Out of the Hürtgen: Queen's Gambit

Operation Queen was the plan for the AUied strike against the Rur River, the necessary precursor to an assault on the Rhine and the heart of Germany in late 1944. For Queen to succeed, the men of the First Army’s …

1944-12-10

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Operation Queen was the plan for the AUied strike against the Rur River, the necessary precursor to an assault on the Rhine and the heart of Germany in late 1944. For Queen to succeed, the men of the First Army’s 7th Corp had to overcome two substantial obstacles: the heavily defended Siegfried Line followed by the dark Hurtgen [Forest. It took over three weeks of brutal combat in this [heavily wooded meat-grinder for the American forces to reach the far edge of the forest. The 83rd Division relieved the shattered 4th Division that had been ordered to capture the town of Duren, across the Rur and at the southern flank of the operational area. Between the Hurtgen and the Rur were two small towns: Gey to the north and Strass to the south. Both needed to be taken if a secure assault over the Rur and into Duren could be accomplished. The 3^0^^ Regiment (already reduced by heavy casualties) was ordered to clear Strass. A heavy artillery barrage was called in to soften the German positions prior to the attack. This barrage reduced much of the town to rubble. Before the dust had fully settled, the 3rd Battalion of the 330th Regiment began its advance out of the woods south of town.

Strass, Germany

The Battle of Hürtgen Forest was a series of fierce battles fought from 19 September to 16 December 1944, between American and German forces on the Western Front during World War II, in the Hürtgen Forest, a 140 km2 (54 sq mi) area about 5 km (3.1 mi) east of the Belgian–German border. It was the longest battle on German ground during World War II and is the longest single battle the U.S. Army has ever fought. The U.S. commanders' initial goal was to pin down German forces in the area to keep them from reinforcing the front lines farther north in the Battle of Aachen, where the US forces were fighting against the Siegfried Line network of fortified industrial towns and villages speckled with pillboxes, tank traps, and minefields. A secondary objective may have been to outflank the front line. The Americans' initial tactical objectives were to take Schmidt and clear Monschau. In a second phase the Allies wanted to advance to the Rur River as part of Operation Queen.

Wikipedia: Battle of Hürtgen Forest

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