My wife was a home health aid for a 96 year old gentleman who was a forward observer that advanced thru Belgium in WW2. He remarked to me during one of our many visits, "There was a massacre of an artillery unit by the SS, but it was kept a secret because the higher ups were too afraid that it would really hurt morale and frighten everybody. I wish that it was talked about." Mr. Smith passed away two years ago and I have wondered ever since what the story was but gave up on ever finding out. Thank you for this video, I now know the story and Mr. Smith can rest a little easier.
One thing I have noticed throughout all of Felton’s videos is the overwhelming gratitude and kindness shown in the comments. Learning history such as this makes us more grateful for what we have, and what we are. Thanks everyone
Is that true? Good Lord...My Father is English, my Mum American. On her side of the fam, she had 4 Uncles fighting in Europe, 2 in the Pacific. In the Battle of the Bulge, my Great Uncle George Berry was captured by the 277th Volkgrenadier Div SS, stripped of his clothes and locked in a barn. He was rescued, but died of Pneumonia shortly after. He's buried in Luxembourg.
Mark Felton and Indy Neidell are my go to people for war history. They just deliver facts not propaganda. They say what happened and leave me to feel what I feel about it.
One point it made clear to me: World War Two was not a "good war." For too long Hollywood has glamorized this war. It was a terrible event of unmatched cruelty.
As a Black American Man with a Grandfather who fought against Nazi Germany in WW2 I also appreciate, greatly you exposing this story of Black American soldiers fighting in WW2 to the masses. I only learned of the Wereth 11 just recently. I love your channel!
My great grandfather served in the 285th Field Artillery Battalion and was in the Ardennes. Thankfully, he was in Company A, and not B. He was awarded 3 Bronze Stars during the war.
As a black man, I thank you for bringing this untaught history to light. As lifelong student of WWII history, I thank you for all your efforts shedding light on many facts not taught in school, TV, books, or films. Awesome work. Liked, sub, and donated.
Way better, than what you usually get from media nowadays with racial caricatures that historically make no sense, with the producer’s celebrating their own ‘tolerance’ and racial ‘representation’.
@@charleshowie2074 That is strange. Should he be ashamed of his skincolor then? In this documentary, it's obvious skincolor fueled the hate, torture and killing of these 11 black men.
@@GTfour01 What is strange? No. Of course the SS's crimes were racially motivated - they were Nazis. It is a bizarre question and follow-up statement ans seems kinda apropos nothing?
I knew of the Malmady massacre, but had not heard of the Wereth murders. Thanks once again Doctor Felton for shedding some light on this horrible chapter of world history.
I did know about this massacre, knew of their murder. I knew watching this was going to make me sad because I knew the outcome beforehand, but I watched anyway. There are those times where History is brutal, sadistic, unfair, and just plain murderous. But I still feel that even these moments in History require the vigilance to not look away to better educate ourselves about our past.
Do you also know the German point of view about Malmedy? It is verry interesting when you compare the two versions based on their plausibility......Maybe this might be another topic for Mr. Felton.....
While finding the guilty may never happen, forgetting the incident would be a greater tragedy. Dr. Felton has done his part to cause the rest of us to reflect and, hopefully, learn.
I have been in the Hürtgen forest. They still find soldiers there every now and again. When I was there they found the body of a US soldier who had just arrived to serve for a couple of days, when he got killed. It is sad that the horrors of Hürtgenwald is most often forgotten because of the battle for the Ardenne directly after it.
It also has sadly given rise to the myth here in America that we and the Brits beat the Germans virtually every time apart from Market Garden. The Italian Campaign was absolutely brutal with a number of setbacks, and Hurtgen was a total disaster for us. We were FAR from invincible, and we paid the price for getting overconfident and cocky. Thank goodness we recovered at the Battle of the Bulge.
@@thunderbird1921 Likewise the Soviets suffered defeats right up until the final months. Many reasons of course. Hitler demanded increasing sacrifice and soldiers became more and more paranoid about disobeying orders. Many saw some dignity in dying to the enemy but none in being executed by their own men. But also the Allies share some of the blame, as they began a race of East vs. West, attempting to seize as much land as possible in the shortest timeframe. This led to many entirely pointless minor disasters that could have been avoided. That said it's important to remember that every day the war continued, more Jews and Roma were being slaughtered. The death numbers actually increased until the very end of the war where the logistics systems of the camps had so totally collapsed that they simply could not keep up the pace. So there is something to be said that while many situations were perceived to be pointless deaths, the sacrifices made by soldiers saved the lives of many thousands who may have otherwise been systematically killed. Complicated topic, and indeed one that isn't talked about enough, with the perception of the last 2 years of the war being a series of endless allied victories dominating the narrative. Then you have the other extreme, which is those who overblow things like the battle of the bulge, which very much was a last gasp of the German army, and which was pretty objectively a horrible idea stoked by Hitler's ego rather than any actual strategy.
@@thepinkplushie What one has to understand is that the Germans won pretty much every battle where they weren't severely outnumbered (or completely battered by Allied air or artillery superiority) throughout the war, even during its later parts. Their army was simply superior, because it combined the well trained soldiers of the western nations with the brutal discipline of the soviets. German soldiers were, and there's little discussion about that, the best in the world during WW2. They only lost because the allies VASTLY outnumbered them and because the German economy was unable to provide sufficient supplies for the army to keep functioning (and also because Hitler's and the OHL's strategy was stupid). It was a mixture of the American economy and the endless supply of soldiers that the soviets could muster that won the war, certainly not better soldiers/armies.
Would say it's pretty well known by anyone even with a passing interest in WW2. Known about this for years well before the growth of WW2 history videos on TH-cam.
A film would be welcomed that celebrates the bravery of the African American soldiers, and the family who helped them whilst shining a torch on the racist brutality of the SS towards black troops and the (what seems likely) the racism in the US military that led to the cover up of the massacre.
@@raypurchase801 Of course they were heroes too and fight and in the end, they protected the family so the truth is that they fight to the end. I hate racism and freaking Nazis was all racism for sure. RIP Gis.
@@GQ2593 why would it be fictionalised by their own army who even looked down on them and segregated them?They arrived on the scene and saw the wounds and mutilation the soldiers had sustained.
@@GQ2593 so that suddenly excuses the soldiers who led them into a field and tortured them, shot one while he was bandaging his comrade, bayoneted them in their eyes, cut off their fingers and killed them?
@@alexanderthegreat1356 who knows what exactly triggered this turn of events... All the witnesses are either dead or might be wanting to tell their story. And there is very few of them so it's easy to tell anything they want to be told. So those events might have transpired as told here by Mark - or it might have been something different, we will never truly know.
One of these men James Aubrey Stewart was from a nearby town here in my home state of WVa. Some his relatives are buried on my family's farm including his cousin Stanley that was also captured by the Germans in WWII.
@@NotThatGuyPal. Grant and Mineral counties. Piedmont where James Aubrey Stewart is from is in Mineral. His relative Stanley had a farm right before the county line in Grant County. Skippy - Henry Louis Gates is from Piedmont.
@@MorrowMattyI'm sure it was, they didn't have to live in fear of them and their families being killed at anytime by the SS, and they got automatic US citizenship and big fat paychecks, the more seinor ones got fee homes also, so yeah they were probably pretty thrilled.
