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Maandag 09:00 - 17:00 Dinsdag 09:00 - 17:00 Woensdag 09:00 - 17:00 Donderdag 09:00 - 17:00 Vrijdag 09:00 - 17:00 Zaterdag 09:00 - 17:00 Zondag 09:00 - 17:00

Bob's Battle of the Bulge Tours

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België
Manhay
Bob's Battle of the Bulge Tours

Facebookpage of www.battletour.be en www.battle-of-the-bulge.be website

02/02/2025

Then and now: Hotton bridge.
The bridge was well defended by units of the 3rd armored division and engineers against elements of the 116th Windhund division. The bridge had to be kept in allied hands because it was used by many US troops going into the assembly sector of Werbomont.
www.battletour.be

30/01/2025

Help Needed for monument!
"On the 29th of May 1943, Halifax DT-804 of 35 Squadron RAF took off from Graveley, UK. On the way back from their mission (a major firebombing of the Barmen district in Wuppertal, Germany.) she was intercepted by Lt Schnauffer, Germany's most successful night fighter.
The bomber was shot down near Zoutleeuw and crashed in a field along the Duras road. Six of the seven crew members did not survive the crash. One crew member managed to jump in time but had to surrender to the occupying forces afterwards with 6 gunshot wounds to his leg."
We remember:
- Flight officer Hoos Ronald (25), pilot, Liverpool
- Sergeant Bell Ernest (25), flight engineer, Belfast
- Sergeant Kennedy John Gerard (22), navigator, Ardwick
- Sergeant Hodge Ronald William (20), navigator/bombardier, Cheshire
- Sergeant Tannock Alexander (20), air gunner, Paisley
- Sergeant Taylor Alexander Munroe (22), air gunner, Lossiemouth
- Sergeant Davidson J., radio operator
On behalf of Bram Gourmand and his father a monument will be erected at the crashsite. They need some help with financing it, so they started a crowdfund. You can find it here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/monument-for-halifax-dt804-please-help-us-raise-the-funds
Please consider a donation, so these men will not be forgotten!

29/01/2025

A crashed B17 near Remagne, 13 January 1945. After being hit by German fire it crash-landed in a snow-covered meadow. Miraculously, the seven crew members emerged unscathed from this unexpected ordeal.
http://battletour.be

28/01/2025

Men of the 291st regiment/ 75th Infantry Division march though the town of Beffe underway to their next objective. Battle of the Bulge, December 1944.

27/01/2025

St. Hubert, Belgium: American infantryman of the 87th Division enter the town right after the Germans fled the town. January 1945.
www.battletour.be

26/01/2025

Men of Company C/ 325th Glider Infantry Regiment, 82ndAB Division carry their ammunition on a sled through a snow drifted landscape.
Herresbach region, Battle of the Bulge.
http://battletour.be

24/01/2025

Tanks of the 42nd Armored Battalion move into attack on 16 January 1945 in the area of Mabompre, Belgium.

22/01/2025

Pvt. Robert Calvert, Buffalo, N.Y., keeps on alert as his buddy, Pvt. Charles Lock, Jufaula, Ala., sleeps in Houffalize Sector. They are with the 41st Armored Regiment, 2nd Armored Division, 16 January 1945.

15/01/2025

We visited the King Tiger from Saumur a last time before it heads back to France.
It will stay in the Bastogne Barracks till the end of January 2025.
Also see: https://bastognebarracks.be/en

11/01/2025

Today 80 years ago: Men of the 84thID meeting men of the Blackwatch in the heavy bombarded town of La Roche en Ardenne.

