American History Tellers - World War I | The Spring Offensive | 3

Episode Date: April 17, 2024

In January 1918, after months of preparation and planning, American troops finally started to arrive in Europe in significant numbers. But the U.S. was still far from combat ready. Its economy was struggling to adapt to the demand for war supplies and the U.S. forces in Europe were still heavily reliant on British and French support. But America and the Allies were running out of time. Germany was preparing to launch an all-out assault on the Western Front in the hope of finally securing victory for the Kaiser.Listen to American History Tellers on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Experience all episodes ad-free and be the first to binge the newest season. Unlock exclusive early access by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial today by visiting https://wondery.com/links/american-history-tellers/ now. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can binge new seasons of American History Tellers early and ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. Imagine it's January 1918 in Washington, D.C., and you're a senator on the Military Affairs Committee. You and your fellow committee members are investigating the administration's efforts to build up the military, and the way you see it, so far, it's been a mess. Production has been slow and inefficient. Opportunistic companies have hiked their prices and exploited the surge in demand. And last fall, competition between the military and manufacturers caused a shortage of freight trains and snarled up the eastern railroads.

So today you've summoned Secretary of War Newton Baker to answer some questions. And you've got plenty of them. Now, Secretary Baker, what is the administration doing to ensure we are adequately equipped for this war? Well, Senator, in just nine months, the Army has increased from 212,000 to 1.5 million men. It's the largest force ever mobilized by this nation. No Army in history has been raised, equipped, and trained so quickly. Yes, Mr. Secretary, we have called up a million and a half young men into service.

But at the same time, did you not abandon the Springfield rifle already being manufactured in favor of some new design that indeed proves slower to manufacture? Yes, Senator, that is correct. And that decision left our young recruits without guns, correct? And they remain without them now. They have them now. I assure you that every soldier being trained in this country who ought to have a rifle has a rifle. Is that right, Mr. Secretary? Because the reports from camp commanders do not support your claim. Some say they have only half the guns necessary to train their men. Is that not a sign of your department's inefficiency? It is not inefficient to decide to arm our men with better guns.

But at the outset of the war, this country had a manufacturing capacity of 15,000 rifles a day. Now we're only manufacturing at best 7,000 of these new, supposedly better rifles. Senator, I believe it's of the utmost importance that our army has the right weaponry. It will save lives and increase our odds of winning. The right weaponry. The original rifles are the same ones used by millions of British soldiers. That's because they faced the pressure of necessity. War was on their doorstep. They did not have the choice to upgrade their arsenal. We do. You can see that Secretary Baker is losing his temper, but you're not about to let up. And yet, isn't it true that we placed an order five months ago for machine guns, and the Army still has almost none?

Not to mention the lack of aircraft, lack of advanced artillery, and today I've also learned that it will be six months before a new gunpowder plant will be operational. How do we expect to win this war? Baker's face is red with anger, but for the moment he stays silent. This hearing may leave his political reputation battered and bruised, but that doesn't change the fact that the production problems you and the rest of the committee have highlighted are threatening the entire war effort. If the situation doesn't improve, and quickly, the biggest army America's ever raised won't stand a chance on the battlefields of thinking. And Audible makes it easy to be inspired and entertained as a part of your everyday routine without needing to set aside extra time. As an Audible member, you choose

one title a month to keep from their ever-growing catalog. Explore themes of friendship, loss, and hope with remarkably bright creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. Find what piques your imagination. Sign up for a free 30-day Audible trial, and your first audiobook is free. Visit audible.ca to sign up. From the team behind American History Tellers comes a new book, The Hidden History of the White House. Each chapter will bring you inside the fierce power struggles, intimate moments, and shocking scandals that shaped our nation. From the War of 1812 to Watergate. Available now wherever you get your books. From Wondery, I'm Lindsey Graham,

and this is American History Tellers. Our history, your story. By early 1918, U.S. troops had arrived in Europe and were finally fighting alongside their British and French allies on the Western Front. The United States' entry into the war had required the nation to transform its small, standing army into a fighting force to be reckoned with. But drafting enough men to fight was just the start. The U.S. was also struggling to keep up with the production needed to feed wartime demand for weapons and supplies. The nation needed to manufacture guns, ammunition, aircraft, uniforms, and other military supplies in large quantities and at a rapid pace. But neither the military or American industry was ready to meet this surge in demand. Military procurement was uncoordinated, with different departments issuing duplicate and overlapping orders in a scramble to secure as much equipment as they could. This lack of coordination made it hard for factories to predict what the government wanted, which in turn made it even harder for them to meet the demands of war.

