Largest land battle on the Western Front during World War II and the largest engagement ever fought by the U.S. Army. In early December 1944, Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight D. Eisenhower planned major offensives in the northern and southern sectors of the Western Front. To ensure sufficient power for . . .

In Belgium, an exposed member of the 82nd Airborne Division scrambles for cover. December 24, 1944.

Source: National Archives (111-SC-197861)

Men had to dig foxholes in the frozen ground at the Battle of the Bulge.

Wounded soldiers lie on cots at an evacuation hospital near Epinal, France. November 30, 1944. Paul Fussell was evacuated to Epinal after his wound.

Source: National Archives (111-SC-196644)

Infantrymen grab sleep where they can. Normandy, France, July 1944.

Source: National Archives (111-SC-191444)

Bill Mauldin worked for Stars and Stripes during the war. His cartoons were viewed by GIs serving in Europe.

Source: Copyright 1945 by Bill Mauldin. Displayed courtesy of the William Mauldin Estate.

Paul Fussell was born on March 22, l924, in Pasadena, California, the son of a successful corporate lawyer. On May 6, 1943, he was a student at Pomona College when he was called to active duty. He graduated from Officer Candidate School in May, 1944 . Now a 2nd Lieutenant, . . .

Portrait of 2nd Lieutenant Paul Fussell. May 1944. He would be sent to the Vosges Mountains.

Source: Paul Fussell

Paul Fussell in Paris, 1945. The previous winter, he fought in the Vosges Mountain campaign.

Source: Paul Fussell

Paul Fussell at Camp Roberts in the summer of 1943. After Officer Candidate School, Fussell was assigned to the 103rd Infantry Division, 410th Infantry Regiment.

Source: Paul Fussell

The higher ranking officers gave the orders to fight, but they never put themselves in harm's way.

I learned a vast amount. It was a great, instructive educational experience.

He had a difficult time trying to explain what happened to him during the war.

Paul Fussell's War Department ID. He would fight in the Vosges Mountains.

Source: Paul Fussell

Hitler's army was making the final preparations for its surprise attack.

Allied campaign following the 15 August 1944 ANVIL-DRAGOON landings in southern France. The Allied landings opened a new phase in the war in the European Theater of Operations (ETO). One day after the surrender of Toulon and Marseille on 28 August 1944, American and French troops commenced a campaign northward . . .