bigpigeon.us webpage WWII-Germany > The ETO > Ardennes/The Bulge > Before the Bulge © 2023 by Robert A. Christiansen, updated by RAC 15 Oct 2022.
The Battle of the Bulge - the German Plan
The Battle of the Bulge, fought in the early winter of 1944-45, began with a last-ditch attack by the Wehrmacht that Adolf Hitler hoped would split the Allied forces in the European Theater of Operations. Hitler's goal was to  advance from Germany's Rhineland while crushing US First Army units in its path, cross the Meuse River, and continue across Belgium to the port of Antwerp.

Enemy ground forces in the Battle of the Bulge consisted of three armies of the Wehrmacht's Army Group B.
  • The Sixth SS Panzer Army, the most-powerful of the three armies noted on the accompanying map, was charged with advancing to Antwerp.
  • The Fifth SS Panzer Army would provide left-flank protection for the Sixth SS Panzer Army.
  • The Seventh Army, rebuilt after its defeat in Normandy, would provide left-flank protection for the Fifth SS Panzer Army.
​Terminology:
  • Wehrmacht - the German army.
  • SS - denotes Wehrmacht units containing SS members. The SS (Schutzstaffel) was the paramilitary organization headed by Heinrich Himmler. 
  • Panzer - armor; however Panzer divisions contained large numbers of infantry.
  • Wacht am Rhein and Herbstnebel - German code names for the Ardennes counteroffensive.
Ardennes Counteroffensive
Ardennes Counteroffensive. German Objectives
Original version of above map
Surprise and speed were paramount conditions for the success of the German attack. Surprise was achieved, but fortunately speed was not.
​
Wehrmacht commanders anticipated that Hitler's grandiose plan would fail, but hoped for success on a smaller scale, such as seizing Meuse River bridges.
The ETO Battleground, 15 December 1944
This map shows the disposition of all seven ETO armies and the opposing Wehrmacht armies just before the Wehrmacht attacked early on 16 December.

The US First Army's three corps occupied a large portion of the Allied front line, from Düren southwards through Luxembourg.
  • Elements of VII Corps were already in combat, advancing the final few miles to Düren.
  • Elements of V Corps were also in combat, with a two-pronged drive towards the Roer River dams south of Düren.
  • The VIII Corps was inactive, with its long sector mostly manned by green or worn-out troops.

The Wehrmacht planned to attack westward into the Ardennes through the V Corps and VIII Corps sectors. After crossing the Meuse, few physical or military obstacles would impede German progress.

Below is a more-detailed two-part map.
 

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The ETO and German armies, 15 December 1944
The Allied and German armies, 15 December 1944
Scalable Version
Battle of the Bulge - The Initial Front-Line Units
This two-part map shows the major units on the eve of the German attack on First Army's V and VIII Corps. ​
Major US units, from north to south:
V Corps, HQ Eupen:
  • 78th Infantry Division, HQ Rotgen, Germany, in combat NE of Monschau.
  • 2nd Infantry Division, HQ Wirtzfeld, in combat near Wahlersheid.
  • 99th Infantry Division, HQ Butgenbach, units mixed with 2nd Infantry Division.
VIII Corps, HQ Bastogne:
  • 106th Infantry Division, HQ St. Vith.
  • 28th Infantry Division, HQ Wiltz, Luxembourg.
  • CCA, 9th Armored Division.
  • 4th Infantry Division, HQ Luxembourg City.
Notes:
  • CC = Combat Command.
  • HQ = Headquarters.
 First Army Zone, 15 December 194, west partwest part of US First Army zone, 15 December 1944
First Army Zone, 15 December 194, east part
east part of US First Army zone, 15 December 1944
The Ardennes Road Network
The Wehrmacht was to attack with a large component of heavy armor through hilly, forested countryside in winter. Thus, the road network to be traversed was of special importance. The Wehrmacht designated certain Ardennes roads called Rollbahns for priority use by advancing troops and supplies. These roads are marked in red on the accompanying map. Rollbahns extended from the front line to the Meuse/Maas River.
  • I count eight rollbahns emanating from the front line. The top five were to support the 6th SS Panzer Army; the bottom three the 5th SS Panzer Army. 
  • Please ignore the blue notations of Allied units, as they contain unit locations after the attack began.
The Wehrmacht's Planned Ardennes Rollbahns
The Wehrmacht's Planned Ardennes Rollbahns
Sources for Big Pigeon's The ETO > Ardennes/The Bulge > Before The Bulge webpage:  
​General sources for the Ardennes/The Bulge webpages: (C/O = courtesy of) ​Sources for the above webpage images: ​
Early that fateful day, the three armies of the Wehrmacht's Army Group B all smashed westward into the weakly-defended lines of the US First Army's V and VIII Corps.

Soon the ETO began feeding divisions into the Bulge area in an effort to contain the Wehrmacht advance.

The Sixth Panzer Army in the north of the Bulge was contained first. Further south, the Fifth Panzer Army continued to advance for ten days.

​After the Wehrmacht advance was halted, it took an additional month for US forces to eliminate the Bulge.

Neither the grandiose German goal nor the more moderate goal of crossing the Meuse River was realized. The result was an American strategic victory. The German army lost valuable reserves and were eventually forced to withdraw. However, Allied losses in men and material were roughly the same as German losses.