Battles of the First World War Podcast

The 91st "Wild West" Division battles it out with the Germans through the Meuse Valley. With every village taken, German resistance stiffens sharply.    The BFWWP is on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast .    Any questions, comments or concerns please contact me through the website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com. Follow us on Twitter at @WW1podcast, the Battles of the...

Following four days of heavy combat and poor leadership in the Meuse-Argonne, the 35th Santa Fe Division breaks down in battle.    The BFWWP is on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast .    Any questions, comments or concerns please contact me through the website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com. Follow us on Twitter at @WW1podcast, the Battles of the First World War Podca...

The 28th "Keystone" Division (Pennsylvania) both slugs it out with the Germans in the Argonne Forest over Le Chène Tondu ridge, and pushes its way up the River Aire Valley through Montblainville and Apremont. The Germans fight hard for both Le Chène Tondu and Apremont, and the Pennsylvania Doughboys struggle to hold their hard-won gains.   The BFWWP is now on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Battl...

The 77th Division continues its grind through the Argonne Forest in the last days of September 1918. Under orders to advance without regard to flanks, US Army MAJ Charles Whittlesey and his 1st Battalion, 308th Infantry Regiment find themselves cut off and surrounded on a hill named l'Homme Mort.    The BFWWP is now on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast .    Any ques...

As the American 1st Army launched its attack on the Meuse-Argonne on the 26th of September, the 368th Infantry Regiment of the segregated 92nd Buffalo Division launched an attack on the left flank, west of the Argonne Forest. Despite several catastrophic stumbles, the regiment eventually succeeded in capturing the ruined village of Binarville. Their reputation, they quickly found out, was also in...

The AEF 3rd Corps attacks with three divisions on the right of the attack front. The 4th "Ivy" Division attacks the German lines and supports the attack on Montfaucon. The 80th "Blue Ridge" Division attacks through Forges Creek and pushes up to Brieulles-sur-Meuse. The 33rd "Prairie" Division also pushes through Forges Creek, clears Bois de Forges, and then aims for Dannevoux village. Across the R...

The AEF 5th Corps launches its three divisions in the center of the Meuse-Argonne attack front. The 91st "Wild West" Division thrusts up towards the ridge on which sat Épinonville. The 37th "Buckeye" Division supported the 79th "Cross of Lorraine" Division's attack on the German bastion on Montfaucon.   Great War Tour to the American Battlefields https://valortours.com/ Contact Mike Grams: valorto...

In this stand-alone episode we have an interview with Christopher Huang, who is the author of the recently-released detective novel "A Gentleman's Murder." This is a slight departure from the BFWWP's usual lineup, but I thought it would be good to support a young author writing a story in which the Great War has a strong presence.   "A Gentleman's Murder" was a fun read. The main character of the...

From the Argonne Forest to the Butte du Vauquois, the AEF 1st Corps goes on the attack. The 77th "Metropolitan" Division plunges into the Argonne. The 28th "Keystone" and 35th "Santa Fe" Divisions work to clear the River Aire Valley, seize the Butte du Vauquois, and push north to help cut off the Argonne.   The BFWWP is now on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast .   A...

At 0230 on the 26th of September, 1918, 2,775 French and American guns opened up on the German lines from the Argonne Forest to the River Meuse. Three hours later, nine divisions of American Doughboys were up out of their muddy trenches and into the mist. The largest battle in American military history was underway.   The AEF 1st Army however, faced a formidable enemy who had spent years turning t...

A short reflection on Armistice Day, 2018.   The BFWWP is on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast .   Any questions, comments or concerns please contact me through the website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com or the Battles of the First World War Podcast page on FaceBook. Follow us on Twitter at @WW1podcast, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email...

On the 12th of September 1918, well over a half million American Doughboys of the AEF First Army went on the attack with their French allies. Less than forty-eight hours later the St. Mihiel Salient--long a painful thorn in the French Army's side--had been completely destroyed.   St. Mihiel was the first independent offensive carried out by the American Expeditionary Force of World War One, and it...

