After Action Report: Third U.S. Army, November 1944 Operations (D+148)

7/25/2019 After Action Report: Third U.S. Army, November 1944 Operations (D+148)

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Chapter (i

C A P T U R E

M E T -Z


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S E C R E T

EVELOPMENTS during November saw Third U.S. Army go back on the offensive after having been,be

causeof an acute supply situation, on an aggressive defense characterized by active patrols and im

provement of positions, since 25 September. Launching of the offensive came on 8 November, the second

anniversary of the landing of American, troops in North Africa. Outstanding among November's achieve

mentswas the capture by assault for the first time since 451 A.D. of the fortress cityof METZ(U85)

and the reduction of most of the forts around METZ. Despite the most extreme weatherconditions, which

flooded the streams, made the terrain difficult upon which to maneuver, and brought about many cases of

trenchfoot among the troops, Third U.S. Army drove the German Army back into its SIEGFRIED Linede

fensesand served notice that the Wehrmacht was to be granted no winter breathing spell. The phaseof

operations which started on 8 November carried over into the middle ofDecember, as will be showninthe

chapter for the following month.

1 NOVEMBER(D+148)

Favored enemy capabilities indicated that he could defend and delay

in the Army's zone of advan ce, counterattacking locally with infantry

and armor in an attempt to block and contain the Army's eastward

thrusts, and that he could make a fortress stand at METZ (U85) to impede

the Army's eastward advance by the diversion of troops, artillery and

aviation. In combination with the favored capabilities, it was consid

ered that the enemy could pivot on METZ (U85) to establish a general de

fensive line paralleling the SIEGFRIED Line and could take advantage of

favorable terrain in the Army's zone of advance to construct new organ

ized defensive positions.

Offering moderate resistance at ABAUCODRT (U93) and LETRICOUHT

(U93)# the enemy engaged in patrolling and sporadic artillery fire in

XII Corps zone. His activity was limited to patrolling, light harassing

artillery fire, and routine troop movements in XX Corps zone.

A Letter Directive for Current Operations signed by the Commanding

General of Twelfth U.S. Army Group, was received which stated generally

that the 83d Infantry Division would be at the disposal of the Third

U.S.

Army Commander in forthcoming operations with certain restrictions

as to its use imposed by the Army Group Commander. These restrictions

were that the division, was not to be used for an assault crossing of

the MOSELLE River but was to be moved over bridgeheads already estab

lished, and was not to be used beyond the SAAR River.

Ihere was no change in the status of III Corps, which established

its headquarters at ETAIN (ui+7) and sent officers from its various sec

tions to visit corresponding sections of the corps actively engaged.

Elements of the 80th Infantry Division in an area east of PONT-A

ILOUSSON

(T773) attacked to improve theirpositionsand occupied ABAUCOURT

(U93) and LETRICOURT(U93). Both of these townsandthe ground to the

immediate east were clearedoftheenemy. Elsewhereinthecorps zone,

activity was limited to aggressivepatrolling.

XX Corps continued regrouping androtationofitsfront lineunits.

Elements of the'5t!i Infantry Division relieved elements of the 95thIn

fantryDivision, which in turnrelievedelements of the 90th Infantry

Division. Elements of the 9th Infantry Division closed in a concentra

tion area near

AUDIT!!(u68),

while the 10th Armored Division remained in

theLIARS-LA-TOUR(u65) area west ofMETZ(US5).

XIX Tactical Air Cornmand flew twelve missionsof 2l|7sorties and

dropped 125 tons of bomb s, destroying three enemy planes on the ground

and losing two of their own planes.

Third U.S. Army during theperiod cleared the enemy from the area

west of the SEILLE River in the zone ofthe80thInfantry Division. Re

liefof the 95th Infantry Division was completed, whilereliefof the

90th Infantry Division continued.

The supply situation in genera.l was fairly satisfactory although

certain critical shortages persisted. Class I supplies arrived in ade

quate quantit ies, but Classes II and IV receiptswereinadequate on many

winter items such as blankets

0

sweaters, field jackets, raincoats, over

coats, one and two-burner stoves andtentage. Gasoline receipts im

proved rapidly, but there wasashortage of diesel

fuel.

There were

1#17^*315 gallons of V-80 gasoline, an 80 octane fuel standard for all

U.S.Army vehicles and gasoline-burning tanks, and 2,1^70, 50 rations on

hand in the Army area.

UNCLASSIFIED


3/51

NOVEMBER

D 149)

Forward elements of XII Corps wore harassed by enemy ar ti ll er y

fi re , while enemy ao tiv ity i n XX Corps zone consis ted of li gh t a rt il le ry

and mortar fire combined with p atr oll ing .

Relief of the 90th Infantry Division by the 95th Infantr y Division

was completed, the former do si ng in a con cen trat ion area near AUDUN

(u68),

west of METZ (U85). XX Corps , in o rder to minimize the e ffe ct of

stringe nt ammunition res tri cti on s, employed thirty- nine captured ar ti l

ler y pie ce s, inclu din g some the Germans had taken from the French and

Rus sians . To date the corps had fir ed 30#920 rounds of captur ed ammuni

tion valued at

$702,391.

No ai r m issio ns were flown by

XIX Ta ct ic al Air Command becau se of

adverse weather conditions*

Diird U.S. Army continued activ e pat rol lin g during the period ,

while reli ef of the

0H\

Infantry Division was completed.

lank cars with bulk gasolin e arri ved f or the fi r st time at DOMGER

MAIN (TJ50), four mil es southw est of TOUL (u 6l ), the pr in cip al decan ting

poin t within the Army ar ea at this time. An engineer oombat un it was

instructed to find means of erecting one-inch steel anohor cables across

an 800-foo t, s wift-flowing stream. Four hosp ital trai ns were made

ava ilab le to the Army for the evac uatio n of wounded, two to leave from

TOUL (U6l ) and two from ETA.IN (Ul+7).

3 NOVEMBER

D 150)

An operational direotive was issuedby Twelfth U.S. Army Group on

this date giving instructions

to

fliird U.S. Army

for

the resumpti on

of

the offensive.

Diird U. S. Army wasordered toenvelopthe

I.IETZ

(U85) defensive

works from the northandsouthand todestroy any enemy forces withdraw

ing from the METZ (U85) area; toadvance northeast with in the Armjr zone

to seizetheMAINZ

(105)

-FRANKFURT (K66)-DARMSTADT

(U6U)

area,and

to

be

prepared

for

further offensive action

to the

northeast.

The

time

of the attack wasto beannounced la ter. XIXTactical Air Commandwas

to provideairsupport basedontarget priorities submittedbyIheXII

and

XX

Corps.

Die Army Commander issued the following

pl ns

for XII andXXCorps

:

XII Corps (the 26th, 35th and 80th Infantry Divisions, the 4th

and

6th Armored Divisions andsupporting troops) wastoadvance northeast

from the vicinityofPONT-A-MOUSSON (U73) withaminimumofone infantry

and one armored division andseizetherailandroad facilities in the

vicinityofFAIKSNBSRG

FALQUEMOHT)(Q15).

Inconjunction withXXCorps,

it wastodestroy any enemy forces withdrawing from the METZ (U85) area

andtopass c ontrolof the80th Infantry Division to XXCorps on Arm y

order. Thecorps was

to

advance rapidly

to the

northeast

to

establish

a bridgehead east of the RHINE River within its zone, toseizethe

DARMSTADT (M&j.) area and to beprepared forfurther advance to the

northeast.

XX Corps (the 5t h, 83d, 90th

and

95th Infantry Divisions,

the

10-th

Armored Division andsupporting tr oops)was tocontain -the METZ(U85)

defensive works westofthe MOSELLE River. It wastocross the MOS ELLE

River

in

the vicinity

of

KOENIGSMACXER (U99) with

a

minimum

of one in

fantry andone armored division andseize railandroad facilities in

the vioinityofBOULAY(Ql6). XXCorps wa sto begranted acoessto the

area southofthe line BETTEMBURG (P80)-REMICH(L00), both inolusive.

In conjunction with XII Corps, it wastodestroy any enemy forces with

drawing from the METZ (U85) area. One oorps wastoexercise operational

oontrol overthe 83dInfantry Division, which wastomove acrossthe

MOSELLE River through

an

established bridgehead, clear the area between

the MOSELLEandSAAR Riversandseize crossingsof theSAAR R iverin the

vicinityof SAARBURG (Lll). Oneregimental oo mbat team was toremain

west

of

the iiOSELLE River

and the

corps

was to

assume command

of the

80th Infantry Division on Army ord er. Thecorps wastoadvance rapidly

to the northeasttoestablishabridgehead ea stofthe RHINE River with

in its zone , seize

the

MAINZ (M35)

-

PRANKHJR T (i:66) area

and be pre

paredforfurther advancetothe northeast.

Die Army Commander directed

the

Commanding General,

XX

Corps,

to

sendastrong armored reoonnaissanoe forceto theSAAR River tolocate

crossingsinaddition tothe main crossing invicinity of SAARBURG

(Lll). The force

was to

consist

of

approximately

a

battalion

of

tanks,

a battalionofmotorized infantry andanarmored reconnaissance detach

ment. Its mission wastocrosstheMOSELLE Riverassoonascrossings

were available

in XX

Corps bridgeheads, push rapidly east

to the

SAAR

Riverandseoure any bridges which were intact.

ulk Gasoline rrives t Decan ting Point

124

T


4/51

it

Patrolling continued

in XII

Corps, with

no

change

in

front lin es,

the enemy "being inactive except

for

sporadic artillery fi re.

XX

Corps

oontinued rotatingitsfront line units andmaintaining aggressivepa-

trols, while fr ont lines remained unchanged*

An

enemy counterattack

by

an estimated reinforoed platoon

on

MAIZIERES-LES-METZ (U86)

was re-

pulsed*

Poor weather conditions limited operations

of XIX

Tactical

Air Com-

mand, four missions

of

fifty-one sorties being flown

in

escorting medium

bombers which bombed -through clouds with unobserved results.

In

addi

tion,

six

tactical reoonnaissance

and

four photo missions were flow n.

Advance Section Communications Zone wasgivenamemorandum on the

supply situation whi ch stressed "the critical need

for

tires, tire patch

es

and

anti-freeze mixture . Diesel fuel

was in

critical short supply.

Because daily shipmentsoffrom 10,000to20,000 gallons had notbeen

delivered,

it

was necessary

to

request immediate shipment

of

100,000

gallons

to

replenish Third U.S. Army units

and

supply points. Verbal

authorization was reoeived from Twelfth U.S . Army Grouptodefer placing

of

ten

truck companies

on

ijB-hour notice

to the

Group.

A

supply

of

10,000 pairs

of

shoes , 10,000 sets

of

underwear

and 500

pounds

of

soap

was procured

for

displaced persons

and

refugees

in the

METZ (U85) area.

The Right Reverend HENRY

W.

HOBSON, representing

the

General

Com-

mission

on

Army

and

Navy Chaplains

and

Major General WILLIAM

R.

ARNOLD,

the ChiefofChaplains, calledon theArmy Commanderandconferred with

the Army Chaplain.

