The Madine region and the Meuse were the sites of bloody battles during World War I. At the end of September 1914, the German army took control of most of the Woëvre plain, the Meuse coast, and the town of Saint-Mihiel. The region experienced heavy fighting until its liberation by Franco-American troops under the command of General Pershing in September 1918. Today, trenches, forts, and memorials are reminders of the violence of the conflict in this part of Eastern France.