THE PAINFUL DEATH OF THE WORLD WAR TWO HERO "TEDDY SHEEAN" HE WAS AWARDED THE VICTORIA CROSS MEDAL.

  

Today, World War II hero, Teddy Sheean, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross medal.

Edward "Teddy" Sheean was an ordinary seaman serving on HMAS Armidale whose death during a Japanese aerial attack on his ship has become a well-known episode in Australian Second World War lore.

His courageous sacrifice began when HMAS Armidale was hit by two aircraft-launched torpedoes off the coast of what is now Timor-Leste. Armidale began to sink fast.

Sheean was wounded and, rather than abandon ship, he strapped himself to his Oerlikon and began to engage the attacking aircraft even as the ship sunk beneath him. He shot down two planes, and crewmates recall seeing tracer rising from beneath the surface as Sheean was dragged under the water, firing until the end. He died on 1 December 1942 aged just 18.

Only 49 of the 149 men on board survived the attack and subsequent ordeal on rafts and in life boats.

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Painting depicting U.S. soldiers assaulting a German trench in the Frière forest during the Battle of Saint-Mihiel, September 12, 1918.

Today 105 years ago, on September 12, 1918, the Battle of Saint-Mihiel was fought - the first major U.S. offensive in the First World War. 

In October 1914, during the Battle of Flirey, the Germans had captured the town of Saint-Mihiel near the Meuse river, forming the St. Mihiel Salient, disrupting transportation between the French cities of Verdun and Nancy, as well as Paris.

As part of the Allied Hundred Days Offensive, U.S. Commander-in-Chief Pershing planned an offensive to eliminate the St. Mihiel Salient and capture the railway city of Metz. French forces would also join the attack.

The French supplied the U.S. with 3,000 artillery guns and 419 tanks. 144 of the tanks would be under the command of Lt. Colonel George Patton, who would later play an important role in WW2. The Allies had also assembled 1,481 aircrafts - the highest concentration of planes ever seen in battle so far.

The German defenses were strong at Saint-Mihiel, and heavy rain for 5 days had turned the battlefield muddy and thus difficult to attack in. But they lacked sufficient manpower and decided to begin withdrawing from the salient to the Argonne Forest already on September 10.

On September 12, 1918, following a massive 4-hour long artillery bombardment including phosgene gas shells, 216,000 U.S. and 110,000 French troops attacked at Saint-Mihiel.

Due to rain, mud, and heavy driven wind, the U.S. infantry and tanks had trouble advancing, and some began developing trench foot. Though due to the German withdrawal the defenders only numbered 75,000 soldiers, who offered little resistance.

By the evening of September 13, the U.S. and French forces had advanced 5 miles, eliminating the St. Mihiel Salient. Pershing halted further advances, as food and artillery couldn't be moved up the muddy roads.

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In the Battle of Saint-Mihiel, the U.S. and French suffered a combined 7,000 casualties - 4,500 deaths and 2,500 wounded. The Germans suffered some 22,500 casualties - 2,000 deaths, 5,500 wounded and 16,000 prisoners.

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