Bastogne: The Battle That Decided the Bulge

Added: 2026-05-07

[00:00:00]What does this mean? The fog of war is descending.

[00:00:02]>> Lots and lots of casualties. Cupid comes in with a hands of foul.

[00:00:06]>> I do have >> We will kill any German who tries to get into this town.

[00:00:12]>> Yeah.

[00:00:15]>> Jim, we're in Luxembourg, aren't we?

[00:00:16]>> Yeah, we are. We're in a tiny little village of Nevanak.

[00:00:19]>> This is our third. I mean, we keep crossing borders. Yeah.

[00:00:21]>> But finally, we're over the border into Luxembourg.

[00:00:23]>> We're into Luxembourg, but we're very, very close.

[00:00:25]>> We're very, very close to Best Dune.

[00:00:27]>> Best Dune. That's you have to say it like that.

[00:00:30]>> You can't it's it's a bit like Karantan >> Caran Baston.

[00:00:33]>> Yeah, you can only say that in one way.

[00:00:34]>> And what we're here to talk about rather than the siege itself is the the things that lead to the siege. The events that lead to the siege that in fact are the the events that buy time for 100 airborne >> in their 120 km long uh uh wagon train to get into the city or the town to hold it. Yeah. Yeah.

[00:00:55]>> And there's critical decisions and stuff and I mean very peculiar things that happen around here >> as we're introduced to a new character, new player.

[00:01:05]>> Well, he's not entirely new because you may remember that we came across him in the Panzelair division um back in uh back in the summer when we were looking at the Sherwood Rangers, >> you know, south of Bayer.

[00:01:17]>> Uh and they came up against the Panzelair. Well, here are the Panzair again and they're still commanded by Gener Lightland Fritz Baline. Yes. who has been there, done it. Why he's not a kind of a huge army commander by this stage. I just don't really understand.

[00:01:30]>> It's interesting, isn't it? Because he's he's one of Ruml's guys, isn't he? From, you know, >> he's a left tenant general.

[00:01:35]>> Yeah. Yeah.

[00:01:35]>> He's still commanding a division. It's just it's just the vagaries of >> Nazi high command. I >> He's just too unique an individual as we may discover.

[00:01:44]>> Well, maybe he's a Swaryy fellow. Um, you know, he's he's hugely experienced Eastern Front. Um he's been chief of staff to the um Deutsche Africa Corps under Raml then I think he's he's commanded the Africa corps >> and of course commands of Panzel Air which is arguably the best equipped and well not best equipped but certainly the best led and trained and has the highest quality of officer in Normandy gets utterly destroyed of course rebuilt bine still in charge. So, what we haven't talked about is the 28th Division who were just south of the Golden Lions, the 106th Division, and they're defending the Skyline Drive, which is this ridgeeline road running kind of sort of north south um and and just ahead just east of of the town of Clairvo, but they kind of hold up the main sticky enough. This is the point everywhere. everywhere where the Germans are delayed even slightly. Every every anyone that can throw sand into the German gears is is you know obviously we've I think we decided long ago talking about this the whole thing's pointless anyway. Yes. But it's making it more difficult and more pointless and more costly for the Germans at every every step of the way.

[00:02:51]>> Exactly. But but but as with elsewhere it is the vaults grenadier divisions that do the kind of I suppose do the original breakthrough and then the Panza divisions come through and in this case >> coming from sweeping down towards Bastau from the kind of northern uh eastern side is second Panza division not SS just vermack you know it's an ordinary army and from the south from the kind of clairvoair >> yes >> and so they've managed to get Vilts kind of overnight on the on the 17th 18th and then had a push up to here from Vilts which is a kind of you know a stretch away >> but they've been harried by retreating Americans >> um and rear guards all the way.

[00:03:37]>> Yeah. and it's been a long fraught day.

[00:03:40]And they pull into here, Fritz Bayine, leading one of the column, armor columns in his halftrack, pulls into this square in the middle of the village at about 1000 p.m. that night, which coincidentally is precisely the moment that the lead elements of the 101st Airborne reach Baston.

[00:03:57]>> Yeah. Extraordinary, isn't it? That the timing the timing is all right.

[00:04:00]>> Well, the race is now on. Well, well, so now is not the moment for him to hesitate.

[00:04:06]>> But he doesn't know that.

[00:04:07]>> But of course he doesn't know that. But but if he's in cluten mode, if he's if his whole thing is pushing. So it's interesting that he stops and he finds himself with three choices, doesn't he?

[00:04:16]>> Yeah. So he go talks to his operations officer who's a chap called Obur Litman, Latutenant Colonel Kurt Calfman. Yeah.

