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k2kid · 5 years ago

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On January 24, 1916 a man from Hastings, Ontario enlisted with the 93rd Battalion, so beginning his military career.

We have one postcard and three letters from his overseas service, and they give us the opportunity to look a bit deeper into the war experience of Private John Edward Parker (reg. no. 195573).[i] Private Parker was a native of England, being born in the Lincoln, England region on August 10, 1889.

Having joined the Canadian Expeditionary Force with the 93rd Battalion Parker was sent to England with his battalion in July 1916 and sent a brief postcard to his mother upon his arrival in England.

Source: Deryck N. Robertson from the 18th Battalion Facebook Group.

July 24, 1915

Mrs J Parker Hastings Ontario Canada

Dear Mother,

Just a few lines hoping to find all well and to le you know that we landed cross safe. From J Parker

The short card, written one day prior to the R.M.S. Empress of Britain’s arrival at Liverpool, was a quick note to his mother letting her know he has arrived safely. It appears he wrote this card in preparation of landing in England with the realization he may not having time to write for some time as the battalion would be on the move to its training base and would begin the next stage of training in preparation for service on the Continent with the rest of the Canadian Corps.

Parker would soon find, in a space of 2-months, that he would be placed in a battalion that was not from his geographic region. Instead of a battalion from his region, such as the 21st Battalion – a battalion raised in Kingston, Ontario – Parker was assigned to the 18th Battalion, based out of Western/Southern Ontario. Arriving October 3, 1916, Parker would fight with the battalion until his second wounding on October 10, 1918.

The next communication from Private Parker is a letter written on February 28, 1917.

Source: Deryck N. Robertson from the 18th Battalion Facebook Group.

Feb 28th 1917

Dear Sisters,

Received your letter and pleased to hear that you were all well. I have not had a chance to answer it last week as we were in the line.

We are having some better weather now not quite so cold but mud and water up to the knees so you can imagine what it is like to walk through.

We are on a different part of the front now and we cannot buy a candle or any thing to eat either love nor money but we are making the best of it but we will be pleased when we can say we have done our bit and on our way home to a country that is worth living in, not a country like this.

We received the parcel with [the tabbles] and the sausages it was the first one for a long time. We are not getting very much mail for the last few weeks. We got a small parcel from Mrs. Markham last night and I tell you it came in alright but it did not last us very long. Well I don’t think have any more to tell you so I think I must come to a close. Hoping this will find you all in the best of health as it leaves us so at present so will close with love to all from your brother.

Pte. J E Parker

Parker had been in the field for five months. He joined the Battalion at the Somme and experienced some of the toughest action the 18th would endure. After the Somme, the Canadian Corps was moved to the Vimy Sector at the end of February 1917. The Battalion had moved out of the front-line on the 26th into the rear as Brigade Support and Private Parker had a chance to write home from his billet at one of three “shelters” (named Vistual, Rhine, Maison).

The letter aligns with the 18th Battalion War diary as it had been in the line prior to the letter. It had been a busy tour with the Battalion finding the trenches, “…in poor condition in several parts… This sector in very muddy condition necessitating continual work by the battalion to keep in repair.[ii] The tour in the lines was not without tragedy as the Battalion suffered two members killed in action and four wounded. It also relates the state of the trenches as Parker shares that the trenches had, “…mud and water up to the knees…”

He gives us insight to the nature of the rear area being isolated from larger population centers offering more opportunity to purchase supplies as the Battalion is based in a rural area, approximately 8 kilometres from Arras. He and his mates cannot acquire some of the comforts of home and the basic necessities, with candles being in high demand as the Battalion is stationed in three of the sub-terranean “subways” used by the CEF to shelter and hide troops from the German reconnaissance resources. Private Parker obviously prefers Canada to this part of France.

In closing, he relates how important a parcel from home was for him and one gets a sense of the value of such mail as Mrs. Markham’s “small parcel” did not last him and his compatriots very long. It was quite common for soldiers to share the contents of their parcels and add variety and interest to their diet from the contents of such parcels.

The next letter, dated December 22, 1917, is written after the battles at Vimy Ridge, Hill 70, and Passchendaele. Since the last letter, Private Parker’s service life has been eventful, being wounded on May 6, 1917, at Willeraval. On the night of May 5/6 the Battalion made a relief, “…under very heavy shellfire,” perhaps which led to Private Parker being wounded in the right arm. A month later he was discharged to duty with his Battalion. The nature of his wound was treated in the rear areas and did not require formal hospitalization at Etaples, France or over in England. Parker was promoted to the rank of Lance-Corporal on July 10, 1917, in response to the promotion of another soldier of the Battalion (C.W. Boyd, reg. no. 455590). It appears that complications from his GSW would lead to Parker suffering inflammation of the connective tissues of his right-hand. Five days of treatment off the line at the end of July 1917 resulted in the return of the newly minted Lance-Corporal Parker to the Battalion.

Source: Deryck N. Robertson from the 18th Battalion Facebook Group.

22/12/17 France

Some Where in France

Dear Sister,

Received your letter pleased to know that you were at the time of your writing. How do you like been in Peterboro[iii]? Is it better than Norwood? You said that you told Gertie to write. I had a letter from her yesterday. I have had leave to England and had a fine time. I hear that Roy Parker has been trying to get an exemption so that he will not have to come over here. Well Annie it will soon be Christmas and we look like been over here for a while yet. I hope this is the last Christmas for us in France. Hope we will be home before the next one. I supposes Lilian is living with you by what I heard from them at home. Well we are having some very sharp weather over here. I suppose you are having about the same over in Canada. [Ivey] said in her letter that she was going to live in Peterboro after Christmas. I don’t think that they will get along together. Her and Becky. Well I will close hoping this mite [sic] find you both in the best of health as it leaves me so at present [no I write run at] up with best love to both from your brother John.

2nd Can Div Wing CCRC[iv] France

There appears to be some confusion about where this letter was written. Taking the service records as a true representation of this soldier’s service from its entries for Parker he should still be with his battalion and this letter would then have been written at Febvin-Palfart where the Battalion was billeted in barns and homes in that community.[v] The Battalion had been out of the line for since December 13, 1917, and had been involved in voting in the Canadian General Elections on December 14 and then a series of parades and exercises until their move to Febvin-Palfart, where they became more serious about the training in the daily syllabi. But the closing of the letter clearly shows that Parker is detached from the Battalion and with the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp.[vi] This discrepancy between the date of the letter and the acknowledgement in his service record of his attachment with the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp was 2-months. His service record did not acknowledge his service with this unit until February 2, 1918.

This letter relates family gossip. We know that he is writing a sister by the name of Annie and she has moved from the village of Norwood[vii] to the town of Peterborough. Parker had a leave in England, though his service records do not, oddly, reflect this. He has concern for a possible member of his family, a Roy Parker, trying to get an exemption from the military. This part of the letter is illuminating as the recent election had conscription for the war effort as a major issue and the majority of serving soldiers agreed with this program. If Roy was a family member, then Lance-Corporal Parker, as a serving soldier, might have reason to be disappointed in his relative.

As he was writing so close to Christmas, he expresses a common sentiment about being ‘home for Christmas’, which would be an oft-expressed sentiment of the men of the Canadian Corps throughout the war. He would have to suffer one more Christmas overseas before going home.

Having participated in the Battles at Hill 70 and Passchendaele, he was on the roll of the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp at Lilliers, France on February 2, 1918. It is unknown what his role was there, but one of the roles that Parker could fill, especially with his combat experience, was that of a credible trainer of technology and tactics. In addition, as this camp established reinforcements for each battalion he would be a conduit helping to prepare and familiarize these new men to the culture of the “Fighting 18th”. He had valuable combat experience after 1-year and 3-months of active service through some of the hardest battles the Canadian Corps had experienced, and adding to his credibility, had been promoted in the field. This assignment lasted until August 29, 1918, when he was despatched back to the 18th Battalion.

Attachment of service record. Note that it does not show the date Parker left for the CCRC but does not that he in on the roll as of February 2, 1918.

The third, and last letter of the article, confirms that Parker was stationed at the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp prior to his service record’s entry to that fact. The entry for February 2, 1918, acknowledges that he is “on the roll” of the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp but does not note a date of departure from the 18th Battalion to the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp.

Source: Deryck N. Robertson from the 18th Battalion Facebook Group.

6/1/18 France

Dear Sisters,

Received your welcome letter and please to hear that you were well at the time of your writing. I had a letter from Fanny and she said that she was not feeling well she had an awful cold by what she said. She said she was lonely when I left but she had got over it she is expecting Earnest [sic] home on leave any time now. I received your parcel alright and [it] was ok and now I must thank you for it.

We are having some very sharp weather over here but not very much snow. It seems to be turning a little milder today. You said about R P[viii] not wanting to come over here to help as he must have cold feet or he would been over here a long time ago. I had a fine letter from E sister the other day, and she said she was well and hoped that I would soon being going on leave again. Well I have no news to tell you only that I wish the war was over and we could be back again to home. Well I will close hoping this will find you both in the best of health as it leaved me so at present. Will close with love to both from your brother J E P.

18TH Canadians BTN CCRC Wing France

In the new year, Lance-Corporal Parker writes his sisters a quick letter. He thanks them for a parcel sent to him and relates some family news about an ill relative and his hopes for another leave and the war to end. He refers to an “R P” having “cold feet” regarding his enlistment into the Canadian Forces. It is a brief letter that touches on some of the most common themes in wartime letters: leave, parcels, and a wish the war would end.

For Lance-Corporal John Edward Parker, the war would end. But only after returning to the 18th Battalion as The Hundred Days began during which he joined the Battalion “in the field” on September 3, 1918, at Beaurains, France while the Battalion was in Brigade (H.Q.) Reserve. Upon joining his Battalion Parker served until he was wounded again on October 10, 1918, during action near the L��Escaut Canal. That day’s butcher bill resulted in the Battalion suffering 6 other ranks killed and 70 wounded. Lance-Corporal Parker was one of those wounded with a GSW to his left leg (thigh) and he was admitted to No. 32 Stationary Hospital at Wimereux where his journey to “Blighty” and home would begin. His wound would heal relatively quickly, and he was transferred to Kinmel Park Camp and then returned to Canada and was discharged from service at Kingston, Ontario on February 10, 1919, and returned to Norwood and his family.

Lance-Corporal Parker’s experience in the Canadian Army resulted in being wounded twice, the first a minor “flesh” wound and the second more serious wounding that resulted in his transfer to England. By October 1918 the end was in sight for the war and the tempo of combat had increased. The last action Parker was involved in contrasted with this first wounding. There he was involved in static trench warfare. In 1918 the nature of the war had opened up and the combat was more fluid and dynamic. His letters home enhance our understanding of his service and, to this author’s experience, shows one of the few examples where the diligent record-keeping of the service records of a Canadian soldier had a gap when Parker’s service record did not accurately record the start of his assignment with the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp.

Sources:

Service Record

18th Battalion War Diary Transcriptions

Letters posted at the 18th Battalion Facebook Group

End Notes:

[i] These letters were posted at the 18th Battalion Facebook Group. The images of the letters are at the end of this article and have been transcribed by this author for clarity. This is to assist the audience with reading the letters but to get a true feel of the text please refer to and read the images.

[ii] This entry is an interesting aside and may indicate frustration in the maintenance of the line by the proceeding unit though the War Diary does not indicate what troops held these trenches before the 4th Brigade took them over. It appears that the 5th Canadian Brigade was the unit relieved by the 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade.

[iii] Common spelling for the now City of Peterborough, Ontario, Canada.

[iv] Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp. This camp was established to channel soldiers for the Canadian Base Depot (CBD) at Etaples to the next stage of training and preparation for combat. From the CBD to the CCRC the soldiers would be moved closer to the front line. In the summer of 1917, the CCRC would hold for each battalion 100 reinforcements. These men would be further trained and prepared for the next assignment with an active unit. 10% of all other units (i.e. engineers, pioneers) would be held as reinforcements at this camp. The camp was moved in June 1918 to Aubin St. Vaast and the establishment of each battalion for reinforcements was increased to 200 other ranks and 10 officers.

[v] Mostly likely the officers were billeted in the homes, and the other ranks in the barns.

[vi] The Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp was first established at Lilliers in the Summer of 1917 and then moved in June 1918 to Aubin St. Vaast.

[vii] It appears that the family moved from Hastings to Norwood, Ontario sometime after Parker joined the 93rd Battalion. He notes in his discharge papers that his proposed residence will be at Norwood.

[viii] Possibly referring to Roy Parker from the previous letter, dated December 22, 1917.

“…we cannot buy a candle or any thing to eat…”: Letters from Lance-Corporal Parker On January 24, 1916 a man from Hastings, Ontario enlisted with the 93rd Battalion, so beginning his military career.

#93rd Battalion #Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp #Empress of Britain #Hastings Ontario #Kingston Ontario #letter home #Norwood Ontario #Passchendaele #Peterborough Ontario #service record #Somme #Vimy #wounded

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greatworldwar2 · 4 years ago

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• 82nd Airborne Division

The 82nd Airborne Division is an airborne infantry division of the United States Army established in 1917, shortly after the American entry into World War I. Specializing in parachute assault operations into denied areas.

The 82nd Division was first constituted as an infantry division on August 5th, 1917 during World War I in the National Army. It was organized and formally activated on August 25th, 1917 at Camp Gordon, Georgia. The division consisted entirely of newly conscripted soldiers. The citizens of Atlanta held a contest to give a nickname to the new division. Major General Eben Swift, the commanding general, chose "All American" to reflect the unique composition of the 82nd, as it had soldiers from all 48 states. It sailed to Europe to join the American Expeditionary Force (AEF), commanded by General John Pershing, on the Western Front. In early April, the division embarked from the ports in Boston, New York and Brooklyn to Liverpool, England, where the division fully assembled by mid-May 1918. During the first world war the Division participated in the St. Mihiel offensive, and Meuse-Argonne offensive. During the later campaign the division suffered 7,000 killed and wounded. A second 82nd soldier, Alvin C. York, received the Medal of Honor for his actions during this campaign. The division suffered 995 killed and 7,082 wounded, for a total of 8,077 casualties. Following the war's end, the division moved to training areas near Prauthoy, where it remained through February 1919. It returned to the United States in April and May, and was demobilized and deactivated at Camp Mills, New York, on May 27th. For the next 20 years the 82nd Division existed as a unit of the Organized Reserve. It was reconstituted in June 1921 establishing headquarters at Columbia, South Carolina, in January 1922.

The 82nd Division was redesignated on February 13th, 1942 during World War II, just two months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the German declaration of war, as Division Headquarters, 82nd Division. It was recalled to active service on March 25th, 1942, and reorganized at Camp Claiborne, Louisiana, under the command of Major General Omar Bradley. During this training period, the division brought together three officers who would ultimately steer the U.S. Army during the following two decades: Matthew Ridgway, James M. Gavin, and Maxwell D. Taylor. On August 15th, 1942, the 82nd Infantry Division, now commanded by Major General Ridgway, became the first airborne division in the history of the U.S. Army, and was redesignated as the 82nd Airborne Division. The division initially consisted of the 325th, 326th and 327th Infantry Regiments, and supporting units. The 327th was soon transferred to help form the 101st Airborne Division and was replaced by the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, leaving the division with two regiments of glider infantry and one of parachute infantry.

In February 1943 the division received another change when the 326th was transferred to the 13th Airborne Division, being replaced by the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, under James M. Gavin, then a colonel, who was later destined to command the division. In April 1943, after several months of tough training, its troopers deployed to the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, under the command of Major General Ridgway to take part in the campaign to invade Sicily. The division's first two combat operations were parachute assaults into Sicily on July 9th and Salerno on September 13th, 1943. The initial assault on Sicily, by the 505th Parachute Regimental Combat Team, under Colonel Gavin, was the first regimental-sized combat parachute assault conducted by the United States Army. Glider troopers of the 319th and 320th Glider Field Artillery Battalions and the 325th Glider Infantry Regiment (and the 3rd Battalion of the 504th PIR) instead arrived in Italy by landing craft at Maiori (319th) and Salerno (320th, 325th).

In January 1944, the 504th, commanded by Colonel Reuben Tucker, which was temporarily detached to fight at Anzio, adopted the nickname "Devils in Baggy Pants", taken from an entry in a German officer's diary. The 504th was replaced in the division by the inexperienced 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment, under the command of Colonel George V. Millet, Jr.. While the 504th was detached, the remainder of the 82nd Airborne Division moved to the United Kingdom in November 1943 to prepare for the liberation of Europe. With two combat drops under its belt, the 82nd Airborne Division was now ready for the most ambitious airborne operation of the war so far, as part of Operation Neptune, the Allied invasion of Normandy. The division conducted Mission Boston, part of the airborne assault phase of the Operation Overlord plan. In preparation for the operation, the division was significantly reorganized. To ease the integration of replacement troops, rest, and refitting following the fighting in Italy, the 504th PIR did not rejoin the division for the invasion. Two new parachute infantry regiments (PIRs), the 507th and the 508th, provided it, along with the veteran 505th, a three-parachute infantry regiment punch. The 325th was also reinforced by the addition of the 3rd Battalion of the 401st GIR, bringing it up to a strength of three battalions. On the 5th and 6th of June these paratroopers, parachute artillery elements, and the 319th and 320th, boarded hundreds of transport planes and gliders to begin history's largest airborne assault at the time (only Operation Market Garden later that year would be larger). During the June 6th assault, a 508th platoon leader, First Lieutenant Robert P. Mathias, would be the first U.S. Army officer killed by German fire on D-Day. On June 7th, after this first wave of attack, the 325th GIR would arrive by glider to provide a division reserve. In Normandy, the 82nd gained its first Medal of Honor of the war, belonging to Private First Class Charles N. DeGlopper of the 325th GIR. By the time the division was relieved, in early July, the 82nd had seen 33 days of severe combat and casualties had been heavy. Losses included 5,245 troopers killed, wounded, or missing, for a total of 46% casualties.

