Commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge

On December 16, 1944, the Wehrmacht's final offensive to break through the Allied lines fighting on the Western Front fell on Luxembourg and the Ardennes region. This offensive to become known as the Battle of the Bulge, lasted six weeks and became one of the deadliest battle of WWII, resulting in many military and civilian casualties. It was largely thanks to the tenacious defense of American soldiers that the German advance was halted. Today, 80 years later, this historic event remains an important chapter in Luxembourg's collective memory and retains a special resonance.

To mark this anniversary, TT.RR.HH. the Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess, Prime Minister Luc Frieden, the American Battle Monuments Commission (AMBC) and the Embassy of the United States of America in Luxembourg invited to a joint commemorative ceremony held on Saturday, December 14, 2024 at the Luxembourg American Cemetery in Hamm. This site is very significant for our bilateral history, being the resting place of more than 5,000 service members, amongst them General George S. Patton.

The ceremony at the cemetery was held to honor the American soldiers who fought in the bitter cold and snow in the Ardennes to defend Luxembourg and Belgium against the return of the Nazis. The significance of the event, 80 years after the start of the battle, was underlined by the presence of three US delegations: a presidential delegation led by Bill Nelson, Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), as well as two congressional delegations, one from the United States Senate, led by Senator Jerry Moran (Kansas), Chair of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, and one from the United States House of Representatives, led by Representative Michael McCaul (Texas), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

The ceremony was also attended by TT.MM. the King and the Queen of the Belgians, the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, and the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Belgium, Alexander De Croo. A number of World War II veterans, who took part in this historic chapter, travelled all the way to Luxembourg to participate in the commemorations, during which U.S. veteran John D. Foy shared his testimony.

Other speeches were then given by ABMC Secretary Charles K. Djou, Major General Peter B. Andrysiak Jr, Chief of Staff, U.S. European Command, U.S. Ambassador Thomas M. Barrett, Luxembourg Prime Minister Luc Frieden, and H.R.H. the Grand Duke. Music accompaniment was provided by the Luxembourg and American military bands.

The Luxembourg Head of State, H.M. the King of the Belgians, Bill Nelson, Roberta Metsola, ABMC Secretary Charles K. Djou, New Hampshire Senator and member of the U.S. Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, Maggie Hassan, and the head of the United States House of Representatives delegation, Michael McCaul, laid seven wreaths. A 21-gun salute concluded the official ceremony.

In the afternoon, TT.RR.HH. the Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess, TT.MM. the King and the Queen of the Belgians, the Prime Ministers of Luxembourg and Belgium, and Luxembourg Defense Minister Yuriko Backes took part in the commemorations in Bastogne (Belgium).

In parallel, on Monday December 16^th, in Washington D.C., a commemoration ceremony was held in the main plaza of the World War II Memorial with US veterans and representatives from Luxembourg, France, Belgium and Canada. It included a wreath-laying at the Atlantic Arch. The event was organized by the Friends of the National World War II Memorial.