Category Archives: History

GERMANY – IMPERIAL DREAMS IN THE PHILIPPINES

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Uncle Sam heading towards the Chinese markets with lots to sell.

European nations were holding their breath as relations between Spain and the United States worsened in 1898. While much of the attention centered on Cuba and the Caribbean, the Philippines also gathered some thought. Several of the nations had ongoing commercial relationships within the Philippines. To officially protect their nationals living and working in the Spanish Manila naval ships were sent. One of those nations with more than a casual interest in events in the Philippines included Germany.

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MISTY REALM OF THE BLACK CUILLIN HORSESHOE OF SKYE

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The Black Cuillin Horseshoe on the island of Skye from atop Bruach nan Frithe.
The Black Cuillin Horseshoe on the island of Skye from atop Bruach nan Frithe.

The Horseshoe of the Black Cuillin is not only the center of attention for would-be mountaineers on the island of Skye, but maybe Britain, as well. Making a trip to the ancestral home of Scotland – maybe the first of my clan since the early 18th century – I decided to include a little walking with the history on my first venture into Scottish mountains.

Skye is a bit north of the islands of my clan – Mull, Islay. Vikings and the clan Macleod and MacDonald figure strongly in the histories here. The island has become a bit of tourist destination with its wild beauty and Celtic traditions. “Winged Island”, “Isle of Clouds” are two interpretations of the original meaning of Skye. The latter version showed up in force during my visit.

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SECOND OREGON IN THE PHILIPPINES – 19TH CENTURY IMPERIAL ENDING

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Peace Protocol is signed between the US (President McKinley standing in the center) and Spain (the French Ambassador signing for Spain) 12 August 1898

The men of the Second Oregon waited for a month and a half in Cavite, Philippines. July went on and the 1st California and 14th US were moved out of Cavite into the field taking positions to the south of Manila. Other units from later arriving forces did the same. The Oregonians were not excited about being left behind to drill back at Cavite while the others were out on the firing lines.

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OREGON SAILS OUT OF THE 19TH CENTURY TO THE PHILIPPINES

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SECOND OREGON VOLUNTEERS GO TRANS-PACIFIC

Monument 2nd Oregon
Monument to the Second Oregon Volunteer Infantry Regiment who served in the Philippines – Lownsdale Square, downtown Portland, Oregon.

The Spanish-American War enjoyed ramped up emotions across the United States.  Oregon was by no means immune in the enthusiasm to teach Spain a lesson. The state’s National Guard – a part-time militia more trained in strike-breaking than actual warfare – consisted of a brigade of two regiments. President William McKinley requested the State to furnish the Army with one regiment in the war with Spain, so a little selecting had to be done initially. And with the distance involved between Oregon and Cuba, there was little chance of Oregon troops being involved in the main war there. Dewey’s 1 May victory at Manila Bay, however, gave the men from the Beaver State another opportunity, but instead of going transcontinental, the Second Oregon would need to go trans-Pacific to participate off to the Philippines.  

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PORTLAND, MEMORIES OF THE SECOND OREGON AND THE PHILIPPINES

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THE SECOND OREGON VOLUNTEERS IN THE PHILIPPINES BY WAY OF THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR

Soldiers Monument in River View Cemetery to men of the Second Oregon Volunteer Regiment.

You can tell important seminal moments in many American cities by some memorials and parks found within the city. Philadelphia has the Liberty Bell. San Antonio has the Alamo.  Indianapolis has the massive Soldiers and Sailors Monument from the Civil War. Portland has a leafy park across from the Federal Courthouse and the former Multnomah Courthouse where a statue stands proudly in the middle of the park. At first glance, someone might think the Civil War is being remembered in some way.  But the rest of the monument has nothing to do with the Civil War. It is a monument honoring the dead of the Second Oregon Volunteers who fought in the Spanish-American War. Surrounding the monument, a series of marble stumps resemble artillery shells. The battle names inscribed have nothing to do with Oregon in Cuba or Spain, but everything to do with the Philippines.

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MEUSE-ARGONNE CEMETERY – VALOR BUT NOT QUITE ENOUGH

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Distinguished Service Cross – established in 1918 as a second rank for valor to the Medal of Honor.

Others beyond the golden dead (Medal of Honor winners have their names inscribed in gold at cemeteries administered by the American Battlefields and Monuments Commission (ABMC)) earned medals for valor. Their headstones are inscribed with their awards, as well, here at Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery, just not in gold. You have to look a little harder.

This is the second of a series looking at some of the men and women lying buried at America’s largest cemetery in Europe, Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery in Romagne, France. Here, we look at the award given out on the second rung of heroism in the pantheon of awards for heroism in the American military system – the Distinguished Service Cross.

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MEUSE-ARGONNE ABMC CEMETERY – AMERICA’S GREATEST TEST – THE MEDALS OF HONOR

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Flags of the Allied Powers in the Chapel at Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery

THE CEMETERY

Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery is by far the largest of the cemeteries administered by the American Battlefields and Monuments Commission from the First World War. In fact, the cemetery is the largest ABMC cemetery in Europe, second in size in the World only behind the giant cemetery on the south side of Manila.

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SOMME ABMC CEMETERY – AMERICANS FIGHT WITH THE MOTHER COUNTRY IN THE GREAT WAR

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somme abmc chapel
The chapel at Somme ABMC cemetery.

General John J. Pershing resisted calls from the British and French to insert incoming American units as replacements for existing units. Pershing and President Woodrow Wilson both wanted American units to fight as an amalgamated unit on the Western Front. They wanted a true American army to provide a backbone for the future.

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AISNE-MARNE ABMC CEMETERY – AMERICA ENCOUNTERS THE GREAT WAR HEAD ON

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Aisne-Marne ABMC Cemetery
1919 panorama of what would become the Aisne-Marne ABMC Cemetery from the US 2nd Division website.

The Spring Offensives of 1918 rocked the Allies to the core. For a moment, it appeared the Great War could actually be lost. Enter America and the American Expeditionary Force – AEF. General John J. Pershing had been pushing against the desires of his fellow Allies to insert American troops as they became available into the ranks of the French or British armies. In the emergency of spring 1918, Pershing finally relented, agreeing to allow American divisions already present into the front lines as needed. The Aisne-Marne ABMC – American Battlefield and Monuments Commission – Cemetery is a result of that decision. 

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OISE-AISNE ABMC CEMETERY – AMERICAN SPIRIT AT THE SECOND MARNE

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Walking the cemetery with former Cemetery Superintendent Jeffrey Aarnio at Oise-Aisne ABMC.

People not acquainted well with the First World War might be surprised there was more than one Battle of the Marne. The first battle was by far the more famous, but the second proved to be as decisive, if not more, than the first. In this campaign, American units fought for lengthy periods of time in division sized units in a truly international campaign. The bulk of the effort was French, but there were British and Italian troops fighting alongside the Doughboys, throughout. The American efforts in the Second Marne are remembered in the ABMC – American Battlefields and Monuments Commission – Oise-Aisne Cemetery equidistant between the town of Fère-en-Tardenois to the west and Nesles to the east – about 1 kilometer either direction.

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