The , men who went forward into a dense ground fog were expected to advance no less than 10 miles up the valley, clearing the enemy from the forest of the Argonne and bursting through two of the three German defense lines Stellungen —bearing the Wagnerian names of Giselher, Kreimhilde and Freya. Pershing hoped to accomplish this miracle with a combination of mass and movement. Against his nine double-strength American divisions, the Germans mustered only five understrength divisions—perhaps 50, men.
But the Argonne was not the invitingly flat terrain of St. Moreover, of the nine divisions that surged into that ominous fog on September 26, only four, the 4th, 28th, 33rd and 77th, had seen combat in the summer-long struggle to reverse the German offensives of spring-summer Two divisions, the 79th and the 91st, had never even been in the front lines.
The U. By the time Rickenbacker and the 94th headed for their home airfield, the fog had lifted and they could see the doughboys swarming forward over the shell-pocked earth. The madness and terror would come later.
For the first half- day, the infantry made encouraging progress, as the surprised Germans fell back to stronger elements of the Giselher defense line. The enemy had learned to move their Austrian 77mm fieldpieces forward to blast them at point-blank range.
By midday, two-thirds of the brigade tanks were either broken down or knocked out. Patton, virtually berserk over his losses, led a pickup squad of infantry in a frontal assault on a machine-gun nest. Every man but one was gunned down; the survivor dragged Patton into a ditch, bleeding from a severe leg wound. The infantrymen, too, were discovering that Pershing had sent them into terrain that was only a few removes from hell.
The primeval glacier that had originally gouged out the valley had left behind a hogback running down the middle of the Argonne, with ridges slanting off at odd angles, effectively dividing the Argonne into two tunnel-like defiles.
Inside the Argonne Forest itself, ravines, hillocks and meandering little streams added to the obstacles created by the trees and dense underbrush that reduced visibility to 20 feet.
Here and throughout the valley, the Germans had added every imaginable man-made defense, from parallel and flanking trenches to concrete dugouts and fortified strongpoints, supported everywhere by barbed wire and machine guns. To those advantages was added the possession of the high ground east of the Meuse, from which dozens of heavy guns rained death on the Americans. Artillery on the slopes of the 1,foot-high ridge topped by the Argonne Forest wreaked similar destruction from the opposite flank.
On the first day, the crucial action took place in the center, where V Corps was given the task of taking Montfaucon, a steep-sided foot height that was the key to the Giselher Stellung. This fortress had to be seized quickly by the 79th Division if V Corps had any hope of taking Romagne and other strongpoints in the Kreimhilde Stellung, the second defense line.
But the green draftees from Pennsylvania and Maryland became badly confused as the fighting intensified. German machine-gunners who looked dead suddenly came to life and started shooting up the American rear areas.
Men kept charging machine guns in bunches, enabling a single gun to scythe down an entire platoon. Front-line elements lost all contact with their artillery.
But the French tankers, after getting a better look at the Maxims and 77s spouting death, decided to call it a day. Montfaucon was in clear view. But rigid orders from headquarters required the doughboys to sit there, doing virtually nothing, for four hours, until the 79th Division came abreast. General Max von Gallwitz, commander of the army group opposing the doughboys, poured in a half-dozen reserve divisions in the next few days.
An overstatement, to be sure, but there is no doubt that on those days, Pershing was a much more worried general.
He ordered his nine divisions to attack again. The 79th Division, with some help from the 37th Division, captured Montfaucon at noon.
Then serious problems, verging on disaster, developed in I Corps. In the forest of the Argonne, the New Yorkers of the 77th Division were floundering in incredible confusion.
In the valley, the Kansas and Missouri National Guardsmen of the 35th Division were suffering severe internal command problems. On the eve of the battle, Pershing had relieved the two brigade commanders, the chief of staff and three of the four regimental commanders, replacing them with regulars. They barely had time to introduce themselves before they started fighting the elite First Prussian Guards Division. On September 27 and 28, the 35th Division literally fell apart. The two brigades became chaotically entangled; communications between front and rear virtually ceased.
At one point he was almost captured by the Germans. On the 29th, the Prussian Guards launched a counterattack that caused a near rout.
Truman, performed with distinction. But on the following day, the shattered division was withdrawn. By the afternoon of the 29th, gloom and confusion had spread across the entire American battle line.
West of the Argonne Forest, the French Fourth Army had barely gained a foot, a mistake making life even more difficult for the Americans in the woods. September 29 also saw the last flight of 2nd Lt. Taking off that evening, Luke sent three more gasbags up in flames, but he never returned.
It was later learned that he had been brought down by groundfire near Murvaux and, when called upon to surrender by German troops, drew his pistol and died fighting. Luke was later awarded the Medal of Honor. Pershing personally visited every division to deliver exhortations and threats of dismissal. Alas, willpower was not what the First Army needed.
It was stalled not only by ferocious German resistance but also by massive traffic jams in the rear areas. Sep 24, In this Sept. It was America's largest and deadliest battle ever, with 26, U.
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New camera footage from Niger ambush bolsters case for medal upgrades, moms of fallen soldiers say A roughly minute video filmed by one of the four U. In Other News. The Americans faced a formidable adversary whose guns would not be silenced with ease. Nevertheless, the determined American offensive forced the Germans to continuiously withdraw northward, before the armistice abruptly ended the campaign and the war.
Of those brave Americans who fell during the campaign fourteen thousand two hundred forty six were laid to rest at the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery in eastern France. Video Transcript:. In the Meuse-Argonne, the Americans faced their greatest challenge since arriving in theatre.
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