Oldest Military Blogger Enlightened

Crossing the Rhine ?

I received an e-mail from Phred, who is a good buddy

and frequent visitor to my Blog. The mail contained

an Op.Ed article published in the N.Y. Times on Nov.23,2009.

He thought it might interest me.

The title "How World War II Wasn't Won" seemed intriguing.

Well it was! And very interesting too!

This type of information that has been secretly

suppressed and hidden away for 40 or 50 odd years.

always interested me because I was there.

This information, about people who we literally

worshipped while they were alive and endeared

in the press and the media, unmasked after.

their demise, with a few dozen words and

a half a dozen plain facts.

Of course witnesses and testimony are always a bonus.

The following is my interpretation of the Contributor

to the Times Op.Ed. Section, David Colley, Author of

"How World War II Wasn't Won"

The 6th Army, led by Lt.Gen. Devers reached

Strasbourgh, France.

He looked across a river to see German territory.

Scouts sent across the river, to determine the

feasibility of crossing this body of water reported

that there were no German defenses and the

pill boxes were not manned.

General Devers had brought the 6th Army Group

from the shores of Marseille to the undefended

Rhine River in 3 months.

His forces of more than 300,000 American and

French troops had landed on the beaches of

Southern France on August 15,1944,in an

unheralded invasion, virtually overlooked

in the battles of World War II and here they were,

ready to cross the Rhine River before the end of

November 1944.

He proceeded to prepare his men and equipment

for the forging of the river while he waited

for his orders.

On Nov.24, General Eisenhower came to see

for himself and instead of ordering LT.Gen. Devers

to take his forces into Germany, he commanded

Devers to engage the enemy further North on

the French side of the Rhine River.

This decision, ridiculed by Gen Patton in his

Memoirs points out that the German Counterattack

ensued, less than 4 weeks later,

with English speaking German soldiers,

in American uniforms,

at Christmas time,

ultimately ended with the Battle of the Bulge

and more than 75,000 Killed,wounded and

the many suffering from Trench foot,

may have never happened.

This post has a direct relation to me and my Brother Moishe.

The war might have ended 6 months sooner and my

Brother would not have had to endure for the rest of his life

with the severe case of Trench Foot so many in the

80th Division earned, South of Bastone, that cruel Winter.

I might add this Quotation from Author,David Colley.

"General Dwight D. Eisenhower's mistake led to one of the

costliest Battles in American History,

the Battle of the Bulge"