even true.

@jobertdumale872

2 жыл бұрын

What about texas and arizona?

Bizarrely it was actually good news for the allies, the bulge took months off of the end of the war, Germany expended so much materiel there was little left for their home defence.

@F.R.E.D.D2986

2 жыл бұрын

Nah. The east was falling apart by 1944

@Caratacus1

2 жыл бұрын

Yeah and there is a theory that Eisenhower knew it was coming and left that part of the line weak in order to tempt the Germans out into an attack. Otherwise he faced months of brutal battles digging them out of their prepared defences. There were plenty of intelligence indicators to say an attack was brewing. It's a theory that some well known authors subscribe to, but I'm not entirely sure myself.

@michaeldunne338

2 жыл бұрын

Basically lost most of their armored fighting vehicles in the west; and it seems the bulk of their production runs of Panthers and Panzer IVs from summer and fall.

@michaeldunne338

2 жыл бұрын

@@F.R.E.D.D2986 The Soviet lines in Poland stabilized around Warsaw and south along the Vistula in September. The Vistula-Oder offensive would kick off on 12 January, which would bring the Soviets up to the Oder by January 31 (then things really fell apart). Aside from the vicinity of East Prussia, most of pre-war Germany (before Sept 1939 boundaries) in the east had not been invaded yet, prior to that offensive (nor even lands within pre-WWI Germany).

@justonemori

2 жыл бұрын

For big Armour sure, I'll give that to you. But please consider that Germany had enough small arms to fight WW3 spread across Germany at that point. They were handing Panzerfausts to children at the very end.

My uncle landed on Normandy on D day, late in the day. He then fought the Nazis across France. He was injured in the Battle of the Bulge. He spent almost a year in a French Hospital. He was wonderful, fun, loving, hard- working. Seemingly unfazed by anything. He would never discuss the war. my Mom’s birthday was Dec. 16th. He would occasionally say something about the war on her Birthday. He still had shrapnel. I remember asking him about the war. The only thing he told me was how happy he was to see Lady Liberty in the New York Harbor and how we would never ever leave the USA again. RIP.

@hiigara2085

2 жыл бұрын

Glad you got him back.

@SeattlePioneer

2 жыл бұрын

> "Travel" is a much exaggerated virtue.

@Notreallyhereanymore

2 жыл бұрын

Was he in the 101st airborne

@LdyVder

Жыл бұрын

@@Notreallyhereanymore Doubtful being the 101st jumped into Normandy the night before the landing at the beaches.

@haeuptlingaberja4927

Жыл бұрын

Same story with my uncle, but he never made it back and I only knew him through pictures and stories. November 16, 1944. Weird thing was that he was never meant to be a soldier at all. The Army took him out of the seminary 6 months shy of his ordination as a priest because he was a gifted linguist and they really needed people who spoke fluent German and French. Terrible irony is that he was killed quite near the village his great-grandfather had left a hundred years earlier to come to America. I went there 40 years after the war and talked to the locals, who were very kind. One old man invited me into his house and told me many stories about the war during the fall and winter of 44-45. He also remembered my family name but said that he never saw any of them again after the war and had no idea what had happened to them, but he also said that this was very common--whole families displaced or killed. His own family was almost completely destroyed, and even all those years later his anger, sadness and hatred for the Nazis were very, very powerful, as he alternately cried and raged at the insanity of it all. Our 3 or 4 hour conversation was one of the most emotionally draining experiences of my life, as the old man's emotions mirrored exactly those of my grandmother, whose heart was just broken by the death of my uncle...

I knew a guy who fought in the Battle of the Bulge and froze his feet. He was able to work as a long time telephone line repairman but his feet always bothered him until the day he died. R.I.P. Bob Preboski.

@pd4682

Жыл бұрын

The best exact same thing happened to my dad. He suffered with foot pain for the rest of his life.

@amateur_football9751

8 ай бұрын

And what did the US government do for his pain? nothing, Hence why I would have done anything and everything to avoid being sent to the front, its not worth it

@psilobom

7 ай бұрын

​@@amateur_football9751once you get frostbite/nerve damage it usually isn't something you *can* do anything about. You make it sound like the US did absolutely nothing for its vets and wounded. Chances are he got that job working as a telephone pole worker using skills he learned in the Military, or even with the G.I bill to go to school. Veterans had plenty of options to re-enter the work force and to live out their lives being of use to their community, or to go off and pursue their own passions.

@edgarvalderrama1143

4 ай бұрын

I went to the medics with what I (coming from Florida) thought were frozen toes. They sent me back telling me I'd feel them come spring "if I was still around." I guess they saw me as a dead man but Spring came and sensation did return. (I was also still alive)

My dad 82nd airborne, after borrowing a German half-track he was wounded in Belgium,his buddies protected him while shooting the gun and saved him when he got hit,,,I love those guys

@chrismurry3763

2 жыл бұрын

My grandfather was also 82 airborne

@eliyahumorning

2 жыл бұрын

Whoop de freakin' doo.

@Nox117

2 жыл бұрын

Brutal typos, almost hard to understand what the hell you're saying.

@kevinkelly7554

2 жыл бұрын

@@Nox117 sorry head injury, couldn't see colors for years

@BA-gn3qb

2 жыл бұрын

If he didn't give the half-track back, it's Not Borrowing.

Yesterday, Friday , June 17th 2022, I was honored by Officiating the Funeral Service for Pfc William F. Werkman co. A, 3rd Bn., 394th Inf. Reg. 99th Inf. Div., one of the last few survivors of the Battle of the Bulge. He was 100 year old. Bill will be greatly missed! Rest in peace Soldier, and one last time, Thank you for your Service Sir!

@jim2376

Жыл бұрын

Deep gratitude for the service of Pfc Werkman and to you and those in attendance at the service he deserved.

@garyteague4480

Жыл бұрын

What an honor

@treylem3

Жыл бұрын

🎯

@vernpascal1531

Жыл бұрын

They were The Greatest Generation and gave us our lives.

My great grandfather fought in this battle. Ended up in the hospital after a shell exploded nearby. He also had frozen feet. I remember he told me a tank drove over him while he was in a ditch. Cant imagine how scared he mustve been..a true legend. Rip grandpa augie.

His situation was SO hopeless, anything was worth a try. But the allies would have needed to have made multiple terrible decisions over and over again to accommodate the more or less hopeless plan. Hard to imagine all those decisions being made badly.

@Crashed131963

2 жыл бұрын

After Kurks in 1943 the Russian were on a unstoppable march to Berlin even if D-Day failed or never happened. This battle sure was not changing things.

@lc9245

2 жыл бұрын

It was only Hitler clinging to hope. The rest of the leadership were thinking about post war plans already. As the video had elaborated, there would have been no strategic value in the Ardennes Offensive succeeding. The British did not negotiated during Battle of Britain, the American didn't negotiate after losing the Philippines, why would they now? The Germans offensive was impressive due to how many American it killed despite the Wehrmacht poor condition, but it was much more due to the Allies overconfidence, some even called it arrogance, than the Germans being brilliant. The most regrettable part was of course it was a senseless waste of life.

@jakubkarczynski269

2 жыл бұрын

It wolud't change a thing. After capturing Antwerp they needed to destroy Montgomery army. And later negotiate peace. It wolud take time. Next relocate army from West front to East. Before they will do it soviet army wolud conqure Poland and destroy army which wolud defend it.

@Crashed131963

2 жыл бұрын

@@jakubkarczynski269 By late 1944 the Russians out numbered Germany in everything even if Germany brought everything over from the Western front. D-Day was just to make sure Stalin did not keep heading west after he took Berlin.

@jacksons1010

2 жыл бұрын

@@Crashed131963 The Russians outnumbered the Axis in everything except effective air power by late 1942.

Patton was prepared to counterattack even before the German offensive. He anticipated it and had plans ready in case it happened. That was how he was able to disengage and turn his army North to relieve Bastogne so fast.

