World War Two
Published 16 Dec 2021Despite Allied occupation, the situation of the Jews in North Africa hardly improves, in newly German-occupied Tunisia it deteriorates. Meanwhile, the world learns more of the details of the Holocaust — they cannot believe their ears.
(more…)
December 17, 2021
Death Squads Arrive in North Africa – WAH 048 – December 1942, Pt. 1
Comments Off on Death Squads Arrive in North Africa – WAH 048 – December 1942, Pt. 1
December 15, 2021
Is the Wehrmacht Defeated in 1942? – WW2 Special
World War Two
Published 14 Dec 2021It’s late 1942 and the German Army is close to ruin. The Ostheer alone has suffered more than a million casualties in its fight against the Red Army. If the Wehrmacht cannot find a way to return to its former strength or reap decisive strategic benefits in the near future, it will ultimately face destruction in a war of attrition.
(more…)
Comments Off on Is the Wehrmacht Defeated in 1942? – WW2 Special
December 14, 2021
Chatellerault M24/29: France’s New Wave of Post-WWI Small Arms
Forgotten Weapons
Published 26 Aug 2017France fought the Great War with an array of weapons which were all sub-par in one way or another — the Lebel rifle was obsolescent by 1914, the Berthier was a cavalry carbine forced into rifle service, the Chauchat was an emergency wartime design optimized for production volume instead of quality, and the handguns were a mixture of old revolvers and desperate imports from Spain. Once the war finally ended, the French military would move to replace the whole lot with new and modern arms.
This would begin by finally replacing the 8mm Lebel cartridge with a non-tapered, rimless cartridge — something that would be well suited to use in magazines and repeating arms. Simultaneously, a new light machine gun would be found, as this was deemed to most important improvement to be made. The cartridge was adopted in 1924 as the 7.5x58mm, but it would soon be realized that there was a critical problem with that round. The French military had a large supply of German arms taken as war reparations, and the new 7.5mm cartridge looked very similar to the 8x57mm Mauser cartridge. Worse, the Mauser round would chamber and fire in the new French chambers, causing serious damage to guns when the 8mm bullet was squeezed down to 7.5mm. To fix this issue, the French cut their cartridge down by 4mm, resulting in the 1929 adoption of the 7.5x54mm round — the chamber of which would no longer fit a German 8mm round.
As for the machine gun, the first choice was to simply adopt the Browning BAR — but France insisted on obtaining the technical data package and producing the guns in France, and they could not come to an agreement with Colt over the price of such a license. So, the French held trials of other guns, looking at virtually everything then available. In the aftermath of the trials, it was decided that the Chatellerault arsenal could design its own weapon using the best features of the other existing guns. The arsenal rather quickly produced prototypes, and they were adopted in 1924 (and then updated to use the shorter version of the 7.5mm cartridge in 1929).
The Chatellerault M24/29 is a quite good weapon, especially considering how early it was designed. It uses a tilting bolt and a top-mounted 25 round magazine. It has two triggers, the front one firing in semiautomatic and the rear one in fully automatic. The wooden front handguard allows for fire from the hip or shoulder if desired, and a set of thorough dust covers keep the gun free from ingress of mud or dirt. About 188,000 would be manufactured, and it would stay in service for many decades.
http://www.patreon.com/ForgottenWeapons
Cool Forgotten Weapons merch! http://shop.bbtv.com/collections/forg…
If you enjoy Forgotten Weapons, check out its sister channel, InRangeTV! http://www.youtube.com/InRangeTVShow
Comments Off on Chatellerault M24/29: France’s New Wave of Post-WWI Small Arms
December 12, 2021
One Year Since Pearl Harbor – WW2 – 172 – December 11, 1942
World War Two
Published 11 Dec 2021The Japanese try and fail to supply their starving soldiers. The Allies fail to break through in Tunisia and New Guinea. The fighting in the USSR is bloody, but the Axis prepare for a new offensive there.
(more…)
Comments Off on One Year Since Pearl Harbor – WW2 – 172 – December 11, 1942
QotD: Britain’s alienated intelligentsia of the 1930s
In intention, at any rate, the English intelligentsia are Europeanized. They take their cookery from Paris and their opinions from Moscow. In the general patriotism of the country they form a sort of island of dissident thought. England is perhaps the only great country whose intellectuals are ashamed of their own nationality. In left-wing circles it is always felt that there is something slightly disgraceful in being an Englishman and that it is a duty to snigger at every English institution, from horse racing to suet puddings. It is a strange fact, but it is unquestionably true that almost any English intellectual would feel more ashamed of standing to attention during “God save the King” than of stealing from a poor box. All through the critical years many left-wingers were chipping away at English morale, trying to spread an outlook that was sometimes squashily pacifist, sometimes violently pro-Russian, but always anti-British. It is questionable how much effect this had, but it certainly had some. If the English people suffered for several years a real weakening of morale, so that the Fascist nations judged that they were “decadent” and that it was safe to plunge into war, the intellectual sabotage from the Left was partly responsible. Both the New Statesman and the News-Chronicle cried out against the Munich settlement, but even they had done something to make it possible. Ten years of systematic Blimp-baiting affected even the Blimps themselves and made it harder than it had been before to get intelligent young men to enter the armed forces. Given the stagnation of the Empire, the military middle class must have decayed in any case, but the spread of a shallow Leftism hastened the process.
