He hoped to cleave a massive gap between American and British forces in northern France and Belgium, potentially even pushing through to reach Antwerp. Hitler himself was the driving force orchestrating the assault, one of several things with Eisenhower and the Allied high command did not fully grasp in December 1944. Hoping to recapture the blitzkrieg successes of 1940, Hitler was gambling this offensive as his last, best chance to arrest Allied momentum in the West. The news Eisenhower received that day signaled the start of the bloodiest battle in all of WWII for American forces. Abetted by snow and cloud cover, over 250,000 German forces were amassed to attack and break through American lines in the Ardennes. While Bradley was dismissive, Ike quickly sensed something foreboding in the news-he was right to do so. Due to its dense forested terrain, as well as the broad Allied front, American forces were rather weak in the Ardennes region, as no major attack was expected there at that time. As Ike and Bradley met, they were notified that just that morning a strong German attack had begun in the Ardennes. That afternoon, General Omar Bradley travelled to meet with Ike at his headquarters to discuss the slower than expected rate of replacement troops coming into the battle depleted ranks of his 12th Army Group. Thousands had fallen in battle up to now, but the prospects for victory in 1945 were good. In that time, Allied troops had travelled many miles from the beaches and hedgerows of Normandy, pushing German forces back to eastern France and the border of Germany itself. He had good reason to be satisfied with where things stood for the Allies-it had been six months and ten days since they launched the campaign in Western Europe. Ike had just been promoted to the rank of General of the Army, putting him in rarefied air among Allied commanders, and among other generals in American history. He was looking forward to attending the wedding of his orderly, Mickey McKeogh, taking place at Versailles. On December 16, 1944, Dwight Eisenhower’s day was supposed to be a fairly light one. 76 years ago, in fact, one of their greatest challenges of the war was underway.Īmerican soldiers of the 75th Infantry Division walk down a snow covered road in the Ardennes Forrest, December 1944 For every mile gained, white crosses and burial sites increasingly populated the French countryside.Īfter all they had overcome and endured in 1944, Eisenhower and the Allied forces he led still had many challenges that lay ahead. For every D-Day, there was a long and brutal fight to break out of the Normandy hedgerow country. Though it had its successes, it also came with its setbacks and challenges. For Dwight Eisenhower and the men of the Allied Expeditionary Force, 1944 was a long and trying year.
0 kommentar(er)
