The tanks of the 14th Tank Battalion and the half-tracks of the 27th AIB paused to pick up the foot elements of the 424th RCT, 106th Infantry Division. Jones had been counting on this when he sent Hoges 9th Armored Command to Winterspelt rather than Schoenberg. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. 1945). The closest primary German armored thrust route to the south ran through Burg Reuland, also about five miles from St. Vith. Together they broke up the attack. 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. 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.. South of Sixth Panzer Army was General Manteuffels Fifth Panzer Army, with the Seventh Army on its left. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating the 571st Volksgrenadier Division. 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. The 7th Armored had taken a beating in defending St. Vith. The troops were exhausted and spread out. The troop was to hold until relieved by the 27th Armored Infantry Battalion (AIB) and then reconnoiter farther down the road toward Winterspelt. 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. 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. Each attack was preceded by an intense artillery barrage lasting from 15 to 35 minutes. Elements of D Company, 89th Recon screened the flanks. Established in 1941, the unit was deployed in German-occupied areas of the Soviet Union, in the Army Group North Rear Area. fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); 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. Revised Edition, Arms and Armour Press, 1973. 1964. The ground was frozen solid. . The 14th Tank Battalion was on its way to the Steinebruck bridge when Brig. First Edition, Presidio Press, 2002. Rapidly, the M8 advanced to within 25 yards (23 meters) of the Tiger I and quickly pumped three rounds into its rear. English PDF (33 MB) Jan B-700 Under the chain of the northern sector command, only General Ridgway was unsure of Field Marshal Montgomerys decision to withdraw from the defense. 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. After Action Report, Month of December, 1944. Its population in 1944 was about 2,000, and its citizens were very much pro-German. 18th Volksgrenadier Division (Wehrmacht), the Glossary Aside from the cold and mud, there was also the enemy to contend with. Zaloga, Steven, and Tony Bryan. By mid-afternoon, General Hoge ordered his infantry to halt and dig in. VGD led by Heinz Kokott, Heinrich Himmler's brother-in-law. Hunnicutt, R. P. Armored Car A History of American Wheeled Combat Vehicles. It is a classic David versus Goliath tale straight out of World War II that features American heroism. The failure to capture St. Vith was preventing the linkup of the Fifth and the Sixth Panzer Armies. 2014. Johnston, W. Wesley. Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force | World War II by Day Inside the command post, General Hoge learned that the Germans had launched a heavy assault on Winterspelt against the men of the 424th Infantry. Add to cart. Boyer, Donald P. St. Vith The 7th Armored Division in the Battle of the Bulge 17-23 December 1944 A Narrative After Action Report. 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 . At daybreak on December 21, the Germans launched their first assault of the day on CCB, 9th Armored. It appeared now that the fate of his two northern regiments was sealed. 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. I think we can make it now. VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army (Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. M8 Greyhound Light Armored Car 1941-91. 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. For this mission, CCB consisted of the 14th Tank Battalion, the 27th Armored Infantry Battalion, the 16th Armored Field Artillery Battalion, and miscellaneous smaller units vital to any major command. Hoge immediately got on the phone and ordered Engeman to move out. 47. This battalion hit the 424ths Cannon Company at the Weissenhof crossroads. The greatest danger existed in the 424ths position because the regiments flank lay vulnerable to attacks by the 116th Panzer Division to the south. 4 Grosstraktor to Panzerbefehlswagen IV. 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. Thus, there are four different versions of this story circulating: Troop Es version with a Tiger I, Troop Es version with a Tiger II, Captain Ansteys version with a Tiger I, and Captain Ansteys version with a Tiger II. of the Army, 1965. The 9th Armored Divisions position at the Our was no longer tenable. The last of the St. Vith defenders to come out were Task Force Jones and the 112th Infantry Regiment. To cover this dangerous gap in the line C Company, 27th AIB was ordered to the Our between Troop D, 89th Recon and Company A, 27th AIB. 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. 18e volksgrenadier division English translation: 18th volksgrenadier division (wehrmacht).. 