4 NOVEMBER

D 151

Enemy patrols

and

artillery were aotive

in III

Corps zone, while

a

violent enemy counterattack northof BERG (U99) regained high ground

which XXCorps hadcaptured. Considerable artillery fire fr om FORT

DRIANT (U75)

and

FORT VERDUN (U75) fell

on

NOVEANT

(U7W and

GORSE

(U75).

Units were rotated periodically

in

XII Corps positions, while front

lines remained unchanged. ElementsofTask Force POLK, consistingof a

oavalry group with

two

reconnaissance squadrons augmented

by a

tank

de-

stroyer battalion,

an

engineer combat battalio n

and a

105mm field

ar-

tillery battalion, attacked and recaptured BE RG (U99)> northeastof

THIONVILLE(U88),

and

occupied

the

town. Elsewhere

in XX

Corps zone

there were

no

changes.

XIX Tactical

Air

Command flew eighty sorties

in

four missions

as

escort

for

heavy bombers.

One

plane

was

lost*

Operat ions for the day in Third U.S.Army s

z o n e r e s u l t e d i n the

c a p t u r e of BERG (U99), as shown above.

New r a i l h e a d s w e r e e s t a b l i s h e d a t NANCY (U 81 ), CHAHBLEY (U6 5) ,

BELLEVILLE (U 72 ), DIEULOUARD (U 72 ), BARONCOURT (U 57 ), TRIEUX (u68) and

AUDUN-LE-ROMAN (U68) f or the s u p p l y of Thi rd U.S.Army. An e n g i n e e r

combat group designed splas h shie lds to preve nt water f rom spla shin g

over th e bows of s torm and a s s a u l t b o a t s .

A r e q u e s t

was

approved

fo r

f i v e

L- l

l i t t e r p l a n e s , r e c o n n a is s a n c e

a i r c r a f t w h i c h w o u l d c a r r y one l i t t e r p a t i e n t , for use by the Army for

emergenoy a i r e v a c u a t i o n of w o u n d ed . P i l o t s and c r e w c h i e f s a l s o w e r e

r e q u e s t e d *

5 NOVEMBER

D

152)

Continuing his defensive at ti tu de , the enemy dropped lig ht a rt il

lery fire along the entire XII Corps front, while increasing his ar ti l

ler y fi re in XX Corps zone.

A top secre t le tt er , Target Data , covering air support and target

data fo r th e att ac k, was issued to corps commanders on thi s date* F*ont

li ne s of XII and XX Corps remained unchanged*

XIX Taoti oal Air Command flew fift ee n miss ions of 252 so rt ie s and

dropped eight y-thr ee tons of bombs. In additi on, pil ots destroyed

twenty-eight enemy planes of -the je t-pr opel led type on the ground.

Twenty-four ta cti ca l reconnaissance and twelve photo missions were

flown*

In prepa ration for renewal of the offens ive, supplies of gasoline

and rati ons were in a sound condit ion. Sites were selec ted for r eserve s

of ra tio ns and gasoline i n stra te gi c lo cat ions e as t of the MOSELLE Riv

er , but stocking of the supply points was delayed unti l the l as t moment

for reasons of sec uri ty* Communications Zone ad vised tiiat for the 10

day perio d beginning on this date Third U.S* Army would recei ve a d ai ly

maximum amount of 1,000 ton s, approxim ately 320,000 gallons of ga soline

in bulk to supplement shipment s in cans* Communications Z6ne had been

instr ucte d to bring a ll U*S. Armies up to a five-day supply, which tha t

headquarters figured on a basis of I5h7pounds of gaso line , lubri cants

and grease per man per day. Third U.S* Army*s str eng th for r at io n pur

poses was more than 320,000.

L 1 Litter Plane

S

E

E T

U N C L S S I F I E D

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C\R E T

6 NOVEMBER(D+153)

Increasing his artillery fire, the enemy placed heavy concentra

tionsinGREMECEY (Q02) and BIONCOURT (TJ92) in XII Corps zo ne,andsent

out night patrolstocapture prisoners Heavy artillery concentrations

also fell

in

the vici nity

of

ARHA.VILLE

(U7U)

and elsewhere

in

the

XX

Corps bridgehead across the MOSELLE River.

Amendment No.3 tothe Twelfth U.S. Army Group's LetterofInstruc

tions No. 10, issued

on

this date, revised target dates for all three

armies

of

Twelfth U.S. Army Gro up, ajid announced changes in missions

of

21 Army Group (British) and Sixth U.S. Army Group, also setting fortha

new mission for Ninth U.S. Army. Twelfth U.S. Army Groupwas tore

group and prepare for an advance

by

its -three armies

to

the RHINE River.

Target date for the Ihird U.S . Army was5November and for the First and

Ninth U.S. Armies10November. After the attackofthe First U .S. Army

reached the RHINE River, the Ninth U.S. Army was

to

attack northward be

tween the RHINE andthe MEUSE Riversinconjunction with the Second

British Army. Ninth U.S. Army wasthentotake over the area westof

the RHINE River to REES (A05) inclusive.Anew inter-group boundary was

to

be

announced later.

Artillery ammunition again became available for expenditureinsub

stantial quantities. Since late October all artillery with the Ihird

U.S.Army had planned for participation

in

the coordinated attaok along

the entire Army front and new positions were prepared tmd occupied.Ex-

tensive relocation of artillery was carried outin XXCorps ar ea,the

mass of batteries being transferred

to

the extreme north flank

in the

vicinity

of

BOIS D'OTT/LNGE (U79)

to

support the 90th Infantry Division's

bridgehead operationsatKOENIGSMACKER(U98). Virtually all Army ar

tillery and tank destroyer units displaced

to

new positions,

all

moves

being made under coverofdarkness. Apolicyofsilence was imposedin

the new positions , firing being restrictedtoregistration by asingle

gunineach battalion. 'Every effort was madetosimulate normal activi

ty

in

the old positions, two guns per battalion being left behind

to

continue firing. Ihese weapons rejoined their battalions onthe night

preceding the attack.

Due to bad weather no missions were flown

by XIX

Tactical Air Com

mand.

The day's acti vit ies were again oonfined to active patr olling and

rotat ion of front l ine units .

Diesel fuel arrived in sufficient q uantitie s to remove i from the

cr iti ca l l is t. Engineers completed the design of the proposed bridge to

be used to cross the RHINE Riv er. Al l.h os pi ta ls in NANCY (U8l) were d i

reoted to clear as many transportable patien ts as possible to the ai r/

ra il holding un it at TOUL (u60) and to estab lish the following numbers

of vacan t beds by 8 November: 12th Evacuation Ho spi tal , 1+50 bed s; 10 1st

Evacuation Hos pita l, 250 beds, and 10i;th Evacuation Hospit al, 300 bed s.

There was a tota l of 1,628 patient s remaining in all Army eva cuation

hospitals and 2 1^7 empty beds. An add ition al 3#010 pat ien t capa city

was availabl e in the ai r/ ra il e vacuation holding uni t at TOUL (U60) and

in the 6th Convalescent Hospital.

* *

THIRD U.S.ARMY

RESUMES

THE

OFFENSIVE

071200-081200 NOVEMBER

D

-f-

154)

Ihi rd U.S. Army at 0600 on 8 November opened the B at tle of Germany

whieh dashed the enemy's hopes for a winter breathing spell during which

he could re st , re fi t and reorganize his battere d div isio ns. Without

ben efit of preliminary ae ria l bombardment, in rain and with unprec edent

ed flood conditions prevailing , the attao k, as German prisoners lat er

stat ed, aohleved tact ioa l surpri se, for the enemy considered it impos

sib le for Third U.S. Army to launoh an offensive under such unfavorable

weather and ter ra in cond itio ns. Since 25 September the Army had been

limited to local actions while awaiting the buildup of supplies with

which to resume the off ensiv e. In the Army's zone of advance were coal

mines along the SAAR Riv er which were v it al to the enemy's war indu s

tr ie s, and beyond the SAAR and the p rot ect ing double SIEGFRIED Line la y

Borne of the in du str ies them selve s. Opposing Third U.S . Army were an

estimated 1(2,500 enemy tro ops , the equi valen t of five d ivi sio ns . These

included major elements of six infa ntry di vis ion s, one Panzer grena dier

divis ion, and five fortr ess infantry and machine gun ba ttal ion s.

Launched by XII Corps with the 26t h, 35th and 80th Infantr y Div i

sions , the attaok progressed well during the period. The 328th Infantry

(26th Inf ant ry Div ision ) drove from a vi ci ni ty west of MONCOURT (Qll)

throu gh MONCOURT (Q ll) and BEZANGE IA PETITE ( Q ll ). Bie 10 1st In fa nt ry

(26th I nfa ntr y Divi sion ) cross ed the cana l nort he ast of MOYENVIC (Q12) ,

while elements of the lO^th Infan try drove into VIC-SUR-SEILLE (Q12 ).

In the 35th Infan try Division zone, the 320th Infan try passed through

FRESNES-EN-SAULNOIS (Q02) wh ile ele men ts of th e 137th In fa nt ry occu pied

MAIAUCOURT-SUR-SEILLE (U92) and JALIAUCOURT (Q02) . At the same tim e th e

80th Infan try Division was advancing with the 319th Infan try passing

thro ugh AULNOIS-SUR-SEILLE (U9 3), the 318t h In fa nt ry in MAILLY-SUR

SEILLE (U93)# and the 317th In fa nt ry ea st of CIKMKRY (U8 3). 3he co rps

had the 26th Infantry D ivision in the south, the 35th Infantry Division

in the center and the 80th Infantry Division on the north.

Supporting the XII Corps attaok, corps artillery and tank destroyer

units fired from H-60 to E li*7. After the fi rs t half-hour divis iona l

ar til le ry was released for on cal l missions and targets of opportunity

in close support of the divi sion s. Ninety concentrations were fired on

towns, thirteen on def iles , 190 on enemy ar ti lle ry loc ation s, forty on

enemy command post s, thirty-on e on enemy ant i-a iro raf t a rt il le ry loca

tio ns , fourte en on assembly are as, one on a stron gpoi nt and one on a

farm building. The heaviest was a six-b atta lion , two-volley concentra

tio n on the town of ORIOCOURT (Q03). Upon comp letion of the prea rrang ed

program, corps ar til le ry continued to maintain intense neu traliz ation

fire s u nti l 1200 hours, after which heavy fire s were delivered on ca ll .

Biis heavy ar til le ry support prevented any agg ressive enemy ar ti ll er y

reaction to the attaok, only fifteen reports of enemy shellin g being re

ceived over the entir e corps front and al l of these small concentr ations

of less than twenty rounds each. Serious disr upti on of tne enemy's com

munications was achieved.

S E C R E T

26


6/51


7/51

R E T

~ Ji

tj,

The 5th I nfa ntr y D ivis ion advanoed throug h CHEMINOT TJ8I4.)

