April 2005 |
Access Archives |
TRENCH REPORT: Albert "Smiler" Marshall, the only surviving cavalry soldier from the First World War [20th Hussars], celebrated his 108th birthday March 15th (photo & article). . .Liberty Memorial fans. There are special evening--Tower After Hours--programs planned for the First Friday of every month. Make your visit to Kansas City a spectacular one. . .I've received several inquiries as to why I'm focusing on October 8, 1918 for my presentation at our annual seminar. You might find interesting that on that day three of the great legends of American military history came together: the Lost Battalion was finally evacuated from the Argonne Forest on the other side of the hill where Sgt. York did his mighty deed, while about 10 miles to the west, some Choctaw members of the Oklahoma National Guard became the first Indian Code Talkers. There's more, too. See ya' in LA.
 Russian Forces in France |
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| Special Feature President Woodrow Wilson |
- About Woodrow Wilson
- President's War Message, April 2, 1917
- Wilson as Commander in Chief
- Wilson's Opening Comments at Paris Peace Conference
- The Hidden Agony of Woodrow Wilson
- Edith Wilson: Mrs. President?
- Wilson Photo Gallery
Pres. & Mrs. Wilson
Three of the handful of German surviving veterans have died recently. Herman Dörnemann passed away on March 2, 2005 (link) at the age of 111. Arno Wagner died December 22, 2004 at the age of 110. Rudolf Wiederanders died on December 16 2004 at age 106.
Ex-Empress Eugénie,
Widow of Napoleon III
click on poster for information
Want to brush up on America's participation in the Great War? We have several suggestions for you: 1. Click on the seminar link above and check out our speakers list, and then look over their publications at Amazon.com. Some of them are absolutely prolific. 2. For AEF Military Operations, see our list at the Doughboy Center. (link) 3. Or check out some of these recommendations from the Chief Editor of Len's Bookshelf, Len Shurtleff himself:
--"The War to End all Wars: The American Military Experience in World War I," Edward M. Coffman, Wisconsin, 1986: A classic; solid scholarship and superbly crafted prose.
--"The Last Days of Innocence: America at War, 1917-1918," Meiron and Susie Harries, Random House, 1997: A recent social history.
--"The Doughboys: America and World War One," Gary Mead, Penguin, 2001: A British historian emphasizes the political, economic and financial impact of America on the conflict.
--"Doughboys, the Great War and the Remaking of America," Jennifer D. Keenne, Johns Hopking, 2001. A recent social history; how the war influenced American society and politics
--"The New World Power: American Foreign Policy, 1898-1917," Robert E. Hannigan, Pennslyvania, 2002: Diplomatic history of the pre-war period.
--"The First Great Triumph: How Five Americans Made their Country a World Power," Warren Zimmerman, Ferrar, Straus & Giroux, 2002. These latter two monographs offer diplomatic and political background essential to understanding American foreign policy in the 20th century.
--"Woodrow Wilson and World War I, 1917-1921," Robert Ferrell, Harper Row, 1985. Wilson took America into war largely to create a new world order based on the League of Nations.
--Also see John Milton Cooper Jr.'s essay on why America entered WWI in Richard F. Hamilton and Holger H. Herwig, "The Origins of World War I," Cambridge, 2003.
GREAT WAR 2005 EVENT CALENDAR | |
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April 4-16, 2005 (link) | |
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Furama Hotel, Los Angeles April 22-24, 2005 (link) | |
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War Between the Rivers: Historical Invasions of Mesopotamia Downtown San Jose, CA Contact: Jonathan Roth(email) | |
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Hyde Park, NY June 11, 2005 (link) | |
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Virginia Military Museum Newport News, Virginia September 23-25, 2005 (link) | |
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Email Response |
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Billy Mitchell put together 1485 aircraft -- pursuit, bombardment, observation -- for St. Mihiel. There American (there were many British and French areo squadrons as well as a few Italian ones) had air supremacy. During the Meuse-Argonne, however, Mitchell was not able to put that many aircraft into the skies. One must recall that the Meuse-Argonne was fought in dismal weather conditions which kept much of the Air Service on the ground. Mitchell did have a good air operations op-plan, and the Air Service moved from St. Mihiel to fields for the Meuse-Argonne with suprising quickness, but many planes were in bad need of maintenance and many air pilot and air observers were in dire need of some rest. St. Mihiel rates an A+, Meuse-Argonne a C.
