<Ul> <Li> German forces </Li> <Li> Order of battle </Li> </Ul> <Li> Order of battle </Li> <P> The Siege of Bastogne was an engagement in December 1944 between American and German forces at the Belgian town of Bastogne, as part of the larger Battle of the Bulge . The goal of the German offensive was the harbour at Antwerp . In order to reach it before the Allies could regroup and bring their superior air power to bear, German mechanized forces had to seize the roadways through eastern Belgium . Because all seven main roads in the densely wooded Ardennes highlands converged on Bastogne (Bastnach in German), just a few miles away from the border with neighbouring Luxembourg, control of its crossroads was vital to the German attack . The siege was from 20 to 27 December, until the besieged American forces were relieved by elements of General George Patton's Third Army . </P> <P> After the successful invasion of Normandy and the subsequent eastward push through France, the Allied front lines extended from Nijmegen in the north down to neutral Switzerland in the south . The valuable port city of Antwerp had been captured during the push, and by the time winter arrived, the Allies even had control of German territory near the city of Aachen . Adolf Hitler soon laid out a plan to attack the Allied lines in Belgium and Luxembourg; 25 divisions would launch a surprise attack through the Ardennes, with the aim of crossing the Meuse River (called Maas in German and Dutch) and recapturing Antwerp . Despite major misgivings from his senior commanders, including Gerd von Rundstedt and Walther Model, the plan was not modified and the jump - off date was eventually set as 16 December 1944 . Meanwhile, the Allied commanders considered the Ardennes area to be unsuitable for a large - scale German attack, mainly because of terrain issues . In addition, intelligence reports suggested that the only German divisions stationed in the area were weary, and in the weeks leading up to the assault, no Allied commander saw reason to believe that an attack was imminent . Bastogne, a hub city that commanded several important roads in the area, was defended mainly by the 28th Infantry Division, which had seen continuous fighting from 22 July to 19 November, before being assigned to this relatively quiet area . The Allies believed only an infantry division was present opposite the 28th Infantry, and they believed any attack along this sector would be limited in scale . The seven roads in and out of Bastogne were critical to the movement of German armor, making Allied retention of the roads imperative . </P>

How long did the battle of bastogne last
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