[00:04:22]And Cal says, "Well, I've done a little bit of rec, you know, a bit of a reconnaissance here, General." And um uh he says, "There's three choices." Yeah.

[00:04:29]You know, you either go push northwards to Longville and get the main road into town into Baston that way. Or you could push southwards and then cut up from the kind of the southeast or here marked on your map is a is a third track in the middle. I This is almost like a this is almost like a fairy tale. You know that he he's offered three choices and the third one is an unmet road, but the local farmer goes, "Yeah, yeah, you'll be all right."

[00:04:51]>> The Floyd look farmer.

[00:04:52]>> Yeah. Yeah. A friendly local farmer. But he nevertheless does actually divide his effort because he's thinking, oh, I got to keep things, you know, I got to cover my cover my Yes.

[00:05:02]>> Yeah. Um uh and also there is this problem of America just popping up all over.

[00:05:06]>> Yeah.

[00:05:07]>> Um the random formations >> and he doesn't know how strongly Baston is defended. And also the other thing that's really clear is they're not, you know, communications with second panzer are not kind of that hot.

[00:05:18]>> Yeah. So >> as with a lot of the German operations during the Battle of the Bulge, these units are quite often operating in complete isolation.

[00:05:28]>> Yes.

[00:05:29]>> Yes.

[00:05:30]>> It's not what it's coordinated, but but in the loosest possible sense.

[00:05:33]>> Yeah. Which is which is a sort of I mean it's interesting because because if the if there is an idea that they know what to do, they need to push on >> which is the you know the ethos of the German military machine, you still got to know what everyone else is doing.

[00:05:47]>> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.

[00:05:48]>> They might bump into each other. I mean, if nothing else, >> but the fog of war is descending because literally and metaphorically because it's a very very foggy night and they push on through on this trail and the trail gets muddier and muddier. But I think what we should do is we should go and find that route.

[00:06:01]>> Yes.

[00:06:02]>> Follow that route. It's a bit more paved than it was in Fritz Bayines day.

[00:06:06]>> Yeah. We're not going to get stuck and have to >> We're not going to get stuck.

[00:06:08]>> Leave people behind and abandon the film crew.

[00:06:11]>> No.

[00:06:11]>> As we go forward.

[00:06:12]>> No. None of that. I hope not.

[00:06:14]>> And then we can go to um Mag.

[00:06:16]>> Yeah. where a very very curious incident occurs.

[00:06:21]>> Can't wait to talk about that.

[00:06:23]>> No, it's epic.

[00:06:23]>> Right, let's go get back in the cub.

[00:06:44]Well, you said as we drove up the hill that what we do is pull up here, get out the car and say, "Well, this road's [ __ ] isn't it?"

[00:06:52]>> And it is, isn't it?

[00:06:54]>> Yeah. I mean, you know, it is it is tarmac now, but um >> it's still it's still really narrow and it and it wouldn't have been.

[00:07:00]>> Yeah.

[00:07:01]>> And you're slithering uphill and all this uphill isn't good for fuel consumption, which is a thing that is starting to >> get into Boline's head at this point, isn't it?

[00:07:09]>> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And they've been told there's fuel supplies in the center of Baston, which is another reason we're getting in there.

[00:07:14]>> Yeah.

[00:07:15]>> They're about now about five miles away.

[00:07:18]>> Yeah.

[00:07:18]>> But I mean, look at it. The fog is down.

[00:07:21]The navl is settling over us. It's all very atmospheric. And although they're doing this this this cross of um this drive across the countryside at nighttime, I mean, even so, you can you can picture it, can't you?

[00:07:32]>> Well, you can picture it. You can also picture that, let's say he got stuck here and the weather cleared, the risk he's taking. Um, you know, >> you're super exposed, aren't you?

[00:07:40]>> You're super exposed. And so much of this plan is predicated on the idea that there'll be bad weather, which means the Allied air forces won't turn up. So, he is running out of time. The And this option is putting that under pressure, too, isn't it?

[00:07:52]>> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Well, he he does get to MRE, so that's where we need to go to next.

[00:07:56]>> Okay, let's go to Mray along this terrible road.

[00:08:00]>> Saddle up for vets.

[00:08:12]Well, we're in Madre, which is a village maybe 3 4 miles from Baston.

[00:08:18]>> Y >> and >> so we're getting closer.

[00:08:20]>> Yes. And and you know, the lead elements of the Panza get here on the morning of the 19th.

[00:08:26]>> It's amazing that we're here on this day with this blanket of fog because that's exactly what it was like back in 1944 when Bayine gets here.

[00:08:34]>> Yeah. you know, and and and the fog of war has is clouding over him and what he needs to do. And there's clearly a moment of indecision which anyone who's studied Fritz Berline through the Second World War will know that that is quite a rare occurrence. You know, normally he's pretty decisive, knows what he's about.

