Why We Fight ~ 1944

In this episode, Dr. Waitman Beorn shares his expertise on what he refers to as "the Nazi genocidal project" which includes not only the mass murder of European Jews in the Holocaust but also the systematic murder of other populations with a focus on Eastern Europe. As Dr. Beorn notes, many have suggested that the unimaginably violent fighting in Eastern Europe was the exception, compared to the f...

Joining me in this episode is Ben Brands to talk about the American Battle Monuments Commission or ABMC, the work they do, and the importance of that work for the last 100 years. Below you'll find the link to the virtual tours Ben talks about. Link ABMC Virtual 360s (https://www.abmc.gov/virtual-360s)

In this episode, Dr. David Murphy joins me to talk about the Irish contributions to the Second World War, including the very nuanced neutrality under which Ireland operated during the war, people deserting to actually join the war, and the 38th (Irish) Brigade, which at this point had been in North Africa and Sicily and will join the other Allied forces at Anzio in Italy in January 1944. Links The...

In this episode, Nicholas Moran aka "The Chieftain" joins me to talk about Armor Technology in 1943, focusing on the main Axis and Allied Armor developments, with a bit of Doctrine thrown in too. Links The Chieftain's Hatch (https://www.youtube.com/@TheChieftainsHatch/videos) Stinky and the Emergency ( https://worldoftanks.com/en/news/history/chieftains-hatch-stinky-emergency/ ) Stin...

In this episode, Dr. Graham Cross joins me to talk about the Fighters over Europe, particularly VIII Fighter Command and the Americanization of the Air War in 1943. Dr. Cross is a senior lecturer in American History at Manchester Metropolitan University and an Anglo-American historian that focuses on the diplomatic and political issues as well as the military history. Links The Wings of Democracy:...

In this episode, I'm joined again by Dr. John Curatola to talk about the Strategic Air War in Europe, with a particular focus on Black Week in October 1943. This episode works well with Episode 79 with Dr. Luke Truxal, which also talks about the Schweinfurt and Regensburg raids, episode 80 with Dr. Rich Muller on the Luftwaffe aerial defense over Germany, episode 81 with Lt. Col. Alex Moon which d...

In this episode, US Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Alex Moon joins me to talk about some interesting family connections to World War II history and we talk about the bombers and bomber crews in the European Theater, the unique challenges these young men faced with their very dangerous missions, and there is a lot of overlap between these stories and the ones told in earlier episodes with Jane Gullif...

In this episode, Dr. Rich Muller talks about the aerial defense of Germany during World War II, and how the German Luftwaffe was supplied, manned, attrited and replenished / reconstituted throughout the war and what that meant for the Allies and Allied Air Forces, We also talk a bit about the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, SAASS, which is the US Air Force's version of SAMS (the School o...

In this episode, Dr. Luke Truxal joins me for his third and final 1943 episode to talk about the Schweinfurt / Regensburg raids and Operation Starkey, a Military Deception (MILDEC) plan organized within the larger Operation Cockade. We talk about intelligence failures from inaccurate analysis and wrong conclusions, over confidence and false confidence stemming from such conclusions, and the inflat...

In this episode, I'm joined by USCG Atlantic historian Dr. Bill Thiesen to talk about US Coast Guard history and involvement in World War II, with a particular focus on the Greenland Patrol and operations in the Arctic. Dr. Thiesen runs a US Coast Guard History blog called The Long Blue Line, linked below. This episode is really interesting and it is a part of our history that we don't often hear...

Joining me again is Lt. Col. Brian Kerg, this time to talk Marine Corps history. This was actually the first episode we recorded. Brian talks about Operation Cherryblossom, the landings at Cape Torokina at the start of the Bougainville Campaign. He also talks about Marine Corps leadership and command culture in the Pacific Theater. There will be other Bougainville episodes coming up but, as promis...

In this episode I'm joined by Dr. Rob Thompson to talk about the Vietnam War and how that conflict is connected to World War II. This is a more conversational episode because I don't know as much about Vietnam and Rob is a friend of mine. As he explains early on, Vietnam at this time in 1943 was known as French Indochina, and things get really complicated and messy. But this is another example of...

