Show dieal aw 0 JIL atty story of t he A ja EC IF A 0 0 copyright 1931 1 in 11 II by the north anderl by general X caa aill Alllan ir world right re erTel d in including ludins the reproduction la in whole john J X 1 or I lu pt prohibited prohibit 1 INU 8 sarlo Str I 1 lo pershing CHAPTER 11 continued by the evening of september 27 the fifth corps was abreast of the first and it the he third on its flanks the sev enty ninth division captured monteau C con on the morning of september 27 and on the next net day and the bols bois de beuge were passed despite determined resistance in th the e T third h ird corps the Night eightieth leth division had the bois de la in cote lamont after hard fighting but at tach aft after er attack made with alth logged dogged across the open space toward sur aleuse was wai rolled bach by the galling ire fire of tile the enemy front from the town an and its vicinity anti and by the artillery tiring from east cast of tile the hellse the thirty third division main in tallied ined its posit position lon september 27 and 28 and on september 29 relieved the F g lilleth division by extending its left along the northeastern edge of bols bois dp de ta la cote lamont where it occupied difficult ground under the dom doin heights past east of tile the matise the fourth dIvI division sInn captured nan tillous september 27 but was forced by enemy counter attacks to retire the toyn town was retaken nd held on the following day by troops of the fourth and seventy ninth divisions after three days of almost continuous fighting the fourth had taken tile the rols bois de BrIe ulles and entered the rols bois dp de bogons but could not hold the latter against counter attacks and the dead ly machine gun and artillery ire fire of the enemy the fortitude and cour age of the fourth division in these operations were inspiring meet strong resistance the thirty seventh division on sep 27 attempted to advance beyond the ivoury ivoiry montfaucon road but each time it reached there was d driven back bach by heavy shelling on september 28 however it pushed forward to a position north of the clergen nan tillous road clergen was entered uit ered but not held the following day the division again attacked clergen Cl erges but the advance was abruptly halted by concentrated cent rated artillery fire the ninety first division on sep 27 encountered strong opposition at which was reached lint but could not be retained balno balne was taken but was evacuated as an artillery barrage was to be laid on the road through the town the following day Epin onville was ns finally captured september 28 and the bols bois de clerget was occupied after hard fighting two attacks of the division from the bols bois to de clergen on september 29 crumbled under fierce artillery and enfilading machine gun fire hut but on on the third attack despite severe losses gesnes besnes was waa taken en the full advantage of this imbor tant gain was lost host however through the inability of the thirty seventh division to advance its left this placed the right flank on the ninety first in a dangerous position and it 11 had to be withdrawn during the afternoon the thirty fifth division was subjected to a heavy counterattack counter attack which also involved the left of the ninety first but made no progress against it three new german divisions had appeared by september SO 50 on an the front of the first corps and the battle continued with increased intensity the thirty tinh fifth division was stopped by heavy fire soon after its attack opened september 27 but later in the day it captured charpentry Char pentry and advanced to fo the ridge northeast advanced though su suffering severe casualties Mont wood was taken september 28 and early next morning a detachment tach ment repelled reached exermont evermont Ex ermont valley but being nearly surrounded withdrew to the starting point encountering very heavy artillery fi fire re and an advance of the german fi fifty aty sec ond and fifth guard divisions the thirty fifth withdrew from montre beau wood which it had taken the day before the thirty fifth suffered heavier casualties than any other division during these four days of continuous fighting the twenty eighth division though subjected to strong artillery and ma chine gun fire from the blurts bluffs of the argonne captured montblainville september 27 it could maat slight headway against firm opposition from positions in the vicinity of champ mahaut but carried them on september 28 and also captured dapremont apremont on september 20 29 after repulsing a german counterattack counter attack attach a slight advance was made against the defenses of le cherie chene tondu the seventy seventh encountered stiff resistance in the argonne september 27 and was held to a small gain but moved forward about a mlle mile on september 28 next day its right was waa advanced with little opposition during the first four days of fighting the first army west of the mouse meuse had made a maximum advance of about eight miles reaching the bols bois de la Is cote lemont aare mont the enady had been struck a blow so powerful that the extreme gravity of tits his situation in france was obvious to him CHAPTER LIX lax the second phase of the lie meuse ar gonne operation the period from oc tober tabei I 1 to 11 involved