Cantigny
BATTLE OF. This action was notable, not because of the number of troops engaged, but because CANTON it marked the beginning of offensive operations in Europe by the United States army. It took place on May 28, 1918, at Cantigny, a small town N. W. of Montdidier, France, which at the time was at the apex of the German thrust aimed at Amiens. It had a strong position on a hill that commanded a valley running into the American lines and gave the enemy valuable opportunities for observation. It had a series of cellars that were linked up with a long tunnel that gave excellent shelter for troops and artillery. The most careful preparations had been made for its reduction. Most of the engines of modern warfare, tanks, gas, flame throwers, smoke screens, machine guns, and artillery, were used by the Americans who went over the top at seven o'clock in the morning. They swept forward in three waves, with separate detachments to whom the task of "mopping up" the cellars of Cantigny had been assigned. In thirty-five minutes they had stormed the village, capturing 200 prisoners and inflicting heavy losses in killed and wounded on the enemy. The Americans also captured the defenses to the north and south of the town, making an advance of a mile on a two-mile front. Then they consolidated their newly won positions and defended them successfully against the fierce counter-attacks a comparatively that followed. On small scale, it was one of the most deftly executed and finished actions of the war. The American casualties were very small.