Revisiting the Malmedy Massacre | History Traveler Episode 58

One of the greatest tragedies of WWII is the Malmedy Massacre. In this episode, we travel to the spot where this atrocity took place in the beginning days of the Battle of the Bulge.
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#history #germany #WWII #malmedy

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

If you've watched a few episodes and feel like I've earned it, be sure to subscribe so that you don't miss any new content when it comes out. Click here: kzbin.info Thanks!

[@geodes4762]

Baugnez (Malmedy) was not the only massacre of American troops. If you go further south on the N62 from the crossroads where the more infamous massacre took place. Following the direction the 285th FA Observation Bn was going, you will come to the small town of Ligneuville. On the right is a Hotel where the Germans captured a number of Americans. They were brought behind the hotel and were executed. There is a small marker noting the site of this massacre alongside the current building that is on that site.

[@danielh1830]

My grandfather is buried there - Harry Hubbell died at the Battle of Ramagen. God, thank you for doing this.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Oh wow. Thanks for sharing that. Glad that I could share the experience.

[@ehcatsfaneric2211]

THANK YOU Mr. Hubbell for your service and ultimate sacrifice..another hero

[@robertneven7563]

hello sir your grandfather is a real heroes, greets from Belguim sir

[@danielh1830]

@@robertneven7563 thank you sir.

[@robertneven7563]

@@danielh1830 you are welcome sir, but i am a Belgain and i jump with the 82 airborne in the year 2.000 for me U S Army parachute badge

[@jalensexton8712]

After some research, I was able to find out that SGT. John H Bassarear, the man in the photo, was actually a survivor of the massacre and had even survived the war. Later in life, he told about what happened. "They had us stack all our rifles and had us put our overcoats and field jackets down, Then they put us out in a field." The article states that a member of the company yelled, "Drop dead, pretend you're dead." Bassarear followed the orders and laid in the snow for 2 1/2 hours before he and 18 other survivors of the 150-person battalion headed to the woods for cover.

[@Attack-SineMetu]

Just to clarify the actual location - the field where the massacre took place is across the street (N62) to the southwest from the memorial area. In 2007, some friends and I were fortunate to accompany a veteran of the 30th Infantry Division to the massacre site. When the US retook the area in January 1945 the bodies were discovered. The 30th ID was in Malmedy at the time. Our veteran colleague said many GI’s raced to the Baugnez Crossroads area once word spread. He described the scene and his feelings to us firsthand. Pretty somber experience. The massacre site has a home built on one portion of it today. The stone building on the west corner of the crossroads was there during the war and can be seen in many period photographs. Good video. Glad to see others are taking an interest in keeping WWII history alive.

[@richardbrown6565]

I agree. I visited the site with a British tour group a year ago.

[@Vevay1961]

Agreed. I was there in Nov 2019 and based on maps from the time, the actual ground where the Americans were murdered is now property with someone's home right on top of the spot where the majority of the soldiers fell.

[@michaelsix9684]

once the word got out to rest of Americans, it made them fight harder against Germans, Peiper was tried and given death sentence, held for 8 yrs. and then released, none was ever executed

[@alan30189]

@@michaelsix9684 He said they executed forty of them. ??

[@martred4579]

@@alan30189 No, sentenced to death, but never actually executed.

[@discingaround]

To the Tester family and every other family who sacrificed in WW2, thank you. To the History Underground...dude, this is one of my favorite videos you've made. Thanks to you for honoring these heroes.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

🙏🏼

[@Razorback68]

I have had the honor to visit this hollowed ground many times while working in Holland as a Dept of the Army Civilian. I was a only a 45 minute ride from Malmedy and Bastogne. Let us make sure that the men who made the ultimate sacrifice will never be forgotten!!

[@MirrorRealityHD]

Don Jamieson are you from western Pennsylvania

[@guyfawkesuThe1]

Where were you coming from Bitburg or Spangdahlem?

[@Razorback68]

RunE Nope Arkansas

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Amen to that.

[@guyfawkesuThe1]

@mysirius1000 You have a point but we are talking soldiers getting executed in the field. Those Storm Troopers following the Germany Army deserved that fate!

[@marcvancleven]

As an immigrant from Belgium who still has family living in Belgium I took my wife, daughter and son in law, my grandkids, and my Belgian family to Ypres to visit the smallest American cemetery as well as the Commonwealth cemetery. I hope while in Belgium you make the time to visit the area and it's battlefields in Flanders Belgium 🇧🇪. As important it is to appreciate the American losses and sacrifice in Belgium, my family was liberated by Canadian, English and Free Polish forces, reinforced by American forces in Flanders. The Battle of the Schelt and for Antwerp is under appreciated. Well done. Thank you! 🇺🇸🇧🇪

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Marc Van Cleven - I only had a limited amount of time in Belgium. I hope to return someday and hit those very places that you mentioned. Loved Belgium!

[@marcvancleven]

@@TheHistoryUnderground You're doing a great job! Well done. Envy that you are able to do this. Keep it up. When you go back, have some suggestions as to where to go.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Marc Van Cleven - Thanks. Feel free to send me an email. I’m always up for recommendations.