@@TheMrgoodmanners I think as far as narratives go, there was greater crimes like the Malmedy Massacre in the BoB, and that no one was caught. Other than war crime trivia, it doesn't contribute much to the greater conflict of the area. In terms of historical representation, I imagine the fact that the U.S. Army was extremely callous about under-representing African American contributions, that validating them by discussing the crimes would go against the status quo and that talking about it now discredits the actions of the past leadership. Similar to the many thousands of Korean refugees that the Army murdered, and subsequently denied despite literally seeing documentation of such during inquiries about it. The US Army had a huge integrity problem that still persists.
I think 11 men might be seen as a very small fraction of the thousands died, however, I believe such story should be told more and these brave soldiers be honored.
@John P. Denver Oh shut up. No one cares because Germany wanted a total war with the Soviets, whom they committed many war crimes against. You reap what you sow.
@John P. Denver Yes, I know, said group is responsible for every major conflict to ever exist plus they created inflation, but that still doesn't make what the Nazis did okay. The only people to have a record of worse war crimes than them would be the Imperial Japanese Army.
Ah yes another forgotten piece of forgotten history told by our good TH-cam Historian. Always good too know we can count on you for something new everyday.
@ well for the most part. It falls into the category of a footnote. Only a small number of people typically know about it. But i think you get the idea.
1.25 million subscribers suggests he isn't exactly underrated. I would say "highly regarded" myself. He has also written books and is a respected academic, so he's doing okay.
Thanks Dr. Felton, I like many other people would have never heard of this event. With out your unbiased reporting on any subject many stories like this would have faded into history.
I grew up watching World at War, Victory at Sea and all the great WWII documentaries with my Dad. Mark's work is more detailed, and less biased, excellent! I look forward to every episode.
You truly are a gift to mankind Mark Felton for keeping all this history alive in your videos. Especially the telling the stories that often are forgotten like this one. Your history intelligence on TH-cam is unmatched and although I am an unknown on TH-cam. I always watch your videos. Keep up the amazing work! 👏👏👍
we went to war against the German's and they were defending themselves, read about what our people did to them, our enemy was the communist and our govt has been in bed with them, since the beginning that is the new world order anti Christ, now europe, Canada, amurika, and Australia are destroyed .lincoln was friends with Karl Marx and his general's also and forward in history alot of govt officials were commies..
They were soldiers. It was their job to kill and be killed if need be. They died because they surrendered. I'm sure all of those men knew they would die regardless. It's very sad.
@@georgerandall5686 You making excuses for the nazis? They started the war and committed war crimes. They were not innocent victims of the US. You must be a neo nazi.
Your videos are absolutely fantastic, Mark. My father was a WW2 veteran and served in the US Army in Europe as an infantryman, but unfortunately died when I was a young boy in 1949 just some years after the war. I always wondered what his tour of duty was like. Greetings from Northern California. Mike
There is a book out there about this story."The Lost Eleven" by Denise George and Robert Child. It draws on first hand interviews with family members and fellow soldiers. Great video Mr. Felton
Channels like this one are very important in today's society. Parents that want their children to learn about world history without bias or revisionist views, can come to sites like this one and be confident that the material has been well researched and as close to accurate as can be possible. Thank You Mark!
Mr. Felton, Thank you very much for this video. I have read extensively about the Battle of the Bulge and had never heard of this massacre. Again , you are bringing to light truly forgotten history.
Brilliant ! You have no idea how grateful I am to get this video upload Mark .. thank you, I’ve been stuck in USA for 8months now with no knowing when I will be able to travel home, alone and in a hotel ( feels like a prison ) it’s 04:10 I can’t sleep thinking about family christmases gone by and I just needed something to take my mind off things. Thanks mate for this video and I guess I just wanted you to know you help people in a lot of ways with these videos. They are not just informational 👍🏻
My grandfather was in the 29th infantry and survived Omaha beach and made it all the way to Germany. He said they stopped taking prisoners after word of the massacre got out.
@@MrHeidiHigh Great story. The issue with the SS is that soldiers who joined were 'signing up' to the notion of racial supremacy. They were all taught it. It is great that he had a conscious and showed compassion when it was required. I hope that after the war he realised that the ideology was wrong.
My father was one of the sons of Bitche. Thank you for posting this. He slogged 10 miles through the forest with a wounded buddy. These were tough men.
Lest We Forget those who were murdered, always wonder the notification to next of kin, what was said if this was declared Top Secret and buried. Cheers and great presentation of forgotten history.
Mark Felton's War Stories is one of the best and most detailed war history channels I have been privileged to be educated by. One wonders sometimes, is their justice in some situations, in the world? That was an act of sheer cowardice, and man's I humanity to fellow men! Thank God that did not go unreported and unrecognized forever!
Dear Mr. Felton, I visited the ABMC-cemeteries of Omaha, Epinal, St-James, St-Avold, Condroz, Margraten, Henri-Chapelle, Geromont-Malmedy and Tunis. I live in Flanders at 70 miles from Wereth but had never learned about it if it wasn't for your educative channel. Last week I had an oppointment at 6 km from Wereth and went to the site to pay my respects to these guys. They sacrified their life to give us freedom and we cannot thank them enough. Thanks for sharing.
Enough about the history channel already. Every single upload its history channel this history channel that. Noone watches that crap, this is not the history channel
@@tomtaylor5623 how weren’t that honorable? They even considered the family, which they didn’t have to. They spared them so they wouldn’t be murdered by the SS as well. They were brave honorable soldiers.
@@tomtaylor5623 Reprisal? What's your logic? My point was that these American soldiers wouldn't risk the safety of that Belgian family, do you think the German soldiers had a good reason for torturing them to death?
@@bennyandersen742 how can you be so sure what these American soldiers were thinking at that time ? We might know what they actually did but nobody could read other's people minds to know what were they thinking...
@@Statek63 oh look its the same race triggerd dude going from comment to comment stream something told me givin your obsession to defend nazi war crimes against blacks all i had to do was keep searching and i would find you sgain..and look at that HERE YOU ARE
Thank you Dr. Felton for reminding us the brutality that can happen in the war and that we should never forget men’s lives who sacrificed for their country
I had read the Malmedy Massacre was a huge mistake by the SS. Word quickly got around to U.S. units about this atrocity and U.S. troops decided that it was better to fight to the death defending themselves than to give up and and be helplessly shot down like dogs. This resolve is what helped us win the battle of the Bulge.
Yeah, and it was waaaaaay more dangerous for the german to surrender themselves after that. It's the same brutality that was seen on the eastern front. Once you begun the atrocity, it cme quickly full circle.
@james wallis Lol. Yeah sure. BS. XD The condemnation were commuted but the condemned were not recognised innocent. That's a huge difference, and 6 at least were condemned to lperpetuity sentence anyway. More than that, the americans judge tired to make friends with the germans because of the cold war, so they were ready put many things uder the rugs.
