The 84th Infantry Division in the Battle of Germany November 1944-May 1945

The 84th Infantry Division in the Battle of Germany November 1944-May 1945

by Lt. Theodore Draper

Maps and drawings by Sgt. Walter H. Chapman

Foreword by Major General A.R. Bolling

The Viking Press, New York, 1946

This record of one of the most famous divisions in World War II is a model of its kind. Veterans of the division will cherish it as a vital part of their personal history, but it is more than merely a sort of keepsake album for men of the 84th. It can be read with enjoyment by the general reader for its own thrilling narrative—the total war experience of one group of American soldiers.

A high standard of writing, editing, and production distinguishes the volume throughout. The 84th, with luck and farsightedness, had an able Historical Section with a trained historian in combat with them, as well as a fine artist and excellent photographers. They also had an unusually continuous and representative combat experience.

The 84th ("Railsplitters") Division was in the line for 171 consecutive days, from the Siegfried Line through the Battle of the Bulge and across Germany to the Elbe. Their story is in a sense the story of the Battle of Germany. Their historian, Lt. Theodore Draper, is known for his remarkable book on the German invasion of France, The Six Weeks’ War; their artist is Sgt. Walter H. Chapman. While the book is addressed to the men who took part and includes details that will be of special interest to them, it avoids self-glorification and the class-reunion atmosphere. More than any other kind of writing, it gives the feel and look of warfare for the men who were in it—the microscopic view through the division, the company, the squad. Yet it maintains an overall relationship to the larger events of which its action was a part.

This record of the 84th Division is illustrated with more than one hundred photographs, seven paintings reproduced in full color, black-and-white wash drawings, line drawings, sixteen maps in black and white and an end-paper map in color.

Contents

• Foreword by Major General Bolling
• Note
• The Infantry Division
• The Units
• Introduction
• Part One: THE SIEGFRIED LINE
• The Big Picture
• Prummem
• Geilenkirchen
• Lindem
• Goodbye to the Siegfried Line
• Part Two: THE ARDENNES
• At All Costs
• The Battle of the Bulge
• Part Three: TO THE RHINE
• The Battle behind the Battle
• Across the Roer
• The Breakthrough
• At the Rhine
• Part Four: TO THE ELBE
• Across the Rhine
• Across the Weser
• Elbe, We Are Here
• Another Journey’s End
• Appendix I
• Commendations and Citations
• Appendix II
• Command of the 84th Infantry Division, 1 October 1944 to 8 May 1945
• Attachments and Detachments, 10 November 1944 to 8 May 1945
• Detachments of the Organic Units of the 84th Infantry Division
• Corps and Armies to Which the 84th Infantry Division Was Attached, 12 November 1944 to 8 May 1945

260 pages

133 photos/illustrations