[00:08:50]You know, he's one of the better better uh um commanders in the in the valley.

[00:08:55]>> And certainly that's been his apprenticeship working with RML.

[00:08:58]>> It's good coffee, isn't it? Working with RML, that that you that's what you're supposed to do, isn't it? You know.

[00:09:02]>> Yeah. So they get here and there's a there's a bit of faffing around and I think I think I think where historians don't quite get it is that >> when you're talking about people arrive you know people reaching a place at a certain time what that means is the lead elements.

[00:09:17]>> Yeah. Yeah.

[00:09:18]>> You know and kind of a handful of tanks and kind of 20 pounds of granaders is not really enough to take that stone.

[00:09:23]>> No.

[00:09:24]>> You know because you don't want to go in there and then suffer a sort of terrible reverse.

[00:09:27]>> Yeah. So, you've got to wait for everyone to get up and these columns just take forever to get through because there's so many vehicles and >> then you got to get the fuel up and you got to get the ammo up.

[00:09:37]>> You got to get organized. You got to see who who's been left behind. You've got to where's that ammo truck and and all that sort of thing.

[00:09:44]>> That's right. And it just eats time.

[00:09:45]>> It eats time and and the Americans in the meantime are making sure that they're they're delivering, you know, they're plugging the gaps. They're sending people forward and obviously I don't know if sharpeyed viewer noticed what we're sitting in front of. Yes.

[00:10:00]>> So, this is the 76 millimeter variant of the Sherman tank.

[00:10:03]>> Yes.

[00:10:03]>> Um with a different gun. So, it's the latest tech.

[00:10:07]>> Yeah. And you can tell you're in the Baston area cuz this is this dominates the battlefield tourism and everywhere you go there are these these turrets all over the place >> in a way. They weren't in St. Vit and they weren't in Stavo and No. But to get back to Fritz Bay, so he does push his forces through to the village of Nef, which is the next one along, and that really is on the outskirts of Maststone.

[00:10:30]There's no question that he has an opportunity there and then to push on through >> and get into the town, but he doesn't take it presumably because he's waiting for everything to to to to follow up because the bottom line is you you can go through villages and you can smash your way through and just the lead elements can do it. But if you're going to take a town which is such an obvious crossroads and you know there are some American troops seven roads converge in Bastoine this is the point it's a it's a >> it's a noble point.

[00:10:56]>> It's a hub and you and if if he knows he's got to take it then the Americans will know perfectly well that that they need to hold it.

[00:11:03]>> Exactly. So my point is is he's got to wait to have a sizable force >> to be able to make an attack. But you can push forward and probe and all that.

[00:11:11]He gets to Nef and and actually decides Oh, I'm not sure about this. There's a fog come down. I can't see anything.

[00:11:17]They're being kind of sniped at. They're coming into kind of American uh um forces sort of pecking out range and all that.

[00:11:25]>> Yes. And they're coming up against the first troops of the 101st which are starting to deploy. 100 airborne should start to deploy that morning.

[00:11:31]>> So that makes him think I'm not sure about this. And also he's been told that a big task force or reasonable size task force of Americans have pushed eastwards. So he doesn't want to be attacking Baston.

[00:11:45]>> So he thinks, well, I better go and sort of turn back. So he actually turns back to Mag.

[00:11:50]>> And that morning on the way in, they've overrun a whole load of a little kind of um field hospital.

[00:11:57]>> Yes.

[00:11:58]>> And some nurses, >> some nurses are in this field hospital.

[00:12:01]>> And he has a bit of a moment because one of the captured nurses is Z Shern.

[00:12:07]>> He takes a shine >> very much. And he he he is absolutely he says he's stupified by >> I mean this is amazing as well because because >> this is by his own account. So uh you know one of the interesting things about by line is after the war he he helps the Americans assemble their history of the second world war.

[00:12:25]>> Yes. This is all part of the foreign military studies.

[00:12:28]>> Yes. and he's very cooperative and he and he admits to basically being Cupid.

[00:12:34]Cupid comes in with a panzer fast rather than a a bow and arrow >> and zaps him and uh >> which version is it? Is it the cartoon one where he just goes ramrod straight his heart >> or is it the I am the lonely warrior that I have had long years of war and you for line >> my heart beats for you mine labeling >> all of that >> anyway but he but he's he's you know his head is turned his heart >> I have feelings too I might be again around but >> I I do have feelings >> I in this cruel and bitter war >> and now I see this vision of loveliness.

[00:13:16]>> I mean it's >> it's kind of >> it's so funny.

[00:13:19]>> It's good though in a way because suddenly, >> you know, he's not just an evil Nazi.

