Chenogne massacre

Chenogne massacre
LocationNear Chenogne, Luxembourg, Belgium
Coordinates49°59′31″N 5°37′05″E / 49.992°N 5.618°E / 49.992; 5.618
DateJanuary 1, 1945
TargetWehrmacht soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division and Führerbegleitbrigade
Attack type
Massacre
Deaths80
Perpetrators11th Armored Division (US Army)

The Chenogne massacre was a war crime committed by members of the 11th Armored Division, an American combat unit, near Chenogne, Belgium, on January 1, 1945, during the Battle of the Bulge.

According to eyewitness accounts, an estimated 80 German prisoners of war were massacred by their American captors; the prisoners were assembled in a field and shot with machine guns. It was one of several war crimes committed during the Battle of the Bulge by members of both Allied and Axis forces.[1]

The events were covered up at the time, and none of the perpetrators were ever punished. Postwar historians believe the killings were carried out on verbal orders by senior commanders that "no prisoners were to be taken".[2]

  1. ^ Harland-Dunaway, Chris (December 28, 2019). Myers, Brett (ed.). "Take No Prisoners Update". Reveal, from The Center for Investigative Reporting co-produced with PRX. Archived from the original on January 4, 2020. Retrieved January 4, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  2. ^ Sorge, Martin K. (July 23, 1986). The Other Price of Hitler's War : German Military and Civilian Losses Resulting From World War II. Greenwood Press. p. 147. ISBN 978-0-313-25293-8.