Following Normandy, the 82nd Airborne Division returned to England to rest and refit for future airborne operations. The 82nd became part of the newly organized XVIII Airborne Corps, which consisted of the 17th, 82nd, and 101st Airborne Divisions. Ridgway was given command of the corps but was not promoted to lieutenant general until 1945. His recommendation for succession as division commander was Brigadier General James M. Gavin, previously the 82nd's ADC. Ridgway's recommendation met with approval, and upon promotion Gavin became the youngest general since the Civil War to command a U.S. Army division. On August 2nd, 1944 the division became part of the First Allied Airborne Army. In September, the 82nd began planning for Operation Market Garden in the Netherlands. The operation called for three-plus airborne divisions to seize and hold key bridges and roads deep behind German lines. The 504th PIR, now back at full strength, was reassigned to the 82nd, while the 507th was assigned to the 17th Airborne Division, at the time training in England. On September 17th, the "All American" Division conducted its fourth (and final) combat jump of World War II. Fighting off German counterattacks, the division captured its objectives between Grave, and Nijmegen. The division failed to capture Nijmegen Bridge when the opportunity presented itself early in the battle. When the British XXX Corps arrived in Nijmegen, six hours ahead of schedule, they found themselves having to fight to take a bridge that should have already been in allied hands. In the afternoon of Wednesday September 20th, 1944, the 82nd Airborne Division conducted a successfully opposed river assault on the river crossing of the Waal river. The Market Garden salient was held in a defensive operation for several weeks until the 82nd was relieved by Canadian troops, and sent into reserve in France.

On December 16th, 1944, the Germans launched a surprise offensive through the Ardennes Forest, which became known as the Battle of the Bulge. In SHAEF reserve, the 82nd was committed on the northern face of the bulge near Elsenborn Ridge. On December 20th, 1944, the 82nd Airborne Division was assigned to take Cheneux where they would force the Waffen SS Division Leibstandarte's Kampfgruppe Peiper into a fighting retreat. On December 22nd,1944, the 82nd Airborne faced counterattacks from three powerful Waffen SS divisions which included the 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler, 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich, and the 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen. The Waffen SS efforts to relieve Kampfgruppe Peiper failed due to the stubborn defense of the 82nd Airborne. On December 23rd, the German divisions attacked from the south and overran the 325th GIR holding the Baraque- Fraiture crossroads on the 82nd's southern flank, endangering the entire 82nd Airborne division. The 2nd SS Panzer's objective was to outflank the 82nd Airborne. It was not an attack designed to reach Peiper, but it was his last chance, nonetheless. If it did outflank the 82nd, it could have opened a corridor and reached the stranded yet still powerful Kampfgruppe. But the attack came too late. On December 24th, 1944, the 82nd Airborne Division with an official strength of 8,520 men was facing off against a vastly superior combined force of 43,000 men and over 1,200 armored fighting and artillery vehicles and pieces. Due to these circumstances, the 82nd Airborne Division was forced to withdrawal for the first time in its combat history. The Germans pursued their retreat with the 2nd and 9th SS Panzer Divisions. On January 3rd, 1945, the 82nd Airborne Division conducted a counterattack. On the first day's fighting the Division overran the 62nd Volksgrenadiers and the 9th SS Panzer's positions capturing 2,400 prisoners. The 82nd Airborne suffered high casualties in the process. The attached 551st Parachute Infantry Battalion was all but destroyed during these attacks. Of the 826 men who went into the Ardennes, only 110 came out. Having lost its charismatic leader Lt. Colonel Joerg, and almost all its men either wounded, killed, or frostbitten, the 551 was never reconstituted. The few soldiers who remained were later absorbed into units of the 82nd Airborne. For the 82nd Airborne Division the first part of the Battle of the Bulge had ended.

After helping to secure the Ruhr, the 82nd Airborne Division ended the war at Ludwigslust past the Elbe River, accepting the surrender of over 150,000 men of Lieutenant General Kurt von Tippelskirch's 21st Army. Following Germany's surrender, the 82nd Airborne Division entered Berlin for occupation duty, replacing the 2nd Armored Division in August 1945. In Berlin General George S. Patton was so impressed with the 82nd's honor guard he said, "In all my years in the Army and all the honor guards I have ever seen, the 82nd's honor guard is undoubtedly the best." Hence the "All-American" became also known as "America's Guard of Honor". During the war the 82nd Division suffered 9,073 total casualties with 1,619 being killed in action and 6,560 wounded.

The division returned to the United States on January 3rd, 1946 on the RMS Queen Mary. In New York City it led a big Victory Parade, January 12th, 1946. In 1957, the division implemented the pentomic organization (officially Reorganization of the Airborne Division (ROTAD)) in order to better prepare for tactical nuclear war in Europe. In April 1965, the "All-Americans" entered the civil war in the Dominican Republic. Spearheaded by the 3rd Brigade, the 82nd deployed in Operation Power Pack. The 82nd later participated in the Vietnam War, and was stationed to deal with riots in Detroit in the 1967 Detroit Riot. After 11 September attacks on the United States in 2001, the 82nd's 49th Public Affairs Detachment deployed to Afghanistan in October 2001 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom along with several individual 82nd soldiers who deployed to the Central Command area of responsibility to support combat operations. More recently, the 82nd Airborne has been conducting operations in Iraq, advising and assisting Iraqi Security Forces.

#second world war #world war 2 #world war ii #american history #american army #u.s infantry #infantry units #army airborne #airborne #82ndairborne #military history #ww2 #wwii #first world war

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warsofasoiaf · 4 years ago

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The Celtic Tiger - A Kaiserreich Ireland AAR Chapter 3: A More Perfect Union

16 January 1938 - Áras an Uachtaráin, Dublin, Ireland

The East Coast Enclave had been months of ferocious fighting, but with the fall of New York City, the center of combat had shifted halfway across the country; it was now time for the west under General Eisenhower to show what they were capable of. Militia forces had been brought up to supplement the professionals, and training camps on the West Coast from MCRD San Diego to Fort Lewis in Washington State were training enlistees that had signed on to protect the country. The Federals were pushing on the western front from the Dakotas and Kansas, looking to threaten the rebel capital of Chicago. The Great Plains were difficult to defend as long as the Federals maintained control of the air. Close air support had orders to target Syndicate armor, vehicles, and artillery, depriving them of their heavy firepower, and allied fighters had swept the skies clean.

That had not meant that the East Coast was idle. Dan McKenna and the 1st Thunderbolts did not follow as the other volunteers pivoted to the southern front. The Irish were to stay in the north and eliminate pockets of Syndicalist resistance and clear the pathway to the new Syndicalist eastern command nexus in Cleveland. Irish volunteers often clashed with Union of Britain volunteers under General Paget in that theater, and McKenna knew that the more experience and knowledge he could gain about the Union’s fighting capability, the better informed Ireland would be about the Union. With the loss of Pittsburgh and New York, Cleveland was now the major stronghold for Syndicalists in the east, and if Cleveland was threatened, Detroit and Chicago would both be left vulnerable from MacArthur’s infantry in the east as well as the armored units driving in from the west.

The Syndicalist position was dire. Mass outcry and demonstrations had taken place when news of Welfare Island had begun to circulate, calling for increased support for the embattled Federal government and more shipments of vital war materiel and volunteers. Canada closed the border to refugees in Syndicalist New York, citing the need to prevent war criminals from escaping their crimes, and had King Edward had strong-armed Parliament into raising the possibility of full military intervention, though the Liberal majority under MacKenzie King vowed that such an action would never pass the Canadian Parliament. Savinkov, the Vozhd of Russia, had given a fiery speech in Moscow, that the forces of the left “were monsters in human skin, and must be eliminated before they establish their visions of extermination in other countries,” in a rebuke to those who had protested his purging of the Left SR. Almost with equal fervor, the Internationale had defended the CSA’s actions, with Marcel Deat stating that “those who have kept the workers in captivity have tasted but a fraction of a fraction of what they wrought upon the working class.” Smedley Butler had agreed, quoting “What is a nation supposed to do with gangsters?” Jack Reed was uncharacteristically quiet, only citing incidents of financial workers sympathizing with Federals and committing crimes against the Combined Syndicates of America and that such actions were no different than the Federal arrest of syndicalist comrades in their own territory. Reed had focused on attempting to win more support for the CSA on the world stage, looking for recognition from social democrat regimes across the world.

At home, Collins had reiterated his support for the American government in their civil war, and continued to push his economic initiatives at home, focusing on improving Ireland’s scientific and research prowess by improving the Éireann Scientific Innovation Council that had been founded in 1937. After the rapid industrialization that had turned Dublin into a manufacturing hub for civilian and military industry alike, Collins believed that a well-funded research program was necessary to transform Ireland into a truly modernized country with a knowledge economy. Research grants to universities, government contracts for private industry, and public research initiatives in strategic sectors. Oil and rubber were going to be critical, Ireland had no naturally existing quantities of either, and although there was trade between the German and Dutch colonial holdings in East Asia, that could not last forever. Collins had seen great strides with synthetically derived Buna rubber, and synthetic derivations of oil. Any plans to improve the An tAerchór weren’t going to go anywhere if Ireland couldn’t produce the AVGAS needed to get the planes to take off. There was also a need to develop better machining tools and expand the use of mechanical calculation machines with advanced differential analysis. Early in 1936, Collins had ensured that Ireland focused on developing such electronic machines to assist in the small research programs that Ireland did have, and time was proving him to have been prudent. Irish researchers were exceptionally productive, but they lacked the funding and manpower of the Great Powers.

The ESIC had succeeded in its early endeavors, helping to develop radar technology that Collins had hoped to install in each of the four provinces as a warning against any Union aerial incursion. Industrial investment has also boomed in the ESIC, with the new factories in Dublin taking advantage of the development of industrial turret lathes to help improve factory productivity. The foreign financial press had delighted in previous Irish endeavors, and Collins knew that if he could continue to charm the reporters, foreign investments would continue to roll in. Long gone were the days where performance on the battlefield could earn him concessions from his enemy. This new kind of war was measured in industrial tonnages, wastage percentages, and research publications, and much like the soldiers of 1916, Irish industry had significant disadvantages in organization, technology, and training. They had responded effectively to the crisis of Black Monday, but how Ireland would modernize its economy had been an open question. It was easy to fix a crisis, but maintaining a high level of prosperity in peacetime was an entirely new sort of war. Some critical articles dismissed the Irish recovery as a fluke, and predicted that Ireland would continue as it already had, a largely agrarian economy, a quaint backwater.

Collins hoped to change that. If Ireland was going to maintain its independence, it was going to need to make up for any shortage in men with the quality of their labors, from warfare to labor productivity and now, with research. The ESIC would get more funding, allowing for multiple projects that could benefit the industrial and military spheres. Perhaps in the near future, competing with the Kaiser Wilhelm Society and the Imperial Scientific and Academic Council in prestige and accomplishment. It would be a great green leap forward into the modern era, a synthesis of knowledge, industry, and agriculture - the benefits of all three, and the drawbacks of none. Ireland would shake off the old plantation ways of the British colonial times, and take its place among the modern world.

Or at least, that had always been the vision.

---

16 March 1938 - Chicago, Illinois, United States of America

It was over. The Combined Syndicates had capitulated.

Surrounded on all sides, the Syndicates had quickly lost control of Ohio. The Federal army threatened Cleveland from the land and rail routes toward Pittsburgh, but had pushed along Lake Erie and the Canal to create a stranglehold, cutting off the Combined Syndicates from international support and re-supply and starving the CSA army of vital fuel. Butler’s orders were to hold the city and prevent the eastern front from collapsing, but after ferocious attack from Federal bombers and artillery, the Syndicates were forced to withdraw. Holdout forces persisted, but McKenna’s Irish Thunderbolts had been able to eliminate the remaining guerrillas with minimal casualties.

The fall of Cleveland was a deathblow to Syndicalist morale, as the Federal could threaten Detroit from the east. Reinforcing the eastern theater was a daunting proposition, as the motorized and armored forces were primarily situated in the west to push toward Chicago. The militia forces that had been raised from Michigan and Illinois were not up to the task of facing the dogged professionals that had made up the volunteer corps or the crack Federal professionals. The French armor division had opted to fight to the last in Cleveland, and they had, but this had left the Combined Syndicates without a strong maneuver unit in theater. Desertions began to plague the Syndicalist army, with militia forces melting away in an attempt to return to their homes. Butler had increasingly ordered blocking divisions and rear pickets being established to prevent desertion, and rhetoric intensified against “cowards who betrayed the revolution,” but on the front lines, the order was rarely implemented, since every professional was needed to halt the tide of the Federal advance.

Butler’s solution was to withdraw from the large Minnesota line, shortening the defensive line and allowing mutual support from quiet portions of the front to reinforce trouble spots. This had allowed even foot infantry to relieve areas under fire. By employing a mobile reserve, Butler was able to stabilize the line and prevent a complete collapse in the east. Reed had continued to lobby the Internationale for more funding, perhaps to even officially declare war on the Federal government, but the Communards disallowed it. Deat worried that if the Internationale declared war on the Federals, the Canadians would declare war on the Combined Syndicates, and the war would be over before the Union of Britain or the Commune of France could land their troops on the East Coast. With the seas and skies closed, supply shipments were irregular at best, to the benefit of the Federals who happily seized Communard supply shipments of food and weapons for their own. No relief would be coming.

After a week, Dan McKenna and the 1st Thunderbolts received their orders to join the Federal effort to take Detroit from the Syndicalists. The Federal plan was deceptively simple, a push from the east to threaten Detroit, and when Butler would pull forces to reinforce the eastern line, the west would launch an assault on Chicago, using infantry units and airpower to disrupt the line and after collapse, the motorized units would penetrate into the territory, causing as much damage to the strategic depth and attacking fleeing units with the hope that the units themselves will rout. Ideally, they would disband completely, but even if they were isolated and out of contact, that would mean success as the slower infantry moved in to occupy territory in Iowa and southern Illinois.

Butler did not take the bait, electing instead on a fighting withdrawal, hoping to overextend the Federal lines and encircle them. Yet with the Federals using their professional as the spearhead, with militia following behind, few openings presented themselves. Federal control of the sky made ambush and counter-attack difficult to conceal, in some cases Federal bombers would simply bomb the ambush before they could even reach their target. Butler had even attempted a marine raid across Lake Erie, to cause chaos in the Federal rear and cause the advance to pause, but deserters had tipped off field commanders to the plan in exchange for parole, allowing MacArthur to order air patrols of the lake, to sink the enemy when they appeared. With losses mounting, eventually the Detroit defenders elected to initiate a scorched earth policy, burning their fuel reserves and destroying the Edsel Ford memorial building, before retreating to the West End, hoping to reinforce their capital in Chicago.

Such a feat was perhaps too much to hope for; Chicago fell shortly thereafter. General Doolittle, the commander of the newly-minted United States Army Air Force, had ordered bombing raids to occur daily in Chicago to destroy Syndicate factories and depots, hoping to force their workforce to refuse to work in such dangerous conditions. Reed had ordered that workers who had missed their shifts would be prosecuted, turning over power of enforcement to political commissars, but a destroyed factory produced nothing, workforce or not. Families huddled within basements, churches, and schools, hoping to avoid becoming collateral damage. On 13 March 1938, Jack Reed and several important militia figures were nowhere to be found, having fled the city during the night. Smedley Butler, seeing all was lost, gave the order for a ceasefire and truce. Butler and MacArthur signed the Treaty of Chicago on 16 March, and Butler publicly urged the Syndicate army to turn over arms and surrender to the nearest Federal officer. The news was accepted to mixed response, made worse by the fact that Reed was not the one who had signed the surrender documents. News of attacks against civilian targets came in almost immediately, and National Guard divisions that were not on the front lines found themselves tasked with occupying hostile territory and subject to a nasty guerrilla war.

Reed was caught a few days later, attempting to flee along the Erie Canal to the Commune of France, and turned over to Federal courts. Reed was defiant, citing the never-ending struggle of the American worker for their liberation, and he and Butler were both taken to Washington to await trial. President Garner, jubilant at the news, demanded Long’s immediate surrender to spare “the country any more damage and work to establish the United States as one nation indivisible.” Long never responded to Garner’s request, and continued to push against Federal positions in the Midwest and the Carolinas, hoping to secure a decisive advantage before northern front troops could reinforce their southern brethren.

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08 May 1938 - Kentucky/Tennessee Border, United States of America

“Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen of the United States of America and Volunteer Forces of Allied Nations

We are to embark upon the Great Crusade toward which we have striven these many months, and seek an end to this civil war that has plagued our country. We have accomplished much in this past year of warfare. Our forces have inflicted upon the Combined Syndicates and the Union State great defeats, in open battle, man-to-man. We have taken New York, Detroit, and Chicago. We have forced the surrender of Smedley Butler and the forces which have opposed us in the north. Much more remains in front of us. George Patton and the military of the Union State are ahead, and they will fight tenaciously. They are well-equipped, well-trained, and battle-hardened. Yet our Home Fronts are behind us, producing an advantage in our reserves of Fighting Men, in our weapons and munitions of war. I have nothing short of the utmost confidence in your skill as fighting men and your devotion to duty. We will accept nothing less than full Victory, and that America will again be one nation indivisible. Good Luck! And let us all beseech blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.” -Dwight Eisenhower, Speech to the Troops following the invasion of the American Union State

The push into Union State territory was going to have to start somewhere. A sense of quiet unease had fallen over the front lines of the American Civil War. Eisenhower and MacArthur had been recruiting militia and bringing them to the front lines in an attempt to bolster their push with raw numbers; the manpower advantage had favored the Federals over the Longists. The militia, however, were more of a paper tiger than anything else, they quickly folded in the face of a determined struggle by professional troops. MacArthur had suggested attaching militia to their professionals to supplement an attack, while Eisenhower wanted them to take over less combat-heavy roles like transporting supplies. Ultimately, Garner elected on both strategies, letting the professionals take the lead while militia primarily acted as support, but not forbidding them from the front lines. The militia hadn’t been too happy about that order, but more than one eager volunteer went to pieces when it came to shelling. No one wanted the effort to stall out when the militia abandoned it, and the professionals were happy to have one less headache to deal with.