On the centenary of the story of the Lost Battalion, we have a very special guest who will talk to us about this epic tale of American heroism, leadership, grit, and a stubborn will to resist in the First World War.   Robert J. Laplander is the author of "Finding the Lost Battalion: Beyond the Rumors, Myths and Legends of America's Famous WW1 Epic." An enthusiast of the Great War for decades, Mr....

In the summer of 1918 the Germans were spent, and the Allies began rolling them back. Supreme Allied Commander Marshal Ferdinand Foch had a plan to smash the enemy back and potentially end the war that year.   GEN John J "Blackjack" Pershing and his American Expeditionary Force were to play a major role in Foch's plan, but to Pershing only as an independent force under his command. The story of th...

It's time to start the new battle we're going to cover, which will be the American-led Meuse-Argonne Offensive of 1918. We're going to begin with an interview with Mr. Randy Gaulke, a fellow WW1 enthusiast, researcher, website master, and battlefield tour guide.   Mr. Gaulke runs the website www.meuse-argonne.com , which contains a wealth of information regarding the 47-day battle that defined Ame...

During my recent trip to France, my crew and I had the most wonderful experience when we visited Mr. Andy Robertshaw and Mr. Colin Winn and their archeological dig team out at the Hawthorn Crater on the Somme. How we met the people of the Hawthorn Crater Association will be told in the interview that follows--it was just a stunningly amazing day amongst so many amazing days out there on the Somme...

On June 6, 1918, men of the 5th and 6th United States Marine Regiments assaulted the German positions in Belleau Wood. So began a three-week battle for a one-mile square patch of wood that would enter US Marine Corps and American WW1 legend.   The BFWWP is now on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast .   Any questions, comments or concerns please contact me through the...

The third major German attack on the Western Front in late May 1918 led to the release of the American 2nd Infantry Division to Allied Command to stem the enemy tide. The 5th and 6th Marine Regiments, part of that US Army division, set up positions just south of a patch of forest known as Belleau Wood.   This episode is dedicated to the men and women of the United States Marine Corps, and to the m...

The Battle of Verdun came to an end on December 18, 1916.But the Verdun salient remained a violent sector of the Western Front until the very last days of World War One.   In this final episode of the Battle of Verdun the after-effects of the 1916 onslaught in the Meuse are covered, from military losses to political casualties to the lingering effects on the battle on the battlefield itself.   The...

The long-awaited French counterattack at Verdun comes. Generals Petain, Nivelle and Mangin deliver a powerful strike on the Right Bank, against which the degraded German 5th Army is unable to hold.   The BFWWP is now on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast .   Any questions, comments or concerns please contact me through the website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com or the...

The Mill on the Meuse grinds on at Verdun through the summer of 1916. The Germans go on the defensive and GEN Mangin hammers away at them.   The Battle of Verdun begins to make political casualties as well. As summer turns to fall the French begin to prepare for their long-awaited counter-offensive.   The BFWWP is now on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast .   Any que...

July 1916 begins and the Battle of the Somme erupts to relieve pressure at Verdun. The Germans begin to divert all available resources for the new battle.   The German 5th Army at Verdun makes one more attempt to break through on the Right Bank of the River Meuse. The line Fleury-Fort Souville-Fort Tavannes is attacked to clear the last defensible ridge line before Verdun.   The BFWWP is now on Pa...

The story of the Trench of Bayonets.   The BFWWP is now on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast .   Any questions, comments or concerns please contact me through the website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com or the Battles of the First World War Podcast page on FaceBook. We're also on Twitter! Follow us at @WW1podcast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodc...

With terrible losses and plummeting morale, the French 2nd Army strains to hold the Right Bank after the fall of Fort Vaux. The German 5th Army continues its attacks, focusing on the Ouvrage de Thaiumont - Fleury - Fort Souville ridge line just three miles northeast of Verdun.   In the blazing heat of June, the French and Germans fight desperately in the artillery-plowed lunar landscape. The Frenc...

With a new attack on the Right Bank at Verdun, the Germans surround and lay siege to Fort Vaux. But this fort, commanded by the tenacious Major Raynal, will not be surrendered as easily as Fort Douaumont. Raynal and the other poilus trapped inside the fort will put up an epic defense that will last five days.   The BFWWP is now on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast ....