In 1944, the 4th Armored Division played a central role inone of the more remarkable campaigns in American militaryhistory-Third Army’s pursuit across France, which was cappedoff by the encirclement and capture of Nancy. In the course ofthis campaign, the 4th Armored Division practiced a mode ofwarfare that has since become known to the Army as AirLandBattle. Inasmuch as the encirclement of Nancy is one of thefew historical examples that shows American mechanized forceswaging war in accordance with the tenets of AirLand Battle,anyone seeking a deeper appreciation of today’s doctrine woulddo well to study this campaign carefully.The 4th Armored Division in the Encirclement
Nancyoriginated at the U.S. Army Command and General StaffCollege as an introductory class for a course on modern division-level operations. It is a companion piece to The Lorraine Cam-paign: An Overview, September--December 1944, published inFebruary 1985.dLOUIS D, F. FRASCHRColon& InfantryDirector, Combat Studies Institute
CSI publications cover a variety of military history topics. The views expressedin this CSI publication are those of the author and not necessarily those of theDepartment of the Army or the Department of Defense.