Sarah Sundin's Blog, page 170
November 2, 2020
Today in World War II History—Nov. 2, 1940
Due to a glitch in my website, I’m unable to post images today. Sorry for the inconvenience!
80 Years Ago—Nov. 2, 1940: Off Ireland, British destroyer Antelope sinks U-31, the only German submarine sunk twice in the war (originally sunk March 11, 1940 and raised).
Italian aircraft bomb Piraeus, Greece, burning port and killing 300.
The post Today in World War II History—Nov. 2, 1940 first appeared on http://www.sarahsundin.com.
November 1, 2020
Today in World War II History—November 1, 1940 & 1945
US poster promoting use of V-Mail during WWII
80 Years Ago—Nov. 1, 1940: US Hawaiian Air Force is activated under Maj. Gen. Frederick Martin.
US Naval Air Station is established in Alameda, CA.
First US Marine Corps Officer Candidate Class begins at Quantico, VA for college graduates ages 20-25.
75 Years Ago—Nov. 1, 1945: US V-Mail system is discontinued. (Read more: “Victory Mail in World War II”)
All married US Navy nurses are released from service.
First issue of Ebony magazine is published.
The post Today in World War II History—November 1, 1940 & 1945 first appeared on http://www.sarahsundin.com.
Today in World War II History—Nov. 1, 1940 & 1945
Due to a glitch in my website, I’m unable to post images today. Sorry for the inconvenience!
80 Years Ago—Nov. 1, 1940: US Hawaiian Air Force is activated under Maj. Gen. Frederick Martin.
US Naval Air Station is established in Alameda, CA.
First US Marine Corps Officer Candidate Class begins at Quantico, VA for college graduates ages 20-25.
75 Years Ago—Nov. 1, 1945: US V-Mail system is discontinued. (Read more: “Victory Mail in World War II”–see link in first comment)
All married US Navy nurses are released from service.
First issue of Ebony magazine is published.
The post Today in World War II History—Nov. 1, 1940 & 1945 first appeared on http://www.sarahsundin.com.
October 6, 2020
Today in World War II History—Oct. 6, 1940 & 1945
80 Years Ago—Oct. 6, 1940: The Tizard Mission, a delegation of British scientists sent to the US to exchange technologies, demonstrates the cavity magnetron, essential for airborne radar.
75 Years Ago—Oct. 6, 1945: International Military Tribunal hands down indictments on 24 top Nazis at Nuremberg, Germany.
Tavern owner “Billy Goat” Sianis buys a seat for a goat at the World Series and is escorted out; he casts the so-called “goat curse” on the Chicago Cubs.
September 23, 2020
Today in World War II History—Sept. 23, 1940 & 1945
Bantam jeep, towing a 37 mm Gun M3 piece, jumping over a small hill, New River, NC, 1941 (Library of Congress)
80 Years Ago—Sept. 23, 1940: Free French and British attempt to land at Dakar in French West Africa, but are repelled by Vichy French forces.
The design for the jeep is submitted to the US Army by Bantam, originally called the Pilot.
Rubble from a destroyed Buddhist Temple in Nagasaki, Japan, 24 Sep 1945 (US National Archives: 127-N-136176)
75 Years Ago—Sept. 23, 1945: Egypt demands modification of Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936 to end British military presence in Egypt and to annex Anglo-Egyptian Sudan (not complete until 1954-56).
US Marines land at Nagasaki, Japan.
September 17, 2020
The London Restoration by Rachel McMillan
World War II may be over, but for Brent and Diana Somerville, the journey is just beginning. Newlyweds when Brent was sent to be a medic in the British Army, now they have to learn each other all over again. And both are carrying secrets.
During the war, Diana broke codes at Bletchley Park, a top-secret job she can’t even tell her own husband about. And Simon Barre, Diana’s colleague at Bletchley, now with MI6, is investigating a Soviet spy ring somehow connected to the great Christopher Wren churches in London. Since Diana is an expert in these churches, she’s drawn into Simon’s investigation, even as she’s working to restore the bomb-damaged structures.
Brent is trying to return to his work as a theology professor at London’s Kings College, but nightmares plague him. And his beloved wife is keeping something from him. And mysterious things happen whenever they visit a church.
Switching back and forth from Brent and Diana’s wartime stories to their postwar experience, The London Restoration tells of the restoration of churches, lives, and a marriage, all broken by war. Rachel McMillan lovingly describes London’s architecture in ways that will delight any Anglophile. And we receive the gift of two love stories, both featuring Brent and Diana – when they first meet, and later as these people, forever altered by war, find each other again. Romantic, beautiful, and suspenseful. Pour a cup of tea and prepare for a treat.
