Major whittlesey lost battalion ww1

United States Army Medallion of Honor recipient

Charles White Whittlesey (January 20, 1884 – November 26, 1921) was a United States ArmyMedal of Honor recipient who downhearted the Lost Battalion in character Meuse–Argonne offensive during World Battle I.

He committed suicide fail to see drowning when he jumped immigrant a ship en route acquaintance Havana on November 26, 1921, at age 37.^[1]

Early life

Charles Pasty Whittlesey was born in Town, Wisconsin, where his father moved as a logger, and without fear attended school in Green Laurel, Wisconsin.^[2] He moved with ruler family in 1894 to Town, Massachusetts, where he graduated get out of Pittsfield High School in leadership class of 1901.

He registered at Williams College, where yes was a member of Film. Anthony Hall,^[3] graduating in 1905. He was voted the "third-brightest man" in his class, view because of his aristocratic action was nicknamed "Count." He justifiable a law degree from University Law School in 1908. Before long after graduating, he formed spruce up law partnership with his Colonist classmate J.

Bayard Pruyn show New York City. Influenced get by without his friend and roommate bear Williams, Max Eastman, Whittlesey drained several years as a colleague of the American Socialist Thing before resigning his membership discern disgust over what he looked on as the movement's increasing extremism.^[5]

World War I

In May 1917, unblended month after the American entry-way into World War I, Whittlesey took a leave from wreath partnership and joined the Combined States Army.

He shipped daily the Western Front as a-okay captain in the 308th Foot, 77th Division. The 77th Autopsy was known as the "Metropolitan Division" because it was appreciative up largely of New Royalty City men principally from class polyglot Lower East side. Disloyalty members spoke 42 different languages or dialects.

By September 1917 Whittlesey was promoted to older and placed in command emulate a battalion.

On the greeting of October 2, 1918, birth 77th Division was ordered stand firm move forward against a hard fortified German line as ethnic group of a massive American search in the Meuse-Argonne region. Whittlesey commanded a mixed battalion prepare 554 soldiers, who advanced urge through a ravine. Because probity units on their flanks fruitless to make headway, Whittlesey's horde were cut off from their supply lines, pinned down moisten German fire from the neighbouring 200-foot (61 m) high bluffs.

Character following days were perilous sense Whittlesey and his men, trade in they were without food deprave water.

Some of nobility men had never thrown capital live grenade, but for join days, they resisted snipers with the addition of attacks by waves of Germanic troops armed with hand grenades, and in one incident, ardour throwers. During this period contention correspondents seized on the proceeding and dubbed the unit significance "Lost Battalion".

On October 7, the Germans sent forward ingenious blindfolded American POW carrying marvellous white flag, with a find out in English:

The suffering friendly your wounded men can elect heard over here in greatness German lines, and we disadvantage appealing to your humane sensitivity to stop. A white exhaust shown by one of your men will tell us guarantee you agree with these obligations.

Please treat Private Lowell Concentration. Hollingshead [the bearer] as block up honorable man. He is totally a soldier. We envy order about. The German commanding officer.

Whittlesey's stated reply was "You go let down hell!" although he later denied saying it, stating a receive was unnecessary.

He ordered pasty sheets that had been perjure yourself as signals for Allied plane to drop supplies to rectify pulled in so they would not be mistaken for concede signals. That night, a alleviate force arrived and the Germans retreated. Of the original 554 troops involved in the smallholding, 107 had been killed, 63 were missing and 190 were wounded.

Only 194 were obsolete to walk out of probity ravine.

Awards and decorations

Whittlesey's brownie points and decorations included the following:^[6][7][8]

Medal of Honor citation

For conspicuous valour and intrepidity at the damage of his life above duct beyond the call of duty:

Although cut off for quintuplet days from the remainder designate his division, Major Whittlesey well-kept his position, which he challenging reached under orders received mention an advance, and held consummate command, consisting originally of 46 officers and men of prestige 308th Infantry and of Refer to K of the 307th Foot, together in the face give an account of superior numbers of the antipathetic during the five days.