@randomlygeneratedname7171

2 жыл бұрын

Common sense really you leave a gap expect it filled eventually.

@julianmarsh1378

2 жыл бұрын

Patton was dead right on this but even if he had not been prepared, it wouldn't have mattered...the offense was doomed before it started; ask the two leading German generals in charge of it; they both knew it was bound to fail.

@logon235

2 жыл бұрын

@@julianmarsh1378 That too, it was like Market Garden. The criteria for success gave too narrow a margin and they had no plan that survived the return of Allied air support and the sudden obstinate resistance of some Allied units. Patton's counter offensive ensured that the Germans paid for that mistake.

@robertpayne2717

2 жыл бұрын

PATTON WAS NOT PSYCHIC HIS OWN INTELLIGENCE OFFICERS DID SAY THAT THE GERMAN Army could effect small counter-attacks but, no one not even Patton believed that Germany could implement an offensive operation on the scale that they did. After the war his widow Beatrice embellished his daily diary by reassigning some of his entries from post BATTLE OF THE BULGE/ DECEMBER JANUARY TO DATES PRIOR TO THE BATTLE NOVEMBER WHEN SHE WAS PREPARING HIS DIARY FOR POST WAR PUBLICATION.

@antonytye3484

2 жыл бұрын

@@logon235 And Montgomery actions from the North.

A longtime close friend of mine said her first husband died in the Battle of the Bulge. A co-worker said her father died in it just before she was born. Their stories made this battle not an historical event or a series of lines on a map, but deeply personal.

@nationalcarshippinginc645

Жыл бұрын

My Grandfather was in the 107th infantry division that was captured first few days of the bulge and spent the rest of the war at BAD ORB Germany and the prisoner camp there.

@thomaspick4123

Жыл бұрын

It is a disgrace the American government drafted married men with children. Of course the men died and many wives with children had a really hard time the rest of their lives.

I had a great uncle who was separated from his unit and lost in the Ardennes forest for a while. As the family lore goes, at one point he walked into a clearing right as a German soldier, similarly lost and alone, walked into it from the other side. They eyed each other for a while, both armed but both also exhausted and cold, until they decided not to take their chances, and they both turned around and walked away. That side of my family was only two generations removed from immigrating from Germany at the time, and ALL of them (four brothers from one family and several others too) served as soldiers or aviators in Europe. That had to be gutwrenching. Also, I have visited Bastogne a couple of times and I highly recommend the museums. It's a wonderful place to visit and they still love to see Americans 😅

@treylem3

Жыл бұрын

👍🎯

@AndreVictourios

9 ай бұрын

Wow that’s wild, thanks for sharing

Both the Germans and the Japanese had this idea of a overly-complicated "one significant battle" to win the war.

@sweetmyth2537

2 жыл бұрын

It part of fascist belief

@BoxStudioExecutive

2 жыл бұрын

@@sweetmyth2537 Japan’s commitment to decisive battle was based on US Navy Captain Mahan’s work. It had nothing to do with fascism.

@treatb09

2 жыл бұрын

They never predicted the resilience of a few men with new moral to hold out so well and so long. Only then the restricting front meant germany was condensing and tired. While the allies were condensing inwardly as well. Hard to blitzkrieg when your enemy has prepared a defense n at that point the german soldiers were watered down. One significant effect was a desperation. N hitler gave up his best generals by this point

@cdjhyoung

Жыл бұрын

@@treatb09 To expand on your observation: The high command of both the German and the Japanese felt their armies were operating on a higher 'moral' sphere than their opponents. They expected the mere presents of their superior forces to make their enemies crumble and run. They found out differently. Neither enemy could visualize that America could mobilize its industrial might so quickly to counter a war that the majority of Americans wanted no part of in 1939. Hitler made some major miscalculations in his aggression in Europe: When he controlled Belgium and most of France, he should of helped England and France evacuate the armies from Dunkirk and used that act of 'kindness' as the pivot point to negotiate peace with England and what remained of the French government, thus taking them out of the war. Hitler should have never taken an offensive posture toward Russia before ceasing military actions with England, so he could have focused all of his armies on Russia when he did attack.

@ForageGardener

Жыл бұрын

@@cdjhyoung lol they didnt study american politics and millitary history well, say one thing, do another xD. Should have asked the Indians

My dad was a member of the 818th tank destroyer battalion part of the 3rd army group fighting under Patton. He told me after the Malmandy massacre they took no prisoners alive.

@carlost856

2 жыл бұрын

They gave it back as they executed 80 non-SS POWs some weeks later in the Chenogue Massacre.

@randomlygeneratedname7171

2 жыл бұрын

Germans want to make die hard enemies for no reason. The commanders who would have very good treatment on war prisoners and never settled their troops in occupied enemy cities needlessly had the best results. If you can't keep them all free some with no weapons send them packing home. Napoleons top commander Nicolas Soult use to do this and his regions were the best even enemy citizens helped him stop the insurgency and his friendly tactics are still studied.

@randomlygeneratedname7171

2 жыл бұрын

@Me Me Forgot to mention Marshal Soult would persecute his own soldiers heavily and make sure they are disciplined they have no reason for disobedience if they are well fed and payed he would have them shot dead.

@randomlygeneratedname7171

2 жыл бұрын

@Me Me Looting and raiding, and resting in civilian areas is mostly caused by hunger poor pay and terrible lodging.

I was just a kid when I met Rocky Jones of price utah. He lost both legs in the Battle of the Bulge. He fought valiantly but succumbed later to the effects of it. A great man to me.

The offense was doomed from the get-go. Hitler's generals in charge knew this and presented their own more limited plan of operation, by which they hoped to bag 15 American divisions. Hitler rejected this plan. For the rest of it: the Germans were not repeating their attack of 1940; at that time, they moved through the Ardennes; in 1944 they planned on fighting in the Ardennes. They counted on bad weather to eliminate Allied air power; they counted on capturing the oil they needed from captured American supply bases. In other words, a vital component of the plan was centered on sheer good luck. The thing really was hopeless.

@Wustenfuchs109

2 жыл бұрын

It wasn't based on luck - in fact, that offensive was one of the the best planned ones in the entire war, and considering the amount and type of forces used, they accomplished quite a lot. Yes, they planned on the weather - but it is not as straight forward as you say from modern perspective. In those days, weather forecast was in its infancy. Germans sent a fleet of submarines, combined with weather stations as far as Greenland throughout the war, to monitor the currents, weather and all other atmospheric parameters, which were then sent to Germany for analysis. To predict the exact day on which the weather would turn bad and you plan your entire offensive according to it - it was a next level shit for those days. Remember, Allies with all their organization and capacity had a problem of doing that for D-Day. They had some general idea, but could not predict the weather a few days in advance. Yes, they planned on capturing oil to further fuel their advance - just like what Rommel did in Africa (and was extremely successful in "living off the land"). And in the offensive, they missed the supply depots by a few miles - which again, in those times, to have that accurate intel in an active war zone that was constantly shifting... It might not look like much today with satellites and drones - but in those days, that's some good work. Their infiltrated units were a good plan. Not very effective though, but a good plan. And it did have a limited effect on slowing down the Allied response who all of a sudden had a hidden enemy behind the lines that they didn't really know the exact number of. So checks and inspections were stepped up and it did slow down the overall response. The goal was to gain an operational victory and attempt to force a truce so they could move to the east. The goal was never to completely defeat the Allies by that point. Allies would never agree - and from that point, you are right, it was hopeless. But the offensive itself was one of the best planned operations of the war. The amount of details it contained and novel solutions to a problem as well as maximizing the utilization of available troops... from a military perspective, that was really something. So it wasn't luck - it's just that, as with all plans in war, something goes wrong. It's not that they counted on luck - they just counted on intelligence and planning that was simply not good enough, but still remarkable for those days.