The volunteers had spread across the massive border of the American Union State, with Dan McKenna and the 1st Thunderbolts stationed on the border of Kentucky and Tennessee. There was a salient in the Union line, as Longist forces had opted to secure an advance bridge to prevent armor and motorized units from pouring into Tennessee, and McKenna had opted to fight with the Americans in taking it back. McKenna’s friends in the 12th Hohei Shidan had been stationed near the three way intersection of Missouri, Arkansas, and Tennessee, too far to fight with them on the bridge as they had in Pittsburgh. Adna Chaffee Jr. had been appointed theater commander with divisions of motorized infantry and tanks fighting in the Great Plains, but the bridge needed to be taken before any wheeled or tracked units could get into enemy territory. If they couldn’t take the bridge, the push would be slow as bridging operations would need to be conducted, potentially leaving them vulnerable to enemy bombardment. Chaffee had sent an Irish militia brigade, the First Dublin Volunteers, to fight with the Thunderbolts, in hopes that it would form greater unit cohesion between the militia units and McKenna’s professional volunteers.

McKenna, after seizing the bridge, opted to strike toward western Tennessee, as his recon teams had seen that the Union State was only defended by poorly-equipped militia forces. McKenna crossed the border and struck north, surprising the 2nd Minutemen with a night crossing of the river and attack in the dawn hours. The militia had fled, and McKenna boasted that his volunteers “were the first in Tennessee.” During the war itself, he had said he was the first division to achieve its objective, but this claim was hard to verify, as multiple divisions had achieved successful ingress during the first day of operations.

Claire Lee Chennault was ordered to counterattack, sending members of the Minutemen and the Silver Legion to attack the Irish volunteers before they could consolidate their position and establish good defensive fighting ground. McKenna elected to fight, aided by locals sympathetic to the Federal cause. Long’s acceptance of the Silver Legion had starkly divided the American Union State, and much like the Federal militia, the Silver Legion were unready for warfare, forcing Long to lean heavily on the professional forces that had sided with him over the Garner government. Chennault also received no aircraft and little in the way of towed anti-aircraft guns for his theater, which he had fiercely protested. Industrial shortages had plagued the American Union State and Chennault was not well-liked by the high command of the Union State, many of whom carried their grudges from the US military. The German volunteers in Tennessee opted not to support his push against the Irish volunteers. Without air support and with little in the way of trained troops, Chennault’s move was difficult. To counter, Chaffee ordered the 4th Ohio loyalist militia to support McKenna while professional Federal forces flanked the Silver Legion from the north. Chaffee’s move was successful, threatening Nashville and relieving the pressure on the Irish volunteers, and McKenna ambushed the 2nd Minutemen after luring them into the open. After ten days of fierce fighting, the Union State withdrew to Nashville, ceding the area to the north to the Federals. McKenna would earn immortality for his ability to fend off multiple angles of attack using localized strongpoints and artillery fire throughout the Second American Civil War.

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29 June 1938 - Mississippi Lowlands near Greenville, United States of America

McKenna marveled at just how ridiculously large the United States was. It was one thing to see a map, to look at numbers printed in a book, and know that it was a massive country; it was another to experience the chill of New York in winter and the sweltering humidity of Mississippi in summer.

Alas, he was not here to write a weather guide, he was here to fight. The Federals had enough manpower and foreign support that the American Union State had been falling back on almost every front. Patton’s regulars were well-led, some of his tactical maneuvers were downright brilliant, but he lacked the manpower to secure strategic gains. With the victory over the Combined Syndicates, Federal morale was at an all time high. Even those who couldn’t fight helped in their own way, even if it was just buying war bonds to help further the effort. Local intelligence was particularly prized, but even just a warm meal or good directions had supported the war effort.

The Federal High Command sought to split the American Union State. The Deep South States of Alabama and Mississippi could cut Florida off from AUS command, that would make it vulnerable. If Florida could fall, that would give the US Navy a local base to contest the Gulf of Mexico, hopefully robbing the AUS of supplies. The Texas oil fields meant that they were unlikely to run out of fuel, but taking Georgia, Alabama, and Arkansas would cripple Long’s supply of bauxite that he needed for his support companies, as well as threaten his capital in New Orleans. Biloxi and Mobile were just a short boat ride away, and if the Federal could control those areas, they may even be able to start shelling the capital and force a surrender.

More than the heat, McKenna was in awe of the fighting prowess of his men. The Thunderbolts had to have been one of the finest units in this war. They were true veterans, who had gone through the crucible and come out the other side to become a spear in the hearts of any foe. They moved without wasted movement, everything from the artillery to the ambulance corps had been honed to a razor’s precision. The way the infantry effortlessly went from defense to attack as if it were no more a burden than shifting from one foot to the other. Casualties for the Thunderbolts had been among the lowest across the entire Federal forces, a far cry from the grievous losses they had taken in West Virginia and New York City. If they could bring back this level of exceptional ability to Ireland, the sky was truly the limit for the Irish Republican Army.

Hopefully, that would have to act as a deterrent to Mosley across the Irish Sea. The failure of the Combined Syndicates had also acted as a slap in the face for the Internationale, as they had poured men, money, and materiel into Jack Reed’s insurrection. Collins had feared the Internationale acting emboldened if they had won the American Civil War, but McKenna had wondered if they would be chastened if they had failed. Neither Mosley’s Totalists nor the Jacobins in France were likely to simply accept their failure, lest King Edward and Marechal Petain become more emboldened in their efforts to retake their homelands. Even so, a hostile American government would have only made it worse. McKenna and the Thunderbolts had their fates written in stone, and that meant marinating in the heat of Mississippi, attacking the American Union State, and hoping to force a surrender before even more lives were lost.

The Federals had opted to place a large number of regulars to push west, due to the width of the Mississippi. The Union State had blown the bridges leading to the Mississippi Lowlands, and MacArthur had been forced ordered the militia to take the long route north to secure better bridges, but McKenna had learned a few techniques to create makeshift bridges quickly under fire. The 10th Mountain Division, supplemented by Pennsylvania volunteers, had finished their pacification campaign in the Appalachians, and had opted to fight with the Thunderbolts. The goal after taking the Mississippi would be to force a split between Texas and Lousiana, driving the traitors into the Gulf of Mexico or forcing them to surrender at the Mexican border, if necessary.

More and more reports had come in, particularly among black communities in Alabama and Mississippi, about the mass evictions, supply and money confiscations, and other expropriations of “donations to the war effort,” and as the war turned, the Silver Legion found no shortage of ‘traitors’ and ‘Federal sympathizers.’ Their punishment was as brutal as it was calculating, with homes burned first, sometimes with families still inside them, or an entire family forced to watch their members executed one right after the other. As the warfronts collapsed, Pelley continued to focus on ‘domestic unity,’ as he called it. One captured Silver Legion member, before his execution by firing squad, summed up the matter with the coldness of a lobster: “We have to create the impression of mastery eliminating without scruples or hesitation all those who do not think as we do. There can be no cowardice. If we hesitate one moment and fail to proceed with the greatest determination, we will not win.”

The war needed to end, and end soon. The longer it went on, the more people were brutalized, and the longer the United States would need to focus on rebuilding.

“We will push forward, and push hard. We will fight hard, and we will fight forever, if that’s what it takes.” McKenna quoted to one reporter. “This war will only end when those who perpetrated it acknowledge their error, wrought in their pride, and end their fight. Then and only then will peace be achieved. Make sure you write that word for word. Peace will come, and it is only upon the American Union State to decide how quickly it shall come. They will come to the bargaining table or reap the fate of Carthage.”

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23 September 1938 - New Orleans, United States of America

The 23rd of September, 1938 was to be known as Victory Day.

It was the autumn equinox, when the year took the transition from long days to long nights. For the Americans, however, it had a new meaning, the day of the signing of the Treaty of New Orleans. The United States stepped from a difficult war to a difficult peace.

New Orleans had fallen, with Russian and Austrian volunteers eagerly attempting to be the first into the city. The Americans had made a successful push into Texas, dividing the command center of San Antonio from Long’s capital in New Orleans. Longists occupied several scattered parts of Arkansas, but were quickly collapsing in the face of dogged Federal assault. Much of the Texan contingent had likewise surrendered or faded into the Texas badlands to continue a guerrilla campaign against the victorious Federals. The writing had been on the wall since the summer; the failure of the Longist attack after the Treaty of Chicago and the success of the Tennessee campaign had shown that the Longists lacked the capability to achieve their strategic objectives. Only Germany and Paraguay supported Long, though their volunteers, depleted, helped little and even encouraged surrender with themselves as intermediaries. Long had been captured outside of New Orleans, and had formally announced a truce and an end to the civil war. Eisenhower took the instrument of surrender in a formal ceremony at the St. Louis Cathedral, and gave a somber speech in the ruined French quarter, urging “Americans everywhere to be reconciled, and to come again to each other as fellow Americans as one nation, under one flag.” Privately, Eisenhower feared guerrilla actions from fanatics who would refuse the surrender, but kept his misgivings to himself to not dampen the triumph of Victory Day. President Garner had flown to Washington D.C., to re-christen the capital as the seat of the Federal Government in a solemn ceremony. He announced an end to hostilities, and a new beginning for the country. “It will be a long rebuilding, and a hard one. But as I said before, we do not flee our problems, we solve them. We survived Black Monday, and we shall survive this.”

He hadn’t been wrong that it would be a hard rebuilding. Disease ran rampant through the country, people lived huddled in the husks of buildings gutted by bombs and artillery fire, exposed to the elements. Fields had been burned, water had been poisoned by bodies and poisonous runoff, exposing many to starvation. Only the West Coast and the Rocky Mountain States had been largely spared from the war, and they could not feed an entire nation. It had lost hundreds of thousands of people, and countless more had been crippled by their injuries or rendered completely mad. The German Kaiserreich had already promised a generous aid package and purchases of American goods to provide a steady influx of money, and perhaps to try and paper over their support of Huey Long during the war. The Japanese Empire, having fended off an army coup and proclaiming itself a friend to all democratic nations, had sent medical personnel and equipment to help stem the loss of people to injuries and disease. Canada and Mexico had already sent large relief caravans across their borders to assist, and established refugee camps on their borders to assist their beleaguered neighbor to treat those who had fled, with the hopes of repatriation in the near future. Even the Union of Britain and the Commune of France, while mourning their lost revolution, had offered aid to the United States worker in the form of grain shipments. For one brief moment, the world almost seemed united in a single purpose - to come to the aid of their fellow man for no other reason than because he was in pain.

The end hadn’t come soon enough for Daniel McKenna, who had spent the last 19 months far from home fighting fanatics eager to spill an ocean’s worth of blood for the cause. The defense of Americans against radicalism was a worthy goal, it was true, but what he had seen had far outstripped the battlefield. It was not a war for liberation, or for freedom. It wasn’t even a war borne out of something petty like resource gain or national honor. It was a war borne out of hate’s sake, and nothing else. The Irish Republican Army had done plenty of dishonorable things in their struggle for freedom, but what he saw was truly disturbing. What was worse though, was how many rationalized it as necessary. Their victims weren’t human, they were humanoid, something similarly shaped to man but without its inherent dignity. It would be a relief to McKenna, then, to finally head home with the 1st Thunderbolts. To sleep in his own bed, to breathe the air of home, and to eat lamb stew - the American love of beef had made him long for home.

He’d be back soon, he knew. He was the officer in charge when they had liberated Welfare Island. There would have to be a tribunal, and he would undoubtedly have to be a witness. He had hoped instead that the reporter lass could take the bullet for him, but that was improper. It was a soldier’s duty to see everything through, no matter how unpleasant, and duty did not end where the battlefield did.

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26 September 1938 - Home of Michael Collins, Cork, Ireland

Michael Collins greeted the news of the American victory with cold cheer. All of the news was good, certainly. The United States had staved off the threat of radicalism, and the Irish volunteers had returned to Ireland well-experienced and ready to take on the challenges of the world. The Internationale had received a large black eye to their goal of world revolution, and Ireland had demonstrated its resolve and skill for the world to see. There had been losses, several families had fathers, brothers, or sons that wouldn’t be returning. Collins had made sure to meet with each one of them, to express his condolences. The Irish Volunteers had been an all-volunteer brigade, but that hadn’t meant that everyone had supported Collins’s choice to support what they saw was a distant war for a country that had maintained cool relations with the country at best. He had hoped to make them see their commitment, but it was impossible not to see a grieving widow and think, in some small way, that the cost was paid by some more than others.

Yet there were stormclouds on the horizon. Plenty of American laborers felt cheated by Irish businessmen eager to hire at the lowest pound, that their plight was being exploited by greedy landlords and capital-holders; perfect fodder to sign on to Jim Larkin’s ideas and open the door to the syndicalists across the Irish Sea. Other laborers felt that the Americans were stealing their jobs, that they had gone out of the depression of Black Monday only to find that Michael Collins had given away their work to Americans for half the price. Ulster was a bigger problem, they had violently protested American migrants settling in Belfast despite their shared Protestantism. Carson had spread fear-mongering rhetoric about the American emigrants sent as the first wave of a larger colonization effort, to abandon northern Irish identity at the ballot box by vote stuffing in their constituencies. He had spoken long about ideas of culture war, that the Northern Irish had no place in an Irish Republic. Demonstrations against Collins and flying the banner of the Ulster Red Hand had been mostly peaceful, so far. Even then, assaults had started to rise, the perpetrators being gangs of young men prowling for drunk southerners walking home by themselves after a night at the pub. The next night would see several young Unionist men beaten by gangs of Republicans as retaliation, whether or not the victim was an active Unionist or even in the same area. Blood for blood, it seemed, and it would only continue.

And beyond that was Mosley. He was a proud man, and he was unlikely to take the Internationale’s defeat and the looming war crimes tribunal for Jack Reed and the Combined Syndicates meekly. He would need to validate his own leadership or face the same backlash that had propelled Totalism to success in the Trade Union Congress to begin with. He had purged the Union of naysayers, but if he could only offer failure, soon the naysayers might think that what held back the world revolution was him.

Even in a moment of success, Collins couldn’t help but look to the future with dread, robbing him of the taste of victory before he could ever taste it. And the only thing he feared more than what was looming on the horizon was the thought of it coming anyway without him there to fight against it. Ireland would be free, no matter the cost, and he was worried that there were some who were paying the cost more than others.

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Alright, that’s the third chapter. I opted for the American War Crimes tribunal to come to the next chapter, for accuracy’s sake, the tribunals probably wouldn’t happen until 1939 if we use the timing of the Nuremberg Trials as our guide. Decided to mix the historical violence in the Deep South with the Spanish White Terror when dealing with the Silver Legion, trying to illustrate the horror without being lurid and gross.

Next chapter we have Mosley’s Response and the Invasion of Fortress Ireland.

Images in Order

ESIC Rises to Advanced Level

Fall of Chicago

Fall of Detroit

Bridge Battle on the Tennessee Border

The Nashville Salient - AUS attack

The Nashville Salient - USA counterattack

Pushing into Lousiana

Thunderbolts Earn Veteran Status

Last Legs of the AUS

End of the Second Civil War

Fall of New Orleans

Return of the IRA Volunteers

Problems with Integration

-SLAL

#creative #kaiserreich #celtic tiger

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davidshawnsown · 4 years ago

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MESSAGE IN HONOR OF THE 76TH YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE HISTORIC RAISING OF THE NATIONAL FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ATOP THE SUMMIT OF MOUNT SURIBACHI IN IWO JIMA

Ladies and gentlemen, to all the people of the United States of America and Canada, to all our remaining living veterans of the Second World War of 1939-1945 and of all conflicts past and present and their families, to our veterans, active servicemen and women, reservists and families of the entire United States Armed Forces and Canadian Armed Forces, and to all the uniformed military and civil security services of the Allied combatants of this conflict, to all the immediate families, relatives, children and grandchildren of the deceased veterans, fallen service personnel and wounded personnel of our military services and civil uniformed security and civil defense services, to all our workers, farmers and intellectuals, to our youth and personnel serving in youth uniformed and cadet organizations and all our athletes, coaches, judges, sports trainers and sports officials, and to all our sports fans, to all our workers of culture, music, traditional arts and the theatrical arts, radio, television, digital media and social media, cinema, heavy and light industry, agriculture, business, tourism and the press, and to all our people of the free world:

Today, the whole world remembers among others the arrival in 1778 of the great Prussian general Baron Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben to the Continental Army quarters in Valley Forge, the beginning of the historic siege of The Alamo in 1836, and the anniversary of the 1847 Battle of Buena Vista, the 1905 formation of the Rotary Club, the beginning of the February Revolution and the formation of the Federal Communications Commission in 1917, the Miracle on Ice of 1980 and the attempted coup by several officers of the Spanish Civil Guard in the Cortes in 1981.

Today we join in the celebrations of the 51st anniversary since the declaration of the Republic of Guayana in 1970, the one hundredth and third year anniversary of the 1918 declaration of independence of the Republic of Estonia and the thirty-seventh year anniversary of the independence of Brunei Darussalam in 1984, as well as the 7th year anniversary of the closing of the Sochi Winter Olympic Games and the victory of the Ukrainian Euromaidan Revolution of 2014.

