On this day in military history…
In the final months of the First World War, the United States endured one of its most painful early losses during the opening phase of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. As American forces moved into position amid the thick forests and ravaged hills of northeastern France, they encountered fierce German resistance that exposed their inexperience and cost them dearly.
The Meuse-Argonne Offensive, launched officially on September 26, 1918, was the largest operation undertaken by the American Expeditionary Forces during the war. However, the days leading up to that grand assault were filled with smaller, often overlooked engagements. Among them, a particularly costly encounter occurred just days before the main offensive, when American divisions began advancing and probing enemy lines in preparation for the broader assault.
In total, the United States committed approximately 1.2 million troops to the entire Meuse-Argonne campaign, including soldiers from newly formed divisions such as the 35th, 77th, 79th, and 91st. During the early clashes, including those on September 23, tens of thousands were already in position along the front, moving into the dense and unforgiving terrain. The German forces defending the area numbered around 450,000 men, including well-trained divisions who had spent years fortifying the region and preparing for such an attack. Throughout the entire offensive, German casualties—killed, wounded, or captured—totaled an estimated 120,000, though in the initial engagements the losses were much smaller compared to the heavy price paid by the inexperienced American troops.
The area was a natural fortress. Deep forests, ravines, and hills had been transformed into a labyrinth of trenches, concrete bunkers, machine gun nests, and artillery positions. German troops, familiar with the terrain and expertly dug in, met the American advance with precision fire and disciplined resistance.
American forces came equipped with a mix of new and borrowed weaponry. Their standard infantry rifle was the M1903 Springfield, known for its accuracy. Many units also carried the M1917 Enfield rifle, produced in large numbers for the war effort. For automatic fire support, the U.S. relied heavily on the French-designed Chauchat light machine gun, though it was notoriously unreliable. The heavier and more effective Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR) had begun to appear on the battlefield but was not yet widely issued. In terms of artillery, the Americans used both French-made 75mm field guns and heavier calibers such as the 155mm howitzer. Support was also provided by tanks—primarily French Renault FT light tanks—and aircraft conducting reconnaissance and limited bombing runs.
One of the bloodiest early skirmishes took place near the ruined heights of Vauquois, where American troops attempted to seize key ground and were caught in overlapping fields of German machine gun fire. In the dense and broken terrain of the Argonne Forest, visibility was poor, unit cohesion faltered, and command structures struggled to keep control. Communications between regiments failed, and artillery support often missed its targets, falling short or overshooting entirely. Entire companies were pinned down or cut off. Some never returned.
Over a thousand American casualties were recorded during these early movements into enemy territory. Many of these losses were not only due to enemy fire but also to the confusion and chaos of coordinating such a vast and untested force in unfamiliar terrain. The American army had not yet developed the fluid battlefield communication or combined-arms tactics that more experienced European forces had learned through years of bitter trench warfare.
Yet these painful experiences became crucial learning moments. Despite the initial bloodshed, American commanders quickly adapted their plans. Artillery coordination improved, field communications were restructured, and infantry units became better integrated with support elements. The soldiers themselves, many of whom were new to combat, were hardened by the experience and better prepared for the brutal fighting still to come.
The Meuse-Argonne Offensive would last forty-seven days and result in over 26,000 American deaths and nearly 100,000 wounded, making it the deadliest battle in U.S. military history. But in those first engagements, before the full weight of the offensive was brought to bear, the reality of modern war left a deep mark. It was a sobering moment for a young army and a young nation, a moment when the cost of inexperience was paid in blood.
Today, the forest paths and quiet graveyards of the Meuse-Argonne region still carry the weight of that history. The thousands of white crosses stand not just for the climactic days of the offensive, but also for those early, chaotic hours when American troops stepped into the fire for the first time, and the price of victory began to be counted.
