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Home , Aisne, Laon, War memorials (Aisne), War memorials (Oise)

Chapter XII

AMERICAN WORLD IN EUROPE ERECTED BY THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT

HEN the American Battle Monu- -ARGONNE MEMORIAL AT ments Commission was created MONTFAUCON W in 1923 one of the most important This is the most imposing American duties given it was to erect memorials monument in Europe. It commemo- in Europe to commemorate the services rates the brilliant victory of the Ameri- of the American forces there during the can First Army in the Meuse-Argonne World War. This work has now been offensive, September 26- November 11, cornpleted and the eleven memorials and 1918, and pays tribute to the previous two bronze tablets erected by the Com- heroic services of the Armies of mission commemorate these services in a on the important battle front upon which cornplete yet dignified and modest way. the rnemorial has been constructed. The memorials vary in size from three The massive shaft rises from the ruins large ones, which commemorate the of the hilltop village of Montfaucon and Arnerican fighting in the three areas of dominates the surrounding country. From France where the American combat the observation platforms high above the forces were engaged in greatest numbers, ground an extended view is obtained of a to srnaller ones recording the wartime large part of the territory over which services of American units outside of the soldiers of the Arnerican First Arrny these areas. No two of them are alike, advanced during the autumn of 1918. as each was designed to fit its particular Consult pages 203- 204 for additional site and to give a comparative degree of information concerning this memorial. cornmemoration with respect to the A caretaker is at the memorial during others. The architects were carefully daylight hours. While he is on duty vis- selected from Americans of prominence itors are permitted to ascend the tower. in their profession and all concerned bent The Meuse-Argonne American Ceme- every effort to make the results refl.ect the tery is 5 miles to the north. The nearest pride of America in the historie events large town is Verdun, 14 miles to the which the memorials commemorate. southeast, which is easily reached by The completed project has been the train. At that place good hotel accorn- subject of much favorable comment and moda tions are available and automo- the larger monuments are now visited biles for visits to the battlefields may each year by many thousands of travelers be hired in front of the railroad station. frorn American and European countries. The map on page 4 77 shows the loca- ST. MIHIEL MEMORIAL ON MONTSEC tions of the memorials, and the photo- This memorial stands on the high iso- graphs in this chapter will give a good idea lated bill of Montsec. It commemorates of their appearance. Those on the battle- the capture of the St. Mihiel salient by the fields have been described in connection American First Army, the operations of with the and in the following pages the American Second Army on N ovem- references are given to the pages upon ber 9- 11, 1918, and the other combat which these descriptions are to be found. services of the American divisions both in All distances in this chapter are air line. this region and in Alsace and Lorraine.

(473) St. Mihiel Memorial at Montsec AMERICAN WORLD WAR MEMORIALS IN EUROPE 475

It consists of a large circular colonnade, NAVAL MEMORIAL AT BREST at the center of which on a raised plat- form is a bronze relief map of the St. In recognition of the heroic work of the Mihiel salient. The size of the memorial, American N avy in convoying troops and its commanding site and the perfection of supplies to Europe, a large memorial has its proportions all combine to make it one been erected on an old fortification wall of the most impressive in the world. of the city. The site overlooks the harbor See pages 123- 127 for a more complete of Brest, which was a base of operations descriptive account of this monument. for American naval vessels during the war The memorial is about 24 miles from as well as a large port of debarkation and Verdun, Nancy and . Good hotel embarkation for the American troops. accommodations exist at those places and The memorial consists of a tall shaft automobiles for a visit to the site may be from the top of which is obtained a fine hired there. The St. Mihiel American view of the harbor. It is constructed of Cemetery near Thiaucourt is 8 miles away Brittany granite with decorative features to the northeast. Thiaucourt is also the of nautical interest. The surrounding nearest main-line railroad station to the area bas been improved with planting monument and automobiles for a trip to and forms an attractive park, much ap- the battlefields may be hired at that place. preciated by the inhabitants of the town. Brest is in Brittany near the most - MEMORIAL NEAR western point of France. It is 315 miles CHÂTEAU-THIERRY from and may be reached by train from that city in less than eight hours. An impressive memorial, overlooking Château-Thierry and the Marne River, MEMORIAL NEAR SOMMEPY has been erected on Hill 204 to com- On the crest of Blanc Mont Ridge, 3 memorate the services of the American miles north of Sommepy, has been erected and French soldiers who participated in a memorial to commemorate the achieve- the important operations in the Aisne- ments of the American and French Marne region during 1918, and to me- soldiers who fought in the morialize the friendship and cooperation region of France during the World War. which existed between the French and The American 2d, 36th, 42d and 93d American Armies during the World War. Divisions saw battle service in the vicinity The monument proper is a long double and their names and divisional insignia colonnade ornamented on the west face appear on the monument, which is located by heroic figures representing France and en ground captured by the 2d Division. the United States and on the east face by The memorial consists of a tower a large symbolic eagle. Appropriate in- notable for the beauty and simplicity of scriptions give details of the fighting. its lines. A füght of steps leads to an The architecture is outstanding in ap- observation platform on top where a fine pearance and has been made even more view may be obtained and where direction effective by the beautiful landscaping. arrows point out prominent places on the For a more complete description of this landscape. A good view, however, may monument and its features see page 57. also be had from the lower terrace. This is the closest to Paris of any of the At the present time (1937) the tower American memorials and it is but 4 miles is open to visitors only on Sundays. away from Belleau Wood and the See page 350 for additional information American cemetery near Belleau. The of this monument and its surroundings. -Aisne American Cemetery is 14 The nearest cities are , 22 miles miles to the northeast, near Fère-en- to the west, and Châlons-sur-Marne, 23 . Hotel accommodations may miles to the south. Good hotel accom- be had (1937) at Château-Thierry, which modations are available at both of those is on a main railroad line running east places. The village of Sommepy may be from Paris, and automobiles for trips to reached by railroad from Paris in four the battlefields may easily be hired there. hours and automobiles may be hired there. Aisne-Marne American Memorial Near Château-Thierry DUNKIRK N . AUDENARDE World War Monuments Erected in Europe 37 YPRES BRUSSELS by the United States Government 91 30 Represents ground gained by American divisions ( i. 2,3.4. 5.26. 28. Numbers indicate names of Am erican divisions . 29, 32. 33,35,37. engaged in areas < NAMUR1 \ MONTSEC lndicates monument and name of place where ST.POL . CHARLEROI , VALENCIENNES i loca ted or nearest town

