137: The First Battle of the First American Army: St. Mihiel

“Marshal Foch, you have no authority as Allied Commander-in-Chief to call upon me to yield up my command of the American Army and have it scattered among the Allied Forces where it will not be an American army at all.”

This is the story of the first battle of the First American Army.

Fresh off of an Allied victory at Amiens, Supreme Commander Ferdinand Foch has new ideas for a combined Allied strategy along the Meuse and in the Argonne forest. But his plan comes at a cost to the Americans, ready to launch their first offensive as a fully organized army against the Germans at the St. Mihiel Salient.

General Black Jack Pershing won't be deterred. But can he beat the Germans at this salient, then move an entire army with all of its supplies 60 miles to participate in this new offensive in time? We’ll find out.

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