Top 10 Little Known Events in World War II

[HogDriver44]

The Port Chicago Disaster might qualify -- I have read that it was the largest non-nuclear explosion of WWII, and also the largest single-incident loss of life event during the war (besides Hiroshima and Nagasaki).

I never learned about it until just a few years ago, but I'm sure a lot of you true history experts knew about it.

[TonyM]

Came across this listing of 10 Little Known Events in World War II. An interesting look at events that have never made it into the history books.

10. Aleutian Islands Campaign
9. Japanese Holdouts
8. South American Involvement
7. Vichy France vs. the Allies
6. Operation Drumbeat
5. Other Europeans in Nazi Forces
4. Japanese Fire Balloons
3. Stalag Luft III
2. The Ni’ihau Incident
1. The Death Match

http://listverse.com/2011/03/02/top-10- ... ld-war-ii/

Do you mean History Text books instead of History Books? Many of these events have been covered in dedicated volumes.

I have a 3,000 volume library in my home and I have read many of the books that are in my library, and I know that many of my "History Books" cover or feature these events. One of the most interesting book I have read is a first hand account of a Japanese WWII holdover. He surrendered in 1974 after he was relieved by his CO. This book has been in print for over 30 years. The book is NO SURRENDER--My Thirty Year War by Hiroo Onoda.




TM

I followed the link and they do mean History Text Books (as opposed to dedicated history volumes). Sorry for not looking ahead before posting.

Since many teachers have to teach to prepare students for standardized tests, there just is not enough time to micro cover the Second World War in a 20th Century History Survey Course. They have to teach why the war happened, how it impacted life here at home and also the far-reaching political and social consequences of the war. I think it would be good to teach about Vichy France, New Guinea, the Aluetians, Japanese hold-overs and other WWII topics that are off of the beaten track, but the truth of the matter is that there is just not enough time in these over-view survey courses. As a student, I pursued these topics on my own.

TM.

[JDK]

As Tony's outlined, core history teaching doesn't - and shouldn't - try to explore the byways, oddities and exceptions. (For those of us interested, that's 'for further reading'.) I'd hope that in the 21st Century most national curricula would also aim to be more internationally aware than they used to be.

As I'd expected, as an American list is has an American bias, but using phrases like 'the average person' when what's meant is 'the average American' is parochial and inaccurate. The world's bigger than any one country and an un-scoped list like that is meaningless.

However there's some interesting material come out of the discussion!

The Port Chicago Disaster might qualify -- I have read that it was the largest non-nuclear explosion of WWII, and also the largest single-incident loss of life event during the war (besides Hiroshima and Nagasaki).

I never learned about it until just a few years ago, but I'm sure a lot of you true history experts knew about it.

Thanks for sharing that, I certainly wasn't aware of it before. I'd add that it immediately reminded me of the Halifax (Nova Scotia, Canada) Explosion of the Great War where 2,000 were killed. Those in Boston would - one hopes - be aware of why they get a Christmas tree from Halifax.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halifax_Explosion

Regards,

[Dave Homewood]

Quite a few of those scenarios mentioned are well known to me, some I've never heard of.

I would like to suggest a couple of amazingly brave stories -

The British Commando Raid on St Nazaire (well known) to destroy the drydocks in the French port to stop the Germans using it on their battleships. It this is new to you, watch Jemery Clarkson's The Greatest Raid of All on Youtube, it's a must see.

Operational Terminal - a similar scenario to the St Nazaire raid of taking two old ships into the Algiers harbour at night with the intent of breaching the defences, making it to a dock and letting off thousands of US Rangers and other British and American special forces in the opening of Operation Torch. I interviewed a kiwi sailor who was on one of the ships, HMS Broke. I think if you're on a ship called broke in an op called terminal, you just know it's not going to end well. It didn't for the two ships and many of the crew members. Noel himself was badly wounded, and Broke got out of the harbour and sank inthe Med. But parts of it was a success. this was, by the way, Brits (including kiwis) and Americans fighting the Vichy French, not the Germans. This was, for me, an amazing raid to hear about and yet so little seems to be around about it. Wikipedia is the best source, other than Noel who was there.