#

south of

JSETZ (U85) , whi le the 90-th Infa ntry D ivi s ion es t abl ish ed br idgehead s

ac ro ss the MOSELLE Ri ver n ear miOlJVILLE (TJ88). DUKWS, st an da rd two and

one-hal f ton amphibious ve hic les , were used by the 90th Infan try D ivi

s ion in i t s o ross i ng of - the MOSELLE, th is e xper im ental miss ion being e n

t i r e l y s u c c e s s f u l . A r t i l l e r y i n s u p p o r t o f t h e 9 0 t h I n f a n t r y D i v i s i o n

o p en e d f i r e a t H - h ou r , s u r p r i s e b e i n g c o n s i d e re d e s s e n t i a l t o th e n i g h t

a t t a o k . Co u n t e r b a t t e r y a n d p r e a r r a n g e d f i r e s c o n t i n u e d u n t i l H / 1 2 0 .

E ne my a r t i l l e r y o p p o s i t i o n t o t h e a t t a o k w as e x t r e m e l y l i g h t , o n l y t h e

for t re ss guns a t KETZ (U85) f i r in g heav i ly . In i t ia l cross in gs were made

in s torm b oa ts a t CATTENOM (U99) and MALLING (U99) At t he fo rmer pla ce

an at tem pt was made to put in an infa ntry sup port br idg e, but the cur

ren t was so swif t tha t ihe br idg e was swept away and sh or t ly af terward

the water rose to such a hei ght th at approaches to the br idge were sub

merged three fe et . Meanwhi le engin eer t roops began con st ru ct io n of a

treadw ay bridg e at MALLING (U99) 2h bri dg e was damaged by enemy ar

t i l l e r y f i r e a n d a t re a d w a y f e r r y , p u t i n t o o p e r a t i o n a s a n a l t e r n a t i v e ,

was hi t and sunk by enemy sh el ls . As the f lood waters began to recede ,

the bri dge at CATTENOM (U99) was rushe d to com pletio n and la te r the

bri dge a t MALLING (U99) was fin is he d. The 10th Armored Div isio n assem

b l e d p r e p a r i n g t o u s e t h e e s t a b l i s h e d b r i d g e h e a d s . O t h e r b r i d g e h e a d s i n

the vic in i ty of UCKANGE (U88) were captured by the 95th In fantr y D ivi

s io n. On the ext reme nor th f lank of the oorps zone, operat i ona l con tro l

of the 83d Infan try D iv is ion rev er te d tb XX Corps f rom Fi rs t U .S. Army.

With weather per mit t ing , XIX Ta ct ica l A ir Command f lew 1+71 sor t ie s

in tvirenty-nine fighte r-bo mbe r mis sion s and dropped 13I4. tons of bombs in

clu din g tanks of Napalm. Qwo enemy plan es were des troy ed on the ground

and s ix in the a i r . Napalm bombs dropped on foxholes and t renche s

a c h i e v e d g o o d r e s u l t s .

Opening XX Corps

1

dri ve ag ai ns t MET2 (TJ85), Third U.S . Army's

a t t a o k c o n t i n u e d d u r i n g th e d a y , w i t h c o n s i d e r a b l e t e r r i t o r y b e i n g o v e r

run and severa l towns being oaptu red.

When XII and XX Corps launched th ei r a t ta cks tac t i ca l br idg ing

requirem ents were taxed hea vi ly because of f lood con di t ion s . In the

XII Corps zone br idgin g was la id not only for oro ss ing s of the SAAR and

SEILLE Rivers but a lso for gaps le f t by cra ter s and the demo l i t ion of

c u l v e r t s . t ti e e n e m y, t a k i n g a d v a n t ag e o f t h e u n u s u a l p r e c i p i t a t i o n ,

blew ora ter s and dest roy ed culv er ts a t such low spots th at br idgin g was

neoess ary to span these gaps . I l li i s res ul te d in an unusual expen di ture

of Bai le y br idg es and at one t ime 3#500 fee t of oros s ings of thi s type

were in place in XII Corps area a lone . In the 5th Infantr y D iv is io n ' s

oro ssi ngs of th e SEILLE and MOSELLE Riv ers in XX Corps zone i was con

s i d e r e d a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f o p e r a t i o n s t h a t e x i s t i n g b r i d g e s o v e r t h e

MOSELLE a t ARHAVILLE (U ?W , PAGNY (U 7W , VANDIERES TTfh) and PONT-A

MOTJSSON (U73) were ade qua te. Continued ra in s, howe ver, caused othe r

r i v e r s i n t h e a r e a t o r i s e t o f l o o d h e i g h t s , i n u n d a t i n g - fo e e n t i r e p l a i n

across the MOSELLE Val le y and washing out a l l br id ges excep t the one a t

PONT-A-MODSSON (U73 ), a hig h- lev el st ru ct ur e.

9 NOVEMBER D+156)

l i fi th en t i r e companies surr ende r ing in a few i ns tan ce s , the enemy

c o n t i n u e d t o p r e s e n t s p o r a d i c a n d l o o s e l y - o r g a n i z e d r e s i s t a n c e i n X I I

Corps zone. Thick mine f ie lds and f lood condi t i ons delayed XX Corp s '

a d v a n c e .

Good progre ss was made al l a long the XII Corps f ro nt . Ihe 26th

Infa ntry D iv is ion advanced to the vi c i ni ty of HAMPONT (Q12) . The 35th

Infa ntry D ivis ion cont inued to advance , w i th the 131+th Infa ntry occu py

ing COUTURES (Q0 2), wh ile the 137th In fan try s eiz ed high ground ea st of

LANETJEVILLE-EN-SAULNOIS (Q03 ) and oa pt ur ed DEUffi (Q 03 ). TO th e no rt h

the 80th Infantr y D ivi s ion , fol lowed by a task foroe of the 6th Armored

Di vis ion , advanoed to an are a ei gh t mil es no rth ea st of PONT-A-MOUSSON

()

In the no rth ern s ec to r of XX Corps zone , Task Foroe POLK (3d C ava l

r y G ro u p , 6 8 9 t h a n d 2 l + l s t F i e l d A r t i l l e r y Ba t t a l i o n s , 8 0 7 t h l a n k D e

s t ro yer Bat ta l i on and the 135th Engineer Combat Ba t ta l ion ) was a t ta che d

t o t h e 8 3 d I n f a n t r y D i v i s i o n t h e n p r e p a r i n g t o a t t a o k i n c o o r d i n a t i o n

w i t h t h e o t h e r d i v i s i o n s o f t h e c o r p s . S o u t h w e st o f t h e 8 3 d I n f a n t r y

Div is ion zone the 10th Armored Divis ion at tac ked to the ea s t , cap tur i ng

RUluEIANGE (U79) . D ie 90th Infan try D ivis ion cont inued re infor oin g i t s

br id geh ead s, a ided by smoking op era t io ns , over the MOSELLE River and

p r a o t i o a l l y t h e e n t i r e d i v i s i o n w as a c r o s s b y t h e e n d o f t h e p e r i o d ,

ttie 357th Inf an try (90 th In fan try D ivi sio n) e nte red KOENIGSMACKER (U99),

whi le the 359th Infa ntry reached a poi nt due ea s t of th at town. South

of the 90th In fant ry D i vis io n zone and due nor th of METZ (U85) the 95th

Infa ntry D ivi s ion had elements dr i vin g to w i t hin s ix mi les of METZ

(U85)# On the south of the oorps zone -the 5th Infa ntr y D ivis ion , l oc at

ed nor thw es t of PONT-A-MOUSSON (U7 3), ca pt ure d LOWIGNY (U8i+), wh ile th e

1 0 t h I n f a n t r y t o o k a n o b j e c t i v e n o r t h e a s t o f t h a t c i t y . O t h e r e l e m e n t s

of the 5 th Inf ant ry D ivi sio n swept on and took VIGNY (U9ij.).

Heavy bombers of ihe E i g h t h A i r F o r o e ,

1,1 76

in number, del iv ere d a

s a t u r a t i o n a t t a o k o n a l l f o r t i f i e d t o wn s e a s t of th e b r i d g e h e a d a r e a i n

sup por t of XX Corp s' att ao k to oap tur e METZ (U85 ). Enemy commun ications

w e r e o u t a n d e ne my u n i t s w e re l e f t , t e m p o r a r i l y a t l e a s t , a s s e p a r a t e

f i g h t i n g f o r c e s . P r i n c i p a l t a r g e t s o f t h e h e a v y b o mb e rs w e r e t h e t ow n s

of METZ (U 85 ), VERNY (U8 l+), ORNY TJ9k), PGKMERIEUX (U8 U) an d SAARBRUCKEU

(Ql|3) . Die bombers dropped 2,30 5 tons of bombs on METZ (U85) al on e.

XIX Okc tioal Air Command supp orted ih e at ta ok of ihe heavy bomb ers. In

ad di t ion , the A ir Command f lew 312 so r t i es in twenty-one miss ion s and

dropped s ixty -one tons of high explo sives and for ty- one Napalm tan ks ,

l o s i n g f o u r p l a n e s .

I n o o - o r d i n a t i o n w i t h t he a i r s u p p o r t g i v e n t o t h e a t t a c k , A rm y

a n t i a i r c r a f t u n i t s p r o v i d e d t wo f l a k l i n e s t o g u i d e f r i e n d l y b o m be r s

a n d t o p r e v e n t r e l e a s e o f b om b l o a d s on f r i e n d l y t r o o p s . The f l a k

l in es , each two miles long and con sis t ing of bur s ts f rom eig ht guns

s i t e d 5 0 0 y a r d s a p a r t , w e r e f i r e d t o a p p e a r a t an a l t i t u d e o f 1 7 , 0 0 0

f e e t , 3 , 0 0 0 f e e t be l ow ih e a t t a o k f l i g h t .

Third U .S . Army elements pushed no r th , sou th, and ea st dur ing the

day and cont inu ed the i r concer ted dr iv e to out off ihe enemy force s i n

the we l l - fo r t i f ie d c i ty of METZ (U85) , whi le in ihe south ern zone the

a t t a o k c o n t i n u e d t o t h e n o r t h e a s t .

S E C R E T

UNCL SSIF IED

28


8/51

/

/

fjfrf

4B

x_ r

416

T F

POLK

x x

TACTICAL SITUATION

8 NOVEMBER 1944

(RESUMPTION OF THE OFFENSIVE)

9 5 TH INF DIV

377

x x x

X X

X

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FORTRESS

1419

379

x x

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CD

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10

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9/51

R

E T

LIEUTENANT GENERAL CARL A. SPAATZ, Commanding Ge ne ral of th e U .S .

St ra te gi c la ot io al Ai r Fo rc es , a nd LIBUTSKANT GENERAL JAJWES H. DOOLITTLE

Commanding General Eighth A ir Force, vis i te d Head quar ters , Third U .S.

Army.

