100 years ago, U.S. fought in deadliest battle
ROMAGNE-SOUS-MONTFAUCON, France — It was America’s deadliest battle ever, with 26,000 U.S. soldiers killed, tens of thousands wounded and more ammunition fired than in the whole of the Civil War. The MeuseArgonne offensive of 1918 was also a great American victory that helped bring an end to World War 1.
Officials, descendants of soldiers and visitors braved strong winds and rain to attend a remembrance ceremony yesterday afternoon in the Meuse-Argonne cemetery, which is surrounded by green fields and forests in Romagnesous-Montfaucon, a village in northeastern France.
All day, volunteers read the soldiers’ names aloud, to honor those who sacrificed their lives for liberty, freedom and democracy. Covering about 128 acres, Meuse-Argonne is the largest American cemetery in Europe.
Organizers were forced to cancel the planned lighting of 14,000 candles because of the bad weather.
Gerald York, grandson of World War I hero Sgt. Alvin York, praised a “beautiful commemoration.”
“The weather’s a little dreary, but that’s the way it was 100 years ago for the battle. So we’re kind of getting a view of what they did, what they fought in and the conditions they had to endure,” he said.
His grandfather earned the Medal of Honor for his efforts during the Meuse-Argonne battle. Sgt. York led an attack on a German machine gun nest, killing at least 25 enemy soldiers, and capturing 132 Germans.
During seven weeks of combat, 1.2 million American troops led by Gen. John J. Pershing fought to advance on the entrenched positions held by about 450,000 Germans in the Verdun region.
The offensive that started on Sept. 26, 1918, was one of several simultaneous Allied attacks that brought the war which started in 1914 to an end, leading the Germans to retreat and sign the armistice on November 11.
Pershing said “the success stands out as one of the very great achievements in the history of American arms.”