Another interesting area of the war so often overlooked, did you know that in the Asian countries such as the Dutch East Indies, Sumatra, etc, there was an actual organised underground with lifelines set up to get people out, just as there was in Europe? And there was also a completely clandestine communist army in the jungles there, funded and supplied by the British, hitting the Japanese where it hurt just like the Chindits or Tito's bandits. You can read about both in the most amazing tale of escape from Singapore I've read, a book by Charles McCormac called You'll Die In Singapore. It's free to read on Google Books btw. It's gripping, you cannot put the book down.

Oh yes, did you know one of the Royal Navy's first major engagement in WWII was to sink the French Navy? With the deaths of many sailors too I believe.

[Dave Homewood]

An interesting area of the Second World War is what was happening in Ceylon. The Royal Navy had massive bases at Colombo and at Trincomalee. These were attacked on the 25th of April 1942 by the exact same carrier force that had attacked Pearl Harbor, with similar results, though not as many ships were lost I don't think. The fleet based there moved to East Africa for a while but later returned to Ceylon and later in the war the Royal Navy carrier fighters were being used to provide close air support to the advanncing British Army in Burma.This is all pretty much a forgotten area of the war I think.

Another interesting thing is the British Pacific Fleet. They attacked Japanese held oil refineries and one of those was at Palembang where several British and NZ pilots were shot down. Some of these were POW's and it is alledged that they were executed several days after the war. There's good evidence to back this up. Two of them were New Zealanders.

It seems all but forgotten by American historians that the Royal Navy had its carriers in the Pacific in 1945 and were at big battles such as Okinawa too. I also wonder if the US historians remember that the Royal New Zealand Navy cruisers and mine sweepers was with the US Navy through the campaign in the Pacific from Guadalcanal onwards.

Another forgotten fact is that the concept of pinpointing amnd marking targets ofr the main bomber force to hit, which late became known as Pathfinding, was not an RAF invention. The Royal Navy was doing it in the desert of North Africa in 1941-42 in support of the front line troops. The Fleet Air Arm navigators were the best there were, hence they could navigate in pitch black over barren flat land and find the targets where Wellington crews could not. Yet Bomber Command types always get the credit for this type of work.

A fascinating unit in the war was No. 14 Squadron RAF who used B-26 Marauders with the crew reduced and most of the guns stripped out, and no bombload, to fly all over the Mediterranean at high speed and low altitude, in and out of German and Italian-held ports, counting the ships. This was a daily routine to help the HQ keep taps of what ships were where. They often got chased by fighters but were seldom caught as they guned it at high speed out to sea. The pilot I interviewed from this squadron said they had to get low when under attack, so the tail gunner watche dthe water as they lowered down. he'd call on the intercom when he saw two vortices on the water. At that point they knew the proptips were 15 feet off the water. He'd then slowly wind it down till the two vortices touched, and the gunner called again at this point. Everything was locked off there, with the tips just 4 foot off the water. He said the B-26 was marvellous as it was so steady and the automatic pilot never deviated, so they could sit there for ages and all they had to do was watch out for masts or schools of jumping dolphins they might hit. The fighters meanwhile had no show as they had upward pointing guns in the B-26 but th fighters had to dive and pull up sharp so as not to hit the water. None ever attempted to come in behin as the tail gunner and the low altitude had that covered too. So it was sweet. I forgot to mention that when they stripped the weight out they added massive fuel tanks. So when the fighters had to head home, they often turned and followed them back to the port if they hadn't finished their count. Prior to this the pilot i spoke with had flown the Hudsona nd the Dakota doing spy dropping and supplying behind enemy lines all ove rthe Med, and he thought that was boring and the Dakota was awful. This was the only job he had in the war he liked. After this he went onto late model Wellingtons which he hated to bits after the B-26. After the war he flew Lightning jets in the RAF.

