The Siegfried Line Trivia Quiz

Answer: WWI

The Hindenburg Line ("Siegfriedstellung") was mainly built during the winter of 1916-1917 in WWI, in northern France, and is a completely different defence line from the WWII Siegfried Line. The Allies just borrowed the name.

Answer: The Westwall

The defence line had many names, including "Aachen-Saar-Program", but after 1939 it was known as "The Westwall (fortifications)". The Gothic Line was a fortification Line in Italy.

Answer: Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and France

The Siegfried Line went from Kleve by the border Germany with the Netherlands, through the borders of Belgium, Luxembourg and France, to the town Weil am Rhein on the border with Switzerland (though Switzerland is in the south and was not opposite the the Siegfried Line).

Answer: Obstacles against armored vehicles

"Dragon's teeth" were used to stop armored vehicles. The "teeth" were made of reinforced concrete, looking almost like pyramids of various sizes (90 cm to 2 metres), all put on top of a large concrete mat. Sometimes they were covered in barbed wire and often had mines in front of or between them.

Answer: The best units were needed for the Ardennes offensive.

A paranoid Hitler did suspect some German commanders were deliberately losing battles to prove his strategies wrong in Normandy, but this had nothing to do with the manpower at the Siegfried Line. Some manpower could probably have been added to The Westwall if Operation Market Garden had not happened. But the direct reason for the lack of skilled units at The Westwall was the preparations of the Ardennes offensive. Model and Rundstedt had to defend the Westwall with an absolute minimum of forces. One of the ideas with the Westwall was that few and unskilled soldiers could defend it. Only in extreme circumstances would capable divisions reinforce the line.

Germany was quite desperate at this time. Untrained units from the reserve divisions had to fight, sometimes even the staff. Personnel from the Luftwaffe and the Kriegsmarine, as well as local home guard units with aging rifles were also thrown into battle. Germany was in need of skilled soldiers, but it is wrong to say they had none.

Answer: Aachen

Aachen was encircled and the German forces surrendered on 21st October 1944 after heavy fighting. Aachen is the German city farthest to the west, it had been Charlemagne's capital and the imperial city of the old kings of Germania. The city was severely damaged in the battle by Allied artillery as well as by German demolition.

Answer: Norman Cota

Maj. Gen. Lawton "Lightning Joe" Collins and Maj. Gen. Leonard Gerow commanded corps active against the Siegfried Line at the autumn 1944. Patton had nothing to do with the Siegfried Line at this time.

Norman Daniel "Dutch" Cota was the Commander of 28th Infantry Division. He was ordered to make a direct attack against defences in Hurtgen Forest. Cota sent three regiments to three different objectives, thus isolating each regiment, which resulted in severe casulties. Cota was also criticized for staying in his command post, as well as holding his tanks back. He considered the terrain too difficult for vehicles, while others disagreed with this.

Answer: Bangalore Torpedo

Bangalore Torpedoes were probably also used against bunkers sometimes, but were quite insufficient compared to other weapons. The intended use for Bangalores was to clear paths through barbed wire and mines.

The typical way to destroy or clear out bunkers, particulary in this area at this time, was first to shell the area with artillery to strip away camouflage and destroy nearby entrenchments. Then, if available, a M 12 155mm GMC was moved up close at night, attacking the bunker at a few hundred yards.

The Bazooka, intended as an anti-tank weapon, was used as a formidable weapon to blow up the rear doors of bunkers. It was also used as a supressive weapon, with machine guns, covering the advancing infantry getting into range with flame throwers and pole charges.

Pole Charge was an explosive charge at the end of a pole used to destroy the more vulnerable embrasures of the bunker. Flame throwers were probably the best close range infantry weapon against bunkers. Tanks were also fitted with flamethrowers.

Answer: Operation Queen

Operation Queen, planned for 5 November, but starting 16 November, was a major offensive with similar strategy as Operation Cobra almost 3 months earlier in the Normandy area.

Massive air strikes should have made a swift Allied breakthrough, but dense forest and overcast weather made it less successful. German towns suffered heavy destruction, communications were impaired and German morale lowered, but direct German casulties were low. All in all, Operation Queen was not a success.

Answer: "The Death Factory"

Many names were probably given to Hurtgen Forest, but the one we hear about today is "The Death Factory" or just "The Factory".

The US Army had 48,000 casulties in the Siegfried Line campaign. US 1st Army lost at least 33,000 in The Hurtgen Forest alone. German casulties were 28,000. In the autumn 1944 Germany lost 95,000 men in prisoners alone, to the 1st and 9th US Army.