Did MacAuliffe really says "Nuts"?

[CookingWithGas]

“Nuts” – General MacAuliffe (when asked to surrender during the Battle of the Bulge, 1944)

This oft-repeated quote sounds mild. Was this the real quote, or was he actually more gritty (i.e., F*** YOU) and then cleaned up for public consumption?

[Dewey_Cheatem_Undhow]

I have heard one uncorroborated report that McAuliffe actually did say “Fuck You.”

But then again, I saw a piece on the History Channel that says he actually did say “Nuts.” That piece included interviews with people who were there.

So who knows?

[David_Simmons]

According to historian John Toland in his bood, Battle: Story of The Bulge several German officers came to the US positions unter a flag of truce demanding a surrender.

When McAuliffe was told he said “Oh nuts” and ignored them to attend more pressing problems. Some time later, maybe a half hour to an hour one of his staff told him that the Germans were still around and demanding an answer.

McAuliffe asked the staff and unit commanders present what he should do. One of them said that his first comment sounded OK to him and reminded McAuliffe what it was when questioned.

So the message was sent back:

"From: The American Commander.

To: The German Commander.

Nuts."

[Zebra]

I’ve been to the Airborne Museum and they have a little recreation of the scene. They report the message as ‘Nuts’ and my friend in the Airborne says it was ‘Nuts’.

[tomndebb]

Toland’s version, that David Simmons related, is repeated with minor details in several historical works. I suspect that it is basically the correct version.

[Snooooopy]

*Originally posted by David Simmons *
**According to historian John Toland in his bood, Battle: Story of The Bulge several German officers came to the US positions unter a flag of truce demanding a surrender.

When McAuliffe was told he said “Oh nuts” and ignored them to attend more pressing problems. Some time later, maybe a half hour to an hour one of his staff told him that the Germans were still around and demanding an answer.
**

More pressing problems? What exactly is more pressing than the enemy demanding your surrender?

Was the toilet stopped up or something?

[The_Peyote_Coyote]

Snooooopy: If you’re not planning to surrender, I would say how to feed your troops, defend your beleagured position, and kill as many of the enemy as possible would be much more pressing questions.

[Crusoe]

Charles MacDonald’s detailed Battle of the Bulge (UK title) reports the same story in some detail (pp. 511-513).

Essentially, a platoon of Company F, 325th Glider Infantry received two German officers and two sergeants waving a white flag. The German lieutenant, Hellmuth Henke, asked to be taken to the commanding general in Bastogne. Eventually they were persuaded to hand their typewritten message to the company commander, who sent it to the regiment’s operations officer. He, in turn, took it personally to McAuliffe via his chief of staff, Lt. Col. Ned Moore.

“What does it say, Ned?” asked McAuliffe.
“They want you to surrender,” said Moore.
“Aw, nuts!” said McAuliffe.
When McAuliffe got around to composing a reply to the ultimatum, he was at a loss as to what to say.
"That first crack you made, " said his G-3, Harry Kinnaird, “would be hard to beat.”
“What was that?” asked McAuliffe.
“You said ‘Nuts!’”
With a pen, McAuliffe wrote: “To the German commander: Nuts! From the American Commander.”

The reply was taken back to the 327th by their CO, Col. Joseph Harper. When the Germans were returned, blindfolded, to their original location, they asked to know the reply, saying they were authorised to negotiate:

“The answer,” said Harper, “is ‘Nuts!’”
Although Henke had spent years in the import business and spoke excellent English, the reply perplexed him. He translated literally for the major, but neither of them understood. Was the reply, asked Henke, negative or affirmative?
“The reply,” answered Harper, "is decidedly not affirmative, and if you continue this foolish attack, your losses will be tremendous.
“If you don’t understand what ‘Nuts!’ means,” Harper continued, “in plain English it is the same as ‘Go to hell!’ And I will tell you something else; if you continue this attack, we will kill every goddamn German that tries to break into this city.”

MacDonald cites Rapport and Northwood (Rendezvous with Destiny: A History of the 101st Airborne Division, 1948), an account by Hellmuth Henke, and French and Belgian research libraries.

[Crusoe]

Sorry. That should have been 327th for both unit references.

[slipster]

In the early 19702 I attended military school. Our SAI (senior army instructor) was Col. Alexader Vorobyov, who had been an aide to the general. He told us that he was there, and MacAuliffe definitely did not say “Nuts”. He said that was something which was invented after the fact because the press could not print what he actually said. He wouldn’t tell us what it was, but my classmates and I generally assumed it was something on the order of “Fuck You” or “Eat Shit”.

[flano1]

gee slipster, can i borrow your time machine, please.

i promise to return it last week.

[David_Simmons]

*Originally posted by Snooooopy *
**More pressing problems? What exactly is more pressing than the enemy demanding your surrender?

Was the toilet stopped up or something? **

Well, McAuliffe was well aware of the tactical situation and the thought of surrender had probably never crossed his mind. Word that some German officers had demand his surrender was just another distraction to someone who was busy trying to get his ducks in line.

[SnugTheJoiner]

Apropos of nothing: Years ago, I was watching the History Channel with my old roommate. John Paul Jones’s famous retort to the British captain was quoted; “I have not yet begun to fight!”

I said, “Do you suppose he really said that?”

She answered, “Probably not. But they couldn’t put, ‘I’M GOING TO BEAT THE PISS OUT OF YOU, YOU LIMEY SON OF A BITCH!’ into the history books, now could they?”

[David_Simmons]

*Originally posted by SnugTheJoiner *
**Apropos of nothing: Years ago, I was watching the History Channel with my old roommate. John Paul Jones’s famous retort to the British captain was quoted; “I have not yet begun to fight!”

I said, “Do you suppose he really said that?”

She answered, “Probably not. But they couldn’t put, ‘I’M GOING TO BEAT THE PISS OUT OF YOU, YOU LIMEY SON OF A BITCH!’ into the history books, now could they?” **

The famous line was supposedly spoken after hours of fighting when both Serapis and Bon Homme Richard were pretty well wrecked and the British ship hailed Jones and asked if he was ready to surrender.

According to Los Angeles Times columnist the late Jack Smith, when a weary Marine private up high in the rigging heard the reply, “I have not yet begun to fight.” he leaned on his musket and groaned, “There’s always some SOB who didn’t get the word!”

[Tars_Tarkas]

I beleive the Mad Magazine snappy answer to historical quotes for “I have not yet begun to fight.” was a guy saying “Don’t you think you’d better start? The ship is almost ruined!”