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By Alain Henry de FrahanBMVT, MVPA #20768Gembloux, Belgium

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The celebration of the 70th anniversary of the ‘Battle ofthe Bulge’ saw several events organized in various placesin the Belgian Ardennes. Bastogne certainly deservesparticular attention thanks to the heroic resistance ofthe American 101st Airborne Division, and the famous‘Nuts’ reply given by Brig. Gen. McAuliffe to theGerman proposal of surrender. Other cities andvillages also commemorated the harsh combatthat took place from 16th December 1944 until31st January 1945, when the German Armywas f inally forced back to their starting line.

When Gen. Hasso von Manteuffel, commandingofficer of the 5th Panzer Armee, launched hisoffensive in a sector encompassing Bastogne, hecreated havoc in the area. In December 2014,without needing von Manteuffel to repeat his action,the same region saw nearly the same mess, as noeffective coordination of the various events wasevident.Numerous commemorations, military vehicle

convoys, marches, etc. took place between the GrandDuchy of Luxembourg and eastern Belgium – thelatter sector having been much more damaged thanthe Bastogne area, in December 1944 by the 6th SSArmy.

About twenty US veterans who had fought in theArdennes were invited to various ceremonies, mainlyin Bastogne. They expressed their deepest feelings atsuch a warm reception, and were even congratulatedby King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium.

ARMORED CONVOY – ‘TANKS IN TOWN’ 2014, AND THE BMVT IN ACTIONThose who attended Tanks in Town 2014

requested Pierre Deghaye, of the Royal Mons AutoMoto Club (RMAMC), to organize a convoy in the

Bastogne area. He acceptedand contacted the forestryadministration responsiblefor the area.

The author’s Willys MB andKarl Delrue’s M5A1 Stuart inMande-Saint-Étienne, whilethe convoy of tanks andother armored vehicles wasformed up in closecooperation by the Tanks inTown team and the BelgianMilitary Vehicle Military Trust.(© Alain Henry de Frahan).

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When Karl Delrue (BMVT)bought his M5A1 Stuart, as

a wreck, the turret wasmissing so he fabricated

the entire unit. Standing inthe Stuart turret is an 82ndAirborne reenactor (right)

and my son William. (© Alain Henry de Frahan).

The M4 Sherman, owned bythe city of Mons, butoperated by the Royal MonsAuto Moto Club, is poweredby a Diesel engine. However,the original Continental C1could still be reinstalled asthe engine compartment hasnot been modified. (© Alain Henry de Frahan).

André and WilliamWitmeur, leaningagainst the M4Sherman ownedby the city of

Mons, watch as aDodge WC57Command Carpasses by inMande-Saint-

Étienne. (© AlainHenry de Frahan).

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The convoy ofarmored vehiclescould rely on theassistance providedby a Diamond T 969owned by amember of theFrench clubArdennes 44.(© Alain Henry deFrahan).

Didier Ruth (BMVT) always driveshis jeep with the windshieldfolded down, no matter what theweather may be. One tough guy!(© Jean de Moraes).

This superb Ford M8, ownedby ‘little Nick,’ of the Belgianclub Patton Drivers, made itsfirst sortie on that historicalweekend. (© Jean de Moraes).

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André Witmeur, president of the Belgian MilitaryVehicle Trust (BMVT), and also an MVPA member,joined the project and negotiated a deal with theBastogne War Museum for a special reception of theparticipants. This close cooperation between Tanksin Town and theBMVT would provefantastic!

Saturday December 13 saw about fifteen armoredvehicles, and just as many soft-skin vehicles, gatheredin the village of Mande-Saint-Étienne, northwest ofBastogne, Belgium.

On snow andmuddy ground

the DodgeWC63 provesmore stablethan a 4x4(© Jean deMoraes).

Thomas Kohl came fromGermany with his M16 half-track,which he christened ‘Luftwaffe’sNightmare.’ (© Jean de Moraes).

