On June 6, 1918, in a quiet forest just thirty-nine miles from Paris, the United States Marine Corps stepped into history—and hell.

At Belleau Wood, fresh American forces met a hardened German enemy in a battle that would come to define the character of the Corps and the cost of liberty. It was the deadliest single day in Marine Corps history up to that time, with more than a thousand casualties suffered in wheat fields and tangled underbrush.

In this episode of Dave Does History, we revisit the grit, sacrifice, and command missteps of that brutal day. Through firsthand accounts and a close look at what went wrong—and right—we’ll explore how a blood-soaked forest in France became sacred ground for generations of Marines.

This isn’t just a story about war. It’s a story about courage, chaos, and what happens when liberty hangs by a thread—and men stand up to hold the line.