No small feat for a 20 yr old and his 18 men to take on 500 of the 12th Volksgrenadiers and 9th Fallshirmjager. Hard to believe it took 37 yrs for these men to get the recognition they deserve , true heroes. Another outstanding video , thanks.

Great video! My father joined the I&R platoon of the 394th in January, 1945 as a replacement. Nobody knew what happened to their predecessors until the 99th liberated the POW camp in Moosburg in April.

Incredible how you maintain this high level. The footage of those days sure add to the stories.

I can not thank you enough for these videos, my stepfather was in 106th infantry, 389th artillery and told me stories about the battle of the bulge. Again thank you so much for what you are doing I really appreciate the videos.

Your stories are unparalleled for detail and ability to comprehend.

Oh. My. GOSH!!! If this isn't already a movie it should be!!! I'd see it over and over!!! Thanks for this! Great story and video!

What an incredible fascinating and detailed story you are sharing with us again Jon Yours and Mark Felton’s incredible stories are the highlights of my youtube channel

I remember watching a series called shootout they actually interviewed Milosevic , he fought the battle without shoes or socks on. Another outstanding show no one explains WW2 combat better .

Once again, another extremely informative documentary with footage I'd never seen before. Keep up the brilliant work.

Good video. While serving in the Army we did a staff ride there and had the chance to meet the little girl who alerted the germans. She was now an old woman who still felt bad for her actions. That really brought the story to life.

Wow! Another outstanding video. This has been covered by other vloggers, but this had more information, and was filmed in Lanzerath. Keep up the great work, Jon.

Very well done account. I visited this site with J.D. Eisenhower’s book in hand in December 1978. There wasn’t a detailed map in the book so I looked at the terrain and decided to walk where I would have defended and I came across the line of foxholes. In one particularly large one I found what seemed to be a jeep tail light bracket. This was on a gloomy cold day and dark came quickly. I went to a small cafe in town for dinner and since it was early for a Belgian dinner I was the only one there. I struck up a conversation with the owner with my bad French and told her that I was an American soldier stationed in Germany. She then started singing the song ‘You Are My Sunshine” and told me that GI’s had taught her this when they passed through when she was a young girl. That entire day was a truly memorable experience for me.

Votre passion est la mienne...

Outstanding.........Thank-you very much.

Your attention to detail is incredible. Many thanks.

Hi Jon Fascinating story about the small unit action at Lanzerath. I’ve heard about it numerous times but not as detailed as your story. I personally find that it is really more interesting to hear about the individual platoon and company level stories rather than the larger battalion/regimental overall actions. Your research and presentation is great, and the stock footage is more accurate to associate with when you are portraying the story of events. Thanks once again for sharing another concise presentation ❤😊

I wonder how many 20-year-old soldiers today could summon up the coolness, the attention to detail, the courage and the professionalism to get as much out of such a small force as did Bouck that day. You've put together a superb little doco with this one. Quite wonderful. PS: I have read the Eisenhower book on the Bulge Battle. Another great Battle of the Bulge account, though near-forgotten today, is Battle, by John Toland. -

OMG that was for me intense! Another book I need to read. You really knocked this one out of the park. Very informative again 👏. Thanks again for the history lesson. Stay safe Jon.

Wow. Thank you.

Very enjoyable episode, cheers....

An excellent vlog Jon, one of your best so far. You had me enthralled throughout, thank you. Best regards, Tony

Thank you Jon for this video , this is a part of the battle I had not heard of ,I really enjoy your videos keep up the good work.

You do such a fantastic job with your research and videos, its like you take us along with you. I would love to visit these places and can with you, places where my 19 year old father fought for his country, his life, his comrades lives and our future. He wasn't exactly right here being in the 3rd Armored but he fought in the Bulge I did remember another story my father told me that happened in a lot of deep snow, drifts and still snowing with winds. He said they were backed into a tree line watching a road and around dusk they heard the clattering of tracks. They knew it had to be German as he said their tracks were all steel with no rubber doughnuts in them. He said the lead tank stopped broadside to them and they saw a man get out and stand on top of the turret. He said they knew it was German for sure then as they could see his long black (or dark) coat while he was glassing around. He said they fired and missed it, then a couple other of the M24s fired and both made a hit. He said sparks flew as if from a huge grinder. He then said the turret starting turning towards their position. He said they hightailed out of there but not before one of the M24s was destroyed. He said they didn't know what model of tank it was for sure, they just knew they missed and the two that hit bounced off. I can't remember how far he said it was out from them when they fired, wish I could but I just don't remember. I also don't remember if he said they fired again while booking it out of there as they had a gyro stabilizer that he said didn't work worth a darn most times. He did say they reported the position but I don't remember how they made said report. He told me these stories some 45/50 years ago and I just can't remember all the details. Thank you for your incredible work. P.S.- My wife's father was a gunners mate (i believe) on the USS Bunker Hill CV-17 during WW2. He ended up in the ocean for many many hours after the two Kamikazes struck her at Okinawa. He luckily was picked up by the Cruiser USS Wilkes Barre. He told my wife it was so surreal watching his ship sail away from him as it burned and smoked heavily. I just can't wrap my head around that statement, it had to be extremely scary to see this.

