Trying to locate Thiaucourt, France on Trip Advisor....NO listing? or St. Mihiel, France...NO Listing. Both of these locations are very important to both French and American citizens. These are locations of Military Cemetery%26#39;s. of WWI
However no where can I locate either of these two cities on Trip Advisor pages.
Below is a link from our pilgramage to Thiaucourt, to my Grandfather%26#39;s grave, who give up his life in support of French citizens.
www.90thdivisionassoc.org/forum/topic.asp…
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Dear Euro Traveker !!
With great respect and appreciation, try this link,
www.abmc.gov/cemeteries/cemeteries/sm.php,,
please feel free to post a message if I could be of any help.
We have traveled to France on many occasions, and we always research American cemetaries in order to pay our respects.
God Bless You %26amp; your family !!
Fred
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If the link does not work, here is printed material.
American Battle Monuments Commission
St. Mihiel American Cemetery and Memorial
LOCATION
The St. Mihiel American Cemetery and Memorial is located at the west edge of
Thiaucourt, Meurthe-et-Moselle, France. The road from Verdun (29 miles/47 km),
through Fresnesen-Woevre, passes the entrance to the cemetery and continues on to Ponta-
Mousson and Nancy (29 miles/47 km). The cemetery may be reached from Paris by
automobile (188 miles/300 km) via toll Autoroute A-3, from the Porte de Bercy, to the
Fresnes-en-Woevre exit. From the village of Fresnes-en-Woevre, follow directions to
Pont-a-Mousson (14- miles/22 km) to the cemetery. The cemetery may also be reached
by train (Gare de I’Est) to Toul where taxi services are available. Hotels are available at
Pont-a-Mousson, Metz, Nancy and Verdun. By calling the Superintendent or a member
of his staff at 83-81-90-06, assistance will be provided to obtain hotel reservations or taxi
service.
HOURS
The cemetery is open daily to the public from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm except December 25
and January 1. It is open on host country holidays. When the cemetery is open to the
public, a staff member is on duty in the Visitors’ Building to answer questions and escort
relatives to grave and memorial sites.
HISTORY
Toward the end of 1916, French and British commanders on the western front were
optimistic concerning a successful conclusion of the war in 1917. Except for the loss of
Rumania, events during 1916 had appeared to be working in favor of the Allies, who had
numerical superiority on all fronts.
As if to reinforce Allied optimism, the Germans on the western front began
withdrawing some of their forces north of Paris to prepared positions approximately 20
miles to the rear that could be held by fewer divisions. These defensive positions were
later to be known as the Hindenburg Line. The Russian Revolution broke out while the
German withdrawal north of Paris was still in progress. The revolution delivered a
serious blow to Allied plans, as the Russian Army had been counted upon heavily to keep
German troops occupied on the eastern front. Although the Russian Army did not
collapse immediately, it was apparent that it soon would do so.
2
On 6 April 1917, the United States entered World War I with no modern equipment
and less than 200,000 men under arms scattered from the Mexican border to China and
the Philippines. It would take longer for the United States to mobilize, train, ship troops
to France and equip and prepare them for combat than for the Russia Army to
disintegrate. Despite this realization, the French and British Armies began the offensives
that had been planned on the western front prior to the Russian Revolution in March.
The initial British assault began on 9 April. It was followed by a French offensive on 16
April. Quickly, the French offensive turned into a disaster leaving the British Army to
shoulder the main burden of the war on the western front, until French forces could
reorganize and recuperate. On the eastern front, the Russian started to attack but were
promptly driven back. Shortly thereafter, an assault by the Germans in the north caused
the Russians to seek an armistice. Although the treaty between Germany and Russia was
not signed until March 1918, the Germans began moving divisions from Russia to France
as early as November 1917, in an attempt to end the war before sufficient American
troops could be brought into action to affect the outcome of the war.
As a consequence, the beginning of 1918 looked far worse for the Allies than the
beginning of 1917. To take advantage of the troop that had been moved to France from
the Eastern front, the Germans launched a series of five powerful offensives on 21 March
1918. The first two offensives caused considerable concern among the Allies who
vehemently contended that if American soldiers were not sent immediately as
replacements to fill the depleted ranks of their units, the war would be lost. General John
J. Pershing, Commander- in-Chief of the American Expeditionary Forces, refused to
allow his men to be used piecemeal and in a surprisingly short time organized, trained
and equipped them into effective fighting units. When the French Army found itself in
desperate need of assistance during the third and fifth German drives, General Pershing
quickly offered American troop units to halt the advancing enemy.
