1 Jan 1945 : Last German Western Front offensive commenced in German 19th Army sector facing Colmar, with two breakthroughs across West Wall through Rhein (Rhine) River valley. German 1st Army and Army Group G followed-up with southern advance towards Strasbourg. Note, last German offensive in WW2 was its counter-attack against Soviet siege of Budapest and to protect its last remaining oil fields in Hungary, Jan-Mar 1945. NORDWIND Revisited - ehistory.osu.edu/world/library/books/wwii/army/bulge/0035.cfm

• 7th ARMY's OPsERATIONS DURING NORDWIND: HITLER'S LAST OFFENSIVE - www.trailblazersww2.org/history_nordwind_mataxis.htm

Inset 1 : Close-up of German West Wall fortification ( Siegfried Line ), captured by American troops in early 1945. Its concrete machine gun/observation post looked down upon Rhein river valley, thus swept area with machine gun fire and served as forward artillery spotter. Only direct hit from high-yield aerial bombardment or heavy ground artillery was able to penetrate its concrete defenses. THE SIEGFRIED LINE
CAMPAIGN - www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/Siegfried/Siegfried%20Line/siegfried-fm.htm

Rollover : ( Rollover JPG link ) | Allied forces caught off guard since main attention was on German salient in Belgium created from Dec 1944 Ardennes Offensive. US 7th Army directed towards northern Strasbourg salient, while reconstituted French 1st Army tackled southern Colmar salient. Reconstituted French Army derived from Free French Forces who fled after France's June 1940 surrender to Germany. France was the only Allied power in WW2 to officially surrender to Germany. Armistice signed between two countries created pro-German Vichy France regime. Debate still rages to this date in France over validity of Vichy France, some French accused them of nothing more than being German collaborators, while others steadfastly asserted that Vichy France simply upheld French honor over the armistice treaty signed with Germany. Free French Forces - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_French_Forces

Former 1980s-era French Socialist President Francois Mitterrand openly admitted he was a right-wing Volontaires nationaux (National Volunteers) member in 1930s, before changing ideology to join the Socialist party. Nevertheless, he understood delicate nature of Vichy France in French body politic and rationale for youth of that era to join its ranks. Hence, he consistently blocked any postwar attempts to bring collaborationist charges against ailing ex-Vichy France government officials. François Mitterrand - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitterand

Alsace-Lorraine region between France and Germany has been points of territorial contention from over 150 years. With rich coal deposits, industrialization of Germany and France both wanted regional control. Alsace is also world renowned for its white wine production. Alsace - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alsace

Area possessed majority of Volksdeutsch (ethnic-Germans) or Alsatian, which gave Germany a cultural claim. However, Alsatian culture is a French/German mixture, a person from that region is equally at ease appreciating both French and German cultures simultaneously. Despite one's lineage, some had allegiance to Germany, while others sided with France, so it was a matter of personal conviction rather than direct pedigree. Volksdeutsche - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volksliste

Inset 2 : Siegfried Line (also known as West Wall) remnants near Kohlscheid, Germany. Concrete protrusions are anti-tank barricades, commonly called Dragon's Teeth. Popular misconception was these obstacles could forestall any armored offensives, but was really designed to delay such advance. Tanks were unable to circumvent obstacles, thus had to wait until obstacle blown by engineers. But such waiting channeled armor advance, thus made entire column vulnerable to aerial and artillery attack. Kohlscheid Germany Aerial Map - www.indexmundi.com

Region's seesaw history goes like this... early-1800s Napoleon conquered Alsace-Lorraine region for French Empire. By 1860s, loose German confederated states formed centralized government under Prussian leadership, Germans challenged French control in 1870s Franco-Prussian War, resulting in Prussian victory, France ceded Alsace-Lorraine to Prussia. With Germany's WW1 defeat in 1918, area reverted back to France. With France's WW2 defeat by Germany in 1940, area went to German control. And with Germany's WW2 defeat in 1945, area transferred to French control. Tourisme Alsace (Discover Alsace) - www.tourisme-alsace.com