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During World War I, the youngest soldier was a 7-year-old boy, Momchilo Gavriku.
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The youngest soldier ever who was officially a soldier and fighting in a unit was the 7-year old Momčilo Gavrić. He was born in 1907. near Loznica, Serbia. At the beginning of the war, in August, 1914., Austro-Hungarian soldiers of the 42nd Croatian Home Guard Infantry Division maimed and hanged…
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On This Day 77 Years Ago…
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On June 15, 1944, U.S. Marines stormed the beaches of this strategically significant Japanese island of Saipan with a goal of gaining a crucial air base from which the U.S. could launch its new long-range B-29 bombers directly at Japan’s home islands. Saipan, the second largest island in the Marianas,…
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Pictures taken during the Battle for Hill 192 in Normandy – June/July 1944
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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…
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In the 1720s, a Scottish woman named Margaret Dickson was found trying to abandon the body of her newborn baby near the banks of the River Tweed.
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It isn’t known whether she lost the child in the late stages, or whether it died shortly after being born. Nonetheless, she was arrested charged and taken to Edinburgh to face trial, where she was found guilty and sentenced to death. In 1724, Dickson was hanged but somehow survived. She…
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This weekend marks another milestone for me – it’s exactly 50 years since I set a record I believe remains unbroken.
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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…
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The Thinking Man’s ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’
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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…
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By the end of 6 June 1944, D-day, hundreds of dead bodies of Allied soldiers were scattered across the fields of Normandy.
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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…
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We remember and pay tribute to SFC Matthew R. Kading, a true hero
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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.…
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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).
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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…
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On this day November 29th, in African Ourstory
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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…