Post by floydragsdale on Jan 2, 2014 11:27:25 GMT -5
The date is the 17th of December 1944 and the time is several hours past midnight also, the place is on Schnee Eifel (a snow covered ridge) located along the Belgian/German Boarder.
The past day had been a nightmare for the Soldiers of G Company, 424th Regiment. Early in the morning (O.550) and for the following two hours a German Artillery barrage besieged the entire Company area. Actually that barrage covered eighty miles of front line in Belgium and Luxemburg.
As the barrage ended, out of the fog and mist of the morning hours charged the German Armor (tanks) and Infantry Soldiers. G Company men didn’t wait until they could see the whites of their eyes, nevertheless the Riflemen withheld their fire until they were definite targets. Then they let the enemy have it.
Before the daylight hours had ended, G Company Soldiers were introduced to the art of warfare with lightning speed by this German Blitzkrieg.
As nature blanketed the earth with dusk the sounds of war dwindled to an occasional sporadic burst of gunfire.
This Soldier was doing his watch, situated in a rifle-mans foxhole, for three hours, before another man came to relieve me. All seemed relatively quiet on the Western Front, until I heard a sound!
That’s a familiar noise, my ears warned me. The sound became louder and louder.
Holy cow, it’s a column of German Armor (Panzer Outfit) with their blackout lights on and they’re coming straight at this foxhole.
It probably would take a few minutes for them for them to reach this foxhole and I began contemplating. “What to do next.”
Abruptly, the lead column made a turn to their left, then the entire group faded into the distance.
At that very moment the 423rd Regiment of the 106th Division, was being engulfed by German Armor.
This Veteran did not realize the circumstances at that moment, yet while on a visit to that area several years ago he (me) saw the 2,0000 yard gap that divided the 424th and 423rd Regiments.
Indeed, it was a calculated (intended) risk. War is a contest between two opponents. Eventually, one side or the other will win. With the calculated risk theory the U.S. Army lost the first half of The Bulge Campaign, yet it won the most important part, the 2nd half of it.
Unknowingly, the 106th Division played a very important role in the Bulge Campaign. Part of the proof can be observed at Henry Chappale Cemetery in the tiny Country of Belgium, on the European Continent.
Floyd,
G Company
424th Regiment
106th Division
The past day had been a nightmare for the Soldiers of G Company, 424th Regiment. Early in the morning (O.550) and for the following two hours a German Artillery barrage besieged the entire Company area. Actually that barrage covered eighty miles of front line in Belgium and Luxemburg.
As the barrage ended, out of the fog and mist of the morning hours charged the German Armor (tanks) and Infantry Soldiers. G Company men didn’t wait until they could see the whites of their eyes, nevertheless the Riflemen withheld their fire until they were definite targets. Then they let the enemy have it.
Before the daylight hours had ended, G Company Soldiers were introduced to the art of warfare with lightning speed by this German Blitzkrieg.
As nature blanketed the earth with dusk the sounds of war dwindled to an occasional sporadic burst of gunfire.
This Soldier was doing his watch, situated in a rifle-mans foxhole, for three hours, before another man came to relieve me. All seemed relatively quiet on the Western Front, until I heard a sound!
That’s a familiar noise, my ears warned me. The sound became louder and louder.
Holy cow, it’s a column of German Armor (Panzer Outfit) with their blackout lights on and they’re coming straight at this foxhole.
It probably would take a few minutes for them for them to reach this foxhole and I began contemplating. “What to do next.”
Abruptly, the lead column made a turn to their left, then the entire group faded into the distance.
At that very moment the 423rd Regiment of the 106th Division, was being engulfed by German Armor.
This Veteran did not realize the circumstances at that moment, yet while on a visit to that area several years ago he (me) saw the 2,0000 yard gap that divided the 424th and 423rd Regiments.
Indeed, it was a calculated (intended) risk. War is a contest between two opponents. Eventually, one side or the other will win. With the calculated risk theory the U.S. Army lost the first half of The Bulge Campaign, yet it won the most important part, the 2nd half of it.
Unknowingly, the 106th Division played a very important role in the Bulge Campaign. Part of the proof can be observed at Henry Chappale Cemetery in the tiny Country of Belgium, on the European Continent.
Floyd,
G Company
424th Regiment
106th Division