@JenkinsOwen

2 жыл бұрын

The other thing to remember was the catastrophic failure to act on intelligence by the French in 1940. One of the reasons the Germans got their armour through the Ardennes was sheer blind luck via incompetent French generals working with horrendous communication lines. Germany’s armour sat in the open for weeks during the blitzkrieg and the French ignored it. There was absolutely no way the same thing was ever going to happen again. The Blitzkrieg took luck, the battle of the bulge would’ve took a miracle.

@julianmarsh1378

2 жыл бұрын

@@JenkinsOwen I agree the Bulge would have taken a miracle to pull off....but as far as the French went in 1940, they simply did not believe it possible to move armor through the Ardennes...no amount of intelligence reports would have changed that point of view. Sort of like Montcalm not believing the British could scale the heights of Quebec...or the Soviets not anticipating Manstein's attack across the bay at Sevastapol. If you don't believe something can be done, you don't prepare for it. Not exactly incompetency...just an error in judgement that proved to be decisive.

@shirtless6934

2 жыл бұрын

Hitler thought he was a military genius. A very stable one too. Remind you of anyone?

@orasatk

2 жыл бұрын

Fascists sometimes become overconfident on luck. Lol

What never seems to be discussed about the battle is geography. The Ardennes tends to run from the NE to the SW. In 1940 the Germans attacked along the grain of the mountains while in 1944 they were trying to go across the grain to get to Antwerp. This meant there were much fewer openings for the German army to go through and therefore it could be much easily blocked. Secondly in 1940 because Belgium had declared neutrality the French forces were only on the edge of the Ardennes, not spread throughout it in very good defensible positions. When Patton made his counterattack from the south, it had the advantage of going with the grain of the mountains. Overall it was a really stupid plan on many levels and it is amazing it got as far as it did.

When I was in the military in the '70s and '80s, I had the honor of knowing several WW2 vets, including one retired O-6 who commanded a US infantry regiment in the ETO. I've read their battle history and it is extensive. Their division alternated between the 1st, 3rd, and 7th Army as the needs of the post-D Day Allied offensive across Northern France dictated. His brigade spearheaded the re-taking of Cherbourg and continued in combat throughout the drive across France. They had just gotten pulled off the line for a rare rest and refit when the German counteroffensive (aka the Battle of the Bulge) kicked off, and they were ordered back onto the line to help defend the southern flank of the bulge. In April they were in action in the Ruhr Pocket when Germany surrendered. Occupation duty followed, and he was later sent to Nuremburg to be on staff for the war crimes trial. His wife was a military nurse during WW2 and was at Pearl Harbor on Dec 7th of '41. Both were in their 80s when I knew them in the 1980s but were still active, healthy, and mentally sharp. They were amazed that any young people wanted to talk about history and hear their stories. One of my fellow members of the military back then said his dad was also a veteran of the Bulge, and his dad had laughed when the son asked what it was like. You'd expect the typical war stories, but the dad said his strongest memory was of the cold. To paraphrase, he said if you really want to know what it was like, wait until the coldest time of the winter (in the Midwest), preferably when there's some snow on the ground, then go outside, roll yourself up in a wet blanket, and sleep on the ground that night. Then stay out there for several days with no shelter and almost no food. Never mind having to also deal with an enemy counter offensive, the weather was their most memorable adversary.

@pd4682

Жыл бұрын

My dad said the same thing, his feet froze, they hurt anytime it turned cold for the rest of his life

@edgaraquino2324

Жыл бұрын

Please thank them on my behalf for their service and yours, NC....

This battle was a microcosm of the entire war for Germany. Started off well, took a bunch of land, overstretched and took unsustainable casualties, and eventually lost.

@Mobius_Pizza

2 жыл бұрын

It was doomed to fail when German's ally Japanese forced US to join the war. US had the man power, industrial power and oil back then and was reluctant to join the war until Japanese bombed Pearl Harbour. Japanese had their reasons but German's fate was sealed

@shldnfr

2 жыл бұрын

@@Mobius_Pizza Similar to World War I

@robhileman8890

2 жыл бұрын

@@Mobius_Pizza considering United States out produced all other countries combined during the war this is spot on.

@2ddw

2 жыл бұрын

@@Mobius_Pizza What are friends for?

Great summarized narration and the MAP Graphics made it so simple and clear, for the first time (age 63, my uncle fought in the Ardennes w/ 29th ID), I got it!! many thanks

@ImperialWarMuseums

2 жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

I think Hitler overlooked that Antwerp had only been open for a couple weeks by the time the Battle of the Bulge began, and the Allies had been able to advance fairly well without it. The Allied supply situation was pretty dire by September due to the pace of advance, but the pause had really allowed them to be in a better situation by December and was getting better as more infrastructure was fixed and more miles of pipeline laid. Monty all but ignored Antwerp for two months before finally committing the resources to finally open the Scheldt. Antwerp certainly alleviated any Allied supply difficulties by shortening supply lines, but the loss of it along with several divisions would only slow the Allies, and certainly not stop them.

@InTaco7

2 жыл бұрын

Hard to say whether Hitler expected the offensive to work. At this point, it was difficult to put together any plan with even a microscopic chance of success. The Bulge offensive might've had terrible odds - but if it had higher chance of success than anything else they got, it was the proper strategic move.

@richardbinkhuysen5224

2 жыл бұрын

The Port of Antwerp became fully operational on the day 'the Bulge' started. It was by sheer luck the Allies crossed the Walcheren Causeway as it was intended to sent German Parachute Regiment 6 to bolster it's defense on Oct.31 1944. Later 3.rd.Btl. and the rest of KG.Chill would follow. The Transport boats where there but something happend just 15 minutes before and during embarkation. Therefor the convoy set sail for Numansdorp instead. The main German goal of 'the Bulge' was to cut off the northern Allied Armies the secondary objective was Antwerp. It would have been easier to reach Antwerp through the north. Only problem was crossing ' Hollands Diep'. Therefor Student kept hanging on to 'Capelse Veer'. kzread.info/dash/bejne/hmR7u5aIes6zh7g.html From Nov.9 up the start of 'the Bulge' the entire Allied front line for the entire coastline (over 60.Km) of Tholen Island, the St. Philipsland Peninsula up to Moerdijk (just north of Antwerp) was steadily downsized to free up troops for the east towards Nijmegen. Only at vital strong points an Battery of A-T.guns or M10 tanks, armoured cars of XII.Manitoba Dragoons and in between barely armed Dutch Volunteers not able to defend themselves. And if captured torture and execution was their fate. Fi. for Tholen Island a A-T.Battery of 12 x 17 pounders and about 178 men for the sector St. Annaland - Stavenisse and the rest of the coast line some 60 Dutch Volunteers, that was raised by some 60 men more during the 'Bulge'. Between this front line and Antwerp there were always some small Allied units on leave at cities of Bergen op Zoom or Roosendaal.

@jesusislord6545

2 жыл бұрын

Repent to Jesus Christ! “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭55:22‬ ‭NIV‬‬ h

@fazole

2 жыл бұрын

The amount of casualties the Americans had taken trying to break through the West Wall severely depleted manpower. I have read the autobiography of George Wilson who was a jr. officer from Jul 44-Sep 45 and he stated that his company of 178 was left with just 23 after leaving the Hürtgen battle when he was assigned to the Ardennes just prior to the Battle of the Bulge. Supplies were catching up, but manpower was short.

@fazole

2 жыл бұрын

@@InTaco7 It generally takes 3-1 in the attack, therefore the Allies would have needed at least 3x the number of German forces to break through the West Wall, but a defense in depth would have increased the need for more attackers. None of the German soldiers thought the drive to Antwerp would work. The offensive would have been over extended. Model just wanted to execute a local attack as that was the only thing feasible.

These videos by the IWM are very well done and quite informative. I was aware of the Malmedy massacre, but not of the others that were mentioned. My father was in the U.S. 106th Infantry Division and he narrowly missed the Battle of The Bulge as he was in the Signal Corps and had been ordered to Paris for equipment. When the offensive began and the 106th did not fare well he was reassigned.

@SewolHoONCE

Жыл бұрын

My father was also in the 106th Golden Lion (see elsewhere.) My father was in St. Vith.

