Today is the 70th anniversary of the beginning of Unternehmen Wacht am Rhein<\/i><\/b> \u2013 or, as it\u2019s more commonly referred to in the US, the Battle of the Bulge. At 0530 (local time) on 16 December 1944, German forces in the Ardennes began a general offensive against American forces in northeastern Europe. The fighting was to last until 25 January 1945 \u2013 a total of forty-one days.<\/p>\n
The German operational objective was to capture the Belgian port of Antwerp. The strategic objective was to split British and US forces, cutting off the former in Belgium and the Netherlands, in hopes of causing the Western Allies to make a separate peace with Germany.<\/p>\n
From the beginning, the German offensive was a desperate gamble \u2013 some German commanders gave it only a 10% chance of success. However, at that point in the war the German high command felt they really had no choice. A continued defensive posture was viewed only as a way of prolonging eventual defeat.<\/p>\n
Due to a combination of missed indicators and overconfidence on the part of Allied commanders, German forces achieved near-complete operational and strategic surprise. That the offensive failed is due IMO largely to two factors. The first was the generally weakened state of German forces (due to massive prior losses in France and on the Eastern Front) at that point in the war. Had the Germans had stronger forces available, they possibly would have achieved their operational objective of Antwerp. (Whether that would have induced the US and UK to seek a separate peace with Germany is an open question.)<\/p>\n
The second reason for the German offensive\u2019s failure was determined early resistance by US forces \u2013 at Elsenborn Ridge during the battle\u2019s opening days, and in the much better-known (but probably less decisive) defense of Bastogne beginning somewhat later \u2013 prevented a German breakout. These determined defensive stands irreparably disrupted and delayed the German offensive, buying US forces sufficient time to react and contain it. German forces indeed forced a large salient in US lines \u2013 famously referred to as a \u201cbulge\u201d – but were unable to achieve a breakout to the English Channel and Antwerp.<\/p>\n
By Christmas 1944, the initial German advance in the Ardennes had been stopped. Over the next six weeks, German forces were forced back to their original lines at the beginning of the offensive.<\/p>\n
The Germans tried again in early January to continue their offense via operations against the US 7th Army in Alsace, which had sent troops to reinforce US forces farther north. German forces achieved some initial success in this supporting effort.\u00a0 However, it was also contained. By late January, this supporting offensive also had ended.<\/p>\n
The Battle of the Bulge was the largest fought by US forces during World War II. It was also the most costly in human terms. Multiple published totals for US casualties exist, ranging from nearly 90,000 (including 19,000 killed and 23,000+ missing) to over 108,000 (including 19,000+ killed and 26,000+ missing). German casualties were on the same order as US casualties; official German casualty figures for the battle totaled 84,834.<\/p>\n
The Battle of the Bulge was almost an exclusively American-German battle. British casualties numbered 1,408: 200 killed, 969 wounded, and 239 missing.<\/p>\n
The battle’s effect on German forces in the Western theater was near-catastrophic. The battle depleted German theater reserves, and Germany could not adequately replace them. These losses doubtless hastened the end of World War II in Europe.<\/p>\n
As you go about your activities today, take time to remember 70 years ago. It\u2019s history worth remembering.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"