Bastogne: The Story of the First Eight Days - US Army Center Of ...

190 BASTOGNE
lein's attack and its gunpower was added to the impact of the
TDs.
Colonel Meinhard von Lauchert, commanding the 2d Panzer
Division, had talked with Liittwitz about the Longvilly block,
but since his own people were turning north some distance short
of the American armor, it hadn't concerned him overly in the
beginning. But when he drew fire from the Longvilly direction
(the action taken by the batteries supporting Hyduke) during
the morning of December 19 and the shells threatened to interdict
his turning movement, he directed that five or six 88mm.
guns be set up at the road junction below Chilfontaine to counter
the American fire. This battery had been in operation for perhaps
two hours when the two attacks were launched against
Longvilly from the southeast and southwest. Its guns continued
to fire and do great execution upon the stalled American column
during the hours when the guns along the southern line were
raking the armor point-blank. Here was surely the strangest
passage in the whole enemy attack on Bastogne-all three divisions
engaged at one time, bringing together the greatest fire
concentration produced during the first phase of the siege. And
their luckless target was a force which already felt itself defeated
and was simply looking for a way out!
The bombardment lasted for about two hours, but even after
that the German infantry did not close in. Mter Hyduke and
his group fell back on Ryerson, who was trying to break through
Mageret and so open a road of escape for what remained of the
American force, some few American riflemen remained hidden
amid the wreckage of the American armor and kept the enemy
at bay with rifle fire-or at least that is the explanation of the
German commanders. Dark was almost at hand when the Germans
moved out onto the road. Liittwitz, fascinated by the spot,
strolled among the riven hulls and noted that it was a strange
place for a battle. This portion of the road was a kind of sacred
way, lined on both sides with large stone crucifixes and a dozen
or more heroic figures of saints. The burning armor was jammed
in among these objects; the sacred images had served to block
the way out. But Liittwitz looked the tanks over carefully and