[00:13:24]He's he's an evil Nazi with a heart.

[00:13:25]>> He's an implacable warrior.

[00:13:27]>> Yeah. He's he's not an evil evil Nazi particularly. He's a he's actually >> someone one could admire without too many moral compromises.

[00:13:36]>> And yet here he is falling in love.

[00:13:38]>> Falling in love. Is it >> Hey, who's the schmuck?

[00:13:42]>> Yeah, I mean, we don't know who the nur It's nearly been narrowed down to who the nurse was. We don't know what her reaction is. Who is this schmuck following you around?

[00:13:51]>> I don't know. Some Nazi general.

[00:13:55]>> Anyway, >> is it raining shells?

[00:14:00]>> I hadn't noticed.

[00:14:04]>> But anyway, whatever. But the bottom line is >> the thing is it's part of the delay.

[00:14:08]It's part of the delay.

[00:14:09]>> It's part of the delay. And as we made clear right from the start, >> why his heart is just general general ed hands.

[00:14:19]>> I must get on my feelings.

[00:14:22]>> Um I mean it is amazing though because right from the start of the story of the battle of the bulge delay is the enemy.

[00:14:28]>> Yes.

[00:14:28]>> So you can't go falling in love, man.

[00:14:30]>> Yeah. That's a delay we had factored in.

[00:14:36]Oh, seeing a normal modern tractor on these tiny roads force its way up these tiny roads, dominate the roads, starts to make you think of how difficult it would be to get 115 panzas in order along the roads around here. Because we have been filming here, we've been plagued by tractors turning because it's agricultural around here. Plagued by these enormous tractors turning up which are half the size of the king's king tigers.

[00:15:01]>> Well, actually, and also our last stop, we were on tarmac and then it ran out.

[00:15:05]>> Yes. the bad the the road got worse. In fact, >> it turned into a track. Turned into a track. In fact, this is why we absolutely knew 100% we were on Fritz Bear Lines Trail.

[00:15:14]>> Yeah. Yeah.

[00:15:14]>> But not his trail of love. Um I mean the fact is that Blitz Creek in Blitz Creek, you know, and it's and its execution neglects the needs of the human heart.

[00:15:29]>> They don't teach this. They don't >> have feelings too.

[00:15:31]>> They don't teach this at staff college.

[00:15:33]Whatever you do, don't fall in love with the nurses for vets.

[00:15:39]My heart.

[00:15:42]>> So, so Fritz Bear line is is got a conundrum because he's waiting for everyone to come up. There's fog, >> metaphorical and literal.

[00:15:49]>> Yeah.

[00:15:50]>> He's got a beating heart.

[00:15:51]>> Yeah.

[00:15:51]>> Um which is suddenly had his head turned.

[00:15:54]>> Yeah.

[00:15:54]>> By the cause of love. And all the time the Americans are plugging the gap and andap and they're making the most of the moment >> because 100 have arrived overnight.

[00:16:01]Yeah. And gone straight into the line.

[00:16:03]>> Yeah. And gone straight into I mean sinks guys go straight into a a spoiling attack immediately, don't they? And uh and are really really effective.

[00:16:10]>> This is a 506 >> 56. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

[00:16:13]>> Yeah. And they're on the road out to Novilli.

[00:16:16]>> Yeah.

[00:16:16]>> Uh leading out of Foy.

[00:16:18]>> Yeah.

[00:16:18]>> On the kind of north eastern side of of of B.

[00:16:22]>> Yeah. Sort of the road going out at kind of 2:00.

[00:16:24]>> Yeah. So we're in the kind of southern eastern bit of it here.

[00:16:28]>> Yeah.

[00:16:28]>> But but what happens is is of course is is that the task force Cherry has moved out the previous day to have this blocking position on the road coming in and actually they've come in behind.

[00:16:38]>> Yeah.

[00:16:38]>> They've come in behind. So they are blocking the road to to Mag and Nef, but actually they've come up across this trail. So actually >> Yes. And Cherry, that's an epic scrap, isn't it?

[00:16:49]>> Yeah. And that's where we're going to go next.

[00:16:50]>> Yeah. Yeah. Excellent. We're going to leave >> Fritz Bayine and his swooning heart.

[00:16:56]>> Oh, I almost feel sorry for him. But I also think that nurse >> get where's her medal of honor citation?

[00:17:04]>> For holding for holding up but actually >> holding up Panzel.

[00:17:07]>> You could argue, couldn't you? Yeah, she >> she's responsible for >> she held up Panzel as effectively as Task Force Cherry.

[00:17:22]>> Well, Jim, where are we right now?

[00:17:24]>> Well, we're about I guess probably seven miles from Baston, something like that.

[00:17:28]We're just ahead of Long Billy. The village of Long is that way.

