Ardennes Offensive

(noun)

A major German offensive, known also as Start the Battle of the Bulge (December 16, 1944 – January 25, 1945) launched through the densely forested Ardennes region of Wallonia in Belgium, France, and Luxembourg on the Western Front toward the end of World War II in Europe. It severely depleted Germany's armored forces on the western front, and Germany was largely unable to replace them.

Related Terms

Examples of Ardennes Offensive in the following topics:

  • The Collapse of Nazi Germany

    • The failed Ardennes Offensive (December 16, 1944 – January 25, 1945) was the last major German campaign of the war.
    • Starting on January 12, 1945, the Red Army began the Vistula–Oder Offensive across the Narew River; and, from Warsaw, a three-day operation on a broad front, which incorporated four army Fronts. 
    • The Battle of Berlin, designated the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, was the final major offensive of the European theater.
    • Following the Vistula–Oder Offensive of January–February 1945, the Red Army had temporarily halted on a line 60 km (37 mi) east of Berlin.
    • The Battle of Berlin, designated the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, was the final major offensive of the European theater.

  • The Hundred Days Offensive

  • The European Theater

    • However, neither French nor British troops gave any significant assistance to the Poles during the invasion, and the German–French border, excepting the Saar Offensive, remained mostly calm.
    • By January 1945, the final German attempt on the Western Front to launch a massive counter-offensive in the Ardennes failed.

  • 1968: The Year of Upheaval

    • In January, the Tet Offensive undermined the American public's confidence in the Vietnam War.
    • The Tet Offensive was a military campaign launched by the People's Army of Vietnam on January 30, 1968.
    • Outline the events of 1968 including the Tet Offensive and assassinations of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Kennedy

  • America's Early Role

    • The AEF helped the French Army on the Western Front during the Aisne Offensive (at Château-Thierry and Belleau Wood) in June 1918.
    • They fought its major actions in the Saint-Mihiel and Meuse-Argonne Offensives in late 1918.

  • Gradual Withdrawal

    • Beginning on March 30,the Easter Offensive (known as the Nguyễn Huệ Offensive to the North Vietnamese) quickly overran the three northernmost provinces of South Vietnam.

  • Competitive Dynamics

    • Offensive strategy can be implemented more quickly in order to exploit opportunities and capitalize on strengths.

  • Converging Military Fronts

    • On 16 December 1944, Germany used most of its remaining reserves to launch a massive counter-offensive in the Ardennes.

  • Blitzkrieg

    • The French-fortified Maginot Line and the main body the Allied forces which had moved into Belgium were circumvented by a flanking movement through the thickly wooded Ardennes region, mistakenly perceived by Allied planners as an impenetrable natural barrier against armored vehicles. 

  • The Western Front

    • Dubbed the Nivelle Offensive, the attacked proceeded poorly and 100,000 French troops fell within a week.
    • With its economy and society under great strain, Germany finally broke under the Allied series of attacks known as The Hundred Days Offensive beginning in August 1918.