The outstanding achievements of these U.S. troop units are recorded at the Aisne-
Marne American Cemetery and Memorial and at the Chateau-Thierry Monument. When
the last great German offens ive commenced on 15 July east of Chateau-Thierry, it was
promptly repulsed in a severe struggle in which American troop units played a leading
part. Quickly, a U.S.-French counteroffensive was launched on 18 July at Soissons. The
highly successful three-week battle that followed, known officially as the “Aisne-Marne
Offensive” but called the “Second Battle of the Marne” by Marshal Ferdinand Foch,
Allied Commander- in-Chief, marked the turning point of the war.
Determined to keep the enemy on the defensive, the Allied Commander- in-Chief,
at a conference on 24 July, planned a series of strong offensive operations to maintain the
initiative and give the enemy no respite or opportunity to reorganize. Following
completion of the Asine-Marne Offensive, the British, assisted by the French, were given
the mission of conducting an offensive in the Amiens sector where the enemy had made
such great gains in March and April.
At this conference, General Pershing chose the St. Mihiel sector for an American
offensive. The objective of the offensive was a salient projecting 16 miles into the Allied
line. Roughly shaped like a triangle, the salient ran from Verdun on the north, south to
St. Mihiel and then east to Pont-a-Mousson on the Moselle River. It was bordered by a
line of hills known as the Heights of the Meuse and a succession of marshes and lakes
situated across deep ravines and dense forests. In addition to its natural defensive
3
advantages, the salient protected the stragegic rail center of Metz and the Briey iron basin
so vital to the Germans as a source of raw material for munitions. Offensively, it
interrupted French rail communications and constituted a constant threat against Verdun
and Nancy. Reduction of the salient was imperative before any large Allied offensive
could be launched against Briey and Metz or northward between the Meuse River and
Argonne Forest. At the conference, General Pershing insisted that the attack be a United
States Army operation with its own sector, under the separate and independent control of
the American Commander- in-Chief. When the decision was made, there were over
1,200,000 American soldiers in U.S. troop units widely scattered throught France, either
serving with French or British Armies or training in rear areas. In view of the splendid
record that so many of the U.S. units had already achieved in combat, the Allies were
forced to agree that a separate U.S. Army should be formed, although they requested that
U.S. divisions continue to be permitted to fight with their armies.
The order creating the United States First Army became effective on 10 August
1918. On 30 August, the U.S. First Army took over the St. Mihiel sector. After a series
of conferences, the Allies agreed that the St. Mihiel attack should be limited to a
reduction of the salient, following which the U.S. First Army would undertake a larger
scale offensive on the front between the Meuse River and the Argonne Forest. With the
attack at St. Mihiel scheduled for 12 September, this would require winning an
extraordinarily swift victory there, then concentrating an enormous force to launch a still
greater operation 40 miles away, within just two weeks. Never before on the western
front had a single army attempted such a colossal task.
At 0500 hours, 12 September 1918, following a four-hour bombardment by heavy
artillery, the U.S. I and IV Corps composed of nine U.S. divisions, began the main assault
against the southern face of the salient, while the French II Colonial Corps made a
holding attack to the south and around the tip of the salient. A secondary assault by the
U.S. V Corps was made three hours later against the western face of the salient. Reports
were soon received that the enemy was retreating. That evening, the order was issued for
U.S. troops to press forward with all possible speed. By the dawn of 13 September, units
of the U.S. IV and V Corps met in the center of the salient, cutting off the retreating
enemy. By 16 September, the entire salient had been eliminated. Throughout these
operations, the attacking forces were supported by the largest concentration of Allied
aircraft ever assembled. The entire reduction of the salient was completed in just for days
by which time some of the divisions involved had already been withdrawn to prepare for
the Meuse-Argonne battle.
SITE
The cemetery, 40 ½ acres in extent, is located almost at the center of the salient where the
majority of the 4,153 military Dead buried there gave their lives. The cemetery was first
established as a temporary cemetery by the American Graves Registration Service
following the offensive in 1918. After the war, the other temporary cemeteries in the
area were discontinued and the military Dead of the region whose next-of-kin requested
burial overseas were moved to the St. Mihiel cemetery for permanent interment. It is the
third largest of the eight permanent World War I American military cemetery memorials
4
in Europe. Post-war administration of the cemetery passed to the American Battle
Monument Commission in 1934.
