Friday, December 22 1944, the telex rattled in the headquarters of McAuliffe in Bastogne. The message read: 'HUGH IS ON IT'S WAY'. This was good news, it meant that the 4th Armored Division was on it’s way. This unit was under command of Hugh Gaffey and his order from Patton was straight forward, 'TO DRIVE LIKE HELL!' and move out to Bastogne. The route of the advance was from Arlon to Bastogne, with on the left flank Combat Command B and on the right flank Combat Command A which had to take secondary roads north. Easier said then done, because to stop the Germans, all the bridges were blown by the VIII Army Corps on the line Martelange naar Neufchateau.

Around 15.00 hours on Saturday December 23, a 30 metres Bailey bridge was finished so the head of the force could move from Arlon towards Bastogne. On the left flank the situation was the same, blown bridges and heavy opposition from the Germans. Patton became anxious because of the delays and decided to send a small Task Force ahead which would move through the night in the hope to reach Bastogne. But Combat Command B managed to break out to the north during the Friday night. The CCB moved between the present day N 85 and the N 4 towards Chaumont while CCA was still struggling around Martelange.

Chaumont was defended by a group of tiered Germans belonging to the 5th Paradivision. Because the Americans were planning a massive strike, that took some time to built, Oberst Heinz Kokott was given the opportunity to send twelve mechanized guns to Chaumont. The Germans had a dilemma, in the south they had to stop the advancing 4th Armored Division, but they were also ordered to attack Bastogne. The Saturday saw the heaviest fighting around Bastogne. McAuliffe's, with his 101st Airborne Divison that was trained to ‘work’ in a surrounded position, sent out a message to the 8th Army Corps to ask the 4th Armored Division to push through,… 'The situation for us becomes rather gloomy'. But how the 4th AD was willing to give their best, the Germans held their positions.

A farm in Chaumont, where during the fighting almost all the people from the village (around 40) were hiding in the cellar, while above their heads a man to man fight was going on. Still the scars of the fighting are visible in the walls of the farm

Combat Command B suffered heavy losses around Chaumont, eleven Sherman tanks were put out of action, and 65 men were killed, among them, all officers. Combat Command A lost during the fighting around Warnach 68 men and five Shermans were lost. But Sunday December 23 CCA had Warnach in their hands. Combat Command Reserve was placed on the right flank to assisted CCA. They had a real struggle to take Bigonville, but it was taken on the Sunday afternoon. Meanwhile, the Germans were preparing a last big offensive to take Bastogne. It had to take place on Christmas day. The attack would come from the north and northeast with 26 Division Volksgreanadiers in the lead and fresh troops of the 15de Panzer Grenadiers Division. The Americans coming from the south towards Bastogne, had to be stopped by the 39 Regiment near Assenois. After an artillery barrage at 02.45 hours on the Monday morning, the Germans attacked Bastogne. The first signs indicated that it went all according to plan, when 17 German tanks of the 115 Kampfgruppe broke through at Flamizoulle. Optimistic radio traffic reported that they had reached west side of Bastogne. They even managed to break through the first line of defence, but the 101st Airborne troops encircled them and closed the way back behind the Germans, not a single German escaped. On December 26 a final assault was undertaken by the German when 26 Reconnaissance attacked from Isle-la-Hesse. But it was to no avail when it run into the American howitzers and anti-tank guns.

To make things even worse, Kokott received the message from 39 Regiment Volksgrenadiers, that twelve American tanks rolled into Assenois. Kokott tried to sent reinforcements of the 26 Regiment Volksgrenadiers to assist at Assenois, but these troops were too exhausted by the constant fighting, they could barely move.

On Christmas day, Monday 25 December, the Combat Command Reserve (CCR) was moved from the right flank to the left flank of the CCA, to give this weak spot some more strength. But the CCR was held up by fierce resistance at the village of Remoiville. But by shear determination and man to man fighting they took Remoiville, making 327 Germans prisoner. CCR came closer and closer towards Bastogne, while CCA was still some 5 kilometres from Arlon. CCB had reached Hompré, the former headquarters of Kokott and were seven kilometres from Bastogne. The next target for CCR would be Sibret and was planned for 26 December. The CCR was moving in a steady pace, and when a couple of P-47's Thunderbolts dropped some bombs on Remichampagne and the German defences there collapsed, CCR moved on to Clochimont which was also taken. Instead of attacking Sibret (the American staff thought it was heavily defended, but it turned later out that it was not) the commanders of CCR decided to move to Assenois. And so started the first barrage of 155mm guns at Assenois just when the light was fading at 16.45 hours. Before the last shells were shot, the Sherman tanks drove forward, blasting away with their guns.

Up front drove an M4A3E2 Jumbo, which was under command of Lt. Charles Boggess and he was determent to reach Bastogne. The last obstacle was a small bunker on the right side of the road. Three shells were shot into the concrete of the bunker. It was almost too dark to move any further, but Boggess decided to move a hundred metres further up the small road. When he passed the bunker, he saw at least twenty killed Germans beside it. Suddenly he noticed some movement and thought to recognise uniforms. Boggess called out to them: 'Come here!,… This is the 4th Armored!' After a few moment a lonely figure approached,… 'I'm Lieutenant Webster of the 326th Engineers, 101st Airborne Division, glad to see you!' And so came, at least theoretically, on December 26 1944 at 16.55 hours an end to the siege of Bastogne.

In action from 18 through 27 December 1944, the 101st Airborne and its attachments had suffered 115 officer and 1,933 enlisted casualties. They had killed around 7,000 Germans, captured 697 prisoners, and destroyed approximately 200 armored vehicles.

The M4A3E2 Jumbo, 'Cobra King' from Lt. Charles Boggess.
The tank is preserved and was till 2009 displayed in Vilseck, Bavaria.
(The tank has moved since then and is now at the Patton Museum in the US)

The M4A3E2 Jumbo, 'Cobra King' from Lt. Charles Boggess was later also used in the infamous Hammelburg Raid. The tanks still exists and is being restored at the Patton Museum in America. Towards the end off the war, the 75mm gun was replaced for a 76mm. During maintenance over the years, paintwork obscured the registration number and it became uncertain if it was the tank of Boggess. It had to be 3083084, but suddenly it was 3083081. Employees of the Patton Museum did find the correct numbers, and it turned out that it was indeed ‘Cobra King’. The tank was moved in the summer of 2009 to the Patton Museum in the US.

Some years ago I received a mail from Wayne Walter Wrolson. His father, Walt Wrolson, was once the 3rd Platoon Commander of C-Company, 37 Tank Battalion, 4th Armored Division. His Sherman tank was called 'Casey Jones'. He reached during the Battle of the Bulge as the second tank the town of Bastogne, just behind the tank of Boggess.

General Maxwell Taylor, commander of the 101st Airborne Divison, who was in America during the Battle of the Bulge, could finally join his troops on December 27. Supplies and wounded men were transported south via the route of Assenois. Germans tried on December 30 to retake the route by attacking from the woods near Marenwez and from the west, but to no avail.