Things needed to change and quickly, because the tide of the war was turning in Germany's favor. But before he could get U.S. industry into gear, President Woodrow Wilson would first have to convince the American public to stay the course. This is Episode 3, The Spring Offensive. On January 10, 1918, President Woodrow Wilson strode into the U.S. Capitol and made his way to the podium on the floor of the House chamber. He positioned his speech in front of him, adjusted his thin wire-framed spectacles, and looked out at the members of Congress who had gathered to hear him speak.

Wilson's audience that day were keenly aware that the United States had already been at war for nine months and there was no end in sight. If anything, the war was intensifying, because only a month earlier, the U.S. had declared war on Germany's ally Austria-Hungary in order to appease Italy and stop them bowing out of the fight. Since then, American casualties have been ticking up. And now it looked like the U.S. and Allied powers might lose a major member of their coalition anyway. Russia had a new leader, the Bolshevik revolutionary Vladimir Lenin, who had agreed to a ceasefire with Germany. And Lenin's representatives

were now negotiating for peace with the Germans. If they struck a deal, one million German troops would suddenly be freed up and be sent to France instead for an all-out assault on the Western Front. Wilson knew it was unlikely the U.S. Army would reach full strength for another year, and yet there seemed little hope of a quick end to the war. That meant Wilson needed to persuade Congress and the nation to stand firm. So he decided to lay out a clear reason to keep fighting. As Congress listened, he spelled out an ambitious 14-point peace plan, which if adopted, would redraw the world map and fundamentally change how nations interacted. Wilson's proposal for a new world order had been developed by a secret team of 150 political theorists.

That team, known as the Inquiry, had been tasked with figuring out the best way to ensure a lasting peace once the war ended. The Inquiry spent months writing hundreds of reports and drawing maps that fleshed out a post-war world remade to America's liking. The president opened his speech by explaining to Congress he was there to discuss the objects of the war and the possible basis of a general peace. Wilson began by calling for an end to secret treaties between nations, which he saw as one of the causes of the war. Next on his wish list was the removal of barriers to free trade. He also made a plea for arms reductions and freedom of navigation in international waters. Wilson imagined that for a lasting peace to be secured, Germany must return all the European territory they had conquered since 1871, meaning Belgium and Poland would regain independence.

Wilson also stressed the importance of national self-determination, or government by consent of the people, which he saw as the opposite of militaristic autocracy and imperialism. And he especially wanted the oppressed minorities living under the Ottoman Empire and Austria-Hungary to have a say in the borders of their territories and how they were governed. But it was point number 14 that Wilson hoped for the most. It called for the creation of a global assembly, a League of Nations, whose job it would be to preserve the territorial integrity of all nations, big and small. He

imagined this League could secure peace across the world. Wilson declared that the United States was fighting for justice, not conquest, and he claimed the U.S. was in the Great War to protect the rights of every nation and their people because it was the morally right thing to do. As Wilson concluded his speech, members of Congress applauded. But while Wilson's 14 points received a claim at home, the Allied powers were less keen on the plan. Britain disliked Wilson's call for freedom of navigation in international waters as it would rein in their power at sea. France wanted more than their lost territories back. They wanted Germany punished and its

military weakened. And their reaction to Wilson's 14 points from the Central Powers was mixed. Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire rejected Wilson's plan outright. His demand for self-determination for national minorities threatened to erase them from the map. And while Germany also disliked the terms, they knew that if they lost the war, a victorious Britain and France would press for severe reparations. If that happened, the Kaiser knew President Wilson's plan would be the best offer on the table. But one of Wilson's 14 points was also intended to send a message to Moscow. In his speech, the President stressed the need for Russia to be treated with respect

and have its lost territory returned. It was an olive branch to the world's first communist regime, and one Wilson hoped would persuade Russia's new leader, Vladimir Lenin, to bring Russia back into the fight. It would be an unlikely alliance. America was a beacon of capitalism, liberalism, and democracy, ideas that Lenin and his Bolsheviks rejected. But nevertheless, it seemed to hit the mark. Lenin praised Wilson's speech as a great step towards peace. The Bolsheviks even reprinted his 14 points in Izvestia, the official newspaper of the Soviet Union, as Russia was now known. It looked like Wilson might have pulled off a political masterstroke and lured the Soviet

