On 16 December 1944, German Panzers spearheaded a surprise attack in the Ardennes that smashed through thinly held Allied lines, catching the Allied commanders completely off-guard.
Men from 1st SS Panzer Division in a Schwimmwagen at Kaiserbaracke crossroads, between St. Vith and Malmedy, 18 December 1944 © IWM EA 47958 (Accepted Non-commercial Use). For more on this image see foot of page.
The Cologne raid mounted by the Pathfinders on 23 December 1944 was in response to the German attack. Crews from 109 Squadron (Mosquitoes) and 582 Squadron (Lancasters) at Little Staughton, and 35 Squadron (Lancasters) at Graveley, were briefed to attack the railway marshalling yards in the Gremberg district of Cologne, yards that were critical to the German supply route.
See our features on the Cologne operation:
POST’S LEADING IMAGE
06/01/2024: The man on the left has been identified as Obersturmbannführer Joachim Peiper, the Waffen SS commander of the strongest armored Kampfgruppe in 1st SS Panzer Division. Peiper was later connected to the infamous Malmedy massacre of US prisoners. That this is a posed photograph is clear from another view of the same scene published on Warfare History Network. Information courtesy of Steve Andrews.
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