ARRACOURT 1944: Triumph of American Armor

1-229800

Tackles the Battle of Arracourt in September 1944, where a German 5th Panzer Army counterattack to blunt the US 4th Armor's drive looked good on paper but failed in the field. Provides an overview of tanks and other vehicles on both sides, general OOB and TO&E, and 'Strategic Setting' to help understand how and why the battle happened. Includes 150 photographs and illustrations.

In their M4 Shermans, American tank crews squared off against the technologically superior Mark V Panther tanks of the Wehrmacht. Yet through a combination of superior tactics, leadership, teamwork, and small-unit initiative, the outnumbered American forces won a decisive victory against the 5th Panzer Army.

Indeed, of the 262 tanks and mobile assault guns fielded by German forces, 200 were damaged or destroyed by enemy fire. The Americans, by contrast, lost only 48 tanks. Following the collapse of the German counterattack at Arracourt, General Patton's Third Army found itself within striking distance of the Third Reich's borderlands. The battle of Arracourt was the US Army's largest tank battle until the Ardennes Offensive in December 1944.