One German woman found herself and her family in the middle of what could have been a deadly skirmish, but even as the Battle of the Bulge raged just a few miles away, she demanded — and got — the Christmas truce that so many others had prayed for in vain.
Elisabeth Vincken left her hometown of Aachen, Germany, after Allied bombs had put an end to the family’s bakery and their home in April of 1944. She and her 12-year-old son moved to a small cottage in the Hurtgen forest — which had previously been used by her husband Hubert when he went on long hunting trips. Hubert, who was drafted into the German army, was stationed nearby.
But Elisabeth and her son were alone when, on December 16th, the bloody campaign that would later be known as the Battle of the Bulge began — and it soon became clear that her husband would not be visiting for Christmas dinner as he had planned. The weather turned then as well, and brutally cold temperatures combined with low visibility resulted in a fair number of soldiers on both sides of the conflict becoming separated from their units during combat.
Still, Elisabeth and her son had saved a fat goose — nicknamed Hermann Goring because of his girth — for dinner.
The battle was close enough that the sounds of the guns could be heard even inside the cabin, so Vincken was immediately on her guard when she heard a knock on the door on Christmas Eve.
She opened the door to find three soldiers outside — two standing and one collapsed in the snow nearby — and when they began to speak, she and Fritz realized that they were Americans. All three were armed.
“I was almost paralyzed with fear, for though I was a child, I knew that harsh law of war: Anyone giving aid and comfort to the enemy would be shot,” Fritz recalled in a later interview, noting that his mother had also been well aware of the possible consequences but had been moved to compassion when she realized the wounded American was young enough to be her son as well.
“Go get Hermann,” she told her son, and he went to fetch the goose they’d been saving to share when Hubert was able to celebrate with them, along with some potatoes.
After some trial and error, they learned that both Elisabeth and one of the American soldiers spoke French — a discovery that made communication much easier among the group. The three said their names were Jim (who spoke French), Robin, and Harry.
Elisabeth had set about tending to Harry’s wounds when another knock came — and this time, Fritz opened the door to greet four German soldiers. After exchanging greetings, the soldiers informed the Vinckens that they were lost and looking for shelter from the cold.
“Of course,” Elisabeth replied. Knowing exactly what she was risking, Elisabeth invited them in as well — but told them that they must leave their weapons outside. “You can also have a fine, warm meal and eat till the pot is empty. But we have three other guests, whom you may not consider friends.”
One of the German soldiers objected: “Who is inside? Americans?”
“Listen, you could be my sons and they in there too. One of them is wounded and is fighting for his life and his two fellows are lost and hungry like you,” Elisabeth laid down the law. “It is the Holy Night and there will be no shooting here.”
Once all of the weapons were stowed and all seven men were inside, the tension was palpable — but Elisabeth went about preparing dinner anyway. “Quick, get more potatoes and some oats,” she told Fritz. “These boys are hungry, and a starving man is an angry one.”
As they waited for their meal, one of the German soldiers noticed the wounded American — and his own prior medical training kicked in, pushing aside any thoughts he had of animosity.
While Harry slept, the remaining six pooled their resources and came up with bread and wine to go with the chicken soup that Elisabeth was preparing. By the time she prayed over their meal, Fritz later recalled, she was moved to tears by the men and their willingness to set war aside on such a holy day.
By the time morning came, all seven of the men had to return to their respective places. Elisabeth gave the Americans a tablecloth to use as a stretcher for Harry, and the German soldiers gave them directions back to where they believed their units were located. And so on Christmas morning, the two groups set off from the Vinckens’ cabin in opposite directions.
“Be careful, boys. I want you to get home someday where you belong. God bless you all!” Elisabeth said as they disappeared into the forest.
Years later, Fritz set out to find the men who had shared that Christmas Eve dinner with him and his mother — and through an appearance on “Unsolved Mysteries,” he was able to track down Ralph Blank.
Blank was one of the soldiers who had spent that night with the Vinckens in the Hurtgen Forest — and he was living in a nursing home in Frederick, Maryland.
“Your mother saved my life,” Blank told Fritz when they were reunited in 1996.
For Fritz, that meeting was everything he had hoped for: “Now I can die in peace. My mother’s courage won’t be forgotten and it shows what goodwill will do.”
“The inner strength of a single woman, who, by her wits and intuition, prevented potential bloodshed, taught me the practical meaning of the words ‘good will toward mankind,'” Fritz said in another interview. “I remember mother and those seven young soldiers, who met as enemies and parted as friends, right in the middle of the Battle of the Bulge.”