History
GalleryBattle of the Bulge veterans honored at WWII Memorial ceremony in Washington
Stars and Stripes
December 17, 2024
Battle of the Bulge veterans Frank Cohn, left, and Harry Miller salute the presentation of the colors during the battle’s 80th anniversary wreath-laying ceremony at the World War II Memorial’s Circle of Remembrance in Washington on Monday, Dec. 16, 2024. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Two Battle of the Bulge veterans, officials and supporters gathered Monday at the World War II Memorial’s Circle of Remembrance in Washington to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the decisive battle. The veterans, retired Army Senior Master Sgt. Harry Miller, 96, and retired Army Col. Frank Cohn, 99, were honored with laying a wreath at the Atlantic arch of the memorial.
In 1944, Miller, a tank crewman, arrived in Belgium, east of where the Battle of the Bulge, one of World War II’s most famous battles, soon would be waged near the border of Germany. It was one of the largest and bloodiest fights of the war.
Miller and Cohn are among the last surviving soldiers from the battle, which was Germany’s final offensive on the war’s western front, a battle fought in the Ardennes Forest in Belgium and Luxembourg.
“The Battle of the Bulge was most significant for me,” Miller said in a recent interview. “The Bulge made me the man I am. It was when I grew up. I learned real fast how to fight, to persist and to survive. That battle made my character — that is the best way to say it.”
Service members stand behind wreaths to be presented during the Battle of the Bulge 80th anniversary wreath-laying ceremony at the World War II Memorial’s Circle of Remembrance in Washington on Monday, Dec. 16, 2024. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
A Color Guard marches toward the front of the presentation area during the Battle of the Bulge 80th anniversary wreath-laying ceremony at the World War II Memorial’s Circle of Remembrance in Washington on Monday, Dec. 16, 2024. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
The U.S. Army Band plays at the Battle of the Bulge 80th anniversary wreath-laying ceremony Monday, Dec. 16, 2024, at the World War II Memorial’s Circle of Remembrance in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
The Color Guard lines up Monday, Dec. 16, 2024, before the Battle of the Bulge 80th anniversary wreath-laying ceremony begins at the World War II Memorial’s Circle of Remembrance in Washington. ( Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Historian Alex Kershaw shows a replica prayer card that was carried by troops during the Battle of the Bulge as he makes remarks Monday, Dec. 16, 2024, during the battle’s 80th anniversary wreath-laying ceremony at the World War II Memorial’s Circle of Remembrance in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Cohn arrived in France in the fall of 1944 to learn how to serve as a linguist and interrogate captured German troops. He entered Belgium as an Army intelligence agent as the Battle of the Bulge broke out.
“There was a total blackout that first night,” he said. “At midnight, we were driving in a Jeep with the windshield down. We did not intercept anyone. It was snowing and sleeting too hard to see much of anything.”
Approximately 600,000 American soldiers fought in the battle, according to the Battle of the Bulge Association in Gettysburg, Pa. More than 80,000 were captured or killed. But the Germans suffered heavier losses, estimated at 100,000. The Battle of the Bulge ended in late January 1945, with Allied troops forcing the Germans into retreat.
On Monday at the memorial, representatives from Belgium, Canada, France and Luxembourg attended the ceremony. The event included a wreath-laying at the Atlantic arch of the memorial by representatives of the Allied nations and concluded the playing taps played by a U.S. service member.
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Service members exit after presenting wreaths during the Battle of the Bulge 80th anniversary wreath-laying ceremony at the World War II Memorial’s Circle of Remembrance in Washington on Monday, Dec. 16, 2024. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
A bugler plays taps Monday, Dec. 16, 2024, at the conclusion of the Battle of the Bulge 80th anniversary wreath-laying ceremony at the World War II Memorial’s Circle of Remembrance in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
A bugler plays taps Monday, Dec. 16, 2024, at the conclusion of the Battle of the Bulge 80th anniversary wreath-laying ceremony at the World War II Memorial’s Circle of Remembrance in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Battle of the Bulge veterans Frank Cohn, left, and Harry Miller salute as wreaths are laid Monday, Dec. 16, 2024, during the battle’s 80th anniversary wreath-laying ceremony at the World War II Memorial’s Circle of Remembrance in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)