@kricklin

Жыл бұрын

@@SewolHoONCE Thank's Bruce for your reply. Your father has my respect and gratitude, as do all those of the 106th who dug in against the Germans at St. Vith. Please accept my heartfelt appreciation for any role your father played during the Bulge, as well as his other efforts during WW II.

@voraciousreader3341

10 ай бұрын

Seriously, these videos imo are not worth watching at all, bc they’re far too short. What makes them enjoyable for most people is that they don’t know what they don’t know about these battles and offensives-even one on the Battle of Stalingrad!-because they haven’t read a single book on _anything_ covered, so they think they’ve learned a great deal. I’ve been reading books covering many facets of the various countries involved in this war for 35 years, and I get extremely frustrated by the numerous comments in every one I’ve watched bc people write as though truly believe they now know everything about the subject! I always have believed that documentaries are meant to provoke enough interest and curiosity in the subject _that viewers will actually read books to learn as much as they can!_ But no. They just keep on watching documentaries and think they’re getting an education, when John David Eisenhower’s book on the Battle of the Bulge is 520 pages long! And, yes, he is the son of Dwight Eisenhower. Put all the videos about this failed offensive on KZread together and watch them, and you still won’t know much!

My grandfather was in the 353rd anti take platoon, 3rd army under patton. He landed at normady, crossed the rhine and saw combat. I really enjoyed this video.

My dad was with the 7th Armored DIV at St Vith. One reason the Germans failed is their obsessions with taking Bastogne and not bypassing. This took substantial resources and manpower from their actual goal.

Anthony Clement "Nuts" McAuliffe (July 2, 1898 - August 10, 1975) was a senior United States Army officer who earned fame as the acting commander of the 101st Airborne Division defending Bastogne, Belgium, during the Battle of the Bulge in World War II. He is celebrated for his one-word reply to a German surrender ultimatum: "Nuts!" After the battle, McAuliffe was promoted and given command of the 103rd Infantry Division, which he led from January 1945 to July 1945. In the post-war era, he was commander of United States Army Europe.

Sounds like one of the thousands of cases where Hitler underestimated the enemy gravely.

@Crashed131963

2 жыл бұрын

How can any country fight the USA, UK and USSR at once and win. If Germany made no mistakes they were still going to be outnumbered in everything and lose.

@Kevin-mx1vi

2 жыл бұрын

Wishful thinking on his part, I suspect. There are always stresses within an alliance, but I very much doubt that the American/British alliance would have fractured. Neither can I see a situation where the western allies would have simply decided it was time to quit and leave Russia to its fate. All the allies had agreed on their aims, so while the capture of Antwerp would have been a serious setback it wouldn't have been insurmountable and the fight would have continued.

@mattkierkegaard9403

2 жыл бұрын

Nah, he overestimated his partners! I mean Italy delayed Barbarossa and then folded meekly and Japan attacked USA instead of USSR

@tonyromano6220

2 жыл бұрын

@@mattkierkegaard9403 overestimated?

@mattkierkegaard9403

2 жыл бұрын

@@tonyromano6220 Yes, thanks. Edited 👍🏻

Two major differences between 1940 and 1944 in the Ardennes were: 1. The terrain was much soggier in December, 1944 than it had been in May, 1940. 2. The panzers in December, 1944 (with the exception of the Mark 4s and the Stug 3s) were much heavier than those of May, 1940. The increase in weight greatly affected their mobility and their ability to stay in running order in such a tough terrain as found in the Ardennes.

I had a friend who was there. He was in a pocket & was a POW there. 20 men caught. The Germans took 10 off to one side & mowed them down. My friend said that he was scared & thought he was next, but nothing happened. 2 days later he was freed by the U.S.Army. That's the only thing he ever said about the war.

One more time, “My father was there.” I was able to visit the memorial for the 106th Golden Lion regiment in St. Vith. The retreat from the Schnee eifel to St. Vith by a bunch of raw recruits gets frequent mention. My father was part of the decision to retreat without orders from higher up, but he is rarely mentioned by name: Captain Elmer Wilson Grimes of Southeast District of Columbia. Captain Grimes did not talk much until the Henry Fonda movie, “Battle,” hit theaters. Captain Grimes passed in 2008, age 95, and is interred near Fort MacArthur, San Pedro, California.

On 12/24/1944 My father was a forward observer with the 75th INF (the Diaper Division, since they were totally green) It is next to impossible for us to imagine spending days in sub-zero weather w/o winter uniforms. His unit was led into one of the German pincers on Dec. 25th and the Germans occupying the village that was supposed to be in American hands was decimated by automatic fire from dug in Germans. There was little to celebrate in this essentially predictable slug fest that resulted in an almost 50/50 loss of life.

@jefflockaby702

2 жыл бұрын

My father, a member of the 106th Division, was captured at the Battle of the Bulge...he did describe the cold, saying that the soldiers took turns sleeping on the hoods of the trucks because it was the only warm spot..they left the diesel engines running all night...each soldier would get an hour or two on the warm hoods before moving to share with someone else...& like many others, Dad suffered frostbite in his feet there...he said their orders were to continue pushing forward despite the fact they'd outran their supply lines..having nothing to eat, they were ordered to consume their emergency ration...something like a large Hershey chocolate bar..and continue to advance...eventually they ran put of ammo & were overun by the Germans...Dad spent a few months in a POW labor camp before he & a dozen or so other G.I.'s managed to escape & get back to the American forces...

@robertpayne2717

Жыл бұрын

My dad was stationed at a USAAC Base in Way cross Georgia. He was clerk for the Base Commander and actually recieved the order from and read it when Quartermasters command sent the request in Fall of 1944 for all Army personnel stationed south of the MasonDixon line in the Continental United States to turn in their winter overcoats to be reissued to Army Personnel in Europe that winter Probably that order was issued a few weeks too late.

@westonweigand1228

Жыл бұрын

My son is a 13 fox also, bless your father and your family, the greatest generation indeed ...

Great content from this channel vid after vid. Thank you, always a pleasure to watch and visit your venues

Note that Montgomery had moved 5 British divisions to guard the bridges over the Meuse by the 19th. This made the German offensive impossible to succeed. Patton moved three divisions of his army to relieve Bastogne achieving this by the 26th.

@ianwhitchurch864

2 жыл бұрын

Note both Patton and Monty began doing these correct things before ordered to do so by Ike ;)

@chadjustice8560

2 жыл бұрын

@@ianwhitchurch864 what? Ike might have been the supreme commander of us forces but Monty was the head man and took credit for everything and blame for nothing.

@ianwhitchurch864

2 жыл бұрын

@@chadjustice8560 Check the dates. Movement orders got issued by Ike's insubordinate subordinates ... "But at 1730 on 19 December the 21 Army Group commander ordered General Horrocks to move his 30 Corps from Boxtel, Holland, into the area between Liège and Brussels and gave him the Guards Armoured Division and the 43d, 51st, and 53d Infantry Divisions, as well as three armored brigades." history.army.mil/books/wwii/7-8/7-8_22.htm#p556 Note this is at the same time the 101st gets into Bastogne ... and before Montgomery gets given command of the northern flank. Similarly, Patton was doing the right things without orders from Ike - "But on 18 December Bradley called Patton to his Luxembourg headquarters, and there Patton learned for the first time of the grave situation faced by the First Army. When asked what help he could give, the Third Army commander replied that he could intervene in the battle with three divisions "very shortly." He telephoned the Third Army chief of staff to stop the XII Corps attack forming for the following day and to prepare the 4th Armored and 80th Infantry Divisions for immediate transfer to Luxembourg. The 87th Division halted its slow advance, as did the 35th. On the move out of rest area for assembly in preparation for the XII Corps' attack, the 4th Armored and 80th likewise stopped." history.army.mil/books/wwii/7-8/7-8_20.htm

@Cailus3542

Жыл бұрын

@@chadjustice8560 Both Montgomery and Patton were dramatic prima donnas, to the point of absurdity. They were both excellent generals (though far from the only ones), so Eisenhower put up with it, but still, damn.

