Did you know the Germans almost killed Patton with a giant gun?

General Patton's (Read our earlier article) death is surrounded by speculation to this day, as some people believe that his fatal car accident was really an act of assassination to remove him after he began to become a political liability. We can't tell you what to think about whether or not Patton was murdered, but we will tell you that the Germans almost managed to do him in a year earlier, using an unlikely weapon: a giant railway gun.

In late 1944, Patton's Third Army was advancing on the German-held French city of Metz, and established his headquarters in the city of Nancy some 28 miles (46 km) to the south. (Coincidentally, this wasn't too far from the town of Saint-Mihiel, where Patton was wounded in action during World War I.) Nancy was captured easily and with little damage to the city, and had numerous buildings that could be used as barracks, headquarters, and residences for high-ranking officers. Patton himself took over a large mansion in town.

The Germans quickly learned about the American presence in Nancy, and still had weapons to strike at the town: several giant long-range railways guns hidden inside railway tunnels to the northeast of Metz. These guns had a normal range of 39 miles (63 km), but could also lob special rocket-assisted shells up to 54 miles (87 km) away, far enough to hit Nancy.

The first bombardment of Nancy occurred on October 11, causing extensive damage and spreading fear, but killing nobody. The next attack, in the early morning of October 24, got discomfortingly close to killing Patton. Of the 14 shells, one hit 601 yards (550 m), one 164 yards (150 m) and one 38 yards (35 m) from Patton's home, the last one collapsing the residential building across the street from Patton’s house.

Maintaining a cool demeanor, Patton led his staff to the collapsed house and had them help rescue the people trapped inside; he himself pulling out two residents while other shells were going off nearby. Though he put on a brave face, he later wrote "I really believe that I was more frightened that night than at any time in my career" in a letter to his wife.

That was the last time the railways guns wreaked havoc in Nancy. Using sound ranging and radio intercepts to locate the guns, the U.S. Army Air Forces launched a mission a few days later and destroyed the offending gun by skipping bombs inside the railway tunnel it was hiding in.