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Participant vehicles were the M4 Sherman andM5A1 Stuart belonging to the city of Mons, KarlDelrue’s M5A1 Stuart, several half-tracks, M8s andM20s from Belgium, France and Germany. Theywere joined by a handful of jeeps, Dodge trucks,GMCs, two wreckers (a Diamond T 969 fromFrance, and a Ward LaFrance M1A1 fromSwitzerland), plus an M29 Weasel from the CzechRepublic. This very impressive convoy snakedthrough the countryside trails and roads, at times

under heavy snow that gave the historic touch hopedfor by the participants.At noon, just after passing through Champs, the

convoy stopped in Hemroulle for a muchappreciated ‘soup stop’ provided by the BMVT.Then the convoy, led by Wallis Witmeur, began itsfinal leg to the Mardasson memorial, the famedhistorical monument built northeast of Bastogne.Once parked, each participant received acomplimentary ticket to the Bastogne War Memorial

Déjà vu, December 1944, when the snow started to fall in Belgium. Or when Patton’s 3rd USArmy started its rush toward Bastogne to break the German encirclement. A Ford M8 is followed

by an M3A1 and a M16 half-track. (© Alain Henry de Frahan).

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and lunch, through anarrangement made byAndré Witmeur and themuseum.At 1730 h a great light

and sound show wasstaged at the Mardassonmonument. It waswatched by hundreds ofspectators, as well as thoseAmerican veterans whofelt able to attend in suchwintry conditions.

ACTIVITIES ATBASTOGNE BARRACKSThe barracks of the

disbanded 1st ArtilleryRegiment house a subsidiaryof The Royal Museum of theArmy (Brussels), plus thehistoric cellar in which Brig.Gen. Anthony McAuliffe –renowned for his explicitreply to the Germancommander – had establishedhis 101st AirborneHeadquarters. Nearly 12,000 people

visited the hangars of theformer Belgian army unitduring the weekend. Theywere attracted by the vehiclerestoration center wheretanks, armored and soft-skinvehicles are rebuilt. Thecurrent work in progress onthe very rare GermanSturmGeschutz III Ausf. F.8deserves a special mention.

The Studebaker M29Weasel was obviously inits planned environment;however no opportunitywas given to its driver todemonstrate it in deepsnow. (© EmmanuelHenry de Frahan).

Pierre Deghaye, leader of the Tanks-in-Town team (standing right), isconferring in Hemroulle with the driver of the ‘Ô Saint-Georges,’ the M4

Sherman owned by the city of Mons. (© Alain Henry de Frahan).

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Two other hangars are dedicated to various staticdisplays. A poor selection of vehicles in runningcondition was made available for the short circuitaround the parade ground. When one considers howdynamic foreign museums have become by involvingtheir vehicles in reenactments and movies, The RoyalMuseum of the Army should take note.

Their administration was recently questionedabout discretely getting rid of many rare andvaluable vehicles and parts, which they denied on theground that these pieces were not officially registeredin the museum’s inventory. Several Sherman andGreyhound turrets, splendid Kenworth and WardLaFrance M1 wreckers and a lot of other vehicle

An impressive gathering of tanks and armored vehicles in Hemroulle for a very much-appreciated ‘hot soup halt’ offered by the BMVT. (© Alain Henry de Frahan).

This Ward LaFrance M1A1 heavy wrecker, was transported on a semi-trailer from Switzerland. (© Emmanuel Henry de Frahan).

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parts were sold to a scrap dealer!And their actual fate is reallyunclear. This was disappointingto the people who have beenworking on the museum’svehicles for decades.On Sunday afternoon, the

museum’s Morris CommercialC8 FAT towing a Bofors 40 mmAA gun, a French Renault UEtankette with trailer and theSherman Firefly took part in theparade in Bastogne.

Three of the half-track participantsin the armored convoy werephotographed at a halt point. Twoof them came from the VéhiculesMilitaires Historiques – Anjou clubin France. (© Alain Henry deFrahan).

The M24 Chaffee belongingto Nicolas Georges / Jeepest(France) before taking part to

the battle reenactment inRecogne. (© Alain Henry

de Frahan).