@james wallis The only bullshit is your twisting of the facts. Because of testimony of U.S. soldiers who survived the massacre, forensic evidence, autopsy reports that showed death caused by machine gun bullet, close range pistol shots to the back of the head with powder burns, and blunt force trauma (rifle butts) (with no shrapnel wounds from artillery) photographic evidence and testimony of some SS soldiers who wanted to save their own necks, 73 SS men were convicted with 43 sentenced to hang. While the regular German army for the most part conducted themselves well the SS, who were not part of the German army did not. They we the ones responsible for running the death camps that slaughtered million of innocent civilians including millions of women and children. The same ones who butchered 642 French civilians at the village of Oradour-Sur-Glan in France in June of 1944, including 452 women and children they herded into a church and burned alive. These were men of no honor, morals or shame and you state Malmady never happened because these men said so? Do you think they would have any hesitancy to lie, especially if they told the truth a noose would immediately be placed around their neck? After the war the cold war changed everything, and now Germany was our friend which resulted in political pressure, there were accusations of trial irregularities, allegation that torture and duress was applied to the defendants, allegations that many US prosecutors, who were Jewish, were to biased for this trial, and because of this the death sentences were not carried out and later on the sentences were commuted. And yes, there was a lot of bravery shown at The Battle of the Bulge. U.S. troops, many of them green, fought bravely and did not surrender despite being surrounded, outnumbered, undersupplied, under constant attack, outgunned and fighting in deplorable conditions with little hope of winning at that time and they still beat the Germans.
Thank you for bringing attention to this event in a history community so full of wehraboos. These 11 men will not be forgotten, and the atrocities of the Nazi forces will certainly never be forgotten.
@Abu Dabu here are some "actual historical facts" for you! The Nazis lost. The Nazis committed worse war crimes than the allies. Many of the Nazi war crimes have still gone unpunished. The allies won.
@@FinFett The soviets rejected the Geneva conventions and Britain burned civilians to death. Just so you know Dresden wasn’t a nazi ideology dominated city, so lots of the people slowly burned to death were socialists, if that makes you feel worse.
Took a battlefields tour back i 2002 with my father. Toured Normandy/Netherlands/Ardennes spending multiple days at each. Guide was super knowledgeable. One day in the Ardennes Tour, we spent an entire day visiting sites of atrocities. Personally, I was amazed at the number of "little" atrocities (I use that word based on the number of victims). We literally - at one point - would drive only a few minutes from one site to another. Other than Malmedy/Baugnez, I'd never read about all the "little" sites. Your video was another eye-opening yet tragic story that I had never heard. So glad a memorial was erected. Thank you Mr. Felton.
The Krauts should have all been euthanized. Country populace and all for their countless atrocities against the human race. Them and the little keyboard warriors who justify/defend them.
A completely forgotten massacre. These guys were tortured by Waffen cowards. Aubrey Stewart (one of the 11), from Piedmont, WV, was a heck of ballplayer (semi pro pitcher for the Piedmont Colored Giants). Shortly after Pearl Harbor, Aubrey enlisted (even though he was 36 yrs old). Rest in peace to these brave 11. And hope they are never forgotten
It was a terrible thing but those guys were far from cowards.... As mark stated many were young kids that lost control.... It happened on both sides,,, many of them American cowards did the very same..... war is hell. ... It was terrible yes but you have to just let it go.... But cowards ???? No they were not
@@GhostDad1OP mentioned " waffen" You get the gist The regular German Army also committed horrendous war crimes . They weren't just " fighting for their country"
With a lifetime of interest and following of WWII history, this channel is a constant source of previously unknown to me, history presented in depth and detail.
Kareem Abdul Jabbar wrote an excellent book on black tankers that you will be interested in: Brothers in Arms: The Epic Story of the 761st Tank Battalion, WWII's Forgotten Heroes I would share my copy, but it doesn't leave my house. :-)
@@nigeh5326 Glad to. I appreciated the way he approached the subject without adding racial tension to the subject beyond what was already there. i believe you will find it enlightening. I hope you will let me know your thoughts when you've read the book.
Amen. I really want to reply, but I just cant find the words. This just sickens me. Racism is so stupid. To face it here, and then go to war to defend this country, and then those who came home just found the same old sh*t. We're better than that. At least I hope we are. We should be.
@@dixztube well I don't blame you, but as white person I think WW2 was actually a disaster for the Western world and it certainly wasn't good vs evil, it was just one huge power struggle out of many in world history.
@@AmRFuKYaH Huh? 1.5 million German prisoners of war were intentionally starved to death by the United States, France, and Russia. These 1.5 million Germans were murdered. War is war. I don't fault anyone for doing their best to win. Wake yourself up for the education you have received is slanted in one direction and does not tell the entire story.
I can't imagine the agony those men went through that day, it's so disheartening to know that the men that committed these crimes were never caught and are probably already dead. I hope those who participated in this will rot in hell for a long time.
@Abu Dabu You idiot you should know that if Japan was invaded it would COST MORE LIVES THAN THE NUKES. Even the FIREBOMBING KILLED MORE THAN THE NUKES.
@Abu Dabu Inaccurate and one-sided claim . The allies weren’t the only ones with bombers. My grandfather told me he didn’t bomb Dresden .... he leveled it .
If hell exists, im sure it is apolitical and if in war there is no good and evil then hell is an imaginary destiny for veterans of all countries and many other people...
If I remember well, they themselves put a simple monument where it happened, but later the local council made it an official site and they put a bigger monument and organized the ceremonies. Locals (with German ancestors or not) asked for it.
So many unspeakable crimes unpunished is hard to watch but I think it's important to tell the truth and for people to listen, that way at least we can hopefully learn something from terrible past crimes and these young men didn't die in vain. Thank you Mark for your work.
"History" is such an expansive and varied subject with so much falling under it and innumerable subdivisions that no formal education can do more than scratch the surface, which is why its important to be an autodidact and learn on your own to expand knowledge and understanding, I hardly got anything out of history in school or college besides the most basic outline lol and very little military history
thank you for telling their story, i knew about Malamondy but never about this. thank you Mark. RIP those brave soldier who had to endure that brutality.
Perhaps they escaped justice in the 40"s, but they have had to answer to a higher judge. Once again, you have uncovered a little known sector of the war that needs to be made known. Thank you, sir!
The story is simple. This is the non BS version. 1 Americans captured by SS Panzer Battalion. (Don’t surrender to tankers, they have places to go and not many Resources) 2 American POW guarded by the limited soldiers available by machine guns. 3 Small group of Americans try and break away. This was stupid of them and they should have known better. 4 Guards do what they are supposed to do, which is open up on the breakout. 5 Some Americans hold firm, others panic or otherwise join the breakout. 6 The MG42 fires at 1300 rounds per minute was designed not to leave any escape gaps between bullets and to kill masses of running soldiers. It would have shot, killed or injured everyone very quickly. 7 There is no hope of medical aid so the Guards administer the Coup de Grace (mercy blow). Pretty normal on the eastern front. 8 Post war American guards and interrogators extract absurd confessions by crushing testicles, beating up, smashing teeth of the German prisoners, 9 Senator Joe McCarthy, a Marine, lawyer and judge points out the problem with this and many of the charges are dismissed. SS units, including tank battalions, repeatedly showed themselves willing to take US prisoners and treat them by the Geneva conventions. There are several incidents in Mark Felton’s posts. The only certain criminals were the US guards that used torture in peace to extract false confessions. The media being what they are continued to spread the SS Massacre narrative. There is too much bull like Google is curated to provide fake history.
@@WilliamJones-Halibut-vq1fs Son or grandson of german war-criminal? In another comment I listed horrible things you did during WWII to POW and civilians and the second it was posted it disappeared. I guess it goes against your theory. I’m sure Angela must have payed handsome lump sum to YT for creating algorithms that delete anything showing in detail your crimes.
@@AlwaysAC You just don’t have the integrity to handle the truth or facts and just prefer hype, narrative spin fake news and fake history. Why persist in BS. Anyway, the chickens are comming home to roost and your culture and people are going to get “cancelled” by your own selves.
