otherkingdom:

11 November 2018 // 100th anniversary of the end of World War One

(via supermarketsecurity)

todaysdocument:

The Battle of Guadalcanal, August 7, 1942

The campaign to capture the island of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands and its strategically important airfield from Japanese forces began on August 7, 1942 with amphibious landings by U.S. Marines.  Although the initial landing was largely unopposed, it would take months of fighting until the Japanese withdrew their forces in February, 1943.

Read more about the Guadalcanal campaign at: Operation Watchtower: The Guadalcanal Campaign

GIF Excerpted from: “Japan Surrenders”
Series: Motion Picture Films from “United News” Newsreels, 1942 - 1945.  Record Group 208: Records of the Office of War Information, 1926 - 1951

(via GIPHY)

(Source: catalog.archives.gov, via fujisan-ni-noboru-hinode)

stalker6delta:

74 years ago today was the start of the largest tank battle in history, and one of the largest military offensives ever conducted. 

This was the start of the Battle of Kursk, or the Battle of the Kursk Salient.  Germany committed over 1,720,000 men, 5000 tanks and assault guns and the USSR threw over 4 million men and 12,000 tanks into what is probably the greatest offensive battle in history. 

This was also the final turning point in WWII, where at long last the Russians seized the initiative and set Germany on an near endless series of fighting retreats back to the heart of the Fatherland.

At the end of the battle,  casualties stood at around 2 million in total, with both sides added in. 

Over the next few days, I’ll be doing some Kursk related posts when I have the time. 

(via loganriverdry)

todayinhistory:

June 6th 1944: D-Day

On this day in 1944, the D-Day landings began on the beaches of Normandy as part of the Allied ‘Operation Overlord’. The largest amphibious military operation in history, the operation involved thousands of Allied troops landing in France. For those landing on the beaches of Normandy, they faced heavy fire, mines and other obstacles on the beach, but managed to push inland. In charge of the operation was future US President General Dwight Eisenhower and leading the ground forces was British General Bernard Montgomery. The landings proved a decisive Allied victory, as they secured a foothold in France which had been defeated by Nazi Germany in 1940. D-Day was a key moment in the Second World War and helped turn the tide of the war in favour of the Allies. 70 years on, we remember not just the strategic victory that was D-Day but also the ultimate sacrifice paid by thousands of soldiers on both sides of the fighting.

“You are about to embark upon the great crusade, toward which we have striven these many months.”
- Eisenhower’s message to the Allied Expeditionary Force

70 years ago today

(via qsy-complains-a-lot)

thereisnocondemnation:

A large percentage of our country doesn’t know of, or care about Normandy. A few weekends ago, British artist Jamie, accompanied by numerous volunteers, took to the beaches of Normandy with rakes and stencils in hand to etch 9,000 silhouettes into the sand, representing fallen soldiers. Titled The Fallen 9000, the piece is meant as a stark visual reminder of those who died during the D-Day beach landings at Arromanches on June 6th, 1944 during WWII. The original team consisted of 60 volunteers, but as word spread nearly 500 additional local residents arrived to help with the temporary installation that lasted only a few hours before being washed away by the tide.
9,000 Fallen Soldiers Etched into the Sand on Normandy Beach to Commemorate Peace Day.
What is surprising is that nothing about this was seen here in the U.S.
Someone from overseas had a friend who sent it with a note of gratitude for what the U.S. started there. Please share with others who understand “freedom is not free – nor has it ever been”

(via qsy-complains-a-lot)