History chat thread

[JKidd]

It seems like we have quite a few history nerds on this site. Figure we could get a good discussion going about things historical, this day in history and a number of other things.

Couple of notes about this day.
-The first thousand plane raid by the RAF and USAAF on Cologne Germany in WWII, reduces one of Germany's largest cities into a wasteland.
-Memorial Day is officially recognized.
-And Lincoln Memorial is dedicated.

Crazy to think how many thousand plane raids were launched during WWII against the Axis. Cologne was attacked on a wide scale before that massive, nearly 2 hour bomb run, but the kind of destruction that raid reared was just incredible.

[blades29]

I couldn't even begin to imagine the sky filled with bombers. It really is incredible to think it was only 65 some odd years ago. Did they use Lancaster's at all in the raids or was it heavy bombers?

[JKidd]

For the most part they were just B-17s and B-24s.

Could you imagine the devastation of flying 1000 B-52s today? The earth might be blown off axis!

[blades29]

Originally Posted by jkidd

For the most part they were just B-17s and B-24s.

Could you imagine the devastation of flying 1000 B-52s today? The earth might be blown off axis!

I'm having a tough time picturing 1000 Bombers in the 40's let alone now! Something I hope we never have to see...

A friend of mines Grandpa flew Lancasters and Mosquito bombers during the war. He skip- bombed Normandy days before troops arrived. He had a few very cool stories about his bombing days. And a very different view of the war.

[JKidd]

Those DH-98 Mosquitos were some crazy planes! Wooden wonders that literally flew by most any other plane in the world at the time with how light they were. They caused a lot of havoc for Nazi's back in the day.

I have a VFW blocks from my house and theirs a squad of P-47s there. The pilots have got some amazing stories to tell about what they endured during the war.

[Habs # 1]

Here is a video you guys may find interesting...

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=f54_1337075813

[blades29]

Originally Posted by Habs # 1

Here is a video you guys may find interesting...

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=f54_1337075813

Very cool. Gonna have to watch it a few times. The background music is awesome.

Gotta open it to full screen. Hard on the eyes, otherwise.

[thepolishkid88]

My next door neighbor use to tell me stories aout WW2 and how he was a a "bubble gunner". Use to sit in those bubbles you would see on bombers. Pretty crazy. He said he had no idea how he made it out alive, he had seen so many others die in those bubbles, just really easy pickings.

[ghjkfdhgfd]

History, the only class I didn't fail. Was a huge civil war buff in middle school. stayed after class and read up on that ****.

Charles Taylor is sentence to 50 years in prison.....hope that cocksucker is beaten every day.

[antonio106]

My favorite was studying Roman history and Medieval history, which I followed up with studying a year of Latin at the end of my undergrad for fun.

Also, I wrote my master's thesis on the history of the organ in the NHL, but in a thread like this, I suppose people are more interested in Band of Brothers type history stuff. Who knows? Maybe I'm wrong!

[fcm]

Originally Posted by antonio106

My favorite was studying Roman history and Medieval history, which I followed up with studying a year of Latin at the end of my undergrad for fun.

I also am a nerd of the Roman and Medieval history. In fact, I liked to read on the evolution from the Roman Empire's fall and the constitution of small Frank, German and Goth kingdoms.

I also like the history of languages, especially mine which is very close to Latin.

When people think about history, it looks like they always talk about the World Wars. I'm a bit tired of it. They are important events in history but we only talk about that. I mean we tend to forget the first World War because of that.

Plus, I talk with a lot of Americans, we always talk about the Normandy landings or the war in the Pacific, and never about Stalingrad or the Italian campaign.

Originally Posted by Habs # 1

Here is a video you guys may find interesting...

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=f54_1337075813

Always liked these videos. here's another one I love:

1000 year of war through the world - YouTube

[Sputnik]

History rocks, it's one of the main reasons I travel. My favourite are modern and contemporary (particularly WWII and Cold War) but in the last years I'm studying more and more ancient history. In my last travel in Central Asia I was able to see a good chunk of the old Silk Route and the big or small empires who prospered and disappeared along it; thinking that Alexander the Great went through it some 2300 ago is unreal. I must say that Gengiz Khan was one tough mutha****a, nearly 80% of the cities/sites I visited were destroyed and the people slaughtered by him.

In high school, I was big on Roman history and my history teacher made me keep a pair of lessons about the Persian Empire and zoroastrianism. Little I knew back then that years later I would have travelled in Iran having one of the best times of my life!

[fcm]

Originally Posted by Sputnik

History rocks, it's one of the main reasons I travel. My favourite are modern and contemporary (particularly WWII and Cold War)

Cold War is an interesting thing. The way the Americans dealt with it is unreal (anti-nuke bunkers, the men in black, the fear of UFOs, etc). All of the after-WW2 time in the US was pretty interesting on many aspects: the fear of the evil baby-eating communists (McCarthy), modern life style (surburban house, the car, TV), the African-American Civil Rights Movement, the crisis with Cuba, Kennedy's assassination, to finally end with the Vietnam sh*tstorm.

[bustoff]

I always liked American history, especially the period from the civil war till the 30's. Like reading about the old outlaws, Indian wars and the gangster period of the 30's especially 1934. Custer's last stand is pretty interesting. He must've been an arrogant prick.

[Sputnik]

Originally Posted by fcm

Cold War is an interesting thing. The way the Americans dealt with it is unreal (anti-nuke bunkers, the men in black, the fear of UFOs, etc). All of the after-WW2 time in the US was pretty interesting on many aspects: the fear of the evil baby-eating communists (McCarthy), modern life style (surburban house, the car, TV), the African-American Civil Rights Movement, the crisis with Cuba, Kennedy's assassination, to finally end with the Vietnam sh*tstorm.

Looking at it from a different point of view other than the american one is also very interesting. My house was literally one hundred metres far from the Iron Curtain (the former Yugoslavia) and I saw directly how things were there. Unlike the US, western Europe was right on "the front" vs the eastern block. Travelling then in countries which were theatres of proxy wars between CCCP and USA and seeing that they are still affected but those conflicts are really some eye-opening experiences.