I knew about the Malmadey massecre like many here I'm sure but this one never...thanks yet again Mark for another fascinating if horrific new insight into the Ardennes Offensive
Sad story that needs be told. True gentlemen trying to protect the Langer family only to have their lives ended in such a way. Horrendous. Thankyou to the Langer family for showing great gratitude and allowing the memorial on their property. Thankyou Mark Felton for another great production and bringing this story to light. May the souls of the Wereth 11 rest in peace.
My wife was a home health aid for a 96 year old gentleman who was a forward observer that advanced thru Belgium in WW2. He remarked to me during one of our many visits, "There was a massacre of an artillery unit by the SS, but it was kept a secret because the higher ups were too afraid that it would really hurt morale and frighten everybody. I wish that it was talked about." Mr. Smith passed away two years ago and I have wondered ever since what the story was but gave up on ever finding out. Thank you for this video, I now know the story and Mr. Smith can rest a little easier.
Also the malmedy massacre
They got them in a little known trial.
You armyaboo
Well, they got many in that trial but too many were also set lose. They should have hung them all.
@@sonnyburnett8725 should they have hung the perpetrators of the WW2 Biscari and Chenogne massacre's too?
One thing I have noticed throughout all of Felton’s videos is the overwhelming gratitude and kindness shown in the comments. Learning history such as this makes us more grateful for what we have, and what we are. Thanks everyone
Same
Well said.
Amen
That's people fishing for likes
Really? The thing that I noticed so far is the amount of Nazi apologists in the comment section
There's a small memorial for them in Wereth now, it was put up a few years ago and funded almost entirely by the Langer family
Suprised the Langer family didn't get the same treatment from the Nazis
@@Tele999zzz I think they made up a good story, for example that they were forced by the US soldiers...
Connor O'Keeffe No wonder that Germans were called Huns.
I will visit it someday soon. So sorry for their families.
He says that in the video.
Multiple broken bones, bayoneted in the eyes. That's some Imperial Japanese level of torture right there.
I mean yeah pretty much tho sadly enough its alot more commen then you think world wide so RIP tbf.
It's war, doesn't matter where your bayonets land just make sure they penetrate.
Sounds like IRA, but they used nail guns instead
Is that true? Good Lord...My Father is English, my Mum American. On her side of the fam, she had 4 Uncles fighting in Europe, 2 in the Pacific. In the Battle of the Bulge, my Great Uncle George Berry was captured by the 277th Volkgrenadier Div SS, stripped of his clothes and locked in a barn. He was rescued, but died of Pneumonia shortly after. He's buried in Luxembourg.
Didnt the Japanese throw infants into the air to spear them? Yeahh they did that.
Mark Felton is unmatched in quality. Truly a channel that should be appreciated.
I mean the channel is great but calm the hell down. You're like a simp or one of those guys that play the nude anime girl games.
" Great upload Mark we appreciate it."
See, sometimes less is more.
@@boolationnation9263 i wasn't talking to you im talking to the OP and im not angry lol
Mark Felton and Indy Neidell are my go to people for war history. They just deliver facts not propaganda. They say what happened and leave me to feel what I feel about it.
@JayCee Hey that's pretty accurate, except at a certain point I will get emotional.
Guess I can wait 14 minutes and 25 seconds longer to go to bed...
I just woke up and this video was uploaded a minute ago hahaha
@@Screwthis007 smh euros getting treated better in the upload schedule 😪
Thank you Lord for Bomber Harris
I got your pfp as my steam pfp
these are my nightly dose of history right before bed time
I thought I knew all about WWII until I started watching this Channel.
me too, its brilliant
One point it made clear to me: World War Two was not a "good war." For too long Hollywood has glamorized this war. It was a terrible event of unmatched cruelty.
@@johnratican3824 it was meant to happen, Stalin would of invaded Europe sooner or later and end he got what he wanted regardless
I thought the Nazis won the war until I found this channel.
@@johnratican3824 That is every war ever, but that doesn't mean everyone in it was cruel or murderer.
As a Black American Man with a Grandfather who fought against Nazi Germany in WW2 I also appreciate, greatly you exposing this story of Black American soldiers fighting in WW2 to the masses. I only learned of the Wereth 11 just recently. I love your channel!
My great grandfather served in the 285th Field Artillery Battalion and was in the Ardennes. Thankfully, he was in Company A, and not B. He was awarded 3 Bronze Stars during the war.
🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽
Amen
Thank the Gentleman for me!
How exactly did an artilleryman get medals for heroic actions? I'm a little confused lol
Bullllllshiiiiit
As a black man, I thank you for bringing this untaught history to light. As lifelong student of WWII history, I thank you for all your efforts shedding light on many facts not taught in school, TV, books, or films. Awesome work. Liked, sub, and donated.
Way better, than what you usually get from media nowadays with racial caricatures that historically make no sense, with the producer’s celebrating their own ‘tolerance’ and racial ‘representation’.
As a human being, I find your mentioning of your skin tone equal parts baffling and repulsive in this context.
@@charleshowie2074 That is strange. Should he be ashamed of his skincolor then?
In this documentary, it's obvious skincolor fueled the hate, torture and killing of these 11 black men.
@@GTfour01 What is strange? No. Of course the SS's crimes were racially motivated - they were Nazis. It is a bizarre question and follow-up statement ans seems kinda apropos nothing?
@@charleshowie2074 Therefore Bucketlist badass has all the right to refer to his skincolor.
Now stop being a twerp.
I knew of the Malmady massacre, but had not heard of the Wereth murders. Thanks once again Doctor Felton for shedding some light on this horrible chapter of world history.
Same
I did know about this massacre, knew of their murder. I knew watching this was going to make me sad because I knew the outcome beforehand, but I watched anyway. There are those times where History is brutal, sadistic, unfair, and just plain murderous. But I still feel that even these moments in History require the vigilance to not look away to better educate ourselves about our past.
Do you also know the German point of view about Malmedy? It is verry interesting when you compare the two versions based on their plausibility......Maybe this might be another topic for Mr. Felton.....
While finding the guilty may never happen, forgetting the incident would be a greater tragedy. Dr. Felton has done his part to cause the rest of us to reflect and, hopefully, learn.
@@mikeromney4712 I'm pretty sure in Malmedy the US soldiers tried to escape so we're shot down but the SS executed the wounded so...
I have been in the Hürtgen forest. They still find soldiers there every now and again. When I was there they found the body of a US soldier who had just arrived to serve for a couple of days, when he got killed. It is sad that the horrors of Hürtgenwald is most often forgotten because of the battle for the Ardenne directly after it.
It also has sadly given rise to the myth here in America that we and the Brits beat the Germans virtually every time apart from Market Garden. The Italian Campaign was absolutely brutal with a number of setbacks, and Hurtgen was a total disaster for us. We were FAR from invincible, and we paid the price for getting overconfident and cocky. Thank goodness we recovered at the Battle of the Bulge.
@@thunderbird1921 Likewise the Soviets suffered defeats right up until the final months. Many reasons of course. Hitler demanded increasing sacrifice and soldiers became more and more paranoid about disobeying orders. Many saw some dignity in dying to the enemy but none in being executed by their own men. But also the Allies share some of the blame, as they began a race of East vs. West, attempting to seize as much land as possible in the shortest timeframe. This led to many entirely pointless minor disasters that could have been avoided. That said it's important to remember that every day the war continued, more Jews and Roma were being slaughtered. The death numbers actually increased until the very end of the war where the logistics systems of the camps had so totally collapsed that they simply could not keep up the pace. So there is something to be said that while many situations were perceived to be pointless deaths, the sacrifices made by soldiers saved the lives of many thousands who may have otherwise been systematically killed.
