Film opens with a map showing the Ardennes forest with cities Aachen, Maastricht, Eschweiler in the north and Saarburg and Strassburg to the south. (Elements of the American VII Corps have penetrated the Siegfried line (West Wall) in the vicinity of Roetgen, Germany, in September, 1944, when this film depicts German defense responses, from their perspective. Numerous German rockets are seen speeding through the black night sky. In daylight, German gunners fire large artillery pieces as well as more rockets (Nebelwerfer) which also can be heard as the streak past. German gunners firing a 15 cm schwere Feldhaubitze 18 or sFH 18 heavy howitzer. Shells exploding in the distance. Closeup of German soldiers observing the shells exploding. American soldiers being taken as prisoners of war, march past dragons teeth of the Siegfried line. German Panzer tanks rolling along a road as Allied prisoners march the opposite way, under guard, with their hands over their heads. German troops slogging along a muddy road. Some carry panzerfaust anti-tank weapons. One carries an MG-42 machine gun. Bodies of dead U.S. Army soldiers on the ground. German tanks maneuvering and firing their guns. German soldiers in a village engaged in house-to-house combat with American soldiers.
Slate notes heavy reliance on turnips for use in many foods while potatoes and other crops were in short supply in Germany during World War I. "Kohl-Ruben Zeit" (Epoch of Turnips): a German soldier eats bread with turnip marmalade. Two German officers standing beside a tree as the other soldier eats behind them, seated.
Swimming and diving competition in Germany. Men and women participants dive into a swimming pool. Three women perform a synchronized dive. Swimming competitors swim in lanes of the pool during a race. Winner as he completes the lap. Women participants dive into the pool. Spectators watch the competition. Audience cheer for the participants. Female winner comes out and smiles.
Berlin citizens are seen on an ordinary day in Berlin, Germany. People, cars, and a horse drawn wagon on a street in front of a park. A Berlin policeman is among the pedestrians. View of the Berlin Cathedral (Berliner Dom) on on Museum Island in the Mitte borough. Pigeons flying all about the dome. A newspaper being printed on a belt-driven press. Two men hawking numerous newspapers and magazines at a newsstand. A woman looking at a publication, nest to a display containing womens' magazines, including The Saturday Evening Post (September 24, 1932 edition) and Vogue, among others. A busy intersection with cars, a bus, cyclists, and pedestrians.
German troops marching on a rough field, as they are reviewed by officers mounted on horses. German SA Storm troopers (Sturmabteilung) with massed Nazi swastiks flags marching at a rally in Nuremberg, Germany. Adolf Hitler walking ahead of a group of SA Storm troopers (Brown shirts) led by Ernst Röhm and Schutzstaffel (SS) in black uniforms, led by Heinrich Himmler. Hitler gives impassioned speech about German people (das eigene Volk), saying" Und für dieses Volk und um dieses Volk wollen wir ringen und wollen wir kämpfen. Und niemals erlahmen. Und niemals ermüden. Und niemals verzagen. Und niemals verzweifeln.” (And for this people, and for the sake of this people, we will struggle and fight. And never slaken, never tire, never lose courage, and never lose faith.)
Burial service in Germany. U.S. soldiers standing in attention. German civilians attend memorial service for murdered slave laborers. Polish girls carrying prayer book. Members of United States 102nd Infantry Division, 548th AAA (Anti Aircraft Artillery), Battery D fire a volley over graves. A bugler plays bugle. Views of graves at cemetery. (World War II period).
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