PYROTECHNIC DISPLAY IN HARDIGNY

Throughout the weekend, the village of Hardigny will readopt the look of the 1940s with an historic, marked trail that will allow visitors to discover and experience the living conditions in the countryside as they were during the winter of 1944-45. A pyrotechnic display will be held on Sunday, 15th December. The village was chosen for its aesthetic appeal and historical value. The show consists of a ‘lively’ retrospective of this sad moment in history, namely the Battle of the Bulge, interpreted by actors: US and German military personnel as well as civilians. In order to better immerse the spectator, the extras will be in uniforms or even in vintage vehicles.

Schedule

Saturday 14 from 10.30 am to 4 pm :

Opening of German static positions in Neufmoulin and US static positions in Hardigny

Display of fortified positions, WWII gear and equipment, movements of armored vehicles, reconnaissance progressions, skirmishes between opposing forces,…

In the afternoon : reenactment of combats between German and US forces in the surrounding woods and fields.

Admission : FREE !

Sunday 15 at 10.30 am :

Pyrotechnical show in the surrounding fields of Hardigny depicting the combats of the Task Force Booth for the defense of Bastogne in December 1944 with the recon elements of the 2nd Panzer Division. This show of approximatively 1 hour will be manned by over 250 reenactors, with the presence of several armored vehicles (and maybe planes), including an original Sturmgeschutz III German tank.

From 12 am to 1.30 pm :

Opening of German static positions in Neufmoulin and US static positions in Hardigny

Display of fortified positions, WWII gear and equipment, movements of armored vehicles, reconnaissance progressions, skirmishes between opposing forces,…

1.30 pm : End of the event and beginning of the animations in the center of Bastogne.

Admission for the day : 5€ – Free for kids under 12

It is worth noting that in the days prior to the event of Hardigny 44’, 2 columns of vehicles (armored and wheeled), together with historical reenactors, will be riding through the Namur and Luxembourg Provinces in total immersion (open solely to serious reenactors). Their journey will end in the Bastogne area for the pyrotechnical show. Those columns will reconstitute the journey of the Task Force Booth (US 9th Armored Division) and of the German 2nd Panzer Division in December 1944.

Presales for the Sunday’s show :

> Tourist office or Cultural centre from now

> Sport centre on Friday Dec. 13 from 3 pm to 8 pm or on Saturday Dec.14 from 7 am to 9.30 am