The Saga Of the Five of Hearts . ARMOR - JUly-AUgUSt 1988 35 A World War I Renault, Now Retired at Fort Meade, Fought Bravely and Well in U.S Armor’s First Battle

U. S. Army Retired 1988 marks the 70th anniversary of the formation in France of the U. S. Tank Corps during WWI. Also in 1918, a six-ton, two-man tank known as the Five of Hearts became famous in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. After the war, the battle-scarred Five of Hearts traveled to Camp (now Fort) Meade, Maryland, where it has stood ever since - a silent reminder of the fighting spirit of the WWI Tank Corps. The Five ol Hearts, an FT 1917 produced at the Renault Tank plant near Paris, received the serial number 1516. It carried a 37-mm gun and traveled only five miles per hour. Since it was designed to accompany infantry into battle, it didn’t need great speed. The FI’ 1917 was manned by a tank com-manderlgunner and a driver who were protected by an armor envelope thick enough to deflect small arms rounds and flying shrapnel. The TC/gunner’s small turret could rotate 360 degrees and, in addition to ‘vision slits, had a telescopic sight. There was an ample supply (237 rounds) of 37-mm ammunition on board. The tank’s main purpose was to engage and neutralize German machine gun nests, for which the 37- mm HE round was well adapted. Number 1516 was among the 200 or so FT 1917s the French gave to the American Expeditionary Force. Eventually, the tank arrived by rail at the town of Langres, where MAJ George S. Patton, Jr. was organizing and training the first of two U. S. light tank battalions which were to comprise his 304th Tank Brigade. Patton chose playing card suits for tactical markings on the turrets of his tanks. Each suit identified one of the four platoons in the companies he was organizing. The five tanks in each platoon also received a number. When 1516 arrived, it became part of C Company of the 326th (later 344th) Tank Battalion, and a white heart along with the number 5 was painted on its turret. From that point on it was known as the Five of Hearts. On 12 September 1918, after a period of intensive training, Patton took his two battalions, the 344th and 345th, into battle at St. Mihiel. This marked the very first time that tanks with American crews were committed to combat. The Five of Hearts was one of the 144 U. S.- manned fl 1917s to participate in the elimination of the St. Mihiel salient, which the Germans had held since 1914. At the end of this campaign, the 304th Brigade, with its remaining 108 tanks, moved by rail to assembly areas, where several corps of the A. E. F. were preparing to launch an offensive against the formidable Hindenburg Line. This operation, known as the Meuse-Argonne Campaign, jumped off on 26 September but soon became bogged down in front of the Germans’ well-sited field fortifications. Fresh American divisions deployed, and the attack resumed on 4 October. On this date, only 30 tanks of the brigade were still operable. The hearts platoon of C/344th was down to two tanks, the Five of Hearts and one other. When this platoon jumped off at 0530 on the 4th, LT Wood, the platoon leader, and CPL Rogers, the driver, manned the Five of Hearts. SGT Arthur Snyder commanded the other tank. The platoon supported the 16th Infantry of the 1st Division in the attack.