I'm looking forward to the channel expanding to Norway, the Channel Islands, North Africa, the North Atlantic, Mediterranean and the Far East and Pacific. Even better if it expanded to encompass WWI and the Korean War. The channel has shown me exactly where cousins, uncles and aunts were. A documentary on the sourcing of photographs and reports used to identify sites shown on the channel would be an excellent addition. I'm now based in Japan and met a man whose father was captured at Imphal where my grand-uncle fought. I've identified where in Japan my father was briefly before going to fight in Korea.

So well done! Thank you so very much!

Everyone seems to concentrate on 101st airborne aka Band of Brothers. It's good to hear about other units. Cheers, mate.

Very interesting video Jon. This is a subject that is often overlooked in the battle of the bulge timeline. Thanks for sharing

I just found your channel and I love it already!

Very impressive documentation of this critical battle, and the heroism of a small group of men against insurmountable odds! Tremendous video! Narration was impeccable! Love the back and forth of old footage and current footage of the battle areas.

Another awesome video Jon👍. Lazerath is on to do list after one of your previous videos, the foxholes visit will be an experience. Great work Jon

The Germans strategically where on top of this operation, i never knew they had tapped the American communication line like that, I knew American German borned men would capture Americans take their uniforms and go behind the enemy lines by changing road signs cutting phone lines and causing fires at medical storage tents Love your videos! So glad i found it! Keep up the amazing work!!

This is stunningly reminiscent of Colonel Joshua Chamberlain’s observation at Gettysburg; “We are the end of the line!”

Wow, incredible! Thank you so much for your detailed explaination of the beginning of the BOB. My dad came in as a replacement in the 99th (H393) around January 7, 1945 and went on with them through the end of the war.

Another great production - inspires me to go.

Fascinating! Well done!

Fantastic work love all your videos, so informative. Please keep up the great work.

Wow another great piece by you. I stop working on my computer and am riveted to what you are covering. I love seeing the real battle sites, especially the then photos and the today photos. As retired Navy I tried to do my own tours when I was overseas. Was on Guam in 1980 and traced the path of the 77th INFDIV that my Dad fought in. Made a collect call from Guam and he went over the Battle of Guam for about 45 minutes. In ETO on of the interesting sites was Cassino. I remember walking up to the Monastery and surveyed the terrain. How brutal to fight there. Any mortar of shell blast amplified by the Italian rocky terrain. So keep it up. AND I still learn a lot even though I am an old man!

Always great indebt content from your vids, thank you

Thank you for another great story! I enjoyed your report!

I love how you walk the battlefield and tell the story. Amazing content!

great video and history lesson. thank you for all you do to bring us great history lessons Larry

As always brilliant so much info on what happened there brings everything to life in this now sleepy village .you do so much great work keeping these men known today .thank you

Brilliant video. Thanks so much. My dad was in the Ardennes with 30 corps (Royal Artillery) just on the northern shoulder though. 👍🇬🇧

Great video! Very informative

This was a great retelling of the story. Sadly, the 9th Fallschimjager were actually a little bit worse than this account would have you believe. The final flanking attack that ended the US resistance was conducted by "Fifty men from Fusilier Regiment 27 of the 12th Volksgrenadier Division...." Or at least that's what I've read elsewhere.

great video as usual ! :)

I've read the account of the battle. The area described consisted of foxholes on a slope overlooking the town. Between the town and them was an open sloped field with a barbed wire fence about halfway up. There were men in the town too. They pulled out as the Germans approached. A village girl pointed out the US soldiers, and the green German troops, led by a Luftwaffe officer, repeatedly executed costly frontal attacks. Finally, they overwhelmed Bouck's men. The armor guys pulled out early in the battle.

Incredible brave story and so grippingly told! I stayed in Merlscheid a few years ago in front of the small church where the Germans entered the border of Belgium. You can make a nice walk from there to Lanzerath. It’s such a beautiful area and you could almost overview the hills in direction where the regiments of the 106th Division where situated in the Schneeeifel.

