Sunday, 17 December 1944
Kampfgruppe Peiper broke out of Lanzerath before dawn and drove thirty miles westward through Honsfeld, Büllingen, Ligneuville, and Baugnez to reach Stavelot by evening — the deepest German penetration of the offensive. At Baugnez crossroads, SS troops murdered approximately eighty-four American prisoners of war in what became known as the Malmedy massacre. At Wereth, eleven African-American soldiers of the 333rd Field Artillery Battalion were tortured and killed. On the Schnee Eifel, 18. Volksgrenadier-Division completed the encirclement of two regiments of the 106th Infantry Division, trapping some 8,000 men.
The Allied response accelerated. Eisenhower committed the SHAEF strategic reserve, alerting the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions at Sissonne and Suippes for immediate movement to the Ardennes. The 7th Armored Division, having departed Heerlen at 04:30, fought through massive traffic congestion to reach Saint-Vith by evening. The 30th Infantry Division began moving from Aachen toward Malmedy. At the Twin Villages of Krinkelt–Rocherath, the 99th and 2nd Infantry Divisions held against repeated German assaults, buying time for the Elsenborn Ridge position to be prepared.
Northern Shoulder
Kampfgruppe Peiper’s spearhead, led by SS-Obersturmbannführer Joachim Peiper, seized the village of Honsfeld before dawn, overrunning elements of the 394th Infantry Regiment and the 612th Tank Destroyer Battalion at a rest centre. Nineteen American prisoners were murdered. The column captured intact vehicles and fuel before turning south toward Büllingen.
Kampfgruppe Peiper seized the American fuel dump at Büllingen, capturing approximately 50,000 gallons of petrol. Vehicles refuelled while the 254th Engineer Combat Battalion attempted to defend the south-eastern approaches. Peiper’s column then turned south-west, bypassing the Elsenborn Ridge, heading for Ligneuville via Schoppen and Ondenval.
At the Baugnez crossroads south of Malmedy, the spearhead of Kampfgruppe Peiper encountered Battery B of the 285th Field Artillery Observation Battalion. After a brief engagement, approximately 113 American soldiers surrendered. SS troops opened fire on the prisoners in the field beside the crossroads. Approximately eighty-four men were killed; survivors escaped by feigning death. News of the massacre spread rapidly through American lines, hardening resistance across the front.
At the hamlet of Wereth, eleven African-American soldiers of the 333rd Field Artillery Battalion, separated from their unit during the German advance, were captured by elements of Kampfgruppe Hansen of 1. SS-Panzer-Division. The prisoners were tortured and murdered. The atrocity remained largely unknown for decades.
The 277. Volksgrenadier-Division and elements of 12. SS-Panzer-Division Hitlerjugend launched repeated assaults on the Twin Villages. Five battalions of the 99th Infantry Division, reinforced by the 2nd Infantry Division withdrawing from Wahlerscheid, held the position throughout the day. By evening, V Corps authorised withdrawal to the Elsenborn Ridge defensive line, buying critical time for the position to be prepared.
Oberst Friedrich August von der Heydte’s paratrooper force dropped over the Eupen–Monschau axis. Of 106 Junkers Ju 52 transport aircraft, only thirty-five delivered their paratroopers on target. The remainder were scattered across a wide area by high winds and navigation errors. American anti-aircraft units claimed fourteen aircraft destroyed. The operation achieved no military objective but generated widespread alarm behind American lines.
Kampfgruppe Peiper reached the outskirts of Stavelot by early evening, having covered over thirty miles in a single day. A small detachment of the 291st Engineer Combat Battalion under Sergeant Charles Hensel established a roadblock at the hairpin turn on the approach road. At 19:00, mine and bazooka fire disabled the lead German vehicle. Peiper, his crews exhausted and fuel critically low, chose to halt until dawn rather than force the crossing in darkness. The delay proved decisive.
Central Sector
At 09:00, 18. Volksgrenadier-Division seized the bridge at Schönberg, completing the encirclement of the 422nd and 423rd Infantry Regiments of the 106th Infantry Division on the Schnee Eifel. Approximately 8,000 to 9,000 American soldiers were now trapped in a pocket with dwindling supplies and severed communications. The 14th Cavalry Group had collapsed on the northern flank, and attempts to organise a breakout would fail over the following two days, resulting in the largest American mass surrender in the European theatre.
Brigadier General Bruce Clarke of Combat Command B, 7th Armored Division, arrived at Saint-Vith at 10:30 to find confusion and rumours of approaching Tiger tanks. The 7th Armored Division, having departed Heerlen at 04:30, was caught in massive traffic congestion — taking two and a half hours to cover three miles through retreating columns. Advanced elements reached Saint-Vith by 20:15. Lieutenant Colonel Tom Riggs organised a scratch defensive force of approximately 350 men to hold the eastern approaches until armour arrived.
The 28th Infantry Division continued its fighting withdrawal along the Skyline Drive. XLVII. Panzerkorps pressed forward with 2. Panzer-Division and Panzer-Lehr-Division toward the Clerf river crossings. By nightfall, the regimental command post at Clervaux was overrun. The road to Bastogne was opening.
Southern Shoulder
Brandenberger’s 7. Armee continued its attacks along the Sauer against the 4th Infantry Division. The 12th Infantry Regiment held its positions, though pressure increased. Elements of the 10th Armored Division began arriving from Patton’s Third Army to reinforce the sector. The southern shoulder remained the most stable sector of the front — 7. Armee’s mission was defensive, shielding 5. Panzerarmee’s southern flank.
Allied Command
At 19:00, XVIII Airborne Corps received alert orders committing the SHAEF strategic reserve. The 82nd Airborne Division under Brigadier General James Gavin and the 101st Airborne Division under Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe were ordered to move immediately from their camps near Reims to the Ardennes. Gavin departed Sissonne at 23:00, driving through the night to reach First Army headquarters at Spa the following morning. The 82nd was directed to Werbomont; the 101st to Bastogne.
The day saw a massive movement of reserves toward the threatened sectors. The 7th Armored Division departed Heerlen at 04:30, reaching Saint-Vith by 20:15 after fighting through chaotic traffic. The 30th Infantry Division began moving from Aachen at 16:30, with the 117th Infantry Regiment directed toward Malmedy. The 1st Infantry Division’s 26th Regiment, activated at midnight, moved toward the Elsenborn sector to reinforce V Corps.
With Kampfgruppe Peiper advancing toward the enormous First Army fuel dumps south of Stavelot and Malmedy, evacuation orders were issued. Over the following three days, nearly all of the stored fuel — millions of gallons — was successfully evacuated or destroyed. The 5e Bataillon belge de fusiliers destroyed 50,000 litres near Stavelot. Only 124,000 gallons fell to the Germans. The fuel dump defence was one of the critical unsung successes of the battle.