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The Butte of Montsec (alt.1,230 feet) was a strategic position from early history. The Gaulois and Romans exploited its location. Messages were sent from it to distant heights, as smoke in daytime and fires at night. A fortified castle, Chastel Montclin, was built here in the 8th Century. Subterranean passages were discovered in the 19th Century. From 1914 onward, the Germans constructed tunnels, underground shelters, and trenches in the hill.
Allied counteroffensives in mid-1918 eliminated most German salients on the Western Front. But the St. Mihiel Salient remained. Its elimination was critical.
August 10, 1918: The U.S. First Army was activated, commanded by General John J. Pershing. It included fourteen American and four French divisions. Its mission: reduce the St. Mihiel Salient.
September 12: Aerial and artillery bombardment of German positions began at 1:00 a.m., and the main ground attack at 5:00 a.m. The advance was rapid on all axes. The 2nd Division liberated Thiaucourt by midday. The 89th Division advanced across ground that became the St. Mihiel American Cemetery. The 42nd Division reached the Bois de Thiaucourt.
September 13: The 26th Division entered Vigneulles. Its patrols met 1st Division soldiers, closing the salient. Combat continued for three more days.
September 16: The St. Mihiel Salient was erased. More than 550,000 Americans and 110,000 French fought in the offensive. Many units battled next in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, starting September 26.
October 16: The U.S. Second Army held the sector until November 9. Then its U.S. and French divisions attacked northeastward into the Wöevre Plain, bolstering Allied offensives ending with the Armistice on November 11.
More than 200,000 fallen service members are honored at an ABMC site. Search the burial database.