tile the lieu heaviest strain on me and the army there wits little time dine to make imle readjustments just ments among the lie troops heavily engaged without giving the enemy it respite lit in which to strengthen tits his defenses d anil and bring up reset ves tile the general attack was resumed nt at 5 a n ra on october 4 meeting mer lins asper desper tile ante resistance by the enema lit in tills this it tack the pom fourth th division of the corps lit in three days dais bitter tight light ing captured and nd held field the idols de fuys making a kiln gain of over it nille into the hols le ie rent cut de faux were forced back by vicious vie fouS counter attacks utti ids in n similar shullar hard light ing tile lie E division dIv Islon gal billed a foothold in tile the liola bols des 0 anns arons against very eai heavy lien inne hine kiin tire fire 11 in tile the of tile the fifth I 1 ifal corps the rd division pushed forward turn rd lit in the fitce of if strong resistance during alip lip extent next two days this division led its gains but bul could bould make no IKI headway lien dway against the bois bills de cunel bunel the thil ty second division which eivid taken emerges october 1 advanced ada rued to just south of gesnes besnes on oil the fourth despite very arv severe hostile hoi fire und and next day i natured that lown on oil the left of the army the first corps was very ery successful alie first division in a title display dl of power ou on october 4 drove drop it 11 deep wedge into the alie line this was of great value lit in affording space for tile the attack tort ward ard the argonne to he launched later the here herd 1 was wils characterized by the stubborn nature of the german gemma resistance and the offensive spirit of the division case of the lost battalion the right of the twenty eighth division fought its way down the alre aire river in ralson liaison with the first and captured chechery Che hery the left of the dl vision encountered much opposition and made but slight gains notwithstanding its repeated attacks the division was now facing west tor for nearly three miles along the alre aire river the seventy seventh division between september 29 and october 4 continued its attacks in the argonne advancing about a mile over difficult terrain in the assault of october 2 a mixed battalion of the division moved forward more rapidly than the troops on its right and left and became completely surrounded by the enemy it become became popularly known as the lost battalion for four days every effort of tile the division to relieve this beleaguered beleaguer ed force was unsuccessful and every effort of the germans to force its surrender was without avail french call for help in the meantime the french fourth army conour on our left had been held up at blanc mont As a consequence marshal foch appealed to mo me for assistance although I 1 was loath to spare any troops from our front so serious was our own situation I 1 sent in accordance cor dance with my promise the second division lejeune which was followed later by the thirty sixth NV B R smith october 3 tile the second division accompanied compa compan nied led by french tanks in a brilliant maneuver against heavy machine gun eun resistance stormed and captured the dominating german positions on the farm blanc mont kedge and conti continue nuee on toward st etienne Et lenne which was taken on october 8 with the aid of one brigade of the thirty sixth division this success carried forward the french divisions on its right and left and as reported by general gouraud enabled the whole fourth army to advance our second army organized the broadening of the front of attack to the east of the meuse and tile the probability that we should soon become engaged along our whole line made it ft advisable to establish another army accordingly the second army was formed with its front extending from the moselle to preshes en and placed under the command of AIR jor general bullard on the twelfth the remainder of our front frow from fresnel fresnes en to the argonne for est inclusive was left under the first army to which major general liggett was assigned both commanders were recommended by me tor for promotion to lieutenant general my aly status now became that ot of commander of a group of armies major general summerall was placed lu in command of the fifth corps to relieve major general cameron who was given command of the fourth division major general nines was promoted to the command of the third corps in place of general bullard major Ge central iveral Dle kinan cloman commanding the fourth corps was ans given the first corps and major general muir aluir the fourth Fourt li these changes generally tool took effect october 12 but I 1 retained direct command of the first army until the sixteenth CHAPTER LX the meuse argonne operations carried out between october 7 and 11 consisted of four specific attacks BB as follows 1 october 7 the first corps employing the eighty second division between tile ha first and twenty eighth divisions attacked the eastern edge of the argonne forest 2 october 8 tile the french seventeenth corps re enforced by the amerlean american thirty third and twenty ninth divisions attacked east of the meuse on the front beaumont bra brabant ban tsu t su sur r meuse with the