Crossing the Zorn

Conceived in desperation after the Battle of the Bulge in January 1945, Germany's Operation Nordwind culminated in the frozen Alsatian fields surrounding the Zorn River. The American 12th Armored Division and the German 10th Waffen SS Panzer Division squared off for what was expected to be an easy offensive near the villages of Herrlisheim and Weyersheim. Neither army could have foreseen the savage violence that ensued. Combining the vivid eyewitness accounts of veterans from both sides of the conflict with information gleaned from a variety of long-unavailable print sources, this richly detailed history casts a fascinating light on a little-known but crucial battle in the Second World War. It serves as a tribute to the common soldiers who stalwartly carried out near-impossible orders. See more