@CncrndCtzn

9 ай бұрын

American defense of the Ardennes, not British moving a few divisions into some towns, stopped the German offensive.

Thank you so much for uploading this video. It is helping me get through the pandemic!

NIce bit of history. Thank you for assembling this production. I served in the US Army, during the Cold War in Germany. Whenever I see war footage of snowy European landscapes, I'm reminded of frostbite, hypothermia, and how difficult it is to operate in extreme cold -- sub zero F temperatures. WWII era troops on both sides paid a price that pictures alone cannot fully depict. As for whether this operation could have succeeded: even if Germany had achieved it's objectives, it suffered one, of many, fatal flaws . . . looting. It's military operations was based on bltiz and looting vs. manufacturing and acquiring raw materials. As is, the nationals who were conscribed to work factories deliberately dragged their feet and sabotaged the German war effort.

Your commentary is great. This was randomly recommended to me and earned you a sub.

Slight correction: Combat Command B of the 10th Armored arrived in Bastogne a day BEFORE the 101st Airborne. They held the town through several brutal attacks from the north and east. CCB never got proper credit in the press because Patton didn’t want the Germans to know the rest of the 10th AD was undermanned. That remains true to this day even though General McAuliffe recognized CCB for their actions after the war. (My father’s commendation letter serves as proof!).

My great uncle died at the battle of the bulge while trying to escape a disabled tank. He is buried somewhere over there. A child of Polish immigrants to America.

@ohger1

Жыл бұрын

My dad was there with the Third Armored tank division. He might have known him..

Another factor in the allied victory in that battle was the decision to allow the VT fuse to be used by artillery, over land. Paton gave a lot of credit to it. The top secret fuse allowed the allies to dispense with setting timers for artillery air bursts over German troops. Now all they had to do was shoot a shell onto an area and the smart fuse exploded the round at the right height to create the maximum casualties. Even spotters weren’t needed to do this. Simply fire a shell onto a map area and it will burst in the air at the right height. It was devastating!

@cameopet

Жыл бұрын

U in b

In 1940 the advantages of Germany were air superiority and radio communication between armored units. The French were using flags for communications. In 1944 these advantages were gone and the US troops were of different calibre than the 1940 French troops.

@Jakob_DK

2 жыл бұрын

The French were probably also great soldiers, but communication, leadership and weapons were not much help.

@g8ymw

2 жыл бұрын

@@Jakob_DK Actually the French tanks at that time were supposedly the best but ( as said) poor communications, leadership and tactics let them down

@louisavondart9178

2 жыл бұрын

Not to mention that the French weren't anywhere near the Ardennes forest in 1940..... because it's in BELGIUM !

@g8ymw

2 жыл бұрын

@@louisavondart9178 Only just over the border. Us Brits had moved up into Belgium when the Germans came sweeping through Holland and Belgium (turned out to be a blind ) Rommel's forces then came through the Ardennes in a North South direction with the panzers then swinging to the coast to split us from the French. We immediately came rushing back to avoid being cut off. In 1944, the Germans were going through the Ardennes in an East-West direction

@Cancoillotteman

2 жыл бұрын

@@g8ymw It is a major difference to have to move to a position to defend it instead of already occupying it. Also the terrible lack of coordination between the allies in 1940 (Belgium and the Netherlands surrendering without even warning the French and Britsh ahead of time, the British evacuating without helping the French to hold the line and the French dancing around the question of the future of their Navy without a clear answer to the British). 1940 was a mess. 1944 was united politically and strategically

Even before watching this, it's a patently absurd notion that "splitting the British and American lines" would cause them to sue for peace. 7:12 Hitler should have gone to Staff College and studied von Moltke: *"No plan* of operations *extends* with any certainty *beyond the first encounter* with the main enemy forces. *Only the layman* believes that in the course of a campaign he sees the consistent implementation of an original thought that has been considered in advance in every detail and retained to the end."

@louisavondart9178

2 жыл бұрын

They didn't send corporals to Staff College.

@davidw.2791

2 жыл бұрын

@@louisavondart9178 Can you imagine the PR fuckup for the nazis if Hitler was slapped back in 1935 when he tried to remilatize the Rhineland, instead of failing at Stalingrad and shifting the blame on the general?

@edwardbutler

2 жыл бұрын

Ditto for Montgomery. Citing operation Market Garden

@crinolynneendymion8755

2 жыл бұрын

@@edwardbutler Oh dear, you really should read up on the history of Market Garden - the concept was Monty's, the application and implementation American. While a great deal of criticism can be made of the American commitment to the operation, it actually achieved quite a lot and was not the disaster that a certain Hollywood movie would have you believe. It is a moot point to consider that if Monty had been in charge, like Normandy, MG would have succeeded and the war shortened by a couple of months.

@MrChiangching

Жыл бұрын

Everyone has a plan till they get punched in the face

Really enjoying your excellent films on your KZread channel, they explain individual conflicts and subjects concisely and clearly. For future films, how about looking at the hunt for the Bismarck, the Arctic convoys supplying Soviet forces, the role of Scapa Flow in Orkney during both world wars and the Battle of Midway?

Not enough fuel. Rundstedt said it would fail because they did not have the fuel to exploit the breakthrough. He was right.

My Grandfather was captured at Dunkirk. He spent the next five years in a German POW camp. He said that he was always hungry and if it hadn’t been for the Red Cross parcels he wouldn’t have survived. He always had stomach problems due to malnutrition in the camp.

Excellent video history of this battle. Thank you!

Well summarised and produced, kudos to the map and animation makers

As one German General stated "It was no longer 1940", Germany did not have the resources she had when she defeated France four years ealier. The French panicked and ran something the Americans did not. The 2nd and 99th Divisions held the Germans four critical days. And once the weather improved, the German attack was stopped and turned back by the Allied Air Forces.

@Cancoillotteman

2 жыл бұрын

Technically the French troops did not run, that's why they got encircled at Dunkirk. The difference is the Americans in 1944 did hold out, when the Belgian army surrendered without warning the British and French in 1940

@peterlewerin4213

2 жыл бұрын

The French didn't panic and run. The Ardennes is in _Belgium,_ not France. The Belgians didn't defend the Ardennes in any meaningful way, and when the Germans crossed the border into France the main French force was already on its way to help the Belgians in the Low Countries. The French flank protection put up a stiff defence to stop the Germans from advancing towards Paris, but the German armoured divisions instead turned north and encircled the main French forces.

@doug6500

2 жыл бұрын

The Americans didn't run? Well, they objectively did until the gap was plugged, the fog lifted and the Germans ran out of fuel.

@Cancoillotteman

2 жыл бұрын

@@doug6500 Depends on which company, not the 101 Airborn or Patton's divisions obviously

@mattwood6485

2 жыл бұрын

@@doug6500 This whole argument is bound to turn into flag-wavey childish nonsense so I dont want to get too into it, but- just like any other army in the world, different units reacted in different ways. Some units were destroyed in sublime, self-sacrificial stands. Some units were unmanned and didn't meet the moment. Most units did their job though, and did it well. Two out of the three German armies were stopped cold by outnumbered defenders. They all suffered and did the best they could just so a bunch of morons could argue on the internet eighty years later about whether they were "brave" or not.

6:15 This really speaks to just bad the situation was for the Germans. Normally bad weather is bad for the attacker, and good for the defender. But the threat from Allied air power meant that the Germans simply could not mount an offensive in clear weather, when the Allied air power would be able to influence the battle. They had no choice but to accept the handicap of attacking in bad weather. 6:51 You are really screwed when you are so lacking in critical resources that capturing enemy supplies is actually a core part of the plan to supply your own forces. I'm not sure there is a single example in history of this working. It signals a massive degree of desperation.

@kurttate9446

Жыл бұрын

Sherman’s march through Georgia.

