User blog:LB&SCR/GWM Episode 6: Albert Mayer v Henry Gunther

It is two my knowledge that WWI is the first modern conflict to have detailed records of it's combatants, including those who wound up being deceased and in what order they fell in; at least to a point. Which is why today we round out the Great War Memorial Series with a battle between the first and last military casualties of the Great War (not counting the continuing bloodshed in Russia). We have Prussian Cavalryman Albert Mayer of the German Empire, against American Infantryman Henry Gunther. We present the first and the last, and it'll be up to the voter to determine which of these men shall meet death again.

Albert Mayer


It feels appropriate to start with Albert Mayer. Mayer enlisted in the German Army at the age of 20 in 1912. His family had been living in the Alsace region prior to the war, and he was serving in the region in a local patrol for those two years until the outbreak of hostilities in late July of 1914. In August not a short time later, war had not even been declared between Germany and France. However, Mayer (now a Cavalry Lieutenant) moved his patrol into French Territory on August 2nd, a full day before war had been declared.

His unit was scouting the area when they came upon the small village of Joncherey. Word had not yet made it to the French High Command about the border crossing, despite Mayer and his men having engaged in two prior skirmishes with French Patrols. At 9:30 that morning, Mayer attacked and wounded a French Sentry guarding the town entrance with his saber, wounding but not killing him. The local French Soldiers were at their billet, enjoying Breakfast when the homeowner's daughter burst in, yelling about Prussians. Goadee by the daughter, the local infantry went to inspect.

They met around 9:59 that morning. The French, led by a Corporal Peugeot, announced that the Prussians had trespassed, and were now under arrest on the authority of the French State. In response, Mayer drew his pistol and fired thrice at him, hitting him once. He then turned in his saddle to order the rest of his men to fire, but the French had pulled out their own sidearms and opened fire. Mayer was hit once in the stomach and once in the head, killing him.

Mayer's death caused the rest of the Prussians to retreat. Albert Mayer was the first casualty of World War I. Corporal Peugeot, who had been shot by Mayer, died 30 minutes later of the wound he had been given, making him the second Casualty of World War I. France and Germany would officially go to war the next day.

Weapon

 * -| Long Arm =

Gewehr 98AZ



The Gewehr 98AZ was developed in 1908 to arm soldiers who were in non-infantry roles: engineers, cavalrymen, artillerymen, etc. It was also later issued to Stormtroopers due to it's lighter weight.
 * Weight: 8.2 lbs or 3.7 kilograms
 * Cartridge: 7.92 x 57mm Mauser
 * Rate of Fire: 15 RPM
 * Muzzle Velocity: 2,881 ft/s
 * Feed System: 5-round stripper clips
 * -| Short Arm =

Mauser C96



The Mauser C96 was a developed in 1906/07 to fill the void in Germany's Military and Commercial Market, with many of them being sold to outside parties alongside the German Government. It's popularity was due to a combination of both the gun's unique appearance and abnormally long barrel., granting it accuracy superior than other handguns at the time.
 * Weight: 2 lbs 8 oz or 1.13 kilograms
 * Cartridge: 7.62 x 25mm Mauser
 * Rate of Fire: Exact Uknown
 * Muzzle Velocity: 1,394 ft/s
 * Feed System: 10-round stripper clips
 * -| Melee =

Prussian Cavalry Saber



I was unable to find any specific Prussian Models past the 1850s, and I assume they updated their swords at least once since then, so most numbers shall be general.

World War I pretty much killed the concept of horse cavalry as a viable method of combat, but early in the war units on both the West and Eastern Fronts made us of Cavalry charges until machine guns chewed them to bits. As such, a Cavalryman like Mayer is recorded to have used a saber at least twice on occasion during the day he died.

The Standard Saber is roughly in between three or four feet long depending on the branch. It is made of steel with a slight curve in the blade to use for slicing duties. It does have a minimal handguard for some hand protection.

Henry Gunther


It's also appropriate that we end with Henry Gunther. Gunther, unlike many of his patriotic countryman, did not join the military upon the immediate declaration of war on Germany, mostly due to his parents both being natural-born Germans who had emigrated to the US. This did not last long however, as his number came up and he was whisked off in the draft, and soon climbed the rank to be the sergeant of supply.

This also did not last long. The Mail Censor Board got ahold of one of his letters home, in which he described the horrid conditions the American Troops were kept in, and advised his friends to "avoid the draft at all costs," which immediately saw him disciplined and busted to the rank of private; pushing him into a combat role. His unit was embroiled in the fighting even on November 11, as the Western Allies weren't going to rest until the exact time at 11 o'clock had been reached.

It was roughly 10:59 AM; and the squad Gunther was attached to reached a checkpoint guarded by two German Machine Guns. Against the orders of his Sergeant and friend, Gunther got up and charged the Machine Guns. The group of Germans, aware that the Armistace would take place in only a minute, seriously tried waving Gunther away with gestures and hand motions, but Gunther paid them no mind as he started taking shots at them.

Once he got too close, a single German opened up with a short burst of automatic gunfire, killing Gunther instantly. It is questioned to this day why Gunther did his suicidal run at the German position, but the closest answers we have are observations from his squad-fellows, who noted that being busted in rank had hit Gunther extremely hard, and he had been overcome with a determination to show his fellows and officers that he was still worthy of being a soldier alongside them.

John J. Pershing confirmed Gunther as the last allied soldier to die in WWI, and the army posthumously promoted him to Sergeant and awarded him the Distinguished Service Cross, which he still holds to this day.

Weapons

 * -| Long Arm =

M1917 Enfield



The M1917 Enfield was an American Version of the British Pattern 1914 Enfield, while not being a carbon-copy it was still rather close. Numerically, it outnumbered the Springfield 1903 in the hands of the American Expeditionary Force in Europe during WWI.
 * Weight: 9.18 lbs or 4.17 kgs
 * Cartridge: .30-06 Sprinfield
 * Rate of Fire: Unknown
 * Muzzle Velocity: 2,800 ft/s
 * Feed System: 5-round Stripper Clips
 * -| Short Arm =

Colt M1911



The Colt M1911 was the standard American sidearmed issued in WWI. Having shown good reliability during the punitive expedition into Mexico, the weapon also faithfully served the US during the Great War.
 * Weight: 39 oz or 1,100 grams
 * Cartridge: .45 ACP
 * Rate of Fire: Unknown
 * Muzzle Velocity: 830 ft/s
 * Feed System: 7-round magazine
 * -| Melee =

Model 1917 Bayonet



The Model 1917 Bayonet was specifically designed to fit the Enfield 1917 rifle, as the 1903 had a different bayonet lug. The blad is 17 inches of steel, and it weighs roughly 1 lb 2 oz or 511 grams. For those of you who like trivia, this is also the bayonet model made for the American Shotguns that saw use in WWI. The last production batch was also made in 1966, quite a long run for an outdated weapon.

Note
I apologize for a lack of X-Factors on this fight. It's not out of laziness but out of a lack of information on the parties involved. I'll leave it up to the discretion of the voter to decide whether one of them is more skilled or mentally stable or whichever line of reasoning you'd like to follow. Until next time.