A new evacu at ion po l icy was es ta bl is hed whereby al l l ig ht ly wounded

cas ual t ies were sent di re ct f rom the ambulance reg ula t in g post a t NANCY

(U81) to "the 28th Field Ho spi tal a t TOUL (u 60 ). From th is poi nt th is

t y p e o f c a s u a l t y wa s d i s p o s e d o f t h ro u g h t h e a i r / r a i l e v a c u a t i o n h o l d i n g

un it at TOUL (u60) to the 6-th Con valesc ent Ho sp ita l or to the 58th or

90 th Gene ral Ho sp ita ls a t COMMERCY (Ulj2) and BAR-LE-DUC (U12) re sp ec

t i v e l y . W i th t h e s u r g i c a l l o a d i n t h e A r m y 's e v a c u a t i o n h o s p i t a l s t h e r e

was a sho rtag e of su rgi oa l teams -which Advance Se ctio n Communications

Zone helped to re l iev e by disp atch ing four sur gic al and ei gh t shock

teams for temporary duty w i th Army ho sp i ta ls .

10 NOVEMBER

(D

-/-157

A f t e r d i s o r g a n i z e d r e s i s t a n c e i n i t i a l l y f o l l o w i n g I h i r d U . S . A rm y s

offen sive , the enemy s t i f fene d hi s oppo si t ion a long the en t i r e XII Corps

fro nt , delayi ng the advance by means of defended min ef ie lds , roa dblo cks ,

o b s t a c l e s an d d e m o l i t i o n s . F i t t i n g t e n a c i o u s l y i n XX Co rp s z o n e , t h e

enemy sought to preve nt expansion of the corps br idgehe ad ea st of the

MOSELLE Rive r. In the sou the rn po rti on of the corp s zone the enemy

c o n t i n u e d h i s d i s o r d e r l y w i t h d r a w a l b u t m a i n t a i n e d a s t i f f d e f e n s e i n

the v ic in it y of UCKANGE (U87) and MAIZIERES-LES-METZ ( U8 6).

In X II Corps zone the a t t ack cont inued wi th the lO l th Infa ntry

(26-th In fa nt ry Div is ion ) ca pt ur in g CHATEAU-SAL IKS (Q12) and HAMPONT

(Q12) , whi le the 10 1st I nfan try (26th Infa ntry D ivi s ion) c leaned up

SALONNES (Q02). Meanw hile, the 35th Infan try Div isio n was at tac ki ng in

a zone ju s t nor th of the 26th Infa ntry D iv is ion where i t s 137th Infa ntry

cle are d out VIVIERS (Q03) and ORIOCOURT (Q0 3), and the 13l|th I nfa ntr y

took GERBECOURT (Q12) wh ile th e 320th In fan try a ttac ked in the For et de

CHATEAU-SAL INS (Q12 ). The 80th I nf an try D ivi sio n was ope rati ng e as t of

PONT-A-MOUSSON (U73) in clo se con jun cti on wit h the |th and 6t h Armored

Div is io ns . Ihe 319th Infa ntry (80th Infa ntry D ivis ion) took TIIJCRY

(Q03) , the 318th Infantr y v/as f igh t ing hea vi l y in the JUVILLE (U93)

ACHATEL (U93) - VULMOIJT (U93) ar ea , and th e 317 th I nf an tr y had e lem ent s

in the v ic in it y of BACCURT (Q03) and LUPPY (U9U) F i g h t i n g a l o n g s i d e t h e

80th Infantry D ivis ion, the 6th Armored Divis ion made good progress w i th

Combat Command "B" tak in g BUCHY (U9W and Combat Command "A" ca pt ur in g

LUPPY (U9 W, BECHY (QOlJ and TRAGNY (QO ^). Combat Command "B "'o f t he

ij.th Armored D iv is io n c ap tu re d FONTEKY (Q0 3) , HANNOCOURT (Q03) a nd

FREMERY (Q03) and drove to th e vi c in it y of LUCY (Q0 3). Due ea st of Com

b a t Command

n

B ", Combat Command "A" sei ze d HABOUDANGE (Q 13 ). Floo d co n

di t ion s cont inued to hamper ope rat i ons . A t the end of the per iod XII

Corps had captured s inoe the s t ar t of i t s dr iv e on 8 November the fo l

low ing to wn s: NCMEMY (U 83 ), ROUTES (U 83 ), EPLY (U 83 ), RAUCOURT (U 83 ),

ST JURE (U 83 ), VIGNY

(USM

BUCHY (U 9W , BEUX

(X k)

, SECOURT (U9W ,

ACHATEL (U 93 ), SAILLY (U 93 ), MOKCHEUX (U 93 ), JUVILLE (U 93 ), FOVILLE

(U 93 ), 1HEZEY-ST-MARTIH (U9 3) , LEMONCOURT (Q 03 ), ORIOCOURT (Q 02 ), DELME

(Q 03 ), VIVIERS (Q 03 ), FRESNESEN-SAULNOIS (Q0 2) , AMELECOURT (Q 02 ), FOH

TEKY (Q 03 ), CHATEAU-SALIHS (Q 12 ), SALONKES (Q0 2) ,, VIC-SUR-SEILLE ( Q0 2) ,

MORVILLE (Q12), HAMPONT (Q12), OBRECK (Q12), M0YEWIC (Q12), and

BEZANGE-LA-PSTITE ( Q ll ).

XX Co rp s c o n t i n u e d t o a t t a c k a g g r e s s i v e l y w i t h t h e 5'th 90th# and

95th Infantr y D iv is io ns , whi le the 10th Armored Div is ion moved up to

j o i n t h e m ai n a c t i o n .

(

In the zone of the 83d Infa ntry D ivis io n ther e

w a s n o p a r t i c u l a r a c t i v i t y o t h e r t h a n p a t r o l l i n g . S o u t h o f METZ ( U 85 )

the 5th Infan try D iv is ion was operat i ng on the nor th of the 6th Armored

D i v i s i o n ( X I I Co r p s ) . T he 2 d I n f a n t r y ( 5 t h I n f a n t r y D i v i s i o n ) w a s a d

vancing ra pid ly to the e as t , so uth of METZ (U85) . To the nor th of METZ

( U8 5 ) th e 9 5 t h I n f a n t r y D i v i s i o n s t r e n g t h e n e d i t s b r i d g e h e a d s a c r o s s t h e

MOSELLE Rive r and elemen ts of the 3 79th In fan try cro sse d ne ar 1HI0HVILLE

( U 8 8 ) . F a r t h e r n o r t h t h e 9 0 t h I n f a n t r y D i v i s i o n c o n ti n u e d d r i v i n g f o r

ward.

P o o r w e a t h e r c o n d i t i o n s f o r f l y i n g p r e v a i l e d , b u t XIX l a c t i o a l A i r

Command f lew ninety -one so r t i es in f ive mis s ion s . In ad di t ion , they

f l e w tw o t a c t i c a l r e c o n n a i s s a n c e m i s s i o n s a n d o ne p h o t o r e c o n n a i s s a n o e

m i s s i o n .

Ohird U.S. Army

c o n t i n u e d t o a d v a nc e t o th e e a s t , l i b e r a t i n g m an y

smal l towns.

Ihe A rm y h a d 2 , 5 58 * 0 0 0 g a l l o n s o f g a s o l i n e . F i v e a d d i t i o n a l s u r

gic al teams and thi r ty -fo ur nu rses were obtained on temporary duty f rom

Communications Zone.

A t IHIONVTLLE (U88) , engin eers s ta r te d con st ru ct io n on a 200-fo ot

Bai le y br i dg e, the long est so far in the campaign, to span a gap on a

dest roy ed highway br i dge . The br idgehead h ere was held o hie f ly by

e n g i n e e r t r o o p s , b u t w i t h t h e i r o r g a n i c w e ap o ns t h e y c o u l d n o t d r i v e

back enemy mor tars , machine guns and ar t i l le ry which kept up a ha rass ing

f i r e f o r t h i r t y - s i x h o u r s d e s p i t e a g oo d s mo ke s c r e e n . 2 h i s b r i d g e wa s

completed befo re two bri dge s were bu il t at MALLIITG (U99) and was used

to cross p ar t of the 10th Armored Divis i on.

200 Foot Double Triple Bailey Bridge Under Constr uction

I.., .

130


10/51

R E T

trim

a ^ i

11 NOVEMBER

D+158)

All along the Army's fro nt the enemy withdrew, fig hti ng stro ng de

laying actions in some place s such as forest ed areas and towns which

were favorable f or def ense . He opposed with det ermin ation th e XII Corps

adva nce in th e FORET de CHATEAU SALINS (Q12) and poun ded XX Corps p os i

tions with heavy ar t i l l er y f ir e.

Relieved from assignment to Ihird U.S. Army, the 83d Infa ntry

Division reve rted to con tro l of the Fi rst U.S. Army, on verba l orders

of the Commanding Gene ra l, Twelfth U .S . Army Group.

3ho 26th Infant ry Division drove nor the ast in the XII Corps zone

and made subst anti al gains. Operating to the north of 26th Infantry

Divis ion, the 35th Inf antr y Div isio n, took VAXY (Q12) on a sim ila r d rive

to the northeast. The 80th Infant ry Divisio n drove due north and li b

er at ed an ar ea in cl ud in g ih e town s of BACOURT (Q03) and PREVOCOURT

(Q03). With elements on the flanks of the 80th Infa ntry Division the

l|th Armored Div isi on al so pushed nort h wit h it s Combat Command A cap

tu ri ng CONTHIL (Q23) and Combat Command

M

B ca pt ur in g BAUDRECOURT (QOi;).

Biese d ri ve s were we ll n ort h and ea st of PONT-A-MOUSSOH (U73) and began

to menace the enemy foroe s at METZ (U85) from the re ar . Con curre ntly

the 6th Armored Div isi on drove northward in a zone w est of the l;th

Armored Di vi si on 's z on e. Combat Command A c ap tu re d HA.N-SUR-NIED (QOI4)

and SAWRY-SUR-NIED (U95) and unde r enemy a r t i l l e r y fi re pus hed bri dg es

across the NIED ERSE River at both pl ac es . Construc tion of bridges was

rushed under pro tec tio n of smoke sore ens. Leading elements of Combat

Command A were th en si x mil es s ou th ea st of METZ (U85 ). Combat Command

ca ptu red LEMUD (U95) and REMILLY (Q0i|) whil e d ri vi ng no rt h.

In the XX Corps zone the a tt ac k was contin ued by the 5 th, 90th and

95th Infan try Divis ion s, with the 10th Armored Divis ion moving up to

assume major ac tio n. On the north of the corps zone the 90th In fant ry

Divisi on enlarged i ts bridgeheads a cross the MOSELLE River and captured

FORT KOENIGSMACKER (U9$), one of the im por tan t fo rt s in the ou-cer ri ng

of for ts in the METZ (UG5) are a. The 95th Infan try Divis ion continued

it s cro ssi ngs of the ri ve r in the vi ci ni ty of THIONVILLE (U88) and

UCEA1JGE (U88 ). South of METZ (U85) the 5t h I nf an tr y Di vi si on made mod

erate advances to the ea st . The 2d Infantry (5th Infantry Divisio n),

from po si ti ons one mil e we st , advanced to the vic in it y of LEMUD (U9W

where soli d co ntac t was made with the 6th Armored Division (XII C orps),

which had advanced two miles nor th, The 10th Infantry (5th Infant ry Di

visi on) advanced to the v ic in it y of SILLY (U95)

XIX Tact ical Air Command flew ten missions and 162 so rt ie s, and

dropped thi rty- one tons of bombs and thi rty -tw o Napalm tank s, as well as

f ir ing eighteen rockets .

