warcrimes on civilians Stavelot 19th december 1944

Objective research on factual information regarding German military related warcrimes.
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collectorGD
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warcrimes on civilians Stavelot 19th december 1944

Post by collectorGD »

Hello,

I want to know more about the events that happened the 19th of december 1944 in Stavelot, Belgium. In some books, they say that about 100 civilians were slaughtered/shot/killed by LAH soldiers after they came from Malmedy.

Is this true? Is their objective material that subscribed this story?

I know that after the war, some LAH soldiers were sentenced for this. So I assume there exist something that can be used as evidence. People always speak about the Malmedy massacre but about the events of 19th december, you can't find a lot.

kind regards,
T
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John W. Howard
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Re: warcrimes on civilians Stavelot 19th december 1944

Post by John W. Howard »

Hello Collector:
The American historian, Charles B. MacDonald, discusses some of the killings in Stavelot in his excellent book A TIME FOR TRUMPETS. It appears that much of the evidence to the killings was provided by other civilians in the town and the towns surrounding Stavelot. Some time ago I read an interesting account by an historian that explained some of the rage visited by the German troops on the Belgian civilians. There was an ongoing belief by some of the Germans that Belgian civilians were helping American troops spot their artillery, because US artillery was taking a fearful toll on German troops and appeared to be uncannily accurate with its air-bursts. What the Germans did not know was that permission had been given by the US War Department(opposed by the US Navy) for Army artillery units to use the new proximity fuses( POZIT or VT) on their shells, which increased their effectiveness, and gave the Germans the impression that civilians were spotting for US Arty. I am not sure if MacDonald put forth this theory, but he does discuss the proximity fuses in his book as well as some of the killings in Stavelot and surrounding areas. I hope this helps. Best wishes.
John W. Howard
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John W. Howard
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Re: warcrimes on civilians Stavelot 19th december 1944

Post by John W. Howard »

Hello Collector:
MacDonald cites December 21, 1944 as the date on which US artillery could start using the new proximity fuses, which comes after the date of the killings in Stavelot. However this does not shoot down the theory entirely, because there was apparently wide spread belief among German soldiers that Belgian civilians were aiding the Allies.
John W. Howard
collectorGD
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Re: warcrimes on civilians Stavelot 19th december 1944

Post by collectorGD »

Thanks John for your reply. I will look for the book of Charles Macdonald.

kind regards,
Tom
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Prosper Vandenbroucke
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Re: warcrimes on civilians Stavelot 19th december 1944

Post by Prosper Vandenbroucke »

Hello Tom,
Have also a look over here:
http://www.39-45.org/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=22312
It's a book in french, but that explains everything concerning about Stavelot
Regards
Prosper
collectorGD
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Re: warcrimes on civilians Stavelot 19th december 1944

Post by collectorGD »

Hello Prosper, thanks for the advice! I will order the book for sure.

kind regards,
Tom
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