“... The armor plate on those old French Renaults was good, but when you came to close quarters, the splinters from bullets hitting around the vision slits did considerable damage to our personnel. Wood got wounded this way.... I’ In 1937, at Patton’s request, Snyder wrote an account of his activities on 4 October. Rogers also submitted a statement which corroborated Snyder’s story. They are both in the files of the Army Museum at Fort Meade, next to which the Five of Hearts stands today. An excerpt from Snyder’s narrative follows: Liaiterrartt Wood was oit iity right proceeding along a hedgerow froii wliiclt the Geniians were prodiicirig a severe ritacliiiie gin flarik fire. My orders were to keep strict liaisori with Lieiiteitarit Wood’s tank, arid wlieri I saw it cliarige direction, I did likewise. If we Itad had radios, this woiild riot have happened, became Wood was woiurded arid his drivec Corporal Rogers, was taking ltirii be-ltirid the infantry assaiilt line. Tlte1l Rogers, wlio was on!), a kid in Itis teens, iirider p a t danger to hint-serf, got oiit of his tank aiid crawled beyond tlie assault wave, eitdeavoriiig to signal lite to proceed in the attack. Jiist at this time, a Genttart shell exploded iirider the right tractor [track] of ritv tank, severing it in two-like a knife ciittirig apiece of striiig. Of course, the tank coiild tlteri go on(y in circles. Kelfy (Snyder’s driver) got it facing our lines. We got oiit tliroiigli tlie driver’s door arid had a crawling race to the rear of oiir assaiilt line. Here we foiiiid Wood arid Rogers arid their tank, the Five of Hearts. I rook coiitritarid of it arid, iisirig Rogers as niy driver, rehinted to the attack. nie enemy iiiacliirie gins in the hedgerow liad been practical[y silenced, biit tlie iitfariw coiild make little progress becaiise of liemy froit-tal iiiacliirie gin fire. As we proceeded in a fraital dim-tiori, we siidderi!y atcoiintered, at close piarten, air ertreiiiely large riiachirie girt nest that was well coli-cealed in a big shell crater. nte position had tiitdoribled& been iriiproved b-y field fortifications, arid it contained at least three ntacliirte gats, niqbe niore. We were fortlaiate that tlie position was riot slipported bv an accoiiipaiiv-irig artillen, piece, because in tlie fog arid smoke we were practicalIv on it (tlie ritacliiite gin nest), before ob-seniiig it. I saw a Geniiari raise a potato riiaslter (hand grenade with a handle) to throw at tis. If lie let it go, it did no hami arid we were caiisirtg corifisiort arid damage in that nest with oiir 37-111lii fire. The aniior plate on those old Freitcli Rerrarilts was good, biit wltar yoii came to close quarters, tlte splinters froiir bullets hitting around tlie vision slits did considerable damage to o w personnel. Wood got woiirided this w e. A s Rogers and I were hying to get aroriiid tlie right flank of that big ritacliiiie gin nest, he was hit aboiit his q e s with splinten. He fell forward in Itis driver’s seat but, fortunate&, did riot stall the riiotor, wliicli was an easy thing to do with those old tanks. I knelt behind Rogen, caiitioriirig him as to tlie iise of the foot throttle, arid, reacliirig forward to tlte steering lesers, steered the tank back to oiir lines. nie blood from Rogers’ woiirids was blinding ltirii arid when I left hiin at tlie dressing station, it was obvioiis that he was no loiigerfit for diity. I took Itis.45 pistol so the Five of Hearts woiild be stire to have a fill coriipleriierit of weapons arid then I looked for another tank mate. I was in the process of tryirig to get an iitfaiitryiiian, when I saw a niitiier wearing tlie Tank Corps ann band (a triarigilar patch divided into yellow, blue, arid red segments, siiiiilar to todqy’s Aniior patch). I foiirid that he was from the 345th Battalion arid had becoriie lost from his orgartiia-tioit. He told me that lie Itad graduated front our driver’s scltool ut the Tank Center at Laiigres so I irii-riiediateIv pressed hiin into service as niy third driver for the dqv. We at once rehinied to tlie attack arid foiind that tlie big iiiacliirie gin position liad been taken. Some of its personnel were being taken to the rear as prisoiiers. We proceeded down the Eveniiorit Ravine. A t the bottom of this ravine is a streani and, to the west of Eveniiorit, was