Marines from the Wounded Warrior Regiment traveled to France to commemorate the anniversary of the Battle of Belleau Wood. The Marine Corps Association & Foundation largely funded the trip.
Marines from the Wounded Warrior Regiment traveled to France to commemorate the anniversary of the Battle of Belleau Wood. The Marine Corps Association & Foundation largely funded the trip.
Marines from the Wounded Warrior Regiment traveled to France to commemorate the anniversary of the Battle of Belleau Wood. The Marine Corps Association & Foundation largely funded the trip.
Every year on the Sunday before Memorial Day, U.S. Marines join their French hosts in a ceremony at Aisne-Marne American Cemetery located at the northern edge of Belleau Wood to remember the Americans who died turning back the German assault on Paris in 1918.
"I went because Belleau Wood is the birthplace of the modern Marine Corps," said Tom Esslinger said, MCA&F chief operating officer. "It was the first time Marines engaged in large unit (battalion and regiment) combat. The battalion strength attacks were the precursor to the attacks on the islands of the Pacific War in WWII. As such, it is a pilgrimage all Marines aspire to."
Marine veteran Esslinger is with the regiment on the European trip, which includes multiple visits to World War I Marine battlefields. The tour is hosted by Military Historical Tours and led by retired Marine Colonel William V. H. “Bill” White.
"The funding of trips like this for the Wounded Warrior Regiment helps with their goal of enabling these Marines to think and act like Marines, rather than victims. It reinforces their pride in being Marines," Esslinger said.
To see other highlights from the historical trip to France, visit here.