Union back into the war, but that hope proved fleeting. Lenin and the Bolsheviks had used Russia's participation in the war to justify their coup, and their control of the new Soviet Union remained tenuous. So for Lenin, only one thing mattered, ensuring that the world's first communist regime survived. On March 3, 1918, the Soviet Union signed a lopsided peace deal with the German Empire. Lenin agreed to give up a huge arc of territory, stretching from Finland to the Black Sea, comprising nearly a quarter of their population and much of their industry.

In exchange, Germany pledged to withdraw from fighting with the Soviet Union. So now the Allies' greatest fear was coming true. One million German troops would pack up and head west for a new offensive against the forces of Britain, France, and now the United States. With Germany's spring offensive looming, America needed more than ever to overcome the production bottlenecks that were leaving its army short on weapons and other equipment. Thankfully, Wilson knew just who to call. The day after the Soviet Union made peace with Germany, on March 4, 1918, Bernard Baruch made his way through the cold rain pelting Washington, D.C. Baruch was a tall, muscular man, and before the war he was one of the greatest speculators Wall

Street had ever seen, having acquired a $10 million fortune, a sum worth more than $200 million today. But now he was being summoned for an urgent meeting with the president, in which Wilson asked Baruch to chair the War Industries Board, a newly independent agency tasked with unjamming the production lines. Since the beginning of the war, the president had entrusted that job to Secretary of War Newton Baker, the Army, and an advisory committee which included Baruch. But this arrangement had delivered few results, and Baker had recently had a disastrous

run-in with senators over the military's supply problems. In the meantime, Wilson had noticed that the advisory committee's few successes in unlocking supplies for the military usually happened when Baruch was involved. So the president decided to make a change and lean on Baruch to finally get U.S. factories producing the goods the military desperately needed. It was a risky move. Baruch might have traded his way to wealth in the stock market, but he had almost no managerial experience. He'd never run any kind of organization. His secretary handled the day-to-day of his business affairs, and his wife ran his household. But Baruch had charisma, status, and a deep understanding of macroeconomics he honed as a stock trader. So when presented with this idea, Baruch eagerly

accepted. He came up with a plan to use the War Industries Board's new powers to direct production, increase efficiency, and fix prices so businesses couldn't exploit the supply shortages for financial gain. Baruch's aim was to shift the nation from a peacetime market economy to a centrally managed war economy. But not everyone in America was receptive to this plan. Imagine it's 1918, and you're the owner of a lumber mill in Minnesota. Right now, your ability to run your business the way you want is under threat from the federal government. So you've traveled to Washington, D.C. to try to get the War Industries Board out of your hair. You enter Bernard Baruch's office, itching for a showdown.

He rises from his chair behind a desk, and he's taller than you expected. You shake hands, take your seat, and begin to make your case. Mr. Baruch, I've come here to make things plain to you because your people don't seem to be paying attention to my letters. Oh, they are, but as you're aware, we're tasked with procuring the materials our country needs to meet our production quotas. They told me that you're refusing to comply to shift your production to focus on the Army's lumber needs. Well, that's damn right I'm refusing. This is America. I'm a private citizen. I should be able to run my business the way I see fit, and I thought you as a Wall Street man

would understand this. Oh, I do? Good. Now get your lackeys to stop telling me how to run my mill. Baruch leans towards you. Well, if you let me finish, I was going to say that I do understand, but this is not peacetime. We are at war. If soldiers and sailors are laying down their lives for our country, it's not much to ask that you, as a business owner, relinquish some of your profits for the defense of the nation. Now, you listen here, Mr. Baruch. I buy liberty bonds. I observe Meatless Tuesdays. I do my part. But the federal government has no right to go poking its nose into my business.

