The Colmar Pocket was a significant German-held territory in Alsace, France. It was their last major foothold west of the Rhine River in France during World War II and was stubbornly defended by the German Nineteenth Army under direct orders from Hitler. He considered Alsace to be German territory. From November 1944 to February 1945, French and American forces fought under extremely cold and snowy conditions. There were over 40,000 causalities on both sides.
In Colmar there is a museum dedicated to the French and American forces who freed the area. Nearby is a memorial to the American solders and a cemetery for the French soldiers.
There is also a separate memorial for Audie Murphy, the most decorated American soldier in WWII. He received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his bravery in the campaign. He single handily held off the advancing enemy soldiers firing a machine gun from a burning tank.
What is left of the Maginot Line
