The Road to Wiltz

The German assault had surprised the Americans both in its size and intensity. Desperately, the Americans formed scratch defenses to buy time so the key road junction of Bastogne could be held. The Germans had to be delayed or stopped …

1944-12-17

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The German assault had surprised the Americans both in its size and intensity. Desperately, the Americans formed scratch defenses to buy time so the key road junction of Bastogne could be held. The Germans had to be delayed or stopped as they drove along the roads to Bastogne. In the early rly hours, elements of the American 44th Combat Engineers supported by fragments of the 707th Tank Battalion took over the responsibility for the road leading to Wiltz with orders to hold for at least one day.

Wiltz, Luxembourg

The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Counteroffensive, was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II, and took place from 16 December 1944 to 25 January 1945. It was launched through the densely forested Ardennes region of Wallonia in eastern Belgium, northeast France, and Luxembourg, towards the end of the war in Europe. The offensive was intended to stop Allied use of the Belgian port of Antwerp and to split the Allied lines, allowing the Germans to encircle and destroy four Allied armies and force the Western Allies to negotiate a peace treaty in the Axis powers' favor.

Wikipedia: Battle of the Bulge

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American