[@Migitn]

Is toch behoorlijk gekend als je er mee bezig bent ;)

[@bhensel100]

We visited the Henri Chappelle American Cemetery in December 2018. It is a beautiful cemetery for our American Heroes. The Belgium people are so respectful of the Americans visiting their country and can not do enough for them. Very moving video....thank you

[@jayhawker210]

My grandfather was a survivor of the massacre, thank you for bringing this to light and talking about this. I also have a great uncle uncle buried here, who was KIA in the Battle of the Buldge

[@logowatchman]

I made a trip to the beaches of Normandy and the cemeteries with my sons last summer simply to say thank you. I can tell you it was an emotional week. All of those brave young men who were terrified, witnessing the horrors of war, death every where, yet pushed on until their lives were ended.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Don - Definitely a moving place. So glad to hear that you brought your sons there.

[@ehcatsfaneric2211]

Truly THE GREATEST GENERATION..men AND women

[@varrick1226]

Not only are all of your videos touching, heartbreaking, wonderful and educational your taste in music enhances the stories. Thank you and God bless you and your work.

[@armyvet8279]

I'm jealous of you getting to walk the ground where so many historical events took place. I would love to be able to go there and other places. Thanks for the video!

[@thomasanthony9374]

Very powerful vlog. Coincidentally, I just finished a book on this terrible tragedy. Your videos are so important for the younger generations. I wish I can go back in time and speak to both my grandfathers even more about their time in Europe but unfortunately I was only in middle school when they passed. Out of 16 million that served, only a few 100 thousand are still alive today and in a few short years, they will all be gone. What these kids did for us so we can live freely today should never be forgotten. And with videos like yours, they won't be.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

That’s the primary reason why this channel exists. Thanks!

[@rolfytumeric6048]

Thank you for showing this place and giving testimony to the memory of the men massacred at Malmedy

[@djholliday4413]

Thank you for the beautiful video, and for documenting these heroes. I am so proud to be an American. God bless America & her allies, forever. ❤🇺🇲🙏

[@RexBeach-mm6ty]

History Underground is honestly the best documentary channel on KZbin. If everyone watched this videos the world would be a better place.

[@robertherrick8660]

Your coverage of sites and events is so appreciated and well done. From Cape Town South Africa I bend my head in sorrow for those that died for us all!

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thank you! I spent some time down in Port Elizabeth and the Eastern Cape awhile back. Love your country. 🇿🇦

[@garandguy101]

A buddy of mine, his uncle was a survivor, also there was a gentleman who lived a few miles away who also was a survivor , he was in the 285th field artillery observation battalion.

[@jvleasure]

I got to meet Ted Paluch once. Very cool.

[@paulstan9828]

Every time I see a war cemetery I think of all the young people who never got to live their lives.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Paul Stan - Have to wonder what we lost in that war on all sides. Sad.

[@fernandochavez4312]

Paul Stan your point is true and the reason why monuments are built. If only we never had to build another one.

[@daffyd5867]

I visited kranji cemetary in singapore....very eery experience. ..they were just kids...but God bless 'em.

[@vivians9392]

These were the soldiers who were young fathers of my age group. I grew up with some who never got to know their father.

[@paulstan9828]

@hiram hacklesworth How’s it going? Yeah love history. Finally Made it to Gettysburg a few years back. So many places I’d like to see in person. In the meantime there is KZbin’ 😁

[@Gitarzan66]

Out of respect for my father who was a veteran of the war in The Pacific and Korea as a Navy Corpsman I've been studying military history since I was a kid in the 70's. I'm also in a wheelchair and will never be able to visit any on these places. You bring them home to people like me and I thank you for that. You're doing more with these videos than you will ever know.

[@geodes4762]

Have visited the site of the massacre many times. The massacre actually occurred in the town of Baugnez Belgium. The site of the massacre is across the street from where the memorial is. The firefight between Peiper’s Kampfgruppe and the 285th Filed Artillery Observation Bn took place several hundred meters down the road from the intersection. The Germans attacked the convoy from the fields directly behind the memorial and would have been coming from left to right as you face the wall. The men of the 285th took refuge in the ditches along the road but were soon overwhelmed by Peiper’s Kamfgruppe. They surrendered and were marched back to the intersection and lined up in the field to the left of Madame Badawe’s cafe. Here they were disarmed and stripped of their equipment. German tanks pulled up in front with guns aimed at the American prisoners. It is not clear what triggered the massacre. Some reports indicate that some of the prisoners tried to make a break for it but that has been under dispute by several witnesses. The German fire was initiated by George Felps (spelling may not be correct). He was put on trial along with Peiper and was identified by several American survivors as the “trigger man”. Several Americans did manage to survive the massacre by playing “dead” even though German soldiers went though the mass of downed bodies and shot anyone who appeared to still be alive. Peiper’s Kampfgruppe moved on in search of gasoline but left a group of guards at the Baugnez crossroads. Hours after the initial incident several Americans who had played dead rose up to make a break for it. Some of these men were shot and killed by Peiper’s guards. A few were trapped in a building behind Madaem Badawe’s cafe. The Germans set the building on fire and shot the Americans as they tried to escape. There is a small monument behind the cafe building marking this spot. Not many visitors to the site are aware of this.

[@XxBloggs]

Your History Traveller videos are great. They’re done with the right brevity and respect. The music and your commentary is so appropriate. At the going down of the sun, And in the morning, We will remember them.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

🙏🏼

[@robertneven7563]

@@TheHistoryUnderground peiper was ein zweinenhund

[@jean-francoisribauville9065]

There is also the Ardennes American Cemetery an Memorial of Neuville-en-Condroz, about 20 km south-west to Liège, Belgium. 90.50 acres. 5,317 graves, mostly of fallen airmen. Merry Christmas from Belgium and from somebody who knows and will never forget what we ought to the men who are buried there.

