The next version of this story can be found in a 1947 book by Major Donald P. Boyer of the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion titled St. Vith, The 7th Armored Division in the Battle of the Bulge, 17-23 December 1944: A Narrative After Action Report. of the Army, 1965. 1/18th Scale Cars; 1/24th Scale Assembly Kits; 1/24th Scale Cars; 1/43rd Scale Cars; . After Action Report, Month of December, 1944. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division completed its southern swing, encircling the two regiments of the 106th Division on the Schnee Eifel. Maurice Delaval Papers Collection of the Military History Institute in Carlisle, PA. Could an M8 Greyhounds 37 mm M6 gun even penetrate the rear hull armor of a Tiger I? This moment marked the beginning of the famous Battle of the Bulge, Germanys last major offensive on the Western Front in World War II. Luftwaffe-Feld-Division. December 20 was a day of disappointment for the Germans around St. Vith. It is possible that it was really a Tiger tank. The U.S. 9th Armored Division contested the German advance around St. Vith during the Battle of the Bulge, and won precious time in the process. This means that 50% of shots fired will penetrate this amount of armor. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. EN. 16 Dec 2022 08:28:00 M8 Greyhound Light Armored Car 1941-91. . Zaloga, Steven. The route terminated at several vital crossroads in the city of St. Vith. Cole, Hugh M. The Ardennes: Battle of the Bulge. The resulting blast damaged the bridge to such an extent that the Germans would not be able to bring vehicles across for at least 24 hours. To this end, General Hoge was in the town of Monschau to check on the possibility of getting his command across in that area. 3. Volksgrenadier-Division. Unteroffizier Helmus of the 26th Volksgrenadier Division painted the situation when the advance began. Ardennes 1944: Hitlers Last Gamble. The area being defended was beginning to take the form of a large horseshoe, its axis running approximately northeast to southeast. First Edition, Stackpole Books, 2004. The greatest danger existed in the 424ths position because the regiments flank lay vulnerable to attacks by the 116th Panzer Division to the south. First Edition, Presidio Press, 2002. Volksgrenadier-Division. Chamberlain, Peter, et al. General Hoge set up his command post in the Belgian village of Faymonville, approximately 12 miles north of the town of St. Vith, unaware of the pivotal role his command was to play in a very different battle. Company B of the 9th Engineers and D Company of the 89th Recon joined the line to supplement the armored infantry. Fortunately for Colonel Reid, word came at about 1730 that his 424th Infantry Regiment was to withdraw immediately. The platoon lost four men missing and two wounded in the ensuing engagement. Third Printing, US Army Armored School, 1966. Hoge pointedly asked Ridgway how it could be done. Still quite a feat for a little Greyhound, though well probably never know conclusively. Confusion, darkness, and mud slowed the move, but by morning a medium tank company and a platoon of riflemen had reached the village. In light of these circumstances, General Hasbrouck felt compelled to write to Clarke that unless the withdrawal began soon the opportunity will be gone., During the night of December 22, a cold wind had begun to blow out of the east bringing what weathermen call a Russian high. Although both Clarke and Hoge noted it, they saw little hope that the ground might freeze in time to aid their withdrawal, but after receiving Hasbroucks message Clarke stepped out and tested the ground. Hoge managed to stop the stragglers, and soon a provisional company of men from the 424th was formed to reinforce the 27th AIB on its march toward the Our. In blinding snow and on slippery roads the tanks and infantry of CCB, 9th Armored headed for Bauvenn. On February 5, 1945 General Walter Botsch took over command of the division. Once in St. Vith, Jones explained that only the leading elements of the 7th Armored Division had arrived thus far and that St. Viths northern approach was under attack. All but five troopers of 2nd Platoon were lost to enemy action. Elements of the 62nd Volksgrenadier had taken the eastern half of Winterspelt during the night, and at daybreak reinforcements finally drove Colonel Reids 1st Battalion from the village. As a result of 7th Armoreds earlier regrouping, Rodt was the junction point between CCA of the 7th Armored under the command of Colonel Rosebaum and General Clarkes CCB. An appropriate start for the investigation of this action is to identify contemporary American accounts. By this time the Germans had essentially closed the trap on the two infantry regiments on the Schnee Eifel. The 7th Armored had taken a beating in defending St. Vith. So many soldiers of the 18th Volksgrenadier Division converged on Wallerode for the final push against St. Vith that the villagers themselves threatened to be squeezed out. The 424th Infantry had its back to the Our River, and if the Germans seized the bridge at Steinebruck and spread along the far bank his regiment would be hard pressed to effectively withdraw. Ridgway knew Hoge to be calm, courageous, and imperturbable. The guns of two platoons