Third Battle of the Aisne (27 May–6 June 1918), third phase (Operation Blücher) of the German Spring Offensive
For his heroism in the Aisne defensive at Boursches and Belleau Wood, he was awarded the Navy Cross, the Distinguished Service Cross and Oak Leaf Cluster, in addition to the Purple Heart.
Between that time and his death, he served in the Toulon sector, in the Aisne operation, and at Belleau Wood.
Reaching the Aisne in under six hours, the Germans smashed through eight Allied divisions on a line between Reims and Soissons, pushing the Allies back to the river Vesle and gaining an extra 15 km of territory by nightfall.
•
The Germans had held the Chemin des Dames Ridge from the First Battle of the Aisne in September 1914 to 1917, when General Mangin captured it during the Second Battle of the Aisne (in the Nivelle Offensive).
•
The defense of the Aisne area was in the hands of General Denis Auguste Duchêne, commander of the French Sixth Army; in addition, four divisions of the British IX Corps, led by Lieutenant-General Sir Alexander Hamilton-Gordon, held the Chemin des Dames Ridge; they had been posted there to rest and refit after surviving the "Michael" battle.
Battle of Waterloo | Battle of Britain | Battle of the Somme | Battle of the Bulge | Battle of Gettysburg | Battle Creek, Michigan | Battle of France | Battle of Trafalgar | Aisne | Battle of Hastings | Battle of Antietam | battle | Battle of Shiloh | Battle of Midway | Battle of Belleau Wood | Battle of the Alamo | Battle of Leipzig | Battle of Agincourt | Battle of Verdun | Battle of Thermopylae | Battle of the Plains of Abraham | Battle of Vienna | Second Battle of the Marne | Second Battle of El Alamein | Battle of the Nile | Battle of the Boyne | Battle of Stalingrad | Battle of Austerlitz | The Last Battle | Kathleen Battle |
In the retreat during Operation Michael in March 1918 his efforts resulted in a bar to his DSO, and during the Third Battle of the Aisne he won his VC for inspiring the defence of a hill above the River Vesle at Jonchery during 27–29 May 1918.