[@animaginaryboy_]

Incredible video. My grandfather was a TSgt in the 106th Infantry who fought at St. Vith. He was captured but survived imprisonment at Stalag 9-A

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Oh wow. I have a few videos on here from St. Vith that you might enjoy. Check out the France & Belgium playlist.

[@tully3711th]

My dad was too, he was in the 106th. I have a map he made of all the places the Germans kept him

[@cliffright1142]

I’m struck by how the U.S. Government continues to maintain and oversee these cemeteries. One of the things I never forgot was when my father who was a medic wounded in the Bulge telling us, Uncle Sam never forgets it’s soldiers. These grave sites are proof that they do their best to guarantee every member serving knows that. We pray for those still unaccounted for in our wars. May they find eternal rest. Thanks again for all you do to guarantee that....

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Cliff Right - Trying to do a small part to keep history alive. Thanks.

[@marcoj1611]

Yes the American Battle Monuments Commission designed, constructed and maintains all permanent American military burial grounds outside the United States. There are more than 25+ of these indicating the sacrifice that families made when asked for the one time decision as to where to bury the remains at home or with their comrades.

[@larkin2887]

My Pops was a medic too, in the Battle of the Bulge.

[@jamessimms415]

Cliff Right They’re all over the world. See the PBS documentary “Hallowed Grounds”. It’s usually on PBS around Memorial Day

[@craigevans6156]

Cliff Right The Commonwealth Graves Commission looks after British and Empire war graves all around the world

[@normandecaesen286]

Thank you for sharing this important part of our nation's history. I'm moved to tears. God Bless.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Glad that it connected. Thanks for watching.

[@71superbee39]

I may never get there so I'll pay my respects here ..... God rest our men...

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

71superbee 3 - Remembrance is respect. Thank you.

[@jerrymccrae7202]

AMEN!

[@Ginab394]

I just found you and I have watched several I can’t put this down every free minute I have I watch I think you are fantastic. I didn’t know anything about this massacre while watching I couldn’t help but cry. I have enjoyed every episode you are one special man and I can’t thank you enough for all you are doing.

[@susanjordan3291]

Excellent video. However, I was in the same area in 2018 and according to my guide, the massacre occurred just further down the road about a quarter of a mile in a field to the West. The memorial shown in the video is at the crossroads traversed by the Germans. The massacre siteis adjacent to the Baugnez 44 Museum, which shouldn't be missed. It is a fitting tribute to our soldiers. Never forget.

[@eddieayalamusica12]

Love this channel!!! My dad was a history teacher for many many years before he passed away and got me to be a lover of history myself. This channel has made me want to visit all these historical sites just like he did. 👏🏽👏🏽 awesome work @thehistoryunderground

[@acevanherwaarden8051]

Today is May 4th. Remembrance Day. At 20.00 o'clock everybody was silent, the whole country was put to full stop. During these 2 minutes we, the Dutch, commemmorated all those young men and women, no matter where they came from, for the sacrifice they made, or were willing to make. LEST WE FORGET.

[@lenmrozak3095]

Thank you for remembering the sacrifices of these brave men.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thank you.

[@mistershepherd6808]

Awesome. Thank you.

[@Crash7791]

I work in a printshop and was at work during the 2 minute silence on Remembrance Day. I stopped my press to commemorate the dead. Video’s like this remind me why we do it and need to keep on remembering.

[@ulrikschackmeyer848]

On that date, at approx 20.30 PM. when the German forces in the Netherlands, North-West Germany and Denmark surrendered to Montgomery at) Lüneburger Heath, we in Denmark are not quiet, but it is normal to put candles in the windows to celebrate the coming peace and remember those that died. A VERY Beautiful sight in Copenhagen where I live. Live candles in most windows.

[@thelocalmaladroit8873]

A man who honors those who have gone before him is a blessed man!

[@toddjoris2553]

An moving and emotional video. When i watch stuff like this it really infuriates me on the way some people in the west take there freedom for granted. Much respect to the veterans and families that paid the ultimate price so i can live free. Thank you.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Hopefully people will see and share videos like this and get an idea of what that freedom costs. Thanks.

[@eddiekane5188]

Greeting from Germany, I have been following your History Traveler Episodes for a couple of months and I find them remarkably interesting and knowledgeable which brings back so many fond memories of past trips. I am an American veteran living in Germany, born during the Battle of the Bulge (19 Jan 1945) married to my German Fräulein over 55 years. I’m a member of the American Legion over 50 years and in the 1970s organized annual American Legion Department of France events of the major battlefields of Belgium, France, Holland, and Germany which actual veterans of those battles were honored in ceremonies by local dignitaries. I was a sales representative for Harley Davidson Military Sales in Kaiserslautern, Germany over 40 years and a founding member of the 1st American Legion Riders Group as well as a founding member of the 1st Military HOG Chapter and 1st HOG Director in Germany. Having a close relationship to WW2 in Germany, I spent a lot of time traveling to locations of both WW1 and WW2 and when I had the opportunity I organized many rides to Normandy, Verdun, Bastogne and most of the locations you have covered in your videos. I am 75 and still ride and organize rides, although they are normally one day rides thru the beautiful countryside where I live. I look forward to watching more of History Traveler Episodes in the future.