[Pogmusic]

I have read that it was the largest non-nuclear explosion of WWII, and also the largest single-incident loss of life event during the war (besides Hiroshima and Nagasaki).

Hummmm... What about the fire bomb raids on Tokyo, other Japanese targets and also Dresden. I think they had more loss of life in one raid than the A-Bombs.

[Dan K]

A fascinating unit in the war was No. 14 Squadron RAF who used B-26 Marauders with the crew reduced and most of the guns stripped out, and no bombload, to fly all over the Mediterranean at high speed and low altitude, in and out of German and Italian-held ports, counting the ships. This was a daily routine to help the HQ keep taps of what ships were where. They often got chased by fighters but were seldom caught as they guned it at high speed out to sea. The pilot I interviewed from this squadron said they had to get low when under attack, so the tail gunner watche dthe water as they lowered down. he'd call on the intercom when he saw two vortices on the water. At that point they knew the proptips were 15 feet off the water. He'd then slowly wind it down till the two vortices touched, and the gunner called again at this point. Everything was locked off there, with the tips just 4 foot off the water. He said the B-26 was marvellous as it was so steady and the automatic pilot never deviated, so they could sit there for ages and all they had to do was watch out for masts or schools of jumping dolphins they might hit. The fighters meanwhile had no show as they had upward pointing guns in the B-26 but th fighters had to dive and pull up sharp so as not to hit the water. None ever attempted to come in behin as the tail gunner and the low altitude had that covered too. So it was sweet. I forgot to mention that when they stripped the weight out they added massive fuel tanks. So when the fighters had to head home, they often turned and followed them back to the port if they hadn't finished their count. Prior to this the pilot i spoke with had flown the Hudsona nd the Dakota doing spy dropping and supplying behind enemy lines all ove rthe Med, and he thought that was boring and the Dakota was awful. This was the only job he had in the war he liked. After this he went onto late model Wellingtons which he hated to bits after the B-26. After the war he flew Lightning jets in the RAF.

Thanks for that, Dave. I knew not of No. 14 Squadron and their Marauders and have been googling all night learning more. Great stuff!

[Dave Homewood]

I have read that it was the largest non-nuclear explosion of WWII, and also the largest single-incident loss of life event during the war (besides Hiroshima and Nagasaki).

Hummmm... What about the fire bomb raids on Tokyo, other Japanese targets and also Dresden. I think they had more loss of life in one raid than the A-Bombs.

There's a big difference between a one off explosion from one combustion source like HogDriver refers to, and the firestorms from hundreds of combustions sources that merely burn rather than explode.

The Tokyo raid on the 9th of March 1945 was the single deadliest air raid of the war, killing upward of 100,000 people and making millions homeless. It was conducted by USAAF B-29's. And yet the critics go after Bomber Harris and the Lancaster crews and this US raid seems to be all but forgotten.

[CoastieJohn]

Came across this listing of 10 Little Known Events in World War II. An interesting look at events that have never made it into the history books.

10. Aleutian Islands Campaign
9. Japanese Holdouts
8. South American Involvement
7. Vichy France vs. the Allies
6. Operation Drumbeat
5. Other Europeans in Nazi Forces
4. Japanese Fire Balloons
3. Stalag Luft III
2. The Ni’ihau Incident
1. The Death Match

http://listverse.com/2011/03/02/top-10- ... ld-war-ii/

The defense of the cryolite mine in Greenland is an interesting tidbit. The first pic is a 1940 one from a distance. The second is a more current aerial one with it flooded. There should be a book coming out soon on WWII Greenland. I have seen some of the never before published pics of the mine during the war and the gun emplacments around it to protect it from the Germans. Cryolite was used in the aluminum making process for among other things, aircraft parts.