10/01/2025

Today we remember the 31 men who were Killed In Action near Ottré.
On January 10 1945 two platoons of F company/ 331st Regiment, 83rdID tried to attack fortified positions between Ottré and Petite Langlire. They got pinned down by heavy fire. Around 1300hrs several tanks and a tankdestroyer tried to help out the platoons, but were destroyed by tankfire.
At the end of the day 25 men were KIA, 10 men became POW, and one man left the field alive. Of the tankcrews 6 men lost their lifes.
In September 2013 I adopted the grave of one of the brave men of F company who was KIA that day. His name is Clarence D. Self, he was from Kingston, Oklahoma.
May we never forget these men and their bravery.
On 10 January 2022 I published my findings about this matter here: https://www.battle-of-the-bulge.be/the-ottre-massacre/

07/01/2025

Today we remember John F. McAtee of the 551st Parachute Infantry Battalion who was Killed In Action in Rochelinval 80 years ago.
May we never forget.

06/01/2025

On January 6th 1945, while taking the area of Fraiture, three men of Co. C., 33rd Armored Regt. 3rd Armored Division, where brutally executed by an unknown German corporal.
We remember:
– William Forsythe (Kokomo – Indiana), executed on the field.
– Waitman Simons (West Virginia); executed near the tank.
– Ralph Q. Baker; executed near the tank
Full story here: https://www.grandmenil.com/murder-at-fraiture/

05/01/2025

On the night of January 5, 1945, German troops made a final attack in the area of Manhay/Erezée in an attempt to reach the Hotton-Grandmenil road.
During that night, the men of the First Battalion, 289th Regiment, 75th Infantry Division, fought fiercely to repel the attacks.
Company C came under heavy attack near the bridge over the Aisne River. During the fight, PFC Abraham Matza was hit in the leg. In a split-second decision, he decided to send the other men to the rear. At first, they refused, but Abe insisted. He armed himself with a BAR, clips, and grenades and stayed in his foxhole while the others retreated.

Abe’s best friend, Jose Longoria, went back the next day to look for him. He found Matza’s body with about 20–30 bayonet stab wounds. He also found about 40 enemy dead all around Abraham. PFC Matza gave his life protecting the men of the Second Platoon, and he inflicted heavy losses on the Germans before they overpowered him.

May we never forget the heroic action of Abraham Matza.
Full story here: https://www.grandmenil.com/unyielding-valor/
PIctures: 1. Abraham Matza Memorial 2. At the location in Forge a La Plez 3. Picture of the researchteam 4. Some of the findings.

04/01/2025

***551stPIB bayonet attack in Dairomont***
On January 4, 1945, the paratroopers of Company A of the 551st executed one of the rarely mentioned bayonet charges of World War II near the village of Dairomont, Belgium. Led by Lieutenant Richard Durkee, the company eliminated several enemy machine-gun positions and inflicted significant casualties on a much larger enemy force.
Sergeant Douglas Dillard, the communications sergeant for Company A, provides his perspective on the bayonet charge:
"Fix bayonets and charge!" That’s the order Lieutenant Durkee gave us as we charged across that field and wooded area toward the German positions. I understand why he did it, and I see the advantage in it. I’m sure he thought, "Hey, we can scare the hell out of these guys by fixing our bayonets!" It might also boost our troops’ morale. It had been one hell of a day. There was a lot of activity, and we lost a lot of men. People were pretty angry and fired up. You just wanted to accomplish something."
The GOYAs of Company A charged the German machine-gun positions, despite the sight of machine guns firing directly at them. Sergeant Dillard recalls that it felt like a scene from a movie as he watched Lieutenant Durkee move through a line of German foxholes, killing several Germans in the process. Dillard’s Thompson submachine gun was frozen and unable to fire. Eventually, he helped Durkee gather several of the GOYAs who had become disoriented and were still stabbing at the dead German bodies, their final breaths lingering in the air as a thick mist. The GOYAs had unleashed all their pent-up anger and rage and simply wanted to kill Germans, over and over again.
May we never forget.
551pib.us