Actually, it does. It's within the power of the War Industries Board to seize your lumber mill. I could call the military right now and make that happen, if I was so inclined. Are you threatening me? You really think the government can run my mill even half as well as I can? No, I doubt we could. But consider this. By the time we commandeer your mill, you'll be such an object of contempt and scorn in your hometown that you won't want to show your face there. Your fellow citizens, they'll call you a slacker, a traitor even, and likely run you out of town.

You gulp, knowing this is a serious threat. It used to be that only those who dodged the draft got smeared with the term slacker. Now it's applied to anybody who isn't seen to be pulling their weight. Your community is very supportive of the war, and you know your business wouldn't survive if they turned against you. Well, Mr. Baruch, perhaps I may have misunderstood just how vital my business is to the war effort. So, thank you. I can see clearly and, of course, stand ready to serve the nation. Baruch smiles. Oh, I'm very glad to hear that. You shake Baruch's hand and head toward the office door.

You've always thought of yourself as a patriot, and you've been supportive of the war effort. So to be accused of being a slacker is infuriating, but an effective threat. Right now, you have little choice but to give in to the government's demands, because if not, your business could be ruined. Thanks to Bernard Baruch's efforts, the War Industries Board finally got American industry up and running. It managed to convince distributors to use lighter and less bulky packaging to free up space on railroad cars. It reduced choice in consumer goods to save on raw material, including saving an estimated 2,000 tons of steel by limiting the number of bicycle designs on the market.

And manufacturers of non-essential items like pianos were ordered to reduce their output, while those making critical items were encouraged to adopt more efficient methods of mass production. But it wasn't only stubborn business owners who were concerned about being labeled anti-American. As U.S. troops in Europe readied themselves for the Kaiser's spring offensive, hostility toward German Americans grew. And those in the U.S. with familial ties to the enemy found themselves the target of increasing violence. For more than two centuries,

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to bring down the most infamous terrorist in American history. Order The Hidden History of the White House now in hardcover or digital edition, wherever you get your books. In a quiet suburb, a community is shattered by the death of a beloved wife and mother. But this tragic loss of life quickly turns into something even darker. Her husband had tried to hire a hitman on the dark web to kill her. And she wasn't the only target. Because buried in the depths of the internet is The Kill List, a cache of chilling documents containing names, photos, addresses, and specific instructions for people's murders. This podcast is the true story of how I ended up in a race against time

to warn those whose lives were in danger. And it turns out convincing a total stranger someone wants them dead is not easy. Follow Kill List on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to Kill List and more Exhibit C True Crime shows like Morbid early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+. Check out Exhibit C in the Wondery app for all your true crime listening. Late in the evening on April 4th, 1918, a mob arrived outside Robert Prager's home in Collinsdale, Illinois. Prager was a 30-year-old German coal miner,

and he was horrified to find 100 angry men at his door. A rumor had spread around town that Prager had attended a meeting of socialists that evening and made disloyal remarks. There was also talk that he was a spy plotting to sabotage the mines. Prager had come to the United States in 1905 at the age of 17 and had moved to Collinsdale the previous summer. But after he made complaints about being refused membership into the local miners' union, he had become a target of local suspicion. That night, the mob dragged him from his home and stripped him of his shirt, pants, and shoes before wrapping him in an American flag. And as they paraded him around Main Street, patrons from the nearby saloons joined the crowd. Soon the mob was 300 strong.

