18th volksgrenadier division

The new sector assigned to CCB was on the fringe of territory the Sixth Panzer Army had mapped out for its further maneuvers. Hoge and Ridgway had been on the West Point football team together when Ridgway had been the teams manager. September 18th, 1944: Kdr. The Americans knew that their only hope in doing any sort of damage to this beast was to get as close as possible to it and shoot its weaker rear armor. Companies A and B held a line from Grufflingen to Hohenbusch with Company A, 14th Tank Battalion to their north. In my opinion, the only definite conclusion that can be made from all this is that some American vehicle engaged something at St. Vith on the night of the 18th. 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. Our preliminary briefings had told us that there would be no armor in our path. Out of this grand battle would come a too-good-to-be-true story symbolic of the stiff American resistance put up against the German offensive, that of how an M8 Greyhound armored car destroyed a Tiger I heavy tank. Having failed to find a soft spot to the north, the Germans then moved against Hoges 9th Armored command in the south; however, even before this attack got going three German tanks were knocked out and the rest of the probing force withdrew. Hoge has just reported an attack. Two regiments of the 62nd Volksgrenadier Division attacked 9th Armored positions early that morning, their goal to gain the Salm River at Salmchateau. This version is also attributed to Captain Anstey and is nearly the exact same as his original version of the story as well as being plagued by the exact same issues. It saw action in France before taking part in the fighting in the Ardennes where it suffered heavy losses, it continued fighting on the western front until the end . On December 16th at 4:00 a.m., they took the twenty-two foot macadam road following the Our River valley towards Manderfield. Boylan, Vincent L. After Action Report, Month of December, 1944. Required fields are marked *. Not only does Troop Es version of the story involve a different unit than the original story, it also takes place in a different location, note the following map. First Edition, Stackpole Books, 2005. 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. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. Established in 1941, the unit was deployed in German-occupied areas of the Soviet Union, in the Army Group North Rear Area. 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. German reports are also far from subtlety. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18.Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. They were sometimes misidentified as Tiger HIs. First Edition, Stackpole Books, 2004. In addition, the massive road jam caused by the inability to pass through St. Vith was creating acute shortages of gasoline and ammunition well to the west of St. Vith. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division(18th VGD) was a volksgrenadierdivision of the German Army(Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. 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. However, after careful analysis, it can be said with certainty that neither a Tiger I nor a Tiger II was killed by an M8 Greyhound from any troop of the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron on 18th December 1944 near St. Vith. The losses in men and equipment for CCB, 9th Armored, as with the rest of the American units defending St. Vith, had been severe. An attack to the east by the 7th Armored Division could then relieve the two surrounded regiments of the 106th. The 7th Armored had taken a beating in defending St. Vith. Although the Germans were facing stiff resistance all along the American defensive line, they were determined to take St. Vith. Germanys Tiger Tanks D.W. to Tiger I: Design, Production & Modifications. A Company moved south under the protection of the high river bank, while C Company deployed along the left side of the road as the enveloping company. Each attack was preceded by an intense artillery barrage lasting from 15 to 35 minutes. The Tiger II, also known as the King Tiger, Royal Tiger, Knigstiger, and Tiger Ausf.B, was an enormous, 69.8 tonne German heavy tank. Volksgrenadier-Division. This moment marked the beginning of the famous Battle of the Bulge, Germany's last major offensive on the Western Front in World War II. Its mission was to break through to the south of the 18th Volksgrenadier in the Grosslangenfeld-Heckhuschied sector, advance northwest on a broad front, and seize the Our River crossing at Steinebruck, five miles southeast of St. Vith. It is a classic David versus Goliath tale straight out of World War II that features American heroism. 