Letters From Verdun

The diaries, letters, and notes of an American Volunteer in the French ambulance service from June 1917 to May 1919. Royce Wolfe Was 19 when he joined the service and spent most of his time in the Verdun sector. There are many of his personal photos and diagrams, and observations of life in the French army with no combat training. Driving his treasured Ford ambulance he made countless trips to the front. He also trained drivers and maintained his own vehicle and taught others maintenance. Letters to many back home have been included depicting the needs of Royce who learned French 'on the fly' but was well accepted by them and actually speaks more highly of them than the AEF he was later attached to than the US entered the war. After the Armistice, he was sent to occupied Germany until April 1919. I found it interesting from a basically non-combatant view.

My own grandfather was attached to the AEF as an ammunition train driver and there is mention of Royce driving past the trains around Chateau-Thierry, perhaps he gave him a wave.

Letters from Verdun
CASEMENT Press
edited by: W. Harvey and E. Harvey
copyright 2009
Available in the US and UK

maxim

Another good read is "The Price Of Glory" attrition at its worst in fact it was the bleed France white policy from the German perspective and Verdun was the key to Paris had the Germans broken through there they could have been in Paris in a few weeks, the casualty figures from this battle alone are sobering from both sides.