On this day in 1945 the Red Army and the Polish Armed Forces in the East ended the Nazi occupation of Poznan, the Philippine capital city of Manila was liberated from the Japanese despite its wartime damages and at the cost of so many lives, the Los Banos internment camp in the namesake town in Laguna Province was found and its POWs then liberated by a joint force of Filipino guerillas and American soldiers from the US Army’s 11th Airborne Division, and the RAF Bomber Command destroyed Pforzheim from the air.

Today marks 76 years since Easy Company, 2/506, 3BCT, 101ABN departed from Hagenau in northeastern Alsace, France, after weeks of helping its liberation and reinforcing its defenses against any remaining German resistance. Easy Company’s deployment in this part of France just miles from the Rhine was marked by times of sadness and joys among its men, most notably the return of Market Garden veteran David Webster and the promotion of some of its veteran officers.

And today, ladies and gentlemen, in these changing times in the long history of our planet and of all humankind, together with the thousands of serving men and women of the United States Marine Corps, we celebrate 76 years since the historic moment that forever has been a part of the heritage of the Marine Corps and the long 245 year history of the United States of America: the diamond jubilee anniversary since the very day that the national flag of the United States of America was raised on the peak of Mount Suribachi in the Japanese island of Iwo Jima. What we are celebrating today is now in the clear light of the recent revelations of the United States Marine Corps which was made public on June 23 of 2016 and later on in 2019 thanks to efforts made by historians and history experts and resource persons concerned, ending years of speculation and mystery surrounding the events of this this battle that is, for all generations, part of the history of not just the Corps, but of the entire United States Armed Forces. It is a battle that deserves our profound remembrance and commemoration, and a historic moment that will be always remembered for all our generations.

The six Marine flag raisers of Iwo Jima, Sergeant Michael Strank, Corporals Harold Keller and Harlon Brock, and Privates First Class Ira Hayes, Franklin R. Sousley and Harold Schultz, all of the 2nd Battalion, 28th Marine Regiment of the 5th Marine Division, all participants of the heroic landing and battle for the liberation of Iwo Jima from the military might of the Empire of Japan, are the very people that represented the hundreds of thousands of Marines of V Amphibious Corps who fought on that island together with their fellow servicemen of the Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard and the National Guard Bureau. It was these six servicemen who represented the millions of Marines who fought in the Pacific Theater of Operations, as well as serving in Navy and Coast Guards vessels in all theaters of the war. It was they who represented the diversity of peoples from all walks of life and from ethnicities and nationalities who during the long war served as part of the victorious armed forces, resistance organizations and security forces of the Allied Powers. It was they who on this day 76 years ago, chosen by destiny to stand on behalf of millions of Americans, flew the flag of the nation on the summit of Mount Suribachi and became part of the long and cherished memories of a victory that will last forever. It was this flag raising that would be forever be immortalized in the 2005 movie Flags of our Fathers.

These six men, who came from different parts of the United States, were the ones who 76 years past raised our symbol of liberty and independence in the summit of Mount Suribachi, motivated by the foremost wishes of the then Secretary of the Navy, James Forestal, that the Iwo Jima campaign be symbolized by the flying of the national flag not just as symbol of the power and dignity of the Armed Forces and as proof of the American liberation of the island, but also to show the world that the United States Marine Corps has once more performed to the world its primary responsibilty of perfoming amphibious conventional and un-conventional warfare operations for the sake of the defense of the people and government of the United States, its foreign interests and business abroad and in defense of its overseas diaspora and the freedoms and liberties of millions all over the world. The historic flag raising that we remember today is just part of a long history of faithful service of the branch of the Armed Forces to the nation and people of the United States from its beginnings in 1775 during the Revolutionary War under the authority of the Second Continental Congress to overseas operations today in Iraq and Afghanistan and in support of federal, state and regional authorities in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing vaccination program in the United States and it its military bases abroad. Once more it honors the memory of the heroes and martyrs of one of the greatest military operations in United States history, and the legacy of the heroic valor shown in this island has been forever immortalized in stone in the Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia, for over six and a half decades.

As we recall the flagraisers of Iwo Jima, we today recall the legacy they left to our country and people on this very day in our history as they threw open the doors of victory and peace that would in just a few months be upon the world with the victory over the Axis Powers, first in Europe and Northern Africa, and then in the Asia-Pacific.

We will never forget that these six Marines, whose contributions to the legacy of the defense and security of our nation were made on this day, were among those who were worthy to ensure the fierce physical and mental training required to be United States Marines and thus made themselves part of the long and distinguished history of this institution. In these changing times of our history, by our acts of remembrance and honor in memory of the events of the long battle for the liberation of Iwo Jima against the forces of the Empire of Japan, we never forget to remember the heroic actons done during the days of this great battle and most especially the six thousand American military servicemen who perished in this tiny island for the sake of the freedoms, dreams and aspirations not just of the people of the United States of America but also of all the millions of people of the free world. These Marines, together with those who served with them in V Amphibious Corps, are once more a reminder to the nation and the world of the patriotic and internationalist duties of the men and women of our armed forces, whether be active or reserve, together with the National Guard and the state defense forces and state naval forces, in the defense of the independence and liberty of millions all over the world and of both American and common international interests, and the responsibility of all Americans to help not just in national defense but in the building of national prosperity, security and safety, preservation of the country’s religions and cultures, safekeeping the enviroment and the sites of national importance, and becoming active in sports and recreation, as well as in spreading the values of our nation and people to millions all over the world.

The legacy left today by these men in scarlet and dark blue, which has become a part of our military historic and patriotic patrimony and heritage as a people and nation, and a eternal memory of the millions who fought and died in the Second World War, reminds us that as one people we owe a lot to the men and women of our Armed Forces and the National Guard and their veterans in the defense of the ideals of freedom and independence of our country and its continued existence amongst the community of united and independent nations of the world.

Ladies and gentlemen and people of our free world:

As one united people, in the midst of the worst pandemic in human history, it is with deep respect and gratitude, with humble respect and our deepest thanks not just to those who died but also to those who survived and our remaining veterans of this great battle living among us, as the whole world remembers and celebrates this very moment in our history and most of all in the history of the glorious United States Armed Forces, we, in remembrance of all the fallen and with profound thoughts of all who serve today in the armed forces and in our uniformed security and civil defense services, greet each other and the men and women of the United States Marine Corps as we celebrate together as one nation and one free world the seventy-sixth year anniversary of the historic raising of the national flag of the United States of America by these 6 brave Marines of the 5th Marine Division, risking even to lose their very own lives in the defense of their country and her people. The diamond legacy left by this historic act remains part of our long history and the patrimony of her Armed Forces, and thus is one of the greatest defining actions by the millions who served during those critical times of our history, those who are collectively called as our “greatest generation” of the armed forces, resistance organizations and our civilian security services. Only few remain living among the thousands who survived the battle and helped win one of the greatest operations in the military history of the United States, and today we thank these remaining living veterans of Iwo Jima, who 76 years ago helped bring forth the victory over the Empire of Japan in the Asia-Pacific, for their service to the nation and for their contributions to the victory won in this part of the world. To them, we owe our gratitude and pledge thus to honor the legacy they left behind in our history and to forever remain committed to fight just as they did long ago towards a better world.

May this great moment, which forever belongs in the annals of American military history, be for all generations a moment that will be forever a part of our history and sacred patrimony, and a part in the long 246-year history of the United States Marine Corps and the 74 years of the modern United States Armed Forces, truly a sacred and memorable moment of national pride that will be forever be remembered and never forgotten in our hearts for years and decades to come and in the hearts of all the people of the free world, and most of all of the American people, a memorable moment that will be treasured to our children. For this very immortal battle, one of many Allied victories in the Pacific Theater of Operations and one of the greatest military victories of the United States Armed Forces in this part of the world during the Second World War, shall be remembered as the one very battle that showed the world the bravery, courage and determination of the United States Marine for the defense of the American nation and all the free peoples of the world, and for the preservation of the values of freedom and liberty on which the United States was formed, thanks in part of the courage and gallantry shown by the US Marines in the early years of the nation that it helped to build. Today, as we honor this historic anniversary of such a great moment by these 6 Marines for our country and Corps, we once again recall the sacrifices made by the men and women of our Armed Forces in the victory won in this battle and many other combat operations in the Second World War in Europe, northern Africa, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific, flying the flag that today was raised in triumph in the peak of Mount Suribachi and in all our installations and military bases, in the sacred cause of the defense of the republic and her people and the cause of independence and liberty of the peoples of the free world. Once more, we today reaffirm that no matter what the dangers this world might face, with the strength and determination of the thousands of servicemen and women in the Armed Forces and the National Guard Bureau, and the inspiration of our heroes of the past, we will overcome all trials and disasters, and forge onwards towards the goal of a better tomorrow for our future generations.

In closing, may the eternal memory of these brave 6 Marine flagbearers, who risked their futures and their lives for the sake of our liberty 76 years ago when they raised the very symbol of our freedom, sovereignity and independence, be honored all the more by our efforts by all of us today, the people of this great land together with the free peoples of the world, everyday and by the generations to come – the very eternal memory of them and of all the millions who fought in the Second World War who will never be forgotten and will be honored for all time, in very age, century upon century, for the peace of our world and for the future of humanity!

And may this historic moment live on the hearts of the millions of American people and forever remain a celebration worthy to be honored as forever a part of the history and patrimony not just of the United States Marine Corps and the United States Armed Forces, but also as a great moment in the history of our great independent homeland the United States of America!

ETERNAL GLORY TO THE FALLEN OF THE BATTLE OF MANILA AND THE BOMBING OF PFORZHEIM!

LONG LIVE THE 37TH NATIONAL DAY OF BRUNEI DARUSSALAM, THE 51st ANNIVERSARY OF THE DECLARATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF GUAYANA, AND THE 7th ANNIVERSARY OF THE CLOSING OF THE SOCHI WINTER OLYMPIC GAMES AND THE VICTORY OF THE EUROMAIDAN REVOLUTION!

ETERNAL GLORY TO THE MEMORY OF THE 6 MARINES WHO ON THIS VERY IMPORTANT DAY IN AMERICAN HISTORY EXACTLY 76 YEARS AGO ON THIS VERY DAY IN OUR HISTORY, ATOP THE PEAK OF MOUNT SURIBACHI IN IWO JIMA, RISKING EVEN TO SUFFER DEATH BY ENEMY GUNFIRE, BAYONETS AND GRENADES, RAISED THE VERY SYMBOL OF FREEDOM AND LIBERTY, OUR GLORIOUS NATIONAL FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!

ETERNAL GLORY AND MEMORY TO THE HEROES, MARTYRS AND VETERANS OF THE GREAT BATTLE OF IWO JIMA, ONE OF THE GREATEST BATTLES EVER FOUGHT BY THE MEN OF THE UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS!

ETERNAL GLORY TO THE MEMORY OF ALL THE VETERANS, ALLIED HEROES AND FALLEN OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR IN THE PACIFIC THEATER OF OPERATIONS!

LONG LIVE THE GLORIOUS, INVINCIBLE AND LEGENDARY UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS, ALWAYS FAITHFUL TILL THE END FOR THE PEOPLE AND THE ENTIRE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND OF THE FREE WORLD!

GLORY TO THE VICTORIOUS PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND HER UNIFORMED SERVICES!

AND FINALLY, GLORY TO THE ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, DEFENDERS OF OUR FREEDOM AND LIBERTY AND GUARANTEE OF A FUTURE WORTHY OF OUR GENERATIONS TO COME!

May our Almighty God bless our great country, the land of the free and the home of the brave, the first of the free republics of our modern world, our beloved, great and mighty United States of America!

Semper Fidelis! Oorah!

1800h, February 23, 2021, the 245th year of the United States of America, the 246th year of the United States Army, Navy and Marine Corps, the 127th of the International Olympic Committee, the 125th of the Olympic Games, the 80th since the beginning of the Second World War in the Eastern Front and in the Pacific Theater, the 76th since the battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa and the victories in Europe and the Pacific and the 74th of the United States Armed Forces

Semper Fortis

John Emmanuel Ramos

Makati City, Philippines

Grandson of Philippine Navy veteran PO2 Paterno Cueno, PN (Ret.)

(Honor by Hans Zimmer) (Platoon Swims) (Rendering Honors)

#hbo war #battle of iwo jima #raising the flag over iwo jima #the pacific #flags of our fathers

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newstfionline · 3 years ago

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Sunday, September 26, 2021

Huawei executive returning as China releases Canadians (AP) China’s government was eagerly anticipating the return of a top executive from global communications giant Huawei Technologies on Saturday following what amounted to a high-stakes prisoner swap with Canada and the U.S. Meng Wanzhou, 49, Huawei’s chief financial officer and the daughter of the company’s founder, reached an agreement with U.S. federal prosecutors that called for fraud charges against her to be dismissed next year. As part of the deal, known as a deferred prosecution agreement, she accepted responsibility for misrepresenting the company’s business dealings in Iran. The same day, two Canadian citizens held by Beijing were freed and flown back to Canada. Meng was expected to arrive late Saturday in the southern technology hub of Shenzhen, where Huawei is based.

US police departments clamoring for de-escalation training (AP) Angry over being fired, a former employee slashed the tires of his boss’ vehicle and still held the knife when police officers arrived. Three officers positioned themselves at a safe distance as the man yelled and ranted. One officer had a stun gun, another a handgun. The third used the most important tool—a willingness to talk. Here in a school parking lot in Maine, the emergency was fake, but the strategies were very real. The officers were going through a training course offered by the Police Executive Research Forum that thousands of police officers around the country are receiving this year. Officers are taught: keep a safe distance, slow things down. Police officers are asked to do a lot. They’re asked to be roadside psychologists, family counselors, mental health workers—and even soldiers in an active-shooter event, said Saco Police Chief Jack Clements, whose agency hosted the event in New England. That’s why it’s important to rehearse.

Texas migrant camp empty (AP) No migrants are left at a Texas border encampment, about a week after nearly 15,000 people—most of them Haitians—huddled in makeshift shelters hoping for the chance to seek asylum. Some will get that chance, while the others will be expelled to their homeland. The Department of Homeland Security planned to continue flights to Haiti throughout the weekend, ignoring criticism from Democratic lawmakers and human rights groups who say Haitian migrants are being sent back to a troubled country that some left more than a decade ago. Meanwhile, Bruno Lozano, the mayor of Del Rio, Texas, where the camp was located, said officials would search the brush along the Rio Grande to ensure nobody was hiding and finish cleaning the site before reopening the international bridge. Lozano said there were no deaths during the time the camp was occupied and that 10 babies were born to migrant mothers, either at the camp or in Del Rio’s hospital.

In South America, the climate future has arrived (Washington Post) Sergio Koci’s sunflower farm in the lowlands of northern Argentina has survived decades of political upheaval, runaway inflation and the coronavirus outbreak. But as a series of historic droughts deadens vast expanses of South America, he fears a worsening water crisis could do what other calamities couldn’t: Bust his third-generation agribusiness. From the frigid peaks of Patagonia to the tropical wetlands of Brazil, worsening droughts this year are slamming farmers, shutting down ski slopes, upending transit and spiking prices for everything from coffee to electricity. So low are levels of the Paraná running through Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina that some ranchers are herding cattle across dried-up riverbeds typically lined with cargo-toting barges. Raging wildfires in Paraguay have brought acrid smoke to the limits of the capital. Earlier this year, the rushing cascades of Iguazu Falls on the Brazilian-Argentine frontier reduced to a relative drip. The droughts this year are extensions of multiyear water shortages, with causes that vary from country to country. Yet for much of the region, the droughts are moving up the calendar on climate change—offering a taste of the challenges ahead in securing an increasingly precious commodity: water.

UK scrambles for truckers amid supply woe (AP) British energy firms are rationing supplies of gasoline and closing some petrol pumps—the latest in a string of shortages that have seen McDonald’s take milkshakes off the menu, KFC run short of chicken and gaps appear on supermarket shelves. A big factor behind the problems is a lack of truck drivers. The U.K. is short tens of thousands of hauliers, as factors including Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic converge to create a supply-chain crunch. Officials urged motorists not to panic-buy petrol after BP and Esso shut a handful of stations because there were not enough trucks to get gas to the pumps. As concern over the disruption mounts, the haulage industry is pressing the government to loosen immigration rules and recruit more drivers from Europe to avert Christmas shortages. The government is resisting that move, and scrambling to lure more British people into truck driving, long viewed as an underpaid and underappreciated job.

Red hot lava spews from La Palma volcano as eruption intensifies (Reuters) Rivers of lava raced down the volcano and exploded high into the air overnight on the Spanish island of La Palma and the airport was closed as an eruption intensified and entered its most explosive phase so far. Since it began erupting on Sunday on the small island in the Atlantic, the Cumbre Vieja volcano has spewed out thousands of tons of lava, destroyed hundreds of houses and forced the evacuation of nearly 6,000 people. Experts said the volcano had entered a new explosive phase. Videos shared on social media showed a massive shockwave emanating from the eruption site on Friday.

Situation becoming 'dire' at US airbase in Germany housing Afghan refugees (CNN) The task of accommodating 10,000 Afghan refugees, including approximately 2,000 pregnant women, is putting facilities at Ramstein airbase in Germany under tremendous strain as nighttime temperatures drop toward freezing and what was meant to be a 10-day temporary stay is stretching into weeks, with one US source familiar with the situation describing it as becoming "dire." Already 22 babies have been born to Afghan mothers at Ramstein, and that number will rise very soon with roughly two thirds of the 3,000 women being housed there pregnant, requiring the time and effort of medical personnel from Ramstein and other bases, two US sources familiar with the situation at the base told CNN. Even though it's one of the largest US bases in Europe, Ramstein was never designed to handle such a large transient population especially when there are better equipped and larger facilities in the US. One of the sources called the Afghans at Ramstein "the forgotten 10," as the focus has shifted away from the almost 10,000 who remain stuck in limbo in Germany towards some 53,000 Afghan evacuees already housed at eight military bases across the US.