object of seizing the heights there 3 october 1 0 the fifth corps re enforced by including within its front tile first division to which was attached a brigade from the ninety first llast division attacked the heights of the bols bois de romagna Roni agne 4 october 1011 10 11 A general attack on the 20 mile front from beaumont west to the alre aire river the french fourth army had not been able to keep abreast of the american first army and it was evident that clearing the argonne forest would materially aid its advance tho the opportunity presented itself just lit at this time although on october 6 the enemy continued to hold the heights ot of cunel bunel and romagna Ho magne nevertheless elese sufficient lelent i space had bad been secured along the alre aire river to warrant an attack attach to the west with the object of striking the rear of 0 the positions in the argonne forest there was another important factor that entered into the decision to force the withdrawal of the enemy from the argonne this was the predicament of the lost battalion which under tinder MO maj 0 VV whittlesey had been holding out near Bi narville since october 2 efforts to lefleve the battalion had so far been unsuccessful und and the men had consumed their rations and expended most of their ammunition although our aviators had tried to drop small amounts to them the battalion wits resisting heroically against grent great odds without any thought of surrender pursuant to the plan an attack was made by the twenty eighth and eighty second divisions against the left and rear of the positions in the region of chatel chechery and Corn cornay ity after a night of eight miles the eighty second division duncan entered tile line between the twenty eighth muir and tile the first summerall in a series of daring movements to the west by the awen ty ty eighth and eighty second divisions cornay chatel chechery and the dominating hills northwest of dapremont apremont were captured although the continued operation of these two divisions was attended by severe fighting the results were immediate the enemy was forced to withdraw from that region the argonne forest was cleared and the seventy seventh division was enabled to advance to the relief of tta its lost bat tallon 11 it then pushed on to the north in pursuit of the retreating enemy east of the th meuse general claudeis Clau dels french seventeenth corps cast of tile the meuse at tacked october 8 with the object of seizing the heights northwest of beaumont at that time thile it consisted of two french and two american divisions the thirty third and twenty ninth making the corps in numerical strength two thirds american though opposed by strong german resistance the assault was successfully directed by general claudel and our lines were advanced during the next few days to the commanding ground between beaumont and Itt chene eliene in a well conducted operation the thirty third division uell bell crossed the meuse feuse early october 8 by bridges constructed truc ted during the night captured consenvoye and progressed up the neighboring slopes the following day a further advance was made but heavy tire fire from the borne do de ler a and n d the failure of the troops on t the lie r right ight to keep up forced a delre ment to the ru morning ornIng line tills this ground w was 1 s retaken despite strong resistance ai and i d by night of the the division had established itself on oil tile the west slopes of chene the fifty eighth brigade of the twenty ninth division morton lorton A under c command anin mad of tile the french eighteenth division against considerable opposition tion pushed forward into the woods s south on fit of luchene hill on the ath and during tile the next two days completed the capture of those woods on the alth the twenty ninth division took command of its ita fifty eighth brigade its fifty seventh brigade still under the french eighteenth division on tile the ith made important gains in the bois dOnn ont in conjunction with the operations by the french seventeenth corps the fifth corps cameron attacked in force october 0 and continued its ita efforts the next two days the third division buck progressed on tile the oth and after fierce lighting fighting seized madeleine farm which had previously proved a stumbling block and partly cleared the bois de cunel bunel the following day it completed the capture of that wood and on the alth extended its gains to the north northwest wesL the thirty second division ainan reached october 9 0 and penetrated the lie enemy trenches on cote dame marle on the but was driven from the latter and established its lines on the southern slopes of the hill ninety first suffers suffer heavy casualties the ninety first division johnston Joh naton on the left of the thirty second division fought all day on tho oth th tor for suffering heavy casualties and the following day occupied the position the advance then continued until stopped on and the cote dame marle the division was relieved the nighton night of october 11 the first division summerall to in a resolute attack captured the biffi cult enemy positions on and near on the oth and established its line on the north of the cote de mal dah it also was relieved on the alth during the 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