The tarp is lifted to unveil the stones, plaque and WW I USMC Doughboy helmet, dedicating the MARFOREUR/AF parade ground as ‘Devil Dog Field.’ (Photos by John Reese, USAG Stuttgart Public Affairs)

Marines dedicate Panzer Kaserne parade ground as ‘Devil Dog Field’ 

By David S. Jones, U.S. Marine Forces Europe & Africa
via the StuttgartCitizen.com web site

The U.S. Marine Corps has long been associated with the Battle of Belleau Wood and its role in stopping the German advance on Paris in June 1918. But Belleau Wood was only the beginning of the story of the Corps in World War I as it would go on to fight at Soissons, St. Mihiel, Blanc Mont and the Meuse-Argonne, as well as fly bombing and pursuit missions over northern France and Belgium, anti-submarine missions out of the Azores, and serve as ship detachments on the sea lanes.

To commemorate that service and sacrifice across the battlefields of Europe on the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, Maj. Gen. Russell A. Sanborn, commander, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Europe and Africa, dedicated the parade ground in front of the MARFOREUR/AF headquarters as “Devil Dog Field” to recognize the nickname the Marines earned in World War I after their fight at Belleau Wood. Sanborn dedicated a memorial that recognizes the Marines, Sailors, and Soldiers that comprised the units fielded by the Marine Corps in the American Expeditionary Force.

World War I consumed millions of lives and forever changed the world, Sandborn said, adding that the the service and sacrifices of the AEF forces were a decisive factor in ending the war and set the Corps on the path to the modern fighting force that it has become.

“The names Belleau Wood, Soissons, St. Mihiel, Blanc Mont and Meuse-Argonne will forever be remembered as the Corps’ baptism of fire with modern warfare from which future generations would carry the torch on the battlefields of Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima, Chosin, Hue, Fallujah and many other battlefields around the globe,” Sandborn said.

Read the entire article on the Stuttgart Citizen web site here:

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