In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

51 Chapter Three Toul Sector “Getting Down On the Germans” For six months, the Yankee Division had been under the tutelage of the French, from whom the doughboys learned the elements of trench warfare, with an emphasis on raids and patrols. It was, by and large, defensive warfare —that is, static—except for an occasional large-scale attack that generally resulted in incremental gains, if any. Pershing felt that it was time to conduct an exercise utilizing his pet theory commonly referred to as “open warfare,” which relied upon the mass movement of overwhelming numbers of American soldiers, armed with rifles and bayonets, swiftly breaking through the line onto open ground where movement was easier. In the end, it proved to be beyond the AEF’s ability to effectively implement. As a result, the 26th and 42nd (“Rainbow”) Divisions (both National Guard) received orders to conduct a joint exercise in March 1918, following the completion of their most recent stage of training. Accordingly, commencing March 18, the various elements of the Yankee Division made their way to Soissons, Braine, or Mercin-Pommiers, there to board trains for a one-day journey to either Bar-sur-Aube or Brienne-le-Château, another town on the River Aube, famous for a military school attended by the young Napoleon. Once fully assembled, the division would begin a fourday march, which itself would be an exercise in troop movement. Eventually , the plan was to conduct an open warfare exercise with the Rainbow Division.1 However, the German High Command had other ideas. Beginning March 21, 1918, almost simultaneous with the movement of the Yankee Division, the relatively stable situation along the Allied front from Flanders to the Aisne-Marne Sector near Château-Thierry suddenly began to unravel in the face of a massive German offensive, consisting of a series of well-coordinated attacks up and down the line starting with “Operation Michael” (March 21), followed in short order by “George” (April 9), and “Blücher-Yorck” (April 27). Two smaller attacks followed in June and July. The Germans had reason to be optimistic that these attacks would 52 SKY PILOTS succeed—since Russia had left the war, she was now free to move dozens of her experienced divisions to the western front, at a time when the American forces in France were still small and not yet seriously battle-tested. Previously hard-won ground was lost in huge swaths as the German juggernaut rolled swiftly forward.2 As the gunners of the 101st Field Artillery Regiment detrained at Brienne -le-Château on March 21, they were unaware of the new German offensive . Following three days of rest, on March 24, the unit marched a short distance to the village of La Chaise, arriving there later that day. As part of the Headquarters Company, Murray Dewart was offered a room in the beautiful château, the home of a widowed marchioness, which had stood empty for the past two months. However, he opted for more cozy lodgings in a small home next door, occupied by two spinsters. There he found no rich furnishings and antiques or hardwood floors; rather, clean-scrubbed pine boards. The ladies were “ghastly poor but clean,” he noted, “and how they could cook!” Since it was Palm Sunday, Murray Dewart conducted a service on the grounds of the château that same afternoon. Music was provided by the regimental band, and the service was well-attended by members of the Headquarters Company, along with Batteries A and B. Dewart praised the men for their “magnificent record” in the Chemin des Dames, on which he said they could look back with “justified pride.” He then noted how apropos that it was Palm Sunday, the day Jesus returned to Jerusalem and ultimately to his death, which he faced with resignation for the sake of all men. Jesus “always pours out his life for others,” he told them, and like Him, “men of this regiment now are offering to do that very thing.” He then built upon that theme: “God is alive in [you]. . . We all have capacities to do rotten things, but when you realize how near you are to doing the very supreme thing that Jesus did . . . you won’t be so willing to slide along the easy way. . . .”3 For the next several days, the artillerymen continued to march and eventually arrived at the small village of Rimaucourt on March 29 (Good Friday), with the expectation that they...

Share