Complicated topic, and indeed one that isn't talked about enough, with the perception of the last 2 years of the war being a series of endless allied victories dominating the narrative. Then you have the other extreme, which is those who overblow things like the battle of the bulge, which very much was a last gasp of the German army, and which was pretty objectively a horrible idea stoked by Hitler's ego rather than any actual strategy.
@@thepinkplushie What one has to understand is that the Germans won pretty much every battle where they weren't severely outnumbered (or completely battered by Allied air or artillery superiority) throughout the war, even during its later parts. Their army was simply superior, because it combined the well trained soldiers of the western nations with the brutal discipline of the soviets. German soldiers were, and there's little discussion about that, the best in the world during WW2. They only lost because the allies VASTLY outnumbered them and because the German economy was unable to provide sufficient supplies for the army to keep functioning (and also because Hitler's and the OHL's strategy was stupid). It was a mixture of the American economy and the endless supply of soldiers that the soviets could muster that won the war, certainly not better soldiers/armies.
This is a sad story which deserves to be better known
Would say it's pretty well known by anyone even with a passing interest in WW2. Known about this for years well before the growth of WW2 history videos on TH-cam.
They should do a movie on this...like red tails
@@ladorjenkins5915 If they do make a film on this sort of event in current times, it'd be press and news reports up the ass.
There is a book out that covers this incident specifically. Also, numerous WWII magazines have had articles about it as well.
A film would be welcomed that celebrates the bravery of the African American soldiers, and the family who helped them whilst shining a torch on the racist brutality of the SS towards black troops and the (what seems likely) the racism in the US military that led to the cover up of the massacre.
Poor guys, nobody should be treated like this. RIP the Wereth 11
These black lives mattered.
@@raypurchase801 Of course they were heroes too and fight and in the end, they protected the family so the truth is that they fight to the end. I hate racism and freaking Nazis was all racism for sure. RIP Gis.
@书中自有黄金屋 Yeh? Its obvious you've never studied Nazi propaganda.
@书中自有黄金屋 Mein Kampf
@@raypurchase801 ..Indeed they did , as do all lives black yellow white or a mixture of .
Wow, really sad, they were brave enough to do all they could not to endanger the langer family... True men...
That part of the story seemed fictionalized.
@@GQ2593 why would it be fictionalised by their own army who even looked down on them and segregated them?They arrived on the scene and saw the wounds and mutilation the soldiers had sustained.
@@alexanderthegreat1356 Because it camouflages surrender as an act of compassion.
@@GQ2593 so that suddenly excuses the soldiers who led them into a field and tortured them, shot one while he was bandaging his comrade, bayoneted them in their eyes, cut off their fingers and killed them?
@@alexanderthegreat1356 who knows what exactly triggered this turn of events... All the witnesses are either dead or might be wanting to tell their story. And there is very few of them so it's easy to tell anything they want to be told. So those events might have transpired as told here by Mark - or it might have been something different, we will never truly know.
One of these men James Aubrey Stewart was from a nearby town here in my home state of WVa. Some his relatives are buried on my family's farm including his cousin Stanley that was also captured by the Germans in WWII.
SS were. Some nasty varmints
I live in WV what town and county?
@@NotThatGuyPal. Grant and Mineral counties. Piedmont where James Aubrey Stewart is from is in Mineral. His relative Stanley had a farm right before the county line in Grant County. Skippy - Henry Louis Gates is from Piedmont.
@@wvmann9320 okay yea I know where that is thank you!
@@NotThatGuyPal. what county are you in.
I'm 61 years old and have always loved WWII history. I was this day old when l learned of the Wereth 11. :-(
Rest in peace brave men.
Glad whole country was bombed and divided for decades to come 👊🏽
@@blackinpublic4193 lucky that's all they got.
@Kaiser Must have been fun for those Nazi scientists that the U.S scooped up after the war, though.
@@MorrowMattyI'm sure it was, they didn't have to live in fear of them and their families being killed at anytime by the SS, and they got automatic US citizenship and big fat paychecks, the more seinor ones got fee homes also, so yeah they were probably pretty thrilled.
@@badmonkey2222, you forgot to mention that the African Americans Vets did not get the same GI benefits as White soldiers!
I've done quite a bit of reading around the Ardennes battle and I've never heard of this. Very sad event in this battle
Sounds like a cover up
@@TheMrgoodmanners I think as far as narratives go, there was greater crimes like the Malmedy Massacre in the BoB, and that no one was caught. Other than war crime trivia, it doesn't contribute much to the greater conflict of the area.
In terms of historical representation, I imagine the fact that the U.S. Army was extremely callous about under-representing African American contributions, that validating them by discussing the crimes would go against the status quo and that talking about it now discredits the actions of the past leadership.
Similar to the many thousands of Korean refugees that the Army murdered, and subsequently denied despite literally seeing documentation of such during inquiries about it. The US Army had a huge integrity problem that still persists.
I think 11 men might be seen as a very small fraction of the thousands died, however, I believe such story should be told more and these brave soldiers be honored.
@@JRyan-lu5im - here you go again - all over this thread, a Nazi apologist
Been around for a few years now there was even a film about it.. www.imdb.com/title/tt1641253/
I love the fact that I can rock up on any of these videos and learn about 10X what I knew before. Bravo, Mark, Bravo.
I see you everywhere Bruned man
An absolutely dispicable crime. RIP to those men whose ultimate sacrifice remains mostly forgotten, until now. Great work Dr Felton.
@John P. Denver Oh shut up. No one cares because Germany wanted a total war with the Soviets, whom they committed many war crimes against. You reap what you sow.
@John P. Denver Yes, I know, said group is responsible for every major conflict to ever exist plus they created inflation, but that still doesn't make what the Nazis did okay. The only people to have a record of worse war crimes than them would be the Imperial Japanese Army.
@@lelouchvibritannia4028 Cries about allied soldiers being criminally murdered but supports genocide on germans. Typical
@@samuelskogqvist5565 he has a point
have you not learn what our troops did and especially the dam bolsheviks
Ah yes another forgotten piece of forgotten history told by our good TH-cam Historian. Always good too know we can count on you for something new everyday.
@ well for the most part. It falls into the category of a footnote. Only a small number of people typically know about it. But i think you get the idea.
I love this channel. Direct, non biased, no overwhelming music and no personal opinions.
Thank you Mark shining the light on this small event that was overshadowed. Thank you for being who you are.
Mark felton is so underrated. And its even more interesting when you dont see any hate comments in his videos.
I think its because of his factual, unbiased presentation....straightforward, but never dull......I've never seen one negative comment, ever....
@@FMHammyJ some hitler related videos have large numbers of nazi apologists, and racists.
1.25 million subscribers suggests he isn't exactly underrated. I would say "highly regarded" myself. He has also written books and is a respected academic, so he's doing okay.
Mark Felton delivers once again.
Thanks Dr. Felton, I like many other people would have never heard of this event.
With out your unbiased reporting on any subject many stories like this would have faded into history.
I grew up watching World at War, Victory at Sea and all the great WWII documentaries with my Dad. Mark's work is more detailed, and less biased, excellent! I look forward to every episode.