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. It is possible (if unlikely) that this event was completely unrelated to the M8 Greyhound versus Tiger story. He could not believe it. Schneider, Wolfgang. Johnston, W. Wesley. After Action Report, Month of December, 1944. Johnston, W. Wesley. Its possible that the M8 took out an late production Panzer IV, but even that is unlikely due to the danger of more troops coming from behind with Panzerfausts or even a 20 millimeter. December 20 was a day of disappointment for the Germans around St. Vith. Volksgrenadier-Division 5 [ ] Osprey Publishing, 2002. Excellent deductive research! Operation Nordwind 1945 Hitlers last offensive in the West. A two-day rest was planned for everyone. Infanterie-Division 19398 . Ridgway knew Hoge to be calm, courageous, and imperturbable. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18th VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army (Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. . Armored Champion, The Top Tanks of World War II. If it was on a slope and firing down to the engine bay, then maybe but that would require it to be at such an angle that the M8 would topple and roll down. According to two combat interviews given by men of the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadrons After Action Report for the month of December 1944, and Lieutenant Colonel Boylans 1946 letter, on 18th December 1944, the Germans attacked the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron (minus Troop B) with infantry and tanks. VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army ( Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. By 1245, the original line was restored, and the antitank guns of Company A, 811th Tank Destroyers were recovered. Panzertruppen Volume 2 The Complete Guide to the Creation & Combat Deployment of The German Tank Forces 1943-1945. 13 relations. The 18. By 1300 on the 21st, the entire line was ablaze with German artillery, rockets, tanks, and infantry. The story begins on the 18th of December 1944, two days after the start of the German offensive. There are no German records or histories which indicate that, on 18th December 1944, a Tiger I or a Tiger II was knocked out in or around St. Vith. This one, however, most likely did not. Attack on Panther PzKw V and Tiger PzKw VI. In this version the M8 is replaced by an M5 Stuart from the 17th Tank Battalion of the 7th Armored during the retreat from St. Vith, that somehow miraculously ended up behind a Tiger when they thought they were following a Sherman. Home News Random Article Install Wikiwand Send a suggestion Uninstall Wikiwand Upgrade to Wikiwand 2.0 So, rather than spill blood needlessly to take meaningless ground, Hoge called off the attack on Winterspelt. Still quite a feat for a little Greyhound, though well probably never know conclusively. The area being defended was beginning to take the form of a large horseshoe, its axis running approximately northeast to southeast. Collins, Joshua, and Erik Albertson. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division(18. On February 5, 1945 General Walter Botsch took over command of the division. After 1200 hours on 17th December 1944, the 18th Volksgrenadier Division was reinforced by a mobile battalion. The M5 got within a yard of the Tiger and knocked it out with 5 rounds. 120th Infantry Regiment (30th Infantry Division) 307th Airborne Engineer Battalion 319th Field Artillery Glider Battalion 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment German Units 3d Parachute Division 12th SS Panzer Division 18th Volksgrenadier Division 246th Volsgrenadier Division 884th March Battalion 905th Assault Gun Brigade There are two likely candidates, the first being a Panzer IV. In the 27th AIBs move to take the high ground, B Company advanced along the center of the road. Within the Kloster, General Hoge found a division headquarters staff in a state of disarray and confusion. First Edition, Stackpole Books, 2004. Schiffer Publishing, 1997. 4 Grosstraktor to Panzerbefehlswagen IV. 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. War Department, 1944. Tigers In Combat I. During the night, the troopers experienced harassing fire from light and medium artillery and could observe enemy infantry and at least four tanks moving along high ground to the south of the river. By the end of the day, the 27th AIB had withdrawn through Steinebruck without casualties despite enemy shelling of the village. However, once a closer look is taken at this story, cracks begin to appear, and soon enough one begins to wonder whether or not this story really is too good to be true. 19454 1940 194111. Schiffer Publishing, 2000. Lucht anticipated that the Americans would counterattack the next day, but that their reaction would be too late to avoid complete encirclement. 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. Fire from the 16th Field Artillery broke up other enemy formations trying to assemble on the high ground to the south. The surviving Volksgrenadiers fled in disarray. On the morning of the December 20, three tank destroyers were placed in support of Company C, 27th AIB. 1964. Just kept to the main story. Stackpole Books, 2015. Perhaps the most unlikely performer of the entire battle was the 18th Volksgrenadier Division. Gen. Bruce C. Clarke, commander of CCB, 7th Armored Division, arrived at General Joness command post in St. Vith at approximately 1030. