In December of 1944, on the western front of the European theatre of the war, the German army was preparing for one last major offensive against the Allies. Months earlier, Hitler had informed his most trusted commanders of his intention to "go over to the offensive... out of the Ardennes, with the objective of Antwerp" (Macdonald 156). The capture of the Allies' principal supply port, Antwerp, would cut off 25 divisions in Holland and Belgium (Sears 26). Hitler thought that if he could inflict a serious defeat on the Anglo-American forces, he could force a negotiated peace and then turn his full attention to the Soviet Union (Macdonald 156). To this end, he began a secret military build-up near the Ardennes forest, drawing on troops from the Siegfried Line. Every effort was made to deceive the Allies as to the intent of the Germans. Trains carrying tanks, artillery, a

nd troops moved one way during daylight, and were rerouted towards their real destination at night (Sears 24). Camouflage was used to great effect in disguising troop movements and bad weather hampered Allied air patrols (Cole 57).

By the 24th, the Allies were counterattacking the Germans everywhere with a total of 32 divisions. The Germans had barely managed to employ 20 divisions during the whole operation. As the 'bulge' began to shrink, it became clear to everyone that the battle had run its course and the Germans had lost. On December 27th, Hitler finally consented to the withdrawal Rundstedt had been asking for since the 21st (Macdonald 166). One month after the battle began, the Germans had been pushed back almost to their original positions along the Seigfried Line. German casualties were estimated at about 100,000 men and American casualties anywhere from 40,000 to 80,000 men (Cole 674). More important to the outcome of the battle, however, was the loss of massive amounts of machinery and equipment. The Allies could quickly replace material losses, but the Germans, whose industry was subject to daily bombing, could not hope to replace their tanks, guns, planes, ammunition, and other essentials (Macdonald 166).

Hitler had predicted that his armies would enter Antwerp just four days after the battle had begun. In almost eleven days of fighting, the Germans did not even manage to cross the Meuse River. The losses suffered by Germany in the campaign made the conquest much easier for the Allies than it would have been had the Germans remained on the defensive.

By now, tactical maps used by commanders of both armies showed the front line of the

Some topics in this essay:
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