-
Pictures taken during the Battle for Hill 192 in Normandy – June/July 1944
•
Note that some of these pictures were taken in or near Saint-Georges-d’Elle Hill 192 was located between the cities of Saint-Lô and Bayeux in Normandy. The Battle was fought between elements of the 2nd US Infantry Division and the 16,000 strong 3rd German Fallschirmjäger (Parachute) Division, commanded by Generalleutnant Richard…
-
This weekend marks another milestone for me – it’s exactly 50 years since I set a record I believe remains unbroken.
•
The 16-year-old me had landed in New Zealand the day before, an immigrant from the UK. At 5pm on Sunday, October 4, I was delivered by relatives to Wellington College where I was to become a boarder for the final school term of 1970. A few minutes after 9pm, I…
-
The Thinking Man’s ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’
•
In 1930 Georg Pabst’s ‘Westfront 1918’ was Germany’s most anticipated cinema release. It chronicled the shattering impact of the Great War upon four German soldiers on the Western Front. The film lived up to expectations. At its premiere in Berlin, its unsparing realism reportedly caused 20 people to faint. In…
-
By the end of 6 June 1944, D-day, hundreds of dead bodies of Allied soldiers were scattered across the fields of Normandy.
•
VII corps issued an order to create a temporary military cemetery at Sainte Mere Eglise, about 200 meters from the church square. A collection point near the small village provided burials for at least two hundred men per day. A total of 3195 soldiers would be buried a ‘Sainte-Mere-Eglise…
-
We remember and pay tribute to SFC Matthew R. Kading, a true hero
•
Today, I stand before you not to mourn the loss of our fallen hero but to celebrate and honor the life and sacrifice of someone who was not only a brave soldier but also a dear friend. So, join me as we remember and pay tribute to SFC Matthew R.…
-
On this day lost, but not forgotten. John R. Rankin was born on July 22, 1948. His home of record is Blackwood, NJ. He served in the US Army and attained the rank of Specialist 4 (SP4).
•
Rankin was killed in action on November 15, 1969. Johnny July 22, 1948-November 15, 1969 SP4, Army Blackwood Terrace, NJ Johnny Rankin always wanted to fly. Photos of him as a two-year old show him surrounded by model airplanes his father had built. He liked to watch…
-
On this day November 29th, in African Ourstory
•
In 1781, the Zong massacre began. This was a mass killing (at sea) of more than 130 enslaved Black Africans by the crew of the British slave ship Zong during the Middle Passage. Owned by England, when the Zong sailed from Accra with 442 slaves on August 18, 1781, it…
-
After giving care for a scalp wound, a Japanese baby is cared for by men a medical unit of the 27th Infantry Division.
•
The baby was discovered by a tank crew during the fighting below Mt. Tapotchau on Saipan in July of 1944. 🗻 Saipan 15 June 1944 Two 4th Division US Marines take cover in a shell hole on Saipan, June 1944 . On June 15, 1944, during the Pacific Campaign, U.S.…
-
Vera Salvequart – for war crimes.
•
28 year old Vera Salvequart had not been an SS guard, but rather a prisoner herself in Ravensbrück concentration camp. She was born on the 26th of November 1919 in Czechoslovakia of Czech and German parents and had trained as a nurse. According to her she served 10 months in…
-
A pilot, a veterinarian and a ranger from Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park took to the skies on Sunday morning to search for buffalo as part of a disease check operation (more information on this coming soon).
•
While searching for buffalo, they spotted a freshly poached rhino carcass, and a few hundred meters away, they noticed a small calf that was alone (it weighed 105 kg and was estimated to be around 6 weeks old). They responded immediately. Dr. Rowan Leeming tranquilized the little calf and they…