[00:17:32]>> Y >> and Baston is that way.

[00:17:34]>> Baston is that way. Yep. And this is one of the blocking positions.

[00:17:38]>> Yeah. So when they suddenly realize that that the breakthrough's happened on the 28th division's front and on the 106th division's front and that Baston is threatened.

[00:17:46]>> Yeah.

[00:17:47]>> Middleton is told to leave Baston which has been his >> Yeah.

[00:17:52]>> which has been his um his headquarters.

[00:17:54]He's got to go to Nerf Chateau.

[00:17:56]>> Yeah.

[00:17:56]>> So he leaves it to Roberts Colonel Roberts who is the commander of CCB of the 10th which has been handed over from Patton's third army to support Middleton's eighth corps.

[00:18:07]>> Yes. And Milson says, you know, to uh to to Roberts and to General McAuliff, Brigadier General McColl, >> who's coming in with 101st, >> he's coming in, but gets in pretty, you know, he's like first man in.

[00:18:18]>> Yeah.

[00:18:19]>> With his guns. The guns are the guns are first in the order of march. He's an artilleryman. So, it's quite interesting. He he brings his guys with him with him first in the 101st order.

[00:18:28]>> Well, he is the artillery officer, isn't he, of the 101st air because Maxwell Taylor's away in the >> He's at a staff conference in Washington.

[00:18:34]>> Yeah.

[00:18:34]>> Yeah. and McCaule landed by parachute on D-Day and by glider for market garden.

[00:18:39]>> So he's he's >> he's he's proper.

[00:18:41]>> He's proper. He's walked the walk. He's talked the talk and all that.

[00:18:44]>> Yeah.

[00:18:44]>> Um and he he knows that bases >> never swears, never curses. And we'll get to that. He you know, seven roads lead to Baston. So the thing to do obviously is >> they're coming from the east.

[00:18:54]>> Yeah. Well, yeah. But what you want to do is try and stop them even getting there. So this is and this is this is the grotto Sammy shell, isn't it?

[00:19:02]>> Yes, it is. And it's a like plug of a sudden plug outcrop of rock. The road comes up over here from Bastine and then runs down that way.

[00:19:13]>> So you've got a corner. Check.

[00:19:14]>> You've got a corner. You've got >> you've got you've got rock that no one's going to get past. Check.

[00:19:19]>> Water. Check. So like a so like a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a valley. Little valley here.

[00:19:25]>> Big escarotment. Check. You've got soggy fields either side of you. Check. Which basically means that any advance from the east has got to come through this very narrow.

[00:19:34]>> Well, they got to come around. First of all, they got to come around a corner.

[00:19:36]Yeah. And and you know that means having a look, you know, alerting your presence to the people here and all that sort of thing. But >> well, so on the 18th December, as it becomes clear that Basson is going threatened, McAuliffe and Robert send out three task forces on the main roads coming in from the east.

[00:19:55]>> Ohara.

[00:19:56]>> Yes. That's in the middle.

[00:19:58]>> Yeah. And and then up to the north is Desbury Deserbury going up towards Nilli and then Toss Cherry or Team Cherry is sent out here to Long Villi.

[00:20:08]>> And it is Cherry who chooses this site here. He's got about 30 Shermans and Stewarts.

[00:20:13]>> He's got armored infantry.

[00:20:16]>> Half tracks.

[00:20:16]>> Half tracks. He's got some artillery.

[00:20:19]>> Y >> um he's got some wrecky vehicles, some greyhounds and what have you.

[00:20:23]>> So he's got quite a little a little punch to pack here. and they're sitting there waiting. But on the on the uh on the morning of the 19th when Bearine is up ahead and getting into Magaray from the southeast, >> Cherry himself is back in Bastau conferring with McCaulay.

[00:20:42]>> Yeah. So he's separated from the guys here.

[00:20:44]>> Yes. And the guy who's left in charge is first left tenant, Edward.

[00:20:47]>> First lieutenant.

[00:20:48]>> First lieutenant, I beg your pardon.

[00:20:50]Edward B.

[00:20:52]>> Just saved ourselves an enormous mailbag. Hideuk Haiduk.

[00:20:55]>> Haiduk. Yeah.

[00:20:57]>> So, you know, he's a pretty junior officer in command of all this.

[00:21:01]>> And they're kind of sitting there waiting here, looking down that road, waiting for for the crowds to turn up.

[00:21:06]>> They come from behind.

[00:21:07]>> They come from behind >> because they because this is bare line coming thinking I've heard about this armored force has gone down there.

[00:21:13]>> I need to do something about Yeah. So, he turns turns basically right from Ma >> and heads back up.

