St. Mihiel – Salient – Saillant de Saint-Mihiel

South of the Fortress of Verdun, for almost the entire duration of the First World War, there was a peculiar front sector that protruded in a triangular shape from the surrounding front line into the area held by the French. The French called it the Saillant de St. Mihiel. Among the Germans, the area was called the St. Mihiel front arc or also the St. Mihiel wedge. Its origins, military purpose, as well as individual developments and events during the fighting between 1914 and 1918, are summarized below and will be explained in greater detail in subsequent articles.

As a result of the war of 1870/71, St. Mihiel, located about 30 kilometers south of Verdun on the Meuse, became a garrison town. Until September 1914, the tranquil little town otherwise held no major military significance. Except for the neighboring forts belonging to the Toul-Verdun fortress belt—Camp des Romains, Liouville, and des Paroches—it was also not significantly fortified.

In the first half of September 1914, the Germans made two attempts to encircle the Fortress of Verdun from the northwest out of the Argonne region and from the direction of the fortress of Metz. These attempts failed due to the heroic resistance of the garrison of Fort de Troyon. While the Germans were able to capture the strategically important Combres Heights near Les Éparges in the north and gain a foothold on the western slopes of the Côtes de Lorraine, Fort de Troyon—whose garrison withstood days of artillery fire and rejected several demands for surrender—thwarted any further advance. During the first attempt, the pincer around Verdun could be closed to within about 12 kilometers. It broke apart starting on September 12, 1914, when, after the Battle of the Marne, the German armies on the western bank of the Meuse retreated to north of the Argonne Forest and, between the Meuse and the Moselle, to a line from Metz to Etain.

Beginning September 19, 1914, Armee-Abteilung Strantz (Army Detachment Strantz) — formed for this purpose from parts of the 6. Bayerische Armee (6th Bavarian Army) and 5. Preußische Armee (5th Prussian Army) — made a renewed attempt to encircle the Fortress of Verdun, which was intended to result in a further advance westward through the capture of the three southern Meuse forts of Camp des Romains, Les Paroches, and Troyon, as well as the establishment of a crossing over the Meuse. By September 25, 1914, parts of the III. Bayerisches Armeekorps (III Bavarian Army Corps) had captured the town of St. Mihiel as well as Fort Camp des Romains. West of St. Mihiel, the Bavarians managed to cross the Meuse slightly and establish a bridgehead. However, the capture of the northern Fort de Troyon and the encirclement of the Fortress of Verdun failed once again in the sector of responsibility of the V. Preußisches Armeekorps (V Prussian Army Corps).

Into 1915, the French repeatedly attempted to recapture the territory gained by the Germans. Running through St. Mihiel in the Meuse Valley was the strategically important railway line from Toul to Verdun, which was now unusable. In addition, German offensive efforts from the front salient were feared. When the recapture attempts did not bring the desired success, they were halted in 1915, and the front between St. Mihiel and Pont-à-Mousson as well as on the Côtes de Lorraine definitively transitioned into trench warfare. The St. Mihiel salient had formed. The course of the positions remained essentially unchanged until September 1918. German military strategy moved away from the plan to go on the offensive again from the St. Mihiel salient. Rather, the salient was maintained in the belief that it would tie down French forces and thus provide greater freedom of action on other fronts. However, the balance of power shifted significantly in favor of the French and their allies by 1916 at the latest, so that a voluntary abandonment of the St. Mihiel salient by the German army ultimately did not take place for reasons of prestige.

The French population was not evacuated after the capture of St. Mihiel. Despite the front being only a few hundred meters away from the town of St. Mihiel, they largely remained on site. People arranged themselves with the German soldiers as best as they could. Reports from both the French and German sides consistently paint a picture that is surprising given the war, at times even humorous and harmonious. Especially the children, as in any war, fearlessly and curiously sought the proximity of the soldiers, especially since the latter generously distributed food and treats. A further consequence of the French population remaining was that while there was destruction to the cityscape caused by artillery fire, especially in the western districts close to the front, these were by no means as devastating as in other French towns and villages close to the front, which as a rule were completely destroyed by the fighting and in many cases were not rebuilt either.

In early September 1918, a major Allied offensive was taking shape. At this time, predominantly weak Prussian reserve and Landwehr units were deployed in the southern sector of the salient. As early as 1916, the Germans had realized that they would not be able to withstand a massed attack by enemy forces in the front salient. Construction began on a chord position from Fresnes-en-Woëvre southeast of Verdun to the northern area of Pont-à-Mousson. The position was named Michel-Stellung and, starting in 1917, connected to the fallback positions established near Verdun. On September 11, 1918, the so-called “Loki Movement” was launched, with which the troops were to withdraw in an orderly fashion to the Michel-Stellung. This withdrawal movement was struck by the unexpectedly early attack of American and French troops starting on September 12, 1918. Although the Germans were still able to occupy the Michel-Stellung and intercept the further advance of the enemy there, it led to immense losses of war material that had to be abandoned during the hasty retreat. After a final, extremely heavy Allied drumfire, the agreed armistice entered into force at precisely 11:00 French time on November 11, 1918.