of Company A, 811th Tank Destroyers were overrun. VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army (Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. Model informed Manteuffel that he would be given the Fhrer Escort Brigade, which was nearly equal in strength to an American light armored division, for the upcoming assault on St. Vith. General Clarke again called on the 9th Armored for assistance to help stiffen his line, and Hoge responded by sending the 3rd Battalion, 424th Regimental Combat Team. The earliest known mention can be found in the December 18th, 1944 morning report and record of events entry of Troop E, 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron which briefly states that an M-8 atchd [attached] to A Tr [Troop A] knocked out one Tiger tank. Volksgrenadier-Division. War Department Field Manual FM 2-20 Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop Mechanized. I wanted to focus on the M8 vs Tiger story, I already noticed the Ferdinand claim, but decided not to mention it. The German tank then stopped dead in its tracks and shuddered; there was a muffled explosion, followed by flames which billowed out of the turret and engine ports. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18.Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. According to the British, 37 mm M6 guns APC M51 can only penetrate around a maximum of 65mm of rolled homogeneous armor plate (RHA) at 30 degrees under V50 ballistic standards. Stackpole Books, 2015. The reason for this comparative respite was due to the fact that the roads to the German rear were completely jammed. General Hoge received his order to pull CCB, 9th Armored out at 0605 on December 23. Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. 194311 The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18. General Jones wanted Hoge to use the infantry of his 27th AIB to seize the series of hills near Winterspelt while the 14th Tank Battalion was to remain west of the Our River for use as the situation developed. It was at full strength and supplied with the latest equipment. The story begins on the 18th of December 1944, two days after the start of the German offensive. Do you have more information about this person? The village of Bauvenn was designated the linkage point for the two combat commands. (function (d, s, n) { The message was that his command was now back with VIII Corps and that he was to go to St. Vith and report to Maj. Gen. Alan W. Jones, commander of the newly arrived 106th Infantry Division. 301 sentences with 'poor shape'. Generals Manteuffel and Lucht had planned an all-out attack to take St. Vith starting at daylight with a three- pronged envelopment by the 62nd Volksgrenadier Division against 9th Armored positions in the south. Little offtopic here but another misidentification might be the 1 destroyed 88mm assault gun (Ferdinand). The two commanders agreed that even without the mud to contend with the withdrawal would have to be delayed simply because of heavy enemy pressure. Eventually retreating through Germany until the end of the war, when it surrendered. Although General Jones was deeply worried about his two regiments on the Schnee Eifel, he was also highly concerned about the German advances in the Winterspelt area where his 424th Infantry Regiment was defending. Next came B Company, 9th Armored Engineers; the 16th Armored Field Artillery; B Company, 482nd Antiaircraft Artillery; and the 14th Tank Battalion. The troops request for armored support was denied by General Hoge because his tank companies sent north to help the 7th Armored had not yet returned and no reserve was on hand. Furthermore, General Clarke had no idea when his command would arrive. Volksgrenadier-Division. While on its way, the platoon was commandeered by a colonel from the 106th Division. Since speed was the key to success of the German plan, two panzer armies would spearhead the offensive. Osprey Publishing, 2010. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division(18. There are two likely candidates, the first being a Panzer IV. Osprey Publishing, 2010. Ninth Armored sent out billeting parties as it reached its new area. . When B Company pulled back to refuel and rearm, A Company passed through to take up the fight. Infanterie-Division Hamburg 19453 . The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571.Volksgrenadier-Division.Under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, the new division absorbed elements of the 18th Luftwaffe Field . Bergstrm, Christer. To cover this dangerous gap in the line C Company, 27th AIB was ordered to the Our between Troop D, 89th Recon and Company A, 27th AIB. Beevor, Antony. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571. Approximately three hours later a German company marched out of Neidingen and along the road leading straight into C Companys position, apparently totally unaware of 9th Armoreds recent change of position. 