[00:21:20]>> Your advantages your advantages of blocking traffic that way. Exactly. way.

[00:21:25]But also, these same advantages don't don't favor an um a defense in from that direction. No. And they're very heavily shelled >> and uh uh lots and lots of casualties.

[00:21:37]Um they lose I think he lose 15 15 tanks or something. And but afterwards, >> yeah, they're basically wiped out. But Cherry basically says, "Look, after the event, he says, "Look, it doesn't matter because we inflicted the same kind of damage to them. We held them up when time was of the essence for them." And he's absolutely right. And he's, you know, the guys here and it's terrible what happens here. They >> But it's not over in 5 minutes.

[00:22:02]>> No, no, no. It's all day.

[00:22:04]>> Well, it's all afternoon into the evening for sure.

[00:22:07]>> Yeah. Yeah. But the point is is that is that again it's it's delay. It's slowing. It's, you know, >> and it's a trick.

[00:22:16]>> You could you could say had had B not bothered with it, he'd be going straight onto Bone, he's gone back to deal with the blocking position that's behind him.

[00:22:23]Yeah, >> you could argue don't do that. Yeah, >> keep going forwards >> except that they would have come to the point would have come where they suddenly go actually >> we need to go we need to yeah Cherry needs to we need to go back to >> so so he sort of does have to deal with it >> um in the meantime Cherry has realized what's happened that he's become separated and has put up a blocking position at Nef which was the next little village on right on the outskirts of Bastau beyond Maggar so say so west of Magare where we were a minute ago >> and he cobbles together more forces in this brilliant way that the Americans are showing in the Battle of the Bulge this this incredible capacity for for pulling, you know, you you you you come with me and actually creating a coherent force with proper command structures and everyone knowing what they're doing in very very quick order. He sets up that blocking position at Nef and again that you know they are engaged that afternoon but again that buys time for the 101st Airborne and these other tank destroyers and artillery that are coming into Bastau to actually set themselves up and at this point Baston is not surrounded.

[00:23:26]It is it is like a big sort of curvy shield around the front of it >> and he's out there with with his Thompson machine gun himself, isn't he?

[00:23:33]>> Yeah, he's absolutely hard as nails, isn't he?

[00:23:36]>> Yeah, Cherry is hard as nails. I think it's really interesting what you struck on there though because the the the Americans are doing this fluid organizing thing. You know, they are pulling people together. The Germans have got this issue where the vulk grenadier are seen as seen as a bit inferior by the SS >> and by the Panza division >> and by the Panza divisions and they don't really get along. It's kind like oh there's not this sense of a common effort in the way there is with the Americans which which and you know we've talked about panzair we've talked about um you know camp gripper piper we've talked about the fur blight brigade >> the Germans have got all these sort of desperate >> they're outliers aren't they >> they're all every yes they're all these outliers and special outfits with their magic uniforms and all this sort of thing >> but but and and as a result they sort of have this failure to have common purpose or organizational commonality that the Americans have got like that.

[00:24:30]>> Yeah.

[00:24:31]>> And that's very often not how the story of the tactical differences between the Germans and the Americans are told in the history of the Second World War. But it's apparent here that it's, you know, >> the Americans can can get their cooks and bottle washers to fight. Yeah.

[00:24:44]>> Or get their tank crews to fight as infantrymen or whatever.

[00:24:47]>> Yeah.

[00:24:47]>> If they have to.

[00:24:48]>> Yeah. As we saw at Ro where where it is the bottle washers. There aren't any distracting nurses here for Haiduk.

[00:24:57]>> There's nothing. There's just >> It's just this landscape.

[00:25:01]>> The Virgin Mary looking down upon the bleak scene. But no, >> maybe that's inspiration enough.

[00:25:05]>> Maybe that'll do. Yeah, exactly.

[00:25:08]>> Well, I think now the time has come to go into the heart of Baston.

[00:25:12]>> Yeah, there's no longer a roadblock here.

[00:25:14]>> No, it's been overrun.

[00:25:15]>> Yeah, let's go.

[00:25:16]>> All right, Baston.

[00:25:26]Well, Jim, uh there's no denying where we are, right?

[00:25:30]>> There's a little there's a whiff of Samarles here, isn't there?

[00:25:33]>> It's a tiny bit Samar. It's certainly the Battle of the Bulge City, isn't it?

[00:25:38]Or town. Bastin. It's like an English market town, really. This is the main drag.

[00:25:42]>> Melton Mobre.

[00:25:43]>> Melton Mobre. Somewhere like that. Yeah.

[00:25:44]This is the main drag.

[00:25:45]>> Yeah. and uh photographs from the battle of all the vehic vehicles parked here, >> trucks, jeeps, >> the destruction here, halftracks, all that sort of stuff.