Third U.S. Army's drive oontinued during the peri od, with FORT

KOENIGSMACKER (U98) be in g ca pt ur ed . Towns li be ra ted were GERBECOURT

(Q 12 ), TBJCRY (Q0 3) , PREVOCOURT (Q03 ), BACOURT (Q0 3) , MORVILLE-SUR-NIED

(QOU), TRSGNY (QOli), THIMONVILLE (Q0l*), BUCHY (U9W , NOCOURT (Q 03 ),

SOLONNES (Q02) and FOHTEflY (Q0 3) .

New rai lhe ad s for the Army were es ta bli she d a t CHAMBREY (Q0 2),

MONCEL (Q 01 ), BRIN (U92 ), BETTEMBOURG (P80) and DUDELANGE (U8 9) . A need

for labor troops to repl ace prisoner s of war in hos pit al units became

apparent,

the use of

prisoners being curtailed because

as the

Army ap-

proachedt heborders

of

Germany, thedanger

of

prisoners escapingin-

creased. Trenchfoot oases beganto appear among Third U.S. Army casual-

ties.

Medical Officer Examines Trenchfoot Case

12 NOVEMBER

D +159)

XII Corps' advance to the east continued again st stubborn res is t

anc e i n BAZONCOURT (QOJ?) and al on g th e r oa d from HAU-SUR-NIED (QOk) t o

HERNY (QOi;). In the 26th Inf ant ry Divis ion on the south of the corps

zo ne, the lOJ^th In fa nt ry c ap tu red CHATEAU-VOUE (Q12) and WOISSB (Q2 2),

while the 101st and 328th Infa ntry Regiments fought through the woods

north of DIEUZE (Q22), cons olid ati ng the ir po si ti on s. In ihe 35 *h I n

fantr y Division, which was then fighti ng ju st north of the 26th Infan

tr y Di vi si on , the 1314th In fa nt ry occu pied DALHAIN (Q13) and BELLANGE

(U78), whi le the 137th Inf ant ry and 32 0th Inf ant ry cap ture d CHATEAU

BREHAIN (Q13 ). Ohe 318-th. Inf an tr y (80th Inf ant ry Div isi on) advanced

no rt he as t and ca ptu red HERKY (Q0I4). Combat Command B (i*th Armored

Di vi si on ) cap tur ed ORON (Q03) and VILLER-SUR-NIED (Q13) wh il e Combat

Command A drove gene ral ly nort he ast . Meanwhile the 6th Armored Divi

si on cont inue d to advance northward* Combat Command A (6t h Armored

Div isi on) c apt ured VATIMONT (Q0l+) and supported the 80th I nfa ntr y Di vi

si on i n the v ic i n it y of HERNY (QO ) - HA.N-SUR-NIED ( l

R E T

UNCLASSIF IED

3


11/51

R E T

Hie 90th Infant ry Divisi on (XX Corps) enlarged it s bridgeheads

acro ss the MOSELLE Riv er, pushing acr oss armored and tank des tro yer

un it s. In the 95th Infan try Division zone the 378th Infan try continued

to oross the ri ve r. South of METZ (U85), the 5th Infantry Div ision ad

vanced to the nor th and cl ea re d CORNY(Ujh) POMMERIEUX (U 8l |) , LIEHON

(U9I4), SANRY-SUR-NIED (U95) and ANCERVILLE (Q0l+). Heavy re si st an ce was

offered by the enemy in the oorps zone, a determined count erat tack being

launched in the vi ci ni ty of KERLING (U98) and cro ssi ngs i n the bridg e

head area a t UCKANGE (U87) being heav il y shel led by a rt i l le ry .

No ai r opera tions were possi ble excep t some sor ti es by night fig ht

ers of XIX Tact ica l Air Command. Ihese night fig hte rs atta cked two

tr ai ns and str afe d a oonvoy moving on the r oad .

Third U.S. Army

f

s dri ve to en ci rc le METZ (U85) c onti nued to the

north and eas t during the peri od, while to the nort hea st armored el e

ments drove toward the German f ro nt i er . During the day CHATEAU-VOUE

(Q 12), WUISSE (Q 22 ), VANNECOURT (Q 13 ), DALHAIN (Q 13 ), BELIANGE (Q78) ,

CHATEAU-BREHAIN ( Q1 3) , B^EHAIN ( Q1 3) , CHICOURT (Q 03 ), ORON (Q 03),

FREMERY ( Q0 3) , LUCY (Q0 3) , VATIMONT (QOU), HERNY(0,0k), BAZONCOURT

(Q 05 ), LIEHON (U9W, VALMESTROFF (U 98 ), ELZANGE (U 98 ), BREISTROFF-LA

PETIIE (U98) were capture d by element s of Third U.S. Army.

By th is date reinf oroem ents were coming to Third U.S. Army at a

ra te averaging 1800 a day and continued at tha t rat e for more than a

week. Every eff ort was made to focus the at te nti on of al l conmanders

and troops on the ne ces sit y for prevent ive measures aga ins t treno h

foo t, which was res ponsib le for an in crea sing number of ca su al ti es .

Troops were inst ruct ed to massage the ir fee t and keep them dry by chang

ing to clean socks which were issued daily with rations*

13 NOVEMBER

D -/-

160)

Continuinghisdelaying aotionsin XIICorps zo ne, the enemyem-

ployed counterattacks, extensive minefields, roadblooksand obstacles

and increasedhisartillery fire. Minefieldsandartillery fire proved

formidable barriersto XXCorps

1

advance.

Verbal ordersof theCommanding General, Twelfth U.S. Army Group,

in regardto thetransferof the 83dInfantry Divisionto "theFirstU.S.

Array were confirmedinwritten ordersonthis date.

Repulsing several German count erattacks, XIICorps continuedto

advance

to the

east.

The 101st

Infantry

and the

328th Infantry (26th

Infantry Division) hadelementsin the FORETDEBRIDE

(022),

northof

DIEUZE

(Q22),

whilethe 10l*th Infantry (26th Infantry Division) assem-

bled

in the

Vicinity

of

LIDREZING(023).

he

35th Infantry Division

continued drivingin thezone northof the26th Infantry Division, with

the 13l4th Infantry occupying PEVANGE (Q13) and ACHAIN (Q13) and the

137th Infantry capturing HARTIIILLE(Q13). Meanwhile,the80th Infantry

Division continued northeastandcaptured MAN Y (Qll|)andARRIANCE(Q0l).

Element*ofCombat Command"A" 6thArmored Division captured THICOURT

(Ql W# ARRAINCOURT (U92)andVATIMONT(QOU), while Combat Command"B"

reached ANCERVILLE( i

XX Corps troops oon tinue d to at ta ck to the no rth and south of METZ

(U85),

wit h the 95th Inf ant ry Div isi on talcing MASSE YUTZ (U88) and

IMMELDANGE (U 07) . Armored ve hi ol es were fe rr ie d ac ro ss the MOSELLE

River while armored reconnai ssance elements joi ned the bridgehead forces

of the 95th Inf ant ry Di vi si on. HtECHING (Q09) was ent ere d by elem ents

of the 359th Infan try (90th Infan try Div isi on) . Just north of the 95th

Infantry Division, the 90th Infantry Division enlarged it s bridgeheads

ac ro ss t he MOSELLE Ri ve r and capt ur ed KERLING (U 99) , KUNTZIG (U98) and

INGLANGE (U98 ). In the zone sout h of METZ (U85) the 5th In fa nt ry D iv i

sion oontinued to att aok north with advance elements clo sin g to wit hin

fi ve m il es of th e ci t y . ORNY (U9U), COIK-LES-CUVRY (U8 5), CTJVRY (U 35 ),

PONTOY (U9l|) and POUILLY (U85) w ere li be ra te d and L'AISNE (U85) and

LYSER (U85) in the VERDUN group of fo rt s ca pi tu la te d.

There was no ai r ac ti vi ty because of inclement wea ther.

Continuing to advance to the ea st and no rthe ast during the day,

Thi rd U.S . Army ca pt ur ed L'AISNE (U85) and L*YSER (U85) in th e VERDUN

group of fo rt s , to ge th er wit h the towns of ORNY (U9U), COIN-LES-CUVRY

(U85),

CUVRY (U3i O, POUILLY (U 85 ), KERLING (U 99 ), FRECHING (Q 09 ),

KUNTZIG ( U9 8) , INGLANGE (U9 8) , MASSE YUTZ (U8 8) , PONTOY (U9I4) an d

IMMELDANGE (U 87) .

Engineers Remove Roadblock Caused

y

Blasted Bridge

U N C L S S I F I E D

E

T

32


12/51

PERIODIC PROGRESS CHART

THIRD US ARMY

011200 NOV TO 011200 DEC 1944

ANO

DISPOSITION OF ENEMY TROOPS

ON 011200 DEC 1944

REM

X

REM

5 5 9

X X

C D

35

C D

26

C D

130

C D

la Petite

Pierre

NO T E: O N 8 NO V T HE 83 RD INF D IV WAS AT T ACHED

T O T HIR D US ARMY F OR O PERA T IO N AL CO NT RO L VWT

C E R T A I N R E S T R I C T I O N S O N I T S E M P L O Y M E N T . ^ , J D N

T O F I R S T U S A R M Y .

W A S A S S I G N E D T O H I E C O R P S

A N D I R D / t f S A R M Y O N 2 5 N O V , B U T D I D * N ^

E R A T I O N A L D U R I N G T H E M O N T H .

1 98

mbervillers


13/51

S E C R E T

w

r

\

14 NOVEMBER

D

+

161)

XII Corps troops met determined enemy delaying a cti on s, con sist ing

of anti- tank fi re , mines, roadblocks and blown brid ges. Heavy re si st

ance in the northern bridgehead and strong delaying aotion s elsewhere

were encount ered by XX Corps tr oops*

Continuing XII Corps' atta ck to the east , elements of the 26th In

fa nt ry D iv is io n oc cupie d HARRACOURT (Q12) and MARSAL (Q12) and e le men ts

of thd 328th Inf antr y (26 th Inf antr y Divi sio n) drove south toward DIEUZE

(Q22), -while other elements of the div isi on approached that cit y from

the wes t. Working in clos e conj unct ion with the 1+th Armored Di vi sio n,

the 2 6th Inf ant ry Di vi si on capt ured DESTRICH (Q13) and BARONVILLE (Q1 3),

wh il e the 1+th Armored Di vi si on cle ar ed GUIBLING (Q22) and ZARBELING

(Q23) and fought- in the DESQRICH - BAROSVILLE ar ea . Sl ig ht ly n or th , the

6th Armored Divi sio n seiz ed LANDGRF (Qll ;). Elements of the 80th Infan

try Division struck to the northeast.

