The Battle of Remagen during the Allied invasion of Germany resulted in the unexpected capture of the Ludendorff Bridge over the Rhine. After capturing the Siegfried Line, the 9th Armored Division of the U.S. First Army had advanced unexpectedly quickly towards the Rhine. They were very surprised to see one of the last bridges across the Rhine still standing. The Germans had wired the bridge with about 2,800 kilograms (6,200 lb) of demolition charges. When they tried to blow it up, only a portion of the explosives detonated. U.S. forces captured the bridge and rapidly expanded their first bridgehead across the Rhine, two weeks before Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery’s meticulously planned Operation Plunder. The GIs’ actions prevented the Germans from regrouping east of the Rhine and consolidating their positions.
Signees
Theodore “Heck” Bardsley
THEODORE “HECK” JOSEPH BARDSLEY – US Army, Sergeant, 311th Regiment, 78th Infantry Division Mr Bardsley arrived in France with the Timberwolf Regiment 311th Regiment, 78th Infantry Division WWII in November 1944. As a sergeant motor [Read more]