1916 1919

REMEMBER HONOR EDUCATE

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War I

U.S. ARMY CENTER OF MILITARY HISTORY

THE U.S. ARMY IN

WORLD WAR I

FACT SHEET

WWW.HISTORY.ARMY.MIL/HTML/BOOKSHELVES/RESMAT/WWI/
Combatants

Allied Powers Central Powers

Principal Affiliated Associated

United Kingdom (and Commonwealth) Belgium United States (1917–1918) Germany

France (and colonies) Serbia Austria-Hungary

Russia (1914–1917) Montenegro (1914–1916) Ottoman Empire (Turkey)

Italy (1915–1918) Rumania (1916–1918) Bulgaria (1916–1918)

Japan Portugal (1916–1918)

Greece (1917–1918)

Brazil (1917–1918)

China (1917–1918)

U.S. Leadership

President Woodrow Wilson

Secretary of War Newton D. Baker

Chiefs of Staff Maj. Gen. Hugh L. Scott

Maj. Gen. Tasker H. Bliss

Maj. Gen. John Biddle (acting)

Gen. Peyton C. March (4 March 1918–30 June 1921)

Significant Dates

War 

Declaration 6 April 1917 (Germany)

7 December 1917 (Austria-Hungary)

Armistice 11 November 1918

Peace Treaties

Signed

24 August 1921 (Austria)

25 August 1921 (Germany)

29 August 1921 (Kingdom of Hungary)

World War I remains one of the defining events in the history of the U.S. Army. In all, more than four million served and half of them deployed overseas. The 

conflict capped a period of reform and professionalism that transformed the Army 

from a small dispersed organization rooted in constabulary operations to a modern 

industrialized fighting force capable of global reach and influence. Aviation went from 

an experiment to a significant element of combat power. Tanks and chemical warfare 

appeared for the first time. Improvements in artillery, machine guns, and small arms 

increased the impact of firepower by orders of magnitude. The Army adopted the 

general staff system and robust command echelons for divisions, corps, and armies, 

and learned how to deploy and employ mass formations. Many modern units and 

installations trace their lineage to the vast expansion of the Army for the war. The U.S. 

participation in the war marked the arrival of the United States as a leading power on 

the world stage. In sum, a modern soldier could go back one hundred years and feel 

at home in the Army of 1918, while a soldier from the latter 1800s transported forward 

two decades would have been thoroughly disoriented by the vast change. The commemoration of World War I allows today’s Army to connect with an important element 

of its past and gain an appreciation for the impact of institutional transformation.
U.S. Army Statistics:

 Status of U.S. Army (1 April 1917):

Regular Army: 127,588 (5,971 officers; 121,797 enlisted)

Philippine Scouts: 5,523

National Guard: 181,620

 In Federal Service: 80,446

 In State Service: 101,174

 Total Available: 213,557 (9,693 officers; 203,864 enlisted)

 Status of U.S. Army (11 November 1918):

 Total Army Forces: 4,176,297

Wartime increments: 3,882,617

Commissioned: 203,786

Inducted: 2,801,373

Enlisted: 877,458

 Legal authorization for conscription: Selective Service Act (18 May 1917)

 Total registered: 24,234,021

American Expeditionary Forces (AEF), Europe:

Commander: General John J. Pershing

HQ Unit: General Headquarters (GHQ)

Location: Chaumont, France

 

AEF Strength (30 November 1918):

 Total: 1,929,760 (80,004 officers; 1,849,756 enlisted)

 Logistics Organization: Services of Supply (SOS)

 Location: Tours, France

 Strength (11 November 1918):

 Officers: 30,593

 Nurses: 5,586

 Enlisted: 602,910

 Total: 644,540

 

 Units:

 Armies (3): First Army (org 10 August 1918)

 Second Army (org 10 October 1918)

Third Army (org 7 November 1918)

 Corps (9): I Corps – IX Corps

 Divisions (43): 

 Regular Army: 1st through 8th

 National Guard: 26th through 42d

 National Army: 76th through 93d

American Expeditionary Forces, Siberia:

 Commander: Maj. Gen. William S. Graves

 Approximate Size of Force: 8,400 (300 officers; 8,100 enlisted)

 Length of Campaign: July 1918–April 1920

 Purpose: To aid Russian and Czech-Slovak forces and protect war materiel
American Expeditionary Forces, North Russia:

 Commander: Col. George E. Stewart (September 1918–April 1919)

 Brig. Gen. Wilds P. Richardson (April–August 1919)

 Approximate Size of Force: 4,500 (150 officers; 4,350 enlisted)

 Length of Campaign: September 1918–August 1919

 Purpose: To support Czech-Slovak forces in Russia and protect war materiel

Campaign Streamers: 

 Cambrai (20 November–4 December 1917)

 Somme Defensive (21 March–6 April 1918)

 Lys (9-27 April 1918)

 Aisne (27 May–5 June 1918)

 Montdidier-Noyon (9–13 June 1918)

 Champagne-Marne (15–18 July 1918)

 Aisne-Marne (18 July–6 August 1918)

 Somme Offensive (8 August–11 November 1918)

 Oise-Aisne (18 August–11 November 1918)

 Ypres-Lys (19 August–11 November 1918)

 St. Mihiel (12–16 September 1918)*

 Meuse-Argonne (26 September–11 November 1918)*

 Vittorio Veneto (24 October–4 November 1918)

 (*) denotes U.S.-led operation

Casualties:

 AEF Casualties:

Killed in action: 37,171 (1,648 officers; 35,523 enlisted)

Died of wounds: 12,934 (559 officers; 12,375 enlisted)

Wounds not mortal: 193,602 (6,904 officers; 186,698 enlisted)

Total casualties: 243,707 (9,111 officers; 234,596 enlisted)

 North Russia & Siberia:

Killed in action: 27 (1 officer; 26 enlisted)

Died of wounds: 8 (0 officers; 8 enlisted)

Wounds not mortal: 52 (4 officers; 48 enlisted)

Total casualties: 87 (5 officers; 82 enlisted)

 Troops at Sea:

Killed in action: 370 (7 officers; 363 enlisted)

Dies of wounds: 0

Wounds not mortal: 5 (1 officer; 4 enlisted)

Total casualties: 375 (8 officers; 367 enlisted)

 U.S. Army Non-Battle Deaths: 55,868

Significant Battles and Actions (relevant streamer)

Battle of Cantigny 27–31 May 1918 (Aisne)

Battle of Belleau Wood 1–26 June 1918 (Aisne)

Second Battle of the Marne 15 July–6 August 1918 (Aisne-Marne)

Battle of Chateau Thierry 18 July 1918 (Aisne-Marne)

Battle of Soissons 18–22 July 1918 (Aisne-Marne)

Montfaucon 26–28 September 1918 (Meuse-Argonne)

Lost Battalion 2–8 October 1918 (Meuse-Argonne)