Editing Aschaffenburg (section)

=== World War II ===
In [[World War II]], Aschaffenburg was heavily damaged by Allied [[strategic bombing during World War II|area bombing]], including [[Schloss Johannisburg]], which was completely restored several years later. The German military chose to defend Aschaffenburg strongly during the last weeks of the war, which resulted in the [[Battle of Aschaffenburg (1945)|Battle of Aschaffenburg]] fought 28 March – 3 April 1945. The U.S. [[45th Infantry Division (United States)|45th Infantry Division]] was forced to take the fortified town against stiff German resistance in a series of frontal assaults that involved house-to-house fighting and vicious close combat. The resulting widespread urban destruction was quite severe, as cannon fire was used point-blank to blast through structures.<ref>Stanton, Shelby, ''World War II Order of Battle: An Encyclopedic Reference to U.S. Army Ground Forces from Battalion through Division, 1939-1946'' (Revised Edition, 2006), Stackpole Books, p. 134-135</ref>