General Douglas MacArthur signing Japanese surrender aboard USS Missouri, 2 September 1945. Photo Credit: US National Archives. ********************************** With the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki destroyed by atomic weapons, the will of the Japanese leadership was tested. Then it came the news that the Soviet Union declared war on Japan, with troops crossing into […]
On August 4, 1790, President George Washington signed legislation establishing a maritime force simply called “the cutters” or “the system of cutters.” Thus was born the United States Revenue Cutter Service, known today as the U.S. Coast Guard. Congress empowered these cutters to enforce national laws, in particular, those dealing with tariffs. Since the Continental […]
‘Operation Husky’ the Allied invasion of Sicily 9 July – 17 August 1943. British troops of the 6th Battalion, Durham Light Infantry, part of the British 50th Division, with an American paratrooper of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, part of the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division, in Avola, on 11 July 1943. —- Photo credit: Sgt. […]
The new kit, which will start to be worn from the Autumn, is part of the ‘Future Commando Force’ programme, which is designed to overhaul the way Commandos operate. The new uniform, designed and manufactured by Crye Precision, features a lighter weight, higher strength, faster-drying and more breathable fabric than typical 50/50 NyCo*. The Commandos […]
70 years ago today, North Korean (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) forces – supported by the Soviet Union and the People’s Republic of China – crossed the 38th Parallel and invaded the Republic of Korea (South Korea). At the end of World War II, the Soviet Union and the United States liberated Korea from Japanese […]
22nd June 1940: The Formation of Airborne Forces. On the 22nd June 1940, Winston Churchill sent a letter to General Ismay requesting a corps of at least 5000 airborne troops. Churchill had been impressed by the successes of German parachute and glider-borne troops in securing vital objectives ahead of the armoured ‘Blitzkrieg’ that had steamrolled […]
The story of Tom Rice is epic, and his watch was a part of it… Tom jumped into Normandy on D-Day as a mortarman with Company C, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. Approaching the drop zone, his aircraft was struck by an enemy shell. In the panic as the plane accelerated to 164 […]
The Beginnings of Special Forces Fascist aggression in both Europe and the Pacific during World War II saw the need for the creation of military forces capable of conducting unconventional warfare in occupied territories. The First Special Service Force (FSSF), constituted on July 5, 1942, was a combined U.S. and Canadian unit originally […]
14 June 1944. “Screaming Eagles” in a German VW type 82 ‘Kübelwagen’ at the crossroads of the street (Rue) Holgate and the Route National no.13, Carentan, Normandy, France. It took six days of bitter fighting to liberate the town and ensure the junction between the landing beaches of Utah Beach and Omaha Beach. The town […]
Women have served in, or in support of, the US military since the days of the Continental Army – sometimes masquerading as men in order to serve. On June 12, 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act into law. This law enabled women to serve as permanent, regular members of […]