The Commission, whose functions are described in the latter pages of this booklet,
landscaped the grounds and constructed the memorial chapel and other permanent
buildings in the cemetery.
ARCHITECTS
Architect for the memorial chapel and other architectural features was Thomas Harlan
Ellett of New York City, New York.
GENERAL LAYOUT
The formal entrance, with its ornamental grill gates and fencing and its gem-like
buildings, is of striking beauty and offers an excellent view of the cemetery. To the right
of the entrance is the Superintendent’s Office; to the left is the Visitors’ Building. Both
are constructed of Euville limestone. Directly behind these buildingsis the cemetery
proper. Here, in a beautifully landscaped setting, are the graves area and the memorial.
The pristine whiteness of the headstones is in striking contrast to the immaculately
maintained emerald green lawn.
At the intersection of the central mall and transverse axis in the center of the
cemetery is a large sundial of attractive design consisting of a carved stone eagle gnomon
on a round base. The shadow cast by the eagle gnomon in relation to the lead Roman
numerals set in the flat surface of the base indicates the time of day. Around the circular
base of the sundial is carved the inscription:
TIME WILL NOT DIM THE GLORY OF THEIR DEEDS
From this point one can view the beautiful perspectives along the two axes of the
cemetery. At the west end of the transverse axis is a sculptured stone figure of a youthful
American officer, executed by Paul Manship of New York City, New York, standing in
front of a stone cross in his field uniform, with trench helmet in hand and side arms and
map case. Above his head is engraved.
IL DORT
LOIN DES SIENS
DANS LA DOUCE
TERRE DE FRANCE
(Translation: He sleeps far from his family in the gentle land of France.) And on the
pedestal below him:
5
BLESSED ARE THEY THAT
HAVE THE HOME LONGING
FOR THEY SHALL GO HOME
At the opposite end of the transverse axis is an ornamental urn on a semi-circular
platform flanked by two beautiful yews. From this platform, facing the east, an excellent
view of the surrounding rural countryside may be seen.
THE MEMORIAL
At the north end of the cemetery stands the memorial, an open circular colonnade or
peristyle flanked by a chapel room on the left and a museum room on the right. On the
left front facade of the memorial is engraved a lamp representing an eternal flame and
under it the inscription:
1914-1918
TO THOSE WHO DIED
FOR THEIR COUNTRY
On the opposite facade appears the same lamp symbol and the same inscription in
French.
The memorial rests on a slightly raised circular terrace and is enclosed by a stonefaced
wall. On the lawn in front of it are two large flagpoles with stone and bronze bases.
Large chestnut trees frame it on the sides and rear and immediately behind the memorial
are two large weeping willows.
The memorial is constructed of Rocheret limestone. On the inside surface of the
lintel is carved in the stone:
THIS CHAPEL HAS BEEN
ERECTED BY THE UNITED
STATES OF AMERICA IN
GRATEFUL REMEMBRANCE OF
HER SONS WHO DIED IN
THE WORLD WAR
These words emphasize that the memorial and, indeed, the entire cemetery were
erected not to commemorate the glory of battle won or the triumph of victory achieved,
but to pay homage to those American servicemen who made the supreme sacrifice for
their country.
The large rose-granite urn with its carved drapery at the center of the peristyle
resembles an ancient funereal vase. One of its decorative features is a winged horse,
Pegasus, symbolizing the flight of the immortal soul to its resting place in the life
beyond.
To the left of the peristyle, bronze doors, decorated with stars and two miniature
soldier heads, lead to the impressive interior of the chapel room. The carved white Italian
6
marble altar holds a lighted bronze lamp symbolic of an eternal flame. Above the altar is
a richly-colored mosaic depicting the “Angel of Victory” sheathing a sword and “Doves
of Peace” bearing olive branches. At the top of the wall, carved in white marble with
gold letters, is the inscription:
I GIVE UNTO THEM
ETERNAL LIFE AND THEY
SHALL NEVER PERISH
The mosaics on the end walls have as their main features large shields displaying
the national colors of the United States and of France.
