Buchenwald...

...As we prepare to start the official sesquicentennial of the American Civil War, let's not forget another important historical event that occurred on April 11th, 1945, the liberation of the Buchenwald concentration camp by the 6th Armored Division of the U.S. 3rd Army. Buchenwald is said to rank 2nd only to Auschwitz in overall brutality to those imprisoned there. Thus, it is a milestone event in a very gruesome story.

Pvt. Harry J. Herber, Jr. claims to be the first American soldier to tear down the barbed wire and enter the camp, though many believe this is pure embellishment on his part. The camp had been overtaken by prisoners a few days earlier.
As word of the advancing Americans reached nearby Gestapo headquarters, the guards at Buchenwald were sent and order by the Gestapo to blow up the camp to destroy any evidence of its existence, but the garrison in the camp had already fled. A prisoner answered the phone when the Gestapo called, and informed them that the camp had already been blown up, so it was not necessary to send explosives. Of course, this was a well-crafted lie.

Pfc. James Hoyt was the driver the M8 Greyhound armored car that brought Capt. Frederic Keffer, Tech. Sgt. Herbert Gottschalk and Sgt. Harry Ward into the camp. He parked the vehicle outside the fence, and Capt. Keffer and Sgt. Gottschalk entered through a hole in the barbed wire that the prisoners made.

Thousand of prisoners were held in Buchenwald. Though it was not an extermination camp, with no crematoria or gas chambers, several thousand prisoners died in Buchenwald. They were used as slave laborers, and lived in horrid conditions. Starvation and disease killed hundreds daily. Buchenwald prisoners also were used in several horrific medical experiments, such the testing of viral infections and vaccines.

Ilse Koch, the wife of the cammp commandant, was one of the most brutal tormentors in Buchenwald. She often unmercillesly beat prisoners for no reason with her riding crop, and had a collection of lampshades, book covers and gloves made from the skin of deceased inmates.

One thing worthy of note is that, as time progressed, the communist inmates who were freed from Buchenwald hunted down and captured 76 of their former guards. Their fate, as can be expected, was not pleasant.

One of the freed Buchenwald inmates was Elie Wiesel, who was the Nobel Prize winner in 1986.

Though the sesquicentennial Civil War commemoration is monumental in scope in the USA, let's remember all the brutalities, all the struggles, all the deaths, and all the sacrifice from all the wars. It is because of this history that the World today is as we know it, and that, all gripes aside, we still live in the greatest country in the history of this awesome planet.

The Land of the Free...

.






...Sometimes, I wonder. On April 12th, to kick off the Civil War Sesquicentennial, Charleston is hosting a reenactment of the firing on and siege of Ft. Sumter. This should be quite an event. They have approximately 30 Confederate cannon to be placed on the shores of Charleston Harbor. No cannon will actually be allowed in the fort, so there will be no return fire. Upwards of 150,000 spectators will be in Charleston.

Sounds good, right? It should be, but...

...a hardcore, super-authentic reenactor has been placed in charge of the event, and like many of his kind, he has no tolerance for anything not being done his way or to his standards.

All uniforms will be subject to his approval. If you are not approved by him, you cannot be there. A group of gentlemen who portray various Union generals have asked to come, and they were rejected because, "Those generals weren't there during the siege, and there's no place for them."

Anyone else see a problem here?

They don't want to attend as participants. They merely want to be there,and to dress for the event theme.

Even those bringing the cannons will be required to conform to the strict guidelines of this event. If you have the wrong uniform for an early war impression, or the wrong buttons, etc., your cannon will be welcome, but you'll have to either change to a uniform more appropriate or leave.

I'm all for having some type of authenticity regulations, because you cannot do this with an " anything goes" mentality. I've seen many Gettysburg parades where authenticity was lacking, and it was ridiculous. Period-correct uniforms, shoes, eyeglasses, and equipment should be required. But, what period? The Civil War in general, or a battle-specific impression?

Say you own a cannon, and your group reenacts a gun from a battery that was formed later in the war than Ft. Sumter. You have put $45,000+ into your gun and equipment, you have a truck of suitable size and a trailer to haul the heavy cannon, and you've been invited to this event. You have to travel a few hundred miles, paying $3.50-$4.00 per gallon for gasoline in a vehicle that doesn't go too many miles on a gallon. For a multi-day event, you'll spend close to $500 on powder and friction primers. You'e taken time off of work, and have made lodging arrangements to stay for a few days. All you meals will need to be purchased in Charleston or along the road.

Is it really fair to tell those who are already volunteering their time and effort, and are spending a substantial amount of money, that they cannot participate because their shell jacket is of a pattern not made until 1862, their buttons are Western theater, etc.? I think not! The event organizers should be glad they came, because without participants, there is no event!

As to spectators, last I checked, this was a free country.They should be allowed to wear whatever uniform they want. They want to dress as Union generals? They want to wear a WWI doughboy uniform? they want to dress as Winston Churchill? Why not? They aren't participating. They aren't trying to recreate history. As long as they are carrying no weapons, breaking no laws, and are not being obnoxious, who is some hardcore, stitch nazi in charge of an event in a public U.S. city to say they cannot be there?

I wish I hadmade plans to go to this event. I'd wear my British airborne uniform and would have my wife dress as "Rosie the Riveter" just because we can, and I'd see if they tried to ban me.

If you go, good luck, and have fun. Don't be intimidated, and don't be afraid to be different. It's your Constitutional right.

Event planners and organizers need to get off their high horse and realize the facts. Your participants make the show, and your spectators make the show possible. Without either, there is no event. Also, people have the right to do what they want and wear what they want, as long as it's within the law! Deal with it!

