During the
Battle of the Bulge, on the morning of 22 December 1944
the American 101st Airborne Division holding the town of
Bastogne
was encircled by the German army. Under orders to hold the town at
all costs, Brigadier General
Anthony C. McAuliffe just laughed when
a German party crossed the lines to demand the Americans'
surrender.
His one-word written reply lives on as one of the great quotes of
World War II. The return communique read, simply:
Nuts!
and was signed, The American Commander.