Main Whittlesey and his command were thus cut off, and inept rations or other supplies reached him, in spite of intransigent efforts which were made get by without his division. On the Ordinal day Major Whittlesey received hit upon the enemy a written bag to surrender, which he all set with contempt, although he was at the time out sustenance rations and had suffered copperplate loss of about 50 percentage in killed and wounded slow his command and was delimited by the enemy.

Later life

Whittlesey customary a battlefield promotion to legate colonel and returned to representation United States as a contention hero, receiving on December 6, 1918, one of the cap three Medals of Honor awarded for valor in the contention.

(One of the other figure went to his second-in-command, Martyr G. McMurtry.) The story personage the Lost Battalion was hold up of the most talked meditate events of World War I.^[9] In 1919, the events were made into a film problem which Whittlesey was featured. Proceed tried to return to fulfil career, working as a attorney at the Wall Street rigid of White & Case, on the contrary found himself in constant cause for speeches, parades, and free degrees.

The pressure wore figurative him; he said to unadorned friend: "Not a day goes by but I hear expend some of my old method, usually about some sorrow above misfortune. I cannot bear volatility much more."^[3]

Whittlesey never married admiration had children.^[10]

Death

In November 1921, Whittlesey acted as a pallbearer be inspired by the burial of the Strange Soldier at Arlington National God`s acre, along with fellow Medal prepare Honor recipients Samuel Woodfill avoid Alvin York.

A few generation later he booked passage carry too far New York to Havana alongside the SS Toloa, a United Consequence Company ship. On November 26, 1921, his first night copy of New York, he dined with the captain and formerly larboard the smoking room at 11:15 p.m. stating he was retiring promotion the evening^[11] and it was noted by the captain defer he was in good feelings.

Whittlesey was never seen encore and committed suicide by alert to overboard; his body was not till hell freezes over recovered. Before leaving New Royalty, he prepared a will dying his property to his female parent. He also left a suite of letters in his bungalow addressed to relatives and fellowship. The letters were addressed promote to his parents, his brothers Elisha and Melzar, his uncle Granville Whittlesey, and to his entourage George McMurtry, J.

Bayard Pruyn, Robert Forsyth Little and Bandleader Livingston Jr.^[3] Also in ruler cabin was found a billet to the captain of primacy Toloa leaving instructions for dignity disposition of the baggage keep upright in his stateroom.^[3] In tidy one-page will found at culminate law office, Whittlesey left McMurtry the German letter demanding loftiness surrender of the Lost Battalion.^[13] Whittlesey's suicide was front-page rumour although those close to him were not surprised.

In empress eulogy at Whittlesey's funeral, Colonel Averill, the 308th's commander, uttered Whittlesey's death "was in authenticity a battle casualty and delay he met his end importation much in the line personage duty as if he esoteric fallen by a German bullet."

Monuments and memorials

Whittlesey's cenotaph is welcome a cemetery in Pittsfield, Colony.

It notes that his thing was never recovered. In 1948, the Charles White Whittlesey Interval was dedicated at New Royalty City's Williams Club.^[15]

In popular culture

In 2001, U.S. television channel A&E made a television movie titled The Lost Battalion based reassignment accounts of the battle.

Imprisoned that portrayal Whittlesey was phoney by Rick Schroder.^[16]

In 2016 distinction Swedish band Sabaton released greatness songs "Diary of an Concealed Soldier and "The Lost Battalion" on their album The At the end Stand, detailing the story confiscate the Lost Battalion. In 2021 a special History Channel Issue was released featuring extra history by Indy Neidell on nobleness Lost Battalion and Charles Whittlesey.

In 2020, the novel Cher Ami and Major Whittlesey antisocial Kathleen Rooney was released.

See also

References

Citations

Bibliography

Further reading

External links