Historical Timeline of Events

Overall situation end 1944

by Rainer Monnartz

Following the Allied D-Day landings in Normandy on 6 June 1944 and thereupon the breakout and closing of the Falaise pocket, the German forces are in almost constant retreat.

The goal of the German military leadership is to assemble retreating troops behind the West Wall and establish a line of defense.

Germany 1944

At the end of 1944, the German army has been at war for 5 years, and is fighting on different fronts:

Despite the bombing campaigns the German weapon industry was at its peak, e.g.:

But there are substantial differences in quality, because in 1944 a lot of immigrant workers, concentration camp internees or prisoners of war are used in the armaments industry. The many German experts are sent as soldiers to the front.

The aim of the Allied bombardment on German industry is to destroy war-important enterprises e.g. FAG Kugelfischer (manufacturer of ball bearings), ammunition factories, chemical industry (manufacturing of fuel for vehicles/airplanes).
The Germans are neglecting the supply of spare parts for the repair of defective equipment. As a result of this armored vehicles and other gear have to be abandoned.

The civilian population is strongly endangered by the continuing bombing raids of the Allies and is to be demoralized.

The German Luftwaffe loses its effectiveness at this time due to lack of pilots, airplanes and fuel.

As a result of the escape-like retreat of German troops from France, large quantities of men and material are lost.

The German supply lines are repeatedly cut off by Allied air raids; railroads and traffic routes are destroyed frequently.

Transport by railway, particularly of heavy weapons (armor) can only take place at night, strongly hampered by the devastation of railway stations and rail interchanges.

The Allies in 1944

The Americans can fall back on a fully functioning armaments industry, which can produce without interruption.
The Allies possess air supremacy and supplies roll almost undisturbed to the front.
The Allied advance is obstructed by the fact that the port of Antwerp is taken only on November 8, 1944 . At November 28, 1944, the first convoy reaches the harbor . Up to then the entire supply of men and matériel has had to come via the Normandy beaches, a distance of approx. 600 km. to the front. The inflow of soldiers and matériel increases from day to day.

On September 12, 1944, the Allied forces reach the German Reich and the Siegfried Line.
The Allied forces reach the Siegfried Line 96 days after their landing in Normandy. This places them well ahead of the 330 days originally scheduled by logistical planning. Instead of the estimated arrival date of May 2, 1945, they reach their objective by September 12, 1944. That means among other things that logistical planning (material, fuel, spare parts, ammunition, vehicles, personnel etc..) could not be kept. Logistics is not able to supply the unexpectedly fast advance sufficiently.
In September 1944, the Americans regard the range over which supplies must be brought, too far to be able to advance any further. At best, they can try to push ahead so far as possible with the existing supplies. This possibility is rejected by the Americans in favor of building up sufficient stocks in preparation for a further attack. This explains the from German viewpoint "hesitating" advance of the Americans in the area of Aachen and Huertgen Forest in September 1944.

In respect to the logistical situation of the Allies in the west, it must be particularly noted that in the period of 09.17 - 09.26.1944 the air-landing operation "Market Garden" in the area Arnhem/Nijmegen was carried out. This operation needed a substantial portion of the Allied supply.

The hesitating behavior of the Americans gives not only them the possibility of re-equipping the troops, but also to the German armed forces.

During the whole war it's the aim of the Americans to keep the loss of human lives on their own side as low as possible. But their careful action at the Siegfried Line probably led to the loss of several thousand American soldiers.

What was the intent for the Battle in the Huertgen Forest?

If they had known the real condition of the Siegfried Line, and the strength of the German armed forces in the Rhineland, the Americans, who were at the outskirts of Aachen on 12 September 1944, could have broken through and been in Cologne, and therefore at the Rhine, in less than one week. However, there was still the Huertgen Forest; this closely wooded ridge in front of the Roer-and Erft rivers.

The Americans feared the Roer-crossing, because they knew about the Roer River dams in the Eifel. They saw the danger of the Germans blowing these dams if they were to cross the Roer; the resulting flood wave would sweep away bridges and wipe out any force trying to cross the river downstream. The Americans standing on the east side of the Roer would be encircled, cut off from supplies and destroyed by German forces emerging from the Huertgen Forest . That's the reason the Huertgen Forest had to be occupied by American troops.

The Germans also saw the danger of the dams; German troops west of the Roer could have been cut off. Afterwards it turned out that this was not initially the intention of the Americans. Furthermore the area of the Huertgen Forest formed the flank for the already planned offensive in the Ardennes in December, 1944. Furthermore the Eifel region was also the launching area for the V-1 and V-2. However, even without the assumed attack in the flank, the Huertgen Forest became a deadly trap for the American soldiers.

The German positions were invisible to the U.S. Air Force due to the dense forest, and also inaccessible for American armor, and therefore had to be fought for, man against man. From the fights against the Red Army at the eastern front, the German armed forces had much more forest combat experience. The Americans did not have this forest combat experience. Against the attacking Americans the Germans always had better cover; mostly the Germans could fire the first shot.

The G.I.'s named the Huertgen Forest the 'million dollar corner'. Every three days, the Americans spent a million dollars on artillery ammunition for its military forces! - The Germans on the other hand could only fire "single shots" ......

The defense is stronger than the attack; because all unused time is in favor of the defense.

Prussian military philosopher Carl von Clausewitz (1780-1831).

 

HORIZONTAL FLOURISH LINE



Source:
Original text by Rainer Monnartz, Geschichtsverein Hürtgenwald e.V.
German to English translation made by Scorpio and Christine Greenthaner.

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