The Last and Largest Wargame Before World War II: The Louisiana Maneuvers
By mid-1941, the U.S. Army’s ranks had more than doubled, from 620,000 in December 1940, to 1,460,998 men. In the …
World War II
High Flight: The Most Famous Aviation Poem Is Born
“An aeroplane is not to us a weapon of war, but a flash of silver slanting the skies; the hum …
A Matter of Priorities: American Production in World War II, Part 2
“If we do not watch our step we shall find the White House en route to England with the Washington …
Audie Murphy Became Celebrated World War II Hero
He lied about his age to get into the Army, exaggerated the magnitude of the lie later, and lived a …
Gen. Marshall vs. the Mothers of America
“[You] will have the hatred of every mother, wife and sweethearts and also the boys themselves.”
– Mrs. Rose Lumetta …
The “Noose Around Japan’s Neck:” America’s oil embargo against Japan
In 1941, the United States was the world’s largest producer of petroleum, with more than 60 percent of the world’s …
Death Decree
When Adolf Hitler became chancellor of Germany in 1933, he attained the power to turn his anti-Semitic “Jewish Question” (Judenfrage) …
Somervell’s Folly: The Construction of the Pentagon
In the summer of 1941, War Department affairs were being conducted in 23 buildings in and around the city. To …
Churchill’s Deal With the Devil: The Anglo-Soviet Agreement of 1941
When John Colville, Churchill’s private secretary, told the prime minister on the morning of Sunday, June 22,1941, that Germany had …
B-17 Crash Highlights the Debate Over Flying Warbirds
A World War II B-17G Flying Fortress bomber named Liberty Belle was destroyed by fire on June 13 after an …