First World War.com - Vintage Audio - From The Battlefields of France

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General John Pershing Vintage Audio: From The Battlefields of France
Updated - Sunday, 3 November, 2002

Reproduced below is the message recorded by U.S. Commander-in-Chief John Pershing in 1918 entitled From the Battlefields of France.

Pershing's speech - a brief message in actuality - essentially served as a rallying effort intended to boost the recruitment effort back home in the U.S.

Click here to listen to a recording of Pershing's speech from 1918 (MP3 format 67kb)

From the Battlefields of France

Three thousand miles from home, an American army is fighting for you. Everything you hold worthwhile is at stake.

Only the hardest blows can win against the enemy we are fighting.

Invoking the spirit of our forefathers, the army asks your unshrinking support, to the end that the high ideals for which America stands may endure upon the earth.

An "incendiary shell" is an artillery shell packed with highly flammable material, such as magnesium and phosphorous, intended to start and spread fire when detonated.