In late December 1944, von Rundstedt launched a counterattack which developed into the Battle of the Bulge. The use of the fuzes entered a new field, that of artillery fire against ground forces. The results of this usage was devastating to German troops and put fear into their hearts. No longer were their foxholes heavens against shrapnel burst, for with the use of the "funny fuze," as it was termed by General Patton, the shrapnel bursts occurred before the projectiles hit the earth, and high-velocity fragments rained down on the German attackers!
