The Battle of the Bulge: The Photographic History of an American Triumph

Among the most famous battles that American forces fought in World War II, the Battle of the Bulge helped define the U.S. soldier in the “Good War.” The sheer scale of destruction--with almost as many American soldiers killed during the battle’s 39 days as in all 80 days of the D-day and the ensuing Normandy campaign--continues to occupy military historians and veterans with endless speculation about what happened and what might have. This photographic history recreates the triumph of American arms against the vaunted Nazi war machine's desperate "all in" attack--a victory that significantly shortened World War II in Europe and saved most of Western Europe from the Soviets. In harrowing images, the book revisits the only destruction of an American division in Europe in World War II--the 106th Infantry Division, which suffered almost all of its casualties in the first three days of the battle. It shows the air forces, armored forces, and infantry on both sides thrown into the Bulge—nearly a million men in a meat grinder of terrible ferocity. Included is the most famous atrocity committed against Americans in Europe during the war: the Malmedy Massacre in a grim photographic record. Battle of the Bulge is a brilliant pictorial account of one of the greatest battles of all time, this book is a lasting tribute and testament to American might in the fight against tyranny.