Author Archives: secondbysecond

This week in the War, 14–20 June 1943: The Tuskegee Airmen

Posted on June 15, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on 18 June 1943, six American P-40 Warhawks, piloted by some of the soon-to-be-famous Tuskegee Airmen, were attacked by German Focke-Wulfs over the Mediterranean island of Pantelleria—which had recently fallen into Allied hands. The ‘Tuskegee Airmen’ … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 7–13 June 1943: Pantelleria

Posted on June 11, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on 11 June 1943, the garrison of the Italian island of Pantelleria surrendered when troops of the British 1st Division landed. The tiny island of Lampedusa surrendered the following day. Pantelleria is 100km southwest of Sicily, … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 31 May–6 June 1943: Death of Leslie Howard

Posted on June 3, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on 1 June 1943, British actor Leslie Howard died when his plane was shot down over the Bay of Biscay. Howard was a star of both stage and screen and famous for playing the title role in … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 24–30 May 1943: Jean Moulin calls a meeting

Posted on May 29, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, on 27 May 1943, French Resistance leader Jean Moulin called a meeting on rue du Four in Paris. Representatives of eight different resistance groups were in attendance. Jean Moulin was the personal envoy of Charles … Continue reading →

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In the news: Memorial Day 2015

Posted on May 25, 2015 by secondbysecond

We honour our troops and veterans on Memorial Day, Monday 25 May 2015. In the photograph, US Army Staff Sergeant Agnieszka Sosnowska of the 131st Military Working Dog Detachment praises her military working dog, Quaid T183, who has just completed … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 17–23 May 1943: ENIAC at the University of Pennsylvania

Posted on May 19, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war saw the beginnings of one of the landmarks of the computer age: on 17 May 1943, the US Army contracted the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Engineering to build the ENIAC: Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer. The … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 10–16 May 1943: The Dam Busters

Posted on May 15, 2015 by secondbysecond

It is over fifty years since Australian-born writer, Paul Brickhill, wrote his bestselling account of the bombing raid on the dams that provided water and hydro-electric power to industries in the Ruhr valley. The book led to a movie and … Continue reading →

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Vignette: The 70th Anniversary of VE Day

Posted on May 8, 2015 by secondbysecond

Seventy years ago today the most costly war in human history came to an end in Europe. Every year since 1945, people the world over have celebrated the 8th of May—Victory in Europe Day—and have honoured the ones who lived through … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 3–9 May 1943: The fall of Tunis

Posted on May 4, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, 0n 7 May 1943, tanks of the British 7th Armoured Division (newly detached from the British Eighth Army to join the American First Army) entered Tunis. On the same day as the fall of the … Continue reading →

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This week in the War, 26 April–2 May 1943: “Mincemeat swallowed rod, line and sinker”

Posted on May 2, 2015 by secondbysecond

This week in the war, in the early hours of the morning of 30 April 1943, British submarine HMS Seraph surfaced off the coast of Spain. A canister was brought on deck and opened to reveal a dead body dressed … Continue reading →

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