Baraque de Fraiture WTO (id:#60071)

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Prior Publication: Baraque de Fraiture

Baraque de Fraiture, Belgium 1944-12-23 (38 others)

Overview:

The advancing 2nd SS Panzer Division’s primary objective –crossing the Meuse River to Antwerp – required possession of a key bridge located at Liége. The plan to reach Liége necessitated the capture of St. Vith road net. This vital road net was accessible from the N-15 Highway, along which lay the crossroads of Baraque de Fraiture. Located on the boundary between the 3rd Armored Division and the thinly spread 82nd Airborne Division, neither division had assigned units to hold this important position. However, several ad hoc units began gathering at the crossroads on the 20th of December. The commander of the 82nd Airborne Division, General James Gavin, committed the last of his reserves to bolster the weakly defended position on the 22nd, hoping to prevent a German breakthrough and subsequent encirclement of the 82nd between the Salm and Ambleve Rivers. On the same evening, the 2nd SS Panzer Division, halted for lack of fuel, finally received enough to allow a full-scale attack on the Baraque de Fraiture crossroads on the 23rd of December.

Defender: American (325th Glider Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division and 106th Infantry Division with the 3rd and 7th Armored Divisions)  

Errata (source)