1940 194111. The other, the 62nd Volksgrenadier Division, bore the number of an infantry division destroyed on the Eastern Front, which had been reconstituted. Boylan, Vincent L. After Action Report, Month of December, 1944. The closest primary German armored thrust route to the south ran through Burg Reuland, also about five miles from St. Vith. I should also note that reconnaissance doctrine was to disengage if at all possible and in no way engage enemy armour beyond scout elements. Germanys Tiger Tanks D.W. to Tiger I: Design, Production & Modifications. September 18th, 1944: Kdr. Battle of the Bulge 1944 (1): St Vith and the Northern Shoulder. There was a bitter struggle to the south of Grufflingen, and the Germans were again active in the Neubruck area. Its population in 1944 was about 2,000, and its citizens were very much pro-German. Eisernes Kreuz 2.Klasse (1914) Period: First World War (1914-1918) Awarded on: October 30th, 1917. On the morning of the December 20, three tank destroyers were placed in support of Company C, 27th AIB. How to use 'poor shape' in a sentence? So its quite possible! Panzer Tracts No. Johnston, W. Wesley. The Commands main body was led by the 27th AIB with B Company in front, followed by Headquarters and C Company. It is possible that, as part of the attacks on the line held in part by Troop B of the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, a lone StuG III was used to probe out the American line, as had been done on the previous day, and was subsequently knocked out by an M8 Greyhound. The fight ended when he slammed the M8 (he called it a Greyhound) into the rear of Tiger and the gun crew fired three rapid fire rounds into the engine compartment. School of Tank Technology, April 1944. The event that Lieutenant Olson recounts does bare a resemblance to the M8 Greyhound versus Tiger story, with both events taking place at or near St. Vith on the 18th of December 1944 and involving an American armored car from the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron knocking out a German tank by shooting it in the rear. This one, however, most likely did not. Captain Ansteys version lacks supporting documentation. This was no place to conduct a mobile defense with armor-heavy forces. Jones explained to Hoge that his division was being attacked along its entire front and that two of his three regiments, the 422nd and the 423rd, had been partly surrounded in the Schnee Eifel area just east of Schoenberg. Soon after General Hoge left 106th Division headquarters for the drive back to Faymonville, Jones received a call from Middleton informing him that a combat command of Brig. Encyclopedia of German tanks of World War Two. On December 16th at 4:00 a.m., they took the twenty-two foot macadam road following the Our River valley towards Manderfield. General Luchts plan for December 17 was simple. One German tank was seen going up in flames. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18.Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. The leading vehicles of General Hoges command entered St. Vith on Sunday morning just as dawn was breaking and halted close to the 106th Divisions command post at the St. Joseph Kloster. Schiffer Publishing, 1997. There are no German records or histories which indicate that, on 18th December 1944, a Tiger I or a Tiger II was knocked out in or around St. Vith. The division, which was under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, absorbed . English PDF (15 MB) Jan B-513 German General Staff Officers, Casualties. Late on the 20th, patrols of the 82nd Airborne Division, on the other side of the Salm River, established contact with patrols of the 7th Armored Division. The second task force consisted of B Company of the 811th Tank Destroyers. The losses in men and equipment for CCB, 9th Armored, as with the rest of the American units defending St. Vith, had been severe. Contribute to chinapedia/wikipedia.en development by creating an account on GitHub. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18th VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army (Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. English PDF (33 MB) Jan B-700 The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571.Volksgrenadier-Division.Under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, the new division absorbed elements of the 18th Luftwaffe Field . 1945. The provisional company of 424th stragglers disappeared during the night. Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. Infanterie-Division . Bergstrm, Christer. Mastering all the usages of 'poor shape' from sentence examples published by news publications. 2014. It is possible (if unlikely) that this event was completely unrelated to the M8 Greyhound versus Tiger story. Within the Kloster, General Hoge found a division headquarters staff in a state of disarray and confusion. Hoge departed Faymonville at approximately 1800, arriving at General Joness headquarters in the St. Josephs Kloster about a half hour later. One task force encountered reconnaissance probes on N27 conducted by units of the 1st SS Panzer Division approximately 1,000 yards north of St. Vith. The ground was frozen solid. Hunnicutt, R. P. Armored Car A History of American Wheeled Combat Vehicles. Were any of these Tiger Is and or Tiger IIs knocked out on the 18th of December, 1944? Mines were laid. Lucht anticipated that the Americans would counterattack the next day, but that their reaction would be too late to avoid complete encirclement. Armored Champion, The Top Tanks of World War II. For faster navigation, this Iframe is preloading the Wikiwand page for 18th Volksgrenadier Division. English PDF (15 MB) Jan B-603 352d Volks Grenadier Division (19 Freb.