The Christmas Truce... of 1944

In the winter of 1944, during the brutal fighting in the Huertgen Forest, an unofficial localized ceasefire occurred when American and German soldiers independently stopped firing and sang Christmas carols across the lines in Sector 7 near Vossenack. For approximately two hours, no shots were fired. Soldiers from both sides could hear each other singing in their respective languages. The silence was broken when artillery from the 3rd Panzer Grenadier Division resumed shelling. The German company commander who had agreed to the stoppage was later investigated by the Gestapo but found not to have violated formal orders (as none existed).