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World at War Forum

Battle of the Hürtgen Forest

Between October 1944 and February 1945 over 100,000 men fought for the Hürtgen Forest, located on the border of Belgium and Germany. Chris Howard describes who and why this area was fought over.

The battle of the Hürtgen Forest has been described in several ways.

Ernest Hemingway called it “Passchendaele with Tree Bursts”. Some have said that it was the worst fighting conditions of the American military since the Battle of the Wilderness. Others simply described it as “Hell”.

However the battle is described, it was one of the longest battles with the most casualties in American history. Over 100,000 men were killed, wounded or missing. The battle began in late October 1944 and did not end until early February 1945. All this for a piece of terrain roughly 20 miles by 20 miles; and in some of the worst weather in western Europe in 100 years.

During the presentation, Chris Howard will try to describe why the battle was fought, how it was fought and the ultimate outcome.

Chris Howard was born and raised in Virginia, surrounded by Civil War history. He attended Princeton University. He worked for IBM for 17 years, relocating to Cleveland in 1986. He currently works as CFO for FocusCFO. His father served in the U.S. Army in the Battle of the Hurtgen Forest.

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