September 7, 2020
Lessons from the 1940s – Don’t Lose Heart
British poster, 1942
In 1940, things looked bleak in the United Kingdom. Hitler had swallowed up Poland, Norway, Denmark, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. In July, the Battle of Britain began as the Luftwaffe began attacking British shipping. In August the target shifted to the RAF, and by September 6, the British had lost 466 planes. Then the Blitz began in September, and London bore fifty-seven straight nights of bombing.
By the end of the Blitz in May 1941, only one house in ten was undamaged in central London, and 43,000 civilians had died. Invasion loomed as an ever-present threat. Extreme rationing and shortages, blackouts and air raid shelters, fires, and gas masks – this was life for the British.
British poster, WWII
Living in England eighty years ago, it would have been easy to lose heart. Yet for the most part, the British kept their famous stiff upper lip and “muddled through.” What Hitler meant to break them made them stronger, more determined, and more unified. They kept to their work and cranked out the ships and planes and tanks they needed for victory.
British poster, WWII
In addition, the senseless raids turned the tide of public opinion in the United States, allowing passage of the crucial Lend-Lease program in March 1941 to provide arms to the United Kingdom, and paving the way to America’s alliance with Britain.
By 1942, light could be seen. Hitler had greedily and foolishly invaded his ally, the Soviet Union in July 1941. Freed from harassment, Britain grew in strength and became the staging area for Allied troops and for Allied bombers. The ground was laid for D-day in 1944 and Victory in Europe in 1945.
Churchill waving to crowds at Whitehall, London, on the day the war with Germany was won, 8 May 1945 (Imperial War Museum: 4700-37 H 41849)
Things may look dark, but there is always hope. Follow the British example, don’t lose heart, and let adversity make you stronger and more determined.
August 7, 2020
Today in World War II History—Aug. 7, 1940 & 1945
Nakajima J9Y Kikka preparing for its first flight, Kisarazu Air Field, Japan, 7 Aug 1945 (public domain via Wikipedia)
80 Years Ago—Aug. 7, 1940: Germany annexes Alsace and Lorraine in France.
75 Years Ago—Aug. 7, 1945: Japanese first fly Nakajima J9Y Kikka jet fighter, essentially a copy of the German Messerschmitt Me 262.
Marshal Tito bans return of King Peter to Yugoslavia.
August 5, 2020
Fragments of Light by Michèle Phoenix
June 6, 1944. Paratrooper Callum McElway jumps into Normandy on D-day but ends up tangled in a tree. A young French girl cuts Cal down, tends his wounds, and brings him into the castle where the villagers are hiding in case the Germans return. All Cal wants is to complete his mission and return to his wife and the baby daughter he’s never met. But then the Germans return…
In modern times, Ceelie Donovan has finally finished her chemo for breast cancer and is looking forward to getting back to normal life with her husband, Nate. Then Nate leaves her. And cancer returns for her best friend, the delightfully eccentric Darlene Egerton. All her life Darlene has borne the burden of anger seething beneath her perky façade – anger at the father who returned from World War II and immediately abandoned Darlene and her mother. Ceelie sets out to solve the mystery in the hopes of finding peace for Darlene and even for herself.
Fragments of Light by Michèle Phoenix is a story of pain, abandonment, and guilt – but also of hope and light. The historical research is well done, the modern-day exploration of Normandy highlights the D-day tourist sites, and Cal’s dilemmas echo the stories of far too many veterans. With beauty and depth, the writing brings Ceelie’s emotions to life and shows the importance of making the difficult decision to choose forgiveness over resentment. A lovely story that will stay with you. Highly recommended.
August 4, 2020
Today in World War II History—Aug. 4, 1940 & 1945
Varian Fry (Library of Congress via Yad Vashem)
80 Years Ago—Aug. 4, 1940: US journalist Varian Fry of the Emergency Rescue Committee arrives in Lisbon; in Marseille, France, he will work with US vice-consul Hiram Bingham Jr. to help 2000 anti-Nazi German refugees and Jews escape from southern France.
75 Years Ago—Aug. 4, 1945: Near Pegu Yoma, British destroy remnants of Japanese 28th Army resisting in Burma.
German POW Kurt Rossmeisl escapes from Camp Butner, NC; he surrenders in 1959.
WWII amputee Bert Shepard, a former P-38 fighter pilot, pitches in a baseball game for the Washington Senators, the first man with an artificial leg to pitch in a major league baseball game.
