The siege of Bastogne took place in atrocious conditions: the american troops were completely encircled by a huge german army, and had to face them 1 against 5 ; these same troops severely lacked winter gear and medical supplies ; it was the worst winter in recent memory in the region, and the weather had temporarily prevented any airborne supplies. Following the decision of the commander of the XL VII Panzer Corps, general von Lüttwitz, to encircle the city of Bastogne from the south and the southwest, and the execution of this order, during the night of the 20 to 21 december, the 7 roads leading to the city were totally blocked by the german troops at noon the 21st, thus effectively creating a situation of siege. However, a young nurse named Augusta Chiwy had had the time to enter the city before its lockdown. The young woman, born in Belgian Congo from a black mother and a white veterinarian father from Bastogne, where she lived since she was 9, had become nurse in 1943 despite the racism plaguing Belgium at that time. She was working in a hospital in Leuven, at 90 miles from Bastognes. She had joined her father in Bastogne from Christmas and had arrived on the 20th. The next day, nurse Renée Lemaire volunteered to one of the makeshift hospitals in the city. This hospital, ran by doctor John Prior, was already receiving lots of terribly wounded American soldiers. Lemaire told Prior about the presence of Chiwy in town. Prior didn’t hesitate and went straight to the Chiwy family, who were hiding in their basement like the other civilians, and asked for Augusta’s help, which he immediately accepted. Some soldiers had objections about being treated by a black nurse, to which Prior answered that they could also join the frozen corpses outside. Chiwy showed remarkable courage, taking care of the worst cases, and going outside to retrieve wounded soldiers under intense enemy fire. On December 24h, while Prior, some of his aids, and Chiwy were sharing a quick glass of champagne, to mark the date, in an adjacent building, a bomb exploded in the apartment transformed into a hospital, killing 20 wounded soldiers, and nurse Renée Lemaire. Augusta Chiwy made strong efforts to compensate Lemaire’s death until the end of the siege. It is only 65 years after that her story became known. Historian Martin King, specialized in the Battle of the Bulge, was able to trace her tracks and she shared her story with him. She was then made Knight in the Order of the Crown by the Belgian Minister of Defense, and received the Civilian Award for Humanitarian Service by the Us Army in 2011.
