The Battle of Belleau Wood, 1 -26 June 1918
-Jason

Listen here: http://www.spreaker.com/user/ufpearth/hwts065

The Battle of Belleau Wood fought between 1 -26 June 1918, was one of the major phases of the German Spring Offensive.  The United States 2nd Division, consisting of both Army soldiers and Marines, held off and counterattacked, a combination of five German divisions in the region.  The battle would be commemorated by both the American and French governments as one of the most glorious displays of US Marine courage and tenacity.

The outbreak of the Russian Revolution in 1917, and the subsequent Russian Civil War, had far-reaching effects: one of the key Entente Powers had removed itself from the First World War, meaning the soldiers of the Central Powers stationed against them were now available to shift to other theaters of war.  By March of 1918, fifty German divisions were redeployed from the Eastern Front to the Western Front.  These newly moved divisions increased the fighting power of the German army against the battered British, French, and Belgian forces they were engaged against at a critical time: these Entente formations were exhausted after four years of bitter fighting and were desperately awaiting fresh American forces to arrive on the Continent.

German military leaders planned to use their windfall of units to shatter the existing Entente formations before additional American forces could reinforce them.  The German Spring Offensive, 21 March – 18 July 1918, was designed to strike Entente forces and drive deep into their trench lines.  The goal of the offensive was for German forces to break the deadlock of the Western Front and capture Paris, thus forcing France to surrender and win the war for Germany. 

The battle needed to be launched sooner rather than later: American forces had been slowly gathering in France since the United States declared war on Germany in November 1917.  By March 1918, the Americans had deployed the American Expeditionary Force (the AEF) to Europe.  The AEF consisted of both Army and Marine Corps forces that were formed into mixed formations.  Tens of thousands of Americans landed in France to reinforce the battered British and French armies along the Western Front.  For the Germans, any prolonged delay of offensive action only allowed their enemies to gather further strength.

German forces slammed into the Entente trenches beginning on 21 March 1918 and enjoyed great initial success.  They recaptured territory that had been lost during 1916 and 1917 and seemed invincible.  Years of experience in bitter trench warfare was applied by the German formations and their tactics had evolved from previous offensives: small, highly mobile units called storm troops attacked Entente positions and quickly overran segments of defenses.  The Storm troops bypassed any areas that were too heavily defended and continued their deep penetration attacks.  This allowed for rapid conquest of enemy territory, mass confusion amongst their opponents, and quick advances.

By end the end of May, the territorial gains witnessed by the early phases of the German Spring Offensive panicked Entente political and military leaders: German troops had nearly reached the Marne River and were within striking distance of Paris.  Victory seemed to be within the reach of the Central Powers.  In response to these gains, the United States 2nd and 3rd Divisions were ordered to hold the Germans around the region of the Belleau Wood.  The Belleau Wood had been a hunting preserve before the war and, at the time of the Spring Offensive, was still intact.  The Belleau Wood was transformed into a fortress by the Germans as they prepared to drive towards Paris. 

The United States 5th Marine Regiment had been placed in reserve behind French lines facing the Germans.  On 1 June, German forces launched an attack that pushed the French out of their defenses: the 5th Marine Regiment was sent to blunt the advance.  They did not engage the Germans until 3 June.  The Marines had no prepared trenches to find cover within while counterattacking the German formations and so laid down on the ground.  The Americans allowed their opponents to get within 100 yards of them before opening fire: the resulting casualties shattered the German advance, causing them to retreat into the woods.  The United States 6th Marine Regiment was brought up to reinforce their fellow Marines.  The first phase of the Battle of Belleau Wood had gone to the Americans.

The Americans and French launched another series of actions to stymy the Germans.  On 4 June, the French 167th Division pushed against the Germans while the Marines attacked Hill 142.  The capture of Hill 142 was vital to the Entente due to its location: the French troops could be massacred by German forces stationed there.  The fighting for Hill 142 was brutal: all but one commissioned officer and nearly the entirety of the attacking battalion had been killed or wounded.  Hill 142 had been captured but at a steep price.

Despite their casualties, the Marines continued to attack the German formations around them.  On the night of 4 June, three Americans performed a reconnaissance mission through Belleau Wood to ascertain German strength and intentions.  They reported back to their commanders that machine gun nests and artillery pieces were hastily being brought into the forest by the Germans: if an attack was not launched to disrupt these, Belleau Wood could become a staging point for a push on Paris.

The Marines attacked on the morning of 6 June and faced bitter German resistance.  The American forces were new to the Western Front and had not yet learned the lessons of trench warfare: Marines advanced through waist-high wheat in formation.  British and French officers and soldiers had attempted to teach the Americans that this was a terrible tactic, but they had been ignored and the first waves of Marines suffered severe casualties.  Despite the slaughter, the Americans forced their way into the tree line and engaged the Germans in hand-to-hand combat.  The Marines gained a foothold in Belleau Wood at the cost of 31 officers and 1,056 men.

The Germans launched a counterattack on 8 June dislodge the Americans but were repelled.  The US Marines also launched a failed push to consolidate their holdings.  A series of small-unit advances allowed American forces to push deeper and deeper into the German defenses; these gains were won at an increasingly bitter cost.  The Battle of Belleau Wood descended into a nightmare after 10 June: heavy artillery strikes shattered the forest, chemical weapons were unleashed, and casualties on both sides mounted. 

It took until 26 June for the US Marines to finally clear Belleau Wood of German defenders.  Despite the efforts of five German divisions the Americans drove their opponents from the woods after six separate attacks.  The cost of the blunting the Spring Offensive was high: 9,777 Americans causalities were suffered including 1,811 killed.  The Battle of Belleau Wood stopped the German advance on Paris and crippled their operations on the Western Front.

The actions of the United States 5th and 6th Marine Corps regiments were celebrated both in France and the United States.  The members of the regiments were awarded the Croix du guerre, by the French Government for their valorous actions.  The Battle of Belleau Wood is remembered through multiple ways: movies and books commemorated the “Devil Dogs” in the years following the end of the First World War.  In 1923, Belleau Wood was dedicated as an American battle monument by the French: an American cemetery was established so that the remains of fallen soldiers could be interred within the soil they died to defend.