[@Indylimburg]

Henri Chapelle is a remarkable place. Very beautiful grounds and uniquely laid out with the semi circle pattern to the headstones. I had the privilege of visiting in a group with a woman from West Virginia who's father had fought in the Bulge. His best friend and their next door neighbor was KIA near there and laid to rest in Henri Chapelle. It was very moving to see all the memories of this man who was the father of her best childhood friend come back as she paid her respects for the first time in 70 years.

[@paulahuey856]

What a beautiful, pristine resting place for these war heroes. In everything that I have watched and read on WWII I have never heard of this place. As always, thank you JD.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

My pleasure! Thanks!

[@andyb4171]

Can't believe I missed that one. Thank God for people keeping them alive.

[@GreenHornet1962]

I had not known about this incident before. Thank you for educating me about it. This is one of my favorite episodes so far. What a great channel!

[@williamkeith8944]

My father, Jack was a combat medic that served at the Battle of the Bulge and received a Bronze Star there. When the murdered American soldiers were found at Malmedy and they knew it was done by Germans disguised as GIs, all the medics in his unit were issued 1911 pistols to protect themselves and the wounded. Dad said he never had to use it and the sidearms were handed back in. Dad said it was cold and miserable but he'd been colder back home in Amarillo! He's gone now and I miss him🕊🇺🇸

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Wow. Thanks for sharing that. Hard to imagine what those guys went through.

[@feikotemme8736]

William Keith The Germans in American uniforms were part of Unternehmen Greif and therefore had nothing to do with the shootings mentioned in this video.They weren't even there at the moment.

[@FrandArmyWardior]

As a kid I stayed in Malmedy as a sort of introduction week with school. We did a lot of hiking through the woods and one of my teachers told quite a few stories about what happened in the area, including the malmedy Massacre and several other historical battles/skirmishes that took place there. I was already heavily interested in military history and especially WW2 through my dad who told a lot of stories about when he was a kid at that time. Anyway, it fascinated me tremendously (sadly I was one of the few back then) and it sparked an interest that has never faded. Really enjoying these videos, really interesting to see places I visited before that bring back memories and picking up a few new things I didn't know along the way.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thanks so much for sharing that and for the kind words. So glad that you enjoyed it.

[@NancyBiker]

That was a beautiful memorial. Thanks for sharing.

[@francopasta3704]

The closing line of your opening was epic…kudos to you for remembering these men…

[@briantheminer]

I was in Bastogne 2 years ago, Malmedy 30 years ago, but never knew that cemetery existed or I would have visited Thanks for taking me along

[@TheMartine9]

There is another one in Neupré. kzbin.info/www/bejne/o6i8p5ugrd6carc

[@bybarra4646]

Just learned about this after reading The Longest Winter for the first time, was a great book. I love your channel bro and it renewed my interest in history all over again. Keep up the great work!

[@Ch33kclappa]

Your videos are truly unbelievable and humbling. I hope to travel to the places you’ve been to. Keep up the content 👍🏼

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thanks a ton! That means a lot.

[@belgianmalinoit9665]

Beautiful job. I’ve been to the cemetery at Normandy, and I have to say of the videos I’ve seen about cemeteries in the area, yours does the best job of capturing the reverence that seems to simply hang over those places. Great job

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

🙏🏼

[@nikolatesla5553]

OMG, You showed a gravestone of a relative. A cousin of my late father. I knew, he was buried in. Europe. I've never been to the cemetery. I checked the name and his birthdate against family genealogy to make sure. It brought tears to my eyes. Don't know what to say other than thanks for posting this video.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

I’ve always wondered if I’d ever film the grave of someone’s relative and they’d see it. Glad that I was able to show it 🙂

[@Harrywigler]

Great job on your series. These videos are educational but most importantly remind us of the brave few that gave everything just so we could live free..”Lest we forget”.

[@juansierralonche9864]

There was a local guy from here named Charlie Durning who became pretty well known as an actor, but he also saw a lot of action in WW2. He was part of the U.S. force that landed at Omaha Beach during the D-Day invasion in June 1944. A few days later he was shot in the hip - he carried the bullet in his body thereafter - and after some months of recovery he was sent to the Battle of the Bulge where he was captured and somehow ended up as one of the few survivors (supposedly one of three) of the Malmedy massacre. He almost never talked about it though, so it's not clear exactly how he managed to survive. Sometime during the war he was attacked by a German soldier who was so young that Charlie couldn't bring himself to shoot. But after the kid bayonetted him several times Charlie ended up bashing the kid's head in with a rock he grabbed.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Gosh. Just imagine all of the stories that have never been told.

[@K_EN_Dubu]

Love your videos! I did some research about the Tester Brothers who's graves were featured towards the start of your video. The oldest of the Tester brother was actually KIA in Africa, but his body was relocated, so he could be buried next to his younger brothers. Keep up the great great work!

[@debrahturenne6337]

Really like your channel. Love history. Appreciate the reverence you always show to these fallen men and women. Both my father and father-in- law served in WWII ; my father in the signal corps of the Canadian army in The Normandy invasion; my father-in-law was in the Canadian Navy doing the Murmansk convoy runs. Neither of them talked about their service. Lost too many comrades. Both are gone now. Thank for your respect for them all.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thanks! And thanks for sharing those stories.

[@follkiej]

Binge watching and catching up on past videos!! All very well done and I learned something from each one!

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@jeffbaloga4376]

Great job once again at researching and telling the story! Thanks for all you do!!👍😎👍

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thanks 🙏🏼

[@eman2498]

I passed this location many times while traveling the autobahn when I used to live in Germany. I knew that the town of malmedy held significance wrt WW2. Thank you for covering this topic and sharing the videos.