6 Schwere Panzerkampfwagen DW to E-100. It contained the 293., 294. and 295. grenadier regiments, Panzerjger-Bataillon 1818, Pionier-Bataillon 1818, Fsilier-Bataillon 1818 and Artillerie-Regiment 1818.[1]. The division had lost four companies of armored infantry. Chamberlain, Peter, et al. 1945. Hoge managed to stop the stragglers, and soon a provisional company of men from the 424th was formed to reinforce the 27th AIB on its march toward the Our. That is correct, however, that was off the topic of this story. Which specific Tiger II this was is unknown. Fortunately, a tank destroyer from Vielsalm turned up and hit the leading two German panzers, which drove the rest for cover. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division(18th VGD) was a volksgrenadierdivision of the German Army(Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. 1940 194111. To this end, General Hoge was in the town of Monschau to check on the possibility of getting his command across in that area. Volksgrenadier-Division. 19454 While 9th Armored was thus engaged in the Winterspelt area during the morning hours of December 17, Brig. Both task forces reached St. Vith shortly before noon on the 18th to find not one, but two German attacks moving against the town. Since speed was the key to success of the German plan, two panzer armies would spearhead the offensive. Design, Production & Modifications. WWII Pictures on Twitter: "Soldiers of the 18th Volksgrenadier Division 223 () - Wikiwand 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. The armored infantrymen kept themselves well hidden until the column was directly in front of them and then opened fire. As the offensive steam came to an end in the Ardennes, the division went on the defensive, and there they would stay. 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 . Revised Edition, Arms and Armour Press, 1973. The losses in men and equipment for CCB, 9th Armored, as with the rest of the American units defending St. Vith, had been severe. He said that the fight took about ninety minutes and that they used almost all their ammunition. 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. And why would it not? 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. Between these units, a place was found for the provisional company composed of the 424th Infantry stragglers. The northern prong of the horseshoe was composed of CCB, 7th Armored Division from Poteau and Vielsalm. The Germans were now on the high ground north of Eigelscheid overlooking the road to Winterspelt. One, the 18th Volksgrenadier Division, was holding the northern reaches of the Schnee Eifel. Yes in theory. 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. Contribute to chinapedia/wikipedia.en development by creating an account on GitHub. Gen. Herbert T. Perrin, assistant commander of the 106th Infantry Division, drove up carrying a message from General Jones. The move would also have to be done under the cover of darkness in severe wintry conditions. 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. 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 sector now defended by CCB, 9th Armored extended across five miles of rugged terrain that was primarily held by the three infantry companies making up the 27th AIB. 18th Volksgrenadier Division (Wehrmacht) - Alchetron, the free social Back in the 1970s I worked with a man who told this story, he claimed he was the driver. Company B of the 9th Engineers and D Company of the 89th Recon joined the line to supplement the armored infantry. Captain Ansteys version lacks supporting documentation. 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. The guns from a platoon of Shermans, the antiaircraft company, and a mortar platoon supplied a covering barrage, which broke up the German assault and inflicted heavy casualties. Farther to the west, the 82nd Airborne, trying to keep a corridor open for the St. Vith defenders, was coming under intense pressure from the 2nd SS Panzer Division. This information came from the division's senior headquarters, the VIII Corps, First U.S. Army. January 1945 World War II Combat Interviews of the 7th Armored Division 111 () - Office of the Chief of Military History, Dept. The earliest known mention can be found in the December 18th, 1944 morning report and record of events entry of Troop E, 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron which briefly states that an M-8 atchd [attached] to A Tr [Troop A] knocked out one Tiger tank. Given the unreliability of the American accounts of this supposed event and the lack of any supporting documentation from the Germans, it is safe to say that neither a Tiger I nor a Tiger II was knocked out by an M8 Greyhound on 18th December 1944 in or around the town of St. Vith. Thus, the Fifth Panzer Army commander ordered that St. Vith be taken no later than the second day of the offensive. Dragon 1629 1/16th Feldwebel 352nd Volksgrenadier Division R 275.00. Beevor, Antony. 