The police intervened and took Prager into custody in City Hall for his own protection. But the mob refused to disperse. Mayor John Siegel arrived and tried to persuade the crowd to leave, but the angry throng accused the mayor of being pro-German himself. Trying to defuse the situation, the mayor informed the crowd that the police had already smuggled Prager out of City Hall so they should all go home. But the mob was furious and demanded to search the building. The mayor agreed, but the information the mayor had been given was wrong. Prager was still in the building. The mob found him cowering in the basement and

marched him to a bluff on the edge of town, beating him as they went. They planned to tar and feather him, but they had no tar, so they got a rope instead. After letting him write a brief farewell to his parents in Germany, they asked him if he had any last words. Prager dropped to his knees and prayed in German. When he finished, they put a noose around his neck and strung him up from a lone hackberry tree. News of the lynching traveled nationwide, and President Woodrow Wilson condemned the violence, and a murder trial followed. But after just ten minutes, the jury cleared every defendant. After the verdict was delivered, one juror reportedly said, at least now he and his

fellow jurors couldn't be accused of being traitors. The German press seized upon the incident, too, as proof of America's barbarism. And Prager's murder was just one of multiple incidents that spring as anti-German sentiment swept the nation. In Kansas, a vigilante group called the Knight Riders terrorized German-speaking communities. Iowa's governor decreed that only English could be spoken in public. Montana banned speaking German for two years, while Pennsylvania's legislature tried to ban the language entirely, only for the state governor to veto the measure.

Elsewhere, schools stopped teaching German. German books were burned. German-Americans changed their last names, rebranded their businesses, and abandoned their traditions to escape persecution. Sauerkraut was recast as Liberty Cabbage, and the American Kennel Club officially declared that dachshunds were now badger dogs. And the growing Prohibition movement also rode the wave of anti-German feeling. Many of the nation's breweries had been founded by German immigrants, and prohibitionists used this fact to rally people

to its cause, calling for Congress to ban alcohol. But while the United States' entry into the war unleashed a wave of discrimination and oppression of German immigrants and German Americans, it provided opportunities for others. To fill a depleted labor pool, U.S. businesses continued to recruit women to take over traditionally male work like running drill presses, operating cranes, driving trucks, welding ships, and making munitions. Yet while women's opportunities expanded, they often found themselves working just as hard as their male colleagues, but for less pay. Still, women's vital contribution to wartime production was undeniable and strengthened the case for women to be granted the right to vote.

Despite having previously spoken out against women's suffrage, in early 1918, President Woodrow Wilson changed his position, arguing that he'd come to view the right to vote as a just reward for women's crucial role in the war. But the war did less to broaden opportunities for African Americans. All white local draft boards decided which draftees would and would not go overseas. And while the vast majority of soldiers were white, black men were more likely to be selected for service. By the end of the war, half of the black men on the draft register had been deemed eligible for immediate service, but only a third of the white men.

And even once drafted, black soldiers faced barriers. The Marines refused to let them serve. The Navy restricted them to menial work. So most African Americans, both draftees and volunteers, went to the Army, which let them join any branch except aviation. But ultimately, most Black soldiers were assigned to labor battalions rather than the Army's segregated combat units. And initially, the U.S. Army had no plans to send Black combat regiments to fight in Europe at all. But after protests from the African-American community, the War Department relented. Two Black combat divisions, the 92nd and the 93rd Infantry Divisions, were

formed and sent overseas. And in April 1918, the 93rd Infantry Division became the first of the two to arrive in France. But for General John Pershing, the commander of the American Expeditionary Force, their arrival brought problems. The Army may have left U.S. soil, but it hadn't left racism at home. Eager to maintain segregation, the Army built separate bathrooms, barbershops, and living spaces for white and black soldiers. But that only worked behind the lines, in Army camps where there was space to spread the facilities out. In the cramped, maze-like trenches of the Western Front, it would be impractical.

But General Pershing believed he had a solution. The French had been asking for four U.S. regiments to support their depleted and exhausted armies. So Pershing gave France the 93rd Division and rid himself of the headache of working out what to do with him. And to the surprise of the men of the 93rd, the French didn't practice segregation. Their armies already included soldiers from French colonies on the African continent like Senegal. So the 93rd found themselves joining an integrated fighting force that offered more freedom than they had at home. And not only did the French army permit African American and white soldiers to mix, they recognized the contribution of black soldiers to the war and rewarded them for their bravery. Imagine it's May 20th, 1918, and you're a private from the 92nd Division's 369th Infantry Regiment.

