Military Antiques Stockholm - Top
Display your banner here
Page 1 of 4 1 2 3 4 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 36

Bulge Pics : Leibstandarte Chateau Command Post.

Article about: First purchase for me at the La Gleize Show last weekend was a copy of 'Duel In The Mist Vol 3' which covers the fighting around Trois Ponts and Wanne - I was actually staying in Wanne so th

  1. #1

    Arrow Bulge Pics : Leibstandarte Chateau Command Post.

    First purchase for me at the La Gleize Show last weekend was a copy of 'Duel In The Mist Vol 3' which covers the fighting around Trois Ponts and Wanne - I was actually staying in Wanne so the book became a sort of battlefield guidebook.

    Anyhow, I was intrigued by the references to the 'Petit Spai Chateau' : apparently in WWII it was a childrens' home which was commandeered by KG Knittel on 19/12/44, the inhabitants being banished to the cellars. The only man - a chaplain - in the house was led away and later his body was found in the woods. After the fighting between KG Hansen and the 82nd Airborne nearby, it is believed that Knittel ordered the shooting of 11 US POWs behind the chateau. It was a busy place throughout the battle as everything the Germans tried to put across the Petit Spai Bridge ( including the Jagdpanzer IV which collapsed it ) had to drive past the front door, and a battery of 15cm guns was emplaced nearby to support KG Peiper at La Gleize.


    I was rather intrigued - there were no signs for a chateau on the road, and my hiking maps didn't show it. So I thought I'd nip down there for a look.

    The track down the valley looked very little-used - in the pic, the mist was just burning off...

    Bulge Pics : Leibstandarte Chateau Command Post.

    There just seemed to be no building at all....but as I got toward the bottom, something seemed to be in the trees....

    Bulge Pics : Leibstandarte Chateau Command Post.

    It gave me a bit of a shock - I'd walked almost right into it.

    Bulge Pics : Leibstandarte Chateau Command Post.


    It was oppressively quiet, there weren't any signs saying 'Dangerous Structure' or 'Keep Out' so, while not wanting to be shot for trespass, I moved in close for a look.

    Bulge Pics : Leibstandarte Chateau Command Post.

    Bulge Pics : Leibstandarte Chateau Command Post.

    Bulge Pics : Leibstandarte Chateau Command Post.

    Bulge Pics : Leibstandarte Chateau Command Post.


    It was only when I downloaded the pics that I noticed the bullet marks in the windowframes....

    Bulge Pics : Leibstandarte Chateau Command Post.


    I don;t want to get all mystical, but they do say that buildings can absorb the atmosphere of events which have happened there. I must say that this was the spookiest WWII location I've ever visited ( being on my own didn't help ! ).

    Certainly I walked briskly back up that track, casting the odd glance over my shoulder........

  2. #2

    Default

    Interesting place! You didn't root around for any interesting bits and souvenirs??
    William

    "Much that once was, is lost. For none now live who remember it."

  3. #3
    ?

    Default

    Are there any contemporary photo's taken at the time of the battle that anybody knows of ?

  4. #4

    Lightbulb

    Answers : didn't have time to root around, I'm afraid. I'm sure that if you looked long and hard enough..............

    And - no, the PK-Berichter weren't around on that side of the Ambleve. There are no pics that I know of from Wanne, either. There is a US photo ( rather poor ) of the area immediately after the battle on p. 182 of Pallud's 'Battle Of The Bulge : Then & Now'.

  5. #5
    ?

    Default

    very interesting place. Did you go up the stairs???
    Semper Fi
    Phil

  6. #6

    Default

    WOW great place...time stood still there! thanks for sharing
    It is not the size of a Collection in History that matters......Its the size of your Passion for it!! - Larry C

    One never knows what tree roots push to the surface of what laid buried before the tree was planted - Larry C

    “The farther back you can look, the farther forward you are likely to see.” - Winston Churchill

  7. #7

    Default

    Fascinating...and you've practically got the whole place at your feet...Did you look at the basement, or at least snoop around the surrounding area...I bet that place had a garbage dump...Great photos, would like to see more, lol!!
    cheers, Glenn

  8. #8

    Default

    Did you feel the hair standing up on the back of your neck? .. ..if you did..there are Ghosts.
    It is not the size of a Collection in History that matters......Its the size of your Passion for it!! - Larry C

    One never knows what tree roots push to the surface of what laid buried before the tree was planted - Larry C

    “The farther back you can look, the farther forward you are likely to see.” - Winston Churchill

  9. #9

    Default

    Truly fascinating. The history AND your recent visit.

  10. #10

    Default

    I'd move in!
    cheers, Glenn

Page 1 of 4 1 2 3 4 LastLast

Similar Threads

  1. 08-04-2013, 08:18 AM
  2. how to remove pics from a post

    In Technical/Design - Questions, How-to, & Advice
    07-16-2013, 09:09 PM
  3. christmas post to all soldiers in the bulge

    In Photos - Papers - Propaganda of the Third Reich
    06-13-2013, 06:37 PM
  4. 01-08-2009, 01:06 AM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
Marna Militaria - Down
Display your banner here