The capture of Biesheim

In Alsace, combats are drawing to an end; the Colmar pocket is being reduced by the 1st French Army, and the troops of the German XIX.Armee, decimated and demoralized. are withdrawing toward Chalampé bridge over the Rhine in a bid …

1945-02-03

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In Alsace, combats are drawing to an end; the Colmar pocket is being reduced by the 1st French Army, and the troops of the German XIX.Armee, decimated and demoralized. are withdrawing toward Chalampé bridge over the Rhine in a bid to find some protection behind the Siegfried line. The rear guard, consisting of units of the 2.Gebirgsjäger Division entrenched in Biesheim, covers the German retreat. On February 3, 1945, the 3rd US Infantry Division attacks. The battle is fierce and last two days. The company of 1st lieutenant Audie Murphy, having take position in the cemetery, is involved from start to finish. Biesheim marks Audie Murphy's last engagement as an infantryman; following this battle, he was designated liaison officer of the division and would no longer be involved in 1st line combat.

Biesheim, France

The Colmar Pocket was the area held in central Alsace, France, by the German Nineteenth Army from November 1944 to February 1945, against the U.S. 6th Army Group during World War II. It was formed when 6th AG liberated southern and northern Alsace and adjacent eastern Lorraine, but could not clear central Alsace. During Operation Nordwind in December 1944, the 19th Army attacked north out of the Pocket in support of other German forces attacking south from the Saar into northern Alsace. In late January and early February 1945, the French First Army cleared the Pocket of German forces.

Wikipedia: Colmar Pocket

German

American

Game Type: Standard

Board Type: Winter

Website Access: Available