Fabulous telling, fabulous effort as always.

another fine beer watching yet another fantastic video, you truly are magnificent historian, my favorite by a long ways. thank you for all the time and effort you put in to not only entertain but also educate us on the finer points of ww2, it is very much appreciated.

Isn't this also the same platoon that is famous for getting attacked so quickly that they had to raise their mortars up to 89° or 90°? I was living in Bad Windsheim, Germany in the 90's, and in 1995 took a trip up to this area around April or May with my friends to do our own Battle of The Bulge tour with info we had gotten from WWII History magazines, copies of the official U.S. Army accounts of the battle from the base library and a copy of a great WWII locations guide book called "From Normandy to the Rheine" which doesn't seem to be available anymore. I remember it being Losheimergraben where this event took place. We stopped in Losheimergraben and read the info that we had and then drove on throughout the local area stopping in the villages to look at all the memorial plaques that have been set up dedicated to the U.S. units that liberated them. In one place not too far away from Losheimergraben we stopped at one of the memorials. There was a German TV film crew there shooting since it was the 50th anniversary. When they finished they asked us what we were doing and we told them and they told us that right across the street from us in the Church Hall that was there, there was a bunch of American Veterans having a reunion and they suggested we should go in. My friends and I reluctantly went over and stepped just inside the doorway of the hall. There were a bunch of round tables with U.S. veterans there and we just observed.... eventually one gentleman approached us and asked us what we were doing in the area and we told him and also that the TV crew had told us they were in there. He asked us where we had been so far and we told him.... and then we told him we just came from the place where the famous event happened with the mortars having to be raised to 89° or 90°... At that point, he got a really big smile on his face and he chuckled.... and said "see that guy over there at that table.... the one standing up and telling a story?".... "That's the Lieutenant that gave the order to raise the mortars up like that..... that was me and all these guys here.... that was our platoon". It was amazing! The gentleman's name that was speaking with us was Knoblauch. I specifically remember because I thought it was funny since that is the German word for garlic. He asked us if we had seen their foxholes and we said we didn't know anything about them. He told us they were still there and directed us where to go if we went back. The main reference he used was the house/s.... I think by its location and color.... then he said... "the old lady that lives at that house today is the little girl that lived in that house when I got captured on the front stoop of the house". We spent some time talking with him and others and the only other thing I remember was that they were all amazed to hear people our age, we were in our mid-twenties, were the least bit interested in anything they had done, and would drive 4 - 5 hours to try and see it. We eventually left and went back to Losheimergraben to look for their foxholes. At either 50.3791338, 6.3472619 or 50.3783189, 6.3421356 we found foxholes and one and two-man fighting positions just inside the woods from the house/s. While looking around we found M1 shell casings, grenade pins, and pieces of uniforms. There were also the remains sticking out of the dirt of commo wire spools and the batteries from the WWII-era handheld radios. It was amazing to find..... and...while we were there we saw these young kids in the same area running around with toy guns play fighting.... all we could think was if they only knew where they were and what took place here.

Well done! I thought I understood this engagement since I'd studied it, used in a college class I taught on the Ardennes, and I had conducted staff rides on the ground but yet I learned things from your video. Please continue making such great content.

New to the channel, and needed to let you know how well done these are. Wonderful scripting and editing and all. Brings me right in and tells me the story.. Had to let you know this, as your efforts here are appreciated. I do create some documentaries but for Rolling Stones and know the work effort. thank you!!

I see a lot of comments on other channels about how the western front was “easy”, or “easier” than the eastern front. First I’d say up front, I wasn’t there, but to me both fronts seemed awful. Or you’ll read that the US and British didn’t fight the “elite” German units, again I was there, but it doesn’t seem like the Brits and Americans had it easy. Just an observation I’ve seen on other channels. I like how you cover the story and just focus on facts, great content! Priceless even!

As per several historians, the top two U.S. intelligence failures of WWII were: 1. the failure to detect the Japanese naval force sent to attack Pearl Harbor; and 2. the failure to detect about 25 Nazi divisions massed to attack Belgium on 16 December 1944.

How has this not been made into a modern movie! It would be brilliant if done by the right director. Cheers for telling us about this action.

another great video. several other videos out there on this small but important fight. dare i say "victory" in that this platoon held up an entire division or more for over 1 day. trading space for time.

Great video, thanks

Wonderfully narration, such brave men

Great job! A very informative and inspiring video! All American heroes! We must never forget!!🇺🇸🙏👏🫡

Another excellent production of a virtually unknown yet important battle of ww2.

Great story telling as usual. Love the use of dramatic music.