a stone bridge that spartried it. Orders Itad been issiied riot to iise this bridge becaiise of its being niiired. Mv driver aiid I were just getting wadv to reconnoiter for a stream crossing, when I was approached b?, a captairi froin the 16th litfaittry. He iitfonited me that his company was being held iip by riiacltirre gin fire from the other side of the ravine. I told him I woiild slipport Itis coni-pari! as soon as I coiild find a place IO ford the stream. He asked lite wliv didn’t I iise the stone bridge, and I CY-plairted the orders. He mentioned having received similar ones brit had discovered that if the bridge liad been I 36 ARMOR - JUv-AugUSt 1988 I

Above, Five of Hearts after being painted silver in 1938 by two soldiers, Bennett and Ullman, of the 66th Infantry (Light Tanks). Right, Five of Hearts, taken on 4 October, 191 8 with the battlefield salvage and repair team which recovered it. - ' t 6.. *d riiiiied, it was no longer so. He asked iiie where riiy officers were, aiid I told liiiii about iiiy platoon leader having been wounded ear& in tlie riioniinig. I did riot know where arty of the Tank Corps were as the Five of Hearts was coivriiig a whole coriipariy front. I told tlie infantry officer that I would be glad to cross tlie bridge iirider a- istiiig circunistaiices, if so ordered. niis lie did With a mile arid the Five of Hearts crossed the bridge safely. Upon gaining tlie lieiglits on the riortli side of the Exenitorit Ravine, we iriiriiediately contacted the erieriiy. nie outposts gave way rapidly aiid several niacliirie gins were abari-doned. I have little doubt in niv own riiiiid that tlie sitliusiasiii to follow iri piirsliit made iiie go too far ahead of tlie infanny llie terrain flattened oiit, and there was little cover available, arid tlioiigli tlie going was roiigli, it afforded a rare opportliriity to fire at ittoring targets. I fear that tlie backs of those Gentians with their packs and heaiy oilexoats were impressing me more than keeping liaison with our iiflantry. However, tlie party was riot to last long, for when the cover was reached, we met with aieriiy resistance. Upon being fired on at close range, riiy driver was shot tliroiigli the throat, arid at the same time our engine stalled. I made riiuriy attempts to crank it from the gainer's coriipartriierit, biit to 1 1 0 avail. We were in iiiucli tlie same coridi-tioii as a disabled man-of-war. Our mobility was gone, arid with it all chance of riiarieuver mid the ability to seek cover. Oiir firepower was riot far from zero becaiise tlie 37-riiiii giri was jammed in tlie depressed position from bullets fired at close quarters. Several times I had put iiiy entire weight on tlie breech so as to elevate the piece, but now this had become ineffective. O w projectiles would hit tlie groiirtd orilv a few yards from tlie tank. rite hirret coiild riot be rotated becaiise it too was-jariirited w-tli biillets. To our left was a Geniiari 77-riirii field piece. ntere was plenty of ariiriiiiriitiori beside its trail. The breech-block had been removed when the giri was abari-doried, but now the Gentians began to reappear. It was a local corrriterat-tack. Mv wounded driver kept filling pistol clips arid I produced as riiiicli fire as possible with our pistols arid the crippled 37-niiii. I paid more attention to tlie voliiiite of fire than its ac-ciiraq, for I feared the eiierri-v would close iii if tlie voliime diriiirtislied. niree iiiacliirie gins were set lip at vey close range, brit just out of range of our piece with its limited elevation. nie fiapiieritatioii of our shells did afford some protection, biit I coiild not train this fire on the Gentian field piece. llie constant liariiriieniig of these niacliirie guns at close range was terrific. Die hinges on the doors coiild riot stand up wider it for long, but it was tlie niiisltrooiii ventilator on top of the himt that gave wq. I was hit iii the back of niv head with fragments of it arid bullet splintem. Die Geniiaiis made no at- I ARMOR - 37 tempt to close in; on the contray, they began to give way arid tlieri fled. I hai7e seen many nianpeloiis sights of troops in action, arid ort parade, biit I Jtase never seen, or ever expect to see, a inore glorioiis sight thari oiir infamy advancing toward iis at the high por! (rifles held chest