http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/history/2011/08/one-man-against-tyranny/
I knew that there were many attempts to kill Hitler, but I had never heard of Georg Elser till this story.
Read the comments (#2) and there are additional links explaining more.
Terrific read, take the time to enjoy the story.
I think that the “White Rose” was a different agent
The Gestapo gave her the nickname of the “White Mouse” as she always escaped.
She was number one most wanted with a heck of a price tag on her head.
I’s spend IP’s to get this kind of bonus.
By the number of views so far, I think that I should have tried to stimulate conversation by having a poll.
Along the lines of “Had you ever heard of the ‘White Mouse’?”
Then followed by the links, since there is alot of new information in each the story and the obit.
My last story on the spitfire, you were the only reply also.
Sharing an interesting article that helped our WWII aircraft.
http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2011/03/a_portland-based_storm-chasing.html
Buckles will be buried Tuesday with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery.
Source:
I bet the Navy Times hasn’t seen this article.
Frank Buckles, last suriving WWI veteran, will get plot at Arlington National Cemetery
Published: Thursday, April 10, 2008, 1:48 PM Updated: Monday, February 28, 2011, 1:50 PM
In March, President Bush waived the requirements after years of lobbying by Ken Buckles, who also is executive director of Oregon’s Remembering America’s Heroes. The nonprofit has organized Living History Day at Milwaukie High School for 13 years to recognize veterans.
Upon his death, Frank Buckles will be buried at Arlington, attended by a military chaplain and a casket team of six people who will carry the remains. Seven riflemen will fire shots and a bugler from the U.S. Army band will play taps.
I voted other.
My favorite line was:
“Nuts!”
I can see the point the author was trying to make.
I would give the author more creedence if he applied that logic to Nagasaki instead; based on:
In Asia, Russia declared war on Japan on 8 Aug 1945, catching the Japanese by surprise, launching Operation August Storm that speedily captured Manchuria from Japan. The declaration of war on Japan by Russia was among the key factors for Japan’s surrender on 14 Aug 1945.
Also, the 2nd bomb was scheduled for August 11 against Kokura, but the raid was moved earlier by two days to avoid a five day period of bad weather forecast to begin on August 10.
By the time they reached Kokura, a 70% cloud cover had obscured the city, prohibiting the visual attack required by orders. After three runs over the city, and with fuel running low because a transfer pump on a reserve tank had failed before take-off, they headed for their secondary target, Nagasaki.
Overall, with Russia waiting to join the fight against Japan until we had bombed Hiroshima, I could see the 2nd bombing being moved up as a sign of intimidation th Russia as a ‘back off, we aren’t splitting Asia like we just did in Europe.’
Things not yet mentioned:
They both killed and executed resistors.
They both stole works of art; Napolean had those Etruscan statues from Florence and Goering did his bit for Hitler.
Does anybody have the (or know of) the claims in the Pacific vs. the Atlantic?
It sounds like the British estimates are a bit off?
Was this true of Japan and USA?
Newly identified sites show far more submarines were sunk by mines than previously thought
By David Keys, Archaeology Correspondent
Sunday, 4 July 2010
The final resting places of six German U-boats sunk in the final months of the Second World War’s greatest naval conflict have finally been identified. After years of research, maritime experts say their discoveries will force historians to re-evaluate the battle for control of the Atlantic.
Evidence from the wrecks suggests many U-boats were sunk by mines rather than attacks by Allied air and naval forces, as had previously been believed. The findings show coastal minefields were around three times more effective than British naval intelligence gave them credit for. Experts believe their view was distorted, unintentionally, by reports from over-enthusiastic airmen and escort ship commanders who sometimes claimed they had sunk U-boats with depth charges or anti-submarine mortars.
One submarine, the U-400, previously believed sunk by Royal Navy depth charges south of Cork in Ireland, has now been identified off the coast of north Cornwall. The German sub was on its very first patrol in December 1944 when it hit a mine, underwater photography suggests.