@justalonesoul5825

Жыл бұрын

"You are really screwed when you are so lacking in critical resources that capturing enemy supplies is actually a core part of the plan to supply your own forces. " Are you kidding? It's very common in history afaik. All camps try and seize as many resources in occupied/recently conquered lands as they can, and it's far more than often vital. Napoleonian armies were litteraly feeding off the lands they were crossing, stripping them bare, and would have completely starved to death without it. And they actually did completely starve to death (and of diseases and heat) in such a fashion during the campaign of Russia when retreating defenders would burn everything to the ground.

@gareththompson2708

Жыл бұрын

@@kurttate9446 That was in the 19th century, when armies were waaaaayyyy smaller and surviving purely on forage was actually semi-viable.

@gareththompson2708

Жыл бұрын

@@justalonesoul5825 Again, armies were way smaller in Napoleon's time. I think he pretty much hit the limit of what could be practically sustained through forage with his invasion of Russia, and even then the Grand Armee was still an order of magnitude smaller than the armies that would fight the wars of the 20th century. Add to that the fact that the materials that needed to be supplied to the army were way simpler in Napoleon's time than in WW2. An army could get by with just food, water, and ammunition. By WW2 you have added fuel and spare parts for countless different systems to the mix. But of course there is trying to live off of the land (which was once viable, though even in Napoleon's time an army had to keep moving in order to do this), and then there is trying to get by on captured enemy supplies. Attempting to get by with captured enemy supplies always yields diminishing returns. You have to expend a massive amount of supply in order to break through the enemy defenses to reach their supplies. You will need to pause to distribute their supplies among your forces (giving the enemy time to create fresh defenses). And you will have to expend a massive amount of the supplies you just captured in order to capture more supplies (the enemy isn't gong to keep all of their supplies in one place (they have to supply a wide front, so they will need to have multiple supply depots along that front)). You are almost certain to run a supply deficit with this sort of plan.

@justalonesoul5825

Жыл бұрын

@@gareththompson2708 Fair points. The Grande Armée that invaded Russia was close to or slightly over half a million men strong, which is ludicrous for the time (yet it was "only" the main army, there were many other corps). The same France aligned about 3.5M men during WW2, and is only the 8th country in order of army men engaged... Logistics and production capacities obviously have changed dramatically with the advent of motorization and industrialization. Capacities to utterly eradicate tens of thousands of enemies in an instant too... What a monstruous slaughter those events are. Just for the egos, delusions, and wealth of a few ones...

When your plan hinges on capturing your enemy's supply depots then you might have a weak plan!

@christopherbell2091

2 жыл бұрын

When u attack.the same couple of countrys the same way a number of times over 30 to40 years it does become predictable

@orasatk

2 жыл бұрын

@@christopherbell2091 And the prediction fails for fascists

@BigDave131

2 жыл бұрын

I read that Hitler's generals only gave Hitler's plan at most a 10% chance of success. Even that sounds optimistic.

Colonel Hurley E. Fuller’s 110th Regimental Combat Team of the 28th Infantry Division­, originally the Pennsylvania National Guard. Without their brave stand at the onset of the German offensive, the 101st Airborne might not have reached Bastogne in time. The "Iron Soldiers" of Pennsylvania stopped the Wermacht & Waffen SS divisions from retaking & holding any real estate any further.

@salvadorvizcarra769

Жыл бұрын

The "Iron Soldiers" of Pennsylvania? Sure. Propaganda has always led us to believe that we, "The Yankees", beat Hitler. But, I have news for you Mr. Walls: The US did not win the war against Germany. The Russians won it. The Allied Army of the US, UK, Canada, Belgium and France (and Poland, and other countries), was able to reach Normandy, thanks to the Soviets destroying the Nazis in Stalingrad, Leningrad and in Kurks, in 1943. It took them 289 days but the Russians won and without the help of nobody… OF NOBODY! Normandy was until June 1944, and Mr. “Hollywood” Patton did NOT manage to set foot on Germany until February 1945, when the Red Army was going over Berlin. General Patton was able to enter Germany only when the Russians were 150 kilometers from the Oder River (LOL). The Allies were defeated at Arnhem (Market Garden Sep. 25-1944), and at The Battle of the Bulge (Jan. 25-1945). General Patton was paralyzed without fuel, while the Red Army was preparing for its last offensive into Berlin. Look here: It took the Allies 8 months to advance only 500 kilometers from Normandy to Arnhem, and from there, start the Withdrawal back to the border of France/Belgium (What?), facing a virtually defeated German Army cuz USSR. It's a Verifiable Fact that is written in all the History Books, that the German High Command surrendered to the Russian Generals six days BEFORE the first US soldier set foot in Berlin. Well… The US has been defeated in Korea, Vietnam, Cuba, Lebanon, Somalia and now, in Afghanistan. However, the powerful US Army defeated the tiny island of Grenada (1983), as it faced a fearsome army of 287 Police Officers, since Grenada does NOT have an army. In fact, they were half this number, since the Policemen on the afternoon shift had not yet come to work. What seems incredible is the fact that the US was defeated by Vietnam. What? Did the US lose the war against Nam? OMG! Against a poor country, underdeveloped, malnourished, without Navy, without Air Force, NO Marines, Green Berets, SEALs, Rangers, Delta Force, USMC, Rambos or Chuck Norris. Defeated by a country of peasants without strategic plans, no B-59 Bombers, PT-Boats, Northrop F-5 "Freedom Fighter", nor Atomic Submarines. Without Aircraft Carriers, NO Continental Missiles, nor Tanks, Choppters, AR-15, Gatlin Machins, Flamethrowers, Napalm, Agent Orange. NADA! And to top it off, defeated by an army of teenagers who had no shoes: WITHOUT SHOES!!! Army that fought with bamboo sticks!!! Charlie Kicked Our Asses and even invaded our Embassy. Jeezzz!!! Here is the Duty, Honor and Heroism of the US Army. Yup... The "Iron Soldiers". Sure.

@casey570

2 ай бұрын

110th doesn't get enough credit for the stands they made in Marnach, Hosingen, Holzthum, and Clervaux.

Had a neighbor who was wounded in Belgium in the fall of 1944. He told us it was the luckiest day of his life when someone said that didn't sound lucky Amos replied yes it was he was evacuated to England and Hospitalized and spent the winter in the Hospital in London he did not receive his release from the Hospital till late spring 1945, One of the reasons he was not released was because when he got his mobility back he was appointed as escort for hospitalized soldiers who were allowed to leave the hospital to go out to London on day passes...

Thanks for the video. Much appreciated. Cheers and all the best.

From what I was told, two of my uncle's were at Battle of the Bulge, one was in infantry and the other was in tanks with Patton. So the story goes that neither one knew the other was there at the time.

I have always wondered if the Armoured vehicles hoarded for the Bulge offensive could have been put to better use on the Eastern front. Maybe delayed the russians long enough for their strength to run out or supply lines stretched. And all that manpower lost or captured surely could have helped in the east as well. And the Malmedy massacre among others certainly didn't help the Germans, it meant "Oh well, I am going to get a bullet in the back anyway, may as well go down fighting and make it harder for them slowing them down". I believed Charles Brosnan pointed this out as a character in the Movie Battle of the Bulge as a prisoner.

@peterlewerin4213

2 жыл бұрын

We know the answer to that, because the same armoured divisions were rebuilt and joined up with others to conduct an offensive in Hungary in March to regain control over the very last oil source the Germans had. They slowly gained ground for a week before the 3rd Ukranian Front set up a counterattack that pushed them back to their starting point in a couple of days. Approximately twice the number of armoured vehicles were lost in this offensive compared to the one in the Ardennes.

Patton was able to move so fast to relieve the circled troops because Eisenhower and Patton had discussed the vulnerability of that region in previous meetings , so he had a pre prepared emergency response essentially allowing him to move fast.

@stephenlitten1789

2 жыл бұрын

And his army was not actively engaged in battle.

