I received the news that we had captured the bridge and waste discussed the advantage. I told him to put troops across and secure the bridgehead taking whatever steps were necessary. So we can hold the bridge for future operations. This bridge enabled us to get across the rhine without having to make an assault later on. Really, made a decision to cross on a white front, easier for eisenhower to make. [gunshots] when we receive the orders that we would have to cross the bridge, the thing that struck me was the length of the bridge and the erpolay started across, the i believe i had the best flooding fighting platoon in that army of that time. We would go to heaven for each other. From our position on the west bank bank of the rhine, we can see considerable enemy activity across the river in a little town of erpl. it was pretty but it was set on the side of a mountain or clip predicted not lend itself very well to an attack. Since we were there to cover the crossing of the infantry, we
History. I have written history, but i did not expect to be so influenced by Something Like this book. I really had no sense of the crucial role chaplains played in world war ii. Indeed, i sort of had in my mind there were these chaplains floating around during the war, a lot of them on the home front in america in those 600 plus chapels that were built on the s and fortshe base all over the country. And then, when they went off on ships with the troops, they were sort of in the background. Maybe in tent hospitals. Maybe they were holding Worship Services when they could. And all of those things are true. But what i had no idea of was the heroism of these men. And in world war ii, it was only men that were chaplains. I have no idea of the crucial role they played in the war. Let me read to you a quotation from the commander of the 75th Infantry Division in world war ii. And his words are for the men and women under his command. This was general pricketts comment. He said, religion is b
Army commander tells waters, this is the first ever meeting of polish and american soldiers on a battlefield. So the two coordinate to snap trap shut for the germans and they will do so, but the germans have continued trying to attack furiously eastward to get out of there. Collectively this part of the battle of normandy is known as the falasie gap. Its roughly around 1944. The german losses have been terrible. 25,000 to 50,000 men captured, 10,000 dead in the pocket alone. Its a concentrated area so youre talking about enormous destruction by allied artillery, allied air, allied ground force s. Killing of horses, thousands of horses, blood running in the norman lanes as you saw one of them portrayed earlier in our slide show there. The stench like you wouldnt believe. The allied Fighter Pilots that are flying above this, when they open their canopies, theyre hit with the stench of burning flesh immediately. On the ground, the horror is unspeakable for the germans there. Its humbling
Kcanadians coming from the othe direction. Eventually bradley will tell them to halt. This is a controversial decision at normandy because its thought that it allows germans to escape who otherwise might not have. Well, regardless of that, you do end up with an encirclement eventually by about august 18th, 1944. Tens of thousands of germans had escaped. Some tafrnks and vehicles had escaped. The two sides do join hands in a town called shamboa. Whats interesting is that its not a link up of americans and british, its americans and polish. The Company Commander is reconning ahead of his unit on that day and they are under heavy artillery fire. He is go to have orders to move forward and he in thes a guy in a funny looking uniform. He knows hes not a german but hes not sure who he is. It turns out its a polish army commander. You have a polish Armor Division moving from the other direction. The commander tells waters, this is the first ever meeting of polish and american soldiers on a ba
It. In sicily, at salerno, at anz owe. It just hadnt worked out that well for them. They probably were not going to foil the invasion at the water line. They could have stalemated the allies terribly perhaps more than they did. So i tend to see the armor getting to the beaches on dday as deciding everything as overrated a little bit in that sense. If we also look to the pacific, the japanese are just now figuring out in 1944, lets not fight them at the water line, lets fortify inland and bleed them. In the way, thats the last best option the axis venezuela v in 1944 is to bleed them so badly and take so much time that youll end up with a political change. But, you know, its a fun debate and i totally understand the other point of view because you can say, well, okay. But at the same time, if you let them get ashore they industrial the advantage there, too. Thats my feeling. All right, great. Thanks. American history tv in prime time continues in a moment with a look at the role chaplai