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Battle of Aachen
Part of World War II
A GI machine gun crew (2d Battalion, 26th Infantry) in action against the German Wehrmacht in the streets of Aachen, Germany 15 October 1944
Date October 1 – October 22, 1944 Location 50°46′N 6°6′E / 50.767, 6.1 (Battle of Aachen)Coordinates: 50°46′N 6°6′E / 50.767, 6.1 (Battle of Aachen) Aachen, Germany Result Allied victory
Combatants
United States	Germany
Commanders
William Simpson	Gerhard Wilck
Strength
100,000 soldiers	12,000 soldiers
Casualties
2,000 dead, 3,000 wounded	5,000 dead or wounded, 5,600 captured

The Battle of Aachen was a battle in Aachen, Germany, that took place in October 1944 in World War II. At the time of this battle, there were only about 20,000 civilians living there; the remainder of the 160,000 inhabitants (1939 census) had been evacuated by German commander Gerhard von Schwerin to protect them from Allied attacks. When von Schwerin contemplated surrender to protect the city's artifacts from air raids, Hitler had him removed. Hitler then sent about 5,000 Volkssturm to defend the city, commanded by Gerhard Wilck. Combatants Kingdom of the Netherlands Germany Commanders Henry G. Winkelman, Jan Joseph Godfried baron van Voorst tot Voorst Fedor von Bock (Army Group B) Strength 9 divisions, 676 guns, 1 tank (inoperational), 124 aircraft Total: 350,000 men 22 divisions, 1,378 guns, 759 tanks, 1150 aircraft Total: 750,000... This article is about a Second World War battle in 1940, for the 1658 battle of the same name see Battle of the Dunes (1658) Combatants United Kingdom France Belgium Germany Commanders Lord Gort General Weygand Gerd von Rundstedt (Army Group A) Ewald von Kleist (Panzergruppe von Kleist) Strength approx. ... Combatants Canada United Kingdom Germany Commanders Louis Mountbatten J. H. Roberts Gerd von Rundstedt Strength 6,086 1,500 Casualties Canada: 950 dead, 2,340 captured wounded or not; United Kingdom: 600; United States:4+; 311 dead, 280 wounded The Dieppe Raid, also known as The Battle of Dieppe or... Combatants Croat SS soldiers Germany Commanders Ferid Džanić Unknown Strength 500-1,000 Unknown Casualties 146 N/A The Villefranche-de-Rouergue uprising took place on September 17, 1943, when a division composed of about 500-1000 Croats and Bosnian Muslims from Croatia, which has been sent by force... Combatants United States United Kingdom Canada Free France Poland Nazi Germany Commanders Dwight Eisenhower (Supreme Allied Commander) Bernard Montgomery (land) Bertram Ramsay (sea) Trafford Leigh-Mallory (air) Omar Bradley (U.S. 1st Army) Miles Dempsey (UK 2nd Army) Harry Crerar (Canadian 1st Army) Gerd von Rundstedt (OB WEST) Erwin Rommel... Combatants United States1 United Kingdom2 Free France3 Germany Commanders Lt. ... American soldiers cross the Siegfried Line The drive to the Siegfried Line was one of the final Allied phases in World War II of the Western European Campaign. ... Combatants United Kingdom United States Canada Poland Germany Commanders Bernard Montgomery Brian Horrocks Roy Urquhart James M. Gavin Maxwell Taylor Stanislaw Sosabowski Walter Model Wilhelm Bittrich Kurt Student Strength 35,000 20,000 Casualties 11,377 dead,wounded or missing 6,450 Captured 2,000 Killed 6,000 Wounded Operation... The Battle of Overloon (Code named Operation Aintree) took place between September 30th and October 18th 1944. ... Combatants Canada United Kingdom Poland Belgium Norway Germany Commanders Guy Simonds (acting) (First Canadian Army) Gustav-Adolf von Zangen (German 15th Army) Strength  ?  ? Casualties 12,873 total; including 6,367 Canadian  ? The Battle of the Scheldt was a series of military operations which took place in northern Belgium and south... Combatants United States Germany Commanders Courtney Hodges Walter Model Strength 120,000 80,000 Casualties 33,000 casualties 12,000—16,000 deaths[1] (est. ... For the 1965 film, see Battle of the Bulge (film). ... Located near Alsace in Eastern France, the Colmar Pocket was the site of a ten-day battle during the Second World War that saw four divisions of the French Army and an entire Corps from the U.S. Army overwhelm German resistance. ... During World War II, Operation Plunder was the crossing of the Rhine river at Rees, Wesel and south of the Lippe Canal by the British Second Army, under Lieutenant-General Miles C Dempsey, and the US Ninth Army, under Lieutenant-General William H Simpson. ... Generally, a battle is an instance of combat in warfare between two or more parties wherein each group will seek to defeat the others. ... Oche redirects here; in darts the oche is the line from which players must throw. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... This article is about the independent states that comprised the Allies. ... Hitler redirects here. ... With torn picture of his Führer beside his clenched fist, a dead Bataillionsführer (general) of the Volkssturm lies on the floor of city hall, Leipzig, Germany. ... Colonel Gerhard Wilck was the German commander who defended the German city Aachen in the Battle of Aachen. ...