You truly are a gift to mankind Mark Felton for keeping all this history alive in your videos. Especially the telling the stories that often are forgotten like this one. Your history intelligence on TH-cam is unmatched and although I am an unknown on TH-cam. I always watch your videos. Keep up the amazing work! 👏👏👍
It brings tears to my eyes to think of what these men went through. We should never forget what our service men went through during this horrible war.
we went to war against the German's and they were defending themselves, read about what our people did to them, our enemy was the communist and our govt has been in bed with them, since the beginning that is the new world order anti Christ, now europe, Canada, amurika, and Australia are destroyed .lincoln was friends with Karl Marx and his general's also and forward in history alot of govt officials were commies..
@@georgerandall5686 Karl Marx was a semite
@@georgerandall5686 bloody fanatics
They were soldiers. It was their job to kill and be killed if need be. They died because they surrendered. I'm sure all of those men knew they would die regardless. It's very sad.
@@georgerandall5686 You making excuses for the nazis? They started the war and committed war crimes. They were not innocent victims of the US. You must be a neo nazi.
Your videos are absolutely fantastic, Mark. My father was a WW2 veteran and served in the US Army in Europe as an infantryman, but unfortunately died when I was a young boy in 1949 just some years after the war. I always wondered what his tour of duty was like. Greetings from Northern California.
Mike
There is a book out there about this story."The Lost Eleven" by Denise George and Robert Child. It draws on first hand interviews with family members and fellow soldiers. Great video Mr. Felton
THANK YOU.
Channels like this one are very important in today's society. Parents that want their children to learn about world history without bias or revisionist views, can come to sites like this one and be confident that the material has been well researched and as close to accurate as can be possible. Thank You Mark!
Mr. Felton,
Thank you very much for this video. I have read extensively about the Battle of the Bulge and had never heard of this massacre.
Again , you are bringing to light truly forgotten history.
Man I heard all about his massacre but as usual, Mark Felton’s impeccable amount of info, helped me learn, yet again more stuff..
Brilliant ! You have no idea how grateful I am to get this video upload Mark .. thank you, I’ve been stuck in USA for 8months now with no knowing when I will be able to travel home, alone and in a hotel ( feels like a prison ) it’s 04:10 I can’t sleep thinking about family christmases gone by and I just needed something to take my mind off things. Thanks mate for this video and I guess I just wanted you to know you help people in a lot of ways with these videos. They are not just informational 👍🏻
Chin up!
@@MarkFeltonProductions dads army has been getting me through. 👍🏻 cheers for reply mark
My grandfather was in the 29th infantry and survived Omaha beach and made it all the way to Germany. He said they stopped taking prisoners after word of the massacre got out.
My gramps was in the 29th too, as well as his brother in law, who was captured during the battle of the bulge
That was a horrible war. Mine was fighting in the Pacific, but my other grandfather fought in the trenches in WWI. Those men saw some hellish things.
Malmedy massacre was worse
@@MrHeidiHigh Great story. The issue with the SS is that soldiers who joined were 'signing up' to the notion of racial supremacy. They were all taught it. It is great that he had a conscious and showed compassion when it was required. I hope that after the war he realised that the ideology was wrong.
"they stopped taking prisoners after word of the massacre got out." Were these Germans under Peiper?
My father was one of the sons of Bitche. Thank you for posting this. He slogged 10 miles through the forest with a wounded buddy. These were tough men.
May the Wereth 11 rest in peace. And thanks are due to Dr Felton to bringing their story to a wider audience. Lest We Forget.
Lest We Forget those who were murdered, always wonder the notification to next of kin, what was said if this was declared Top Secret and buried. Cheers and great presentation of forgotten history.
Mark Felton's War Stories is one of the best and most detailed war history channels I have been privileged to be educated by.
One wonders sometimes, is their justice in some situations, in the world?
That was an act of sheer cowardice, and man's I humanity to fellow men!
Thank God that did not go unreported and unrecognized forever!
My Uncle fought in The Bulge. 101 Airborne. Bastogne. He told how this was never mentioned and they were told not to discuss it.
This channel is one of the most valuable on TH-cam. Thank you Sr. Felton.
Mister Felton is the epitome of WW2 history. Love your channel sir.
Dear Mr. Felton, I visited the ABMC-cemeteries of Omaha, Epinal, St-James, St-Avold, Condroz, Margraten, Henri-Chapelle, Geromont-Malmedy and Tunis. I live in Flanders at 70 miles from Wereth but had never learned about it if it wasn't for your educative channel. Last week I had an oppointment at 6 km from Wereth and went to the site to pay my respects to these guys. They sacrified their life to give us freedom and we cannot thank them enough. Thanks for sharing.
This channel is pure quality
War crimes are horrible and I’m sorry to break the mood but “happy Easter Adolph” on that shell in the thumbnail cracked me up
@Chandy Alexander yes...
@Kamil S the picture on the thumbnail looks like they are happy in that situation
@@tommykirk3403 If you have to ask that then you probably are one lol
@@confusedcapitalist2242 And then they ran into the SS and the situation drastically changed lol
@@D88111 didn’t matter because we all know what happened to the SS of anything the SS were happier to see Americans then Russians
THEE best channel on TH-cam if you want perfection in historical storytelling 100% Thank you for your lovely work Mark Felton
Let's all agree history channel should be stopped and replaced with his master peace channel
Enough about the history channel already. Every single upload its history channel this history channel that. Noone watches that crap, this is not the history channel
*piece
Now, that was just terrible, poor men, but honourable into the end
@@tomtaylor5623 how weren’t that honorable? They even considered the family, which they didn’t have to. They spared them so they wouldn’t be murdered by the SS as well. They were brave honorable soldiers.
@@tomtaylor5623 Reprisal? What's your logic? My point was that these American soldiers wouldn't risk the safety of that Belgian family, do you think the German soldiers had a good reason for torturing them to death?
@@bennyandersen742 how can you be so sure what these American soldiers were thinking at that time ? We might know what they actually did but nobody could read other's people minds to know what were they thinking...
@@Statek63 Yeah, take the side of the guys who genocided their way through Europe. Something tells me you're German.
@@Statek63 oh look its the same race triggerd dude going from comment to comment stream something told me givin your obsession to defend nazi war crimes against blacks all i had to do was keep searching and i would find you sgain..and look at that HERE YOU ARE
Everytime Mark uploads i get really excited for some reason.
It’s the intro music, I personally can’t help but get out of my chair and march around my room
@@RichardWingo Incredible Patriotism
Thank you Dr. Felton for reminding us the brutality that can happen in the war and that we should never forget men’s lives who sacrificed for their country
I had read the Malmedy Massacre was a huge mistake by the SS. Word quickly got around to U.S. units about this atrocity and U.S. troops decided that it was better to fight to the death defending themselves than to give up and and be helplessly shot down like dogs. This resolve is what helped us win the battle of the Bulge.
Yeah, and it was waaaaaay more dangerous for the german to surrender themselves after that.
It's the same brutality that was seen on the eastern front. Once you begun the atrocity, it cme quickly full circle.
@james wallis Lol. Yeah sure. BS. XD
The condemnation were commuted but the condemned were not recognised innocent. That's a huge difference, and 6 at least were condemned to lperpetuity sentence anyway.
More than that, the americans judge tired to make friends with the germans because of the cold war, so they were ready put many things uder the rugs.
