Entitled: Open attack at St. Mihiel. Sketch shows soldiers firing machine guns during a battle in France in World War I by Lucien Jonas. The Battle of Saint-Mihiel was fought between September 12-15, 1918, involving the American Expeditionary Forces and 48,000 French troops under the command of General John J. Pershing of the United States against German positions. The attack was part of a plan by Pershing in which he hoped that the U.S. would break through the German lines and capture the fortified city of Metz. The attack caught the Germans in the process of retreating. The American attack proved more successful than expected, but again demonstrated the critical role of artillery during WWI and the difficulty of supplying the massive armies while they were on the move. The U.S. attack faltered as artillery and food supplies were left behind on the muddy roads. The attack on Metz was not realized, as the Germans refortified their positions.
