Three times the grenadiers [German] tried to rush their way through the foxhole line held by the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion (Lt. Col. William H. G. Fuller) and B Troop of the 87th astride the Schnberg road. Ridgways plan was premised on the assumption that that the American forces in this goose egg-shaped defense could be supplied by air; however, whoever drew up the plan was thinking in terms of supply requirements for the lighter airborne divisions, not for fuel-hungry and shell-reliant armored forces. 1/18th Scale Cars; 1/24th Scale Assembly Kits; 1/24th Scale Cars; 1/43rd Scale Cars; . Armored Champion, The Top Tanks of World War II. With all of these contradictions, ambiguity, and lack of supporting documentation and evidence surrounding Troop Es entry in mind, it is safe to conclude that this is not the most reliable account of what really happened on the 18th of December, 1944 at St. Vith. The story begins on the 18th of December 1944, two days after the start of the German offensive. However, it cannot be safely assumed that the tank killed in this engagement was a Tiger I or a Tiger II. The next notable version of this tale comes from a 1966 book by the US Army Armor School titled The Battle at St. Vith, Belgium 17-23 December 1944: A Historical Example of Armor in the Defense. Communications with division headquarters in St. Vith were limited to liaison officers running along a road now being shelled by the Germans. Amazing discounts for bundles. 301 sentences with 'poor shape'. VGD. This German World War II article is a stub. He could not believe it. However, he kept these misgivings to himself. The Ardennes 1944-1945: Hitlers Winter Offensive. Despite the loss of St. Vith, General Ridgway believed that the American armored and infantry forces defending St. Vith since December 16 could still hold. Revised Edition, Arms and Armour Press, 1973. The division, which was under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, absorbed . The southern prong was defended by General Hoges CCB, 9th Armored with the weakened 424th Infantry Regiment tied in and bent back protecting Burg Reuland. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. No reinforcements were expected. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating the 571st Volksgrenadier Division. The southernmost battle group of the 18th Volksgrenadier would also undertake a mobile thrust and, finally, the 62nd Volksgrenadier would break loose at Heckhuscheid and drive for the Our River Valley. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571. The StuG III explanation also accounts for why Troop B makes no mention of it in their morning report and record of events entry for 18th December 1944 and why Lieutenant Colonel Boylan makes no mention of it his 1946 letter or in the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadrons After Action Report for the month of December 1944. It was a race between the Germans who were desperately trying to bring their 88 mm gun to bear and the Americans who were trying to get as close as possible to the Tiger Is rear. Contents 1 Allied Forces 1.1 12th Army Group 1.1.1 U.S. First Army 1.1.1.1 V Corps 1.1.1.2 VII Corps 1.1.1.3 XVIII Airborne Corps 1.1.2 U.S. Third Army 1.1.2.1 III Corps 1.1.2.2 VIII Corps 1.1.2.3 XII Corps Division 4. 18e volksgrenadier division English translation: 18th volksgrenadier division (wehrmacht).. By this time the Germans had essentially closed the trap on the two infantry regiments on the Schnee Eifel. Verwundetenabzeichen in Schwarz (1918) Period: First World War (1914-1918) Awarded on: . It is possible (if unlikely) that this event was completely unrelated to the M8 Greyhound versus Tiger story. The same story is retold in A Colonel in the Armored Divisions A Memoir, 19411945 by William S. Triplet, and like a game of telephone it gets even more distorted. The situation on Reids left flank was unclear, and the Germans were attacking in considerable force against his right flank. Combat Interviews of the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion, 7th Armored Division: The St. Vith Salient and Manhay, December 17-23, 1944. One Day at Stavelot, a Tale of Two Archives The Tiger II vs US Tank Destroyers in the Ardennes. He also hoped the 3rd Armored Division soon might attack to remove all threat of encirclement. The Seventh Armored Division in the Battle of St. Vith. Jones wanted Clarke to counterattack immediately with his combat command and break that ring that these people have closed around the Schnee Eifel.. M8 Greyhound Light Armored Car 1941-91. 