1. City of Life and Death (2009) This gritty epic from 2009 depicts the Rape of Nanking by the Japanese Imperial Army in 1937 during the Second Sino-Japanese War. The majority of the movie is in black and white which adds to the authenticity and historical realism. Chinese with English subtitles. 2. Back to 1942 …
Category: World War II History
Foreign WW2 Movies Worth A Damn: Back to 1942
Back to 1942 a Chinese Made Period Piece/War Movie from 2012 that tells the tragic story of the great Henan Famine of 1942-43 and the invasion of mainland China by the Japanese. It stars Adrien Brody and Tim Robbins. (Chinese with English subtitles.) I will warn you right now, this is a tough, gritty watch….
Know Your History: Was Hitler’s Ho 299 the First True Stealth Fighter?
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/was-hitlers-ho-299-first-true-stealth-fighter-152356 The Nazi invention wasn’t exactly a “stealth” fighter, but it did share a certain idea. by Sebastien Roblin Key point: The plane never took over. However, it did accidentally stumble upon how a certain shape can help reduce a plane’s radar signature. Northrop Grumman revealed this year it is developing a second flying wing […]…
WW2 Movies Worth A Damn: The Railway Man (2013)
It’s no secret I am a Writer, Veteran and all around Military History Nut, but I am also somewhat of a amateur film enthusiast. So when I come across a film(particularly a WW2 film) that I feel is worthwhile (which is not very often since as you know very FEW films that come out of…
Know Your WW2 History: 51st and 52nd Panzer Battalions
Panthers were supplied to form Panzer Abteilung 51 (Tank Battalion 51) on 9 January, and then Pz.Abt. 52 on 6 February 1943. The first production Panther tanks were plagued with mechanical problems. The engine was dangerously prone to overheating and suffered from connecting rod or bearing failures. Gasoline leaks from the fuel pump or carburetor, […]…
Know Your WW2 History: Jagdtiger SdKfz 186
The heaviest armored vehicle fielded by the Germans in World War II was the Panzerjäger Tiger Ausf B. This was built on a slightly lengthened Tiger II chassis topped with a fixed casemate and a 12.8 cm PaK 44 L/55 antitank gun. It weighed seventy-nine tons. A few early versions of the Jagdtiger had a […]…
In Memoriam: Happy VE Day – Victory in Europe!
Know your WW2 History: Lotfernrohr 7
Fascinating piece of World War II Espionage and Military History. Until late 1943, the Norden bombsight was always protected by exceptionally heavy security. Sights were normally stored in air-conditioned, dustproof vaults that were patrolled by armed guards. During training, USAAF bombardiers had to swear a solemn oath to guard the secret weapon with their…
World War II History: “Terrible Terry” Allen
The case of Maj. Gen. Terry de la Mesa Allen represented another challenge to the Marshall system. In this situation, Marshall disagreed with his top men in Europe, Eisenhower and Bradley, over the nature of generalship in the military of the nascent American superpower. The point of disagreement was what to do about Gen. Allen. […]…
Know Your Weapons: Soviet WWII Machine Guns
The Soviets were latecomers to machine-gun development generally. Prior to World War I, the czarist army bought machine guns from other countries and manufactured some under license. For this reason, Russian machine-gun development and production had to start virtually from scratch after the Russian Revolution. A top priority was the development of a light machine […]…