Some in Hungary and Poland talk of EU pullout (AP) When Hungary and Poland joined the European Union in 2004, after decades of Communist domination, their citizens thirsted for Western democratic standards and prosperity. Yet 17 years later, as the EU ramps up efforts to rein in democratic backsliding in both countries, some of the governing right-wing populists in Hungary and Poland are comparing the bloc to their former Soviet oppressors—and flirting with the prospect of exiting the trade bloc. “Brussels sends us overlords who are supposed to bring Poland to order, on our knees,” a leading member of Poland’s governing Law and Justice party, Marek Suski, said this month, adding that Poland “will fight the Brussels occupier” as it fought past Nazi and Soviet occupiers. It’s unclear to what extent this kind of talk represents a real desire to leave the 27-member bloc or a negotiating tactic to counter arm-twisting from Brussels. The two countries are the largest net beneficiaries of EU money, and the vast majority of their citizens want to stay in the bloc.

Refugees in fear as sentiment turns against them in Turkey (AP) Fatima Alzahra Shon thinks neighbors attacked her and her son in their Istanbul apartment building because she is Syrian. The 32-year-old refugee from Aleppo was confronted on Sept. 1 by a Turkish woman who asked her what she was doing in “our” country. Shon replied, “Who are you to say that to me?” The situation quickly escalated. A man came out of the Turkish woman’s apartment half-dressed, threatening to cut Shon and her family “into pieces,” she recalled. Another neighbor, a woman, joined in, shouting and hitting Shon. The group then pushed her down a flight of stairs. Shon said that when her 10-year-old son, Amr, tried to intervene, he was beaten as well. Refugees fleeing the long conflict in Syria once were welcomed in neighboring Turkey with open arms, sympathy and compassion for fellow Muslims. But attitudes gradually hardened as the number of newcomers swelled over the past decade. Anti-immigrant sentiment is now nearing a boiling point, fueled by Turkey’s economic woes. With unemployment high and the prices of food and housing skyrocketing, many Turks have turned their frustration toward the country’s roughly 5 million foreign residents, particularly the 3.7 million who fled the civil war in Syria.

For India’s Military, a Juggling Act on Two Hostile Fronts (NYT) After the deadliest clashes in half a century with China, India’s military has taken emergency measures to reinforce a 500-mile stretch of the border high in the Himalayas. In the past year, it has tripled the number of troops in the contentious eastern Ladakh region to more than 50,000. It has raced to stock up on food and gear for freezing temperatures and 15,000-foot altitudes before the region is largely cut off for much of the winter. It has announced that an entire strike corps, an offensive force of tens of thousands more soldiers, would be reoriented to the increasingly contentious frontier with China from the long, volatile border with Pakistan. India’s military is now grappling with a reality that the country has feared for nearly two decades: It is stuck in a two-front conflict with hostile neighbors—and all three are nuclear armed.

China says all crypto transactions illegal (AP) China’s central bank on Friday declared all transactions involving Bitcoin and other virtual currencies illegal, stepping up a campaign to block use of unofficial digital money. Friday’s notice complained Bitcoin, Ethereum and other digital currencies disrupt the financial system and are used in money-laundering and other crimes. The price of Bitcoin fell more than 9%, to $41,085, in the hours after the announcement, as did most other crypto tokens. Promoters of cryptocurrencies say they allow anonymity and flexibility, but Chinese regulators worry they might weaken the ruling Communist Party’s control over the financial system and say they might help to conceal criminal activity. The People’s Bank of China is developing an electronic version of the country’s yuan for cashless transactions that can be tracked and controlled by Beijing.

8 dead as al-Shabab claims blast in Somalia’s capital (AP) A vehicle laden with explosives rammed into cars and trucks at a checkpoint leading to the entrance of the Presidential Palace in Somalia, killing at least eight people, police said Saturday. The checkpoint is the one used by Somalia’s president and prime minister on their way to and from the airport in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu. Nine other people were wounded in the bombing, police spokesman Abdifatah Adam Hassan said. The al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab extremist group has claimed responsibility.

#headlines #news

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army-embroidery-blog · 5 years ago

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Which armed force has the coolest looking uniform?

There are likewise over twelve sorts of uniform (contingent upon unit/country). You have field uniform (that camo stuff), accessible in day off, calm at any rate, march garbs, stately, mess unit, dress uniform, summer and forms, tropical variants, extraordinary chilly climate and even the nomex dark stuff for compelling your way into consulates and planes.

Add to that, the accessories, for example, awards, identifications, belts, enhancements, sabers, swords, kukris, body reinforcement, load conveying pack, protective caps, gas covers (if respirators are your THING) and obviously the head gear from tops, officials tops, bear skins, berets, timoshanti (sp?) caps, balaclavas (just in dark), sex irritation covers (it's a genuine article) and poo caps (enrolls as it were).

Additionally, it's not really the uniform, it's who's wearing it. Dark nomex worn by SF in the antiterrorism job is inherirently cool, in light of the fact that SF will consistently be cool, long after Adele stops to be. In like manner, the SAS don't have a wreck pack, which means as well as can be expected quest for outwardly is a few SAS wings (an identification).

The fundamental battle uniform is in itself uncool, the M4 with acog, lasers and other

For that, we can quickly disregard all nations aside from the UK and US. It's an intense move and I look advances to the remarks… (respectable notice to the Canadians who will be too amenable to even think about complaining).

In the US you can disregard the aviation based armed forces, armed force and coast protect, in the UK the RAF can likewise be quickly rejected. Why, since they don't I accept have chaos pack, so miserable, so heartbroken, so long.

I would then bar both Navy's? Why? It's decent pack, noteworthy in the late spring and tropical forms yet it can't break knicker versatile like the USMC chaos unit and the Britiah Army's Regimental Mess unit. Be that as it may, they can take a respectable third spot, which for the Navy is the same old thing obviously.

You see the issue is Navy types continue getting confused with servers… (genuinely it happens all the time at blended capacities).

What's left is the great USMC wreckage unit,

You can see here, the USMC wreckage dress. Indeed, what's amazing here, is that the Marine is really encompassed by excellent young ladies. You presumably didn't see from the start as a result of how great the chaos dress is.

Next up is the British wreckage unit, what's fascinating about this is it's distinctive for each regiment which means there are many renditions.

Any individual who is an Aide-de-Camp (ADC).

In the event that one is an assistant to a general official or illustrious arrangement like a Lord Lieutenant, they are worn on the left. In the event that they are a helper to the Queen , they are worn on the right.

You will see that Princes William and Harry wear theirs on the right.

The reason, I expect, is to clarify that, when they request that somebody accomplish something, state an official senior in rank, obviously they are talking for the individual whose assistant they are.

There are additionally over twelve sorts of uniform (contingent upon unit/country). You have field uniform (that camo stuff), accessible in day off, mild at any rate, march garbs, formal, mess unit, dress uniform, summer and forms, tropical renditions, extraordinary chilly climate and even the nomex dark stuff for driving your way into international safe havens and planes.

Add to that, the accessories, for example, awards, identifications, belts, embellishments, sabers, swords, kukris, body reinforcement, load conveying pack, protective caps, gas covers (if respirators are your THING) and obviously the head gear from tops, officials tops, bear skins, berets, timoshanti (sp?) caps, balaclavas (just in dark), sex bug covers (it's a genuine article) and poop caps (enlists as it were).

Additionally, it's not really the uniform, it's who's wearing it. Dark nomex worn by SF in the antiterrorism job is inherirently cool, in light of the fact that SF will consistently be cool, long after Adele stops to be. In like manner, the SAS don't have a wreck unit, which means as well as can be expected quest for outwardly is a few SAS wings (an identification).

The fundamental battle uniform is in itself uncool, the M4 with acog, lasers and other

For that, we can promptly disregard all nations aside from the UK and US. It's an intense move and I look advances to the remarks… (noteworthy notice to the Canadians who will be too affable to even consider complaining).

In the US you can disregard the flying corps, armed force and coast watch, in the UK the RAF can likewise be quickly prohibited. Why, since they don't I accept have chaos unit, so pitiful, so grieved, so long.

I would then reject both Navy's? Why? It's pleasant unit, great in the mid year and tropical forms yet it can't break knicker versatile like the USMC chaos pack and the Britiah Army's Regimental Mess pack. Be that as it may, they can take a decent third spot, which for the Navy is the same old thing obviously.

You see the issue is Navy types continue getting confused with servers… (genuinely it happens all the time at blended capacities).

What's left is the extremely amazing USMC chaos pack,

You can see here, the USMC wreckage dress. Truth be told, what's amazing here, is that the Marine is really encompassed by delightful young ladies. You presumably didn't see from the outset on account of how great the wreckage dress is.

Next up is the British chaos unit, what's fascinating about this is it's diverse for each regiment which means there are many adaptations.

Related: royal navy cap

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esprit-de-corps-magazine · 5 years ago

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ARMY CADETS ARE PART OF YOUR COMMUNITY

(Volume 26-2)

By Rob Gill, Executive Director, Army Cadet League of Canada

There are over 18,000 Army Cadets across the country, training in over 425 Army Cadet Corps, based in some 300 municipalities across the country. From St John’s to Victoria to Arctic Bay and hundreds of places in between. Some places are extremely easy to find, while others are a little more remote. How many people can find Upper Island Cove, NL or Cross Lake, MB on a map? While each of these Cadet Corps is unique, each instills identical values, while also maintaining their sense of community.

I have been involved with this program from some 30 years. Army Cadet, Cadet Instructor Cadre officer, Army Cadet League of Canada member and now Executive Director. I have been extremely fortunate during my time with, and working for the program, to have visited every province in Canada. No matter where I go, I run into present cadets, former cadets and supporters of cadets. While each is from a different region of the country, everyone acknowledges and recognizes the sense of belonging to a community. This community feeling cannot be taught in a lecture room, and read in a manual. It is something that can only be learned through experience.

The Army Cadet program’s lineage goes back to 1861 with the creation of Drill Associations. Based out of schools in Upper and Lower Canada, these associations taught all men between the ages of 13 and 60 drill, and marksmanship. In 1879, a clear distinction between cadets and the militia was made, ensuring that cadets would not see active service. The birth of several Militia Regiments and the earliest Army Cadet Corps are directly tied together, raised through community support and community funds. The longest serving Army Cadet Corps is #2 in Lennoxville, Quebec and is still active today.

I enjoyed my time as an Army Cadet at 3018 in Orleans, Ontario. During that time, I was fortunate to meet fellow Army Cadets first, from the Ottawa area, to eventually other regions of Ontario, Canada and even overseas. I followed that as a Cadet Instructor Cadre officer and then League member, meeting and making more friends who all had the Army Cadet program in common. Each encounter reinforced that we all came from extremely different communities, yet had so much in common. While extremely proud of the Corps that I have worked with over the years, during my travels I have heard stories and personally witnessed the same pride across the country.

A trip to New Brunswick saw me walk in unannounced to visit 1691 Saint John, Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps. Some 60 cadets were on parade and the Corps’ CO, Capt Dickson gleamed with pride as she told me the Corps recent successes. I met a man in Digby, NS who was a cadet at 1714 Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps in Annapolis Royal, NS who recounted his memories of Camp Argonaut and with the Corps. While he is still years away from being a parent of a cadet, he plans on being one when his daughter is of age. While in Saskatoon I met a young lady who remembered, and missed her time as a cadet and her summers at Camp Vernon. On a guided tour of Winnipeg, a local Army Cadet League Director took me to the home of 553 Tommy Prince, MM, Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps. Despite the area’s social and economic challenges, the community recognizes the program’s positive development of its youth and supports it as best that it can. Its cadets are among some of the best and proudest in the country.

Communities are not bound by race, or religion, or even municipal boundaries. Our Cadet Corps today are a reflection of that. Each Corps is supported by a community, comprised of the community and is a reflection of that community. The community provides instructors, volunteers, financial support and youth. The community remains just as important to cadets today, as it was in 1861.

No matter where I visit in Canada, I always get the same sensation of community, the same sense of pride and the same sense of belonging. Despite appearing to be very different, we are all the same. You will not learn this through any manual, or in any lecture. It must be experienced, and I am thankful that the Army Cadet program has allowed me to experience it.

The Army Cadet League of Canada is a civilian, volunteer lead, non-profit organization that works in partnership with the Canadian Armed Forces to support the Royal Canadian Army Cadet program. The League is the supervisory sponsor for more than 425 cadet corps across Canada. With the aid of each branch office, the League ensures financial, accommodations and transportation support for programs and services not provided by the Department of National Defence.

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brookstonalmanac · 2 years ago

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Events 4.9

193 – The distinguished soldier Septimius Severus is proclaimed emperor by the army in Illyricum. 475 – Byzantine Emperor Basiliscus issues a circular letter (Enkyklikon) to the bishops of his empire, supporting the Monophysite christological position. 537 – Siege of Rome: The Byzantine general Belisarius receives his promised reinforcements, 1,600 cavalry, mostly of Hunnic or Slavic origin and expert bowmen. He starts, despite shortages, raids against the Gothic camps and Vitiges is forced into a stalemate. 1241 – Battle of Liegnitz: Mongol forces defeat the Polish and German armies. 1288 – Mongol invasions of Vietnam: Yuan forces are defeated by Trần forces in the Battle of Bach Dang in present-day northern Vietnam. 1388 – Despite being outnumbered 16:1, forces of the Old Swiss Confederacy are victorious over the Archduchy of Austria in the Battle of Näfels. 1454 – The Treaty of Lodi is signed, establishing a balance of power among northern Italian city-states for almost 50 years. 1609 – Eighty Years' War: Spain and the Dutch Republic sign the Treaty of Antwerp to initiate twelve years of truce. 1609 – Philip III of Spain issues the decree of the "Expulsion of the Moriscos". 1682 – Robert Cavelier de La Salle discovers the mouth of the Mississippi River, claims it for France and names it Louisiana. 1784 – The Treaty of Paris, ratified by the United States Congress on January 14, 1784, is ratified by King George III of the Kingdom of Great Britain, ending the American Revolutionary War. Copies of the ratified documents are exchanged on May 12, 1784. 1860 – On his phonautograph machine, Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville makes the oldest known recording of an audible human voice. 1865 – American Civil War: Robert E. Lee surrenders the Army of Northern Virginia (26,765 troops) to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the war. 1909 – The U.S. Congress passes the Payne–Aldrich Tariff Act. 1917 – World War I: The Battle of Arras: The battle begins with Canadian Corps executing a massive assault on Vimy Ridge. 1918 – World War I: The Battle of the Lys: The Portuguese Expeditionary Corps is crushed by the German forces during what is called the Spring Offensive on the Belgian region of Flanders. 1937 – The Kamikaze arrives at Croydon Airport in London. It is the first Japanese-built aircraft to fly to Europe. 1939 – African-American singer Marian Anderson gives a concert at the Lincoln Memorial after being denied the use of Constitution Hall by the Daughters of the American Revolution. 1940 – World War II: Operation Weserübung: Germany invades Denmark and Norway. 1940 – Vidkun Quisling seizes power in Norway. 1942 – World War II: The Battle of Bataan ends. An Indian Ocean raid by Japan's 1st Air Fleet sinks the British aircraft carrier HMS Hermes and the Australian destroyer HMAS Vampire. 1945 – Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Lutheran pastor and anti-Nazi dissident, is executed by the Nazi regime. 1945 – World War II: The German heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer is sunk by the Royal Air Force. 1945 – World War II: The Battle of Königsberg, in East Prussia, ends. 1945 – The United States Atomic Energy Commission is formed. 1947 – The Glazier–Higgins–Woodward tornadoes kill 181 and injure 970 in Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. 1947 – The Journey of Reconciliation, the first interracial Freedom Ride begins through the upper South in violation of Jim Crow laws. The riders wanted enforcement of the United States Supreme Court's 1946 Irene Morgan decision that banned racial segregation in interstate travel. 1947 – United Nations Security Council Resolution 22 relating to Corfu Channel incident is adopted. 1948 – Jorge Eliécer Gaitán's assassination provokes a violent riot in Bogotá (the Bogotazo), and a further ten years of violence in Colombia. 1948 – Fighters from the Irgun and Lehi Zionist paramilitary groups attacked Deir Yassin near Jerusalem, killing over 100. 1952 – Hugo Ballivián's government is overthrown by the Bolivian National Revolution, starting a period of agrarian reform, universal suffrage and the nationalization of tin mines 1952 – Japan Air Lines Flight 301 crashes into Mount Mihara, Izu Ōshima, Japan, killing 37. 1957 – The Suez Canal in Egypt is cleared and opens to shipping following the Suez Crisis. 1959 – Project Mercury: NASA announces the selection of the United States' first seven astronauts, whom the news media quickly dub the "Mercury Seven". 1960 – Dr. Hendrik Verwoerd, Prime Minister of South Africa and architect of apartheid, narrowly survives an assassination attempt by a white farmer, David Pratt in Johannesburg. 1967 – The first Boeing 737 (a 100 series) makes its maiden flight. 1969 – The first British-built Concorde 002 makes its maiden flight from Filton to RAF Fairford. 1980 – The Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein kills philosopher Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr and his sister Bint al-Huda after three days of torture. 1981 – The U.S. Navy nuclear submarine USS George Washington accidentally collides with the Nissho Maru, a Japanese cargo ship, sinking it and killing two Japanese sailors. 1989 – Tbilisi massacre: An anti-Soviet peaceful demonstration and hunger strike in Tbilisi, demanding restoration of Georgian independence, is dispersed by the Soviet Army, resulting in 20 deaths and hundreds of injuries. 1990 – An IRA bombing in County Down, Northern Ireland, kills three members of the UDR. 1990 – The Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement is signed for 180,000 square kilometres (69,000 sq mi) in the Mackenzie Valley of the western Arctic. 1990 – An Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia collides in mid-air with a Cessna 172 over Gadsden, Alabama, killing both of the Cessna's occupants. 1991 – Georgia declares independence from the Soviet Union. 1992 – A U.S. Federal Court finds former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega guilty of drug and racketeering charges. He is sentenced to 30 years in prison. 2003 – Iraq War: Baghdad falls to American forces. 2009 – In Tbilisi, Georgia, up to 60,000 people protest against the government of Mikheil Saakashvili. 2013 – A 6.1–magnitude earthquake strikes Iran killing 32 people and injuring over 850 people. 2013 – At least 13 people are killed and another three injured after a man goes on a spree shooting in the Serbian village of Velika Ivanča. 2014 – A student stabs 20 people at Franklin Regional High School in Murrysville, Pennsylvania. 2017 – The Palm Sunday church bombings at Coptic churches in Tanta and Alexandria, Egypt, take place. 2017 – After refusing to give up his seat on an overbooked United Express flight, Dr. David Dao Duy Anh is forcibly dragged off the flight by aviation security officers, leading to major criticism of United Airlines. 2021 – Burmese military and security forces commit the Bago massacre, during which at least 82 civilians are killed.

