The Bulge

The Battle of the Bulge, between December 16, 1944 and January 28, 1945 remains the most costly battle fought by the American military with over 80,000 casualties.  It was Hitler's last offensive, a desperate gamble to split the Allied front and shatter the British/American alliance with the Soviets, taking place in wooded, hilly terrain in Luxembourg and Belgium.

What most Americans know about the Bulge (including me until recently) focuses on the siege at Bastogne and the valiant actions of the 101st Airborne, most recently celebrated in the fine Band of Brothers series.  However, there was much more to the battle as I learned in 2023 by listening to We Have Ways of Making You Talk, the top notch WW2 podcast hosted by two British military historians, James Holland and Al Murray, when they hosted John McManus, an American historian, who'd written Alamo in the Ardennes, about the 28th Infantry Division and its battle against the Germans in the opening days of the offensive, prompting me to read and write about the book (see Alamo in the Ardennes). 

Last December, Holland and Murray, along with McManus, did a 9-part podcast on the battle, focused on its opening days and on American units outside Bastogne, the siege of which is not mentioned until the seventh episode.  They provide an illuminating discussion of the strategic and logistical folly of the German plan, while shining a spotlight on the actions of outgunned and outnumbered American units who managed to completely disrupt the German timetable in the first four days, making the failure of the offensive inevitable.  These small actions, involving companies and regiments at obscure crossroads in the woods are given the attention and recognition they deserve and it completely changed my perception of the battle.  The series is a fitting tribute to those brave American soldiers.

I highly recommend giving it a listen.  You can find it here and searching on The Battle of the Bulge or use the podcast app on your phone.  Make sure to have a map in hand to follow the action! 

And now planning a trip next fall to the area.