The coffered ceiling is decorated in gold and blue, while the floor and lower wallpaneling
are of inlaid marble with light and dark green markings. Dispersed about the
chapel in appropriate places are graceful candelabra, cushioned seals and kneeling
benches.
Crossing to the right side of the memorial one enters the museum through a similar
set of bronze doors. On the wall directly opposite the doorway is a beautiful map of the
St. Mihiel region inlaid with various colored marbles. This map showns the boundaries
of the salient, the German lines before the offensive, the Allied lines after the battle and
the progress of the campaign.
On the side walls of the museum are black marble panels, at the tops of which are
engraved:
IN MEMORY OF THOSE AMERICAN SOLDIERS
WHO FOUGHT IN THIS REGION AND
WHO SLEEP IN UNKNOWN GRAVES.
Listed below the inscription in gold letters are the names of the 284 American
soldiers who gave their lives in this area, but whose remains were not recovered or
identified.
THE GRAVES AREA
The graves area consists of four burial plots, lettered from A to D, separated by the
central mall and the transverse axes. The 4,153 headstones are arranged in parallel rows
across the green lawns, which carpet the grave area. One hundred and seventeen of these
headstones mark the graves of “Unknowns”. The cemetery contains no multiple burials.
Each of the Dead has his own headstone of white marble, a Star of David for those of the
Jewish faith and a Latin cross for all others. The precise alignment of clean, polished
marble headstones on clipped green grass assures the visitor that no feature of the
cemetery receives more respectful care than does the graves area.
7
PLANTINGS
At the entrance gate to the cemetery is a large bed of flowering annuals. The main paths
of the cemetery are bordered by square-trimmed European linden trees, their low
overhanging boughs furnishing a canopy. Flower beds of polyantha roses are planted
along the transverse axes. The base of the decorative sundial at the intersection of the
center mall and transverse axes in the center of the cemetery is surrounded by beds of
flowering annuals and bordered with dwarf boxwood hedge.
VISITORS’ BUILDING
Located to the left of the entrance gate is the Visitors’ Building. Here visitors may obtain
information, sign the register and pause to refresh themselves. During visiting hours a
member of the cemetery staff is available in the building to answer questions and provide
information on burials and memorializations in the Commission’s cemeteries,
accommodations in the vicinity, travel local history and other items of interest.
MONTSEC MONUMENT
On a high isolated hill, 12-miles/19 km from the St. Mihiel American Cemetery,
stands the Montsec Monument. It commemorates the capture of the St. Mihiel salient by
the American First Army, the operations of the American Second Army on 9-11
November 1918, and other combat services of American divisions both in this region and
in Alsace and Lorraine.
The monument consists of a large circular colonnade, at the center of which, on a
raised platform, is a bronze relief map of the St. Mihiel salient. Its size, its commanding
site, and the perfection of its proportions combine to make it one of the most impressive
in Europe.
On the right side of a flight of steps leading to the monument is engraved:
THIS MONUMENT HAS BEEN ERECTED BY THE UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA TO COMMEMORATE THE CAPTURE OF THE ST. MIHIEL SALIENT
BY THE TROOPS OF HER FIRST ARMY AND TO RECORD THE SERVICES OF
THE AMERICAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCES ON THE BATTLEFRONT IN THIS
REGION AND ELSEWHERE IN LORRAINE AND IN ALSACE. IT STANDS AS A
LASTING SYMBOL OF THE FRIENDSHIP AND COOPERATION BETWEEN THE
FRENCH AND AMERICAN ARMIES.
8
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Dear UrbanNYC......
Thank You Soooo much for both posts,and truly appreciate your blessing. The second post w/all the info was GREAT!.
While we were their we read those inscriptions, and I must tell you, VERY INSPRITIONAL! The cemetery staff were wonderful and very gracious.
We planned(4 days) of this vacation around the Medal Presentation, and then 2 weeks on river cruse,thru Fr, Sw, Gr, %26amp; Au., the final week we spent in Salzburg, Au, Our (1) month tour Aboslutly beautiful.
The rail system .....incredible. Both departing CDG for Metz, then to the boat. Then leaving Vienna for Salzburg, and Saltzburg to Munich, then in a sleeper car on the overnight train from Munich to Paris.
NOW!, we can%26#39;t wait to return to Europe.
Again....Thank you!
Barry
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Barry !!
It was an honor !!
Fred
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