The salute of General Black Jack Pershing, Commander in Chief of the American Expeditionary Force, landing in France, June, 1917. Pershing landed in Boulogne on June 13.
Le Salut du Général Pershing, Commandant en Chef des Troupes Américanines, à la terre de France. (Juin 1917).Message dated September 18, 1917R et E[nvoyée?] le 20-9-1917Reverse:Postmarked September 18, 1917
"France's new allies received a very different welcome [from that given the Russians]. The first American units had disembarked in June 1917, but the build-up over the autumn and winter was slow, and by January only 161,750 men had crossed the Atlantic. By September, however, there would be over 1.5 million American troops in France."
After their revolution in November, 1917, the Bolsheviks agreed an armistice with the Central Powers while a peace treaty was negotiated. Many French, anticipating a German offensive supported by troops recently redeployed from the Eastern Front, spoke ill of their former ally. The United States had declared war in April, 1917, but were not on the front lines.
They Shall Not Pass: The French Army on the Western Front 1914-1918 by Ian Sumner, page 185, copyright © Ian Sumner 2012, publisher: Pen and Sword, publication date: 2012
1918-01-12, 1918, January, American soldier, Pershing