[@johnminter5359]

Thank you , you do such a great job . I get emotional just watching.

[@richardruss9110]

The memorial wall is actually across the street from where the massacre took place according to old Army aerial photo. However, when matching the old Army photo with a aerial photo from 2020 on Google Earth, it is amazing how all the roads are the same. There are more buildings but you can still find ones in the old photo that are still there today.

[@manfredseidler1531]

I was born in Berlin in 1947. Today I'm an American citizen who 'volunteered' for two tours in Vietnam. It's been my experience that the victor in any conflict determines morality and guilt. Concerning the epic atrocities of the Germans against the innocent Jews, way too many guilty murderers escaped the hangman and punishment. Those evil humans may have eluded legal justice but what they should fear most is standing before God and someday they will. The standing order of D-Day was to not take any German prisoners because the battle was potentially in the balance. Dealing with the logistics of prisoners could have tipped that balance so German prisoners just 'disappeared'. No monument for them, they lost the war. Dresden, no monument for them as well. The winner always determines who committed atrocities and who didn't. Rosevelt was a democrat but not every American soldier was a democrat so not every Russian is a communist and not every German was a Nazi. My grandfather had the opportunity to help Jews escape so the Nazis hung a Jew from the lamppost in front of his house with a sign around his neck 'If you lose one more Jew, the next one hanging from this post will be you'. In democracies, people win or lose elections... in dictatorships, people lose their lives... millions of them.

[@2bigbufords]

war makes murders of men

[@jahns6980]

Well Said

[@2bigbufords]

@@jahns6980 I stole that from one the last surviving Nurenburg trial US staff members. The interviewer asked how could people do such horrible things as the Germans did during WW2

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thanks for that insight.

[@feikotemme8736]

Manfred Seidler Ein sehr guter Beitrag.Lassen wir z.B.auch nicht vergessen,was damals nach dem Krieg im Rheinwiesenlager abgelaufen ist.Geschichte ist niemals schwarz/weiss.LG

[@joanroberson8481]

You pick the perfect music for you videos! The piano music at the cemetery transports me there!

[@andreguillette6293]

The Three Testers : James was one of three brothers of his family who was killed during World War II. Tester experienced a traumatic event which resulted in loss of life on September 17, 1944. Recorded circumstances attributed to: "Killed in action". Incident location: Germany, His brothers Glenn William Tester died on January 9, 1944 in France and Robert Dent Tester died November 26, 1943, in North Africa. Their family suffered terrible loss during the war. Another brother, and their father, both died in 1942. That left just their mother, and one brother and one sister alive in the family by the war's end. The brothers were laid to rest alongside each other at Henri Chapelle American Cemetery in Belgium. The Testers are the only group of three brothers to be buried side-by-side after being killed in military action. At Henri Chapelle, --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Francis X McGraw was born in Philadelphia county, Pennsylvania. His family moved to Camden New Jersey when he was 2 years old. After completing school, he worked for the Campbell Soup company before enlisting in the Army in February 1942. On November 19, 1944, the 26th Regiment was fighting in the Battle of Hurtgen Forest near the German-Belgian border. During a German counterattack on that day, near Schevenhutte, Germany, he manned his machine gun despite intense enemy fire and left cover in order to retrieve more ammunition. Although wounded, he continued to fire until again running out of ammunition. He then engaged the German troops with a carbine, but was subsequently killed. For these gallant actions, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor on October 25, 1945 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bernard Fleige: Fleige experienced a traumatic event which resulted in loss of life . Recorded circumstances attributed to: "Killed in action" He had been a student at Latimer and Allegheny Vocational High Schools and worked for Fried & Reinenman Packing Co, before entering service April, 7, 1943. He went overseas in February, 1944 and served with the First Army in France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Homer E White Jr : White experienced a traumatic event which resulted in loss of life . Recorded circumstances attributed to: "KIA - Killed in Action. He Served with 60th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

My gosh. The Tester story is even more tragic than I thought. Thanks so much for looking all of that up. Really makes the visit more impactful.

[@superbravotwo]

@@TheHistoryUnderground Wow, than you so much for making these short documentaries of important events during the second world war. I've seen a few. They really bring home the sacrifice and impact of the conflict!

[@andreguillette6293]

