Efforts to relieve the Lost Battalion and break the German hold on the Argonne Forest led to an innovative attack devised by AEF 1st Corps commander LTG Hunter Liggett.    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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Rate, review, and subscribe to the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts.

Battles of the First World War Podcast

Meuse Argonne - Breaking the Argonne

With mounting hunger, wounds, and death, MAJ Whittlesey and his command continue to hold out in the Charlevaux Ravine. As Whittlesey has said, there will be no surrender.    The only book you need to read on the Lost Battalion:    https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06X6N13V8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_BYXX2G0SGFR7DK0MB2X7   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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Rate, review, and subscribe to the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts.  

Meuse Argonne - The Lost Battalion, Pt 4: Resistance & Relief (featuring Robert J. Laplander)

Recently I was invited to a Zoom discussion with some other WW1 enthusiasts to talk about what we can do to keep the memory of WW1 alive in these post-centenary times. At that talk was Mike O’Neal, a longtime WW1 aviation enthusiast, and we quickly connected to get Mike on the podcast talking about his lifelong passion.    Folks, if ever there is an example of being bold and striking out for what you want to do, here it is. In his teens, Mike wrote letters to various journals and WW1 veterans, and the results have been amazing friendships and working on some fascinating projects. He was listed as a contributor to journal articles in his teens, a WW1 aviator gave Mike his wings for good luck, he acquired his own biplane, and much more.   Join us for a great discussion on the beginning and development of Mike’s passion for WW1-era aviation.    Relevant links mentioned in this episode:   “Over the Front” journal - https://www.overthefront.com/   American Society of Aviation Artists - http://asaa-avart.com/   Golden Age Air Museum in Bethel, PA - https://www.goldenageair.org/   The Aerodrome: Aces and Aircraft of WW1 - http://www.theaerodrome.com/index.php   Advisory: Nothing bad in the episode, but you may hear my family in the background talking, as well as one of the cats scratching and meowing at the door. Apologies, but our house is a lively one. There is always something going on. :)   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 me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes.   

A Discussion on WW1 Aviation with Mike O’Neal

The established narrative of the Third Battle of Ypres identifies the end of the muddy and blood-soaked struggle in Flanders with the capture of the Passchendaele village ruins in November 1917. However, there were further operations in the Salient just weeks later, and one of them occurred on the night of 2nd December, 1917.    Dr. Michael LoCicero joins us for an in-depth discussion of the creation of his book, the evolution of the BEF, Dominion, and German forces in the Western Front, and the night operation in the Passchendaele Salient on December 2nd, 1917. We go deep on this one, and if you’re really into World War I like we are, you will love this talk.   Order “A Moonlight Massacre” through your local bookstore and wherever books are sold:   https://www.helion.co.uk/military-history-books/a-moonlight-massacre-the-night-operation-on-the-passchendaele-ridge-2-december-1917-the-forgotten-last-act-of-the-third-battle-of-ypres.php?sid=63b397b8d218771ed035537456fa2b1e   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 me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes. 

“A Moonlight Massacre:” an Interview with Dr. Michael LoCicero

Surrounded, with no food or medical supplies and dwindling ammunition, the American forces trapped in the Charlevaux Ravine face a new and unforeseen enemy: friendly fire.    The only book you need to read on the Lost Battalion:    https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06X6N13V8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_BYXX2G0SGFR7DK0MB2X7   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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Rate, review, and subscribe to the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts.

Meuse Argonne - The Lost Battalion, Pt 3: Friendly Fire (featuring Robert J. Laplander)

Having established a perimeter on a steep hillside in the Charlevaux Ravine, a force of some 700 men under US MAJ Charles Whittlesey digs in to await reinforcements and further orders.    Soon realizing they are surrounded, Whittlesey puts out an order: No falling back. The position is to be held at all costs. The Germans put that order to the test on October 3rd, 1918.    The only book you need to read on the Lost Battalion:    https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B06X6N13V8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_BYXX2G0SGFR7DK0MB2X7   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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Rate, review, and subscribe to the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. 

Meuse Argonne - The Lost Battalion, Pt 2: The First Day (featuring Robert J. Laplander)

On October 1st, 1918, fresh from being relieved from encirclement in the Small Pocket on l’Homme Mort, the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 308th Infantry Regiment are ordered to attack into the Argonne yet again.    Led by MAJ Charles Whittlesey, the two battalions plunge into the Ravin d’Argonne, and on October 2nd, the Americans break through the German lines and into Charlevaux Ravine. The story of the Lost Battalion has begun.   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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes. 

Meuse Argonne - The Lost Battalion, Pt 1: Into the Charlevaux (featuring Robert J. Laplander)

Listener discretion advised: This episode contains some language, as well as racial terms and themes that are considered offensive. These terms and themes are being used here in the context of the First World War era.    Ok, so the episode title is a lackluster attempt at clickbait. But if I have gotten you to click on to this episode, do please stay. What follows is an interesting discussion on a now little-known incident that occurred In Henryetta, Oklahoma during June of 1918. Labeled the  “Creek Draft Rebellion” by sensationalist journalists, a dispute between Creek Nation Native Americans and a local merchant was soon morphed into an anti-government and anti-conscription uprising.    Historian and Oklahoma native James Gregory joins me in a discussion of the context of the events surrounding the so-called rebellion, the event itself, the aftermath, and whether the rebellion really happened at all.    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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes. Spread the word! Tell your friends to subscribe to the podcast. 

