Daily Archives: December 20, 2020

Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe

Friends of Padre Steve’s World,

Another rerun of an older post because I didn’t sleep well last night and I still have so much to do before my official retirement which is beset with medical and dental issues that are really screwing with my life. I am also dealing with a Navy personnel website that has screwed up my security credentials to get on their website and I found out late Thursday that I have to get on it to get my DD-214 approved. That little document that releases me from active duty is necessary for me to get my VA benefits including my medical care and disability payments.

So until the next time,

Peace,

Padre Steve+

On December 16^th 1944 the German Army launched an assault in the Ardennes Forrest completely surprising the thinly spread American VIII Corps.  The German 6^th Panzer Army, 5^th Panzer Army and 7^th Army attacked and forced the surrender of 2 regiments of 106^th Infantry Division, mauled the 28^th Division in the center of the American line while battering other U.S. forces.  To the north the 2nd and 99th Infantry Divisions were tenaciously defending Elsenborn Ridge while to the south the thinly spread 4th Infantry and 9th Armored Divisions resisted the 7th Army advance. As elements of the two German Panzer armies advanced west Eisenhower dispatched his only reserves the 82^nd and 101^stAirborne Divisions to meet the threat. The 82^nd moved to the town of St Vith to aid the 7^th Armored Division while the 101^st was dispatched to hold the key road center of Bastogne.

By the 22^nd of December the besieged American defenders of Bastogne were causing Hasso Von Manteuffel’s 5^th Panzer Army headaches. Manteuffel’s leading Panzer units of the 2^nd Panzer Division and Panzer Lehr had been thwarted from taking Bastogne by a Combat Command of 10^th Armored Division and lead elements of the 101st Airborne Division. After failing to take the town the Germans invested it with the 26^thVolksgrenadier Division, and a regiment of Panzer Lehr while the  2^ndPanzer and the bulk of Panzer Lehr continued their westward advance.

Cut off from any other American forces the 101^st and a collection of stray units including CCB 10^th Armored Division and remnants of CCR 9^th Armored Division, three 155mm artillery battalions including the African American 969^th Field Artillery Battalion held out. By the 21st of December they were completely surrounded by strong German Forces with no relief in sight.

The Commander of the American garrison was Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe. McAuliffe was the acting commander of the 101^st and normally was the commander of the Division Artillery. Major General Matthew Ridgeway and many key commanders and staff were away from the division when it was hastily deployed to the Bulge to combat the German offensive.  McAuliffe now commanded a division which was surrounded, and that was short of ammunition, food, and cold weather gear.

General Der Panzertrüppen Heinrich Freiherr von Lüttwitz

The German forces surrounding the city were commanded by the veteran General Der Panzertrüppen Heinrich Freiherr von Lüttwitz, commander of XLVII Panzer Corps.  Lüttwitz believed that resistance to his forces was futile sent the following message under a flag of truce to McAuliffe.

To the U.S.A. Commander of the encircled town of Bastogne.

The fortune of war is changing. This time the U.S.A. forces in and near Bastogne have been encircled by strong German armored units. More German armored units have crossed the river Our near Ortheuville, have taken Marche and reached St. Hubert by passing through Hompre-Sibret-Tillet. Libramont is in German hands.

There is only one possibility to save the encircled U.S.A. troops from total annihilation: that is the honorable surrender of the encircled town. In order to think it over a term of two hours will be granted beginning with the presentation of this note.

If this proposal should be rejected one German Artillery Corps and six heavy A. A. Battalions are ready to annihilate the U.S.A. troops in and near Bastogne. The order for firing will be given immediately after this two hours term.

All the serious civilian losses caused by this artillery fire would not correspond with the well-known American humanity.

The German Commander

McAuliffe’s response has become one of the immortal responses to a surrender demand in military history. According to staff members present when he received Lüttwitz’s note he simple said “nuts.” One of his staff officers suggested that he use “nuts” as his official reply to Lüttwitz and the following reply was typed:

To the German Commander

NUTS!

The American Commander

The reply was delivered by the commander of the 327^th Glider Infantry Regiment Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Harper and his S-3 Major Alvin Jones. When Harper delivered the message he told the German delegation that in “plain English” it meant “Go to hell.” The scene has been immortalized on film in the movie The Battle of the Bulge

Likewise it is also depicted in the mini-series Band of Brothers. 

And in the 1949 film Battleground 

The garrison held out until it was relieved on December 26^th by the 4^th Armored Division of General George Patton’s 3^rd Army.  Despite that the situation remained tenuous and the town was the scene of much hard fighting over the next two weeks.

McAuliffe’s Christmas Message to his Soldiers

McAuliffe went on to command the 103^rd Infantry Division by the end of the war.  He returned to Europe as Commander of 7^th Army in 1953 and U.S. Army Europe in 1955. He retired in 1956 with the rank of General.  He died in 1975 at the age of 77. His adversary Von Lüttwitz died at the age of 72 in 1969.

As we remain engaged in the current war it is always worth our time to remember the heroism, courage and faith of those that served before us.

Peace

Padre Steve+