In this episode, Brigadier General Robert Wooldridge and Sergeant Major Daniel Sebby help us learn a bit about the history of the 40th Infantry Division, California National Guard, and what the division was doing up through 1943. Halfway through the year the Division moved from the US West Coast to Hawaii, and then later to Guadalcanal. We also talk a bit about the strengths of the National Guard...

In this episode, I'm joined by Archaeologist Kirk Freeman to talk about the Battle of Kiska, in the Aleutian Islands, making this story part-Pacific Theater and technically also part-Homefront. In addition to the story from 1942-1943, Kirk talks about his experiences as an Archaeologist on Kiska and with some of the other islands in that chain.

In this Bonus episode for Halloween, I'm joined again by Lt. Col. Brian Kerg and we discuss the 1985 film Zone Troopers, which takes place in Italy during World War II. The movie was not what we were expecting, and we were both pleasantly surprised by it. Linked below are the book mentioned and the movie, although I did not find it streaming anywhere that we could both access. Links Confessions of...

Joining me again is Naval Historian Trent Hone and this time we talk about Admiral Nimitz and his efforts to reconfigure his staff to better fight and win in the Pacific in 1943 and beyond. If you missed the previous episode, Trent talked about the US Navy fighting in the dark in the Pacific, lessons learned throughout earlier parts of the war, and how we got to a point in 1943 where we start to g...

Joining me in this episode is Naval Historian Trent Hone and we talk about the US Navy (and Allies) involved in night battles in the Solomon Islands, and how this period in late 1943 reflects a tremendous amount of learning that the Navy did in the years prior. This episode has a little overlap with the Battle of Kula Gulf episode, so it ties in well with the previous 4 episodes in the series. Lin...

Steve Wuensche, US Army veteran and current member of the Army University Press Combat Studies Institute (CSI) Staff Ride Team, joins me to talk about the Battle of Munda Point, during the New Georgia Campaign in the Pacific Theater. We also talk about Staff Rides and the available options for both virtual and in-person Staff Rides, as well as support for units looking to develop their own. This e...

Joining me in this episode is Jon Bernstein, US Army veteran and the Arms and Armor Curator at the National Museum of the United States Marine Corps. Jon helps bring some US Navy history to the series, talking about the Battle of Kula Gulf which relates to the previous two episodes (Marine Raiders and Operation Toenails) and the next episode (Munda Point). We also talk about Jon's very special fin...

Joining me again is Kater Miller, this time to talk about OPERATION TOENAILS, part of the New Georgia Campaign in the Pacific Theater in 1943. This episode is tied to the previous one on Marine Raiders, and to the next two episodes which also involve the New Georgia Campaign. Links National Museum of the United States Marine Corps https://www.usmcmuseum.com/

Joining me again is Kater Miller, USMC veteran and curator at the National Museum of the United States Marine Corps, this time to talk about the Marine Raiders in the Pacific in the context of the New Georgia Campaign, which will be the subject of the next few episodes. We also talk a bit about lineage for the Raiders, since the modern Marine Corps has "Raiders" that do not actually hold the linea...

In this episode, Dr. Bill Convery, Director of Research at the Minnesota Historical Society in St. Paul, tells us about the very unique 99th Infantry Battalion (Separate), comprised of Norwegian-speaking soldiers trained for elite missions in World War II. While we cover a broad bit of the story, I will include future episodes for a more in-depth look at this unit and their experiences in 1944 and...

This Belongs in a Museum! In this episode, LTC (ret.) Nikki Dean joins me to talk about the very important Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives program, the real "Monuments Men", and the continuing efforts to put things right even 80 years after the fact. The Geneva Convention protects cultural artifacts now, but at this time 80 years ago, we needed a formal, structured way of addressing this partic...

In this episode, Dr. Erik Villard, Digital Historian for the US Army's Center of Military History, joins me to talk about the history of Army History. We discuss the "Green Books" as well as the "Blue Books" and other publications, all of which can be found online and as PDFs. Some will be linked below. Links Army History Publications (https://history.army.mil/catalog/browse/title.html) The US Arm...

In this episode, Ken Campbell talks about two Hollywood movies that came out in 1943 and their impact on the American war effort whether that be through increased sales of War Bonds or through recruiting for the military. The movies - "This is the Army" and "Destination Tokyo" - both feature language and some choices that we immediately recognize as being offensive and in poor taste, but as Ken ex...