The Ardennes 1944 1945

A comprehensive, photo-filled account of the six-week-long Battle of the Bulge, when panzers slipped through the forest and took the Allies by surprise. In December 1944, just as World War II appeared to be winding down, Hitler shocked the world with a powerful German counteroffensive that cracked the center of the American front. The attack came through the Ardennes, the hilly and forested area in eastern Belgium and Luxembourg that the Allies had considered a “quiet” sector. Instead, for the second time in the war, the Germans used it as a stealthy avenue of approach for their panzers. Much of US First Army was overrun, and thousands of prisoners were taken as the Germans forged a fifty-mile “bulge” into the Allied front. But in one small town, Bastogne, American paratroopers, together with remnants of tank units, offered dogged resistance. Meanwhile, the rest of Eisenhower’s “broad front” strategy came to a halt as Patton, from the south, and Hodges, from the north, converged on the enemy incursion. Yet it would take an epic, six-week-long winter battle, the bloodiest in the history of the US Army, before the Germans were finally pushed back. Christer Bergström has interviewed veterans, gone through huge amounts of archive material, and performed on-the-spot research in the area. The result is a large amount of previously unpublished material and new findings, including reevaluations of tank and personnel casualties and the most accurate picture yet of what really transpired from the perspectives of both sides. With nearly four hundred photos, numerous maps, and thirty-two superb color profiles of combat vehicles and aircraft, it provides perhaps the most comprehensive look at the battle yet published.

When Christer Bergstrom published the first English edition of his ground-breaking mammoth work The Ardennes 1944-1945: Hitlers Winter Offensive in 2014, it hit the World War II community with the impact of an earthquake. Based upon tremendous research into primary sources and interviews with very many of the veterans, this book turned the previous image of the Battle of the Bulge completely upside-down. Although tearing apart many myths that surrounded this battle it has hardly received any negative criticism with such scrutiny has the author treated the sources and source references. This book has been called the new main reference work on the battle. It still remains at the very edge of historical research on this epic battle. Especially the veterans from the Battle of the Bulge have praised the work as completely outstanding. This new Volume I deals with the background of and the build-up for the offensive, the surprising German strike, and the tremendous and previously overlooked German successes during the first period of the offensive. The previously covered-up German successes and American failures are presented and detailed and carefully analyzed.

The history of the Battle of the Bulge, fought in Ardennes, France, is captured in a graphic format.

The prizewinning historian and bestselling author of D-Day, Stalingrad, and The Battle of Arnhem reconstructs the Battle of the Bulge in this riveting new account On December 16, 1944, Hitler launched his ‘last gamble’ in the snow-covered forests and gorges of the Ardennes in Belgium, believing he could split the Allies by driving all the way to Antwerp and forcing the Canadians and the British out of the war. Although his generals were doubtful of success, younger officers and NCOs were desperate to believe that their homes and families could be saved from the vengeful Red Army approaching from the east. Many were exultant at the prospect of striking back. The allies, taken by surprise, found themselves fighting two panzer armies. Belgian civilians abandoned their homes, justifiably afraid of German revenge. Panic spread even to Paris. While some American soldiers, overwhelmed by the German onslaught, fled or surrendered, others held on heroically, creating breakwaters which slowed the German advance. The harsh winter conditions and the savagery of the battle became comparable to the Eastern Front. In fact the Ardennes became the Western Front’s counterpart to Stalingrad. There was terrible ferocity on both sides, driven by desperation and revenge, in which the normal rules of combat were breached. The Ardennes—involving more than a million men—would prove to be the battle which finally broke the back of the Wehrmacht. In this deeply researched work, with striking insights into the major players on both sides, Antony Beevor gives us the definitive account of the Ardennes offensive which was to become the greatest battle of World War II.

When Christer Bergström published the first English edition of his ground-breaking mammoth work The Ardennes 1944-1945: Hitlers Winter Offensive in 2014, it hit the World War II community with the impact of an earthquake. Based upon tremendous research into primary sources and interviews with very many of the veterans, this book turned the previous image of the Battle of the Bulge completely upside-down. Although tearing apart many myths that surrounded this battle it has hardly received any negative criticism with such scrutiny has the author treated the sources and source references. This book has been called the new main reference work on the battle. It still remains at the very edge of historical research on this epic battle. Especially the veterans from the Battle of the Bulge have praised the work as completely outstanding. The new Volume II deals with various turning points in the battle: First the failure of SS-Kampfgruppe Peiper, the Allied Air Forces severing of the German supply lines around Christmas, and Pattons counter-offensive. Next, the bitter defeat sustained by Pattons Third U.S. Army in the tank battle at Bastogne, and several other German victories in tank battles that have previously been covered up in history writing, how the Luftwaffe actually gained air superiority, and the German offensive restarted in January 1945. Although the bloody battles in January 1945 cost both sides higher losses per day than in December 1944, they have been neglected in previous history writing. Here they are described in detail. The reason why the Ardennes Offensive failed is discussed, as are its quite significant repercussions.

On December 16. 1944, Hitler launched his last desperate offensive of World War II. It was his final great gamble and later became known as the Battle of the Bulge.

First published in 1992 to rave reviews, Danny Parker's Battle of the Bulge has since become the "standard" history of the battle, praised by historians for its stirring narrative, meticulous research, and its wealth of new information and fresh interpretations. Published now in a new edition, including a photo section with fascinating then-and-now images of the Ardennes area battlefield, this "classic" history of the Battle of the Bulge will be released to coincide with the 60th anniversary of the battle.