Britain’s Battle of the Bulge:
Scenario Preview, Part Five
By Mike Bennighof, Ph.D.
July 2021

Lately, we’ve been making pompous statements about our intent to weave more hard-core history into our games. Elsenborn Ridge: Britain’s Battle of the Bulge gives a deep look into the British XXX Corps’ campaign in the Ardennes in late 1944 and early 1945, when British divisions stood alongside the Americans to snuff out Germany’s last offensive in the West.

This is a model for how we want to address history in our games: plenty of context for every scenario. It’s not enough to tell what happened; we want to address why it happened. In this case, Philippe Léonard and Vincent Kamer delve into just how British divisions became involved in what’s often considered the U.S. Army’s most consequential victory.

But like any Avalanche Press product, the heart of Britain’s Battle of the Bulge is its scenario set. Let’s have a look at the last of them:

Scenario Ten
It Was Jolly Cold
Grimbiémont, east of Marche, Belgium
7 January 1945
The German 116th Panzer-Division remained entrenched in the wooded hills around Grimbiémont, three miles southeast of Marche. On 7 January the British resumed their advance; on the right of the 158th Brigade sector, the 1st East Lancashire cleared up the forest towards the Hedrée Brook, but found the enemy strongly entrenched on the high ground at Grimbiémont on the opposite side of the valley. At noon the East Lancs attacked uphill over open sloping ground towards Grimbiémont to seize the village, nestled behind the ridge.

Conclusion
The British harbored for the night in a large wood on the top of some high ground, captured from the enemy the day before. The wood stretched toward the Germans and the ground gradually sloped away in the same direction, until the wood ended in a shallow valley. From the edge of the wood and across the valley one could see a long stretch of open snow, with the ground rising to a ridge in the rear. H Hour was fixed at 1200 and the operational planning included artillery support to lay down smoke to mask the tanks’ movements. However, the first four tanks leading the way had first to cross a small stream but as soon as they did, they sank right down into a bog which had been completely hidden by the snow. Meanwhile, the infantry had gone in without any armored support and met determined opposition mainly from mortar and very accurate artillery fire. They therefore made less progress than had been expected. The left forward infantry company battled three Panzer IV tanks that had taken up hull-down positions on the forward edge of the woods to the east of the village.

Luckily for the battalion, it started to snow that afternoon which somewhat concealed the battalion's advance. Fighting the panzers with their PIATs, the British scored a direct hit on one of the tanks which jammed the turret. The remainder withdrew and this permitted the company to continue the attack. After that, every house had to be systematically cleared. The rest of the supporting British tank squadron at last extricated itself from the woods and bogs and came out on a road on the right flank. They were having difficulty in climbing the hill due to the usual frozen surface but they made it to the top after slipping and sliding from side to side. By about 1400 the infantry had reached the village and the tank squadron was with them, consolidating. A total of 180 POWs were captured during the day, all members of the 116th Panzer Division. Both battalions of the 158th Brigade suffered severe losses. The 1st East Lancs on 7 January suffered 19 killed and 75 wounded; in their three days of action in the Ardennes Lt. Col. Alan Jolly’s battalion lost a total of 11 officers and 232 men killed, wounded and missing. News arrived that the 51st Highland Division would relieve the 53rd Welsh Division on the next day (8 January). This resulted in a break in the British advance.

Notes
The Brits are on the attack, with a battalion of infantry and some strong tank and artillery support. Morale is high and leadership quite good. Those are the positives. The weather is miserable, visibility low, the ground has been turned into a wretched morass and there are Germans.

Scenario Eleven
The Rearguard
Between Hives and Lavaux, south of La Roche en Ardenne, Belgium
12 January 1945
Late on the 11th, 51st Highland Division issued its operational instructions for the next day. A final concentrated effort would take the last stretch of ground separating the Highlanders from the western branch of the Ourthe River (aka Ourthe Occidentale) and pinch off the German retreat. The Scots would advance down the roads emanating from La Roche to the south and southeast, then up onto the high ground to cut off the German retreat. The 154th Brigade would strike out from Hives to the south with the 7th Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders and seize the tiny hamlet of Beaulieu which lay astride the 5th Panzer Army’s escape route to Houffalize.

Conclusion
As Lavaux covered the Germans’ last escape route, they reacted strongly to any threat in this direction. The Highlanders’ attack encountered rear guards consisting of small packets of mechanized infantry supported by Panther tanks, and went badly from the start. Enemy fire pinned down the two leading platoons and their supporting Shermans fared no better. The fight continued all afternoon, but the British could not turn back the Germans any faster than they chose to retreat.

Notes
The Brits remain confident (excellent morale), well-armed (plenty of tanks and artillery) and well-led. The Germans . . . the Germans are a sorry lot, battered and beaten and just ready to go home. It’s up to the British to hurry them on their way, ejecting them from their rear-guard positions with the help of the awesome VT fuze for their artillery. But those Panther tanks are still dangerous, even with crews in the grip of existential angst.

And that’s the scenario set for Britain’s Battle of the Bulge.

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Mike Bennighof is president of Avalanche Press and holds a doctorate in history from Emory University. A Fulbright Scholar and NASA Journalist in Space finalist, he has published a staggering number of books, games and articles on historical subjects. He lives in Birmingham, Alabama with his wife, three children and his dog, Leopold.