Franklin Roosevelt's Fireside Chat - Battle of the Bulge - Jan. 6, 1945

President Roosevelt spoke to the American people about the horrendous battle that was going on in the Ardennes Forest. It was a horrendous battle and tens of thousands of American, British, and German soldiers were killed. The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Counteroffensive, took place from Dec 16, 1944 to January 25, 1945 and was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during WW II. I was launched through the dense forest of the Ardennes in eastern Belgium, northeast France, and Luxembourg. The "Bulge" was the largest and bloodiest battle fought by the United States in World War II and the second deadliest battle in American history. American casualties: 85,000 (killed, wounded, missing, captured) 733 tanks and tank destroyers lost. 1000 aircraft lost. British had 1408 casualties, Germans 63,222-98,000, 554 tanks, 800 aircraft lost. The radio played a valuable part in informing the American people of the situation and President Roosevelt was responsible for delivering the difficult news of the battle.