THE LOST BATTALION
Apr 12 '03 (Updated Apr 13 '03)
The Bottom Line If not for this little bird, my husband would not be alive.
We are a peace-loving nation but at times, even the peacemakers must fight the brutal enemy in order to preserve that coveted tranquility.
Such was the case in World War I. France was enduring a bitter battle when Germany invaded that beautiful land. France sought out and won our aid and thus, we deployed many young men to the front lines.
The 77th Division forged their way to take the Argonne Forest and eventually take it back from the German troops. The 77th Division consisted of several Battalions made up from mostly young New York men. Their Commanding Officer was Charles W. Whittlesey.
During WWI, radio communication was at its worst and quickly eliminated by opposing forces. Many Battalions, therefore, relied on the ever-faithful carrier pigeon. The 77th Division was no exception. Not having many in their supplies, they used these birds sparingly and only when they felt their radio might give their position to the enemy.
As the German troops surrounded our brave fighting men, the radioman was killed and his radio rendered irreparable. They sent out a pigeon to inform General Command of their position and needs. The bird was shot by the enemy and never reached its destination.
Hours passed turning the bleak nights into dismal days.
Major Whittlesey, while watching his brave soldiers die, one by one, found it difficult to understand why the allied forces never came to offer help and supplies.
The 77th Division, although facing grenades, bullets and mustard gas, fought valiantly during the first three days. In the afternoon of the third day, as tired and hungry as the felt, they fought will all the energy they could find. It was then, the German Storm Troopers, armed with their gas tanks and flamethrowers, entered the forest.
Walking in a straight line, they emitted flames whenever they saw an American soldier. Their flames, having the capability of reaching farther than 20-feet, burned and incinerated more of our young men then ever imaginable. The men who still remained alive and able to fight, charged the Storm Troopers with a fierce determination that caught the German soldiers off guard. The soldiers that weren’t killed by the Americans, quickly abandoned their positions and headed back to their base.
Meanwhile, General Command, because of lack of communication, had no idea where the 77th Division fought their battle. Command didn’t even know if the 77th still existed. All they knew for sure was a general location of the German troops. They decided to begin bombing the area. What they didn’t realize was that their site location wasn’t quite accurate their bombs fell several feet from the targeted area. The US bombs fell on the 77th Division.
As Major Whittlesey saw his men being killed by his commanding officers, he knew, somehow, they must be made aware of this dreadful situation. He noted that only one pigeon remained – a baby bird called Cher Ami.
Cher Ami, being so young, was always considered the least reliable pigeon in the coop. However, now, the Major had no choice but to send Cher Ami on the most important mission of her little life.
As Cher Ami took flight, the Germans fired relentlessly at the little bird hoping to bring her down and let the American military kill their own. However, Cher Ami must have understood. Sustaining a broken wing, having one leg shot completely off her little body and flying with one bullet in her tiny chest, Cher Ami completed her mission and arrived at the General Command Post with the position of her beloved men.
This little bird saved the United States soldiers who fought so desperately in France.
After lying in trenches with their dead comrades, on the 4th day of the Battle of the Argonne Forest, 194 United States battle-weary soldiers, loving named The Lost Battalion, walked out of the forest.
The United States soldiers of the 77th Division went down in history known as The Lost Battalion.
You see, Freedom has its cost. For whatever reason, many nations of the world look upon America as their liberators, the one who can set them free. America has never turned her back on those who seek the same freedom we enjoy. America paid dearly through the years for this kindness bestowed to others. While many revile us as warmongers, more than twice that many hold us in the highest esteem for aid to their countries.
While being an American striving for peace makes this war and any other a personal matter, the Battle for the Argonne Forest is more so.
You see, my father-in-law was one of the 194 survivors of that Lost Battalion.
War is not pretty, not glamorous - except in Hollywood. Yet, there are times when war is necessary.
One final postscript in case you were wondering:
Cher Ami, the courageous little pigeon who gave her life to save her beloved men, has been stuffed, preserved and holds a place of honor in the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.
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Member: Margaret Brennan
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