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

THE REPULSE 83
long burst of machine-gun fire and that all of the other machine
guns were to be kept quiet until this signal came. The withdrawal
was made in reasonably good order, the circumstances
considered.
When Company A took up its position in the second wood it
was deployed to right of the railway line. The company was not
pressed there at any time during the night. Apparently the Germans
had ordered a withdrawal at about the same time. After
staying in the woods for somewhat more than an hour the company
withdrew a little to the southward and bivouacked in a
third plantation.
The advance of the enemy down the railroad track had put
them on the rear of Company D, 506th Parachute Infantry, but
it was not until 0400 that Company D, which was somewhat
engaged by small groups hitting directly at its front, discovered
that its flank had been turned. Lieutenant Colonel Strayer reported
to Colonel Sink that he believed an enemy force of about
two platoons had penetrated between his battalion of the 506th
and the 50lst. But he did not know that Company D, 501st,
was meeting this force frontally. Colonel Sink ordered Company
D, 506th, to face some of its men toward the rear and hold their
present ground. This, they did. The 1st Battalion, 506th, then
in reserve at Luzery, was ordered to send Companies A and C
forward to help contain the penetrating force. Both of these companies
were badly depleted from their fight in Noville.
When morning of December 21 came the situation was about
as follows: Company A, 50lst, which had not been further disturbed
during its bivouac, moved back up without opposition to
exactly the same positions it had occupied during the night engagement.
Company D, 501st, which had bivouacked just to
the south of Company A's bivouac area under the mistaken impression
that it had moved into the woods lying south of the
railroad tracks, discovered its error when the light came. It immediately
moved farther north, with one platoon going directly
toward the objective woods and the others detouring east to clean
out another small wood which they thought might contain enemy
forces.