Six days ago, your unit fought off a raid by 24 German soldiers, and you were wounded. Now you're recovering in a French hospital ward. You turn to face the private in the bed next to yours. Like you, Henry Johnson was badly injured in the raid, and this is the first chance you've had to thank him for getting you out of the fight alive. Henry, Henry, hey, I want to let you know you saved my life. When that grenade went off, I was, My ears were ringing, my arm limp. I was bleeding so badly. And then you just became some sort of hellfighter. Oh, it was nothing.

Anyone would have done the same. No, not just anybody would do what you did. Plenty would have frozen like rabbits and gotten us all slaughtered. I mean, for God's sakes, you managed to save both of us, even though they shot you in the head. Oh, is that what happened? Because I hurt like hell. I know you're joking, but you managed to go after them. What are you, five foot five?

Nope, not even that. Exactly. Most of them were a half foot taller than you, but you were after them like a madman, swinging your rifle and then you pulled out that knife. What the heck were you doing before you got called up? Not much. I was a porter at the Albany train station. You stare at Johnson, lost for words. But then you see a white French general enter the ward.

The general speaks to the nurse, who points toward you. Uh-oh, officer incoming. You and Johnson wait for the French officer to approach. He salutes, and you and Johnson salute back. Privates, I have come to thank you on behalf of France for your extreme bravery. It's my pleasure to award both of you with France's highest military honor, the Croix de Guerre. You and Johnson stare in disbelief.

First, the French let you fight alongside white soldiers. Now they're giving you medals. You can't wait to see the look on the face of the next racist white American officer you meet when he sees that now you're more highly decorated than he is. Privates Henry Johnson and Needham Roberts were the first Americans to be awarded the French Croix de Guerre. Their regiment, the 365th, became known as the Harlem Hellfighters for their fierceness and bravery in combat. They would suffer the greatest losses of any U.S. regiment in the war, with 1,500 casualties.

After returning to the U.S., Johnson was hailed as an American hero. But when he publicly spoke out against the racism he experienced from white American soldiers, his heroism was quickly forgotten. It would take until 2015 before the U.S. would posthumously award him the equivalent of the Croix de Guerre, the Medal of Honor. But while Johnson and the other Harlem Hellfighters were fighting for their lives in the trenches, America and its allies were in trouble. Little had changed on the battlefronts of Western Europe since 1914,

but now the German Empire was determined to launch their new offensive, one designed to finally break the stalemate. In the Pacific Ocean, halfway between Peru and New Zealand, lies a tiny volcanic island. It's a little-known British territory called Pitcairn, and it harboured a deep, dark scandal. There wouldn't be a girl on Pitcairn once they reached the age of 10 that would still have heard it.

It just happens to all of them. I'm journalist Luke Jones, and for almost two years, I've been investigating a shocking story Once they reach the age of 10, they're still a virgin. It just happens to all of them. I'm journalist Luke Jones, and for almost two years, I've been investigating a shocking story that has left deep scars on generations of women and girls from Pitcairn. When there's nobody watching, nobody going to report it, people will get away with what they can get away with. In the Pitcairn trials, I'll be uncovering a story of abuse and the fight for

justice that has brought a unique, lonely Pacific island to the brink of extinction. Listen to the Pitcairn Trials exclusively on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Dracula, the ancient vampire who terrorizes Victorian London. Blood and garlic, bats and crucifixes. Even if you haven't read the book, you think you know the story. One of the incredible things about Dracula is that not only is it this wonderful snapshot of the 19th century, but it also has so much resonance today. The vampire doesn't cast a reflection in a mirror.

So when we look in the mirror, the only thing we see is our own monstrous abilities. From the host and producer of American History Tellers and History Daily comes the new podcast, The Real History of Dracula. We'll reveal how author Bram Stoker raided ancient folklore, exploited Victorian fears around sex, science, and religion, and how even today we remain enthralled to his strange creatures of the night. You can binge all episodes of The Real History of Dracula exclusively with Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus and The Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. On the evening of March 18, 1918, the deputy commander of Germany's army, General Erich Ludendorff, sat in his car as it motored toward the village of Auvergne. Although Auvergne used to be part of northern France, it was now within German-occupied territory, and Ludendorff intended to make it his new base of operations.

