The United States entered the war in the Spring of 1917, but was not engaged in any fighting until the Spring of 1918. The first battle American troops were called to participate in was the Battle of Belleau Wood. The United States Marine Corps was assigned the atrocious task of clearing the deep wooded forest. After five unsuccessful attempts, the Marines were finally able to drive the Germans out of the forest on the sixth attempt. The Marines faced the highest number of casualties, about 10,000, in the taking of the woods. Because of the density of the forest it was very easy for the Germans to hide in the trees and brushes, but once they fired their gun their position was given away and the Americans could attack. Many of them had to resort back to hand-to-hand combat with the Germans using knives and bayonets. This win was a huge morale boost for the Allies because it showed that the American troops were a major component to the their success.
The Battle of Meuse-Argonne began in the fall of 1918 and was the final push for an Allied victory and an end to the war. The battle lasted 47 days and there were an estimated 47,000 American casualties. The troops had to trek through a dense forest, a valley and across a river to win the battle. The United States was again crucial to this Allied victory because of the enormous amount of men they brought in. They were poorly trained, which is why there were so many casualties, but it was enough to overcome the Germans’ force. The Allied forces took control of the last German railroad hub, which gave them complete control over Germany’s railroads and ended the war.
By Isabelle Haake
United States Today 