Beneath the Crumbling Spires

As the 3rd Armored Division advanced into the bomb shattered ruins of Cologne, a famous engagement took place near Cologne Cathedral with a lone Panther from the Feldherrnhalle Division, which was possibly the only German tank still west of the …

1945-03-06

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As the 3rd Armored Division advanced into the bomb shattered ruins of Cologne, a famous engagement took place near Cologne Cathedral with a lone Panther from the Feldherrnhalle Division, which was possibly the only German tank still west of the Rhine in this area. The Americans had one of the new Pershing tanks, which at this stage of the war had never suffered total loss at the hands of the Germans.

Cologne, Germany

The Battle of Remagen during the Allied invasion of Germany resulted in the unexpected capture of the Ludendorff Bridge over the Rhine. After capturing the Siegfried Line, the 9th Armored Division of the U.S. First Army had advanced unexpectedly quickly towards the Rhine. They were very surprised to see one of the last bridges across the Rhine still standing. The Germans had wired the bridge with about 2,800 kilograms (6,200 lb.) of demolition charges. When they tried to blow it up, only a portion of the explosives detonated. U.S. forces captured the bridge and rapidly expanded their first bridgehead across the Rhine, two weeks before Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery's meticulously planned Operation Plunder. The GIs' actions prevented the Germans from regrouping east of the Rhine and consolidating their positions.

Wikipedia: Battle of Remagen

German

American