#Events

0 notes

brookstonalmanac · 3 years ago

Text

Events 4.9

190 – Dong Zhuo has his troops evacuate the capital Luoyang and burn it to the ground. 193 – The distinguished soldier Septimus Severus is proclaimed emperor by the army in Illyricum. 475 – Byzantine Emperor Basiliscus issues a circular letter (Enkyklikon) to the bishops of his empire, supporting the Monophysite christological position. 537 – Siege of Rome: The Byzantine general Belisarius receives his promised reinforcements, 1,600 cavalry, mostly of Hunnic or Slavic origin and expert bowmen. He starts, despite shortages, raids against the Gothic camps and Vitiges is forced into a stalemate. 1241 – Battle of Liegnitz: Mongol forces defeat the Polish and German armies. 1288 – Mongol invasions of Vietnam: Yuan forces are defeated by Trần forces in the Battle of Bach Dang in present-day northern Vietnam. 1388 – Despite being outnumbered 16 to 1, forces of the Old Swiss Confederacy are victorious over the Archduchy of Austria in the Battle of Näfels. 1454 – The Treaty of Lodi is signed, establishing a balance of power among northern Italian city-states for almost 50 years. 1609 – Eighty Years' War: Spain and the Dutch Republic sign the Treaty of Antwerp to initiate twelve years of truce. 1609 – Philip III of Spain issues the decree of the "Expulsion of the Moriscos". 1682 – Robert Cavelier de La Salle discovers the mouth of the Mississippi River, claims it for France and names it Louisiana. 1784 – The Treaty of Paris, ratified by the United States Congress on January 14, 1784, is ratified by King George III of the Kingdom of Great Britain, ending the American Revolutionary War. Copies of the ratified documents are exchanged on May 12, 1784. 1860 – On his phonautograph machine, Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville makes the oldest known recording of an audible human voice. 1865 – American Civil War: Robert E. Lee surrenders the Army of Northern Virginia (26,765 troops) to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the war. 1909 – The U.S. Congress passes the Payne–Aldrich Tariff Act. 1917 – World War I: The Battle of Arras: The battle begins with Canadian Corps executing a massive assault on Vimy Ridge. 1918 – World War I: The Battle of the Lys: The Portuguese Expeditionary Corps is crushed by the German forces during what is called the Spring Offensive on the Belgian region of Flanders. 1937 – The Kamikaze arrives at Croydon Airport in London. It is the first Japanese-built aircraft to fly to Europe. 1939 – African-American singer Marian Anderson gives a concert at the Lincoln Memorial after being denied the use of Constitution Hall by the Daughters of the American Revolution. 1940 – World War II: Operation Weserübung: Germany invades Denmark and Norway. 1940 – Vidkun Quisling seizes power in Norway. 1942 – World War II: The Battle of Bataan ends. An Indian Ocean raid by Japan's 1st Air Fleet sinks the British aircraft carrier HMS Hermes and the Australian destroyer HMAS Vampire. 1945 – Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Lutheran pastor and anti-Nazi dissident, is executed by the Nazi regime. 1945 – World War II: The German heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer is sunk by the Royal Air Force. 1945 – World War II: The Battle of Königsberg, in East Prussia, ends. 1945 – The United States Atomic Energy Commission is formed. 1947 – The Glazier–Higgins–Woodward tornadoes kill 181 and injure 970 in Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. 1947 – The Journey of Reconciliation, the first interracial Freedom Ride begins through the upper South in violation of Jim Crow laws. The riders wanted enforcement of the United States Supreme Court's 1946 Irene Morgan decision that banned racial segregation in interstate travel. 1947 – United Nations Security Council Resolution 22 relating to Corfu Channel incident is adopted. 1948 – Jorge Eliécer Gaitán's assassination provokes a violent riot in Bogotá (the Bogotazo), and a further ten years of violence in Colombia. 1948 – Fighters from the Irgun and Lehi Zionist paramilitary groups attacked Deir Yassin near Jerusalem, killing over 100. 1952 – Hugo Ballivián's government is overthrown by the Bolivian National Revolution, starting a period of agrarian reform, universal suffrage and the nationalization of tin mines 1957 – The Suez Canal in Egypt is cleared and opens to shipping following the Suez Crisis. 1959 – Project Mercury: NASA announces the selection of the United States' first seven astronauts, whom the news media quickly dub the "Mercury Seven". 1960 – Dr. Hendrik Verwoerd, Prime Minister of South Africa and architect of apartheid, narrowly survives an assassination attempt by a white farmer, David Pratt in Johannesburg. 1967 – The first Boeing 737 (a 100 series) makes its maiden flight. 1969 – The first British-built Concorde 002 makes its maiden flight from Filton to RAF Fairford. 1980 – The Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein kills philosopher Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr and his sister Bint al-Huda after three days of torture. 1981 – The U.S. Navy nuclear submarine USS George Washington accidentally collides with the Nissho Maru, a Japanese cargo ship, sinking it and killing two Japanese sailors. 1989 – Tbilisi massacre: An anti-Soviet peaceful demonstration and hunger strike in Tbilisi, demanding restoration of Georgian independence, is dispersed by the Soviet Army, resulting in 20 deaths and hundreds of injuries. 1990 – An IRA bombing in County Down, Northern Ireland, kills three members of the UDR. 1990 – The Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement is signed for 180,000 square kilometres (69,000 sq mi) in the Mackenzie Valley of the western Arctic. 1991 – Georgia declares independence from the Soviet Union. 1992 – A U.S. Federal Court finds former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega guilty of drug and racketeering charges. He is sentenced to 30 years in prison. 2003 – Iraq War: Baghdad falls to American forces. 2009 – In Tbilisi, Georgia, up to 60,000 people protest against the government of Mikheil Saakashvili. 2013 – A 6.1–magnitude earthquake strikes Iran killing 32 people and injuring over 850 people. 2013 – At least 13 people are killed and another three injured after a man goes on a spree shooting in the Serbian village of Velika Ivanča. 2014 – A student stabs 20 people at Franklin Regional High School in Murrysville, Pennsylvania. 2017 – The Palm Sunday church bombings at Coptic churches in Tanta and Alexandria, Egypt, take place. 2017 – After refusing to give up his seat on an overbooked United Express flight, Dr. David Dao Duy Anh is forcibly dragged off the flight by aviation security officers, leading to major criticism of United Airlines.

#Events

0 notes

brookstonalmanac · 4 years ago

Text

Events 4.9

190 – Dong Zhuo has his troops evacuate the capital Luoyang and burn it to the ground. 475 – Byzantine Emperor Basiliscus issues a circular letter (Enkyklikon) to the bishops of his empire, supporting the Monophysite christological position. 537 – Siege of Rome: The Byzantine general Belisarius receives his promised reinforcements, 1,600 cavalry, mostly of Hunnic or Slavic origin and expert bowmen. He starts, despite shortages, raids against the Gothic camps and Vitiges is forced into a stalemate. 1241 – Battle of Liegnitz: Mongol forces defeat the Polish and German armies. 1288 – Mongol invasions of Vietnam: Yuan forces are defeated by Trần forces in the Battle of Bach Dang in present-day northern Vietnam. 1388 – Despite being outnumbered 16 to 1, forces of the Old Swiss Confederacy are victorious over the Archduchy of Austria in the Battle of Näfels. 1454 – The Treaty of Lodi is signed, establishing a balance of power among northern Italian city-states for almost 50 years. 1609 – Eighty Years' War: Spain and the Dutch Republic sign the Treaty of Antwerp to initiate twelve years of truce. 1609 – Philip III of Spain issues the decree of the "Expulsion of the Moriscos". 1682 – Robert Cavelier de La Salle discovers the mouth of the Mississippi River, claims it for France and names it Louisiana. 1784 – The Treaty of Paris, ratified by the United States Congress on January 14, 1784, is ratified by King George III of the Kingdom of Great Britain, ending the American Revolutionary War. Copies of the ratified documents are exchanged on May 12, 1784. 1860 – On his phonautograph machine, Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville makes the oldest known recording of an audible human voice. 1865 – American Civil War: Robert E. Lee surrenders the Army of Northern Virginia (26,765 troops) to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the war. 1909 – The U.S. Congress passes the Payne–Aldrich Tariff Act. 1914 – Mexican Revolution: One of the world's first naval/air skirmishes takes place off the coast of western Mexico. 1917 – World War I: The Battle of Arras: The battle begins with Canadian Corps executing a massive assault on Vimy Ridge. 1918 – World War I: The Battle of the Lys: The Portuguese Expeditionary Corps is crushed by the German forces during what is called the Spring Offensive on the Belgian region of Flanders. 1937 – The Kamikaze arrives at Croydon Airport in London. It is the first Japanese-built aircraft to fly to Europe. 1939 – African-American singer Marian Anderson gives a concert at the Lincoln Memorial after being denied the use of Constitution Hall by the Daughters of the American Revolution. 1940 – World War II: Operation Weserübung: Germany invades Denmark and Norway. 1940 – Vidkun Quisling seizes power in Norway. 1942 – World War II: The Battle of Bataan ends. An Indian Ocean raid by Japan's 1st Air Fleet sinks the British aircraft carrier HMS Hermes and the Australian destroyer HMAS Vampire. 1945 – Execution of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, anti-Nazi dissident and spy, by the Nazi regime. 1945 – World War II: The German heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer is sunk by the Royal Air Force. 1945 – World War II: The Battle of Königsberg, in East Prussia, ends. 1945 – The United States Atomic Energy Commission is formed. 1947 – The Glazier–Higgins–Woodward tornadoes kill 181 and injure 970 in Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. 1947 – The Journey of Reconciliation, the first interracial Freedom Ride begins through the upper South in violation of Jim Crow laws. The riders wanted enforcement of the United States Supreme Court's 1946 Irene Morgan decision that banned racial segregation in interstate travel. 1947 – United Nations Security Council Resolution 22 relating to Corfu Channel incident is adopted. 1948 – Jorge Eliécer Gaitán's assassination provokes a violent riot in Bogotá (the Bogotazo), and a further ten years of violence in Colombia. 1948 – Fighters from the Irgun and Lehi Zionist paramilitary groups attacked Deir Yassin near Jerusalem, killing over 100. 1952 – Hugo Ballivián's government is overthrown by the Bolivian National Revolution, starting a period of agrarian reform, universal suffrage and the nationalization of tin mines 1957 – The Suez Canal in Egypt is cleared and opens to shipping following the Suez Crisis. 1959 – Project Mercury: NASA announces the selection of the United States' first seven astronauts, whom the news media quickly dub the "Mercury Seven". 1960 – Dr. Hendrik Verwoerd, Prime Minister of South Africa and architect of apartheid, narrowly survives an assassination attempt by a white farmer, David Pratt in Johannesburg. 1967 – The first Boeing 737 (a 100 series) makes its maiden flight. 1969 – The first British-built Concorde 002 makes its maiden flight from Filton to RAF Fairford. 1980 – The Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein kills philosopher Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr and his sister Bint al-Huda after three days of torture. 1981 – The U.S. Navy nuclear submarine USS George Washington accidentally collides with the Nissho Maru, a Japanese cargo ship, sinking it and killing two Japanese sailors. 1989 – Tbilisi massacre: An anti-Soviet peaceful demonstration and hunger strike in Tbilisi, demanding restoration of Georgian independence, is dispersed by the Soviet Army, resulting in 20 deaths and hundreds of injuries. 1990 – An IRA bombing in County Down, Northern Ireland, kills three members of the UDR. 1990 – The Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement is signed for 180,000 square kilometres (69,000 sq mi) in the Mackenzie Valley of the western Arctic. 1991 – Georgia declares independence from the Soviet Union. 1992 – A U.S. Federal Court finds former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega guilty of drug and racketeering charges. He is sentenced to 30 years in prison. 2003 – Iraq War: Baghdad falls to American forces. 2009 – In Tbilisi, Georgia, up to 60,000 people protest against the government of Mikheil Saakashvili. 2013 – A 6.1–magnitude earthquake strikes Iran killing 32 people and injuring over 850 people. 2013 – At least 13 people are killed and another three injured after a man goes on a spree shooting in the Serbian village of Velika Ivanča. 2014 – A student stabs 20 people at Franklin Regional High School in Murrysville, Pennsylvania. 2017 – The Palm Sunday church bombings at Coptic churches in Tanta and Alexandria, Egypt, take place. 2017 – After refusing to give up his seat on an overbooked United Express flight, Dr. David Dao Duy Anh is forcibly dragged off the flight by aviation security officers, leading to major criticism of United Airlines.

#Events

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k2kid · 7 years ago

Text

18th Battalion Association[i] Windsor and Detroit Branch *MEMORIES*

Every time we meet Harold Aikenhead[ii], the general and competent Secretary of our London Branch, it always brings back memories of our first or second trip into the Front Line. I don’t recall where it was but Harold claims it was B & C trenches and he should know.

It was a very quiet part of the Front as the lines were far apart and the only thing you had to worry about was the occasional shelling, which didn’t occur often. About thirty yards behind the Front Line there was a reserve trench, which was narrow and not too long. Some of us were of the opinion that it had been specially built for the machine guns or mortars. At the far end some had left an obsolete bombing machine, which worked on the same principle as a slingshot. You set the dial on the left, placed the bomb in the pocket, and pulled evenly on two handles which were attached to some heavy springs. The farther down you pulled the handles, the more distance you got with the bombs.

On a monotonous afternoon some of the younger set decided to try it out and, as there were no bombs available, they decided to make their own by filling some jam tins with stones, shrapnel, mud, or anything they could find. They then repaired to the trench and took turns at working the rusty machine. Everything went fine. The dial was set to sixty yards, and the jam tins left the pocket nicely, arched over our front line and landed in no man’s land. Butch Crammond [Cramond[iii]] had to be different. He changed the dial and pulled the handles back with a jerky motion. His jam tin left the pocket in a hurry and seemed to go higher than all the others, but didn’t travel quite so far. In fact, it only travelled as far as our own front line and when it came down it landed on poor Harold’s noggin almost knocking him cold. He still carries the scar. We were all sorry, Butch more so than the rest of us, as Harold was one of the best-liked in the Platoon and one of the most obliging. He later proved this when he became Steward of the little “Y” at Vierstraat.

Harold and I were discussing the incident some time ago and we believed that six or seven took part in the experiment. The accident happened in late September (1915) and by the following spring, at least three of those involved (Carthy[iv], Drinkwater[v], & Lee[vi]) had been killed in action and two others including Jimmy Cork[vii] had been so severely wounded they never returned to the Battalion. The turnover of Officers and Men in all the Infantry Battalions was tremendous. That was why there were nearly three thousand replacements set to the Eighteenth Battalion During hostilities.

The approximate area of the incident. This is a Circa 1916 British Trench map. The Canadians would have occupied the blue line representing the C.E.F. trenches. The red lines (in detail) are the German trenches. Vierstraat is to the rear of the Canadian lines.

The Story

The 18th Battalion was blooded in Belgium at the end of September 1915. It was serving in the line near Vierstraat where it would begin to experience combat for the first time. It may have been a deliberate assignment for the battalions of the 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade to be placed in “…a very quiet part of the Front…” but, as is borne out by the War Diaries of the Fall of 1915, the Battalion began to suffer casualties and deaths from their exposure to this environment.

The use of grenade catapults by Imperial Forces was only one of many tools used to overcome the tactical challenges trench warfare offered. These catapults offered a relatively inexpensive, accessible, and local solution to increasing the firepower of the soldiers in the front lines. Some of the models available for use were of British design, such as the Leach Trench Catapult, the West Spring Gun, and the French Sauterelle Grenade Launcher, where used to launch grenades across the lines towards the Germans in order to damage trenches. The accuracy of these devices would not be wholly practical to offer consistent results, but the grenades exploding in and around the trenches would have some value as a weapon of nuisance and to interdict the activities (sleep, trench maintenance) of the enemy. In addition, the British pre-occupation with percussion grenades, as opposed to using grenades with timers, would have been well suited for grenade launchers.