@@TheHistoryUnderground ok this one was really hard , i have been looking hard for info on the man in the picture that was left at the memorial check this out !! .... As is his custom, 92-year-old John Bassarear doesn’t have anything special planned today for Memorial Day, certainly nothing to draw attention to himself. He may have fought in WWII, doing his part to battle oppression and preserve freedom, but he’s never bragged about it and never will. What he will do is remember and honor those soldiers who died so the rest of us could live. In his case, quite literally. He was just 19 in the summer of 1944 when he joined the Army and was sent to Europe to chase the retreating German army. He landed on Utah Beach in Normandy to a much warmer reception than those soldiers who had come ashore six weeks earlier on D-Day. A few days later, he was on the Champs-Élysées just in time for the liberation of Paris, where French girls showered the G.I.s with kisses and wine. War didn’t seem so awful when his unit, the U.S. Army’s 285th Field Artillery Battalion, was sent to Belgium to take part in a titanic showdown history knows as the Battle of the Bulge. Desperate to protect its border, the Nazis were throwing everything they had left to defend the rivers and mountains that separated France and Belgium from Germany. On a frigid Dec. 17, 1944, a Sunday, some 120 men in Bassarear’s unit arrived in a Belgian village 15 miles from the German border named Malmedy. At the same time, a German panzer tank division arrived in the same place. Outnumbered and outgunned, after a brief skirmish the Americans quickly surrendered, whereupon they were rounded up and taken to a clearing half the size of a football field on the outskirts of town. First, the German commandant, in perfect English, ordered them to lay down their weapons. Next they were told to take off their warm winter overcoats. After that, eight machine guns, two each mounted in four trucks positioned on every corner of the field, opened fire. As bullets ripped into bodies all around him, Bassarear heard one of the American officers shout, “Drop down and play dead!” Next to him, a soldier whose name he did not know collapsed to the ground, mortally wounded. “He was a big son-of-a-gun from Pennsylvania, 6 foot 3,” remembers Bassarear, who stood 5 foot 9 and weighed 129 pounds. “I grabbed my helmet and dropped underneath him.” As blood dripped down from all sides, the next sounds he heard came from enemy soldiers walking through the field, kicking at bodies and shooting anyone found still alive. Lying in 2 feet of snow in a light field jacket, with temperatures barely above zero, his biggest concern was that they’d see his breath. “I’d hold it in as long as I could,” he says, “then let it out as easy as I could, with my hand over my mouth.” After “what seemed like forever but was probably 15 or 20 minutes,” the field went quiet. And still Bassarear held his breath and stayed dead still. Until someone, probably a U.S. officer, broke the silence another hour or so later by shouting, “Anybody left alive? If you are, on the count of three get up and run to the forest and don’t stop! “1 … 2 … 3!” Bassarear leapt to his feet and ran. In the trees and out of breath, he was able to connect with four other survivors. Together they dodged German transports through the freezing night and into the next day until they heard the distinctive, blessed sound of a Jeep motor. An Army major and his driver rushed the five frozen soldiers to Allied headquarters - where they joined a total of just 19 men who lived to tell about the Massacre at Malmedy. The survivors were separated, sequestered and questioned by military interrogators over the course of the next four days. Their stories, told independently, jibed completely, corroborating one of the most egregious acts of the war. Today in the peaceful town of Malmedy, a plaque pays tribute to the 84 American soldiers who didn’t make it. One of them a big 6-foot-3 man from Pennsylvania. Ref : www.deseret.com/2017/5/29/20613186/about-utah-remembering-those-who-died-that-we-might-live#world-war-ii-veteran-john-bassarear-92-looks-over-war-memorabilia-with-daughter-jennifer-at-his-home-in-bountiful

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Andre Guillette - Oh my gosh. Thank you for that. I need to see if he is still around.

[@andreguillette6293]

@@TheHistoryUnderground i sent you a link to his daughter , maybe ask her ? i sent it to your FB

[@patrickmorrissey8754]

Great service to those interested in history of WWII. Thank you! Patrick from Albuquerque

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thanks! Glad that you liked it.

[@benec5816]

thank you very much for doing this outstanding article on this aweful happening. You treated it with such respect and infornation nothing was missed may they and all the others RIP stay safe thankyou

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thanks!

[@quinnfell3824]

I have recently become a huge fan of your work. I have been enamored with history and the story of WW2 since I was a young boy. I have, in all my years found two other people who can portray history the way you do, Mark Felton and David Willey, the head curator at the bovington tank museum. You have a way of portraying emotion that I can barely convey. Thank you very much for your hard work

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Quinn Fell - Wow. That really means a lot. Thank you!

[@vipergtsmre]

the Malmedy Massacre is not brought up much... another huge Thanks for this vid series, Amazing

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

That’s one reason why I wanted to go there. Thanks for watching and spreading the word to keep history alive.

[@erietrain]

Your video's are so powerful.I tear up everytime I watch them.

[@philipcunio4089]

Thanks for remembering them!

[@paulsheppard9171]

I've been to the Normandy beaches for the past 20 years, I've been to The Ardennes a few times also, but I never knew about this massacre. It's another very sad episode that our allied forces endured in the struggle to win this fight against tyranny and free the world .

[@theHAL9000]

Very moving to watch, as it is very moving to think of so many who have died in defense of our country. Humbling. Serves for me as a reminder to enjoy the life I have and be appreciative of simple joys.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Well said.

[@FlynBrian]

While this memorial is close to the site, the massacre actually took place about 100-meters south of the memorial on the other side of the N62 in the open field next to the modern day Five Points Restaurant. You videos are fantastic!

[@rodstrom4407]

A large house was built on the actual massacre site about 20 years ago.

[@vawterb]

Thank you. The father of a dear friend of mine was taken prisoner by the Nazis the day of or day after the Malmedy Massacre and was marched past the site on his way to Auschwitz. He survived and died about a month ago at the age of 95. I will never forget Joe Soldo.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Oh man. Imagine the things that he saw. Wow. Thanks for sharing that.

[@rodhoover9158]

Thank you for your work honoring these fallen heroes.

[@dennisyounkin644]

I had the Honor over 20 years ago to Listen to one of the Malmedy survivors talk about his experenience to a Marine survivor of the 1st wave onto Iwo Jima. They had both show up to the very first battle of the Bulge reenactment held at Fort indiantown Gap.. What was amazing is they both felt they did nothing and were impressed by what the other had survived... I still think of them often and how lucky i was to be standing there listening...

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Dennis Younkin - My gosh. How fortunate to have heard their stories. Wow.