-21 Mar. A scratch force made up of one platoon of riflemen from Company A, 27th AIB and a platoon from Company B, 9th Engineers were sent to contain the Germans. Panzer Tracts No. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571.Volksgrenadier-Division.Under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, the new division absorbed elements of the 18th Luftwaffe Field . History. VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army ( Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. Adding to the slowdown of operations against St. Vith, the 18th Volksgrenadier Division was still using two of its three regiments and all but one of its artillery battalions against the two trapped 106th Infantry Division regiments on the Schnee Eifel. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18.Volksgrenadier-Division; 18. The colonel ordered the troop east along the road to Schoenberg to delay a German tank and infantry team approaching St. Vith from that direction. In my opinion, the only definite conclusion that can be made from all this is that some American vehicle engaged something at St. Vith on the night of the 18th. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. Manteuffel met near Wallerode with Model and Lucht that day. It saw action in France before taking part in the fighting in the Ardennes where it suffered heavy losses, it continued fighting on the western front until the end . Companies A and B held a line from Grufflingen to Hohenbusch with Company A, 14th Tank Battalion to their north. It was a new and inexperienced division made up of Luftwaffe personnel, former Kriegsmariners out of a Although the bridge over the Our was blown, the German presence kept growing. I am a huge M8 Greyhound fan, having built a model at age 13 and I now own a 1:6 scale one with 4-man crew. By the end of the day, the 27th AIB had withdrawn through Steinebruck without casualties despite enemy shelling of the village. By dark, Lt. Col. Engeman and his two task forces were back in their assembly area in the vicinity of Breitfeld. At about 1700, the enemy attacked along the Schoenberg road from the east; at 1830, they came down the Malmedy road from the north, and at 2000, an attack started from the southeast along the Prum road. After the Tiger I had passed, the armored car then slipped out of its concealed position and began accelerating towards the tank in an attempt to close the gap between the two. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating the 571st Volksgrenadier Division. Combat Interviews of the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion, 7th Armored Division: The St. Vith Salient and Manhay, December 17-23, 1944. Ardennes 1944: Hitlers Last Gamble. General Jones and his staff had pulled out of St. Vith on the morning of the 18th for Vielsalm. An M8 Greyhound armored car of Troop B, 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron was lying in a concealed position just northeast of the vitally important crossroads town of St. Vith, Belgium. Task Force Jones and the 112th Infantry eventually found their way into 82nd Airborne Division lines during the night of the 24th, but not before the units suffered heavy losses. Company A of the 14th Tank Battalion had some trouble disengaging. VGD led by Heinz Kokott, Heinrich Himmler's brother-in-law. Since 7th Armoreds withdrawal meant that 9th Armoreds left flank would be in danger, the two generals agreed that Hoge would have to readjust part of his line to maintain contact with Clarkes new rearward position. Then, four German antitank guns covering the Grufflingen-Maldange road were encountered. When you get surprised like this, you become cautious.Undoubtedly much, if not most, of the armor encountered by Manteuffels probing actions during the early days of the German offensive belonged to CCB, 9th Armored Division. Company C, 27th AIB withdrew under heavy artillery and sniper fire but managed to destroy a number of German vehicles. Having failed to find a soft spot to the north, the Germans then moved against Hoges 9th Armored command in the south; however, even before this attack got going three German tanks were knocked out and the rest of the probing force withdrew. One Day at Stavelot, a Tale of Two Archives The Tiger II vs US Tank Destroyers in the Ardennes. By midnight on the 19th, the horseshoe- shaped defense of St. Vith had taken form. Volksgrenadier-Division was formed from the partially formed 571.Volksgrenadier-Division in Denmark in September 1944, it also included excess Kriegsmarine personnel and surviving elements from 18. A mobile battalion of the 18th Volksgrenadier Division was already moving on Andler to seize the Schoenberg bridge and the road to St. Vith. Seventh Armored Division Association 2517 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Washington 8, D.C., 1947. Close. Combat Interviews of the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion, 7th Armored Division: The St. Vith Salient and Manhay, December 17-23, 1944. Hoge and Clarke agreed that Hoges entire command should be withdrawn west of the railroad tracks.
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