@james wallis The only bullshit is your twisting of the facts. Because of testimony of U.S. soldiers who survived the massacre, forensic evidence, autopsy reports that showed death caused by machine gun bullet, close range pistol shots to the back of the head with powder burns, and blunt force trauma (rifle butts) (with no shrapnel wounds from artillery) photographic evidence and testimony of some SS soldiers who wanted to save their own necks, 73 SS men were convicted with 43 sentenced to hang. While the regular German army for the most part conducted themselves well the SS, who were not part of the German army did not. They we the ones responsible for running the death camps that slaughtered million of innocent civilians including millions of women and children. The same ones who butchered 642 French civilians at the village of Oradour-Sur-Glan in France in June of 1944, including 452 women and children they herded into a church and burned alive. These were men of no honor, morals or shame and you state Malmady never happened because these men said so? Do you think they would have any hesitancy to lie, especially if they told the truth a noose would immediately be placed around their neck? After the war the cold war changed everything, and now Germany was our friend which resulted in political pressure, there were accusations of trial irregularities, allegation that torture and duress was applied to the defendants, allegations that many US prosecutors, who were Jewish, were to biased for this trial, and because of this the death sentences were not carried out and later on the sentences were commuted. And yes, there was a lot of bravery shown at The Battle of the Bulge. U.S. troops, many of them green, fought bravely and did not surrender despite being surrounded, outnumbered, undersupplied, under constant attack, outgunned and fighting in deplorable conditions with little hope of winning at that time and they still beat the Germans.
@@Howie875 the SS NAZIS were simply terrorists nothing more or less and they need to be always and forever remembered as known terrorists of the time.
Thank you for bringing attention to this event in a history community so full of wehraboos. These 11 men will not be forgotten, and the atrocities of the Nazi forces will certainly never be forgotten.
The first reply you got was also standard wehraboo logic, as to further your point lmao
@@MrFlankSinatra yeah, I made a reply to him but realised it wasn't worth my time
@Abu Dabu here are some "actual historical facts" for you!
The Nazis lost. The Nazis committed worse war crimes than the allies. Many of the Nazi war crimes have still gone unpunished. The allies won.
@@FinFett The soviets rejected the Geneva conventions and Britain burned civilians to death. Just so you know Dresden wasn’t a nazi ideology dominated city, so lots of the people slowly burned to death were socialists, if that makes you feel worse.
@@jikkh2x amazing, every single word you just said was wrong
Took a battlefields tour back i 2002 with my father. Toured Normandy/Netherlands/Ardennes spending multiple days at each. Guide was super knowledgeable. One day in the Ardennes Tour, we spent an entire day visiting sites of atrocities. Personally, I was amazed at the number of "little" atrocities (I use that word based on the number of victims). We literally - at one point - would drive only a few minutes from one site to another. Other than Malmedy/Baugnez, I'd never read about all the "little" sites. Your video was another eye-opening yet tragic story that I had never heard. So glad a memorial was erected. Thank you Mr. Felton.
I knew nothing about this until now. Thank you for creating greater awareness of this appalling tragedy. Rest Easy, Boys.
Being black while in the hands of the SS must be the most terrifying thing ever, RIP to these poor souls.
It's coming back again this time it'll be federal black soldiers in the hands of white ethnostate fanatical soldiers
No being a Jew captured by a jahadi islamist group. The hatred runs very deep.
@@no-knickers-emma1112 Been fighting ever since Sarah and Hagar.
Idk fighting japan being any race would be worse
@Kira just like Poles and many others.
'Ordinary man' written by Browning. take a look
My heart is heavy for these 11 men.. I was wanting them to evade capture. To hear the horrible fate they met that day is just sicking..
They died so we could live in endless ever increasing debt to the world banks. Heroes indeed
@@rustyshackleford7265 Lame comment. Plonker.
@@rustyshackleford7265 Underground bunker fully stocked?
@@rustyshackleford7265 that part is the boomers' fault. These guys just made we werent speaking german while we did it
The Krauts should have all been euthanized. Country populace and all for their countless atrocities against the human race. Them and the little keyboard warriors who justify/defend them.
A completely forgotten massacre. These guys were tortured by Waffen cowards. Aubrey Stewart (one of the 11), from Piedmont, WV, was a heck of ballplayer (semi pro pitcher for the Piedmont Colored Giants). Shortly after Pearl Harbor, Aubrey enlisted (even though he was 36 yrs old).
Rest in peace to these brave 11. And hope they are never forgotten
SEMPER FI 🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲
It was a terrible thing but those guys were far from cowards.... As mark stated many were young kids that lost control.... It happened on both sides,,, many of them American cowards did the very same..... war is hell. ... It was terrible yes but you have to just let it go.... But cowards ???? No they were not
They were SS not Wehrmacht. They are getting off lightly with “cowards”
@@GhostDad1OP mentioned " waffen" You get the gist
The regular German Army also committed horrendous war crimes . They weren't just " fighting for their country"
@@krakrtreacysr907 they were cowards of course they weren't kid either
I don't care if I got school in a couple of hours, I shall not get a minute of shut eye until I watch Mark's new video.
Good luck at school. What do you want to do when you leave?
@@nigeh5326 Watch Mark Felton videos, care to join ?
With a lifetime of interest and following of WWII history, this channel is a constant source of previously unknown to me, history presented in depth and detail.
As a student of history, thank you ever so much Dr Felton for all of your contributions to the field.
Thank you for keeping history alive Mr Felton!
I like how Felton presents history in an apolitical manner.
With Nazism one cannot be impartial or apolitical. Otherwise you are an accomplice to it
@@Lonegan63 Would you feel the same way about Communism?
@@kitcarson1697 unironic horseshoe theory?
@@TayKVEVO perhaps.
@@kitcarson1697 imagine thinking that communism is anywhere equal to nazism
I truly appreciate good content channels. Honestly, History Channel should learn from your productions. Thank you
This video was absolutely fascinating. I did not know this about the African American Corps. Wow. Heros all!
Kareem Abdul Jabbar wrote an excellent book on black tankers that you will be interested in: Brothers in Arms: The Epic Story of the 761st Tank Battalion, WWII's Forgotten Heroes
I would share my copy, but it doesn't leave my house. :-)
@@jerrycallison6125 I didn’t know he was an author as well as his other accomplishments. I will have to try and buy a copy, thanks for the info 👍
@@nigeh5326 Glad to. I appreciated the way he approached the subject without adding racial tension to the subject beyond what was already there. i believe you will find it enlightening. I hope you will let me know your thoughts when you've read the book.
its really sad with all I have read that i never heard of this until now...Kudos Mark for bringing their story to the internet
This channel is a gold mine. I appreciate all your hard work making these amazingly accurate videos, good work buddy!
Last time I was this early, Hitler hadn't even reached the Polish border! Congrats on the million subscribers, love the content!
Congrats on 1 million subs Mark!!
Nice profile picture anyway
I saw a movie on this subject. RIP to my American brothers.
Thank you, Gunnar.
I was watching this video and thinking that this story would make a great and powerful movie...do you remember what the name of the movie was?
It's called "The Wereth Eleven". It's on Prime right now.
The channel that I watch even in class.
In class... and your teacher probably approves. 😎
@@CFarnwide exactly.
You just can’t find topics like this anywhere else, and to top it off the quality and detail is beautifully informative.
Another brilliant production sir. I've learnt more from you and your team than during all my school history lessons put together.
These guys faced racism in both home and away. I wonder what was going through their minds
Amen. I really want to reply, but I just cant find the words. This just sickens me. Racism is so stupid. To face it here, and then go to war to defend this country, and then those who came home just found the same old sh*t. We're better than that. At least I hope we are. We should be.