On the no rth of XX Corps

1

advance, the 95th Infantry Division

cap tur ed OUVR-ST-HUBERT (U97) # FEVES (U 86 ), and FT D'lLLANGE (U 88 ). The

10t h Armored Di vi si on began cro ss in g th e MOSELLE River near THIGNVTLLE

(U88) and MAULING (U99) # aid ed by smoking oper at io ns . Farth er sou th the

90th Infantry Divi sion continued it s atta ck to the eas t and on the south

of corp s zone the 5tk Infa ntr y Di vi si on took MECLEUVES (1395) in i t s

flan king dri ve on METZ (U85).

No ope rat ion s were oonduoted b y XDC Tact ic al Ai r Command due to bad

weather.

Advance of the Army to the ea st oontinued during the day, with

HARRACOURT (Q 13 ), GOBBLING (U2 2), BOUSSE (U87 ), LANDROFF (Q ll +) ,

MECLEUVES (U9 5) , OUVR-ST-HUBERT (TJ97) , FEVES (U86) and FT D'lLLANGE

(U88) being cap tured, while the 10th Armored Division began crossin g the

MOSELLE Ri ve r a t OHIONVILLB (U88) and MALLING (U9 9).

Rail evacuat ion of patie nts reached a new high as the weather pre

vented evacuation by ai r, four trai ns at TOUL (u6o) evacuating 1,119

pat ien ts* In add it ion , 3i*6 pat ien ts were evacuate d from TOUL (u60) by

ambulances

*

* * *

15 NOVEMBER D+

162)

A study of enemy cap abi lit ies at thi s time showed that he could

make a for tr es s st and at METZ (U85) t o impede the Army's eastw ard dr ive

by the diver sion of troop s, ar ti ll er y and avi ati on, and could withdraw

to t he MAGINOT Line and supplementary def ensi ve po sit io ns w hil e brin ging

up reinforcements from other seotors and manning the fo rti fic ati ons of

the SIEGFRIED Line . Ohese obj ect ive s could be implemented, i t was es t i

mated, by defending and delayin g in succes sive prepared p osi tio ns,

counterattackin g loc all y with infantr y and armor to blook and contain

the Army's eastward thrusts.

Enemy delaying actio n strengthened percept ibly in the XII Corps.

Strong counteratt acks were launched and a rt il le ry fire on the Army's

fron t elements was extremely heavy. Eff ecti ve slowing of the atta ck was

achieved by the enemy's system of road blocks, minefields and obstaoles,

covered by small arms and anti-t ank fi re . However, XII Corps troops ad

vanced to the ea st , with

ihe

26th Infantr y Divi sion drivi ng from the

north and we st , figh ti ng toward DIEUZE (Q22) . Meanwhile, the 35th In

fantry Division was fighti ng dir ectl y north of the 26th Infantry Divi

s ion ,

wi th the 13i*th In fa nt ry cl ea ri ng MORHANGE (Q23) and RACRANGE

(Q23) . 1he 80tfa Infa ntry Div isi on , flanked by the i;th and 6th Armored

Di vi si on s, contin ued movement to the nort heast * Some element s of the

i+th Armored Div isi on were suppor ting the 35th Infan try Divi sio n around

MORHANGE (Q23).

XX Corps oont inued it s att aok s wi th good progr ess bein g made,

desp ite resi sta nce , inoluding many loc al counte ratta cks. South of METZ

(U85) the ih Infantry Div isio n was moving up for an atta ck on the ci ty .

The 11th Infa ntry (5th Infant ry Div isi on) took AUGNY (U85) w hil e the

10th Infa ntry (5t h Infan try D ivi sio n) took MARLY (U85) and CHESNY (U95) .

farthe r north the 90th and 95th Infantry Divis ions had shi fte d the ir

positions so that the ^Oih Infantry Division held the corps north bound

ary . Ihe 95th Infa ntry Divis ion captured FEVES (U86) , ILLANGE (U7 8),

and ST REMY (U8 6) . las k Force BACON, composed of elem ent s of the 378Hi

and 379ih Infan tries (95th Infantry Divis ion) with attached engin eers,

tank dest roye r and reconn aissa nce elemen ts, was formed for the purpose

of at ta ck in g down the eas t bank of the MOSELLE Rive r from ETIONVILLE

(U88) to aid in the captur e of METZ (U85)# Aft er complet ing it s c ro ss

ings of t he MOSELLE River the lOth Armored Di vi sio n str uck rap id ly t o

the ea st and i t s Combat Command A sec ur ed LEBffiSTROFF (U 98 ). On th e

corps north boundary the 90th Infantry Di vi si on ^ 358th Infantr y took

STUCKANGE (U98)# wh ile oth er ele men ts of the d iv is io n capt ured DISOROFF

(TJ98).

XIX Tac ti cal Air Command fl ew taro mis

dropped thi rty -f ive tons of bombs. Planes

atta cked ma rshal ling yards near METZ (U85).

sions

strafed

of thirty sorties

an enemy conv oy

and

and

During the day, Biird U.S. Army's drive oontinued agai nst stron g

re si st anc e, wi th KORHANGE (Q 23 ), RACRANGE (Q 23 ), AUGNY (U 85 ), MARLY

(U 85 ), CHESNEY (U 95 ), DISIROFF (TJ98), ST REMY (U 86 ), SEMECOURT (TJ86) ,

BOUSSE (U87) and LKMKSTROFF ( 098) be in g o ap tu re d.

Third U.S. Army was informed by twel fth U .S. Army Group th at for

the perio d 19 November to 2 December the da il y al lo ca ti on of tonnage

would be 2,800 tons. This figu re oovered al l ola sse s except Class I

Quartermaster and Sla ss V Ordnanoe. Army Group requ ested a d ai ly rep ort

on the numbers of trench -foot oases admitted to Army medical in st al la

tio ns* A new peak of evac uati on of wounded was reac hed, wit h 1^ 81

evacuated by road and 303 by ra il from TOUL (u 60 ). Ohe ne ce ss it y fo r

an air li ft to evacuate patients became cri ti ca l.

GENERAL DWTGHT D. EISENHOWER Supreme Commander, A ll ied Ex ped it io n

ary Foroes, vis it ed Headquarters, Ihird U.S. Army.

*

E

T

34


14/51

U N C LA S S I F I E D

16 NOVEMBER D 163)

XII Corps regrouped for furtiier atta cks to the ea st . There were

only minor advances along the oorps fro nt . Die 137fch Inf an try (35"8i In

fan try Divis ion) reache d the vi ci ni ty of HARPRICH (Q2l*), while Combat

Command "A" (Uth Armored Div isi on) rea che d the v ic in it y of GERBECOURT

(Q12).

Continuing XX Corps

1

advance, the 5"*. Infan try Division captu ring

ihe towns of PELIRE (U3 5), SORBEY (U95) , and a fo r t at CHESNEY (U95)

whioh had held out aft er the fa ll of the town on iiie previous day.

Nor-tii of METZ (U85) elemen ts of "the 95th Infa ntr y Divi sion oaptu red

VIGNEULLES (U86 ), SAULNY (U96 ), LORRY-LES-METZ (U 86 ), PLESNOIS (U86 ),

and NORROY-LE-VENOUR (U8 6). In ad di ti on , se ve ra l of the 6trong f or ts

whioh pro teot ed METZ (U85) from the no rth and northw est were under heavy

sie ge, with two being completely surrounded. Elements of the 90th In

fa ntr y D ivisi on on the oorps n orth boundary took METZERVISSE (U98), due

ea st of THIONVTLLE (U88), and othe r eleme nts of the div is ion oaptu red

BUDING (U96) and REINANGE (U97 ). The 10th Armored Di vi si on , st ri ki ng

due ea st from posit ion s of the 90th Infa ntr y Div isi on, cle are d NONNEREN

(U08 ), ST MARGUERITE (U88) and ST FHANCOIS-IACROIX (Q0 8) .

In conduct of armed reco nnais sanc e and in atta ck s on enemy oomnand

posts in conjunction with suppor t of both oorps, XIX Taotioal Air Com

mand flew six missions of 112 so rt ie s, and dropped thir ty-tw o and a

ha lf tons of bombs in ad dit ion to Napalm, frag men tatio n bombs and rock

ets*

During the day, there was a continued advanoe in the north ern zone

of Third U.S. Army, while re groupment of forc es continued a ll along the

Army front in prep arati on for further advances to the e as t.

A gaso line f ir e a t a supply point a t NANCY (U81) re su lte d from the

backfi re of a 30-gallo n dis pen ser. Approximately 35,000 gallons of

gasoline were lost before the fire could be extinguished.

17 NOVEMBER D4164)

The enemy maintainedapurely defensive attitude in the XIICorps

zone,

while

in XX

Corps zone his delaying actions wer e disorganized

and

a large number

of

prisoners were ta ken.

In the

METZ (U85) area enemy

resistance wassporadic, withthestrongest opposition being offered

along

the

FORT DRIANT (U75)

-

FORT JEANNE DARC

(U75)

lino

of

forts.

XX Corps continued

to

advanoe. South

of

METZ (U85)

the 5th

Infan

try Division was making good progress, with JURY

(U95),

MAGNY (U85)

and

GRIGY (U85) being oaptured. Northof METZ (U85)the95th Infantry Di

vision oaptured FORT LORRAINE (U76)andmade local advances. Ihe 10th

Armored Division took HALSTROFF

(Q08), the

90th Infantry Division oap

tured ABONCOURT (U97)

and

LUTTA.NGE (U97)

and

patrols

of the

10th Armor

ed Division orossedthe German border. As thehorseshoe drew tighter

around METZ (U85)

and the

enemy accelerated

his

withdrawal, heavy

harassing

and

interdiction artillery fires we re plaoed

on

all

his

esoape

routes from -the city.

A

break

in the

weather afforded

an

excellent

day of air

operations.

With missions of oorps supp ort, armed reconna issance and at tacks on en

emy airdromes, twenty missions of 317 sor tie s were flown. Fragmentation

bombs,

Napalm

and

le af le t bombs were dropped

and

rockets were fired,

over seventy-eight tons of high explosive bombs being expended.

As the

re sul t

of

operations

for the day,

elements

of

Third

U.S.

Army oaptur ed e ig ht towns in the advanoe to the eas t , while the forces

en oir oli ng METZ(U85) were approximately four miles apart.

With eight supply points having

1,629,1*05

gallons

of V-80

gasoline

on hand the gasoline s i tuat ion was sound. The Armyhad

1,881;,5^4-

ra

tions, a

sub sta nti al five-day supply. Communications Zone

and

Advanoe

Seoti on Communications Zone were presen ted with a Third U.S. Army sup

ply summary whioh str ess ed as c r i t i c a l the shortages of coal, wire

W-130, mess k i t s , oanteen oups, knives, forks and spoons, tir es , t i re

pa tones,

tubes

and

ant i-freeze.

At

this time

the

number

of

-troops draw

ing from Third U.S. Army supply point s to tal ed 3H963, including Third

U.S .Army, 256,356; Advanoe Section Communications Zone, 29,583; Ninth

U.S. Air Force 22,113: French troops, 1 3U^ and Supreme Headquarters

Allied Expeditionary Force, 2,569. In a three-week period the Army

authorized subsistence trains whioh oarried to NANCY(U81) 3l*0 tons of

potatoes, 580 tons of f lour and thirty-t wo head of ca t t l e for the use

of civi l ians.

