Kesternich (World War II)

First and Second Battles of Kesternich
Part of World War II
Date First battle: 13–16 December 1944 Second battle: 30 January-1 February 1945 Location In and around Kesternich, Germany 50°36′27″N 6°19′45″E / 50.60753°N 6.32915°E / 50.60753; 6.32915Coordinates: 50°36′27″N 6°19′45″E / 50.60753°N 6.32915°E / 50.60753; 6.32915 Result German defensive victory in first battle U.S. victory in second battle
Belligerents
United States	Germany
Commanders and leaders
Major General Edwin P. Parker Jr.	Generalleutnant Eugen König
Units involved
78th Infantry Division Attached: 709th Tank Battalion (First battle) 736th Tank Battalion (Second battle) 893rd Tank Destroyer Battalion (both battles)	272. Volksgrenadier-Division Attached: I. Battalion, 753. Grenadier-Regiment, 326. Volksgrenadier-Division (First battle)
Strength
First battle: Two Infantry battalions Two platoons of M4 Shermans One platoon of M10 tank destroyers Second battle: One infantry battalion One company of M4 Shermans One platoon of M10 tank destroyers	Elements of two divisions
Casualties and losses
First battle: At least 1,500 killed, wounded, or missing Two tanks disabled Second battle: At least 225 killed, wounded, or missing	First battle: At least 150 killed At least 600 captured Second battle: Unknown

Kesternich is a small village just inside the German border from Belgium. It was the site of two major battles during World War II. These battles are tied to the Siegfried Line Campaign, the Battle of the Huertgen Forest, the Battle of the Bulge, and the assault on the Roer River dams at the outset of Operation Lumberjack.

Kesternich is a small village, which in 1944-1945 consisted of about 112 houses constructed in a method of timber-frame and stucco construction called fachwerkhäuser. Poised on top of a spur ridge, the land inside the village along the main east-west road is relatively flat. The land falls off sharply to the north into a gorge known as the Weidenbachtal, and to the south into a gorge called the Tiefenbachtal. To the east, at the end of the village, the terrain slopes down to the Roer River gorge. Surrounding the village along the ridge was a series of small fields. The houses were not tightly packed, but were surrounded by small yards containing many outbuildings and sheds. The yards, like the farm fields, were often separated by a form of traditional tall, dense hedge that is used as a windbreak. Defenders inside the village commanded excellent fields of fire.

The First Battle for Kesternich took place from 13 to 16 December 1944. This battle pitted the 2nd Battalion of the 309th Infantry Regiment and the 2nd Battalion of the 310th Infantry Regiment of the 78th Infantry Division against units from the 272. Volksgrenadier-Division, including elements of the 326. Volksgrenadier-Division. This attack was part of a greater attack by the First Army's V Corps in an effort to capture the Roer (Rur) River Dams that included the 78th Infantry Division as well as the 2nd Infantry Division to the south. The attack by the 78th Division interrupted Hitler's plans for the northern (right) shoulder of the Battle of the Bulge. While it may be questionable that the Germans had enough strength to push the attack west of Simmerath and Kesternich, plans were disrupted as the American attack hit the German lines on 13 December. As a result, the northern pivot-point of the German offensive was pushed from Simmerath to south of Monschau.

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Wikipedia