Leach Trench Catapult

West Spring Gun

Sauterelle Grenade Launcher

From the description given by the author it is very likely that the device being used may have been a Leach Trench Catapult. The Leach Catapult used a rotating two-handed winch to put tension on the springs to fire the device and the description of the catapult by the author indicates using “two handles” to pull evenly back to load the springs that would fire the projectile. Thus, the interpretation of pulling on the two handles may relate to the cranking of the two handles projecting on either side of the catapult. Sixty-five years had transpired since the incident and if the description of the device was second-hand this could account for the apparent inconsistency about how the device worked.

Leach Trench Catapult

The incident is verified by the Medical Officer’s War Diary which relates on October 3, 1915 that: “No. 5416 H. R. AIKENHEAD was hit in head with bully beef tin which someone was using to test a trench catapult [illegible] was sent to 5 F.A.” This incident is reflected in private Aikenhead’s service record as he did attend No. 5 Canadian Field Ambulance with a “head wound, accidental” on that date and released back to duty the following day. Private Aikenhead was one of the Battalion originals that served with the 18th until December 1917 where he was assigned to the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp with the Department of Military Services. Y.M.C.A. continuing his previous experience at Vierstraat helping the soldiers through the auspices of the “Y”.

Private Alexander “Butch” Vincent Cramond survived the war. Apparently, his transgression did not reflect on his military service with the C.E.F. as he rose to the rank of corporal and was eventually assigned to an Officers Training Course in May of 1917 where he became a temporary lieutenant and was returned to the 18th Battalion at that rank on October 4, 1917 just before the hell of Passchendaele. He lived until November 5, 1957, dying at the age of 64 years old and is buried at Mountainview Cemetery in Cambridge, Ontario. He was a resident of Galt, Ontario and joined the 18th Battalion in October 1914.

The other soldiers mentioned in the story share some characteristics. Private Aikenhead enlisted at Galt, Ontario, as did Privates Carthy, Drinkwater, and Lee. Carthy was the youngest at 18-years of age with his companion Drinkwater and Lee being a relatively “old” 20-years of age. Cramond was 21-years old when he enlisted. Private Cork, who was transferred from the 33rd Battalion just before the Battalion left for England at the middle of April, was from London, Ontario and 19-years old. The appellation applied to these soldiers as the “younger set” was apt. They were young. And Carthy, Drinkwater, and Lee would die young as well. Private Eric Carthy was to perish in the Vierstraat Sector, apparently from German machine gun fire, on Boxing Day, 1915. Next to perish of this group was Private Harry Drinkwater who was struck by a shell on April 25, 1916 and died that day of his wounds. He was, then, only 22-years old. Last to die of the “younger set” was Private John Lee who was killed, along with many other 18th Battalion men, during the attack at Flers-Courcelette on September 15, 1916 at the Somme. Private Cork was, relatively, lucky. He was wounded but his right elbow was so badly shattered he required an amputation. Hard for a farmer to suffer such a wound. He returned to Canada in October 1916 and was discharged where he was granted a pension at 60% disability for one-year worth $208.00[viii].

The memory of the 18th Battalion “younger set” experimenting with the trench catapult is replete with interesting details and nuance. The reference to a weapon system that was adapted to the conditions of trench warfare and the use of tins and other projectiles reflects to the grenade shortage the Imperial Forces experienced at the start of the war and into the end of 1915. Though the tins fashioned by the soldiers of the 18th probably did not have any explosive one wonders what the opposing German soldiers thought as these tins full of “anything they could find” were shot into the air. They also must of wondered why these projectiles only landed in No Man’s Land. Perhaps the “younger set” did not want to provoke a response from the Germans or they miscalculated the range and capability of this “obsolete bombing machine”. Private Cramond certainly did. His actions led to the injury of a fellow member of his unit. One would suppose that upon his return Private Aikenhead reminded Cramond of his lack of martial skills with the catapult without mercy. If not, one can imagine the rest of the men in Cramond’s platoon would talk of this event for some time and the news must have travelled through the Battalion grapevine with some alacrity.

One also wonders if this activity had the direct approval of an officer? Such actions, such as shooting objects towards the enemy, was certainly to be of some concern to the platoon sergeant and officer as this activity could be considered aggressive and warrant a response by the Germans, perhaps by artillery, which would be unwanted, especially from actions not condoned by a higher authority. Yet, other than Aikenhead’s aching head, there appear to be no repercussions from the Germans or from a higher authority in the 18th Battalion.

Its akin to teenagers making with a prank. Something goes wrong. They stop. And all is forgiven and blamed on youthful exuberance.

But in a combat zone the outcomes could have been much worse. On October 3, 1915 some young men pushed the limits and an accident probably stopped them before something more serious occurred.

[i] The blog has come into the possession of an exciting and valuable series of documents care of Dan Moat, a member of the 18th Battalion Facebook Group. His Great Grand-Father, Lance-Corporal George Henry Rogers, reg. no. 123682 was an active member in the 18th Battalion Association and the Royal Canadian Legion. With is interest in the post-war Association a series of “MEMORIES” in the form of one-page stories relate many of the Battalion’s experiences from the “other ranks” soldiers’ point-of-view.

It appears that the documents were written in the early 1970s, a full 50-years after the end of The Great War and are a valuable social history of soldiers’ experiences as told in their own words about the events that happened a half-century ago to them, and now a full century for us. This is the first of the series, and suffice to say, the reference, names, experiences, and strong immediacy of these stories bring the men of the 18th Battalion alive.

[ii] Aikenhead, Harold Raymond: Service No. 54160.

[iii] Cramond, Alexander Vincent: Service no. 53896.

[iv] Carthy, Eric: Service no. 54209.

[v] Drinkwater, Harry: Service no. 54015.

[vi] Lee, John: Service no. 53934. There are several soldiers serving with the surname Lee but Private Lee, reg. no. 53934 appears to be the only Lee to have perished with the 18th Battalion and his service record details are consistent with the details of the story.

[vii] Cork, James William: Service no. 54310. Most likely. Name and wounding consistent with detail in story.

[viii] Approximately $3,500.00 CDN today.

Private Aikenhead and the “Younger Set” 18th Battalion Association[i] Windsor and Detroit Branch *MEMORIES* Every time we meet Harold Aikenhead, the general and competent Secretary of our London Branch, it always brings back memories of our first or second trip into the Front Line.

#Alexander Vincent Cramond #catapult #Eric Carthy #grenade #Harold Aikenhead #Harry Drinkwater #James William Cork #John Lee #Leach Trench Catapult #Sauterelle Grenade Launcher #Vierstraat #West Spring Gun

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k2kid · 4 years ago

Text

With thanks to Patrick Dennis, Colonel (RET’D), OMM, CD who reached out to me and pointed me in the right direction. His work to inform us about the role of conscription can be best appreciated by his book, “Reluctant Warriors: Canadian Conscripts in the Great War” Without his help and his work my interest and understanding about this important, and often overlooked, part of our military history and heritage would not be as rich.

A newspaper clipping from Allsop’s home newspaper in Woodstock outlining some news about conscription. Source: Daily Sentinel Review. January 3, 1918. Page 1.

On June 10, 1918 the 18th Battalion was engaged in the Arras sector. On that date the War Diary relates its activities, but that entry does not reflect what may be a singular historical moment in Canadian military history: the death of one of the first, if not the first, Canadian conscript who was conscripted under the Military Service Act, 1917[i].

The event marked a new phase in the war for Canada and its military policy that would have effects and reverberations in Canadian politics and history that are still contentious to this day.

Undated photograph attributed to George Allsop.

Private George Henry Allsop was born in Belper, Derbyshire, England, a textile and hosiery center during the late 1800 and 1900s. He emigrated to Canada and was a “machine operator” with the Oxford Knitting Company residing at 209 Graham Street in Woodstock, Ontario with his father, George Senior and his mother, Netta[ii].

Private Allsop also worked at the Linderman Machine Company (Woodstock, Ontario). This is a shot of the interior of the plant involved in war production Circa 1914-1918. Source: https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/566890671825174467/?nic_v2=1a3qFOTgq

January 4, 1918 found George Allsop called up to register for active service. Prior to that date he, under the terms of the Military Service Act, would have registered in Woodstock and be classified for active service. When called up he traveled to London, Ontario and in short order his form, “Particulars for a Recruit Drafted Under Military Service Act, 1917” was completed and, as part of the recruitment process, signed his will. This document, perhaps, being the most jarring reminder to Allsop of one of the outcomes to an infantry man. Almost all conscripts were to be slated for this role during the war. George Allsop was not averse to military service as his form indicates that he had one year of militia service with the Oxford Rifles. Passing his medical exam Private Allsop moved on to the next stage of his military service.

Military will of Private Allsop.

In short order he was in England, arriving on February 16, 1918 aboard, like so many other 18th Battalion soldiers the S.S. Grampian and assigned to the 4th Reserve Battalion in Bramshott the very next day. There he trained and learned the skills of his trade until he was transferred to the 18th Battalion effective May 10, 1918. He arrived at Etaples, France at the Canadian Infantry Base Depot the next day where, 11-days later he moved closer to the front at the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp. After more training, familiarization, and confirmation that his “kit” for war fighting was fully issued and in good order he left this post after 8-days. He was now in the fight having arrived at the Neuville Vitasse Sector on May 30, 1918 and joined the Battalion in Brigade reserve.

The next day, while the Battalion was in Brigade Reserve the War Diary records that 2 other ranks and Lieutenant Harold Leo Scully[iii] were wounded, probably by long-range shellfire. Even in Brigade Reserve, up to 9 kilometers behind the front line, Private Allsop must have realized fully he was in the war now for even being in reserve did not mean you were not exposed to danger from enemy activity.[iv]

The Battalion moved forward from Brigade Reserve to Brigade Support and then moved to Bretencourt after being relieved by the 26th Canadian Battalion on June 4, 1918 and it was involved from June 5 to 9 in Battalion in martial and recreational training with “…games such as Baseball, Football etc. indulged in each afternoon.” Even at Bretencourt the men were not safe as Lieutenant C.S. Woodrow[v], arriving on June 5 with 18 reinforcements, was hit in the head by an enemy shell fragment that “…burst near Battalion Orderly Room…” and was evacuated to hospital that day.

The evening of June 9/10 required the Battalion to relieve the 27th Canadian Battalion in the front line in positions adjacent and part of the village of Henin-sur-Cojeul, a 15-km march from their billet. Leaving Bretencourt at 8:30 p.m. Private Allsop was finally marching off to war with his comrades. Fresh from training and familiarization in England and France he now had to integrate himself with his new comrades, they were certain to be interested in him, their first exposure to a conscript. The relief was completed at 1:35 a.m. the morning of June 10, 1918 and two patrols were sent out to cover the Battalion frontage. It is almost certain a raw soldier, such as Private Allsop, would not be assigned to such a patrol.

Battalion disposition map, dated June 10, 1918. Note the Cojeul River south of the Battalion’s position.

Later that day, a scouting patrol under Lieutenant McRae was dispatched to reconnoiter during daylight, a highly risky endeavour. The patrol pushed from their front lines to the bank of the Cojeul River and returned, after dark, at 10.45 p.m. having left at 4.30 p.m. that afternoon. They observed three Germans leaving a hedge and disappearing.

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Sometime during that day, the Battalion suffered one other ranked killed in action and one other rank wounded, though the War Diary only acknowledges the wounded soldier. But a soldier did die that day.

Private Allsop was the soldier killed in action. The circumstances, according to his service record and the Circumstances of Death Card do not relate the event in any manner so we cannot know the manner of his passing. He is buried at the Wailly Orchard Cemetery, an estimated 8-kilometers from the location of his death near the French town of Henin-sur-Cojeul.

For all intents and purposes, Private Allsop died the very day he engaged in combat. From his movements from the moment of his conscription to his death he moved to that moment in time where he would perish, and his family would every more reflect on his sacrifice and offer to those that pass by his grave the epitaph “THY WILL BE DONE ON EARTH”. His front-line service with the Battalion was only 11 days. It must have added to the shock of the family when it was informed of his death, so soon after arriving on the Continent.

His death also signalled the beginning of a new stage of the war. The manpower needs of the C.E.F. no longer could be counted on to be replenished by volunteers and the battalions of the Canadian Corps would find that they needed the conscripts to carry on their role as part of the Imperial Forces engaged on the Western Front. Such contributions and sacrifices would be the norm for the volunteers and their new combat brethren, the conscripts, as the war continued to its bloody end.

Private Allsop is buried at the Wailly Orchard Cemetery, along with 7 other comrades of the 18th Battalion. They all were buried between the months of April and June as the Battalion served in the sector.

NOTE

I strongly recommend reading Patrick M. Dennis’ prior work referring to this soldier: Dennis, Patrick (2009) “A Canadian Conscript Goes to War—August 1918: Old Myths Re-examined,” Canadian Military History: Vol. 18: Iss. 1, Article 4. He further expands upon the important role on conscripts in his book: Reluctant Warriors: Canadian Conscripts in the Great War available via Amazon and other outlets.

[i] Source: “…Private George Henry Allsop, a conscript from Woodstock, Ontario, who had joined in London, Ontario just days before Dennis. It is likely that Private Allsop, serving with the 18th Battalion, was the first Canadian conscript to be killed in action when he fell in battle near Neuville-Vitasse on 10 June 1918 – a full two months before it is generally thought that Canadian conscripts first saw action.” Source: Dennis, Patrick (2009) “A Canadian Conscript Goes to War—August 1918: Old Myths Re-examined,” Canadian Military History: Vol. 18: Iss. 1, Article 4. Pg. 6. Note no. 20 of this work indicates that a Private Frederick Broom of the 20th Battalion was likely the first conscript to be die in France. He perished from nephritis and pneumonia. The claim of Private Allsop being the “first” conscript killed in action was made in Sandy Antal and Kevin R. Shackleton, Duty Nobly Done: The Official History of the Essex and Kent Scottish Regiment (Windsor, Ontario: Walkerville Publishing, 2006), p.647.

[ii] Vernon’s Woodstock Directory, 1916. The 1914 directory had the family living at 289 Admiral Street with another family member, probably a brother, Horace Allsop.

[iii] Lieutenant Scully was to later perish from his wounds on June 7, 1918.

[iv] See the blog post, “…because life in the trenches was less irksome and monotonous and no more beastly than in places like Bouvigny Huts” for an incident in July 1917 where the Battalion suffered significant casualties due to German artillery while in Brigade Reserve.

[v] Later, Captain Charles Sydney Woodrow.

The First to Die

#Conscription #consript #Henin-sur-Cojeul France #Wailly Orchard Cemetery #Woodstock Ontario

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k2kid · 4 years ago

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Soldiers letters do not stand on their own. They impart small, discrete, often obscure, snippets of information that connect the writer with the people of his hometown, unit, and his social circle. They can often give clues that lead to a broader understanding of the writer and his experiences during his service. The letters also give the reader an insight into the activities of other soldiers, usually acquaintances, friends, and families This would particularly be the case for soldiers that grew up and enlisted in the rural areas of Canada, such as Bruce County.

Private Joseph Edgar McAfee, regimental number 651738[i] was from Glamis, Ontario, 15 kilometers from Paisely, Ontario. The Paisley Advocate covered the news locally and published, at least, two articles relating to the McAfee family. On October 16, 1918 it published a letter from this soldier to his mother where he relates the circumstances of his wounding.

Letters from the Soldiers

IN HOSPITAL IN WALES

Mrs. H. McAfee of Greenock, received the following letter recently from her son, Pte. Edgar McAfee:

Dear Folks–

Just a few lines to let you know of my whereabouts, and hoping you are fine and everything O.K. as it leaves me at present. This is the fourth hospital I have been in since I was wounded. Thinks this place is on the coast of the Irish Sea. What I have seen of the country appears to be very pretty.

Did you get the letter I wrote from the hospital in France? I was sorry I did not get to the hospital Bertha was in, but maybe I will get a chance again. I was sound asleep a week ago to-night about 12 o’clock when the nurse came and said, “Hi Canada, do you want to go to Blighty?” Imagine my surprise, as I thought I would be going back up the line in a day or two. So we took the train down to a seaport on the English Channel, got on the boat from there and came up through Chatham and the outskirts of London to a hospital in Cardiff city, stayed there in bed till yesterday and then came down here. I like this place fine. I am up now and able to get around well only I cannot wear my boot on my left foot yet. We get good rations here, lots of sleep and a free concert in the hospital every few nights given by the local town. And a couple of days ago a woman came around and gave me a kit from the Canadian Red Cross Society, consisting of writing material, shaving outfit and teeth cleaning powder.

The worst of is I will likely have to go back to the reserve at Witley, but its is a good rest anyway. I haven’t heard anything about the fellows around home fared out. N. McDermid got wounded in the leg.

Did I tell you how I got hit? Don’t believe I did. Well, every time we go in the line there are always so many left out of the machine gun courses, etc., and if they are going into battle these men have to act as stretcher-bearers. Well I was left out of the trip to the battle in front of Arras, but followed up and took in wounded. Everything went along O.K., was on the go practically all day and night. The second day I, along with three other chaps, was scouting over the previous day’s battle ground for any wounded, and there was a bunch of reinforcements passing us going into action, and all of an instant a German aeroplane swooped dow[n] and fired on us with a machine gun. I heard the bullets swish down and felt my toe sting, so beat it back and put my field dressing on, then went back to the ambulance and it was not time till I was miles away from the din of battle.

Our platoon sergeant was hit in the same way on the Amiens front, only he was in a trench. Let me know in your next letter if Jack Dobson is still living. I helped to carry him out of a shell hole. A dud shell had struck one of his legs. A dud is a defective shell that does not explode.

I have a few German souvenirs to send home. They are not much, but would be nice to keep.

Have you lots of wood cut for the winter? It’s one thing [for] certain, the war won’t last any more than a year, but I expect there will be a lot of hard fighting yet. It sure has been swaying our way lately. The German soldiers are getting very disheartened. If there had been lots of fight in them they sure would have got me in the Amiens battle.