Response from Air Service Historian and Mitchell Biographer, Professor James Cooke
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Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917 |
As you are probably aware, a lot is happening in the Salient in order to
keep the memory of the Great War alive. Without a doubt, one of the major
projects in the area was the opening of the Memorial Museum Passchendaele
1917. This museum, situated in the castle in the centre of Zonnebeke, is
telling in chronological order, the story of the Great War with the emphasis
on the Battle of Passchendaele. A big bonus for the museum is the
reconstruction of an authentic dug-out which people can visit. This dug -out
experience is the best possible way to bring across how life must have been
at the time. Everything which is being shown in the dugout is authentic
first WW and I can assure you that it has been build up with a great eye for
detail. The museum curator, Franky Bostyn, is an authority when it comes to
constructions of the Great War. He has got an University degree in history
but much more than that, it is his enthusiasm for the subject, which has
given this museum it's allure.
Franky is not only the driving force between the museum. He is also the
person who would like to build up the Passchendale Archives. This is to
become a large paper file and in a later stage also a database, with as much
information as possible on any soldier that died during Third Ypres. It is
essential to have a picture of the soldier next to the other information.
The reason why we are building up this archive is to make sure that as much
information as possible (and the includes a lot more than the official
information (such as ,: place of birth, service number.) will remain
preserved for future generations. People studying the Great War, would be
allowed to visit the archive ( initially it will be a paper archive but it
is the intention to put in on the net later on, although in a restricted
way) in order to be able to understand the spirit of the time. Personal
letters, written by soldiers who were on the front, are the best testimony
for what happened. Such a wealth of information is written down, and often a
lot can be read between the lines too. That is why we hope to be able to
list as much personal information on each soldier that died between July
31st, 1917 and November 10th, 1917.
Museum 1917
PS: There is a special weekend organized in the museum on April 22nd, 23rd
and 24th. On that weekend too, there will be major commemoration services
organised to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the first gas attack.
In the museum a special exhibition will be opened, focusing on the
involvement of the Irish in the Great War.
About the Museum: The museum is situated in the centre of the village in the chateau of Zonnebeke approximately 7 km from Ieper. Open: Monday - Friday from 10.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m.; Saturdays, Sundays and official holidays from 2.00 p.m. to 6.00 p.m. Closed: December and January. Admission: Individuals: 5,00 Euros per person & Groups: 3,00 Euros per person.
Austro-Hungarian Troops on the Eastern Front
On Thursday night, early arrivals will have the opportunity to watch "The Unbeliever" (1918). This was the last feature film produced by the Edison Company and was directed by Alan Crosland, director of" Don Juan", "The Beloved Rogue", "The Jazz Singer". I first read about "The Unbeliever" in Lawrence Suid's Guts & Glory: The Making of the American Military Image in Film. It has recently been released on DVD by Kino on Video. It tells the story of Phil, "a rich young sophisticate" who joins the Marines and sees combat in Europe. It was produced with the full cooperation of the Marines using the facilities in Quantico, Virginia. What "Sands of Iwo Jima" was to the post WWII Marines, so was "The Unbeliever" to the post WWI generation of Marines.  Busby Berkeley's Doughboy Tribute from Goldiggers of 1933Saturday night's feature is "The Last Flight"(1931) written by John Monk Saunders, screenwriter of "Wings", "The Dawn Patrol", "Ace of Aces". It's a look at the lives of ex-WWI pilots living in Paris as part of the "lost generation." It was the first English-language film for German director William Dieterle. "The Last Flight" is a little-known but still important title that has never been released on video or DVD. Andrew Melomet, Proprietor of Andy's Nickelodeon will answer your Great War film or video inquiry. Just click HERE. |
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Post Your World War I Stumper Here |
Three requests for help this month:
1. Family descendants of the 310 women (all seven Units) in the U.S. Army Signal Corps, aka "Hello Girls," who have letters and/or photos, or accurately recorded stories from these women are invited to send them to Michelle Christides, former Asst. Prof. of Western Civilization at California State Sonoma and Golden Gate Universities. They will be included in a definitive history of your ancestresses' contribution to the Great War. Please visit www.jung-soul.com/Hello-Girls.html
for email and details.
2. Can you tell me anything about this photo post card [cropped and on the right]? Type of soldiers or police? Type of weapons. What men are wearing on their belts? Thank you. David and Pat Kleinberg. Email: bacl@bacl.com
3. Dave Homsher writes: In reading an account of an AEF base hospital, the slang terms "gunboat" and "duck" were used by patients, e.g., "I need a duck," or "I want a gunboat." No explanation was given for what these items were, but is possible that a "duck" was a hand-held container for urinating in while bedridden, and that a "gunboat" was a common bed-pan? Email Dave at: davidhomsher@msn.com
| The following are thanked for their contributions to this issue of the Trip Wire: Sebastian, Christina Holstein, Tony Langley, Andy Melomet, Len Shurtleff, Robert Farrell, James Cooke and Charlotte Descamps. Forgive me those whom I may have forgotten. Until next month, your editor, Mike Hanlon. |
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