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division was to attack along the two roads from Schoenberg, with the Fhrer Escort Brigade assaulting from the north. En route, the officer was approached by a member of General Clarkes staff who told him that German tanks were approaching St. Vith along the road from the north. 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. Resistance by service company personnel in Rodt was fierce with every possible mandrivers, cooks, radio operatorsemployed in the defense; however, after nine hours of battle against the much superior German force, Rodt fell. These German tanks would later be specified to be Panzer IVs or Mark IVs. Company C, 27th AIB withdrew under heavy artillery and sniper fire but managed to destroy a number of German vehicles. We made several probing attacks, and every time we went into your position, we encountered armor. The troops request for armored support was denied by General Hoge because his tank companies sent north to help the 7th Armored had not yet returned and no reserve was on hand. Ridgway answered, Bill, we can and we will. The withdrawal plan called for a general pullback west of the Salm River to an assembly area in the zone controlled by the 82nd Airborne Division in the vicinity of Lierneux. The platoon lost four men missing and two wounded in the ensuing engagement. This story has gained a good deal of attention in recent years, especially on the internet thanks to videos such as The Tank Duel at St. Vith, Belgium by Lance Geiger The History Guy: History Deserves to Be Remembered, which has garnered hundreds of thousands of views. Attacking the rear of a Tiger when you had no way of knowing if it was supported by one or more others is extremely unlikely. 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. The fight lasted for more than three hours before the Germans withdrew, leaving one burning tank and approximately 150 dead. Although the 62nd Volksgrenadier captured Winterspelt, its losses were high and its left regiment had made little headway in the Heckhuschied sector. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. Combat Interviews of the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion, 7th Armored Division: The St. Vith Salient and Manhay, December 17-23, 1944. Zaloga, Steven. By this time the Germans had essentially closed the trap on the two infantry regiments on the Schnee Eifel. According to British penetration diagrams from 1944, the 37 mm M6 gun firing its standard round, the 37 mm APC M51, could, under ideal conditions, penetrate the 80 mm thick rear hull armor angled at 9 degrees when firing at an angle of 0 degrees, albeit just barely. One, the Sixth Panzer Army, was commanded by SS Obergruppenfhrer (brigadier general) Josef Sepp Dietrich, and the other, the Fifth Panzer Army, was commanded by General Hasso von Manteuffel. The only known witness to the supposed event, Captain Walter Henry Anstey, died on 26th October 2003 at the age of 90, taking the truth of the events that day to his grave. Zaloga, Steven, and Tony Bryan. Add to cart. Given that the American accounts do not give a consistent account of what happened that day at St. Vith, the other side of this story must also be investigated. Office of the Chief of Military History, Dept. Under cover of automatic weapons fire from a platoon of light tanks, Sergeant Eugene Dorland and two other men from the engineers went into the cold, bullet-splattered water carrying three cases of TNT and placed their charges on the south abutment of the bridge. EN. 281st Security Division (281. English Edition, Casemate Publishers, 2014. M8 Greyhound Light Armored Car 1941-91. This moment marked the beginning of the famous Battle of the Bulge, Germanys last major offensive on the Western Front in World War II. Division 3. Late on the 20th, patrols of the 82nd Airborne Division, on the other side of the Salm River, established contact with patrols of the 7th Armored Division. Boylan, Vincent L. Letter to Robert W. Hasbrouck. The resulting blast damaged the bridge to such an extent that the Germans would not be able to bring vehicles across for at least 24 hours. Since 7th Armoreds withdrawal meant that 9th Armoreds left flank would be in danger, the two generals agreed that Hoge would have to readjust part of his line to maintain contact with Clarkes new rearward position. 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. Personally I have not believed this event at all. VGD. This German World War II article is a stub. Were any of these Tiger Is and or Tiger IIs knocked out on the 18th of December, 1944? Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. With the enemy inside Steinebruck and excellent direct fire by the German artillery, what was left of 2nd Platoon, 89th Recon withdrew along the St. Vith road. Gen. Robert Hasbroucks 7th Armored Division would be arriving at St. Vith at 0700 on the 17th. American Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force Choose a Unit. . Since speed was the key to success of the German plan, two panzer armies would spearhead the offensive. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating the 571st Volksgrenadier Division. 