47. The capture of St. Vith was, however, important for three other reasons: to ensure the complete isolation of Allied troops that might be trapped on a nearby ridge called the Schnee Eifel; to cover the German supply lines unraveling behind the armored corps to the north and south; and to feed reinforcements laterally into the main thrusts by using the St. Vith road net. On December 16th at 4:00 a.m., they took the twenty-two foot macadam road following the Our River valley towards Manderfield. I wanted to focus on the M8 vs Tiger story, I already noticed the Ferdinand claim, but decided not to mention it. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571.Volksgrenadier-Division.Under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, the new division absorbed elements of the 18th Luftwaffe Field . Schneider, Wolfgang. First-time contributor Charles Gutierrez is the son of a 9th Armored Division veteran. Join historians and history buffs alike with our Unlimited Digital Access pass to every military history article ever published (over 3,000 articles) in Sovereigns military history magazines. Rebuilding the blown bridge to get their assault guns across was their first priority. He said that the fight took about ninety minutes and that they used almost all their ammunition. (1944) 111 111. By the end of the day, the 27th AIB had withdrawn through Steinebruck without casualties despite enemy shelling of the village. At CCB, 9th Armored Divisions headquarters in Faymonville, General Hoge was just finishing up his briefing for his commands move to the Losheim Gap and Manderfeld when the call came through from General Jones informing him of 9th Armoreds new Winterspelt mission. Lieutenant Colonel Boylan also makes no mention of this event in a 1946 letter he wrote to Major General Robert W. Hasbrouck, the former commanding general of the 7th Armored Division, which details the actions of the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron at the Battle of St. Vith. The Tiger I was a 57 tonne German heavy tank that has become one of the most famous tanks in history. Germanys Tiger Tanks D.W. to Tiger I: Design, Production & Modifications. A mobile battalion of the 18th Volksgrenadier Division was already moving on Andler to seize the Schoenberg bridge and the road to St. Vith. Sometime later that Monday morning, General Hoge sent his liaison officer to St. Vith to learn the dispositions of CCB, 7th Armored Division. Volksgrenadier-Division. The supply trains led the way north on N27 to St. Vith. Although both men agreed that a withdrawal at this stage was the wiser decision, Hoge was skeptical that, given the weather and ground conditions, the defenders would be able to get out. The defense of St. Vith was now achieving some kind of order in contrast to the chaos that had reigned during the previous three days. Although it was beaten off, the attacking Germans were identified as new to the area, soldiers of the 9th SS Panzer Division, a cause for considerable concern at this point in the battle. Add to cart. He is being outflanked and is retiring west another 2,000 yards refusing both flanks. Germanys Tiger Tanks VK45.02 to TIGER II. Personally I have not believed this event at all. 16 Dec 2022 08:28:00 A platoon of medium tanks counterattacked, and the enemy retreated. The ground was frozen solid. On top of attacking the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron (minus Troop B), a Panzer IV can be easily misidentified as a Tiger I. By 2300 enemy patrols tested 27th AIBs new position and a night attack was thrown back with the help of D Troop, 89th Recon. Troop D, 89th Recon had positioned its troop headquarters and first platoon to cover the bridge over the Our. Volksgrenadier-Division. 18th Panzer Division (later 18th Artillery Division) 19th Panzer Division (previously 19th Infantry Division) 20th Panzer Division 21st Panzer Division (previously 5th Light Division) 22nd Panzer Division 23rd Panzer Division 24th Panzer Division (previously 1st Cavalry Division) 25th Panzer Division Next came B Company, 9th Armored Engineers; the 16th Armored Field Artillery; B Company, 482nd Antiaircraft Artillery; and the 14th Tank Battalion. The unit attacking Troop B, the 294th Volksgrenadier Regiment, had StuG IIIs and had been using StuG IIIs the previous day in small probing attacks east of St. Vith where Troop B would end up being positioned. The corps consisted of two infantry divisions. After that mornings enemy assaults, the line of the 