Rectangles enclose areas of fighting commemorated by the monuments shown in them

BELLICOURT i ! 0 10 20 30 40 50 Miles 33 J ST. QUENTIN . \ \ ' \ (. RETHEL LONGWY 93 .

BREST ' (Naval Memorial) .. METZ ___ 300 Miles

A L SAC E- Paris CHALONS

BAR·LE·DUC LORRAINE

of 2, 5, 6, 7, 26, 28, 29, 32, 33, IBRALTAR TOURS 35, 37, 42, 77, 78, 79,81, 82, 88, 89, 90, 92 ÛIVISIOns American Naval Memorial at Brest AMERICAN WORLD WAR MEMORIALS IN EUROPE 479

MEMORIAL NEAR during a recent American competition. A memorial near Bellicourt commemo- The small adjoining park area is part rates the American units, totaling ap- of the memorial and is being maintained proximately 90,000 men, which fought by the United States Government. with the British Armies in France during Tours was the headquarters of the the World War. It is on a battlefield of Services of Supply during the war. It is the 27th and 30th Divisions, being pic- in the center of the famous château region turesquely located on the ridge over the of France and is three hours south of St. Quentin Canal tunnel which was such Paris by train. It may be visited from a strong feature of the . that place by automobile or autobus. A detailed description of the monument The trip is interesting as the main roads and its features is given on page 383. pass by or near many famous châteaux. The American Cemetery near NAVAL MEMORIAL AT GIBRALTAR Bony is 1 mile away to the northwest. The Bellicourt memorial is 9 miles At Gibraltar, the gateway to the Medi- north of St. Quentin and 13 miles south terranean, the United States Government of Cambrai. Hotel accommodations are has constructed a memorial archway of available at those places and automobiles stone from the neigbboring mountain to for a visit to the site may be hired there. commemorate the achievements and com- radeship of the American and British MEMORIAL AT TOURS Navies in that vicinity during the World A beautiful fountain bas been construct- War. Many American vessels used the ed at Tours by the United States Govern- harbor as a base for naval operations. ment in grateful recognition of the The memorial serves a useful purpose achievements of the more than 640,000 as it includes a ftight of steps which con- members of the American Expeditionary nects the town of Gibraltar with the large Forces who served in the Services of Sup- British naval establishments below. ply and whose work behind the battle Gibraltar is a port of call for most pas- lines made possible the brilliant accom- senger vessels using the Mediterranean plishments of the armies in the field. and a visit to the monument may be The fountain is of outstanding beauty made from the pier in about half an hour. and is worthy of a high place among the many architectural gems of that historie BELLEAU WOOD part of France. It stands in the heart of Belleau Wood, 5 miles northwest of Tours near the southern end of the Pont Château-Thierry, was given to the Wilson, the main bridge which crosses the United States Government by an Ameri- River within the city boundaries. can association which had acquired it soon On the lower circular basin is carved the after the World War. It is now being dedicatory inscription. Below the upper maintained as a memorial to all American basin appear the coats of arms of Tours, soldiers who fought in the war. The re- Brest, St. Nazaire, , Is-sur-Tille, mains of trenches, shell holes and many , Neufchâteau and ; relies of the war, including weapons sal- French cities wbere important installa- vaged in the vicinity, may be seen there. tions of the Services of Supply were lo- For further information concerning the cated. Above the upper basin are four wood and the American fighting in the vi- beautiful figures representing Adminis- cinity, consult pages 45- 49 of Chapter IL tration, Construction, Procurement and The Aisne-Marne American Cemetery Distribution, the four principal divisions adjoins Belleau Wood on its north sicle. of the Services of Supply organization. The wood is easily reached from Paris, The crowning feature is a bronze Ameri- 45 miles away, either directly by auto- can Indian releasing an American eagle. mobile or by train to Château-Thierry and A model of this figure won a gold medal then by automobile from that place. American Monument Near Bellicourt

