Aisne-Marne & Vesle Sector - SGT William Shemin

In the final days of the Aisne-Marne Offensive, American forces pursued the retreating Germans to the River Vesle in August 1918. During the battles for possession of the key village of Bazoches-sur-Vesle, an American son of Russian-Jewish immigrants would distinguish himself by looking out for his friends and soldiers.    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 BlueSky at @WW1podcast.bsky.social:   https://bsky.app/profile/ww1podcast.bsky.social   and the BFWWP website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com. Email me directly at [email protected] with any questions, comments, or concerns.    Please review the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes! :)  

NYT bestselling author Daniel Kraus comes on the podcast to talk about his novel set in the Meuse-Argonne battle “Angel Down.”    From Simon & Schuster:   Private Cyril Bagger has managed to survive the unspeakable horrors of the Great War through his wits and deception, swindling fellow soldiers at every opportunity. But his survival instincts are put to the ultimate test when he and four other grunts are given a deadly mission: venture into the perilous No Man’s Land to euthanize a wounded comrade.   What they find amid the ruined battlefield, however, is not a man in need of mercy but a fallen angel, seemingly struck down by artillery fire. This celestial being may hold the key to ending the brutal conflict, but only if the soldiers can suppress their individual desires and work together. As jealousy, greed, and paranoia take hold, the group is torn apart by their inner demons, threatening to turn their angelic encounter into a descent into hell.   Angel Down plunges you into the heart of World War I and weaves a polyphonic tale of survival, supernatural wonder, and moral conflict. Where to buy “Angel Down” in the UK -   https://titanbooks.com/72777-angel-down/   Where to buy “Angel Down” in the US -   https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Angel-Down/Daniel-Kraus/9781668068458 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 BlueSky at @WW1podcast.bsky.social:   https://bsky.app/profile/ww1podcast.bsky.social   and the BFWWP website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com. Email me directly at [email protected] with any questions, comments, or concerns.    Please review the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes! :)  

Historian Michel Gravel comes back on the podcast to discuss an incredibly interesting gentleman named John Stevenson Youngson.  Michel’s works can be found here:   https://ysec.fr/?s=Michel+Gravel&post_type=product   Michel’s GoFundMe for “La place Joseph Kaeble, VC, MM,” in Neuville-Vitasse, France:   https://gofund.me/17574db1   Regarding Michel’s medals: when he mentions his medal collections increase in value, it’s not monetary value. Rather their value increases in that the medal group is complete and the story behind them is available.  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 BlueSky at @WW1podcast.bsky.social:   https://bsky.app/profile/ww1podcast.bsky.social   and the BFWWP website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com. Email me directly at [email protected] with any questions, comments, or concerns.    Please review the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes! :)

My good friend Xavier Lewis comes on the podcast to discuss his dissertation topic.   General Edmond Buat had an idea and devised a plan to defeat the German army on the Western front in World War I. A study of his diary, the notes he wrote and his later writings on German generals Ludendorff  and Hindenburg, shows how his plan and the Réserve Générale de l’Artillerie Lourde (Heavy Artillery General Reserve, “RGAL”) he created constitute an incipient form of operational art as well as the basis for the French Army’s offensives in the summer of 1918.   Xavier’s research considers how Buat’s diary, his writings, and notes reveal his role in developing the plans for the 1918 offensives and how the RGAL was conceived as an instrument specially adapted for them. It also shows how those plans represented an important conceptual shift in operational thinking to find a new way to expel the German army from French territory. It focuses on the ideas behind the creation of the RGAL, not on the political, industrial and procurement aspects and seeks to plug a gap identified by historian Sir Michael Howard who complained that:  "British military historians […] found it difficult to focus on an analysis of the operations themselves.”   Do listen for a great conversation.   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 BlueSky at @WW1podcast.bsky.social:   https://bsky.app/profile/ww1podcast.bsky.social   and the BFWWP website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com. Email me directly at [email protected] with any questions, comments, or concerns.    Please review the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes! :)  

Pete Owen, LTC USMC (Ret.) comes on the podcast to talk about his book “To the Limit of Endurance: A Battalion of Marines in the Great War.”    From Texas A&M University Press:   “Scholars and historians offer several theories for the crippling losses suffered by the American Expeditionary Forces on the battlefields of World War I: inexperience, poor leadership, hasty expansion of duties, and others. But until now, most of these studies have focused at the division level or higher.    Now, with To the Limit of Endurance, Peter F. Owen offers a tautly worded, historically rigorous, and intensely human survey of the agonizing burden shouldered by the Second Battalion of the Sixth Regiment of U.S. Marines from its formation in Quantico, Virginia, in 1917 until the cessation of hostilities in November of the following year.    In places like Belleau Wood and Soissons, these young men, led by dedicated officers, died in staggering numbers—primarily because of the outmoded tactics they had learned. Owen shows how the battalion regrouped after these campaigns, however, and embarked on a period of intense retraining. By the time of the closing weeks of the war, the adjustments they had made allowed them to mold themselves into a coldly efficient military machine.    Drawing on a treasure trove of surviving first-hand accounts, Owen expertly combines these individual observations with military records and archival sources to create a mosaic that provides not only a case study of how one organization grappled with transformation but also a tightly focused, ground-level view of the lives—and deaths—of these courageous American military men. The grueling, ultimately triumphant odyssey of the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marines will appeal to military historians, professional soldiers, and interested general readers.” Where to buy “To the Limit of Endurance: A Battalion of Marines in the Great War” -   https://www.tamupress.com/book/9781623491567/to-the-limit-of-endurance/ 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 BlueSky at @WW1podcast.bsky.social:   https://bsky.app/profile/ww1podcast.bsky.social   and the BFWWP website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com. Email me directly at [email protected] with any questions, comments, or concerns.    Please review the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes! :)

