The Battle of Belleau Wood

During the June 1918 Battle of Belleau Wood, the Allies repelled a German offensive in France and proved the worth of the U.S. Marine Corps.  As this diorama at the National Museum of the Marine Corps shows, the combat could get very close even with modern weapons -- here, a Marine is trying to stab a German soldier while pushing away the German's pistol.  By the end of the month, the Germans had been defeated at the cost of over 1800 Allied troops, and Major Maurice E. Shearer reported "Woods now U.S. Marine Corps entirely."  While the Germans probably did not invent the nickname Devil Dogs for the Marines during this battle, they did praise the Marines' "fiery advance and great tenacity."  The U.S. Navy later named two ships USS Belleau Wood.