Ludendorff had been instrumental in inflicting devastating defeats on Russia before they withdrew from the war, and his aggressive policies had turned Germany into a quasi-military dictatorship. Now he had the future of the German Empire in his hands. And for months, Ludendorff had been preparing to launch a major spring offensive. Russia's exit from the war had given him 50 more divisions he could send to the Western Front to try to break the deadlock there, and he knew he had to use them now. If he waited to the summer, the influx of American troops would put the Central Powers at a disadvantage. But until then, Germany had the upper hand. Ludendorff's plan was to strike in the spring with an all-out assault, smash through the Allied defenses, and finish the war before U.S. reinforcements could make it potentially unwinnable for Germany. And Ludendorff had already selected the day the

offensive would begin, March 21st, a day he hoped would go down in history as the start of the German march to victory. And for weeks, the weather had been sunny and windy, which had helped dry the winter mud, providing the perfect conditions for the offensive. But as Ludendorff's car approached Auvergne, the weather turned. Violent thunderstorms rolled in and the rain began to lash down. The next day, the rain continued. Then Ludendorff was informed that two German soldiers had deserted, surrendered to the British, and revealed the date of his attack. It was pressure the general didn't need. Kaiser Wilhelm II had just arrived in Aubin in his royal train carriage.

Ludendorff had promised him victory, and the Kaiser wanted to be there to see it for himself. But as the rain continued to soak the ground outside, Ludendorff's confidence began to wane. And on March 20th, a day before the scheduled attack, Ludendorff woke to find the rain was still pelting his window. He'd planned to begin the offensive with a barrage of artillery containing poison gas, intending to cause terror and chaos in the Allied trenches.

But the persistent stormy weather threatened to make his chemical weapon attack useless. But then at noon, he got some good news. There was going to be a break in the weather, and with his confidence renewed, Ludendorff ordered his officers to proceed exactly as planned. The following day, at 4 a.m., the offensive began. The German artillery that was amassed along 44 miles of the Western Front thundered to life. Shells rained down on the Allied positions, and by the time the sun rose, the battlefronts were shrouded in dense smoke and mist. Ludendorff peered into the thick blanket of fog, pleased to find it provided perfect cover for his advance. So at nine a.m., Germany's infantry surged forward along the length of the Western Front. They were preceded by another intense artillery bombardment,

which was quickly followed by a rush of stormtroopers, specialized infantry who used the fog and smoke to advance fast and clear the way for the larger forces that were following behind them. In the face of this onslaught, most Allied lines crumbled as dozens of German divisions punctured their defenses. At the headquarters of the American Expeditionary Forces, General Pershing was dismayed to learn that the German offensive was succeeding and that they had captured vital railway bridges, 500 British artillery guns, and tens of thousands of Allied prisoners of war.

French commanders warned the British that if the German advance wasn't stopped soon, they would have to withdraw their forces to protect Paris. And now, only three days after the start of the offensive, the Allies began to panic. Imagine it's late evening, March 25th, 1918, and you're the commander-in-chief of the French army. You're in your general headquarters in the village of Compiègne, and the place is a madhouse. All around you, people are packing up and rushing to evacuate. The German offensive is now endangering your position. Their mobile artillery guns are getting closer by the hour. But then you see General John Pershing, the commander of the American Expeditionary Force,

making his way through the chaos to your office. You stand and shake his hand. General Pershing, I'm afraid you've wasted your time coming here. We're about to evacuate. Pershing looks at the frenzy and then studies you for a moment. Usually, you like to give off an air of nonchalance in his presence, but today you can't disguise your anxiety. The news pouring in from the front is

bleak. Pershing stiffens his back and addresses you. Well, General, what's the current situation? It's bad. We've just lost Albert. We hope to hold our ground elsewhere, but we're running out of reserve forces, and the American expeditionary forces are ready to do whatever they can. Any division of ours that could be of service is now at your disposal. You blink in shock. Since he arrived in France, General Pershing has made it very clear that his orders are to maintain U.S. forces as independent units under his command, and to not allow them to be deployed by French or British commanders. This is unexpected. I thought you were adamant about commanding your forces personally. That hasn't changed, but given the dire circumstances,

the President has authorized me to temporarily alter that position if the situation on the ground requires it. And I believe this situation does. Then I will not protest, thank you. France appreciates America's support. We will, of course, expect our troops to assemble under their own commander once the present situation is brought under control. But naturally, we understand this is a loan, not a gift.