[@charleshartz4814]

Thank you for taking me to a place of horrible acts against the men who paid with their life to service our country.

[@SandervkHistory]

Man.. i am a history geek! Specially for WW1 and WW2. And its really a shame that i found out about youre channel just yesterday.... i am in love with youre videos! Keep up the good work 🙏🙏🇳🇱🦅

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thanks! Glad that you found it. Always enjoy sharing this stuff with fellow history enthusiasts.

[@Drodloera]

Thanks for what you do brother! Honestly I didn’t even know about this! Now I know… very hard breaking… keep doing a great job! Love your work!

[@capturebyniels]

I love your video's and documentation of all these amazing places. My sister recently adopted a grave in Henri Chapelle. We live in the Netherlands next to Margraten, did you visit Margraten also? Thank you for your video's!

[@julienporisse9902]

I have been watching your videos, and they’re very good. Informative, historical facts backed up with on site filming. I notice that the war memorials, cemeteries and museums are in very good maintenance, this is very respectful and shall continue to be. In Paris bullet holes shell impacts have been kept on the façades of buildings, there are hundreds of plaques on street walls with names of police, soldiers, resistance and civilians who died for freedom. I thank these spirits who gave everyone their everything

[@kevinaltizer]

I always had a special feeling riding by these cemeteries on my American Harley Davidson. Almost like these brave men could feel the vibration. Their sacrifice enabled me to do that.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Kevin Altizer - Amen to that.

[@MrFrikkenfrakken]

More of the excellent work that is present in all your videos. Thanks for a great job.

[@gideoncampbell8335]

That’s not the wind blowing so strongly in the American graveyard. It’s the last breath of all those soldiers that have given their lives for us and our country. 🇺🇸

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

🇺🇸

[@smokewagon7268]

When you first walked in and we saw all those white crosses. I wanted to cry. I was fortunate enough to have both of my grandfathers come back from the war. Many thanks and gratitude for the sacrifice of those brave men. And thank you for showing us.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Pretty humbling place. Thanks 🙏🏼

[@eastsidebadger8416]

Great video & really well done. Never knew there was a memorial at Malmedy. Thank you!

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Eastside Badger - Thanks. Glad that you were able to learn something from it along with me.

[@robertherrick8660]

Really enjoying your series and knowledge and seeing the sites in Normandy has always been a dream of mine, that I don't think I will be able to visit. Thank you for sharing and keep up the excellent coverage.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thank you. Glad that I could share a bit of the experience.

[@Gramps227]

Very sad story but very well told. Thank You.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Agreed. Tragic story.

[@markhewitt4307]

My grandfather was 28th infantry division 112th infantry regiment. He was at the battle of the bulge. He had 5 campaign ribbons. He never really talked about the war except for 1 time to my mom. He ended in the US Army at rank of SSGT.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Mark Hewitt - Those guys went through a lot.

[@kVkV-sw5se]

I'm an Aussie and I think I've fallen into the same trap that many nationalities have, in not understanding the sheer scale of the American contribution to WW2 or the scale of sacrifice of American soldiers. There were so many nations involved in the war that we tend to maybe feel protective of our contribution. But the truth is that the USA was without doubt the leading force in defeating Germany on the Western Front and while many nations contributed, there is no doubt it would never have succeeded without the contribution and sacrifice of America. As Winston Churhill famously said "America will always do the right thing, once it has exhausted all other possibilities". So while, like probably pretty much every person who is not American, I get really frustrated with their bravado, talking themselves up, and all the theatrics and ego boosting exercises Americans appear to need, the facts are the world should be very grateful for their contribution in both world wars and other actions since then. I would never say "God Bless America" until Americans can actually point out our country on a world map :), but I am very grateful for what they did to protect the world from fascism and more recently communism.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Well said. Thank you. 🇺🇸🇬🇧🇨🇦🇦🇺

[@TeutonicNordwind]

This is a great and thought-provoking comment. Thank you! My dad (French-Canadian, born in Montreal, moved to Detroit at 6 yo) got his US citizenship due to his service. Fought across France and into Germany, wounded fairly decently Nov '44 (shrapnel to the throat when clearing a house at St Die with a boobytrapped/time delay door) but recovered in field hospital and rejoined the 103rd Inf. Many times in France, served as an interpreter for his field superiors with locals as they moved from town to town and into the Alsace. Survived and returned home to raise 8 kids (I'm 7th). I remember as a kid of about 8 - maybe 1970-ish at a Detroit Tigers ball game, he told me to stand for the anthem. I remember looking up at my dad during it and tears were rolling down his cheeks. The rest of his life, I came to realize, he always got emotional at hearing the anthem and what it represented to him as he was truly grateful for what he felt like was a priceless chance to call himself an American. Mom's brother/my uncle Donald Emerick is buried in this Henri Chapelle cemetery. KIA 22 Jan '45 during the Bulge. Fast forward to present - so glad to see the new unified collaboration between Australia, the UK and US on the next generation of subs! I've met several in Europe and here in the states and I've enjoyed every Aussie I've ever met. Not sure why, but the wife and I have always gotten along famously with y'all. Feel like we Yanks have more of a kindred spirit with you than with "our cousins across the pond"/the UK

[@EchoKilo]

Great video, as always. Does anyone know when this memorial was built?

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Hmmm. Not sure on that one.

[@EchoKilo]

The History Underground my wife and I were there in 2015, if it was there then we drove right by it without knowing to go to the museum just to the south.