@maxmoore3472

2 жыл бұрын

NOT one mention of Montgomery, and British and Canadian troops directly involved, 60 thousands in total ,they were ordered to stop the Germans, Patton is the hero .the British pulled your arse out the fire .

Finally a documentary in the classic style. Well done. Thank you for clarity, precision of speech.and lack of dreary repetition.

Thank you for the video. I always enjoy learning new things. Now I'm going to go read about the red ball Express.

I don't think the Allies would have split politically, even if the Battle of the Buldge succeeded militarily and did split the US and British Army physically

@Cailus3542

Жыл бұрын

Not a chance, no. Even in a magical German victory, with Antwerp taken and the British/Canadian forces encircled, the Allies would've simply shrugged and counterattacked in force. The Germans didn't have the strength to really defeat even isolated armies at that point. Regardless of what happened in the north, substantial French and American forces in the south remained in good shape, supported by ports taken in Operation Dragoon.

One of Hitler's main weaknesses was that he didn't put any value on defensive tactics. To him it was all about the attack. My guess from my studies of him, is that he saw going on the defensive as being almost cowardly and a sign of failure. If I were him with his limited options, I would've found the strongest defensive positions and then fortified myself, more than likely along the eastern shores of the Rhine.

My great uncle was captured during this battle. He survived the POW camp but came back emaciated and covered in scars from bug bites.

It strikes me that their inability to accommodate and deal with holding actions was the biggest German tactical failing. El Alamein, Stalingrad, and Bastogne were costly in every conceivable way (momentum, men, materiel) and caused reversals. They could easily have left an occupying force to prevent commando action and continued forward, but, instead, they focused all of their forces on isolated defenders in unnecessary sieges.

My father in law fought as part of the rifle company that held off the German advance. His efforts were recognized by the Belgian Government, and he was decorated wirh honors, and flown back to commemorate the Fiftieth Anniversary of the liberation of Belgium

Wow! Very educational video with maps!

My paternal grandfather fought in the battle of the bulge, his left foot got frostbite and till they day he died he wore thick socks on that foot. Silver Star for Gallantry and a Purple Heart.

Excelent! Brief, full of information, easy to understand…

The Canadian First Army was resting at Antwerp after the battle of the Scheldt. There was never any chance, even without the Americans heroic and stubborn defense.

@chrisvickers7928

2 жыл бұрын

@Me Me Absolutely. The stubborn American resistance gave time for Patten's reinforcements to arrive. The Germans wasted the last of their strategic reserves in a desperate attempt to recreate May 1940.

@2ddw

2 жыл бұрын

Not just the Canadians but XXX Corps was recuperating nearby. HAHAHA! Imagine getting to the outskirts of Antwerp and running into those two!

I thought it was Oddball and the rest of Kelly's Heros 😜

@farmerlamb2372

2 жыл бұрын

Why don’t you knock it off with them negative waves? Why don’t you dig how beautiful it is out here? Why don’t you say something righteous and hopeful for a change? 🤣

@robertbruce7686

2 жыл бұрын

@@farmerlamb2372 wuff wuff!

@michaeldunne338

2 жыл бұрын

Down in Nancy ... Where they couldn't go for some R&R ...

@randylahey1232

2 жыл бұрын

Its a mother beautiful bridge and it's gonna be there 😎

@Rumpelstyltskin

2 жыл бұрын

Will you stop with all of those negative waves, baby...

I learn so much from these videos

Hitler was the only person that thought this plan would work. Model said that it didn't have a leg to stand on. But then, Model was a General and Hitler was a corporal.

All wars are totally dependent on good logistics. That includes generous supplies of fuel, readily available at the front line. The Redball Express was vital to the Allies for that. Hitler's supplies were not sufficient, so yes, the battle of the Bulge was doomed to fail.

@BoxStudioExecutive

2 жыл бұрын

Lol, you might as well say that Hitler’s entire war was doomed to failure

@stevenredpath9332

2 жыл бұрын

@@BoxStudioExecutive it failed so yes you could say that completely.

@jano1574

2 жыл бұрын

@Israel Hands as any army would have been on the European Continent after 5 years of war... civilians in all countries were on rations by this time, so of course they would steal supplies to feed themselves. you would have done the same if you were as hungry as they were.

@90AlmostFamous

2 жыл бұрын

@@BoxStudioExecutive yea they didn’t had resources, manufacturing of allies. Only swift victory would have done somethivv ni

@jdgower1

2 жыл бұрын

I think it was John Pershing who said, "Soldiers win battles, but logistics wins wars."

My grandfather was in Malmedy. He served in the 291st Combat Engineers

My father was one of those green American troops. He was drafted and sent there in the Big Red One. The B.A.R. gunner got killed soon after he arrived and they gave him that weapon (served him right for scoring sharpshooter in boot camp.) We're very lucky that he survived the war. He ended up in the photo lab at the Nurnberg trials.

This channel is amazing.

Never underestimate your enemy, that phrase has served me well.....

The yanks done good.

My father was injured prior to the Battle of the Bulge and was in the hospital. His entire unit was wiped out during the Battle.

The other issue was that the Germans had figured something was wrong with their security, and did not use any radio communications in setting up the attack. The Allies had become too comfortable with their ability to read German comms, and relied on it too much.

Mistake #1: Hitler assuming that physically dividing the Western Allies would break their alliance. The same as if he had succeeded in controlling all of Stalingrad, which they virtually did, then what? The end result was written on the future Berlin Wall. It was a war of numbers and he didn't do the math.

I was hoping for a little more about the UK contribution since it is usually so obscured or simply absent. The US efforts are of course legendary but I know there is more to the history and I expected the IWM to chime in a little.

@grumpyoldman8661

2 жыл бұрын

Yes indeed, Field-Marshall Montgomery's contribution - in charge of both British and American armies - was significant. As his opponent (General Hasso von Manteuffel: 5th Panzer Army) wrote: "Montgomery's contribution to restoring the situation was that he turned a series of isolated actions into a coherent battle fought according to a clear and definite plan. It was his refusal to engage in premature and piecemeal counter-attacks which enabled the Americans to gather their reserves and frustrate the German attempts to extend their breakthrough", (UK)

@WanderlustZero

2 жыл бұрын

I'm surprised they even mention Montgomery's being in command, as he's usually written out of the battle entirely. But it's a start

@kennethnied5242

2 жыл бұрын

That's because there *was* no UK contribution at the Bulge -- they were traffic cops guarding the Meuse River crossing points. Ike had to beg and plead with Monty to take the offensive. Even then it took him two more days till Jan. 3 to finally get off his ass and move. True to form The Weasel afterwards tried to claim credit for the sacrifices and accomplishments of others: "...one of the most interesting and tricky battles I have ever handled."

@whirving

2 жыл бұрын

@@kennethnied5242 either way I'd like to hear more about it. I know there was some significant fighting on the edge of the sector, especially during the "mop up". Would be good to get a view of this in addition to the well known US efforts.

@SeattlePioneer

2 жыл бұрын

Heh, heh! What more needed to be said after Operation Market Garden?

I knew an old boy who was a cannoneer for Patton. He never missed a fire mission. He captured a German Major and the company Commander took credit for it. He also got frost bite on his toes but couldn't prove it happened in the service so he couldn't collect.

If it weren't for the 28th Infantry Division, Bastogne would probably have fallen. The 28th was spread out over a 25-mile front east of Bastogne, mostly along Skyline Drive, but held the Germans up for the better part of 5 days and thereby wrecking their timetable. The 110th Regiment lost some 4500 killed and wounded (out of 5000) defending Marnach, Hosingen, Holzthum, and Clarvaux, but succeeded in delaying the German offensive long enough to give the 101st Airborne a chance to get into position around Bastogne.

Germany was finished after Operation Bagration shattered the 800,000 strong Army Group Centre, it was only a matter of time.

@michaeldunne338

2 жыл бұрын

Yes, that broke the back of the German ground forces, in the summer of 1944, opened up the way to central Poland and Warsaw.

