Dezember 44 - Historisches Museum La Gleize

La Gleize is located in the Walloon Region in the province of Liège. The "December 44" Museum is located in this commune, where the Germans lost the Battle of the Bulge. It is dedicated entirely to this local history. When we speak of the Battle of the Bulge we inevitably think of the heroism of the American troops encircled at Bastogne, but in German plans, it was in the Ardennes forests to the north that the keystone of the offensive lay; Bastognewas to be bypassed, without lingering, like other pockets of resistanceconsidered secondary.
All the weight of the offensive in the north therefore fell on the 1.SS Panzer-Division Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler led by Obersturmbannführer Jochen Peiper. To face them, the Allies sent several of their elite divisions, first the tanks of the 3rd Armored Division in support of the infantry of the 30th Infantry Division "Roosevelt's SS" and finally the paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne.
Encircled at La Gleize by American forces, 800 LAH survivors fled on Christmas night 1944, abandoning 135 armored vehicles on the ground, including the 69-ton Tigre Royal visible at the museum. The December 1944 Museum recounts these tragic events, offering visitors the opportunity to discover one of Europe's most important collections; an impressive quantity of equipment, most of which was recovered from this battlefield.

La Gleize is located in the Walloon Region in the province of Liège. The December 44 Museum is located in this commune, where the Germans lost the Battle of the Bulge. It is dedicated entirely to this local history. When we speak of the Battle of the Bulge we inevitably think of the heroism of the American troops encircled at Bastogne, but in German plans, it was in the Ardennes forests to the north that the keystone of the offensive lay; Bastognewas to be bypassed, without lingering, like other pockets of resistanceconsidered secondary. All the weight of the offensive in the north therefore fell on the 1.SS Panzer-Division Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler led by Obersturmbannführer Jochen Peiper. To face them, the Allies sent several of their elite divisions, first the tanks of the 3rd Armored Division in support of the infantry of the 30th Infantry Division Roosevelt's SS and finally the paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne. Encircled at La Gleize by American forces, 800 LAH survivors fled on Christmas night 1944, abandoning 135 armored vehicles on the ground, including the 69-ton Tigre Royal visible at the museum. The December 1944 Museum recounts these tragic events, offering visitors the opportunity to discover one of Europe's most important collections; an impressive quantity of equipment, most of which was recovered from this battlefield.