Those Who Hold Bastogne by Peter Schrijvers

Author:Peter Schrijvers
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780300179026
Publisher: Yale University Press (Ignition)

On Christmas Day, on Gaffey’s far left flank, Combat Command R started rolling towards Bastogne much later than the other two combat commands. Tanks and half-tracks had been negotiating treacherous roads throughout the night in response to the sudden order to move from Bigonville all the way west to the Neufchâteau–Bastogne highway. They had assembled at Bercheux before dawn and used much of the morning to rest, refuel, and get organized. It was almost noon when the troops of Combat Command R pushed off on the Neufchâteau road. Although under orders to probe in the direction of Bastogne, Combat Command R’s role was essentially seen as supporting Combat Command B to its right. It was expected that, once Chaumont was taken, Combat Command B would make the main effort in the direction of McAuliffe’s men. That is certainly also what General Maxwell Taylor believed. Taylor, the commander of the 101st Airborne Division, had been in the United States when his men were rushed to Bastogne. He had hurried back to Europe and was now impatiently waiting to reunite with his troops. He had latched on to Combat Command B’s headquarters, convinced that it was their armored force that would take him to Bastogne along the fastest route.

Quite unexpectedly, however, Combat Command R on Christmas afternoon began slicing through the German defenses at the kind of speed that Patton had been hoping for from day one. Its troops raced through Vaux-lez-Rosières, where they cut off a small German engineer force, and overran Rosière-la-Petite, where they captured more than 60 paratroopers. Then they abandoned the highway and tried their luck along a secondary road just to the east. Their luck held for another few miles, until they encountered the first serious resistance at Remoiville. Little time was wasted in preparing the attack and, after only a brief artillery barrage, tanks and troops in half-tracks smashed their way into the village center. With Shermans blasting the houses at close range and infantry hurriedly fanning out across Remoiville, the enemy paratroopers barely had time to aim their Panzerfausts. By dusk, the village had been taken at a cost to the Germans of 35–50 dead, 42 wounded, and a stunning 327 prisoners. When a huge crater turned out to be blocking the road to Remichampagne, a halt had to be called for the day. Still, as dusk gave way to the first chill of night, the maps showed that in a single afternoon Combat Command R had come abreast with Combat Command B.57

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