Great video thoroughly enjoyed it thanks

Thanks for this great video

The I&R platoon gave such a good account for themselves the Germans were astonished that such a tiny unit could inflict the degree of catastrophic damage they delivered. Its a miracle they lived to tell the tale.

Another good story well told - cheers Jon.

Excellent video! I feel like I have been briefed by a former S-2 teaching history at the war college. Keep these high speed vids coming!

Very interesting presentation! This documentary on the I&R in Lanzerath is quite impressive.

Excellent once again and great informative content, thank you.

"The Longest Winter" Ambrose, I think... tells this tale. Very good read.

Once again without fail excellent material my friend keep up the outstanding work !!! 💪

Great job! 😎👍

I read in a book of the bulge, that at least 2 civilians had crossed the lines after seeing the huge build up of German manpower and tanks & artillery, and they reported what they had seen to the Americans, yet nothing was done. The US command simply wouldn’t have believed it anyway. They wouldn’t have believed it was possible. Yet it happened.

oh man this is a great video!, many years ago I watched a cheesy history channel documentary series called "shootout!" it had live action reenactment scenes and everything. they did an episode on the bulge and the first segment was about the I&R platoon and their fight at lanzerath. it's pretty cool seeing them pop up in more bulge docs recently. the shootout episode exaggerated that they killed 500 germans which was not the case haha. cheers!

Nice. Thank you. I read the Book and visited the place with my Son

Very famous outfit, the 394th I&R platoon. Fantastic feet on the ground!!! It is a bucket list item to visit the northern shoulder area someday. Along with my Dad, B/393, the 99th held the North shoulder. Someday the story of the Battle of Elsenborn Ridge will be told, that's where Dad ended up and survived the 5-day German onslaught there.

Thanks!

Great video!

Impressive vid 👌

There were many such small unit actions such as this, where junior leaders used their initiative and collectively upset the German operational timetable.

This is an amazing story of an action that I have not heard of before. With such slim odds of survival, it could make for a good movie.

Great video.

The SHTF, and these men gave it their all. Outstanding. Thanks to WW2 Wayfinder, they are not forgotten...

I was there but I could not find a way to get behind the fence surrounding the woods. Damn it! 😊. I was able to easily jump the short barbed wire fence but I kept expecting someone to show up and toss us out as it was private property in all likelihood

Excellent overview and on-the-ground walk through. Paul at WW2TV has an in depth treatment of Lanzerath that you may enjoy.

The Longest Winter by Alex Kershaw Great book all about these GREAT MEN (kids) the battle and time as POWs. One of the best books I’ve ever read This video puts a lot in to prospective being able to see the terrain and layout

I bought their book "The Longest Winter" and visited that place twice too.

Awesome video. Thanks for posting and doing what you do. It honors the sacrifice of these men. Now, one wonders if Bauck’s group fought dirty (firing durimg ceasefire, killing a medic) under understandably paranoid conditions or if the Germans were trying to pull fast ones. The medic wearing a pistol would not be justification enough to shoot him cold, I wouldn’t think.

Great piece. Thanks. Any thoughts on why German versions have the Peiper confrontation in the Café Palm?

There is a superb book about the critical role an Engineer battalion played in the overall battle. It also covers this critical engagement. The book is titled "The Damned Engineers!"

Excellent video. Just a quick question, in one of your videos about Dachau, you mentioned the 42nd Infantry Division and a potential video about them. Is this still on your schedule or in production?

In fact this action shows precisely why the germans lost the Battle of the Bulge ( which was in fact lost within the first days of the offensive) as all over the Ardennes small groups of GI's resisted the german advance depriving them of there timeline , objectives and allowing reinforcements to be brought up for stabilizing the frontline and the final blow 5 all within 4 weeks time ).

sun Tzu wrote in The art of war: a smaller force with a superior morale can defeat a much larger force. this was written around 5k years past. It is still true then as it is now.

Wondering where you got such detail from, a book .What book ?

My dad was in the 393 of the 99th during the bulge.

👌

After the I&R Platoon was captured, they handed the Germans off to the 291st Engineer Combat Battalion, who proceeded to blow up all the bridges capable of carrying armor in the path of the advance of Kampfgruppe Peiper.

Great one, again. the USA's peak of growth came in the fifties...And that was thanks to what they have done in Europe in the forties. Today however...it seems they don't realize that anymore.

seems the village was pro-German so interesting to know attitudes after that - some kind of memorial with flags can be seen

Gotta love how 500 "best troopers" in the world got beaten by 22 "inferior and cowardice" Americans. Late war German skill issue