Dear friend – Wikipedia

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Cher ami is a traveler pigeon given by Pigeonniers from the United Kingdom, driven by American doors, then donated to the United States Army Signal Corps for use in France during the First World War. He participated in the rescue of the Lost Battalion of the 77 It is American infantry division during the Meuse-Argonne offensive in October 1918.

The , Charles Whittlesey and around 550 men from 9 companies 77 It is American infantry division forming what will be appointed by the press Lost Battalion are trapped in a small depression on the side of a hill close to enemy lines, without food or ammunition. They also begin to undergo friends on the part of the Allied troops which are not aware of their position. Defined by the Germans, several soldiers are killed or injured the first two days and only 200 men will be free from the arrival of aid [ first ] . Whittlesey then sends messages by pigeon [ 2 ] . The first pigeon, carrying the message “Many injured. We cannot evacuate. »» [ T 1 ] is shot. A second pigeon is sent with the message “Men suffer. Can we have support [ T 2 ] ? » And is also killed. The last pigeon, dear friend, was then sent on October 4 [ first ] carrying in a cannule to his left paw the message “We are along the road parallel to 276.4. Our own artillery makes a dam shot on us. For the love of the sky, stop [ T 3 ] ! » .

While Dear Friend flies to his house, the Germans saw him and open fire for several minutes [ 3 ] . The men of Lost Bataillon See dear friend getting touch and falling to the ground, but he resumes his flight. He manages to regain his shelter in the headquarters of the division, covering 25 miles in 25 minutes ( 90 km/h ), making it possible to save the life of 194 men. During this mission, Dear Friend delivers his message although he was touched in the chest and an eye, that he is covered with blood and that one of his legs only hold by a tendon.

Dear friend is then the hero of the 77 It is American infantry division, which earned him care from the doctors of the regiment. They were not able to save his paw, but made him a wooden prosthesis. Once his health was found, dear friend was repatriated to the United States by boat, General John J. Pershing personally assistant to his departure from France.

Upon his return to the United States, dear friend, decorated with oak leaves, becomes the mascot of the department. It is also decorated with the War Cross with Palme for its heroic action in the delivery of 12 messages in the Verdun sector [ 4 ] , [ 5 ] . He died in Fort Monmouth (in) , in New Jersey, the of the injuries received during his last battle and entered the Racing Pigeon Hall of Fame in 1931. He also received the gold medal from the Organized Bodies of American Racing Pigeon Fanciers in recognition of his prowess during the war [ 6 ] .

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The dear friend’s stuffed body is part of the Smithsonian Institution collection [ 7 ] .

Translation notes [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

  1. ↑ “Many wounded. We cannot evacuate.”.
  2. ↑ “Men are suffering. Can support be sent?”.
  3. ↑ “We are along the road paralell [ sic ] to 276.4. Our own artillery is dropping a barrage directly on us. For heaven’s sake, stop it!”.

References [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

  1. ↑ a et b (in) ‘ Charles Whittlesey Commander of the Lost Battalion » , on http://www.worldwar1.com/ (consulted the ) .
  2. ↑ (in) ‘ The ‘Stop It’ Telegram » , www.lettersofnote.com (consulted the ) .
  3. ↑ (in) Jim Greelis, ‘ Pigeons in Military History» , World of Wings, .
  4. ↑ Spencer Tucker; Priscilla Mary Roberts, World War I: A Student Encyclopedia, Santa Barbara, 2006. p. 440 .
  5. ↑ The National Museum of American History. Smithsonian .
  6. ↑ (in) National Pigeon Day, ‘ History of Cher Ami» , .
  7. ↑ ‘ Cher ami » , Smithsonian (consulted the ) .
  • (in) Marion Fair , Cher Ami : The story of a carrier pigeon , Boston, Little, Brown, and Company, (Salt B00085G56U )
  • (in) Harry Webb Farrington , Cher ami: selection , Rough and Brown Press, (Salt B001MQ3I5K )
  • (in) Harry Webb Farrington , Cher Ami and Poems From France , Rough and Brown Press, (Salt B00KGG0TCM )
  • (in) Robert Laplander, Finding the Lost Battalion : Beyond the Rumors, Myths and Legends of America’s Famous WW1 Epic , Lulu.com, , 616 p. (ISBN  978-1-4116-7656-5 And 1411676564 , read online )

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