Tennessee State Park Rangers Nate Dodson and Tanner Wells come on the podcast to discuss the upcoming Great War Expo II at York State Park in Pall Mall, TN.   On April 5th, 2025, the second annual Great War Expo will be held at Sgt. Alvin C. York State Historic Park in Pall Mall, TN.  This is an educational event highlighting all things WW1 at the homesite of one of its more well known soldiers.  Experience informative lectures, participate in living history demonstrations, meet authors and vendors, and interact with organizations from across the nation that preserve and share WW1 history.   I was there last year, and it was a great time. You're just steps away from Alvin York’s house, sharing WW1 history with other enthusiasts. What could be better?   So if you are nearby or can get up to Pall Mall, TN, you are in for a great experience.    Link: https://tnstateparks.com/parks/event_details/sgt-alvin-c-york/#/?event=great-war-expo-ii 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 BlueSky at @WW1podcast.bsky.social:   https://bsky.app/profile/ww1podcast.bsky.social   and the BFWWP website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com. Email me directly at [email protected] with any questions, comments, or concerns.    Please review the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes! :)  

Part 6 of the ongoing discussion continues to look at the French Army in 1916, and this time we focus on events and developments outside of the Verdun battlefield.    This episode will focus on the French Army’s experience in 1916 outside of the Verdun battlefield.    Joining us for this discussion are:   Bart Debeer, who co-wrote a Dutch-language Western Front Guide for Beginners with a friend Bryn Hammond, whose blog “Vingt Frong”  aims to “awaken interest in the French experience of the First World War in an English-speaking audience,” and author of the book “Cambrai 1917: The Myth of the First Great Tank Battle,” Jim Smithson, author of “A Taste of Success: The First Battle of the Scarpe. The Opening Phase of the Battle of Arras 9-14 April 1917” and two guide books on the Arras battlefields,   Do listen in for the few moments when four grown men struggle with a microphone. :P Great War Group: https://greatwargroup.com/ 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 BlueSky at @WW1podcast.bsky.social and the BFWWP website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com. Email me directly at [email protected] with any questions, comments, or concerns.    Please review the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes! :)

Dr. Isherwood returns to the podcast to talk about his new book “The Battalion: Citizen Soldiers at War on the Western Front.”    From Casemate Publishers:   “How did ordinary citizens become soldiers during the First World War, and how did they cope with the extraordinary challenges they confronted on the Western Front? These are questions Ian Isherwood seeks to answer in this absorbing and deeply researched study of the actions and experiences of an infantry battalion throughout the conflict. His work gives us a vivid impression of the reality of war for these volunteers and an insight into the motivation that kept them fighting.   The narrative traces the history of the 8th Battalion The Queen’s (Royal West Surrey Regiment), a Kitchener battalion raised in 1914. The letters, memoirs and diaries of the men of the battalion, in particular the correspondence of their commanding officer, reveal in fascinating detail what wartime life was like for this group of men. It includes vivid accounts of the major battles in which they were involved – Loos, the Somme, Passchendaele, the German Spring Offensive, and the final 100 Days campaign.   The battalion took heavy losses, yet those who survived continued to fight and took great pride in their service, an attitude that is at odds with much of the popular perception of the Great War. Ian Isherwood brings in the latest research on military thinking and learning, on emotional resilience, and cultural history to tell their story.” Follow the First World War Letters of H.J.C. Peirs, a digital history project at Gettysburg College:   https://www.jackpeirs.org Where to buy “The Battalion: Citizen Soldiers at War on the Western Front” -   https://www.casematepublishers.com/9781526774224/the-battalion/ 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 BlueSky at @WW1podcast.bsky.social:   https://bsky.app/profile/ww1podcast.bsky.social   and the BFWWP website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com. Email me directly at [email protected] with any questions, comments, or concerns.    Please review the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes! :)

Before the First World War officially began, the killing was already underway.    In the small French village of Joncherey, two men would meet for a brief but violent moment on August 2nd, 1914, the day before war was officially declared. The moment would turn them into eternal brothers, transformed by their explosive meeting. French Corporal Jules André Peugeot and German Lieutenant Albert Otto Walther Mayer would soon be the first military deaths of their nations.  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 BlueSky at @WW1podcast.bsky.social:   https://bsky.app/profile/ww1podcast.bsky.social   and the BFWWP website, www.firstworldwarpodcast.com. Email me directly at [email protected] with any questions, comments, or concerns.    Please review the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes! :)  

The group is back!   Part 5 of the ongoing discussion looks at the French Army in 1916, the first of a two- or three-part series on this crucial year of WW1. This episode will focus on the French Army’s experience in its most trying battlefield crucible: the Battle of Verdun. Joining us for this discussion are:   Christina Holstein, author of several incredible guides to the Verdun battlefield, amongst other published works and articles, Alex Lyons, the man who spends his free time telling us the story of his Poilu great-grandfather on Twitter, 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 [email protected]. Please consider reviewing the Battles of the First World War Podcast on iTunes.