The procession of German prisoners captured with the fall of Aachen marching through the ruined city streets.

Image File history File links Kriegsgefangene. ... Image File history File links Kriegsgefangene. ...

Background

The American commanders decided to besiege the city and cut it off from supply and other essentials. However, the Germans had a different view. The city was important in German history, being the coronation site of Charlemagne, and the home of the Holy Roman Empire (later called Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation), or what Hitler deemed the "First Reich." Moreover, this was the first major German city to face invasion, so Hitler ordered that the city be held at all costs. Hitler deemed that "it was necessary to hold the line at Aachen in order to ensure the survival of the Third Reich." ^[1] A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by force or attrition, often accompanied by an assault. ... Charlemagne (left) and Pippin the Hunchback. ... This article is about the medieval empire. ... The Holy Roman Empire should not be mistaken for the Roman Empire (31 B.C.–A.D. 476). ...

Battle

Meanwhile, the Ninth United States Army had been maneuvering north and south of the city, but eventually realized the Aachen garrison was a potential threat. The commanders decided to take the city directly. However, within the city they faced murderous urban warfare, advantageous to the Germans who were on their own ground and knew the city well. The American troops in the hardest fighting included the 2nd and 3rd Battalions of the 26th Infantry Regiment of the 1st Division, supported by the U.S. 745th Tank Battalion. From the north, the 30th Division attacked too. The Ninth United States Army was one of the main U.S. Army combat commands used during the campaign in northwest Europe in 1944 and 1945. ... Urban warfare is a modern warfare conducted in urban areas such as towns and cities. ... The 1st Infantry Division of the United States Army —nicknamed “The Big Red One” after its shoulder patch—is the oldest continuously serving division in the United States Army. ... The 30th Infantry Division was a unit of the United States Army in World War I and World War II. It was nicknamed the Old Hickory division, in honour of Andrew Jackson, due to it being comprised of National Guard units from his old stomping grounds. ...

However, the 30th Division took more than 2,000 casualties in a matter of days, and elements of the 29th Division were forced to join the fight. Eventually, the city was taken at a cost of 5,000 casualties on both sides, with an additional 5,600 Germans taken prisoner. The 30th Infantry Division was a unit of the United States Army in World War I and World War II. It was nicknamed the Old Hickory division, in honour of Andrew Jackson, due to it being comprised of National Guard units from his old stomping grounds. ... The US 29th Infantry Division was a United States infantry division that existed during World War I and World War II. 29th Infantry Division Symbol Nicknamed Blue and Gray, the divisions motto is 29 Lets Go, taken from General Eisenhowers inspiring speech to the troops preparing for...

Aftermath

Franz Oppenhoff was appointed by the Allies as the new Mayor of Aachen, but he was soon shot by German Commandos sent on special orders from Himmler. Category: ...

References

• Rass, Christoph; Rohrkamp, René; Quadflieg, Peter M., General Graf von Schwerin und das Kriegsende in Aachen. Ereignis, Mythos, Analyse, Aachen 2007. ISBN 978-3-8322-6623-3.

One of the Men-at-Arms Series. ...

External links

• Account of battle by modelmakers