Cantigny, a small village in northern France, holds enduring memories of the U.S. Army's First Division from World War I, nearly a century after the conflict ended. The area features remnants of the battle, such as a trench used by soldiers, graffiti left by the troops, and recovered artifacts like grenades and a faded 48-star flag. The battle in May 1918 is a pivotal moment in history, marking a key point in the war where the American forces successfully stemmed a German offensive aimed at Paris.
More than a century after the fighting stopped, the U.S. Army's First Division has not fully faded from memory in Cantigny, the tiny hilltop village in northern France that it helped to save in World War I.
In the history books, the battle at Cantigny in May 1918 is recalled as a crisis point in the war. The Allied forces, replenished by the arrival of newly minted American soldiers, beat back a spring offensive by German units looking to aim their booming guns at Paris.
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