18th Volksgrenadier Division - Wikiwand Combat Interviews of the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion, 7th Armored Division: The St. Vith Salient and Manhay, December 17-23, 1944. However, this version of Captain Ansteys account has one key difference: it was not a Tiger I that was knocked out, but rather a Tiger II, almost analogous to the fisherman whose fish gets bigger each time he tells the tale of his catch. 45 mm. Collins, Joshua, and Erik Albertson. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18th VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. Infantry divisions would begin the attack along the entire length of a 50-mile front, forcing a rupture along the Allied line and giving the German panzer divisions freedom of movement in the unoccupied ground beyond the front. VGD captured St. Vith, winning a great victory. 281st Security Division (281. Troop D, 89th Recon held the sector from Steinebruck to Weppeler while A Company, 27th AIB put up a defensive line anchored on the high ground east of Maspelt. The American plan was that once the 2nd Infantry Division reduced the German defenses at the Wahlerscheid crossroads, CCB was to spearhead a drive to the reservoirs north of Gemund and Schleiden. Thus, the job of rescuing the two trapped infantry regiments on the Schnee Eifel passed from the 9th to the 7th Armored Division. The event that Lieutenant Olson recounts does bare a resemblance to the M8 Greyhound versus Tiger story, with both events taking place at or near St. Vith on the 18th of December 1944 and involving an American armored car from the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron knocking out a German tank by shooting it in the rear. Schneider, Wolfgang. 18th Flak Division 651 . The 18. Although General Jones was deeply worried about his two regiments on the Schnee Eifel, he was also highly concerned about the German advances in the Winterspelt area where his 424th Infantry Regiment was defending. Unable to advance, it pulled back to the nearest high ground and dug in. 22 () - The supply trains led the way north on N27 to St. Vith. The last Tiger II belonged to Schwere Panzer Abteilung 506 (Heavy Tank Battalion 506) and was lost to enemy fire on the Lentzweiler road in Luxemburg. Stackpole Books, 2015. 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?. The German armored and infantry attacks were preceded by the shelling of the American positions with at least 657 light, medium, and heavy guns and howitzers and 340 multiple rocket launchers. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The 424th Infantry still blocked the road to the Our River and Steinebruck. After 1200 hours on 17th December 1944, the 18th Volksgrenadier Division was reinforced by a mobile battalion. 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. I should also note that reconnaissance doctrine was to disengage if at all possible and in no way engage enemy armour beyond scout elements. The village of Bauvenn was designated the linkage point for the two combat commands. Yeah but Panthers rear and side armor is very weak, so its completely different story. 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. Hoge and Ridgway had been on the West Point football team together when Ridgway had been the teams manager. Bork, Max Hermann (Generalleutnant) - TracesOfWar.com Company A of the 14th Tank Battalion had some trouble disengaging. The second task force hit another probe by the 1st SS Panzer and pushed it out of Hunningen. 18th Volksgrenadier Division (Wehrmacht) - Unionpedia, the concept map At 0400 hours on 16th December, 1944, men of the German 18th Volksgrenadier Division began to leave their positions and make their way towards the American lines. 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. Farther to the north, in the 7th Armored sector, the pressure exerted by the enemy was also intense. English Edition, Casemate Publishers, 2014. On December 16th at 4:00 a.m., they took the twenty-two foot macadam road following the Our River valley towards Manderfield. Infanterie-Division Hamburg 19453 . This version of the story, which is paraphrased in the introduction, will be referred to as the original version of the story. Although the Germans were quick to build up beyond the Our River after the American withdrawal, they made no immediate moves against the new American line. The Battle at St. Vith, Belgium 17-23 December 1944 An Historical Example of Armor in the Defense. To execute this maneuver, Hoges entire command would have to move all the way up to St. Vith and back down again. The Battle at St. Vith, Belgium 17-23 December 1944 An Historical Example of Armor in the Defense. If Hoge told him that the situation was bad, then without a doubt the situation was worse than he thought. js.className = n; Osprey Publishing, 2002. 18th Volksgrenadier Division - Wikipedia The Ardennes 1944-1945: Hitlers Winter Offensive. Although the 7th Armored Division was finally arriving, General Jones had been led to believe that the whole division would arrive in St. Vith starting at 0700. The Sherman tanks of B Company repulsed the enemy with fire from their 76mm guns. Johnston, W. Wesley. Out of the 1,467 tanks the Germans brought with them to the Battle of the Bulge on the 16th of December, 1944, 52 of them were Tiger IIs and 14 of them were Tiger Is. Fortunately for Colonel Reid, word came at about 1730 that his 424th Infantry Regiment was to withdraw immediately. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571. The colonel ordered the troop east along the road to Schoenberg to delay a German tank and infantry team approaching St. Vith from that direction. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division would use these assault guns in small probing attacks on the American lines east of St. Vith that same day. The job of capturing St. Vith went to the Fifth Panzer Armys 66th Corps, commanded by General Walther Lucht. General Hoge set up his command post in the Belgian village of Faymonville, approximately 12 miles north of the town of St. Vith, unaware of the pivotal role his command was to play in a very different battle. History. 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. Manteuffel answered, We estimated that we were up against a division, and perhaps against an entire corps. Two hits were scored on the enemy tank in the rear, and its crew evacuated. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. German reports are also far from subtlety. Tigers In Combat II. While no Tiger Is were lost on the 18th of December, 1944, four Tiger IIs were lost that day. Under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, the new division absorbed elements of the 18th Luftwaffe Field Division. 1941622 . The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18. It consisted of the 136th 138th and 139th Mountain Replacement Regiments and the 112th Artillery School of Tank Technology, April 1944. 2014. 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. 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. Jones wanted Clarke to counterattack immediately with his combat command and break that ring that these people have closed around the Schnee Eifel.. EN. While on its way, the platoon was commandeered by a colonel from the 106th Division. We made several probing attacks, and every time we went into your position, we encountered armor. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. 22nd Air Landing Division (wehrmacht) - Encyclopedia Information Slayden, knowing that the nearest units of the 7th Armored Division were at least 60 miles away in the Netherlands, had serious doubts that a whole combat command could reach St. Vith on the 17th, much less by 0700 hours. Elements of the 62nd Volksgrenadier had taken the eastern half of Winterspelt during the night, and at daybreak reinforcements finally drove Colonel Reids 1st Battalion from the village. Operation Nordwind 1945 Hitlers last offensive in the West. Required fields are marked *. In the 27th AIBs move to take the high ground, B Company advanced along the center of the road. Volksgrenadier-Division. It is possible that, as part of the attacks on the line held in part by Troop B of the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, a lone StuG III was used to probe out the American line, as had been done on the previous day, and was subsequently knocked out by an M8 Greyhound. 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. Now with a new armored combat command due to arrive at 0700 hours the next day, and with the rest of the division to follow, Jones believed he would soon have the potential to deal with both the Schnee Eifel and Winterspelt emergencies. On his way to St. Vith, General Hoge stopped in Faymonville to alert his command to be prepared to move immediately. Design, Production & Modifications. While making his reconnaissance at Monschau he received an urgent message to call V Corps headquarters. () - Hoge and Clarke agreed that Hoges entire command should be withdrawn west of the railroad tracks. Close. 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. War Department Field Manual FM 2-20 Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop Mechanized. Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. Osprey Publishing, 2013. Orders for CCB, 9th Armored to move to a new defensive position were issued at 1600. Once in St. Vith, Jones explained that only the leading elements of the 7th Armored Division had arrived thus far and that St. Viths northern approach was under attack. However, this platoon never completed its mission. The guns of two platoons of Company A, 811th Tank Destroyers were overrun. English Edition, Casemate Publishers, 2014. Volksgrenadier-Division. Schneider, Wolfgang. 18th Artillery Division 651. If neither a Tiger I nor a Tiger II was killed on 18th December 1944 in or around the town of St. Vith by an M8 Greyhound, what was? The entry only states that a Tiger tank was knocked out. However, he kept these misgivings to himself. Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army (Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. Since the move from Faymonville to Winterspelt involved a greater distance, Hoge decided to get his command on the road immediately. Griffin, Marcus S. After Action Report, Month of December 1944.