Think that is all for now.

Paisley Advocate. October 16, 1918. Contributed by Jim Kelly.

Above: Paisley Advocate. October 16, 1918. Contributed by Jim Kelly.

The letter is full of details relating to the experience of McAfee’s wounding and from an examination of his service records we can correlate the events and people to which he relates with dates and locations.

Having enlisted with the 160th Bruce Battalion at Tiverton, Ontario on February 11, 1916, McAfee stayed with this battalion until it was used for reinforcing battalions in active service on the continent. Having arrived in England on October 17, 1916, it was not until March 28, 1918 that McAfee started his assignment with the 18th when he was shipped to France and passing through the Canadian Infantry Base Depot at Etaples to the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp he joined the 18th Battalion “in the field” on April 13, 1918.

The area of Telegraph Hill. It is due south of Tilloy-les-Mofflaines and half way distant to Neuville-Vitasse.

The activities of the Battalion had been terribly busy during the latter part of August 1918. It was operating at Telegraph Hill, south-east of Arras and the War Diary relates in some detail the activities on August 26, 1918.[ii] An attack began at 3:00 AM that day which met with mixed success, resulting in 10 men killed in action with 15 wounded.

The following day was not as active but resulted in 15 men killed with 150 wounded. The 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade (4th CIB) compresses their War Diary for the 3 days of August 26 to 28, 1918 into one brief entry, with the telling statement, “Starting at Zero hour followed a period of prolonged and most bitter fighting for three days, which continued until the Brigade was relieved…”[iii] This entry gives some idea of the tenor of the combat the units of the Brigade was experiencing. The War Diary states that from August 26 to 31, 1918, the total casualties incurred by the Brigade were 11 officers and 146 ranks killed and 50 offices and 999 other ranks wounded.[iv]

On August 27, 1918 McAfee is wounded. As he went over the rear area of the battlefield he is attacked by a German Air Force fighter. He offers specific details showing how the German Air Force was used tactically to interdict troops on the ground. It was, perhaps, attracted by the large group of reinforcements moving up into action on the line and McAfee becomes a victim of its efforts to kill and wound the troops on the ground. It succeeded in wounding Private McAfee’s left foot hitting, luckily, the flesh and not the bone. The 4th CIB War Diary expressly relates on how the use of enemy aircraft was used to interdict the ground forces at this time stating, “The enemy aircraft [was] active at times, and hindered the advance or our Supports by Machine Gun fire and the use of light bombs.”[v]

This wound begins the process of casualty evacuation beginning with McAfee putting, “…my field dressing on, then went back to the ambulance and it was not time till I was miles away from the din of battle.” His initial medical treatment occurred at the 4th Canadian Field Ambulance. From there he is transferred on August 28, 1918, to No. 18 General Hospital, Camiers, France, and by the August 31, 1918, he is being treated at the 3rd Western General Hospital at Cardiff, Wales. On September 27, 1918, he is transferred to Woodcote Park Military Convalescent Hospital at Epsom.[vi]

He relates some of the details of his treatment and care and expresses that, “The worst of is I will likely have to go back to the reserve at Witley, but its is a good rest anyway.” Witley Camp was used for reconstituting and the convalescence of soldiers in preparation of a return to fighting. This camp had an organization that assessed the medical status of a soldier and, depending on the severity or nature of the wound or illness, a soldier’s classification may result in a return to Canada for discharge. From McAfee’s tone it sounds like he wants to return to active service.

His letter relates some of the news of the soldiers he served with. Private Neil McDermid[vii] was also from Glamis, Ontario and had enlisted with the 160th Battalion and enlisted in March 1916. They were both the same age at the time of enlistment (21-years) so they probably knew each other well. He was wounded on the same day as McAfee, suffering a gunshot wound to the right leg and hand. Though McDermid would survive the war and be discharged on May 31, 1919, he died of heart failure on September 8, 1919 at the age of 25-years.

Above: Farm Record Card of death of McDermid and news clipping about his death. Source: Walkerton Telepscope. September 18, 1919. Contributed by Jim Kelly.

He also mentions John (Jack) Dobson[viii]. This soldier was also wounded August 26, 1918, in unusual circumstances. It appears he was hit by an unexploded shell, which shattered his leg. Dobson apparently effected his own amputation in the field, and it is not clear if this occurred before or after McAfee rendered aid to his comrade. Dobson, also, was a member of the 160th Battalion. He had enlisted in January 1916 at Chesley, Ontario. He was 25-years old at enlistment, but these men may have served in the same company or platoon and became familiar with each other.

Above: Photograph of Dobson, John: Service no. 651436 (Military Medal) and clipping relating to his wounding. Source: Hopkins, J. (1919). Canada at War: A Record of Heroism and Achievement 1914-1918. 1st ed. Toronto: The Canadian Annual Review Limited, p.386.

One wonders what McAfee felt when he found his comrade with his shattered leg, harmed by the passage of a large, heavy, rapidly moving projectile, and not from the effects of an explosion. This type of wounding may have been rare, but not unheard of.

McAfee ends the letter relating that he has a “few German souvenirs” and that, in his estimation, the collection does not amount to much. Given the letter is written in the fall, he is looking to winter and wonders after how the wood supply is like at his home. Finishing off with a prediction of the outcome of the war, he reflects that is the German army had higher morale he would not have survived combat, a bit of an unusual correlation to make, but perhaps a bit of reassurance and bravado to buck up the spirits of his parents to offset the news of his wounding.

This letter gives details that reinforce the idea of community and connection. All three men in the letter, the author and the men mentioned, were from the same area of Bruce County and had been further connect by their initial service and training with the 160th Battalion. Their connection extended into active service together with the 18th Battalion CEF in France. Their connection was further cemented by their wounding occurring close at had on August 26 for Dobson and August 27 for McDermid and McAfee. They were connected by three distinct characteristics and with McDermid and McAfee being from the same rural town their connection was probably closer, perhaps friends. Regrettably, McAfee’s letter does not give any intimation or details as to the nature of his relationship with McDermid.

The letter illustrates the speed and efficiency of the Imperial medical services with McAfee in England approximately 4-days after his wounding. It also illustrates the secondary support of organizations, such as the Red Cross, with it giving him items of comfort and value so he can be comfortable and communicate with his family and friends.

Even after his and his comrades wounding, McAfee is eager to go back and fight again, apparently afraid of the delay a visit to Witley Camp would cause. As he notes at the end of the letter, “It’s one thing [for] certain, the war won’t last any more than a year, but I expect there will be a lot of hard fighting yet.” He may be worried he will not make back into the line to assist his comrades when they are wounded or as a combat soldier.

The McAfee family, however, must have been highly relieved. The had already lost one son, their eldest, Private John McAfee, was killed in action at Hill 70 on August 15, 1917 while serving with the 2nd Canadian Machine Gun Company. Having lost one son to the war, they must have been thankful to hear such news from their other son. McAfee’s letter gives them the information they need to be reassured and gives us a glance at the life and experience of one man from a small town in Ontario.

[i] Library and Archives Canada. RG 150, Accession 1992-93/166, Box 6562 – 43. Item Number:143532.Accessed August 15, 2020.

[ii] August 26, 1918 18th Battalion War Diary Entry: At 3:00 a.m. following intense 5 min. barrage Bn. jumped off TILOY [sic] TRENCH in front of TELEGRAPH HILL in support of 21st Cdn. Bn. The artillery preparation was good. Owing to getting lost in the darkness, the tanks detailed to go over with the Bn. failed to turn up per schedule, so the Unit was without their assistance in the initial kick-off.MINORCA TRENCH, a difficult nut to crack, was set as the first objective, and SOUTHERN AVENUE TRENCH as the second objective. Both positions were won by 8.00 a.m. “D” Coy. holding the last named defence line in conjunction with the 21st Cdn. Bn. “A” Coy. remained in GORDON TRENCH, and “B” Coy at the first objective, MINORCA TRENCH.

Up to this time the casualties had been far smaller than anticipated, although Lieut. McHardy had gone only a short distance from the Assault trench when he sustained mortal shrapnel wounds.

The German resistance had been slight but at this point was considerably strengthened. At 1. o’clock, the Bn. was ordered to capture the village of GUIMAPPE. Personal reconnaissances in broad daylight and under sever fire by Major C.M.R. Graham and Capt. D.A.G. Parsons, M.C., O.Cs respectively for “D” and “C” Coys. were first conducted. Waiting until artillery support, inadequate as it was to meet the situation, had been obtained, “C” & “D” Coys at 4.00 p.m. advanced and captured the ruined town. Casualties in the face of both terrific machine gun and artillery barrages laid down by the enemy were fairly heavy.

Lieut. Brackin [sic], who had done brilliant work up to this moment, was instantly killed by a shell and Capt. Parsons and Lieut. Edwards sustained wounds that resulted in their immediate evacuation.

Resultant of the progress, “C” and “D” Coys occupied and consolidated STAG TRENCH, and “A” and “B” Coys moved forward to RAKE AND GORDON TRENCHES respectively. At. 11 p.m. “A” Coy under the fine leadership of Lieut. Spence, went forward, despite most stubborn opposition, and captured CALVARY TRENCH. Unfortunately, the achievement went for naught, as the Unit on their immediate left was held up and the Coy. at 3.00 a.m., 27th, after 4 hours of desperate fighting was compelled to withdraw temporarily to RAKE TRENCH. Approx. all ranks 10 killed & 15 wounded. 1 O.R. ret. from leave & 1 O.R. on leave. 2 O.Rs ret. from army rest camp.

[iii] 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade’ diary entry for August 1918 War Diary, p. 15.

[iv] 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade’ diary entry for August 1918 War Diary, p. 16.

[v] 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade’ diary entry for August 1918 Appendix 31, p. 5.

[vi] McAfee must have written the letter before his transfer to Epsom, though, but the time of its publishing, he was in Epsom, south of London, England.

[vii] Library and Archives Canada. RG 150, Accession 1992-93/166, Box 6690 – 30. Item Number: 143206.

[viii] Library and Archives Canada. RG 150, Accession 1992-93/166, Box 2553 – 36. Item Number: 357483.

Soldiers letters do not stand on their own. They impart small, discrete, often obscure, snippets of information that connect the writer with the people of his hometown, unit, and his social circle.

#160th Battalion #4th Canadian Infantry Brigade #Arras #Chesely Ontario #family #German Air Force #Glamis Ontario #interdiction #Paisley Advocate #Paisley Ontario #TELEGRAPH HILL #Tiverton Ontario #Witley Camp

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brookstonalmanac · 5 years ago

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Events 4.9

190 – Dong Zhuo has his troops evacuate the capital Luoyang and burn it to the ground. 475 – Byzantine Emperor Basiliscus issues a circular letter (Enkyklikon) to the bishops of his empire, supporting the Monophysite christological position. 537 – Siege of Rome: The Byzantine general Belisarius receives his promised reinforcements, 1,600 cavalry, mostly of Hunnic or Slavic origin and expert bowmen. He starts, despite shortages, raids against the Gothic camps and Vitiges is forced into a stalemate. 1241 – Battle of Liegnitz: Mongol forces defeat the Polish and German armies. 1288 – Mongol invasions of Vietnam: Yuan forces are defeated by Trần forces in the Battle of Bach Dang in present-day northern Vietnam. 1388 – Despite being outnumbered 16 to 1, forces of the Old Swiss Confederacy are victorious over the Archduchy of Austria in the Battle of Näfels. 1413 – Henry V is crowned King of England. 1440 – Christopher of Bavaria is appointed King of Denmark. 1454 – The Treaty of Lodi is signed, establishing a balance of power among northern Italian city-states for almost 50 years. 1511 – St John's College, Cambridge, England, founded by Lady Margaret Beaufort, receives its charter. 1585 – The expedition organised by Sir Walter Raleigh departs England for Roanoke Island (now in North Carolina) to establish the Roanoke Colony. 1609 – Eighty Years' War: Spain and the Dutch Republic sign the Treaty of Antwerp to initiate twelve years of truce. 1609 – Philip III of Spain issues the decree of the "Expulsion of the Moriscos". 1682 – Robert Cavelier de La Salle discovers the mouth of the Mississippi River, claims it for France and names it Louisiana. 1782 – American Revolutionary War: Battle of the Saintes begins. 1784 – The Treaty of Paris, ratified by the United States Congress on January 14, 1784, is ratified by King George III of the Kingdom of Great Britain, ending the American Revolutionary War. Copies of the ratified documents are exchanged on May 12, 1784. 1860 – On his phonautograph machine, Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville makes the oldest known recording of an audible human voice. 1865 – American Civil War: Robert E. Lee surrenders the Army of Northern Virginia (26,765 troops) to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the war. 1909 – The U.S. Congress passes the Payne–Aldrich Tariff Act. 1914 – Mexican Revolution: One of the world's first naval/air skirmishes takes place off the coast of western Mexico. 1916 – World War I: The Battle of Verdun: German forces launch their third offensive of the battle. 1917 – World War I: The Battle of Arras: The battle begins with Canadian Corps executing a massive assault on Vimy Ridge. 1918 – World War I: The Battle of the Lys: The Portuguese Expeditionary Corps is crushed by the German forces during what is called the Spring Offensive on the Belgian region of Flanders. 1937 – The Kamikaze arrives at Croydon Airport in London. It is the first Japanese-built aircraft to fly to Europe. 1939 – African-American singer Marian Anderson gives a concert at the Lincoln Memorial after being denied the use of Constitution Hall by the Daughters of the American Revolution. 1940 – World War II: Operation Weserübung: Germany invades Denmark and Norway. 1940 – Vidkun Quisling seizes power in Norway. 1942 – World War II: The Battle of Bataan ends. An Indian Ocean raid by Japan's 1st Air Fleet sinks the British aircraft carrier HMS Hermes and the Australian destroyer HMAS Vampire. 1945 – Execution of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, anti-Nazi dissident and spy, by the Nazi regime. 1945 – World War II: The German heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer is sunk by the Royal Air Force. 1945 – World War II: The Battle of Königsberg, in East Prussia, ends. 1945 – The United States Atomic Energy Commission is formed. 1947 – The Glazier–Higgins–Woodward tornadoes kill 181 and injure 970 in Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. 1947 – The Journey of Reconciliation, the first interracial Freedom Ride begins through the upper South in violation of Jim Crow laws. The riders wanted enforcement of the United States Supreme Court's 1946 Irene Morgan decision that banned racial segregation in interstate travel. 1947 – United Nations Security Council Resolution 22 relating to Corfu Channel incident is adopted. 1948 – Jorge Eliécer Gaitán's assassination provokes a violent riot in Bogotá (the Bogotazo), and a further ten years of violence in Colombia. 1948 – Fighters from the Irgun and Lehi Zionist paramilitary groups attacked Deir Yassin near Jerusalem, killing over 100. 1952 – Hugo Ballivián's government is overthrown by the Bolivian National Revolution, starting a period of agrarian reform, universal suffrage and the nationalization of tin mines 1957 – The Suez Canal in Egypt is cleared and opens to shipping following the Suez Crisis. 1959 – Project Mercury: NASA announces the selection of the United States' first seven astronauts, whom the news media quickly dub the "Mercury Seven". 1960 – Dr Hendrik Verwoerd, Prime Minister of South Africa and architect of apartheid, narrowly survives an assassination attempt by a white farmer, David Pratt in Johannesburg. 1961 – The Pacific Electric Railway in Los Angeles, once the largest electric railway in the world, ends operations. 1965 – Astrodome opens. First indoor baseball game is played. 1967 – The first Boeing 737 (a 100 series) makes its maiden flight. 1969 – The first British-built Concorde 002 makes its maiden flight from Filton to RAF Fairford. 1975 – The first game of the Philippine Basketball Association, the second oldest professional basketball league in the world. 1976 – The EMD F40PH diesel locomotive enters revenue service with Amtrak. 1980 – The Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein kills philosopher Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr and his sister Bint al-Huda after three days of torture. 1981 – The U.S. Navy nuclear submarine USS George Washington accidentally collides with the Nissho Maru, a Japanese cargo ship, sinking it. 1989 – Tbilisi massacre: an anti-Soviet peaceful demonstration and hunger strike in Tbilisi, demanding restoration of Georgian independence, is dispersed by the Soviet Army, resulting in 20 deaths and hundreds of injuries. 1990 – An IRA bombing in County Down, Northern Ireland, kills three members of the UDR. 1990 – Thirteen thousand members of the Dene and Métis tribes sign a land claim agreement for 180,000 square kilometres (69,000 sq mi) in the Mackenzie Valley of the western Arctic. 1991 – Georgia declares independence from the Soviet Union. 1992 – A U.S. Federal Court finds former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega guilty of drug and racketeering charges. He is sentenced to 30 years in prison. 1999 – Kosovo War: The Battle of Košare begins. 2003 – Iraq War: Baghdad falls to American forces. 2005 – Charles, Prince of Wales marries Camilla Parker Bowles in a civil ceremony at Windsor's Guildhall. 2009 – In Tbilisi, Georgia, up to 60,000 people protest against the government of Mikheil Saakashvili. 2013 – A 6.1–magnitude earthquake strikes Iran killing 32 people and injuring over 850 people. 2013 – At least 13 people are killed and another three injured after a man goes on a spree shooting in the Serbian village of Velika Ivanča. 2014 – A student stabs 20 people at Franklin Regional High School in Murrysville, Pennsylvania. 2017 – Palm Sunday church bombings at Coptic Churches in Tanta and Alexandria, Egypt, take place. 2017 – After refusing to give up his seat on an overbooked United Airlines flight, Dr. David Dao Duy Anh is forcibly dragged off the flight by aviation security officers, leading to major criticism of United Airlines.

#Events

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