188 was raised in late 1939. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. The formations started to peel backward in succession from opposite Neubruck to Maldingen. Late in the day, the Germans launched three major attacks, each directed along a main road leading into the town. Volksgrenadier-Division. According to Hugh M. Cole, an American historian and army officer. 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 It appeared now that the fate of his two northern regiments was sealed. of the Army, 1965. Instead of the M8 Greyhound firing three shots into the Tigers rear, the M8 Greyhound in Lieutenant Olsons version of events fired two shots. 223 223. After the Tiger I had passed, the armored car then slipped out of its concealed position and began accelerating towards the tank in an attempt to close the gap between the two. The staff officer wanted to know if 9th Armored could spare some desperately needed help. (1944) 111 111. This was no place to conduct a mobile defense with armor-heavy forces. js.src = "//player.ex.co/player/710cf52d-720a-4250-8e95-fc85dcedab01"; The 9th Armored Divisions position at the Our was no longer tenable. Zaloga, Steven, and Tony Bryan. This is an issue because there were two distinct types of German Tiger tanks, both of which took part in the Battle of the Bulge: The Tiger I and the Tiger II. The distance from Burg Reuland on the southeast to Poteau on the northwest was about 10 miles with only a single secondary road as a line of retreat for thousands of men defending the horseshoe against attack from three directions. Beevor, Antony. It can be safely assumed that the armored car that Lieutenant Olson is talking about in his story is an M8 Greyhound due to the fact that the only armored cars that the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron fielded were M8 Greyhounds. The provisional company of 424th stragglers disappeared during the night. 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. The leading vehicles of General Hoges command entered St. Vith on Sunday morning just as dawn was breaking and halted close to the 106th Divisions command post at the St. Joseph Kloster. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18.Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. 1945. Fifth Panzer was to attack from Prum in the north down to Bitburg and Bastogne in the south. #WW2 . Task Force Jones and the 112th Infantry eventually found their way into 82nd Airborne Division lines during the night of the 24th, but not before the units suffered heavy losses. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating the 571st Volksgrenadier Division.The division, which was under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, absorbed elements of the 18th Luftwaffe Field Division. 22 22. Between these units, a place was found for the provisional company composed of the 424th Infantry stragglers. Schiffer Publishing, 1997. Pegov in March 1944 on a light tank T-70 destroyed two German Panthers aboard. Zaloga, Steven. Under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, the new division absorbed elements of the 18th Luftwaffe Field Division. Clarke asked, Why in the world when I had only 2,500 men available to my command on December 17, did you not just execute a powerful frontal assault and overrun me?. What a fantastic real-life story or is it? Hoge pointedly asked Ridgway how it could be done. The 16th Field Artillery also pitched in, as did a battalion of 155mm howitzers sited around Commanster. The move had scarcely begun when an enemy attack hit the junction between Company B, 27th AIB and Company D, 14th Tank Battalion. Unable to advance, it pulled back to the nearest high ground and dug in. The line companies were down to one officer apiece. Another attack hit the left flank of 7th Armored. The fortified goose egg ran nearly 10 miles in diameter, containing a mass of forest and only one decent road running northwest to southwest. Bergstrm, Christer. At about noon that day, the 62nd Volksgrenadier Divisions 190th Regiment had broken through north of the 424th Infantrys Cannon Company. One would think that Lieutenant Colonel Boylan, or at the very least Troop A, would make some sort of mention of this fairly notable engagement. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. 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. Because the Our had ceased to be a barrier anywhere else, General Hoge felt that there was little to gain in continuing to overextend his command to hold the low ground along the river. By 2300 enemy patrols tested 27th AIBs new position and a night attack was thrown back with the help of D Troop, 89th Recon. Rejection & Neglect available to buy on Payhip! The next version of this story can be found in a 1947 book by Major Donald P. Boyer of the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion titled St. Vith, The 7th Armored Division in the Battle of the Bulge, 17-23 December 1944: A Narrative After Action Report. The reason for this comparative respite was due to the fact that the roads to the German rear were completely jammed. The second task force hit another probe by the 1st SS Panzer and pushed it out of Hunningen. Jones explained to Hoge that his division was being attacked along its entire front and that two of his three regiments, the 422nd and the 423rd, had been partly surrounded in the Schnee Eifel area just east of Schoenberg. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18th VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army ( Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. The hardest hit, though, were the armored infantrymen of the 27th AIB with nearly 300 battle casualties. Armour Plate Porforation [sic: Perforation] of Tank and Anti Tank Guns. Furthermore, General Clarke had no idea when his command would arrive. Volksgrenadier-Division. Ardennes 1944: Hitlers Last Gamble. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18. General Luchts 66th Corps was shifted from General Manteuffels Fifth Panzer Army to the Sixth Panzer. Heeft u zelf meer informatie over deze persoon? Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. 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. Farther to the north, in the 7th Armored sector, the pressure exerted by the enemy was also intense. The U.S. 9th Armored Division contested the German advance around St. Vith during the Battle of the Bulge, and won precious time in the process. Infanterie-Division . The CCB command post was moved to Neubruck, a small group of farmhouses on Braunlauf Creek about two miles southwest of St. Vith. Then, four German antitank guns covering the Grufflingen-Maldange road were encountered. War Department, 1944. That evening General Clarke also put his command into Commanster. Panzer Tracts No. However, by noon on December 18 it was quite apparent to Hoge that the Germans infiltrating across the river were converging on the bridge in such numbers that it had to be blown. Infanterie-Division 19398 . While 9th Armored was thus engaged in the Winterspelt area during the morning hours of December 17, Brig. After Clarke and Hoge settled upon a mutually supportive command structure, Clarke noted that Hoges command was, for the most part, forward of a railroad track built on a high embankment. The American armor of the 7th and 9th Armored Divisions plus supporting units were being pressed into an area in which motorized forcestanks, half-tracks, self-propelled artillery, tank destroyersoperated with great difficulty. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571. Panzer Tracts, 2001. The bridge at Steinebruck was intentionally left intact by General Hoge on the outside chance that some of the American troops trapped in the vicinity of the Schnee Eifel might be able to maneuver their way there. Anderson, Thomas. Airfix J6017 Volkswagen Camper Van (Quick Build) R 405.00. The attacks made east of St. Vith on 18 December were carried by a part of the 294th Infantry [German], whose patrols had been checked by the 168th Engineers [US] the previous day. Model informed Manteuffel that he would be given the Fhrer Escort Brigade, which was nearly equal in strength to an American light armored division, for the upcoming assault on St. Vith. Although the American forces in the St. Vith area came under command of General Ridgways XVIII Airborne Corps, the Airborne Corps itself was under the command of Field Marshal Sir Bernard L. Montgomery, overall commander of the northern sector of the Bulge. First Edition, Presidio Press, 2002. 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 . Tigers In Combat I. First Edition, Stackpole Books, 2005. Because Ridgway was not in total agreement with the withdrawal and to get a feel for the real situation on the ground, he and Hasbrouck made their way to General Clarke at Commanster. But if four versions was not enough, there is potentially another version of this tale contained in a combat interview given by Lieutenant Arthur A. Olson of Troop D, 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron on the 8th of January, 1945. However, it cannot be definitively stated that this is another version of the M8 Greyhound versus Tiger story due to its ambiguity. The Sherman tanks of B Company repulsed the enemy with fire from their 76mm guns. 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. On the road to Winterspelt, General Hoge soon learned that the situation there was worse than General Jones had described. What Jones did not tell Hoge was that in one of those regiments his own son was serving at regimental headquarters. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. Two of its tanks were mired in mud that had not frozen and had to be retrieved by a tank dozer. So its quite possible! CCBs new position blocked the main Winterspelt-St. Vith highway and the valley of the Braunlauf Creek, a second natural corridor leading to St. Vith. VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army (Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. This means that 50% of shots fired will penetrate this amount of armor. After that mornings enemy assaults, the line of the 27th AIB was reestablished west of Neubruck.

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