British Commando Raids...

...are an important aspect of WWII, esp. in the European Theatre early in the war along the French coastline of the English Channel. These units at first were unorganized, under-supplied, and were very loosely disciplined. They consisted of volunteers who wanted to become morebspecialized and to become involved more quickly than they could in the regular British armed forces. Quite often,these commando units consisted of foreign volunteers, many of whom were Americans.

In 1940 around the time of the Dunkirk evacuation and the Battle of Britain, there was great fear that Germany would launch an invasion against the British Isles, which at the time were not prepared for such an invasion. Over 300,000 British and French troops had been evacuated from France and were in England, but countless weapons, ammo, and other supplies had been left behind at Dunkirk.

The initial commando raids targeted select objectives and met with limited success. As the Commandos became better trained and better equipped, the objectives changed. Commandos adopted the policy of "Strike first! Strike hard, and show the enemy no mercy!" Select, specific objectives were often replaced with the idea of dropping a small unit on the coastline, allowing them to penetrate the German defenses, and to hit hard, causing as much damage as possible in the shortest amount of time. The commandos then would make their way to the shore for exfiltration, often using the chaos they created to cover their retreat.

Commando raids involved as few as two and ans many as 1200 commandos at a time. One of the more notable raids was the Canadian assault on the port of Dieppe in 1942. This was a large-scale operation that met with failure almost from the beginning and resulted in total disaster. The commandos were quickly detected and almost totally overwhelmed during this raid, Thoughit was an almost total failure, the Dieppe raid provided lessons and intelligence that would later be used during the Normandy invasion in 1944.

As the commandos evolved, so did their tactics. As the tactics improved, the raids became more effective. These raids at time sso frustrated the German war effort that the Germans swiftly adopted a policy of executing all captured commandos.

Though not as glorious or publicized as other aspects of the war, the commandos nonetheless are heroes, and their stories should be told. Commando raids were conducted all along the Channel coast, and they caused massive chaos and disruption in the German coastal defenses. Commandos ar eoften overlooked, but their overall contribution to the Allied war effort should be appreciated. It is an interesting story of a small group of people overcoming the odds and making a major contribution to a tragic situation, in a world totally out of control.

Phil Ward...

...the author of "Those Who Dare", is a highly decorated Vietnam War veteran and graduate of Officer Candidate School, And Ft Benning's Airborne and Ranger Schools, earning his Ranger tab at 19 years of age. He served in the Mekong Delta Region of Vietnam in 1968, participating in such battles as the "Battle of the Plain of Reeds", where his unit landed "hot" and faced a Vietcong Main Force Regiment of 800-1300 men. Ward took command from his dying unit commander and called in airstrikes to cover his unit's exfiltration, which also pinned down the enemy until reinforcements came in and destroyed them.

Ward has received the Silver Star, the Soldier's Medal, the Bronze Star with Valor Device (3 awards), the Army Commendation Medal with Valor Device (3 awards), the Purple Heart (2 awards), the Air Medal, the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry, and the Combat Infantry Badge. His unit also received a Presidential Unit Citation.

After Vietnam, Mr Ward graduated with a Criminal Justice Degree from Southwest Texas State University. He has written course texts for the driver-education business he helped to establish, and his curricula gave been used by over 1,000 driver safety schools.

Ward has also served in the Texas National Guard and has taught Ranger tactics to ROTC cadets at UT, TSU, and the Texas National Guard's Officer Candidate School. His last military assignment before ending his 26 year military career was with the 10th Special Forces Group.

Mr Ward's military experience and status a a master military tactician surely helped him in his writing endeavors. His first book, "Those Who Dare", is a novel of the early years of WWII in Britain, when an invasion of the United Kingdom seemed inevitable. The book details the formation of early commando units, the evolution of commando raids, in the importance these raids had in the overall campaign in occupied France. Look for a review of this excellent book in a future nite here, and on Facebook.

Mr Ward and his wife Lindy currently live in Austin Texas. Lindy Ward is the daughter of Bob Bullock, who served as Lt. Governor to both Ann Richards and George W. Bush

Those Who Dare...

By Phil Ward, a highly decorated Vietnam War veteran, is a book I've been given for review by the publisher. It details some of the small-unit commando raids by British forces (which often included American volunteers) that took place along the French coastal areas in the months following the Dunkirk evacuation, when there was great fear of a German invasion of the British Isles. Though written as fact-based historical fiction, it is an entertaining and educational read. At times, you can almost imagine what it must have been like to have been there.

Mr. Ward apparently did his research. Even the minor details seem spot on for the events of the time. It also is well-written and grabs the reader's attention from the first chapter. Being that the book I received is an advanced reading copy, it is a paperback, and it does not include a bibliography. I am very much looking forward to seeing the finished product.

Look for a full review of this book to follow, both here and on my Facebook profile. I am three days into the read, and am about 1/3 of the way through the book, so I should be ready to post the review in around two weeks

Congratulations....

...Coach LeBeau on your induction into the NFL Hall of Fame! An awesome player, and awesome coach, and truly a man who is proving to everyone that what you can accomplish is not at all limited by how old you are. Here's to many more years at the helm of the most awesome D in the league! Blitzburgh is here, and the Steeler Nation is loving it! Here We Go!

A Few of the Many Reasons...

...why I'll swear by the fact that the Gettysburg Battlefield is truly one of the most beautiful places in the World. Lucky for me, I live close enough to be able to see such sights on a regular basis!