This article provides useful information about the battle of the bulge. Hope the information proves to be useful to you.

The Ardennes was chosen as it was a mountainous area and with winter snow all around it provided a natural camouflage. In addition the area was held by the Americans who Hitler felt were the softer target and not good fighters. This perception in hindsight appears wrong. Hitler also miscalculated the effect of Allied air Power which was the dominant force at that time having achieved air superiority over entire Europe.
Hitler amassed nearly 1000 panzers and heavy guns and 450,000 troops in the Ardennes forests. He was helped by bad weather conditions and heavy snowfall resulting in the allies’ air forces being unable to carry out any air reconnaissance. They were thus unaware of the German build up.

In addition General Eisenhower the supreme allied commander, General Patton and General Omar Bradley discounted any German thrust through the Ardennes. Hitler kept a personal tab on the battlefield and gave the signal for the assault on 12 Dec 1944. The plans success also hinged on secrecy and this Germans achieved with the allies intelligence failing completely.
The Battle
The Germans opened the operation with a heavy artillery bombardment and the troops aided by the Panzers pressed forward. The attack was a success as the Germans achieved complete surprise and the American troops facing the Germans suffered heavy casualties. In fact in this campaign the Americans suffered the maximum casualties than in any single campaign of the Second World War. The Germans plan also hinged on bad weather continuing, to prevent the allies’ air forces from operating.
The Germans advanced forward in what has come to be known as the ‘battle of the Bulge’. And had tremendous initial success and Hitler felt that Antwerp could be reached. But fate took a hand and the bad weather disappeared and the skies cleared. In addition the retreating Americans destroyed many bridges and fuel dumps, thus effectively starving the Germans of precious fuel for their panzers. The allies’ air forces also went into action and without air cover and stiffening American resistance the attack began to stall and finally ground to a halt.
The Failure
Von Rundstedt signaled to Hitler the failure of the Offensive and ordered a withdrawal. The result of this gamble was costly for Germany as they suffered over 100,000 casualties and more important experienced troops were lost. The Americans suffered 21,000 dead out of an approximate 69,000 casualties. The American counter attack under General Patton put the seal on the offensive as it stopped the German advance. In addition in the east, the Russians launched their massive winter offensive on 12 Jan1945 and the fate of Germany was sealed. In addition the failure to capture Bastogne as per the plan was a setback.
Lessons
There are many lessons from this battle. It must be remembered that though the plan was brilliant, yet its execution depended on many other factors including bad weather and air power. Both these did not favor the Germans and the offensive failed. The importance of tactical air support was highlighted as a crucial factor in war. It was the last offensive launched by the Germans as after this the German army was only fighting to delay the inevitable.

Madan G Singh

An early retired Gp Capt from Air Force who is an Executive Director in the Corporate world. Loves to write fiction and articles. Published over 60 short stories and his novel" Romance of the Frontier" is published from Notion Books.His second novel is on way for publication. The author also has close to 10,000 articles on the b net with millions of views

Related Articles

0

272

Why The Moderates Could Not Control The French Revoluti

The French Revolution was all about the spreading of liberty and the full freedom of expression for citizens. It was the replacement of an absolute monarchy headed by an inept King, with a republic run by the people for the people, or so the theory went.

0

807

Failure Of The Luftwaffe In The Battle Of Stalingrad

The german army was defeated at Stalingrad. Read the article in detail to know about the various causes behind their defeat..

2

262

Devon House Jamaica History

Jamaica, one of the country’s in the Caribbean is a beacon of cultural heritage. The island’s first black millionaire George Stiebel built the famous Devon House Mansion.