The Lost Battalion

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The Lost Battalion(2001).

The Lost Battalion was a made for television movie in 2001 for the A&E Network. It chronicled the plight of an World War One American battalion who was trapped behind German lines in the Argonne Forest, France in October of 1918.

Note: There are two famous instances of 'Lost battalions' and people tend to get them confused. One is the World War I event portrayed in this movie , and the second is the World War II event, when 1st Battalion, 141st Infantry, 36th I.D. (Texas) became trapped behind German lines in France. In the World War II incident, the Japanese American 442 Regimental combat team fought through to save them and this battle became particularly famous due to the massive losses incurred by the "Nisei". (442 RCT) I Company went in with 185 men only eight walked out. K Company began with 186 men and ended up with 17 men. As for the Lost Battalion, 230 men were rescued. The 442nd were all named 'honorary' Texans by the Texas state legislature for their actions.

In the World War One Incident, United States 77th Division (with 554 men) were surrounded by German Forces. Of the total force, 197 were KIA, 150 were either MIA or POWs, and only 194 were rescued.

M1917 Enfield

M1917 Enfields are used by the American troops. It is evident from the bolt handle which projects back and then down rather than out and down that it is a M1917 rather than a M1903. It's correct to see them carrying M1917s as M1903 Springfields were shorted in numbers so the M1917 was manufactored and massivly produced in World War 1.

M1917 Enfield .30-06

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Enfield 1917 used by the American troops.

File:Enfield 1917 Closeup.png

The shape of the bolt handle is obvious here, distinguishing it from the M1903.

M103 Springfield

Seen in the hands of a few American soldiers, this rifle was less common than the Enfield.

M1911

Used by the American officers. The hammer spur is small enough to indicate that they got the weapons right for the period by using a M1911 rather than a 1911A1.

Original Colt M1911 (dated 1913) - .45 ACP

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M1911 pistol used by the American officers.

File:M1911 1.png

File:M1911 2.png

A high amount of muzzle flash is visible in this picture.

Mauser 98/22

Used by the German troops. These have long handguards and flat tangent sights, suggesting they're Czech Model 98/22 rifles rather than actual German Gewehr 98s. This is a better substitute than the more commonly used Turkish model.

File:Mauser9822.png

Mauser Model 98/22 7.92x57mm Mauser

File:Mauser K98.png

Gewehr 98 used by the German troops. The straight bolt handle is visible on the rifle on the right.

File:Mauser K98 1.png

Line of German troops firing their Gewehr 98 rifles with fixed bayonets.