Iiigli, bqoriets up). nte Five of Hearts arid Iter crew had done their job, arid oiir colors were not stnick iiritil relief Carrie to iis. Because of his head wound, Snyder was evacuated and did not return to the 344th. The Five of Hearts was found on the battlefield late on the 4th by a salvage and repair team of the brigade. A Signal Corps cameraman who happened to be present photographed the crippled tank. That photo is now in the National Archives in Washington, D. C. The caption states that the tank had "almost a hundred holes in it and the interior was splattered with blood. The whereabouts of the crew is unknown." In 1919, Camp Meade became the home of the US. Tank Corps. Assembled there were Patton's 304th Brigade and other light tank units, which had been formed too late to see action. Included were those from Dwight Eisenhower's tank training center at Gettysburg. Also, from France came the 305th Brigade with its two heavy battalions, one of which, the 302st, had participated in late September and October, 1918, in the Somme Offcnsive with British Mark V tanks. To the disappointment of Patton and Eisenhower, the National Defense Act of 1920 abolished the Tank Corps as a separate arm. Its units were incorporated into the Infantry. Those which had seen combat in 1918 were organized into the 1st Tank Group in 1921. In 1929, the Group became the 1st Tank Regiment which, in turn, was redesignated the 66th Infantry (Light Tanks) in 1932. The Five of Hearts, with its prominent battle scars, occupied a place of honor at Fort Meade in front of the headquarters of all these units, serving as a symbol of the distinguished combat record of the WWI Tank Corps. Two members of the Corps had received the Medal of Honor, and 42 the Distinguished Service Cross. In 1938, to mark the 20th anniversary of its first combat action, two soldiers of the 66th Infantry (Light Tanks) painted the Five of Hearts silver and then had their picture taken in front of it. The following year, the 66th was host to a reunion of Tank Corps veterans. For this occasion, the Five of Hearts was restored to its camouflage colors of 1918, and Arthur Snyder was invited as a guest of honor. The 1 October issue of the Baltimore Siiri reported his emotional reunion with the Five of Hearts. Although Snyder had not seen the tank since 4 October 1918, he had no trouble recognkzimg it by the chipped mushroom ventilator and other familiar features. As the United States prepared for participation in WW 11, the 66th Infantry moved in 1940 to Fort Benning, Georgia, where it became the 66th Armored Regiment in the newly-activated 2nd Armored Division. The Five of Hearts remained at Fort Meade. After the war, the llth, 6th, and 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiments temporarily adopted the Five of Hearts during their short stays at Meade. Because of these frequent changes in sponsorship, identity of this famous tank became confused. In the early 1950s, its tactical markings long obliterated by many coats of paint, the tank was thought to be the Ace of Hearts, another well-known tank of WW I, and its driver to have been Corporal Roberts, one of the two Medal of Honor recipients of the 1918 Tank Corps. Since the tank had stood for along time on Roberts Avenue at Meade, this mistake was understandable. In a letter to the Post Commander in 1954, Snyder cleared up this confusion and correctly identified the tank and its driver. In his letter, Snyder also stated that he "fought tanks again in WW I1 and served under Patton in Sicily." This almost forgotten tank, sitting on a concrete pad adjacent to the Army Museum at Fort Meade, has no current armored unit sponsor to keep alive its history and significance. It properly belongs to the 1st Battalion, 66th Armored Regiment at Fort Hood, Texas, the lineage of which goes directly back to C Company, 344th Tank Battalion, with which it fought in 1918. Major General William R. Kraft, Jr., was commissioned at West Point in 1942 and served with the 15th Cavalry Regiment, Mechanized, in WW II. He corn manded the 66th Tank Battalion in 1952-53, the 1st Brigade, 3d Armored Division in 1963-64, and was commanding general of 3d Armored Division from 1971 to 1973. He retired in 1977, and in 1987 was named Honorary Colonel of the 66th Tank Regiment. I 38 ARMOR -