14th Armored Division
Combat History
The 14th Armored Division landed at Marseilles, France, 29 October 1944. On 12 November, Headquarters, Combat Command R was ordered to Nice. The 19th and 68th Armored Infantry Battalions were attached to CCR.
The 19th AIB moved to the area of Nice on the 13th, with the 68th AIB following the next day. The two battalions were the first elements of the Division to enter combat, maintaining defensive positions in the Maritime Alps along the Franco-Italian frontier.
Meanwhile the rest of the Division moved north to the area of Epinal. On 19 November, CCA joined Seventh Army's VI Corps in its drive through the Vosges Mountains. Hard fighting in and around the mountain towns of Gertwiller, Benfeld, and Barr cracked Nazi defenses, and the Division was on the Alsatian Plain early in December.
Riviera to the Rhine (PDF)
The Division began assembling at Hochfelden on the Alsatian Plain to the east of Strasbourg on 1 December. By 11 December advance elements began movement across the Moder River into the Haguenau woods.
The Division began its attacks on 13 December and reached the German border along the Lauter River two days later. Led by troops of the 19th AIB, the Division crossed into Germany in the area of Wissembourg.
On the 17th they attacked the Siegfried Line in force. Despite progress, the Division was ordered to withdraw into Alsace on 19 December due to the German offensive in the Ardennes.
On Christmas Day Task Force Hudelson, formed around the 62nd AIB and 94th Cavalry Squadron, was assigned defensive positions south of Bitche near Bannstein.
On New Year's Eve, the Task Force received the first attacks of Operation Nordwind. Engaged by elements of five German divisions, the force delayed the advance long enough for reinforcements to arrive.
The Division resumed operations, reorganizing and preparing for renewed offensive action. By March 1945, it crossed the Moder River and retook territory lost during Nordwind.
Crossing the Lauter River again, the Division attacked the Siegfried Line and captured Germersheim on the Rhine by 24 March.
On Easter Sunday, 1 April 1945, the Division crossed the Rhine near Worms and continued pursuit through central Germany.
The Division's stand at Hatten-Rittershoffen allowed Seventh Army to withdraw and regroup. In January, the Division disengaged and moved south to reorganize and refit.
It resumed offensive operations in March, eventually crossing into Germany again and continuing its advance.
In its final thrust, the Division raced to the Danube, crossed at Ingolstadt, and pushed to Moosburg, where over 110,000 Allied prisoners were liberated.
Division artillery fired its final rounds on 2 May 1945 near the Austrian border. The war in Europe ended on 8 May 1945.