Last edited by CoastieJohn on Wed Mar 16, 2011 1:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[the330thbg]

Very, cool stuff!

I am off to research these new finds!

Amaizing!

Many thanks

[CoastieJohn]

There is also another event that I have read only in a couple of places. As I recall from memory.......during WWII, the Germans were still experimenting with their V-1 or V-2 rockets. What they did to test the guidance system was fire a dummy one into either Sweden or Switzerland. If/when the Swede's (or Switz's) complained, the German's would know if their guidence system worked because the complaint would say where the rocket was located. Well....they fired one off and somehow the Allies knew what the German's were trying to do. When the rocket landed, it was immediately seized and hidden. No complaint or acknowledgement of the event was ever made. A famous Arctic Explorer/Navigator by the name of COL Bernt Balchen (USAAF, Norwegien by birth) later secretly flew into the country, loaded the rocket up on a plane and smuggled it back to the either Norway, England or the US....I can't remember which. I have seen COL Balchen's papers in the NARA. This event is discussed in his papers. I think it is also in one of his books. Heck of a spy story......I guess that's how we learned about the mechanics of the rockets. Again...this is from memory but it's the jest of what happened.

[Django]

This is shaping up to be a great discussion!

I saw a movie one time about a POW camp in Ireland I believe, that house Allied and Luftwaffe airmen. Not sure how much of it was fictionalized, but it was pretty interesting. How about in Switzerland? I know the bombers that landed there were grounded for the duration (in most cases) but what kind of accomodations did the crews (of either side) get?

[Dan K]

There is also another event that I have read only in a couple of places. As I recall from memory.......during WWII, the Germans were still experimenting with their V-1 or V-2 rockets. What they did to test the guidance system was fire a dummy one into either Sweden or Switzerland. If/when the Swede's (or Switz's) complained, the German's would know if their guidence system worked because the complaint would say where the rocket was located. Well....they fired one off and somehow the Allies knew what the German's were trying to do. When the rocket landed, it was immediately seized and hidden. No complaint or acknowledgement of the event was ever made. A famous Arctic Explorer/Navigator by the name of COL Bernt Balchen (USAAF, Norwegien by birth) later secretly flew into the country, loaded the rocket up on a plane and smuggled it back to the either Norway, England or the US....I can't remember which. I have seen COL Balchen's papers in the NARA. This event is discussed in his papers. I think it is also in one of his books. Heck of a spy story......I guess that's how we learned about the mechanics of the rockets. Again...this is from memory but it's the jest of what happened.

13 Jun 44 - Stray V-2 crashes in Sweden - debris to England.

At "gräsdals gård in Knivingaryd, close to Bäckebo north of Nybro in Småland."


A4 airframe 4089, using special manual-control guidance system designed for Wasserfall AA missile.


"At first, the Swedish military didn't understand what had happened, but soon it was realized that some kind of missile had exploded at about 1500 meters height above Gräsdals gård. The travelled distance from Peenemünde was 350 kilometers, and the aim was probably for the missile to hit ground in Bornholm, occupied by the Germans. Peenemünde, Bornholm and Bäckebo is on a straight line. The range of 350 kilometers, far up in Småland, was something exceptional and tells us that this was for certain a modified test rocket. The middle section was made of wood in order not to augment the radio transmissions to and from the transmitters on board. Probably it was manufactured in the concentration camp Dora-Mittelbau and originally painted in camouflage colours, however there is reason to believe that for this experiment, the rocket was repainted in the characteristic black and white pattern which was used to ease observation of the rocket spinning around its own vertical axis. Most likely the fuel tank had exploded, whereby the weak warhead broke off and created a smallish crater with a diameter of 6 meters, and the main burner and the radio equipment dropped to the ground almost intact. Presumably the warhead charge was supposed to destroy the equipment if the rocket went astray, and thus this failed because of the explosion in the fuel tank.