Another, the U-1021, also identified off the north Cornish coast, was on its first patrol in March 1945 when sunk by mines. Previously, it was thought the Royal Navy had sunk it with depth charges hundreds of miles away, off the west coast of Scotland. The U-326, also on its first patrol when it was destroyed by a US aerial depth charge attack in April 1945, has been identified 100 miles off the coast of Brittany. The U-325, sunk on its second patrol in May 1945, was thought to have been destroyed by Royal Navy depth charges in the Irish Sea. Now marine archaeology and underwater photography have identified it on the seabed 230 miles away – off Lizard Point, south Cornwall.
Other U-boats, sunk far from British coastal minefields, have also been identified. The U-1208, on its first patrol, was identified off the Scilly Isles after being sunk by Royal Navy depth charges in February 1945. The U-650, recently identified through underwater photography near Land’s End, was sunk by a direct hit from a hedgehog anti-submarine missile in January 1945.
From 1939 to early 1943, the Germans were very successful in their U-boat operations – sinking 2,500 Allied merchant ships and around 50 Allied warships, with the loss of around 25,000 lives. The tide turned in May 1943 when, with new equipment and a fresh strategy, the Allies got the upper hand.
The discoveries came from a survey of the western English Channel and adjacent areas, undertaken by the US firm Odyssey Marine Exploration. Dr Axel Niestlé, a German U-boat historian involved in the project, said: “It is a fine example of successful teamwork between marine archaeologists and historians rewriting naval history. The underwater photography gave us an unparalleled opportunity to learn how different types of Second World War anti-submarine weaponry worked.”
From 1939-45, the Germans built 1,167 U-boats, 863 of which were deployed in the Battle of the Atlantic; 648 were sunk – with a loss of around 25,000 submariners. The locations of 40 U-boats remain a mystery. Thirty disappeared in deep water in the Atlantic, and it is unlikely they will be found. The remainder lie in a variety of suspected locations in the eastern part of the English Channel, where the team hopes to find them.
A paper by Dr Niestlé on the findings is to be published by Odyssey.
An Australian trekker said he has discovered the site of a significant World War II battle in the jungles of Papua New Guinea, complete with the remains of Japanese soldiers right where they fell almost 70 years ago.
Former army Capt. Brian Freeman, an expert on the Kokoda Trail – a 60-mile trek through rugged mountainous country and rainforest of the island – said Monday he was led to the Eora Creek battle site where he found the remains of the soldiers.
The site about half a mile from the village of Eora Creek was believed to be the location of the last major battle that was pivotal in Australia’s campaign against the Japanese in Papau New Guinea.
Although the site was known to local villages, jungles reclaimed it after the battle of Eora Creek. Although locals hunted on the plateau surrounding the site, they avoided the 600-square-meter battle ground because of a belief that spirits of the dead were still present in the “lost battlefield.”
What this means is that the site has apparently remained untouched since 1942.
“On our inaugural trek, we were hoping to find the remnants of a make-shift Japanese hospital and, potentially, relics of guns and ammunition. I never anticipated that we would find war dead,” Freeman said in a statement.
Freeman trekked to the site for the first time on April 23.
“It was as if time has stood still. We found ammunition running out in a line from the rifle that was dropped as the Japanese advanced to the rear,” Freeman said.
Freeman said extensive research on battle maps and diaries led them to believe that the Japanese had a medical facility in the area during the Japanese advance and its location had remained a mystery until now.
The team found kidney-shaped medical dishes at the site, pointing to evidence that the find was indeed the site of a Japanese hospital.
The presence of large rectangular pits, referred to as rifle pits, also indicated that the location was also a significant Japanese defensive position.
“However, it was the discovery of a Japanese soldier sitting up against a tree, only centimeters from the surface still in his helmet, with his boots nearby that began to tell the human story,” Freeman said.
The battle of Eora Creek is said to be the single most costly clash of the Kokoda campaign, although different sources cite different casualty figures.
Freeman’s group says 79 Australians died and 145 were wounded, while the Australian War Memorial website says 99 were killed and 192 wounded.
Freeman said they are working with respective governments to repatriate the fallen solders and preserve the site in its “current pristine condition." Until then, no groups will be permitted to trek the site.
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/06/07/lost-wwii-battlefield-found-war-dead-included/?hpt=C2
I scour the world press always looking for interesting articles.