[00:25:54]>> But >> the city Bastin is surrounded.

[00:26:00]>> Well, it it becomes in pretty quick order, but but >> we last left it on the 19th of December.

[00:26:07]>> Y >> with um Task Force Cherry getting munched up from the from behind. But actually all those actions, those three major actions, particularly the one up towards Nove are incredibly impressive. And they're the 705th tank destroyers, which a handful of Hellcats, M18 Hellcats, which are not a Sherman chassis. They're a completely new design.

[00:26:31]>> And they can do 55 mph. And they and and in the in the stories of this battle, they do they do come at full speed. They hair up the road and get in place and cause proper damage.

[00:26:43]>> They destroy 30 up to 30 panzas from the second Panza division.

[00:26:47]>> Four of these Hellcats. Um it it's extraordinary. It >> really really is.

[00:26:51]>> And but so the blocking positions have delayed the Germans. Well, by 9:00 a.m.

[00:26:57]on the morning of the uh 19th of December, just as all these actions are going on, as Fritz Bayine is having his little diance and his heart is beating stronger and all the rest general, but they have feelings >> all of that.

[00:27:11]>> The 101st Airborne are deployed around the eastern edge of >> the perimeter and two, you know, there's now two tank destroyer units in in Baston itself. There's also um combat command B of the 10th armor division.

[00:27:27]And really when you're thinking about the battle that happens, >> this is as much 10th armor divisions.

[00:27:33]>> Yes.

[00:27:34]>> To own this battle as it is 101st Screaming Eagles.

[00:27:37]>> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And the and the accompanying artillery artillery.

[00:27:41]>> Not just not just the airborne artillery either because they're they're kind of under underpowered is the truth.

[00:27:46]>> Yes. And the and the truth is although those those outlying task force which are doing those blocking divisions obvious inevitably get overrun by sheer weight of of numbers >> the truth is they have held them up >> and and it means that McAuliff and Roberts who's the combat command B commander that gives them the time to organize themselves >> breathing space >> gives them breathing space and what happens the next day is is that the panzer lair and um and the second panza start to kind of move around. They're banging their heads against this brick wall on the eastern side. So think, well, let's just move around Bastau. Um, but on the 21st, it's it's clear that they're actually the the opportunity to bust in.

[00:28:30]>> Yeah.

[00:28:31]>> Is sort of is passing. And now the German commander's got to Man Toy's got to he's got to um >> decide what to do.

[00:28:37]>> He's got to decide what to do. Is he going to go to the is he going to reduce Baston? Yeah.

[00:28:41]>> Or is he going to >> push onto the M? And don't forget that the Panza lair and the second Panza, they're the strike force. They're not the kind of gritty kind of grinding.

[00:28:53]>> No, they're not the they're not the mop-up people. No.

[00:28:56]>> Yeah. And and so um I mean what's what's interesting is is then they're ordered forward, aren't they? Panzer ordered forward.

[00:29:03]>> Yes.

[00:29:03]>> But finally on the 22nd.

[00:29:05]>> Finally the 22nd. But at the same time, Fon Lutvitz, who's uh making all these decisions, he he says, "Well, actually, I'm going to demand a surrender." Yeah.

[00:29:14]completely surrounded by completely surrounded. I'll demand a send surrender of them. And this is when the I mean the you know the the the really it's an extraordinary event and it's the thing you know this place is called Nuts City because of it. There's a cafe around the corner called Lun Nuts.

[00:29:29]>> Yes.

[00:29:30]>> And so what happens is two two guys come in um under a white flag.

[00:29:34]>> Yes.

[00:29:35]>> And demand the surrender of uh of the Basin uh garrison forces. and and there's an email an email thinking I'm thinking in 21st century terms the document is very much you've got to give up you're surrounded you know you are um if you don't give up then all of our artillery will reduce the city and those civilian casualties will be on you yeah >> if you do that and McAuliffe in his headquarters first of all says what is this is this a joke >> yes >> um and and and there's you know this story is so told there's the sort of whiffs of myth in it. You know, are they surrendering to us? I'm not sure. And then and then they said, "Well, we've held on this long. They have they've never been in danger of overwhelming us." So, what do we say? And he and he basically in exasperation. So, the story says goes and says, "Oh, nuts."

[00:30:30]>> And so, his aid says, "Well, why don't you just say that?

[00:30:32]>> Why don't you just say that?"

[00:30:33]>> Because McAuliff famously never swears.

[00:30:35]>> Never swears. He doesn't curse. He's a he's the one of the it's Harper who's one of his aids. He says he's the only general I ever wor with who never did use profane language. So they they write they type this thing up. It's not an email. They type this thing up. They type this thing that says to the German commander nuts >> exclamation mark >> from the American commander >> and with no apostrophe.

