The Battle of The Bulge
During the autumn, the German forces had to counter the attempts of the Western Allies to cross the Westwall, while Hitler was looking for an opportunity to seize the initiative on the Western Front. The result was the Operation Wacht am Rhein. In a desperate attempt to defeat the Allies on the Western Front, the German armies were to break through the US lines in the Ardennes, to cross the River Meuse and take Antwerp, cutting the Allied forces in two.
The main role in the breakthrough was devoted to the 6th Panzer Army under the command of Sepp Dietrich. He would have to pierce the American lines between Aachen and the Schnee Eifel and seize bridges on the Meuse on both sides of Liège. Within the 6th Panzer Army a mobile striking role was assigned to the 1st SS Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler (LSSAH) under the command of SS-Oberführer Wilhelm Mohnke. The division was split into four Kampfgruppe with Peiper commanding the most substantial which included all the armored sections of the division. Peiper was given the use of the newest tank, the 70 ton Tiger II or King Tiger, which this battle would be its 3rd on the western front since its introduction, and with its 7 inches of armor made it impervious to allied anti-tank weapons. However, the King Tiger had a high consumption of fuel (1/2 mile to the gallon) along with mechanical defects (mainly the tank's suspension system), which would continuously hinder Peiper's ability to reach his assigned objectives in Operation Wacht am Rhein. His duty was to break through the U.S. lines along a route designated B through Spa, Belgium and to take bridges on the Meuse between Liège and Huy.
Read more about this topic: Joachim Peiper
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