Battle of the Bulge
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/battle_of_the_bulge.htm
The Battle of the Bulge, fought over the winter months of 1944 – 1945, was the last major Nazi offensive against the Allies in World War Two. The battle was a last ditch attempt by Hitler to split the Allies in two in their drive towards Germany and destroy their ability to supply themselves. The Battle of the Bulge started on December 16th 1944. Hitler had convinced himself that the alliance between Britain, France and America in the western sector of Europe was not strong and that a major attack and defeat would break up the alliance. Therefore, he ordered a massive attack against what were primarily American forces. The attack is strictly known as the Ardennes Offensive but because the initial attack by the Germans created a bulge in the Allied front line, it has become more commonly known as the Battle of the Bulge. The US soldiers were unprepared for the cold weather. They had no cold weather gear, in fact most still had their thin summer uniforms on. One of the things they were exposed to since the trees were frozen were called tree bursts. The Germans would shoot the trees with their artillery and since the trees were so brittle they would shatter and send shrapenel everywhere. The German's main point of assult was the Belgian village of Bastogne. Bastogne was were all the roads in the region met and it was of great strategic importance. Bastogne is a classic example of how weather affected both sides of the conflict. The Germans on one hand could not bomb the allies , but on the other hand the allies could not get in much needed supplies by air because of the heavy cloud cover. Around Christmas the cloudcover broke
The Battle of the Bulge, fought over the winter months of 1944 – 1945, was the last major Nazi offensive against the Allies in World War Two. The battle was a last ditch attempt by Hitler to split the Allies in two in their drive towards Germany and destroy their ability to supply themselves. The Battle of the Bulge started on December 16th 1944. Hitler had convinced himself that the alliance between Britain, France and America in the western sector of Europe was not strong and that a major attack and defeat would break up the alliance. Therefore, he ordered a massive attack against what were primarily American forces. The attack is strictly known as the Ardennes Offensive but because the initial attack by the Germans created a bulge in the Allied front line, it has become more commonly known as the Battle of the Bulge. The US soldiers were unprepared for the cold weather. They had no cold weather gear, in fact most still had their thin summer uniforms on. One of the things they were exposed to since the trees were frozen were called tree bursts. The Germans would shoot the trees with their artillery and since the trees were so brittle they would shatter and send shrapenel everywhere. The German's main point of assult was the Belgian village of Bastogne. Bastogne was were all the roads in the region met and it was of great strategic importance. Bastogne is a classic example of how weather affected both sides of the conflict. The Germans on one hand could not bomb the allies , but on the other hand the allies could not get in much needed supplies by air because of the heavy cloud cover. Around Christmas the cloudcover broke