[@cpat7409]

I visited the memorial in 2007..

[@troycaldwell5711]

KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK IN A TIME WHEN OUR SCHOOLS TEACH KIDS HOW TO TAKE TEST. OUR SCHOOLS FAIL WHEN IT COMES TO THE IMPORTANCE OF HISTORY.. WE CAN LEARN A LOT FROM HISTORY. IF WE DON'T LEARN FROM HISTORY WE ARE DOOMED TO REPEAT HISTORY.

[@helenecadle7822]

Heartening to see the Poppy Crosses and wreaths. “ Lest we Forget “

[@williamratliffma5250]

i did not want to stop and see this video. just another dork doing videos about the war......( i am a vet so forgive the language) i looked anyway and i must say SIR, you did an outstanding job and most respectful and knowledge filled. i was glad that i did take a look. thank you for caring about our veterans.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Thanks! I appreciate that. Although your initial impression about being a dork was spot on 😅

[@algow5988]

The SS done the same to the North Nova Scotia Highlanders, my dad said "we didn't take SS prisoners after that"

[@michaelsix9684]

Peiper served in Russia, and executed prisoners there, it was how SS operated and they didn't stop doing it when they fought against us, US troops vowed not to take SS prisoners after Malmedy

[@jerrymccrae7202]

So Glad your Dad came out of the war ok. I salute him. My Dad was USN at Normandy he came out om to. RIP to ALL vets of that war and service!

[@m.n.shumate448]

Thank you so much for doing these videos to keep history alive. Tragic part of our WWII history that you conveyed with great respect & reverence. Do not stop what you are doing, I look forward to where you will take us next. I would love to visit Europe, specifically WWII landmarks, but until I have that chance, thank you for taking me along. Safe travels!

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

M.N. Shumate - Thanks for the kind words and encouragement!

[@Surfguitarist59]

Interesting note on Peiper. I was stationed in Germany and have been to the exact spot you were at. Peiper moved to a small French village, and somehow his name and location leaked out to former members of the underground. Peiper sent his family back to Germany due to threats. He did put up a fight upon his attack. His house was set on fire. Here's the freaky part. When the local fire department arrived, they discovered all the fire hoses on the fire truck had been slashed.

[@williamhogan4031]

good...

[@c3aloha]

Justice delayed but justice in the end

[@ronniel879]

Thank You for keeping the history our greatest generation alive and to be a keeper of the flame of the lives lost ! So often the passing of time dims the sacrifice that was made .

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Ronnie L 👊🏻

[@kevinaltizer]

Margraten, Netherlands is another cemetery just up the road from here. Dutch families adopt the graves and visit each and every one where they maintain and keep them covered with flowers.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

I wish that I would have mentioned how the Europeans care for the graves. I do plan on going back someday though. Thanks for including that.

[@manfredrichthofen2494]

..l have visited the cemetery of Margraten, as a young man ,41- years ago.. The solemness of the place still haunt me to this day, imagining how such a very peaceful place contained the mortal remains borne from unimaginable violence..

[@StephenLuke]

RIP To the 84 American POWs (and hundreds of other American POWs from other units) who were murdered by the 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler under Joachim Peiper, Werner Poetschke, and Sepp Dietrich in the Malmedy massacre

[@marcsmiley8014]

Thank you for making this video. A story that all Americans need to remember.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

marc Smiley - Thanks. It was my pleasure. Hoping to do a small part to keep history alive.

[@SueProv]

Wow. That is a tear in the eyes video. Very touching and sad. Thank you for helping us remember. It's a service to their memory and to us living.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

Pretty tragic story and a very moving place

[@dennisburby8585]

I don't believe in the death penalty, but I understand it. Especially when it relates to nazis. That Peiper was murdered is kind of beautifully poetic. He was a murderer who was murdered. I hope he was able to appreciate that as he was dying. All the war criminals must be dead by now. But I'd like to think that those that escaped the gallows lived the rest of their lives in fear.

[@only1dutchgirl]

It was said that elements of the former French resistance took care of him .... karma got him in the end

[@jeffreardon3969]

I always felt it was outrageous that they did not put that man Piper to death for what he was responsible for. I will never understand that. I was glad to hear that justice caught up with that animal.

[@patrickmccrann991]

Peiper had nothing to do with the Malmedy Massacre. The 1st SS Reconnaissance Battalion was the unit involved and was not part of Peiper's Battle Group. He was almost 10 miles away at the head of his unit when this event happened. Later evidence proved he had nothing to do with it and his sentence was commuted. He was actually killed in 1976 by French communists not by former French Resistance fighters.

[@jeffreardon3969]

@@patrickmccrann991 interesting. How do you know that? Historians point to him. It’s what I read.

[@patrickmccrann991]

@@jeffreardon3969 There are several books that have addressed his story. Additionally, Major Hal McCown testified at his trial that Peiper treated him and the other prisoners captured properly up to when they were released. Assumptions were made that 1st SS Reconnaissance Battalion was part of his command, but post war study showed they were not. Not saying the man was a Saint, but he was not responsible for or present when the Massacre happened.

[@Wazup13579]

I had know someone from West Virginia died at Malmendy but never knew who. Paul R Carr is from a town just 20 minutes away from me. I would have never known. Thank you!

[@bobyoung1698]

The only way to ensure that this never happens again is to ensure that war never happens again.

[@kysersose3924]

"Only the dead have seen the end of war." Tragically.