Too late the military realized what had happened and ordered the newspapers not to write about the rocket airburst. It was of course too late: the Germans already knew what had happened. The officials also ordered the local population in Gräsdal and its surroundings to immediately return all items that had been picked up on the spot as souvenirs or "useful" items. This was partly successful, but large parts of the rocket still remained in the district.The collected parts were brought to F12 (Air Regiment 12) in Kalmar and from there to the Defence Aeronautical Experimental Institute at Bromma airport in Stockholm... The task of examining the remains of the "aerial torpedo" was given to Henry Kjellson, an experienced aerial wreckage expert, otherwise mostly known for constructing the airplane Tummelisa and for having written some books on ancient technology in the spirit of Erich von Däniken. Among other things he wrote a book called Seven Nights On Top Of the Cheops Pyramid, where he describes his relation to the pyramids, and in the book Technology In Prehistoric Times he joins in on the Atlantis-theory for explaining the link between the two sun-worshipping cultures in Egypt and South America. Apart from this he interprets the prophecies of Hesekiel in Old Testament as if the prophet saw a vehicle, part airplane, part helicopter. His conclusion from numerous unconnected pieces of induction evidence is that an advanced civilization populated Earth in the past, and was destroyed by an asteroid collision or similar about 4000 BC. His books in this genre is read mostly by fanatic ufologists worldwide. [http://www.constancedemby.com/ancienttech_f.html]


As coinvestigators he appointed two persons: the professor of the mechanics of materials at KTH (The Royal Institute of Technology) Gunnar Boestad, and the head of the mechanics of materials department at the Defence Aeronautical Experimental Institute, Sten Luthander. June 4th the reconstruction of the rocket begun, and July 21st, just two weeks later, the three had written one piece each for the Report Concerning the Bäckebo bomb which was sent out to several military decision-makers... the German fortunes of war had been declining during 1943 after the battle of Stalingrad and the invasion of Normandy, the D-Day June 6th 1944. So in this phase of the war, Sweden was closer tied to the allies than to Germany. British agents were thus allowed to examine the remains of the rocket. After a request from British scientific intelligence on behalf of R.V. Jones to bring the wreckage to Britain, Günther approved. The civil servant of the department of foreign affairs, Sven Grafström writes:


I didn't think Günther would approve this, but he did without hesitation. Whatever you say -- he is beginning to realize where the fortunes of war are heading and slowly begins to apply his often officially declared thesis that in politics, you have to take into account the powers that be. This thesis has certainly during the first years of the war been eagerly applied to benefit Germany, but now it really looks like he has decided that "der Endsieger" was to receive it's share.


The rocket wreckage was then put in twelve boxes and their contents were recorded by Sten Luthander. The boxes were transported to Bromma airport, and then flown with an American C-47 Dakota to Scotland, and flown from there to London by Bernt Balchen.


http://www.project1947.com/gr/grchron1.htm

[CoastieJohn]

That's some good stuff there. Thanks for posting it. I want to say his diary or logbook at NARA (or now that I think about it, maybe it was at the LOC) details the flights he made over. It includes the V-2 run.

Here is a COL Balchen bio. It briefly mentions the V-2.

http://www.snowsymposium.org/cfiles/about_bbalchen.php

Col. Bernt Balchen (1899 - 1973)
Col. Bernt Balchen, USAF Ret., is the founder and honorary chairman of the International Aviation Snow Symposium. The son of a country doctor, he was born in Tveit, Norway near Kristiansand.

Balchen was an expert navigator, aircraft mechanic and aviator as well as a Norwegian-American polar and aviation pioneer. His service in the United States Army Air Force during World War II was tied to his Arctic expertise and helped the Allies in Scandinavia and northern Europe. Postwar, he continued to be an influential leader in the United States Air Force as well as in private consulting.

