Luck of Kokura: The Japanese City That Avoided Atomic Bombing – Twice
Kokura is located on the northern tip of Japan’s Kyushu island. Housing one of the country’s largest military arsenals, it was a key target in…
One of Germany’s Top Test Pilots During World War II Was a Woman
As with other countries, Germany had a number of pilots to test out new aircraft. While the majority were male, there were some females who…
How Norwegian Commandos Sabotaged Germany’s Atomic Bomb Research
As the Second World War dragged on, both the Allied and Axis powers invested heavily in research that would create the first atomic weapons. The…
Gold Dust Twins: The Two Coast Guardsmen Who Saved Chesty Puller’s Marines on Guadalcanal
The Guadalcanal campaign – also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal – is among the most well-known engagements to occur in the Pacific Theater during…
A Lone KV-1 Tank Held Off German Advances During the Battle of Raseiniai
On June 22, 1941, Germany launched Operation Barbarossa, the World War II invasion of the Soviet Union. Despite signing the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact in 1939,…
Operation Mincemeat: How a Dead Body and a False Identity Helped the Allied Invasion of Sicily
In the years since the Second World War, many documents have been released, detailing the covert operations undertaken by the UK’s Special Operations Executive (SOE),…
Why Did the German Cruiser Deutschland Change Her Name During WWII?
Many ships have had their names changed or passed on to another. For example, the US Navy has had eight different vessels called Enterprise, with…
Five-Star Generals: The Nine Men Who Earned the US Military’s Highest Rank
Following the death of Gen. Omar Bradley in 1981, the elite rank of five-star general feels more like a legend than reality. Since Congress allowed…
Patrick Fleming: The Flying Ace Who Shot Down 19 Japanese Aircraft In Just Six Sorties
Patrick Dawson Fleming was born an Army “brat” on January 17, 1918. He took an interest in flying at an early age and became the…
Clarence L. Tinker: The First Native American to Be Promoted to Major General in US Army History
They don’t make soldiers like Clarence L. Tinker anymore. Born on a Native American reservation in 1887, Tinker was inspired to serve the United States…
All Five of the Second World War’s Triple Aces in a Day Flew for the German Luftwaffe
The Second World War saw thousands of air battles between pilots. Germany, which started the conflict in 1939 with its invasion of Poland, held a…
MoH Recipient Gregory ‘Pappy’ Boyington was Among the Most Famous Pilots of WWII
During World War II, ace fighter pilots became household names, and few were more famous than Gregory “Pappy” Boyington. The star swimmer and wrestler joined…