27th AIB was reestablished west of Neubruck. Schneider, Wolfgang. Elements of D Company, 89th Recon screened the flanks. All but five troopers of 2nd Platoon were lost to enemy action. When Model released the Fhrer Escort Brigade to General Manteuffel, he thought that he would be able to gain quick access to the St. Vith road network. Tiger. VGD captured St. Vith, winning a great victory. General Clarke again called on the 9th Armored for assistance to help stiffen his line, and Hoge responded by sending the 3rd Battalion, 424th Regimental Combat Team. The closest primary German armored thrust route to the south ran through Burg Reuland, also about five miles from St. Vith. First Edition, Presidio Press, 2002. Although the 62nd Volksgrenadier Division drove the American defenders from Winterspelt, all was not going well for the Germans. The village of St. Vith lay approximately 12 miles behind the front lines on December 16, 1944, the day the offensive code-named Operation Watch on the Rhine began. Similar events have happened more than once, though on the Eastern Front. A strong attack has just developed against Clarke again. Inside the command post, General Hoge learned that the Germans had launched a heavy assault on Winterspelt against the men of the 424th Infantry. While 9th Armored was thus engaged in the Winterspelt area during the morning hours of December 17, Brig. St. Vith is built on a low hill surrounded on all sides by slightly higher rises. The losses in men and equipment for CCB, 9th Armored, as with the rest of the American units defending St. Vith, had been severe. Attack on Panther PzKw V and Tiger PzKw VI. On his way to St. Vith, General Hoge stopped in Faymonville to alert his command to be prepared to move immediately. Schneider, Wolfgang. I should also note that reconnaissance doctrine was to disengage if at all possible and in no way engage enemy armour beyond scout elements. Not only does this change Captain Ansteys version of the story, but this also confirms the possibility that Troop Es entry could have been talking about a Tiger II. VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army (Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. Stackpole Books, 2015. With this contact, all units in the vicinity of St. Vith, including 9th Armored Division forces, passed to the command of Maj. Gen. Matthew B. Ridgways XVIII Airborne Corps. Despite nearly a foot of snow, the ground underneath was still soft, and with the passage of only a few heavy vehicles it was soon churned into a morass of mud. Soldiers of the 18th Volksgrenadier Division infiltrated the American lines at the villages of Roth, Weckerath, Kobscheid, and Auw before the artillery barrage began. This moment marked the beginning of the famous Battle of the Bulge, Germanys last major offensive on the Western Front in World War II. The German tank then stopped dead in its tracks and shuddered; there was a muffled explosion, followed by flames which billowed out of the turret and engine ports. Mastering all the usages of 'poor shape' from sentence examples published by news publications. The 424th Infantry had its back to the Our River, and if the Germans seized the bridge at Steinebruck and spread along the far bank his regiment would be hard pressed to effectively withdraw. Johnston, W. Wesley. Jentz, Thomas. Established in 1941, the unit was deployed in German-occupied areas of the Soviet Union, in the Army Group North Rear Area. Panzertruppen Volume 2 The Complete Guide to the Creation & Combat Deployment of The German Tank Forces 1943-1945. General Frederich Kittel, the division commander, ordered his mobile battalion up from his 164th Regiment reserve at Pronsfeld and into the attack along the Winterspelt road. The fight ended when he slammed the M8 (he called it a Greyhound) into the rear of Tiger and the gun crew fired three rapid fire rounds into the engine compartment. Comment * document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id", "aefa00eeca3d30bd3e762fcc54816f6d" );document.getElementById("f87928873f").setAttribute( "id", "comment" ); Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Im going to guess that they just created this all up in their head. Johnston, W. Wesley. Boyer, Donald P. St. Vith The 7th Armored Division in the Battle of the Bulge 17-23 December 1944 A Narrative After Action Report. Late in the day, the Germans launched three major attacks, each directed along a main road leading into the town. 2014. 22 22. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18.Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. Accordingly, that evening Sixth Panzer Army commander Dietrich issued orders to the 2nd SS Panzer Corps to move to the south so that parts of that corps could assist Manteuffel in taking St. Vith. The last of the St. Vith defenders to come out were Task Force Jones and the 112th Infantry Regiment. Ridgways 82nd Airborne was building a fairly firm line west of the St. Vith defenders that should prevent the Germans from cutting off the salient from the rear. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division completed its southern swing, encircling the two regiments of the 106th Division on the Schnee Eifel. What he claimed was that the fight wasnt as easy as it is presented here. This information came from the division's senior headquarters, the VIII Corps, First U.S. Army. Clarke, Bruce. The Pontiac, Michigan, resident also served 10 years in the U.S. Army. Osprey Publishing, 2002. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. Still quite a feat for a little Greyhound, though well probably never know conclusively. By dark, just as General Hoges command was getting underway from Faymonville, Kittels mobile battalion and infantry from the 190th Regiment were closing in on Winterspelt. Developed in the 1930s, the Panzer IV was one of the mainstay German armored fighting vehicles of the Second World War as well as Germanys most-produced tank of the war, with over 8,500 produced. They were repulsed by machine-gun fire. First Edition, Stackpole Books, 2004. The guns of two platoons of Company A, 811th Tank Destroyers were overrun. 1940 194111. Just kept to the main story. Zaloga, Steven, and Tony Bryan. Those men were a scrappy bunch. However, this platoon never completed its mission. Luftwaffe-Feld-Division. Infanterie-Division 19398 . Your email address will not be published. Clarke pulled back his left flank to protect Hinderhausen, a key position on the emergency exit route to Commanster and Vielsalm. The platoon lost four men missing and two wounded in the ensuing engagement. The 424th Infantry still blocked the road to the Our River and Steinebruck. Six paved or macadam roads converged at St. Vith, but none of these was considered by the Germans to be a major military trunk line. GitHub export from English Wikipedia. Furthermore, late-war Panzer IVs equipped with Schrzen additional armor would look bigger, even closer to the size of a Tiger and this is before consideration is made on the stress of war, camouflaging materials applied to vehicles, the weather, and level of knowledge of the crews. The time was approximately 1800 on Saturday, December 16, when Combat Command B of the 9th Armored Division began its move to St. Vith. Required fields are marked *. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. During ceremonies observing the 20th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge, General Clarke was able to talk to General Manteuffel and discuss German operations against St. Vith. In light of these circumstances, General Hasbrouck felt compelled to write to Clarke that unless the withdrawal began soon the opportunity will be gone., During the night of December 22, a cold wind had begun to blow out of the east bringing what weathermen call a Russian high. Although both Clarke and Hoge noted it, they saw little hope that the ground might freeze in time to aid their withdrawal, but after receiving Hasbroucks message Clarke stepped out and tested the ground. However, there is one major issue with this explanation, Panzer IVs were not attacking Troop B. 4 Grosstraktor to Panzerbefehlswagen IV. Although the Germans were facing stiff resistance all along the American defensive line, they were determined to take St. Vith. Tiger. At least 900 soldiers who had stood in front of the town were either dead or captured. Sell, buy or rent Panzers in Winter: Hitler's Army and the Battle of the Bulge (Praeger Security I 9780275971151 0275971155, we buy used or new for best buyback price with FREE shipping and offer great deals for buyers. . All in all, the only things that the American claims concerning the famed M8 Greyhound versus Tiger engagement can agree on are that on the 18th of December 1944 an M8 Greyhound from some unit of the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron killed some sort of German tank in or around the town of St. Vith. Due to the lack of detail in Troop Es entry, it is impossible to tell which Tiger tank is the one being referred to in the account.
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