@juliantheapostate8295

2 жыл бұрын

Germany was finished after the loss of 6th Army. Arguably, before then in 1941. Barbarossa cost too many men and supplies

Glad to see some people talking about the armor at Baston. They usually talk only of the 101st. The 101st needed the tanks to hold the town, and the tanks needed the infantry to hold the town. Without one or the other, the town most likely would have fallen.

Interesting/informative/entertaining. Excellent photography job enabling viewers to better understand what the orator was describing. Fuel shortages ended the panther command of the bulge advantage. Had General Mc Culliff surrendered & not held out. Although the allies would have persevered. Retaking that lost real estate would have been very costly. The disillusioned leadership in Berlin. Would have been better off fortifying the borders of the countryside.

what is the melody sound at song started from - those violins- sounds like something medieval...14:32?

Considering the incredible size of the Bagration rarely gets a mention. The decisive battle of the war.

@SeattlePioneer

2 жыл бұрын

There were numerous decisive battles of the war, not to mention the numerous decisive battles of the Pacific war, too. The Germans and the Japanese even won some of these decisive battles. (The surrender of France and the Pearl Harbor attack, among others). But it was the greatest war in human history, fought with enormous resources mobilized on all sides. No one battle could be decisive. Only the end of the wars were decisive.

The “Bulge” wasn’t created by the battle, it was extended by it but if you look at the map before the battle started the bulge already existed.

Another big difference: In May it is light from 5am until after 10 at night. Germans could be on the attack 16 hours per day. In winter it is dark until 8am and dark again at 5pm. This seriously limited their speed of operations.

Excellent summary...thx

Militarily what was the difference from 1940? Fuel and air superiority. In 1940 when the Germans crossed the Meuse at Sedan, capturing a couple of bridgeheads, they called in the Luftwaffe to bomb the French gun positions overlooking the river for 9 consecutive hours, providing a screen to cross the river in force, while French planes was mostly stranded on the ground as the disorganized command failed to offer any meaningful aerial resistance to the Luftwaffe pounding of Sedan. Compare that to this 1944 campaign where Germany is reliant on bad weather to even get the offensive off the ground because the Americans and British have such air superiority and are constantly pounding the Germans on the Siegfried line. And that’s just the weather On the fuel side, in 1940 the Germans could afford to give large operational freedom to their tank divisions and allowed them, with a little prodding, to drive as far as they needed to cut off the British and French. Meanwhile in 1944 they don’t even have enough low-quality synthetic fuel to capture their targets even if the plan goes correctly, they need to somehow stumble upon British and American oil supplies in their rear areas. That last part I find interesting, because however desperate it was, that was the plan, to capture American and British oil, yet beyond the parachute mission and the Skorzeny mission, neither of which were strictly to capture oil, the Germans didn’t really devote any particular military concentration on that objective, instead focusing on vague territorial objectives.

@michaeldunne338

2 жыл бұрын

The Western Allies had pretty a good field artillery organization and communications infrastructure too - One reason the 6th Panzer Army got blocked at Elsenborn ridge on the northern shoulder of the bulge.

@robertpayne2717

2 жыл бұрын

Also in 1940 the germans used alot of French Gasoline ⛽ that they had siezed that the French had failed to destroy.... abandoned bulk plants and service stations... GERMAN ARMY WAS IN A CONSTANT SHORTAGE OF FUEL THE ENTIRE WAR....

@SeattlePioneer

2 жыл бұрын

Oh, bull. The Germans were COUNTING on Allied fuel supplies to carry them to Antwerp! Air superiority was GROUNDED during the early days of the attack! So what stopped the Germans? It was the determined and heroic Allied infantry that did that. Excellent allied logistical supply kept the infantry, armor and artillery supplied with the means to fight. And air power did a great job cutting up the Germans and reducing Allied losses. But it was those ground pounders, including armor and artillery, who blunted and then stopped the German attack. Just what FAILED to occur in 1940. That's not to disparage the vital role of logistics and air power, either. Ultimately they were a fighting team that worked together to defeat the Germans. Each had it's role to play.

Nice presentation. 🙂👌

@ImperialWarMuseums

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you 🙂

Essentially, it failed due to the poor quality of troops and commanding officers at this point of the war for Germany. Even so, they came within a mile of a huge Allied fuel dump at Dinant which might have propelled their lead units towards Antwerp. The delays at Lanzrath, Bastogne and St. Vith would never have happened against the German troops/officers of 1940-42. As it was, those held positions caused severe logistical issues, and, as it turned out, just enough fuel shortages and time delay for the Allied forces to keep them barely at bay until the cavalry arrived on the flanks of the spearhead. Still, at Dinant, the US forces keeping the German Panther tanks at bay was just a small recon force. And Lanzrath forest was held by 22 soldiers against a regiment of German parachutists (in prior years, these were elite units).

Growing up, my best friend's father had fought in the Battle of the Bulge and had lost part of his hand from a German offensive. We were in high school and the movie, The Battle of the Bulge came out so Howard decided to go see the movie in the local theater. He had never spoken to his son about his role in the battle so we were pretty excited for him to get home. (Teen boys excited about hearing some battle stories.) When he came in, my friend asked his father, "How was the movie, dad?" Howard looked at us and quietly said, "Not enough snow!!" (Not very satisfying but funny as hell!!!)

As a German commander commented during the Battle of the Bulge He captured a convoy with a soldier having a Birthday cake sent to him by his mom from the United States Wow he replied we will surely lose this war if the American have a supply of gasoline that can shipped a cake all the way from America and we don’t have! K

@davidw.2791

2 жыл бұрын

This sits well with the other story where a Navy solder nearly fell off the boat, but was rescued by a safety cable on his body, which later proved to be manufactured in his hometown in the same factory his mother worked in.

@SeattlePioneer

2 жыл бұрын

This is an anecdote from the movie . Good story that illustrates a useful point, but I doubt that it actually happened. "Artistic license," I would suppose.

Thanks for mentioning the 10th Armored Division there before and after the 101st who’s commander said that they could not have held without it. He was also embarrassed that they never got any credit.🤔🤔🤔🤔

You left out the prayer for good weather which was answered with General Patton's wish being granted.

The odds of the Ardennes Offensive succeeding were only about 5% but that was seen as a better option than the 100% percent chance of simply watching their forces be chewed up in a series of rearguard actions as they were inexorably pushed back into Germany.

@michaeldunne338

2 жыл бұрын

If succeeding was defined as capturing Antwerp and holding it, and then being able to continue to supply such forces, in winter, I would suspect chances were more like less than 1%.

@Ralphieboy

2 жыл бұрын

Only if they would have captured the supply bases in Liége and Antwerp intact.

@louisavondart9178

2 жыл бұрын

The Germans always did well in defensive actions and would have made the Allies pay dearly for every inch of territory. Even after this battle the Allies didn't ever have it easy. As it was, the Germans best ( and last ) Panzer divisions were gone forever.

@michaeldunne338

2 жыл бұрын

@@louisavondart9178 They did not do well on defensive in Belorussia and in Northern France the prior summer. And, looking at the operations following the Battle of the Bulge, they didn't do so well on defense in Poland in the face of the Soviet Vistula Oder offensive.

@Ralphieboy

2 жыл бұрын

There was little chance of success but it was either that or be slowly ground down by two advancing armies

The Germans were short by about twenty infantry divisions from making this offensive interesting.

They were facing a better armed and more determine adversary in 1944. In addition to that shortages in manpower material, and most importantly no air cover.

If your offensive relies on bad weather for any measure of success, I'd say it has no chance of succeeding in any major way. Maybe the odds aren't zero, but might as well be. Like operation Citadel on the eastern front in 1943: the attempt to pinch off the Kursk salient failed disastrously, weakened the German army and hastened the end of the war as the Red Army counteroffensive rolled the Wehrmacht back hundreds of miles across Ukraine. I have always wondered at what moment AH's general staff must have realized the war was lost. Oh, and you got a new subscriber. I thought the video was quite professional and presented the facts in a non-biased manner.