Siege of Bastogne

Bastogne (French pronunciation: [bas.tɔɲ] ; Dutch: Bastenaken [ˈbɑstəˌnaːkə(n)] ; German: Bastnach/Bastenach [ˈbast(ə)nax]; Luxembourgish: Baaschtnech [ˈbaːʃtnəɕ] ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg in the Ardennes, Belgium. The municipality consists of the following districts: Bastogne, Longvilly, Noville, Villers-la-Bonne-Eau, and Wardin. The town is situated on a ridge in the Ardennes at an elevation of 510 metres (1,670 ft). On 1 January 2025, it will merge with Bertogne into a new municipality.

The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was a major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II which took place from 16 December 1944 to 25 January 1945. It was launched through the densely forested Ardennes region between Belgium and Luxembourg. The offensive was intended to stop Allied use of the Belgian port of Antwerp and to split the Allied lines, allowing the Germans to individually encircle and destroy the four Allied armies and force the western Allies to negotiate a peace treaty in the Axis powers' favor. The Germans achieved a total surprise attack on the morning of 16 December 1944, due to a combination of Allied overconfidence, preoccupation with Allied offensive plans elsewhere, and poor aerial reconnaissance due to bad weather. American forces were using this region primarily as a rest area for the U.S. First Army, and the lines were thinly held by fatigued troops and inexperienced replacement units. The Germans also took advantage of heavily overcast weather conditions that grounded the Allies' superior air forces for an extended period. American resistance on the northern shoulder of the offensive, around Elsenborn Ridge, and in the south, around Bastogne, blocked German access to key roads to the northwest and west which they had counted on for success. This congestion, and terrain that favored the defenders, threw the German advance behind schedule and allowed the Allies to reinforce the thinly placed troops. The farthest west the offensive reached was the village of Foy-Nôtre-Dame, south east of Dinant, being stopped by the U.S. 2nd Armored Division on 24 December 1944. Improved weather conditions from around 24 December permitted air attacks on German forces and supply lines. On 26 December the lead element of Patton's U.S. Third Army reached Bastogne from the south, ending the siege. Although the offensive was effectively broken by 27 December, when the trapped units of 2nd Panzer Division made two break-out attempts with only partial success, the battle continued for another month before the front line was effectively restored to its position prior to the attack. The Germans committed over 410,000 men, just over 1,400 tanks and armored fighting vehicles, 2,600 artillery pieces, and over 1,000 combat aircraft. Between 63,000 and 104,000 of these men were killed, missing, wounded in action, or captured. The battle severely depleted Germany's armored forces, which remained largely unreplaced throughout the remainder of the war. German Luftwaffe personnel, and later also Luftwaffe aircraft (in the concluding stages of the engagement) also sustained heavy losses. In the wake of the defeat, many experienced German units were effectively out of men and equipment, and the survivors retreated to the Siegfried Line. Allied forces eventually came to more than 700,000 men; from these there were from 77,000 to more than 83,000 casualties, including at least 8,600 killed. The "Bulge" was the largest and bloodiest single battle fought by the United States in World War II and the third-deadliest campaign in American history. It was one of the most important battles of the war, as it marked the last major offensive attempted by the Axis powers on the Western front. After this defeat, Nazi forces could only retreat for the remainder of the war.

The Battle of the Bulge Monument formerly known as the Mardasson Memorial is a monument honoring the memory of American soldiers wounded or killed during World War II's Battle of the Bulge. Designed in the shape of a five-pointed American star, it is located near Bastogne in the Luxembourg province of Belgium. The first step toward the memorial was undertaken on July 4, 1946, with the presentation of some earth from the site to U.S. President Harry Truman. The dedication was on July 16, 1950.

The Arrondissement of Bastogne (French: Arrondissement de Bastogne; Dutch: Arrondissement Bastenaken; German: Bezirk Bastogne) is one of the five administrative arrondissements in the Walloon province of Luxembourg, Belgium. It is not a judicial arrondissement. Three of its municipalities, Gouvy, Houffalize and Vielsalm, are part of the Judicial Arrondissement of Marche-en-Famenne, while the rest of its municipalities are part of the Judicial Arrondissement of Neufchâteau.

Recogne German war cemetery is located in the hamlet of Recogne near the municipality of Bastogne, Belgium. It contains the graves of 6,807 German soldiers of the Second World War. The cemetery is situated to the east of the hamlet, and to the south of the road to Foy. It is maintained by the German War Graves Commission.

Recogne (Walloon: R(i)cogne) is a village of Wallonia and a district of the municipality of Libramont-Chevigny, located in the Ardennes in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. Recogne is located a few miles north of Bastogne, in an area that saw heavy fighting during the Battle of the Bulge. Since 1947 it has been the location of Recogne German war cemetery. This cemetery was walled off and a chapel was built in 1954.Minor planet 3365 Recogne is named for the village.

Michamps Ulmodrome (ICAO: EBBG) was a recreational aerodrome located near Bastogne, Luxembourg, Belgium. As of 2015 it is no longer mentioned in the Belgian AIP, though aero-modelling is still happening at the field.

Bertogne (French pronunciation: [bɛʁtɔɲ]; Walloon: Biertogne) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. On 1 January 2025, it will merge with Bastogne into a new municipality. On 1 January 2007 the municipality, which covers 91.67 km², had 3,002 inhabitants, giving a population density of 32.7 inhabitants per km². The municipality consists of the following districts: Bertogne, Flamierge, and Longchamps. Other population centers include:

The Chenogne massacre was a war crime committed by members of the 11th Armored Division, an American combat unit, near Chenogne, Belgium, on January 1, 1945, during the Battle of the Bulge. According to eyewitness accounts, an estimated 80 German prisoners of war were massacred by their American captors; the prisoners were assembled in a field and shot with machine guns. It was one of several war crimes committed during the Battle of the Bulge by members of both Allied and Axis forces.The events were covered up at the time, and none of the perpetrators were ever punished. Postwar historians believe the killings were carried out on verbal orders by senior commanders that "no prisoners were to be taken".

Chenogne (Walloon: Dj'none) is a village of Wallonia in the municipality of Vaux-sur-Sûre, district of Sibret, located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium.On January 1, 1945 American soldiers are alleged to have massacred German Wehrmacht soldiers during World War II (see the Chenogne massacre) in retaliation to a previous massacre of American soldiers by the Waffen SS.

Boxhorn (Luxembourgish: Boxer) is a village in the commune of Wincrange, canton of Clervaux, district of Diekirch in northern Luxembourg. As of 2018, the village had a population of 398. Boxhorn is located in the region of Diekirch. Diekirch's capital Diekirch (Diekirch) is approximately 27 km / 17 mi away from Boxhorn (as the crow flies).

Houffalize (French pronunciation: [ufaliz] ; German: Hohenfels; Walloon: Oufalijhe) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium.On 1 January 2007 the municipality, which covers 166.58 square kilometres (64.32 sq mi), had 4,802 inhabitants, giving a population density of 28.8 inhabitants per km². The municipality consists of the following districts: Houffalize, Mabompré, Mont, Nadrin, Tailles, Tavigny, and Wibrin. Other population centers include Achouffe, Alboumont, Bœur, Bonnerue, Buret, Cetturu, Chabrehez, Cowan, Dinez, Engreux, Filly, Fontenaille, Mormont, Ollomont, Pisserotte, Sommerain, Taverneux, Vellereux, Vissoûle, Wandebourcy, and Wilogne.