Memorial Civilian Victims Bombardment 23-12-1944 Malmedy

The facts
When the Germans launched a counter-offensive from the Eifel on December 16, 1944, the Allied air force was unable to do much because of the bad weather. Already on December 17, the armor of Kampfgruppe Peiper had reached the neighboring village of Baugnez. But after the massacre the Germans inflicted on the defenseless American soldiers, the German tanks left Malmedy and advanced to the bridges over the Amblève, towards Stavelot. Malmedy remains in American hands. Many civilians from the surrounding region fled the war to the city. Unfortunately, a week later, Malmedy would be heavily bombed three days in a row. The reasons why this happened have remained unclear for years. The work 'Ardennes 44 Stavelot et Malmedy dans la tourmente', the result of thorough research by Hubert Laby from 2007, probably best explains the circumstances:
On December 23, the weather cleared and a group of 28 B26 Marauder bombers of the 322nd Bombardment Group took off from Bauvais airfield to attack the strategic city of Zulpich on German territory. But the group had to contend with many setbacks:. The accompanying Pathfinders who had to find the target had to return to base. The foggy weather and the Flak scattered the planes and left only six more flying in the direction of the target. At 3:25 p.m., the group's leader, Major Watson, spotted a small town, and although nothing appeared to match Zulpich's description during the morning debriefing, a minute later the bombers dropped 80 250-pound bombs on the center of the town. , inflicting a massacre on the unsuspecting civilians and military.

The next day, December 24, despite the fact that the American troops had put orange sails on the highest buildings and points of the city, the city was bombed again in the afternoon by 18 Liberators of the 458th Bombardment Group on their way to Wetteldorf. about 41 kilometers from Malmedy. The later report spoke of a bombing of an "unidentified city." Although the civilians hid in cellars and caves, the death toll was high. The atheneum in particular, where countless civilians had sought shelter in the cellars, received the full brunt. The fire was huge and could not be brought under control.

But the suffering was not over yet. On Christmas Day, nearby Sankt-Vith, which had been recaptured by the Germans, would be the target of 36 B26 Marauder of the 387th Bombardment Group. The city had already been bombed in the morning and huge plumes of smoke obscured the view. It is likely that this was the cause of the confusion and 64 250 lb bombs were dropped on Malmedy at 4:05 pm. This time it was the district on the bridge over the Warche that was seriously affected.
Due to an accumulation of mistakes, a strategically unimportant city was almost completely reduced to ashes, more than 200 civilians, mainly women and children from Malmedy and the surrounding area were killed and about 40 American soldiers were killed.

The monument
Forty years after the incident, not a single memorial had been erected to commemorate the countless victims of this senseless bombardment. Under pressure from the relatives of the victims, the college of aldermen decided to erect a monument. The amount of 450,000 francs (11,155 Euros) was financed by a public subscription, applying for the solidarity of the citizens. This grand monument measuring 11 by 4.5 meters consists of five gray granite steles in a park of roses and with the names of the identified victims. In front of these steles is a memorial plaque on the ground with the explanatory reference to the bombing.

Text on the stone in the foreground:
Bataille des Ardennes
Bombardments de Malmedy – December 1944
A la memoire des victimes civiles
Par souscription publique Le 22 – 12 – 1984

In the background are five plates with the names of the 214 civilians who died during the "Battle of the Bulge". The names of the victims from Malmedy itself can be read on the first two plates from the left.
On the next plates to the right, the names of the victims from the Malmedy area can be read.

Of which:
Bellevaux - Ligneuville, Beverce, Amel, Meyerode, Büllingen, Rocherath, Bütgenbach, Elsenborn, Reuland, Aachen, Bonn, Duesseldorf, Kalterherberg.

And several unidentified persons.

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Source

• Text: Jan Rymenams
• Photos: Hans Tasma (1, 2), Pascal Rosseeuw (3), Jan Rymenams (4, 5)
• Remacle, J., La Mémoire de la seconde guerre mondiale à Malmedy de 1945 à nos jours, Malmedy, 2020