Miracle at Belleau Wood: The Birth of the Modern U.S. Marine Corps | 
 enlarge | Author: Alan Axelrod
Publisher: The Lyons Press
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
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Avg. Customer Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 124545
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 272
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 9.4 x 5.9 x 1.1
ISBN: 1599210258
Dewey Decimal Number: 940.4
EAN: 9781599210254
ASIN: 1599210258
Publication Date: June 1, 2007
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Product Description
The Battle of Belleau Wood, stunning in both its concentration and intensity, was the fiery furnace from which the modern United States Marine Corps emerged as America's fiercest and most effective warriors, the world's preeminent fighting elite.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 3 more reviews...
Miracle at Belleau Wood June 21, 2008
My first recollection of hearing about Belleau Wood was a DI at Paris Island reciting Marine Corp History to platoon 2030 in Aug. 69 when I was a lowly recruit. I knew that the Marines earned the name DevilDogs as a result of their action aganst the Germans in 1918. It wasn't until I read this book and got the rest of the story that I can truely appreciate what they did to earn that title. I am glad I found this book as it will now go on the shelf with my other Marine Corps history books. I recommend it to anyone who wants to learn about the Corps.
 Devil Dogs, First to Fight February 12, 2008
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
Good read. Goes fast. Very good use of first-person viewpoints taken from a variety of sources. Ultimately the entire book is made up of well-integrated and -selected anecdotes. The ending is somewhat anti-climactic, but Axelrod's analysis of the historical significance of this battle seems right on the mark to this reviewer. This will make a nice addition to your library of works on World War I, but keep in mind that the focus of this work is very narrow.
True Grit February 8, 2008
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
Not even in Vietnam did we suffer as these soldiers did at Belleau Wood. An excellent, blow-by-blow overview of the heroics of the 4th & 6th Marine Brigages.
Semper Fidelis - Now as Then January 6, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
American Marines have been fighting this country's battles since early 1776, when they landed and stormed British forts in the Bahamas to obtain guns and powder for Washington's beleaguered army. However, from its birth at Tun Tavern in Philadelphia, 1775, the many heroic exploits of the Marine Corps were unsung by the media and by history until WW I, when, against enormous odds, they took German positions at Chateau-Thierry and Belleau Woods, while the French were in retreat, attacking high ground against the best of the advancing Germany Army. Where now famous two-time Medal of Honor recipient, Sergeant Dan Daly, was reported to have shouted to his men, "Come on you sons-of-bitches! Do you want to live forever?"
The Marines kept up the offensive against the German positions, which were supported by the crossfire of heavy machinegun positions. However, using superior rifle marksmanship, firepower and sheer will, which has become the earmark of Marines from 1775 to the battle for Falluja and beyond, they overran and took the German positions.
In honor of the Marines who fought there, the French renamed the woods, "Bois de la Brigade de Marine," and for which the Fifth and Sixth Marine Regiments won the French Foragere, which means they won the Croix de Guerre at least twice. In fact they won it three times for their actions.
The citation reads, "In 1918, Marines of the 5th and 6th Regiments, of the 4th American Brigade, by their heroic deeds of valor, inscribed the names of momentous and brilliant battles on pages of Marine Corps history.
"They have the single honor of being the only two regiments in the American European Forces to receive three citations; two in the Order of the Army and one in the Order of the Corps, the Fourragere and the Croix de Guerre with two Palms and one Guilt Star.
"The first award of the Croix de Guerre came after the battle of Belleau Wood, "in recognition of the brilliant courage, the vigor and tenacity [of Marines who] overcame all hardships and losses and captured the village of Bouresches and Belleau Wood." The second award of the Croix de Guerre followed shortly after the Battle of Soissons, where Marines of the 5th and 6th Regiments, tired, hungry, and thirsty, without adequate weapons, armed with only a rifle and bayonet, smashed through the enemy positions in one of the most dashing victories of the war, capturing hundreds of guns and thousands of prisoners.
"The final award came after the battle of Champagne, which opened the Western approaches to the Argonne."
The book describes in detail the hardships in not only the lack of supplies and basic necessities such as food, water and transportation, but also in communication and intelligence, not to mention proper field maps and grid references. Yet, going beyond the pitfalls of what von Clauswitz called the "fog of war", the Marines not only prevailed, but took the fight to the enemy and defeated the enemy. The Germans called them "teufelhunden", or "Devil Dogs", a title hard won from some of the most ferocious, best trained and disciplined soldiers on earth at the time.
The one problem I have with the book is with its the cover, where the publisher has used a photo of Army soldiers, rather than Marines, in a book about Marines.
Overall, the book is well written, well researched and well presented.
Worth Reading August 25, 2007
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
Alan Axelrod has written a nice little history of the Battle at Belleau Wood. It flows so fast and Axelrod writes so well it's over before you know it. The research is very well done and Mr. Axelrod captures most of the legends & stories of the battle including the famous, "Retreat? Hell, we just got here." He very clearly establishes his case for this battle making the Marine Corps from a soon to be shut down after thought in the Navy to the vaunted fighting force America has employed for the last century.
The one book to compare this to is Devil Dogs by George Clark. I think the story told by Mr. Clark is more complete, detailed and thorough than the one told by Mr. Axelrod. On the other hand, Mr. Axelrod is a very good writer and the story flows out of his pen like lightening. At times I found Mr. Clarks book to be a slog, but this was never true of Mr. Axelrod's book.
If you're looking for an introduction to and a good understanding of the role of the Marine Corps in World War One, this is it.
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