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BATTLE REENACTMENT IN RECOGNEAbout five miles north of Bastogne is the village

of Recogne, at the outskirt of which is the Germanmilitary cemetery for their losses in battle. For acouple of years Recogne was the theater for a staticand dynamic reenactment of the fierce fighting thatravaged the village in December 1944, and earlyJanuary 1945. Serge Balleux, president of the DutyFirst club, was in charge of the reenactment.

Two miles east is Cobru, a smaller village thatannually covers the German side. François-XavierJordens, leader of the Historical Military RememberAssociation (HMRA club), presided over thereenactment there. Both associations are involved in the Ardennes

Memories . Due tosome atrocities perpetrated by SS units in the area(POW and civilian killings), the battle reenactment

Left, Jef Keuppens (BMVT) with his M36 Jackson tank destroyerin Recogne, before the battle reenactment. (© Jef Keuppens).

The M24 Chaffee of Nicolas Georges and the M36 Jackson, of Jef Keuppens, are both beautifully restored. They were stopped side-by-side on the fine sunny morning before the battle reenactment in Recogne.(© Jef Keuppens).

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Beginning of the battle reenactment in Recogne. A Dodge WC63 towing a 57 mm anti-tank gun is shown moving to its position. (© Alain Henry de Frahan).

Hugo Jottard’s OT-810 (Czech post-war copy ofthe Sd.Kfz 251 Ausf.D) and a VW 82 Kübelwagen,brought by the Polish SRH AAZ group among,other vehicles and reenactors photographedbefore the second act that would see the 101stAirborne push the Germans back in the village ofRecogne. (© Alain Henry de Frahan).

Jef Keuppens’M36 Jackson

was neutralizedby the Panther.The German

reenactors tookshelter by itduring theAmerican

counter-attack.(© Emmanuel

Henry deFrahan).

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set up by the Ardennes Memories association excludesreenactors in SS uniforms. Only Wehrmachtuniforms and vehicle markings are allowed.At 1315 h on Sunday a spectacular reenactment

reminded all of the fierce fighting in Recogne and inthe adjoining area. Nicolas Evrard, Daniel VanBoeckel and I broadcast the event on the town’spublic address system.About three hundred reenactors were involved,

along with an M24 Chaffee, an M36 Jackson tankdestroyer, a Panther (the famed Polish copy built ona T-55), a Sd.Kfz 251 Ausf.D (OT-810), as well asjeeps, Dodges, Kübelwagen and Schwimmwagen.Thousands of spectators expressed their strongadmiration for the work performed. There were three acts; German attack, US

counter-attack, and street fighting. Thousands ofblank rounds were fired, comprising tank shells,hand grenade and mortar shell explosions.Unfortunately, because of the deep mist thatobscured the scene at the beginning of the battlereenactment, François-Xavier Jordens’ OT-810 drivermissed a small bridge, and completely bogged downin a small river.

Additional photographs may be seen at Links to the battle reenactmentand the Panther in action are,

Enter: and in YouTube to see more.

PARADE IN THE MAIN STREETOF BASTOGNEAs usual, on Sunday at 1500 h, dozens of vehicles

took part in a parade on the main street of Bastogneto the applauses of a large crowd.

WHAT NEXT?Much more successful, spectacular, and crowd-

gathering commemorations could be achieved. Butwhat is needed is better knowledge, understandingand cooperation among the authorities in Bastogne,toward the ever-growing world of military vehicleand reenactment associations that are willing todiscuss common issues. Let’s cross our fingers!

Unfortunately, because of the deep mist obscuring the valley at the beginning of the battle reenactment, Michel Bastin missed the bridge while driving François-Xavier Jordens’ OT-810 and got stuck. Jef Keuppens’

M36 Jackson, at the conclusion of the show, easily recovered the vehicle. (© Jef Keuppens).

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The village of Recogne, northof Bastogne, was the theaterof a battle reenactment. In ActIII, the Germans are pushed

back by the US 101st Airborne.(© Alain Henry de Frahan).

After the end of Act II, ofthe battle reenactment,the Panther took Germaninfantrymen aboard forAct III in the village ofRecogne itself. (© AlainHenry de Frahan).

Act I of the reenactment. Here the (Polish) Panther and German troops have overwhelmedthe American troops defending Recogne. (© Alain Henry de Frahan).