These are some of the highlights of his career:
In 1925, he was a pilot on the Amundsen-Ellsworth Relief Expedition to Spitsbergen and in 1926 became a member of the Amundsen-Ellsworth-Nobile Arctic Expedition - an attempt at flying an airship over the North Pole. In a last minute decision by Amundsen, Balchen was not chosen for the final flight. Later, in his 1958 autobiography, Balchen maintained that Amundsen's competitor, Richard E. Byrd and Floyd Bennett, had been unsuccessful in their own attempt to fly by aircraft to the North Pole and back a few days earlier. Balchen based this assertion on calculations he made from Byrd's own speed/navigational data.


Balchen, under the sponsorship of Joseph Wanamaker and as co-pilot/navigator with Floyd Bennett, flew the Ford trimotor "Josephine Ford"' in 1926. A flying tour to more than 50 American cities, the flight promoted commercial aviation as a safe, reliable and practical means of transport.


In 1927 along with Richard E. Byrd, Balchen flew the first (experimental) USPS mail transport "America" across the Atlantic. Despite repeated attempts, bad weather and low visibility made landing impossible. When the aircraft ran out of fuel, Balchen landed the wheeled airplane in the sea just off the coast of France, without injury to the crew.


On 28-29 November 1929, Balchen became the first person to fly over the South Pole, as the pilot for Byrd's flight.


Due to his reputation as a polar, transatlantic and aviation expert, Balchen was hired in 1931 by Amelia Earhart as a technical advisor for a planned solo transatlantic flight. In an attempt to throw off the press, Earhart turned over her repaired Lockheed Vega to Balchen who was assumed to be planning an Antarctic flight. Balchen took the Vega to the Fokker Aircraft Company plant at Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey. There, he and mechanics Frank Nagle and Eddie Gorski reconditioned the aircraft for the upcoming record flight. The fuselage was strengthened to take extra fuel tanks that were added to provide a 420-gallon capacity. Additional instruments were also installed. After modifications had been made, Earhart flew the Vega successfully across the Atlantic on May 20, 1932


Balchen continued working as test pilot for Fokker. He participated in the Ellsworth Antarctic Expedition as chief pilot in 1933-1935. He returned to Norway in 1935 to help organize the Norwegian Civil Airline and pave the way for a Scandinavian civil airline union. He was instrumental in the eventual creation of SAS later in 1946.


In 1939, Balchen served as a consultant to the Finnish Air Staff, as well as being a member of the Norwegian Armaments Commission. He successfully negotiated a cooperative US-Scandinavian civil air agreement for transatlantic flights in 1940. Balchen helped establish the Norwegian Air Force training base, "Little Norway", in Canada.


Later in 1940, he served the RAF by ferrying aircraft to the Far East. Called to Washington by Gen "Hap" Arnold, he joined the US Army Air Force on September 5 and was deployed to Greenland to build a new key airfield in the North Atlantic aircraft ferry route, "Bluie West-8". Balchen led many daring rescues of downed aircrews in the period of 1942-1943. In January of 1944 Balchen was transferred to the UK to work for the Air Transport Command and the OSS by opening an air transport route from the UK to Stockholm. His mission was to support the resistance in Norway and transport over 2000 Norwegians from Sweden for military training in the UK and Canada. He conducted many clandestine operations in Sweden and Norway. He transported over 1000 US airmen who were released from internment by Sweden to the UK. Over 100 aircraft that had been downed in Sweden were repaired and flown back to the UK. He transported a German V-2 rocket from Sweden to the UK two months prior to the first use of the V-2 against the UK. After the war Balchen became president of Norwegian Airlines. He was awarded many honors, including the Distinguished Service Medal and the Harmon International Trophy, presented by President Eisenhower.


In 1946 Balchen helped form the SAS. He rejoined the USAF in 1948 and commanded an air rescue unit in Alaska. A 1949 flight from Alaska to Norway made him the first pilot to fly across both poles. In 1951 he assisted in the construction of the Thule Air Base in Greenland. He retired from the USAF in 1956. Colonel Balchen died in 1973.