03/01/2025

***The Battle for Bure***
Today we remember the heroic actions of the 13th Lancashire Parachute Battalion.
At 13:00 hrs, from the edge of the forest overlooking the village of Bure, they began its attack. As soon as the paras left the cover of the trees they came under heavy German machine-gun and mortar fire as well as fire from a Panther tank. Despite all this, the British paratroopers continued their attack, reaching the first houses and progressing from house to house. After 3 days of heavy fighting, sometimes hand-to hand, and at the cost of heavy losses, the paratroopers gained control of the village. Bure was liberated.
Heavy casualties were sustained amounting to 7 officers and 182 men (of whom 68 were killed) by 13 (Lancashire) Para Bn (about a third of the Battalion), and 1 officer and 20 men (7 killed) by 2nd Battalion, Ox and Bucks. The Fife and Forfar Yeomanry and 23 Hussars also suffered heavy casualties including the loss of 16 Sherman tanks.
The Battle of Bure was the bloodiest battle for the British army.
May we never forget.
(In Remembrance of Michel Bourland who passed away last year)

02/01/2025

***The Leonard brothers***
On 2 January 1945 Leon Degrelle settled his troops of elements of the 28th SS-Division Wallonien in the Limerle castle. They were convinced that Liège, Huy and Namur had already been taken by the German troops. Soon they found out the Germans had not reached the Meuse river.
During the eight days of his stay in this area, four brothers were arrested by German troops because they were part of the resistance. Degrelle promised to take them in custody and take care of them.
The brothers were last seen on January 6, 1945. It was not until March 6, 1946, that the brothers' remains were discovered by a Luxembourg border guard. He noticed a shoe protruding from the ground a few meters from the border. After the remains were exhumed, it was confirmed that they belonged to the four Léonard brothers, all of whom had been executed with a shot to the neck.
May we never forget.

Adres

Grandrue 15
Manhay

Openingstijden

Maandag	09:00 - 17:00
Dinsdag	09:00 - 17:00
Woensdag	09:00 - 17:00
Donderdag	09:00 - 17:00
Vrijdag	09:00 - 17:00
Zaterdag	09:00 - 17:00
Zondag	09:00 - 17:00

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http://www.battletour.be/

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Video's

The King tiger is Bastogne last weekend.

Manhay event

Several years ago I wrote an article about an English hero: Corporal of Horse John Jenkins, who was fighting in Rochefort in the early stages of the battles. One of the guys that helped me out was Brian Rogers. Today I found some film of the attacks on Rochefort and finally in a good quality. Link to the article: https://www.battle-of-the-bulge.be/corporal-horse-john-jenkins-a-forgotten-hero/

Footsteps Battlefield Tours Trailer

STARTING IN 2021! Footsteps Battlefield Tours is a new and unique World War II tour company with an international team of professionals here to help you with your travel needs. With our office based in the United States, it’s easy to get in touch with us and feel confident in your booking. At the moment, we are offering two battlefield tours for small groups (max. 16 persons). Our first tour option is from Normandy to Germany and the second is from Italy to Germany. The team consists of highly experienced and local tour guides who have been in this business for over 10 years and know of less known sites to visit and have many personal anecdotes and stories in their areas of expertise. We also have professional tour hosts who speak English and the local languages to help make your trip easier and to help you feel more comfortable. We pride ourselves on our local guides and hosts who are an exceptional team and will provide the best customer service for you. Not only will we visit incredible battlefield sites on this tour, but we also will be visiting some local artisan sites as well. Such as breweries, vineyards, chocolate shops, and more. This is a unique and once-in-a-lifetime trip focused on history and exciting adventures! This is a unique and once-in-a-lifetime trip focused on following in the footsteps of the greatest generation as they worked to liberate Europe. If you are interested in history and adventures, please contact us, and visit our website for more information on the tours. The website: www.footsteps-battlefield-tours.com Our business opens on January 5, 2021! We wish you a very happy 2021 and hope to see you on one of our magnificent tours! Team Footsteps Battlefield Tours (FBT)

Installing the statue "The Kiss"

Today the statue "The Kiss" was installed at the Bastogne War Museum. Here you can see a short timelapse.