Enroute

to the

Prisoner

of ar

Enclosure

E

35


15/51

C

R E

18 NOVEMBER D -/- 165)

Breaching of the approach defenses to METZ (U85) elim inate d the

cap abi lity of the enemy to wage a fortre ss stand in the oi ty for -tiie

purpose of compelling

ihe

Army to dive rt troops, ar ti lle ry , aviation

and munitions to contai n the bastion* Ihis development no t only re

leased impo rtant Third U.S. Army combat stre ngt h for offensiv e employ

ment bu t deprived "the enemy of the key defen sive p os iti on i n the Army's

zone of advance west of the SIEGFRIED Lin e. It smashed the c on tro lli ng

pivot of the

enemy

1

defenses and d ispo sitio ns in the Army's zone of

advance west of the SIEGFRIED Lin e, and le ft him with only one alt er

native with the foroes he had in contac t: to defend and delay as long

as possible in ord er, on one hand, to effec t a maximum withdrawal be

hind the SIEGJRIED Lin e, and, on the ot her hand, to rei nfo rce the SIEG

FRIED Line with new un it s. Uhe weigh t of ind ica tio ns pre dic ted

ihe

above stra tegy as the one being pursued by the enemy. Presenting a

sporadic resistan ce to the Army's advance in the XII Corps zone, the

enemy threw out screening forces which gave ground upon contact* la ot i

oal re conna issanc e rep orte d numerous enemy columns moving ea st and nor th

east along

ihe

corps fro nt. Enemy resi stan ce weakened p erce ptib ly in

XX Corps zone and a genera l withdrawal along the e nt ir e corps f ron t was

ind ica ted . Resis tance continued in the fo rt s at 11ETZ (U85), of which

oight major ones remained to be taken.

Making l ocal advances, the 26th Infan try Division made limited

progress on the south flank of XII Corps, while the

5ih

Infantry Divi

si on cap tu re d BERTRINGEN (Q2 4) , BERMERINGEN (Q23) and VALLERANGE (Q2 3) .

Biere was li tt le ac tiv ity in the Mh and 6th Armored Divisio ns

1

zones.

Enc ircle men t of METZ (U85) was complete d by XX Corps tro op s. The

5ih

In fan try D ivisi on on the south flan k and Task Force BACON (1 st B at

tali on of the 377th Infa ntry , 2d Batta lion of the 378th Infa ntry , 95#i

Reconnaissance Troop, a platoon of Engin eers, and tiro companies of tank

destroy ers with tsro self-p rope lled guns) made conta ct due eas t of the

oi ty . Firi ng into METZ (U85)

#

a chemical mortar uni t with the 5ih In

fantr y Division h it an ammunition dump, the resul tin g explosion knock

ing out several pieces of enemy heavy art ill er y.

The

5th Infantry Di

vi si on captu red BORNY (U85) wh ile Task Force BACOU took ST JULIEN-LES

METZ (U8 7). Owo more of the METZ fo rt s f e l l to elem ents of the 95 th In

fant ry Divisio n. On

ih e

north boundary tiie 10th Armored Division con

tinue d to preoede the 90tti Inf ant ry Div isio n, cap turi ng BOUZONVILLE

(Q 17 ), T&LDWEISOROFF (Q 18 ), FLAS2R0FF (Q18 ), SCHWERDORF (Q 18), and

FILS2R0FF (Q18). Bie 90th Inf antr y D ivisio n meanwhile was mopping up in

the rear of the 10th Armored Division advance.

Enemy ai r ac ti vi ty flared up when nineteen raid s by thir ty-o ne

enemy airc raf t attaoked targets in

ihe

Army area. Anti -aircr aft units

sho t down seven planes and claimed eigji t as probab ly des troy ed. With

good weather con tinu ing , XIX laot io al Air Command flew twenty -five mis

sions of 347 sorties.

Ih ir d U.S. Army cap tured BORNY (U8 5), ST JULIEN-LES-METZ (U8 7),

WALDWEISIROFF (Q18) and oth er sma ll lo ca li ti es dur ing the day , wh ile

the 5th and 95th Infa ntry Divisions closed the pincers' which cut the

la st escape rou te of t he German foroes in tiie o ity of METZ (U85).

Arrangements were made to brin g i nt o th e Army area a group of form

er civ ili an managers and operator s of coal mines. They were to go in to

ihe

mines captured from the enemy as soon as they were tak en, in ord er

to begin o perations before -the mines flooded from seepage.

19 NOVEMBER D4 166)

All enemy divis ions re sis tin g the Oiird U.S. Army's offensive suf

fered heavy losse s in the week prev ious, some to such an exte nt th at

they became mere remnants. Despite reinfor cemen ts, i was estimated

tha t at th is time the enemy had ihe equivalen t of seven div isio ns oppos

ing the t hird U.S. Army, one less than during the previous week. I t was

eviden t t ha t the enemy viewed

ihe

situa tio n in -ttie west as approaohing

a cri t ical s tage.

Fighting a stron g defensive ba tt le from behind well-pre pared po

sitio ns in XII Corps

1

zone of adv anc e, the enemy employed numerous

tank s, some dug- in, to support strongpoin ts and roadb locks. Continuing

hi s withdr awal in XX Corps

1

zone, th e enemy became dis org ani zed , with no

ta ct ic al cont rol being exer cised above company lev el. In the HETZ (U85)

area stre et fighti ng was in pro gres s, while the major forts dominating

the oity

f

8 defenses remained in enemy hands althou gh surrounded by

ihe

Army's forces.

Die 26tii Infantr y Divisio n supported by elements of the i|th Armor

ed Div isio n was on XII Corps south fl an k. Combat Command "A" (l*th Ar

mored Div isio n) c apt ure d VIRMING (Q2l|.) and the two di vi sio ns commenced

the attack on

ihe

impo rtan t town of DIEUZE (Q22), flie 35th In fan try

Division with elements of the 6th Armored Division attack ed eastward

in a zone immediately north of the 26th Infa ntry Divisio n. Ihere was

li tt le ac tiv ity in the 80th Infantry Division on the corps north flank.

Elements of th e 5th and 95"tfi In fan try Div ision s en tere d METZ (U85),

1iie 5th In fa nt ry Di vi sion too k VAUDREVILLE (U95) and LAULAILLIERS (U96 ),

whi le the 95-Hi In fa nt ry Div isi on sei zed SAHRY-LES-VIGY (U96 ). At MAGNY

(U85) & smoke mission was fir ed to deny o bser vati on to the enemy a t FORT

QUEULEU (U85) whi le XX Corps troo ps a dvanc ed. HEKNIG (Q00) , TETTINGSN

(Q1 9), T2ALDWISSE (Q19) and YffilEINGEN (Q19) were taken by the 10th Armor

ed Division while the 90th In fantr y Divis ion, following the 10th Armored

Divisi on, clea red HINCKANGE (Q0 6) , BRECKLANGE (Q06) and VOLMERANGE

(Q06).

Another great day of air support was reoorded by XIX Tactical Air

Command, with 1*03 so rt ie s being flown on armed reoo nnai ssan oe, corps

sup por t, and IX Bomber Command es co rt . Thirt een ai rc ra ft and eig ht

pil ots were lost , but des truc tion and damage to the enemy included 387

motor trans port s, eighteen tanks and armored vehic les, fifty-seven lo

oomotives,

Lfi9

rai lroad oars , forty-eight gun posi t ions , thirty-seven

factorie s and buildi ngs, ten railro ad outs and twelve attacks each on

marshalling yards and towns.

Third U.S. Army's advance to the eas t oontinued during the pe riod ,

with major elements ente rin g METZ (U85) and a number of smal ler towns

being captured.

A da il y tonnage bid was subm itted to Twelf-tfi U.S. Army Group for

the perio d 3 to 17 December ca lli ng fo r 7*633 tons for maintenance and

399 tons for reserve, a total of 8,032 tons.

r

S E C R E T

36


16/51

A i

z

20

NOVEM ER (D

4

167)

Withdrawing the bulk of his forces in the XII Corps zone, the en

emy left only a skeleton force along the corps front . His covering

force gave ground rapidly, but numerous road blocks, blown bridges,

minefields and sporadic artillery fire impeded XII Corps

1

advance. XX

Corps advance on MERZIG (Q29) was held up by road blocks covered by

anti-tank fire, while at METZ (U85), disorganized resistance continued

with the enemy surrendering in large numbers. Enemy forces of undeter

mined strength continued to hold FORTS DRIANT

(U75),

ST QUENTIN

(U85),

ST FRIVAT (U85), JEANNE D ARC (U75), PLAPPEVILLE (U86),and VSiDUN

(Q85).

Continuing the attack to the east in XII Corps zone, the 328th In

fantry (26th Infantrv Division) and elements of the 4th Armored Division

captured DIEUZE (Q22). Other elements of the 328th Infantry captured

LDSTROFF (Q32),while elements of the 101st Infantry (26th Infantry Di

vision) captured INSWEILER (Q33). The 4th Armored Division operating

in the same zone took FRANCALTROFF (Q34-). To the north the 35th Infan

try Division and the 6th Armored Division made small advances to the

east, while the 80th Infantry Division operating on the corps no th

boundary made good advances and captured PONTPIERR E (Q25), LELLINGEN

(Q24) and FAULQUEMONT (Q15).

METZ (U85) waa reported cleared by elements of the 5th and 95th

Infantry Divisio ns, except for ILE-DU -SAULCY (U85) and ILE-CHAMBIERE

(U85). While the 95th Infantry Division was reducing the forts on the

north of the city, elements of the 5th Infantry Division surrounded the

forts on the south and east of METZ (U85) and took FORT QUEULEU

(U85).

A chemical company provided a smoke screen for the 5th Infantry

Division's crossing of the SEILLE River in the attack on FORT QUEULEU

(U85) denying observation to the enemy troops within the fort.

The 90th Infantry Division and the 10th Armored Division continued

to operate jointly on the XX Corps' north flank, with only local gains

to the east and northeast being made.

In support of Third U.S . Army, XIX Tactical Air Command flew sixty

fighter-bomber sorties.

Third U.S. Army during the day advanced from two to five miles to

the east and northeast, and FORT QUEULEU (U85) was captured.

21NOVEM ER(D 4168)

In the XII Corps zone, the 26th Infantry Division captured ALBES

DORF (Q33),TORCHEVILLE (Q33), INSWEILER (Q33). Meanwhile the 4th Ar

mored Division captured LOUDREFING (Q32),RENING (Q34), RODALBE (Q23),

and CUTTING (Q32) and advanced to the west bank of the RHIN-MARNE canal

at MITTEKSHEIk (QA2). North of these two divisions the 35th Infantry

Division and the 6th Armored Division continued their coordinated at

tacks to the east. Elements of the 35th Infantry Division took HELLIMER

(Q34) while the 6th Armor ed Division captured FREMESDORF (Q34) and

FLETRANGE (Q15). The 80th Infantry Division continued advancing slowly

on XII Corps north flank.

