St Mihiel 1918: The American Expeditionary Forces’ trial by fire (Campaign Book 238)

The St Mihiel salient had been formed in 1914 as the Germans drove towards Paris at the beginning of World War I (1914-1918). The French had attempted to recapture it in 1915 without success and in 1916 the Germans used the area as a base to attack Verdun. The bitter battle for Verdun had cost hundreds of thousands of German and French casualties. After the Germans called off their attack of the salient, the war shifted north, leaving the salient protruding ominously into the Allied lines. Despite holding the salient since 1914, after the losses of early 1918, Ludendorff reluctantly decided to abandon the area and retire to a heavily fortified line at the base of the salient. The evacuation was ordered to begin on September 8, 1918. This was to be the scene for the newly formed American Army's first major offensive of the war. This highly illustrated and detailed account will highlight every aspect of this important campaign. __From the Trade Paperback edition.__ The St Mihiel salient had been formed in 1914 as the Germans drove towards Paris at the beginning of World War I (1914-1918). The French had attempted to recapture it in 1915 without success and in 1916 the Germans used the area as a base to attack Verdun. The bitter battle for Verdun had cost hundreds of thousands of German and French casualties. After the Germans called off their attack of the salient, the war shifted north, leaving the salient protruding ominously into the Allied lines. Despite holding the salient since 1914, after the losses of early 1918, Ludendorff reluctantly decided to abandon the area and retire to a heavily fortified line at the base of the salient. The evacuation was ordered to begin on September 8, 1918. This was to be the scene for the newly formed American Army's first major offensive of the war. This highly illustrated and detailed account will highlight every aspect of this important campaign. From the Trade Paperback edition. St Mihiel 1918- The American Expeditionary Forces’ Trial by Fire

The St Mihiel salient had been formed in 1914 as the Germans drove towards Paris at the beginning of World War I (1914-1918). The French had attempted to recapture it in 1915 without success and in 1916 the Germans used the area as a base to attack Verdun. The bitter battle for Verdun had cost hundreds of thousands of German and French casualties. After the Germans called off their attack of the salient, the war shifted north, leaving the salient protruding ominously into the Allied lines. Despite holding the salient since 1914, after the losses of early 1918, Ludendorff reluctantly decided to abandon the area and retire to a heavily fortified line at the base of the salient. The evacuation was ordered to begin on September 8, 1918. This was to be the scene for the newly formed American Army's first major offensive of the war. This highly illustrated and detailed account will highlight every aspect of this important campaign.

An examination of the first major American assault during World War I.At 1:00 am on September 12, 1918, accompanied by rain and lightning, the American Army launched its first major offensive of World War I. Supported by French Colonial troops, the American IV and V Corps burst through the weakened German line at St. Mihiel and seized numerous objectives while taking over 16,000 prisoners and capturing over 400 guns.Although American tactics remain suspect, and the operation cost 7,000 US casualties, the battle was heralded as a huge Allied victory. More importantly, it demonstrated to the French and British that the Americans were capable of large-scale, combined-arms operations.Packed with photos, artwork and battle maps, this book explains the entire offensive in detail. At 1:00 am on September 12, 1918, accompanied by rain and lightning, the American Army launched its first major offensive of World War I. Supported by French Colonial troops, the American IV and V Corps burst through the weakened German line at St. Mihiel and seized numerous objectives while taking over 16,000 prisoners and capturing over 400 guns. Although American tactics remain suspect, and the operation cost 7,000 US casualties, the battle was heralded as a huge Allied victory. More importantly, it demonstrated to the French and British that the Americans were capable of large-scale, combined-arms operations. Packed with photos, artwork and battle maps, this book explains the entire offensive in detail. "At 0600hrs on September 12, 1918, accompanied by rain and lightning, the US Army launched its first major offensive of World War I ... Supported by French Colonial troops, the American I, IV, and V Corps burst through the weakened German line at St Mihiel ... Although the operation cost 7,000 American casualties, the battle was heralded as a huge Allied victory. More importantly, it demonstrated to the French and British that the Americans were capable of large-scale, combined-arms operations. Packed with photos, artwork and battle maps, this book explains the entire offensive in detail"--P. [4] of cover. "At 0600hrs on September 12, 1918, accompanied by rain and lightning, the US Army launched its first major offensive of World War I ... Supported by French Colonial troops, the American I, IV, and V Corps burst through the weakened German line at St Mihiel ... Although the operation cost 7,000 American casualties, the battle was heralded as a huge Allied victory. More importantly, it demonstrated to the French and British that the Americans were capable of large-scale, combined-arms operations. Packed with photos, artwork and battle maps, this book explains the entire offensive in detail"--Page 4 of cover Cover; Title; Contents; Origins of the Campaign; Chronology; Opposing Commanders; Allied; German; Opposing Armies; American; German; Orders of Battle; American; German; Opposing Plans; The St Mihiel salient; Foch's change of plans; American forces; Air forces; Tank forces; German dispositions and Plan Loki; Deception; St Mihiel; Deployment; The attack begins; Over the top; The advance continues; Stemming the tide; Race to Vigneulles; September 13; September 14; Aftermath; The Battlefield Today; Bibliography; Copyright Beskrivelse af den amerikanske hærs første større offensiv under 1. Verdenskrig - angrebet på St. Mihiel "fremspringet" 12. oktober 1918. Støttet af franske kolonitropper angreb I., IV. og V. amerikanske armékorps "fremspringet" i fronten foran St. Mihiel, som blev nedkæmpet på mindre end to dage. Samtidig beviste det amerikanske ekspeditionskorps overfor sine allierede, at ekspeditionskorpset var i stand til at lede og gennemføre operationer, der omfattede flere armékorps The tide turns /Creation of the American Army /Chronology /Opposing commanders /Opposing armies /Opposing plans /Into the breach /Aftermath /The battlefield today /Further reading /Index