1. A Bad Phone Connection Led to One of the Largest Mass Surrenders of U.S. Troops of World War II
The 106th Golden Lions Division under the command of Major General Alan W. Jones was spread out over a large section of rugged terrain known as the Schnee Eifel. As per the Army Service Manual, one division should not be responsible for more than 5 miles of front line, but prior to the battle, the 106th was covering 26 miles. As the Germans mounted their offensive, Jones worried that the rear of his 422nd and 423rd regiments were too exposed to a German attack. He knew they had to be withdrawn or risk being sitting ducks to the Germans.
He phoned Lieutenant General Troy Middleton and urged him to withdraw the troops to safety. But the connection was so bad that Middleton misheard the General and believed that he was being ordered to keep his men in position. The men stayed and were attacked on December 16th. They were encircled and cut off by German forces. The men regrouped and tried to counterattack in order to break through the German forces, but they were unable to get through.
With no escape and cut off from any support, the men were low on ammunition and being rained on by heavy artillery fire. The men knew there was no choice and on December 19th, 6.500 men were forced to surrender to the Germans. The official army record states that 7,000 men were lost during this battle but the number could be as high as 9,000. There was also a substantial loss in arms and equipment. All told, it was the worst reverse suffered by American forces during the 1944-1945 operations in Europe.