A WW1 Battle on American Soil? A Discussion on the “Creek Draft Rebellion” of 1918

Come join the conversation on the new Centre for Experimental Military Archaeology (CEMA) being developed by Mr. Andy Robertshaw and Mr. Ross Barnwell. This is a new project that promises to bring history not only alive, but interconnected with today’s global world.    Mr. Robertshaw is a former teacher turned historian and historical consultant for such films as Peter Jackson’s They Shall Not Grow Old and Sam Mendes’ recent hit 1917. And he also played a role in Steven Spielberg’s film Warhorse, which I did not know about until now!   Ross Barnwell is the creative force behind 8000ft Media, which produced the short film Beaumont-Hamel, named after the infamous village on the 1916 Somme battlefield. The film focused on wartime cinematographer Geoffrey Malins’ experiences as he took 8,000ft of frontline footage on the Somme, the most famous of which is the explosion of the Hawthorn Ridge mine on the morning of the 1st of July, 1916.    To learn more about CEMA, check out the following link:   https://www.cema.education/   Follow Andy, Ross, and their team breaking ground through their Instagram account:  https://www.instagram.com/cemahistory/ 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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes.   

The Centre for Experimental Military Archaeology (CEMA): The New Project by Andy Robertshaw and Ross Barnwell

A short review of Richard Merry’s new book, “The Great War in the Argonne Forest: French and American Battles, 1914–1918.”   Book link here:   https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/The-Great-War-in-the-Argonne-Forest-Hardback/p/18595   Order it from your local bookstore so that you support your local businesses.  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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes.

A Review of Richard Merry’s Book “The Great War in the Argonne Forest: French and American Battles, 1914–1918”

The raw and untested AEF 36th Division relieves the bled-out AEF 2nd Division on Blanc Mont ridge. These Texas-Oklahoma Doughboys will continue to push past the bloody ridge to keep the pressure on the slowly-retreating German Army.    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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes. 

Champagne - Blanc Mont, Pt 4 (with thanks to Steven Girard)

Having seized part of Blanc Mont and ground beyond, the Marines and Doughboys of the 2nd Division AEF sought to continue to push back the ruptured German lines. They faced days of unimaginable bloodletting as the Germans fought doggedly for every meter of ground.   Be sure to check out “Fix Bayonets! First World War Podcast,” where I have teamed up with Nicole Chicarelli of The War Project on Instagram and Cullen Burke of the Cauldron Podcast (A History of the World Battle by Battle) to tell the story of WW1 from three views: strategic, tactical, and most importantly...human.   Fix Bayonets! First World War Podcast: https://feeds.simplecast.com/7FISmQ37   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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes. 

Champagne - Blanc Mont, Pt 3 (featuring Steven Girard)

On October 3rd, 1918, the Doughboys and Marines of the 2nd Division, AEF, hurled themselves against a hitherto impregnable German fortress: Blanc Mont ridge, the key to German defenses in Champagne.    Podcast promo! If you’re interested in a daily podcast that gives you a short episode on anything from the history of the US penny to the Tunguska Event of 1908, then you need to head over to Gary Arndt’s “Everything Everywhere” podcast.    Everything Everywhere podcast: https://everythingeverywherepodcast.libsyn.com/rss   Also, very excited to announce that I have teamed up with Nicole Chicarelli of The War Project on Instagram and Cullen Burke of the Cauldron Podcast (A History of the World Battle by Battle) to launch a new podcast project called “Fix Bayonets! First World War Podcast.”   The story of WW1, from three view: strategic, tactical, and most importantly...human.   Fix Bayonets! First World War Podcast: https://feeds.simplecast.com/7FISmQ37   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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes. 

Champagne - Blanc Mont, Pt 2 (featuring Steven Girard)

In September 1918, the French 4th Army requested American assistance with clearing the Champagne battlefield of German forces. The American Expeditionary Force would provide two divisions, the veteran 2nd and the green 36th Divisions.   For years, the German Army had held Blanc Mont ridge, a lynchpin to holding the Champagne sector of the Western Front.  But the French Army was now too exhausted to carry the massif. MG John A. Lejeune, Marine commander of the American Army’s 2nd Division, planned an innovative attack that would see his division seize the ridge, hold it, and continue to advance past it.    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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes.

Champagne - Blanc Mont, Pt 1 (featuring Steven Girard)

In this episode we have a great and in-depth talk with Steven Girard, a veteran, an archivist/historian of the 4th (Marine) Brigade 2nd Division AEF, and a WW1 battlefield tour guide.    Steve gives us his own background and how he came to study the 4th Brigade Marines and the US Army’s 2nd Division, and then he gives us a comprehensive look into the battle of Blanc Mont ridge -- a detailed look at this forgotten but important battle of the First World War. (Steve gives us a view from the division to individual level going straight from his memory! No notes!)   Hope you enjoy this great conversation!   To read more on the battle of Blanc Mont, see the following links: “A Hideous Price: The 4th Brigade at Blanc Mont, 2-10 October 1918  LtCol Peter F. Owen and LtCol John Swift” - https://www.usmcu.edu/Portals/218/A%20Hideous%20Price_WEB.pdf?ver=2019-09-11-132018-350   “Blanc Mont (Meuse-Argonne-Champagne) - Monograph No. 9,” US Govt Publication -  http://cgsc.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p4013coll7/id/894   For more information on Steve's tours: https://www.miltours.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=72   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 Podcast page on FaceBook, and on Instagram at @WW1battlecast. Not into social media? Email me directly at verdunpodcast@gmail.com. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes. 

WW1 History, Battlefield Tours, and Blanc Mont Ridge: A Conversation with Steven Girard

The Battles of the First World War Podcast is a new podcast that looks to go in-depth into the battles of the Great War of 1914-1918. The goal is to really go into the details of how and why these battles unfolded and happened as they did. In telling the narrative of these clashes we can revisit some of the stories of the men and women who lived, fought, and died during the first titanic struggle of the 20th Century, for these people have stories that deserve to be told.

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Battles of the First World War Podcast

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