By: History.com Editors

1944

General Patton relieves Allies at Bastogne

History.com Editors

Published: November 16, 2009

Last Updated: January 24, 2025

On December 26, General George S. Patton employs an audacious strategy to relieve the besieged Allied defenders of Bastogne, Belgium, during the brutal Battle of the Bulge.

Battle of the Bulge

In December 1944, a major German offensive is launched against the Allies in the Ardennes Mountains region on the Western Front.

The capture of Bastogne was one of the key goals of the Battle of the Bulge. Bastogne provided a road junction in rough terrain where few roads existed; it would open up a valuable pathway further north for German expansion. The Belgian town was defended by the U.S. 101st Airborne Division, which had to be reinforced by troops who straggled in from other battlefields. Food, medical supplies, and other resources eroded as bad weather and relentless German assaults threatened the Americans’ ability to hold out. Nevertheless, Brigadier General Anthony C. MacAuliffe met a German surrender demand with a typewritten response of a single word: “Nuts.”

Enter “Old Blood and Guts,” General Patton. Employing a complex and quick-witted strategy wherein he literally wheeled his 3rd Army a sharp 90 degrees in a counterthrust movement, Patton broke through the German lines and entered Bastogne, relieving the valiant defenders and ultimately pushing the Germans east across the Rhine.

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Citation Information

Article title
General Patton relieves Allies at Bastogne
Website Name
History
Date Accessed
March 26, 2025
Publisher
A&E Television Networks
Last Updated
January 24, 2025
Original Published Date
November 16, 2009

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