The Meuse-Argonne Offensive, launched on 26 September 1918, was the largest American-led operation of World War I and a decisive phase of the Allied push that forced Germany toward armistice. Fought in the difficult terrain between the Meuse River and the Argonne Forest, the offensive involved more than a million American troops working alongside French forces to break through heavily fortified German lines and sever critical supply routes. Despite slow progress and heavy casualties, sustained pressure eventually collapsed German defenses, contributing directly to the end of the war on 11 November 1918. - AsNotedIn
| Y/M/D | Description | Place |
|---|---|---|
| 1918/09/26 | The Meuse-Argonne Offensive commences at 0230 when 2,711 Allied artillery guns located between the Argonne Forest and the Meuse River begin three hours of preparatory bombardment. | Montfaucon-d'Argonne, Grand Est |
| 1918/09/26 | For several hours, the advance of the French 170th and 174th IRs is halted by German infantry. Both regiments suffer heavy losses before finally taking the position. The remains of the German bunker stand directly behind the monument today. | Calvary of Bois de Vignon, Sommepy-Tahure |
| 1918/09/26 | While picking through the wooded slopes, the US Army, 79th Div, Green Unit finds they have to "charge a gun from the front and both flanks, and take it regardless of our losses, which, per gun captured, averaged 10 to 20 men." Maj Charles A DuPuy | Montfaucon American Monument, Montfaucon-d'Argonne |
| 1918/09/26 | Lt Col Charlet and the 170th Infantry Regiment make a final stand at the Calvaire du Bois de Vignon, refusing to retreat under overwhelming artillery fire. The shrine is destroyed by direct hits, and Charlet dies with nearly all his men. | Calvary of Bois de Vignon, Sommepy-Tahure |
| 1918/09/26 | Lt Preston M Geren sustains a direct hit from a German gunner operating an Austrian 88mm gun during rear-guard action on the opening day of the Meuse-Argonne offensive. He will be awarded the Purple Heart and the Croix de Guerre. | Montfaucon American Monument, Montfaucon-d'Argonne |
| 1918/10/00 | The 307th Engineer Battalion, with Master Engineer Wells among its ranks, presses forward in the hard fighting along the Argonne front, holding their ground under fire as the Division advances through the shattered forest. | |
| 1918/10/07 | Tee Wallace rejoins his command for the Meuse-Argonne offensive. He is appointed Battalion Scout Officer. | |
| 1918/10/14 | As the US Army's Co I, 60th In, 5th Div, fiercely attacks the Cunel Heights, trying to break through the German "Kriemhilde Stellung", Sargent Arick Lore is killed by sniper bullets. The 5th Inf Div Stele of Cunel is located on D15, 1km south of Cunel. | Cunel, Meuse, Grand Est |
| 1918/10/23 | Captain Paul Kittredge, United States Army, 26th Division, 101st Infantry Regiment, is killed by German artillery fire. He is buried in Plot A, Row 44, Grave 14, Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery. | Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery and Memorial, Romagne-sous-Montfaucon |
| 1918/11/01 | Company M, 353rd Infantry Regiment's advance into the Bois-de-Bantheville is abruptly halted by devastating German machine-gun fire, which kills Captain George H Wood and several other soldiers. | Romagne-sous-Montfaucon, Grand Est |
| 1918/11/01 | Near the Bantheville Woods, the 89th Division faces intense, concentrated enemy gas, artillery, machine gun and rifle fire as they push through heavily fortified German lines. Private Roeser sustains severe wounds just 10 days before the Armistice. | Romagne-sous-Montfaucon, Grand Est |
| 1918/11/01 | Lt Furlong, Co M, crosses 100s yards of open ground under heavy fire to behind the enemy's guns, attacks with his rifle, putting 4 machine-gun nests out of action, killing several gunners, and drives 20 German prisoners back into the American lines. | Romagne-sous-Montfaucon, Grand Est |
| 1918/11/11 | The Meuse-Argonne offensive ends with the signing of the armistice between the German Imperial Army and the Allies, ending the great War, the War to End All Wars. | Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery and Memorial, Romagne-sous-Montfaucon |
| 1927/00/00 | Oak Trees killed at the Battle of the Argonne Forest, with bullet scars still visible, are seasoned in place, sold by the French and installed as paneling on the upper floors of the Drexel and Company Building. | Drexel and Company Building, Philadelphia, PA |
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