[00:30:55]>> No apostrophe. No apostrophe as we see at the cafe nuts around the corner.

[00:30:58]Anyway, what then happens is they return with they go back to the Germans with this with this message.

[00:31:04]>> Yes.

[00:31:05]>> What does this mean? The Germans say.

[00:31:07]And uh Harper says uh any American will tell you the nuts means go to hell >> and any German tries we will kill any German who tries to get into this town.

[00:31:17]>> Yeah.

[00:31:18]>> But the truth is that by the 22nd of December when they demand the surrender Germans demand the surrender they're kind of you know they've missed their chance really because they've got to send their main strike force. There's no question that Panzer and second Panza are the best units they've got.

[00:31:33]Otherwise you're back to the Volks grenaders really and a bit of artillery.

[00:31:37]So they they you know Ban is told to get on with it and and and second Panzer is told to get on with it and >> Panzer leaves one battle group camp grouper here to help the vaults grenaders have a bit of kind of >> the 72nd Volks Grenadier is it some um 27th 26 I don't know anyway doesn't really matter grenadier division. Yeah.

[00:31:58]Yeah. Exactly.

[00:31:59]>> That's all we need to know for the >> all we need to know.

[00:32:03]>> And that of course is further weakening the panzerair as they stride forward. So you're seeing exactly a repeat of what's happened to campa piper. Y as you go forward you're losing bits and you're getting you're whittling down and you're like that pointy nose in Stavo >> and and >> what they've then got to do is hold on because what is also happening at this stage is third core from third army.

[00:32:26]This is General George Patton's army >> has is turning northwards to try and relieve Baston.

[00:32:33]>> Yeah. Is on a pivot and it's turning around. Um I mean also the weather's beginning to clear. So the weather clears weather clears the following day which means skies are suddenly full.

[00:32:43]You've also got supply drops coming here. Glider drop glider landings bringing stuff in.

[00:32:48]>> Lots of supplies coming in.

[00:32:49]>> Yeah. Lots of supplies. So ammunition and fuel coming in gliders.

[00:32:52]>> Just not warm coats for the >> Just not warm coats for the 100. are just going to well those eagles are just going to have to carry on screaming.

[00:32:58]They are.

[00:32:58]>> But but the the the thing is um where we are now which is a school in Elu Inuks.

[00:33:05]I think that's that is >> this is a casualty clearing station and you can see >> basically they put a they put a picture here and you can see the snowbound kind of trucks and yeah dodges and and what have you. But basically they managed to get here on the late afternoon of the 26th of December, Boxing Day. Yeah, >> I think it's just after 4:00 that combat commander leading elements. I think it's the 37th tank battalion um commanded by Captain Dwight.

[00:33:35]>> Yep.

[00:33:35]>> Um the lead company that is. They are met by McAuliff.

[00:33:39]>> Amazing.

[00:33:40]>> Just north of the village of Aseninoir.

[00:33:42]>> Amazing.

[00:33:42]>> On the perimeter and and that afternoon they're that evening into the night they're able to bring in reinforcements and ship out >> a whole load of >> casualties. Casualties. The corridor needs to be widened over the ensuing days. Well, basically it's all over here.

[00:33:57]>> But the thing is is Bastoin has caught the fur's eye, isn't it? And he's he's been issuing orders that do not help, which is I want it at all costs. And the and and the guys on the ground are like, "No, we're trying to get to the M. You told us to go to the M."

[00:34:08]>> Yes. It's a Stalin all over again.

[00:34:10]>> Exactly. It's as if it's all of Hitler's ticks, all of his decision-making mistakes that have he's made throughout the Second World War all accumulating again in this event.

[00:34:20]>> Yes. Yes. Yes.

[00:34:21]>> Yeah. Yeah. Amazing. Well, it's a shame because we were hoping to get to Asanar, but we've just run out of time today.

[00:34:26]>> So, so you're going to have to like and subscribe and then we'll be able to tell the the rest of the story when we come back. But warm. We're going to come back when it's warm. Well, what do you think?

[00:34:34]Come back when it's warm.

[00:34:35]>> It's I tell you what, you know, we've been in the temperatures have been lower on previous days, but I haven't felt as cold as I have today.

[00:34:42]>> It's It's very cold today. My eagles are very definitely screaming. Um, thanks for watching. Do like and subscribe.

[00:34:47]Walking the ground, the battle of the bulge. Hashtag not just Bastoin.

[00:34:50]Although here we are in Baston signing off me. Almary James Holland. Thanks for watching. Bye-bye.

[00:34:55]>> Thank you for watching. We will be back.

[00:34:57]>> Nuts.

[00:34:58]>> Nuts.