I'm sure they never called Germans "krauts", too.
@@zachfox5969 doesn’t make it better
@@Bornst3ll3r You're right. It doesn't make racism against Germans any better simply because the US was segregated.
@@dixztube well I don't blame you, but as white person I think WW2 was actually a disaster for the Western world and it certainly wasn't good vs evil, it was just one huge power struggle out of many in world history.
Thank you Mark for this the younger generation should NEVER forget the sacrifices made by these men.
Mark felton blows history channel out of the water!
Salute to the men, who fallen on that day
Who were murdered by German racists on that day , to be accurate.
@@jimfiggerty833 to be more accurate, German Facists
@@Brian-qx3ld and racists but facism and racism goes hand and hand
Including the Germans
@@z.weertje7209 the nazis? Nah they can di3.
Horrible war crime, RIP Wereth 11. Greetings and respects from Brazil.
Not a "horrible war crime". Educate thyself.
I found the Nazi sympathizer ^^^
@@AmRFuKYaH they are still walking among us even today. Sadly.
@@veritas2306 what? dude get some help
@@AmRFuKYaH Huh? 1.5 million German prisoners of war were intentionally starved to death by the United States, France, and Russia. These 1.5 million Germans were murdered. War is war. I don't fault anyone for doing their best to win. Wake yourself up for the education you have received is slanted in one direction and does not tell the entire story.
Yeah its time for a history lesson. 10/10 presentation.
They never taught this in our history classes. Thank you for sharing this important piece of forgotten history.
I can't imagine the agony those men went through that day, it's so disheartening to know that the men that committed these crimes were never caught and are probably already dead. I hope those who participated in this will rot in hell for a long time.
Frfr 💔
@Cam Robertson Good.
@Abu Dabu You idiot you should know that if Japan was invaded it would COST MORE LIVES THAN THE NUKES. Even the FIREBOMBING KILLED MORE THAN THE NUKES.
@Abu Dabu Inaccurate and one-sided claim . The allies weren’t the only ones with bombers.
My grandfather told me he didn’t bomb Dresden .... he leveled it .
If hell exists, im sure it is apolitical and if in war there is no good and evil then hell is an imaginary destiny for veterans of all countries and many other people...
Thanks for bringing this to our attention Mark..
Didn't the Langer family actually pay for the memorial?
If I remember well, they themselves put a simple monument where it happened, but later the local council made it an official site and they put a bigger monument and organized the ceremonies. Locals (with German ancestors or not) asked for it.
Did the Americans get their private parts forced fed to their person like the Belgian paratroopers in Rwanda? No monument for whty in Africa.
@@ChristopherHitchens3.14 what’s your point? Something good or bad happens in place doesn’t mean it happens everywhere.
That surely sounds like nonsense.
Eugenics in 1994? Nope.
White guilt forever? Oh yes.
@@eagleeye5943 oy vey
So many unspeakable crimes unpunished is hard to watch but I think it's important to tell the truth and for people to listen, that way at least we can hopefully learn something from terrible past crimes and these young men didn't die in vain. Thank you Mark for your work.
That was very moving and shocking. We spent last Christmas near Bastogne so this was very poignant for me. Thank you Mark.
Nuts.
That must of been interesting.
@@rebelwalzt it was fascinating. Fantastic museum as well.
Again, more information I didn't learn in college history. Huge thumbs up Mark Felton! 👍
"History" is such an expansive and varied subject with so much falling under it and innumerable subdivisions that no formal education can do more than scratch the surface, which is why its important to be an autodidact and learn on your own to expand knowledge and understanding, I hardly got anything out of history in school or college besides the most basic outline lol and very little military history
Another fantastic story told by Mr Felton!
thank you for telling their story, i knew about Malamondy but never about this. thank you Mark.
RIP those brave soldier who had to endure that brutality.
Perhaps they escaped justice in the 40"s, but they have had to answer to a higher judge.
Once again, you have uncovered a little known sector of the war that needs to be made known. Thank you, sir!
Yeah, especially when declared criminals were rewarded with government posts in post war germany.
The story is simple. This is the non BS version.
1 Americans captured by SS Panzer Battalion. (Don’t surrender to tankers, they have places to go and not many Resources)
2 American POW guarded by the limited soldiers available by machine guns.
3 Small group of Americans try and break away. This was stupid of them and they should have known better.
4 Guards do what they are supposed to do, which is open up on the breakout.
5 Some Americans hold firm, others panic or otherwise join the breakout.
6 The MG42 fires at 1300 rounds per minute was designed not to leave any escape gaps between bullets and to kill masses of running soldiers. It would have shot, killed or injured everyone very quickly.
7 There is no hope of medical aid so the Guards administer the Coup de Grace (mercy blow). Pretty normal on the eastern front.
8 Post war American guards and interrogators extract absurd confessions by crushing testicles, beating up, smashing teeth of the German prisoners,
9 Senator Joe McCarthy, a Marine, lawyer and judge points out the problem with this and many of the charges are dismissed.
SS units, including tank battalions, repeatedly showed themselves willing to take US prisoners and treat them by the Geneva conventions. There are several incidents in Mark Felton’s posts.
The only certain criminals were the US guards that used torture in peace to extract false confessions.
The media being what they are continued to spread the SS Massacre narrative. There is too much bull like Google is curated to provide fake history.
@@WilliamJones-Halibut-vq1fs Some pretty spectacular mental gymnastics there son. Nazi apologists will always find a way to excuse atrocities.
@@WilliamJones-Halibut-vq1fs
Son or grandson of german war-criminal?
In another comment I listed horrible things you did during WWII to POW and civilians and the second it was posted it disappeared. I guess it goes against your theory.
I’m sure Angela must have payed handsome lump sum to YT for creating algorithms that delete anything showing in detail your crimes.
@@AlwaysAC You just don’t have the integrity to handle the truth or facts and just prefer hype, narrative spin fake news and fake history. Why persist in BS. Anyway, the chickens are comming home to roost and your culture and people are going to get “cancelled” by your own selves.
First time hearing about Wereth Massacre. Amazing work Mark Felton. A lot of WW2 history remains to be uncovered.
I knew about the Malmadey massecre like many here I'm sure but this one never...thanks yet again Mark for another fascinating if horrific new insight into the Ardennes Offensive
Always a quality production. Mark Felton is the best. 👍
Mr Felton ( along with the incredible presentation) , has an incredible narrators delivery. Dare I say perfect?
LOL! I missed that part of the intro. "Easter eggs for Hitler." Love it!
It's in the thumbnail lol.
God rest their souls.
Thor, Poseidon, Shiva?
@@PROVOCATEURSK any of them that would. Could you imagine facing the fate that they did? I wouldn't wish it upon anyone.
Amen
@@PROVOCATEURSK very funny...
I had heard of the Wereth 11, but I hadnt known the full story until now. Thanks once again for an outstanding job, Mark Felton!
as always mark felton deliver "ghost event" that we never heard on any major battle world war II.
Great as usual
One of the best channels
When show is sponsored by Curiosity, or likes of it, there is no doubt it's gonna be worth watching
Sad story that needs be told.
True gentlemen trying to protect the Langer family only to have their lives ended in such a way. Horrendous.
Thankyou to the Langer family for showing great gratitude and allowing the memorial on their property.
Thankyou Mark Felton for another great production and bringing this story to light.
May the souls of the Wereth 11 rest in peace.
11:24 No good deed goes unpunished. RIP.