But for this to be of value, we will need to decide where and how to deploy the men. Understood, General. Just where can America's troops be of most service? You turn and look at the map on the wall, showing the latest known positions of your troops. General Pershing's offer is welcome, but you know that the American forces are inexperienced. You sense there's a better way to use them than sending them to the battle zones. Well, General Pershing, I have no intention of using your men as cannon fodder. If you will allow us to deploy them to quieter areas of the front,

it would release some of our own divisions to go fight where it's most crucial. All right. I'll tell our forces to prepare to move to wherever you need them. You smile. American troops might still be too few in number and too inexperienced to do much on the front lines, but being able to move your own troops to critical combat zones could make a big difference. You just hope it's not too late to stop the German offensive. General Pershing's decision to allow France to deploy American forces came at just the right time. France needed more troops where the fighting was happening, but it couldn't move them away from other parts of the front without exposing those areas to attack.

The ability to strategically deploy the less experienced American troops to these quieter areas allowed France to shift its more experienced troops to the main battle zones, increasing the chances of stopping the German advance. Nevertheless, some American troops were still drawn into combat as Germans closed in on their positions. On March 26th, companies from the U.S. 6th Engineers who were repairing railroad lines found themselves suddenly at the front line as German stormtroopers pushed back the British Army. They were quickly armed and converted into a combat unit. Then on March 28th,

German General Ludendorff ordered a huge artillery gun carried by railroad to start bombarding Paris from 75 miles away. General Pershing received word the Allied lines were disintegrating and the Kaiser's armies were closing in on crucial sites around Paris, like the strategically important railroad hub of Amiens. But it soon became evident that Ludendorff had overplayed his hand. The German army's supply chains were struggling to keep up with the advancing troops, and Ludendorff's unsuccessful attempt to challenge British forces at Arras had diverted his troops away from locations along the front where they were making breakthroughs. And as they advanced into French territory, German troops discovered that Allied troops

and civilians had plenty of food and supplies while they had been subsisting on meager rations. German morale began to sink. As a result of these setbacks, in early April, the spring offensive ground to a halt. With the fighting paused, both sides took stock of their losses. Nearly 240,000 German soldiers had died in the offensive, along with a quarter of a million Allied troops. American casualties were just 77 men. But in just two weeks, General Ludendorff had advanced Germany's position on the Western Front 40 miles closer to Paris, gained 1,200 square miles of territory, and captured 80,000 Allied prisoners. In a war where most victories were counted in yards, American General Pershing knew this was a massive and potentially irreversible advance. Still, Ludendorff had ultimately failed to capture his key target,

the railroad hub of Amiens. If it fell, the British and French armies would have been separated and their supply chains broken. Ludendorff's advance was halted. Critical Allied infrastructure was preserved, and the balance of power was about to shift. General Pershing's repeated demands for more American troops had finally been answered. Hundreds of thousands of U.S. soldiers were now headed toward Europe,

and with their help, the Allies would soon be mounting their own offensive in the hope of finishing the war once and for all. From Wondery, this is Episode 3 of our series on World War I from American History Tellers. In our next episode, hunger and the arrival of more American troops push Germany to defeat, but the U.S. and its wartime allies clash over the new post-war world, and President Woodrow Wilson struggles to realize his vision of peace. If you like American History Tellers, you can binge all episodes early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. Prime members can listen ad-free on Amazon Music. And before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out

a short survey at wondery.com slash survey. American History Tellers is hosted, edited, and produced by me, Lindsey Graham for Airship. Audio editing by Christian Paraga. Sound design by Molly Bach. Music by Lindsey Graham. This episode is written by Tristan Donovan of Yellow Ant. Research by Louise Byrne, Marina Watson, and David Walensky. Edited by Dorian Marina. Produced by Alita Rozansky. Our production coordinator is Desi Blaylock. Managing producer, Matt Gant.

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