Combat· World War I
Meuse-Argonne
This was the opening attack of the last major American offensive of the war, the final push to break the German lines and drive toward the rail hub at Sedan.
The 4th Marine Brigade led the 2d Division's assault as the point of the spearhead for the Army's V Corps. Learning from the heavy losses at Blanc Mont, commanders planned a massive artillery bombardment, including gas, to crush the German defenses before the Marines moved. Behind a carefully timed rolling barrage, the Marines went over the top in heavy fog, with engineers cutting paths through the barbed wire ahead of them. They overran the front-line German units and pressed forward fast, taking prisoners, guns, and ground. The attack set a speed-and-distance record for the war, with the Marines driving deep into the German lines in a single day of fighting.
Podcast episodes on World War I
Record no. 542