XX Corps continued its attack, with the 5th and 95th Infantry

Divisions mopping up METZ (U85). Ths 95th Infantry Division took ILE

CHAMBIERE (U85) and began mopping up ILE-DU-SAULCY (U85). Forces en

tering METZ (U85) and actually sharing in its reduction were the 10th

and 11th Infantries (5th Infantry Division), t he 377th (-) and 378th (-)

Infantry (95th Infantry Division) and Task Force BACON. During this

phase the 2d Infantry (5th Infantry Division) was due east of METZ (U85)

preventing enemy forces from withdrawing, while the 379th Infantry (95th

Infantry Division) was west of METZ (U85) exerting containing pressure

on the forts in that vicinity. Attacks to the east and north were con

tinued by the 10th Armored Division and the 90th Infantry Division.

Major elements of both divisions crossed the German border near the LUX

EMBOURG frontier. BOUZONVILLE (Q17) was taken by the 10th Armored Divi

sion.

Planes of XIX Tactical Air Command flew 114 sorties but almost en

tirely as escort to the IX Bomber Command and the Eighth Air Force.

ALBESDORF (Q33) was cleared during the day, while

the advance to

the east continued. Mopping up operations in the METZ

(U85) area con

tinued with ILE CHAMBIERE (U85) being cleared.

Third U.S. Army estimated its ammunition requirements over a six

months

1

period on a rounds per gun per day basis as fifty for 105mm how

itzers, high explosive only; thirty-five for 155mm howitzers, twenty-

five for 155mm guns and twenty-five for 8" howitzer s.

Infantry Advances Toward Metz

MCLA3S1F1EB

37


17/51

S E C

22NOVEM ER

(D4 169)

All resistance at METZ (U85) ceased at 1435 hours on this date,

marking the first time in modern history that "The Bastion of the East"

was captured by assault. In 451 the city was stormed and devastated by

the Huns, who occupied it for sixty years* A French garrison surrender

ed the city in 1870 during the Franco-Prussian war after running out of

food, the city remaining in German hands until the end of the first

World War, Then the city was held by the French until occupation of the

country by the Germans following France's surrender in 1940* With the

fall of METZ (US5) to XX Corps troops after a two months' siege, handi

capped by the worst floods in twenty years and by weather which preven

ted maximum air support, a new route to the east was opened and the last

important obstacle in front of the SIEGFRIED Line was removed*

Third U.S. Army on this date received Amendment No 5 to letter of

Instruction No 10, Headquarters Twelfth U.S. Army Group, dated 21 Nov

ember, which adjusted the boundary between First and Third U.S. Armies.

In the southern part of XII Corps zone the 26th Infantry Division

captured MUNSTER (Q33),while Combat Command "B" of the 4th Armored Di

vision cleared U1TTERSHEIM (Q42) and took FENETRANGE (042). The 35th

Infantry Division advanced rapidly to the north of the 26th Infantry

Division zone and captured ST JEAN-ROHRBACH (Q34), GRENINGEN (Q34),

LEXWEILER (Q34), DIEFENBACH (Q34), PETITE-TENQUIN (034). The 6th Ar

mored Division, operating in conjunction with the 35th Infantry Divi

sion and the 80th Infantry Division on the north corps flank, made good

gains.

Relief of the 95th Infantry Division in the METZ (U85) area was

started by the 5th Infantry Division, the former division moving to a

concentration area in the vicinity of COLLIGNY (U95), east of METZ

(U85).

To the north the 90th Infantry Division began relieving Combat

Command "B" of the 10th Armored Division, while the remainder of the

10th Armored Division attacked: to the northeast and captured WALDWISSE

(Q18) and HALSTROFF (008).

XIX Tactical Air Command cancelled all missions because of continu

ed bad weather.

Third U.S. Army's advance to the east and northeast continued dur

ing the day. ST JEAN-ROHRBACH (Q34).DIEFENBACH (034),PETITE-TENQUIN

(Q34),

GRENINGEN

(034),

MUNSTER (033;, INSWEILER (033) and MITTERSHEIM

(042) were captured and resistance in the city of METZ (U8$) ended.

The PARIS (S04) to NANCY (U81) civilian food train was changed from

a twice-weekly to a daily except on Sunday.

Stars and Stripes is Raised on Captured Metz Fort

S E C

T

38


18/51

S E C

S S I F I I

23 NOVEM ER D 4- 170)

Continuing his vigorous delaying tactics in XII Corps zone, the

enemy defended towns and strongpoints with infantry and tanks* Third

U.S.Army's 26th Infantry Division met heavy resistance in clearing the

FORET DOM D'ALBESDORF (Q33),north of MUNSTSt (033). In the same gener

al zone the 4th Armored Division pushed elements across the SAAR River

at ROMMELFINGEN (Q42) and GOSSELMINGEN (Q42). Leading elements reached

POSTDORF (Q52) and KIRBERG (Q52). During the period the 35th Infantry

Division continued its drive in the zone of the 4th Armored Division,

and attacked and reached RfiNING (034) and INSMING (034)* Meanwhile the

6th Armored Division regrouped its forces preparatory to continuing the

attack* On the XII corps north flank the 80th Infantry Division organ

ized for an attack to the east*

The 5th Infantry Division completed relief of the 95th Infantry

Division with elements of the latter division moving to an assembly area

in the vicinity of COLUG NY (U95), east of METZ (U85),from which point

it relieved elements of the 90th Infantry Division in the NIED River vi

cinity* Meanwhile the 5th Infantry Division continued to exert pressure

on a stubbornly resisting enemy in the remaining METZ (U85) forts, using

smoke to screen passage of troops across the MOSELLE River* In the

northern part of XX Corps zone the 90th Infantry Division continued to

relieve the 10th Armored Division in the task of mopping up in rear

areas,freeing the latter division for front line combat*

XIX Tactical Air Command again was unable to schedule

any opera

tions because of continued adverse weather conditions*

*

24NOVEM ER

(D

+

171)

Numerous enemy obstacles combined with rain and mud slowed the

Army's progress.

In the southern part of XII Corps zone, the 26th Infantry Division

cleared the BOIS-DE VIBERS-VILLSt (Q43),BOIS D E HAMMESSIEL (Q43),FORET

D'ALBESDORF (Q33) and BOIS DE GEVRICOURT (Q43), and took VIBERSVILLER

(043). The 4th Armored Division in the same general zone employed Com

bat Command

M

B

n

to take POSTDORF (Q52) and BARENDORF (Q52). Combat Com

mand

n

A

w

completed the crossing of the SAAR River at GOSSELMINGEN (Q42)

and ROMMELFINGEN (Q42)*

After capturing UBERKINGER

(Q34),

KAPPELKINGER

(Q34) and RENING (Q34) the 35th Infantry Division spent the remainder of

the period regrouping its forces to continue the attack. The 6th Armor

ed Division pushed forward, taking VALATTE (Q35) in its drive toward

PUTTELANGE (Q45)* To the north the 80th Infantry Division launched a

new attack to the east, took FAULQUEMONT (Q14),MAINVILLEBS (Q U) and

reached an area northeast of LAUDREFANG (Q25) in a drive on ST AVOLD

(025).

The 5th Infantry Division continued to contain the remaining forts

of METZ (U85)* Realignment of various divisions of XX Corps being com

pleted, the 90th and 95th Infantry Divisions both launched heavy attacks

early in the morning* Excellent progress was made by the 95th Infantry

Division in a zone along the NIED River northeast of METZ (U85), captur

ing BRECKLANGE (Q06), BOULAY MOSELLE (Q06),HALLING (Q16) and NARBEFON

TAINE (Q16). Fighting along the German border near the Luxembourg fron

tier, the 90th Infantry Division captured BIRINGEN (Q19),NEUNKIRCHEN

LES BOUZONVILLE (018) and REMELDORFF (Q18). Meeting heavy resistance

inside Germany, the 10th Armored Division continued its attack and cap

tured TETTINGEN (L00),BUTZDORF (L00) and OBERLEUKEN (L00).

XIX Tactical Air Force again had no operations during the period

because of unfavorable weather.

GENERAL DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER, Supreme Commander, Allied Expedition

ary Forces, visited Headquarters, Third U.S. Army.

Seven Army supply points had 1,74.9,975 gallons of gasoline, and re

serve points held an additional 3,024,264 gallons . Information was giv

en Twelfth U.S. Army Group that the following winter clothes and equip

ment were needed to complete the initial issue to Third U.S. Army

troops: 30,000 overshoes, 97,000 ground sheets, 225,921 mufflers,

260,000 trousers, 260,000 jackets, 182,789 sleeping bags, 226,000 sweat

ers and 175,358 combat boots* A mobile water purification unit was sent

to METZ (U85) to alleviate the problem of water supply* Because of the

danger of prisoners escaping over the nearby German borders, a direct

ive was issued to all medical units to turn back to Advance Section Com

munications Zone all prisoners of war employed in hospitals.

* * * * *

25 NOVEM ER

(D

4-

172)

Offering stiff resistance from the MAGINOT forts in the vicinity

of LONGEVILLE (Q25) in the northern portion of XII Corps zone, the en

emy impeded the Army's advance in the central portion with obstacles and

in the southern portion resisted aggressively with Panzer units. He

continued his dogged defense in XX Corps zone fortifications in the

northern portion, while in the central and southern portions resistance

was scattered.

XII Corps continued its attack, with the 26th Infantry Division on

the south flank capturing WITrERSBURG (043),clearing the BOIS DE BONNE

FONTAINE and fighting in HUNKIRICH (043) at the end of the period. The

4th Armored Division, also on the south flank, reached KIRBERG (052) af

ter crossing the SAAR River. Farther north elements of the 35th Infan

try Division captured HILSPRICH (Q44), MORSEBROWN (044) and strategic

high ground known as HILL 241 (044). The 6th Armored Division, working

in the same general zone as the 35th Infantry Division, occupied REMHR

INGEN (Q44) and entered HIRBACH (Q44). Attacking strongly on the corps

north flank, the 80th Infantry Division elements made substantial gains

through the MAGINOT Line and established contact with the 95th Infantry

Division (XX Corps) at ZDflMINGEN (Q15).

S E C

it

i L

iHED

139


19/51

s

EN

R E T

Continued pressure on the remaining METZ (U85) forts was made by

the 5th Infantry Division. Bie heavily defended FORT VERDUN, as well as

ST BLAISE, MARIVAL and ST SCMMT, surrendered. On -tiie XX Corps south

flank, -the 95th Infantry Division attacked and occupied BOUIAY(Q06),

MCfciERSTROFF(Ql6),NARBEFQN TUNE (Ql6) and HICRAIIGE(Ql6),making solid

oontact with the 80th Infantry Division (XIICorps). To the north the

90th Infantry Division

After Action Report: Third U.S. Army, November 1944 Operations (D+148)

Documents

Transcript of After Action Report: Third U.S. Army, November 1944 Operations (D+148)