Mike – Page 11 – Battles of the First World War Podcast

Episode SA14 – An Interview with the National WW1 Museum’s Ms. Lora Vogt

In this episode we have a very special guest: Ms. Lora Vogt, is the Curator of Education at the National World War I Museum and Memorial. Founded in 1926, the Museum holds the most comprehensive collection of Great War artifacts in the world and has been ranked one of the top 25 museums in the country. Under Ms. Vogt’s guidance, the Museum has consistently broken records for public program attendance, educational participations and developed internationally recognized curriculum and online exhibitions.

Ms. Vogt will give the BFWWP community a virtual tour of the National World War I Museum and Memorial and some of its exhibits. If you have never visited the National World War I Museum and Memorial and are on the fence about it for any reason, I am quite sure this episode will end any such doubts.

National WW1 Museum and Memorial Links:

https://www.theworldwar.org/

The Panthéon de la Guerre

https://www.theworldwar.org/explore/exhibitions/past-exhibitions/panth%C3%A9on-de-la-guerre

Museum Shop:

https://shop.theworldwar.org/

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.

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The Montfaucon Observatory’s Periscope

From Episode 60: Taking Montfaucon:

“The ruins of Montfaucon were secured, and in a ruined house on the western side of the hill a massive periscope was located. The periscope was mounted on a carriage, and within the confines of concrete walls constructed inside the house the periscope could be extended some 85 feet. In the attic of the building was a map room of the surrounding area, all done to scale so the scope could be aimed at any point on the map. The observers could be in the basement of the building, or on other floors, and could use a complex system of mirrors to observe the terrain for kilometers around. This was the Crown Prince’s observatory, and the legend that Crown Prince Willy had directed the onslaught at Verdun from here was just that–a legend. The Verdun front was too far away for that. It was used instead to watch the south and southwest, from which the Germans expected a French attack throughout the war.”

“The whole scope mechanism was dismantled by the men of the 3rd Division, who would relieve the men of the 79th on the 30th of September (more next episode). The scope eventually made its way to West Point, where in the interwar period it was a popular backdrop for photos. After the Second World War, the scope apparatus slowly moved into the shadows until it disappeared altogether. It resurfaced in Fort Sill, the home of the US Army’s artillery branch, and it is displayed there today.”

Many thanks to listener Clark for sharing these photos with us!

Episode 60: Meuse Argonne – Taking Montfaucon

Montfaucon, in the center of the American 1st Army’s attack front, is taken down by Doughboys of the 37th, 79th, and 4th Divisions.

The BFWWP is on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast.

Lost Battalion Tours Contact Information – Join Us on the Battlefield!

Mike’s contact info: verdunpodcast@gmail.com

Robert’s contact info: 308infantry@gmail.com

Robert’s website: http://www.findingthelostbattalion.com/

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Lost Battalion Tours – Testimonial

Hey Folks, Mr. Jeremy Bowles very graciously came on the podcast to share his tour experiences with Robert J Laplander with us. Jeremy is a WW1 historian and reenactor, and the journey he had in the Meuse-Argonne with Rob was so moving it simply needs to stand alone as its own mini-episode.

Listen to Jeremy’s story about being in the Meuse, and know that the goal of Lost Battalion Tours is to provide you with the same experience in August of 2020. So come join us!

Lost Battalion Tours

Mike’s contact info: verdunpodcast@gmail.com

Robert’s contact info: 308infantry@gmail.com

Robert’s website: http://www.findingthelostbattalion.com/

Jeremy closes his experiences with the poem “We Shall Keep the Faith” by Moina Michaels, which was the moving response to LTC John McCrae’s “In Flanders Fields:”

Oh! you who sleep in Flanders Fields,

Sleep sweet – to rise anew!

We caught the torch you threw

And holding high, we keep the Faith

With All who died.

We cherish, too, the poppy red

That grows on fields where valor led;

It seems to signal to the skies

That blood of heroes never dies,

But lends a lustre to the red

Of the flower that blooms above the dead

In Flanders Fields.

And now the Torch and Poppy Red

We wear in honor of our dead.

Fear not that ye have died for naught;

We’ll teach the lesson that ye wrought

In Flanders Fields.