American Memorial at Tours to the Services of Supply, A.E.F.

(480) American Memorial Near Sommepy

American Naval Memorial Arch at Gibraltar

(481) 482 AMERICAN WORLD WAR MEMORIALS IN EUROPE

MEMORIAL NEAR VIERSTRAAT, About 4 miles south of Ypres, Belgium, near the hamlet of Vierstraat and not far from the base of Mont Kemmel, a small monument has been erected to commemo- rate the services of the 27th and 30th Divisions which participated with the British in the Ypres-Lys offensive in that 1 region in August and September, 1918. See page 405 for a more complete de- scription of this memorial and its features. The Flanders Field American Cemetery near Waereghem, Belgium, where a con- T siderable number of the men who died in the operations near Vierstraat are buried, Arnencan Memorial at Vierstraat is approximately 27 miles away to the east.

MEMORIAL AT 'ARDE, BELGIUM In the historie town of Audenarde, Bel- gium, a small memorial has been erected in a public park to commemorate the serv- ices of the approximately 40,000 American soldiers who fought in that vicinity toward the end of the World War. A more complete description of this memorial and its location with respect to the nearest large cities in the surrounding country may be found on page 401. The Flanders Field American Cemetery near Waereghem, where many of the soldiers who died during the American operations in this immediate vicinity are buried, is about 7 miles away to the west. Arnerican Monument at Cantigny American Monument at Audenarde

MEMORIAL AT CANTIGNY In the center of the little village of Can- tigny a small park has been developed into an attractive memorial to commemo- rate the capture of that village by the American lst Division in the first offen- sive operation carried out by a large American unit during the World War. A more detailed description of this memorial and directions for reaching it have been given on page 416 of this book.

BRONZE TABLET AT CHAUMONT An attractive bronze tablet has been placecl at the entrance to the Damrémont Barracks at Chaumont and upon it is the AMERICAN WORLD WAR MEMORIALS IN EUROPE 483

Bronze Tabler ar Chaumont following inscription which has been HEADQUARTERS inscribed both in English and in French: OF THE AMERICAN FIRST ARMY GENERAL HEADQUARTERS OCCUPIED THIS BUILDING FROM OF THE SEPTEMBER 21, 1918, AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCES TO THE END OF HOSTILITIES IN EUROPE AND FROM HERE CONDUCTED DURING THE WORLD W AR THE MEUSE-ARGONNE OFFENSIVE, OCCUPIED THE BUILDINGS ONE OF THE GREAT OPERATIONS OF THE CASERNE DAMRÉMONT FROM OF THE WORLD W AR SEPTEMBER 1, 1917, TO JULY 11, 1919, + AND FROM HERE DIRECTED The memorials described above, except THE ACTIVITIES OF MORE THAN for Belleau Wood, were constructed by TWO MILLION AMERICAN SOLDIERS the United States Government and ail of + them are now being maintained by it. BRONZE TABLET AT SOUILLY A table giving information concerning An ornamental bronze tablet has been the principal American World War memo- placed on the outside of the town hall at rials in Europe erected by agencies other Souilly and upon it is the following than the United States Government kas inscription bath in English and French: been included in this book in Chapter XV.

Bronze Tabler at Souilly V1ew of the Aisne-Marne Memorial From Across the Marne River

Upper Part of Naval Symbolic Figures, Aisne-Marne Memorial Lower Terrace, Naval Memorial at Brest Memorial at Brest

Memorial Near Bellicourt Aisne-Marne Memorial Looking Southeast Toward the Hill, Monument and Village of Montfaucon

Details of the S.O.S. Meuse-Argonne Memonal Terrace of the Sr. Mihiel Memorial Fountain Tours Memorial

Porcelain Map at the Sr. Memonal Orientation Table at the Sr. Mihiel Memorial Troops Arriving ac Hoboken from France on the Agamemnon