School of Advanced Military Studies

Two-hundred Days of Combat: the Division Staff During the Great War School of Advanced Military Studies

When the United States declared war on Kaiser Wilhelm?s government on April 6, 1917, the U. S. Army underwent a profound growth and transformation to conduct combat operations against the German Imperial Army. Since the U. S. Army grew from 125, 000 men to over 4,000, 000, there was an increased requirement for capable staff officers, especially on division-level staffs, to assist commanders with directing combat operations. To address the major shortfall in capable staff officers, the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF), under the command of General John J. Pershing, developed a standardized staff organization, created the Army General Staff College in Langres, France, and expected staff officers to hone their skills while undergoing the trials of combat. This all contributed to the creation of U. S. division-level staff officers capable of synchronizing complex military operations on the Western Front of France and contributed to the Allied victory over the Central Powers by November 1918.