The World’s Holocaust Remembrance Day, “Never Again”

On April 12, the world remembers the millions who died in the Holocaust during World War II at the hands of the Nazis and their sympathizers. In the state of Israel, it is known as Yom HaShoah and in English as Holocaust Remembrance Day, where it is observed as Israel’s day of commemoration for the […]

The Special Forces Branch is Created April 9, 1987

Today’s USSOCOM (United States Special Operations Command) operates in nearly 100 countries a day as Special Operations troops from all of the combined services do their part in defending U.S. interests abroad. Special Operations troops are taking on the lion’s share of the fighting in Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan as they are an integral part […]

Irving Isaacson, OSS Agent Who Spied on the Soviets Dies at 102

Irving Isaacson was one of America’s OSS operatives during World War II serving with the Dutch, but after the war, he traveled across Europe and spied on the Soviets. He passed away last week in Maine at the age of 102. Like his wife, who died three years ago, Irving Isaacson did what he knew […]

Operation Chariot: Royal Marine Commandos Raid on St. Nazaire

Operation Chariot (also known as the St. Nazaire Raid) was a very successful if highly costly Commando raid on the port of St Nazaire in German-occupied France on March 28, 1942. The Royal Navy and Royal Marine Commandos targeted the German naval base there because it housed not only a fully equipped submarine base but […]

Elvis Presley Helps the USS Arizona Memorial With a Benefit Concert

On March 25, 1961, Elvis Presley did a benefit concert for the Arizona Memorial which raised over $62,000 and helped to restart public funding for the war memorial that so many Americans visit every year. After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the United States quickly rebuilt its facilities there and raised […]

OSS Finally Recognized More Than 70 Years Later By Congress

The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was finally recognized by the U.S. Congress when the Congressional Gold Medal Act (S. 2234) was passed by the House of Representatives back in December and the Medal was officially presented on Wednesday. OSS was the World War II predecessor to CIA, the US Special Operations Command and the […]

Last Living MOH Recipient from Iwo Jima Honors “Guardian Angel”

“Woody” Williams never knew the names of the Marines who helped protect him during some of the fiercest fighting in World War II. But finally, he was able to pay his respects to the men who saved his life. Seventy-three years ago on the island of Iwo Jima, Hershel “Woody” Williams randomly chose several fellow […]

USS Lexington, “The Lady Lex” Found in the Pacific

The aircraft carrier USS Lexington, sunk during the Battle of the Coral Sea in May of 1942, has been found by a team of wreck-hunters led by the billionaire Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. The Lexington was the first aircraft carrier ever to be sunk in combat. But during the battle, her planes also sunk the […]

Waging war with Russia in the winter: The myths surrounding Hitler and Napoleon

There is a kind of mythological component when people talk about invading Russia in the winter. A lot of people imagine Hitler, rashly deciding to invade the northern country during the coldest time of year, just as Napoleon had, and their asses getting handed to them by both the terrible cold and the Russians who […]

Operation Halyard, One of the Great Rescue Stories of WWII

Operation Halyard was the greatest rescue mission of American airmen in our history. And it was conducted by a three-man OSS (Office of Strategic Services) team dropped into Serbia that was occupied by the Germans. The OSS operatives linked up with Serbian “Chetniks” led by General Draža Mihailović in August of 1944. This three-man Halyard […]

Remembering Douglas T. Jacobson, Medal of Honor, Feb. 26,1945

The fighting to take the small volcanic but the strategically vital island of Iwo Jima was the site of the some of the bloodiest fighting in the U.S. Marine Corps history. Admiral Chester Nimitz said of the battle, “Uncommon valor was a common virtue”, where in fact 27 Medals of Honor were presented, 22 to […]