It is clear that the special position of the English intellectuals during the past ten years, as purely negative creatures, mere anti-Blimps, was a by-product of ruling-class stupidity. Society could not use them, and they had not got it in them to see that devotion to one’s country implies “for better, for worse”. Both Blimps and highbrows took for granted, as though it were a law of nature, the divorce between patriotism and intelligence. If you were a patriot you read Blackwood’s Magazine and publicly thanked God that you were “not brainy”. If you were an intellectual you sniggered at the Union Jack and regarded physical courage as barbarous. It is obvious that this preposterous convention cannot continue. The Bloomsbury highbrow, with his mechanical snigger, is as out-of-date as the cavalry colonel. A modern nation cannot afford either of them. Patriotism and intelligence will have to come together again. It is the fact that we are fighting a war, and a very peculiar kind of war, that may make this possible.
George Orwell, “The Lion And The Unicorn: Socialism and the English Genius”, 1941-02-19.
Comments Off on QotD: Britain’s alienated intelligentsia of the 1930s
December 11, 2021
The Stahlhelm
World War Two
Published 10 Dec 2021The Stahlhelm. Perhaps the most iconic symbol of German military power, ever present in images of the war. Hitler believes it strikes fear in his enemies and makes his own troops fearless. But where does it come from and why is it so enduring?
(more…)
Comments Off on The Stahlhelm
Suppressed OSS M3 Grease Gun and Bushmaster Booby Trap Trigger
Forgotten Weapons
Published 9 May 2017Today, we have a chance to take a look at a suppressed M3 “Grease Gun”, as purchased and issued by the Office of Strategic Services (the OSS; predecessor to the CIA). Thanks to its readily removable barrel, the M3 (and M3A1) submachine gun was an easy gun to adapt to use with a suppressor (or as it was called at the time, a silencer). During World War 2, such a unit was developed for clandestine use by OSS and British SOE agents in occupied Europe, and they would see use for many decades in all manner of conflicts.
The suppressor itself is quite different than modern designs, being a two-part device using tight wire mesh instead of baffles. The barrel itself is heavily perforated, and extends only through the large diameter section of the suppressor. Around it is wrapped a large roll of wire mesh, which acts as an expansion chamber to slow down the exit of gas from the muzzle. The smaller front section of the unit is filled with small discs of the same wire mesh, similar to wipes but made of mesh.
Allegedly, the suppressor was effective enough to reduce the noise of the gunshots below the level of the action cycling, which is all that one can reasonable want from a suppressor. This particular example has an excellent provenance, having been provided by OSS to a European resistance fighter for a specific mission right at the end of WW2.
In addition, we also have a piece of the OSS sneaky tricks catalog to see. Specifically, a “Bushmaster” remote trigger mechanism to allow the M3 (silenced or otherwise) to be made into an autonomous booby trap in conjunction with a time delay, tripwire, or other triggering device.
Many thanks to the anonymous collector who let me take a look at this piece and bring you a video on it!
Cool Forgotten Weapons merchandise! http://shop.bbtv.com/collections/forg…
http://www.patreon.com/ForgottenWeapons
If you enjoy Forgotten Weapons, check out its sister channel, InRangeTV! http://www.youtube.com/InRangeTVShow
Comments Off on Suppressed OSS M3 Grease Gun and Bushmaster Booby Trap Trigger
December 10, 2021
December 9, 2021
Rzhev Meatgrinder: Day-by-Day Recap 02
World War Two
Published 8 Dec 2021It is one of the deadliest battles of the Eastern Front and entire conflict, yet it is often overlooked next to the fighting at Stalingrad. Today, we will take a look at the 1942 Summer Battles of Rzhev.
(more…)
Comments Off on Rzhev Meatgrinder: Day-by-Day Recap 02
December 8, 2021
Imperial Japan – A Spy Comedy? – WW2 – Spies & Ties 11
World War Two
Published 7 Dec 2021Japanese spy rings were somewhat successful up until December 1941, but after Pearl Harbor, Japanese intelligence remains only a shell of its former self.
(more…)
Comments Off on Imperial Japan – A Spy Comedy? – WW2 – Spies & Ties 11
December 7, 2021
Kokoda Trail: D-by-D Recap 01
World War Two
Published 6 Dec 2021For the past months, we have continuously mentioned the fighting on the Kokoda Track, but it was often a mere footnote next to the colossal battles happening throughout the world. Today, we give you a unique recap of all that’s been going on in this remote theater of war.
(more…)
Comments Off on Kokoda Trail: D-by-D Recap 01
The Oberg Color Film Footage of Pearl Harbor – December 7, 1941
midway512
Published 7 Dec 2018This short documentary tells the story of Harold & Eda Oberg, and the film footage they recorded of the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7, 1941. The couple captured shots during and after the attack on Hickam Army Airfield.
Comments Off on The Oberg Color Film Footage of Pearl Harbor – December 7, 1941
December 5, 2021
Axis Armies Facing Starvation – WW2 – 171 – December 4, 1942
World War Two
Published 4 Dec 2021The Soviets have launched offensives on the entire eastern front and by now hundreds of thousands of men are surrounded at Stalingrad. The Japanese win a battle at sea, but are losing a war of attrition.
(more…)
Comments Off on Axis Armies Facing Starvation – WW2 – 171 – December 4, 1942
December 3, 2021
Australian-American War of 1942 – The Battle of Brisbane
World War Two
Published 2 Dec 2021America shares a language and large parts of its culture with Britain and Australia. But when tens of thousands of US troops arrive in 1942, things will be far from smooth. While the alliance remains firm, their soldiers will spend almost as much time fighting each other as they do the Axis.
(more…)
Comments Off on Australian-American War of 1942 – The Battle of Brisbane
December 1, 2021
The Titanic Struggle for Reunion Island – WW2 Special
World War Two
Published 30 Nov 2021It might only be tangentially relevant to the war as a whole, but the Battle for Reunion Island is not only interesting in and of itself, it serves as a microcosm for the war for the French in general. Check it out!
(more…)
Comments Off on The Titanic Struggle for Reunion Island – WW2 Special
