Col. Darby, the original commander of the Army Rangers, will never be forgotten thanks to this bronze statue unveiled in his hometown. This past weekend marked the 71st anniversary of the death of Col. William O. Darby, the original commander of the U.S. Army Rangers. On Saturday, April 30, Darby’s life was commemorated in Fort…
Category: Historical Study
Holocaust History: Remembering The 70th Anniversary of the Nuremberg Trials
As we commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Nuremberg trials, at which selected Nazi leaders were placed in the dock, we must ask some disturbing questions about those who were never tried for their complicity in the world’s worst genocide. It would have been impossible to carry out the mass murder of so many people…
Native American History: The Bloodiest War in American History You Most Likely Never Heard About
On a per capita basis, King Phillip’s War was the Bloodiest War in American History. But being that it dealt with the Native American Indian, it has been suppressed over the centuries while other major “White Man” Wars and Conflicts have been pushed into the limelight. We can never forget events like this. That is…
Holocaust History: How my Grandmother’s Chutzpah Helped Japan’s Consul Save Thousands of Jews
The story of Rachel Sternheim may answer a long-unsolved mystery surrounding the rescue of 6,000 Lithuanian Jews from the Nazis The story of Chiune Sugihara – the Japanese consul in Kovno, Lithuania, who disobeyed his government’s orders in 1940 and issued transit visas through Japan to thousands of Jews seeking to flee war-torn Europe —…
Espionage Files: Ex-Cia Officer to be Extradited to Italy to Stand Trial
I have been following this case since 2003. This is an interesting but tragic story in how espionage blowback has NO statute of limitations. For those of you who want to read the backstory on this, check out A Kidnapping in Milan: The CIA on Trial.-SF An appeals court in Portugal has ruled that…
On This Day in History: The Chernobyl Disaster
On this day, 30 Years Ago, in 1986, the world’s worst nuclear accident to date occurs at the Chernobyl nuclear plant near Kiev in Ukraine. The full toll from this disaster is still being tallied, but experts believe that thousands of people died and as many as 70,000 suffered severe poisoning. In addition, a large…
Military History: Six Astounding 18th Century Rules of War
“Yes, the objective of any general is to defeat the enemy, but that doesn’t mean you should be a boor about it.” Editor’s Introduction THE GENEVA CONVENTION is in the news of late, thanks to Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump. The bombastic billionaire-turned-politician has been taking aim at international lawsgoverning the use of military force, characterizing…
Military History: Dowsett’s War
DOWSETT’S WAR It is a story common to many Australian families – a history of military service that spans generations and decades. It is the story of the soldiers of the Dowsett family of the Bexley-Hurstville area of Sydney, New South Wales and their time serving with the First Australian Imperial Force (1st AIF) in…
World War I History: Gallipoli
With the war along the Western Front at a standstill in early 1915, allied leaders were looking for ways to break the stalemate. Many were worried that the deadlock might be permanent. Lord Kitchener, the British secretary of state for war, reluctantly conceded that operations needed to be established elsewhere. Breaking the Stalemate That “elsewhere,”…
World War Two History: The Man Who Fell 22,000 Feet and Lived to Tell The Tale
Paratroopers make a big deal about jumping out of planes from 800 feet, but U.S. Army Air Force Staff Sgt. Alan Magee fell out of a plane at 22,000 feet without a parachute while the plane was on fire. And he lived. Magee was a ball turret gunner in a B-17 named “Snap! Crackle! Pop!”…