Battle of the Bulge: Ardennes, December 1944

The German offensive opened on 16 December 1944 with a massive artillery bombardment along a front 100 miles wide, just before 05:30. In the north it ran into Elsenborn Ridge, the westernmost ridge of the Ardennes. The Americans had placed considerable artillery behind it, and the ridge became the only sector of the American front attacked in the Battle of the Bulge where the Germans failed to advance. General Hodges told the 2nd Division that its work "will live forever in the history of the United States Army."

Location precision: The fighting covered a long ridge and the villages around it; the pin marks Elsenborn, not a single spot.

Clervaux, in northern Luxembourg, sat on the main highway to Bastogne, so it was a main objective of the German tank drive. American regimental headquarters were in the Claravallis Hotel, and the fight lasted from 16 to 18 December 1944. It has been called the Luxembourg "Alamo". The castle above the River Clerve was destroyed in the battle and later restored. Today it houses a museum devoted to the Battle of the Ardennes.

Visitor guidance: The castle is open as a museum; check current opening times before you go.

On 17 December 1944 Kampfgruppe Peiper reached the Baugnez crossroads, two miles southeast of Malmedy. A convoy from the 285th Field Artillery Observation Battalion was halted and surrendered. Waffen-SS soldiers then shot at a group of about 120 American prisoners standing in a field, a war crime now known as the Malmedy massacre.

St. Vith held the headquarters of the 106th Division. After Clarke's command arrived on 17 December, it set up what was called the "horseshoe defense" of the town. The final German attack came on 21 December. Tiger tanks fired star shells into the American positions, blinding the defenders. The horseshoe was a line of units to the north, east and south of the town, built up in a hurry from armored and infantry troops and supporting artillery.

Location precision: The defence formed a horseshoe around the town; the pin marks the town of Sankt Vith, not one battle site.

On 22 December 1944 General von Lüttwitz sent a demand for surrender to the encircled American forces in Bastogne. General McAuliffe answered in frustration, "Nuts!" Near the town, the Mardasson Memorial is shaped like a five-pointed American star, with the names of the 48 states on its parapet. It was dedicated on 16 July 1950.

Location precision: The surrender demand was delivered inside the besieged town; the pin marks the Mardasson Memorial nearby.

Visitor guidance: The memorial stands near Bastogne and can be visited.