In Memorial

To the 16 brothers massacred on 12 Feb 1945 by the Japanese occupying forces in World War II.

Most especially to Bro. Baptist de la Salle Janos who saved a 6 year old boy by hiding him beneath a mattress before he was bayonetted to death.

Their full story can be found at:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_La_Salle_Brothers_in_the_Philippines

Hail Stonewall Jackson

for his tactical brilliance during his Valley Campaign. With only 17,000 men he ties down a force of 60,000 union soldiers, preventing them from reinforcing Gen. McClellan in his campaign to threaten Richmond.

McClellan, although he outnumbered the Confederates at Richmond, withdrew his troops, believing that he faced superior numbers there.
See the animation of this campaign at:

http://www.historyanimated.com/ValleyAnimation.html

Spotsylvania stump

From the smithsonian website:

This shattered stump was once a healthy oak tree in a rolling meadow just outside Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia.

On the morning of May 12, 1864, 1,200 entrenched Confederates, the front line of General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia, awaited the assault of 5,000 Union troops from the 2nd Corps of the Army of the Potomac. Twenty hours later, the once-peaceful meadow had acquired a new name, the “Bloody Angle.” The same fury of rifle bullets that cut down 2,000 combatants tore away all twenty-two inches of this tree's trunk. Several of the conical minie balls are still deeply embedded in the wood. Originally presented to the U.S. Army's Ordnance Museum by Brevet Major General Nelson A. Miles, the stump was transferred to the Smithsonian in 1888.


Division of the History of Technology, Armed Forces History
National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
Behring Center
Transfer from the U.S. War Department

Kinda makes you wonder how they had any survivors.

A grand salute to Lt.Col Richard Sakakida

He is another of my fave people from WWII. At the fall of Corregidor, Gen. Douglas MacArthur reserved a seat for Sakakida on the submarine he would ride to go to Australia. Instead of going, he gave up his seat to Clarence Yamagata, a hawaiian born intelligence officer with a family. Pretty selfless, huh?

He endured severe torture at the hands of the Kempei Tai.

Despite being suspended from his wrists tied to his back and being burned by cigarettes, he did not change his story; that he was merely a civilian pressed into serving as translator for the US army.

He managed to escape and even returned to Manila to participate in the War Crimes Tribunal.

His was an epic journey. His amazing story can be read in detail at:

http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/1996_cr/s960130a.htm

in 1996 he was awarded the Bronze Star and Prisoner of War Medal and in '98 the Distinguished Service Medal (posthumous).

The Thach Weave: Brill Baby, Brill

In WWII Japanese Zeros could out fly allied aircraft. At its height, the zero had a manueverability and climb rate that was unmatched.

An aviator of the US Navy, John S. Thach devised a tactic, now known as the "Thach Weave" that would give F4F american fighters a better chance at defeating the zeros.

Begin with 2 allied fighters. As a Zero commits to following one plane, both allied planes will now engage in a looping maneouver until the zero is in the sight of the other allied plane.

Just by looking at the diagram, it looks pretty simple. But I'm quite sure there was a lot more to it than that. Timing must have been crucial, above all.

I came across this technique thru the web a year or two ago and it just took my breath away.

What I find interesting is that it's dependent on distracting the enemy, getting him to be totally absorbed in one target, to the exclusion of all things.

John S Thach retired a Navy Admiral. The frigate Thach (FFG-43) was named in his honor.

Coool.

Garbo: Double Agent Extraordinaire

Juan Pujol, alias Garbo, is the only person to ever been awarded both the Iron Cross and the Order of the British Empire.

He is one of my most favorite figures from WWII.

In Operation Fortitude, pretending to be a german spy (actually working for the British) he made the germans believe that the D-day landings were to be at Pas de Calais and that the Normandy landings were merely a diversion.

He even created 27 secret agents whose findings he would report to the Nazis. They were all fictitious.

When he "warned" the germans of the coming invasion, they were so pleased they awarded him the iron cross.

* * * *
After the war Pujol faked his death and moved to Venezuela, where he lived in anonymity. He died in Caracas in 1988.

Gen. Magruder: Theatrics into Tactics

While watching Ken Burns' documentary "Civil War", I learned that Confederate General John Bankhead Magruder deceived Union Gen. George McClellan by marching his men past the same position numerous times, giving the impression that Magruder's army was larger than his.

It affected McClellan so much that he asked for reinforcements, not knowing that he actually outnumbered them.

According to the Ken Burns docu, Magruder used to stage amateur theatre productions to pass the time when on tedious garrison duty.

Sometimes illusions can also create favorable results. :)

Operation Window: Churchill's Great Idea

In reading about Winston Churchill, I discovered a neat piece of trivia. I learned that in World War II, Winston Churchill came up with an idea to confuse German radars using tin foil.

In a BBC documentary called "Bomber" by Richard Holmes. He describes that in operation "window" strips of foil were dropped so that the radars would mistake the falling foil as allied planes. Veterans described that the german searchlights, instead of pointing upwards, were pointed level to the ground. The enemy was so utterly confused. A German veteran went on to say that he even thought that the allies had landed.

Churchill had invented what would become modern chaff.

Imagine that, kitchen tin foil saved the lives of RAF airmen. Something to think about next time you wrap up your leftovers :)

Robert E. Lee's 1975 Amnesty

That's right, guys. 1975.

How did this happen? Well according to Wikipedia, Lee's written oath "to support, protect, defend the constitution of the United States" had been delivered to the desk of Secretary of War William H. Seward. He filed it away in his desk drawer, assuming that it had been dealt with by someone else.

According to the national archives website, "Secretary of State William H. Seward had given Lee's application to a friend as a souvenir.

Lee in turn, took the lack of response to mean that the government wished to retain the right to prosecute him in the future. (wikipedia)

Lee's Amnesty Oath was discovered by an archivist in 1970 among State Department records. By joint congressional resolution in 1975, Lee's full rights of citizenship were restored by effective June 13, 1865.

Effective June 13, 1865. Why this date? Most interesting is that it's dated 4 months earlier than the date on his Amnesty Oath.

Why is that? I searched Wikipedia and could find no answer.

Whatever the reason, it was gallant of President Ford to rectify the situation even if it was 110 years too late.