Source: http://www.greatwar.co.uk/poems/moina-michael-we-shall-keep-faith.htm

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Photos of Jeremy Bowles, the Poppies, and His Relatives Who Served in France

Jeremy Bowles standing in a field in the Meuse region, near where his grandfather served.

The poppy bush Jeremy found with Robert Laplander. Poppies do not bloom in the fall, when Jeremy was visiting France.

Jeremy’s grandfather: Andrew P Craig, B Co., 314th MGB, 80th Division

Jeremy’s Great-Great-Uncle: PVT Franklin Ellenberger, K Co., 128th Inf. Regt., 32nd Division. KIA/MIA Oct. 7th, 1918 in the vicinity of Gesnes, France.

Episode SA12 – The Other Sixteen, an Interview with James Gregory

We’re taking a short break from the Meuse-Argonne narrative to listen to a different angle on a very famous event. It happens that the famous event occurred during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, so this ties in nicely with our current focus.

Most of us have heard of or know the story of Alvin York, the famous SGT York who took on dozens of Germans, killed several, and captured 132. He is one of the most famous–if not THE most famous–American soldiers to emerge from the Great War. However, on the fateful day of October 8, 1918, York was part of a squad with sixteen other men engaged in battle.

In this episode we’re going to have James Gregory talk to us about his upcoming article “The Other Sixteen,” which focuses on the other men who were with Alvin York that fateful day in the hills near Chatel-Chehery near the northern tip of the Argonne Forest.

James Gregory is pursuing a PhD at the University of Oklahoma. He is a noted author and historian of the Marine Corps and Second Division in World War I. He deals primarily with soldier biographies and cultural impacts of the war, and I thoroughly look forward to listening to the results of his research.

“The Other Sixteen” will be available soon in the US Army’s Infantry magazine, which can be found online at:

https://www.benning.army.mil/infantry/magazine/

Jame’s two books can be found here:

https://www.hellgatepress.com/james-p-gregory-jr/

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Lost Battalion Tours Announcement

JOIN US!!!

Lost Battalion Tours is a collaboration between WW1 author and historian Robert J. Laplander, and Mike Cunha, master of ceremonies of the Battles of the First World War podcast and battlefield explorer.

Our inaugural tour will be an 8-day trip to the Argonne region August 8-15, 2020. Those of you who have traveled with Robert in the Argonne before know this is no sight-seeing bus trip; this is down in the dirt, where it happened stuff! Now YOU can join us for a trip you won’t soon forget!

You will stay IN the Argonne, at a small French hotel, as part of your Argonne immersion experience. You’ll see all the important spots concerning the battle, including a first hand tour of the whole story of the Lost Battalion with the #1 LB guy in the world.

On top of that, each tour can be tailored to fit almost any special request visit by guests. And all of this for a one time, all inclusive price of just $1200.00 per single guest, or $1000.00 per guest in groups of two or more (this price does NOT include air fare).

Space is limited to just 14 guests though, so don’t wait – contact Mike Cunha or Robert J. Laplander today for more details. More information is coming this week so stay tuned, but if you’ve been thinking that you’d like to experience the AEF in France, THIS is your chance!

This makes a FABULOUS Christmas gift, at a very affordable price that your significant other will treasure forever! Don’t miss out! Contact us today and join us – We are along the road parallel 276.4… waiting for you!

This announcement was so exciting that not only did I use my excited voice, but Robert Laplander’s two dogs, Buddy and Rebel, immediately started wrestling each other for a spot on the tour–true story!

Mike’s contact info: verdunpodcast@gmail.com

Robert’s contact info: 308infantry@gmail.com

Robert’s website: http://www.findingthelostbattalion.com/

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Episode 59: Meuse Argonne – The Wild West on the Meuse

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.

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Episode 58: Meuse Argonne – Breakdown

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.

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Operational map of 35th Santa Fe Division in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, 26 SEP-03 OCT 1918. Map provided by Griffin Group Photos collection on www.meuse-argonne.com.

Episode 57: Meuse Argonne – The Keystone, the Shorn Oak, and the Aire Valley

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/BattlesoftheFirstWorldWarPodcast.

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Operational map of 28th Keystone Division in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, 19 SEP-25 OCT 1918. Map provided by Griffin Group Photos collection on www.meuse-argonne.com.

Episode 56: Meuse Argonne – l’Homme Mort, or, the Small Pocket

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.

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