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St Vith, Ardennes

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Title
St Vith, Ardennes
Description
As early as August 1944, Adolf Hitler began formulating plans for what would become the Ardennes offensive. While too ambitious for the available resources and terrain, the plan was deemed by the German High Command as having more chances of …
Subject
Source
Publisher
Date
1944-12-20
Scenario#
20
Scenario Description
As early as August 1944, Adolf Hitler began formulating plans for what would become the Ardennes offensive. While too ambitious for the available resources and terrain, the plan was deemed by the German High Command as having more chances of impacting the situation than throwing the same the ad-hoc divisions into the increasingly desperate Eastern front. In the Ardennes, there were only a few cross-country roads, so forces would tend to pile up at the crossroads. St. Vith was one such town. The German tide rushed past to the north and south of St. Vith during the first days of the offensive, leaving the town to two Volksgrenadier divisions, supported by artillery and a few Tigers. In the defense, a hodge-podge force, including infantry and armor, dug in on a rugged ridge known as the Prumerberg, just east of St. Vith. A heavy artillery barrage began the German attack. The infantry followed, advancing through gaps in the American line. The push was joined by Tiger tanks rolling up the front slopes of the Prumerberg. The American armor lay in wait on the ridge, but the Tigers, using an Eastern Front tactic of firing flares as they reached the crest, blinded the American tank crews and silhouetted the Sherman tanks. The American line broke under heavy pressure and fell back before additional forces could be deployed from the town.
Location
St Vith, Belgium
Battle Name
Battle Narrative
The Battle of St. Vith was an engagement in Belgium fought during the Allied advance from Paris to the Rhine in World War II. It was one of several battles on December 16, 1944 constituting the opening of Germany's Ardennes counteroffensive. The town of St. Vith, a vital road junction, was close to the boundary between the 5th and Sepp Dietrich’s Sixth Panzer Army, the two strongest units of the attack. St. Vith was also close to the western end of the Losheim Gap, a critical valley through the densely forested ridges of the Ardennes Forest and the axis of the entire German counteroffensive. Opposing this drive were units of the U.S. VIII Corps. These defenders were led by the U.S. 7th Armored Division and included the 424th Infantry (the remaining regiment of the 106th U.S. Infantry Division), elements of the 9th Armored Division's Combat Command B and the 112th Infantry of the U.S. 28th Infantry Division. These units, which operated under the command of Generals Robert W. Hasbrouck (7th Armored) and Alan W. Jones (106th Infantry), successfully resisted the German attacks, thereby significantly slowing the German advance.
Narrative Source
Combatants
German
American
Additional Information
Game Type: Standard
Board Type: Winter
Website Access: Available

Geolocation