a French Foreign Legion Forum

Welcome! Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

Historical Moments On this day

Sarajevo1992

Super Active Member
Joined
Sep 7, 2011
Messages
935
Reaction score
106
Location
Arnhem
Home Country
Netherlands
Yes! and we all know who started all! F-ing Serbs ! :) Is there any war around us where we can't be involved?!? Fck!

it was a dutch man who burned down the Reichstag 27-02-1933 (so they claimed) wich enabeled Hitler to take full control over the country so you missed out on WW2
 

dusaboss

Hyper Active Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2016
Messages
4,545
Reaction score
1,640
Location
Serbia
Home Country
Yugoslavia
it was a dutch man who burned down the Reichstag 27-02-1933 (so they claimed) wich enabeled Hitler to take full control over the country so you missed out on WW2
Yeah... but how many people know that info (if its true and probably ain't). Who really connects Dutch people with start WW2?

As for Serbs and WW1 many people believe that we are one to blame (at least to some extent). Of course if you go just little bit deeper in history it's obvious that Serbia was just used as excuse for big powers to jump in war.
If you go little bit more deeper in history you would found that Franz Ferdinand's assassination was planned and probably organized (or at least helped) by Austro-Hungarian pro war political and military currents which were against archduke.

Serbs was biggest loser of WW1. 30% of population died at the time. Yes Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes was created, territories are gained, but for what price? I live in north territory which was part of Austro- Hu... Believe me, people here at the time lived better than Serbs below Danube and we would probably live much better today if not for WW1 and WW2. But yes.., are Southern Brothers and brothers from Bosnia (with support of UK, France and Russia) decided for us that it would be much better to "liberate us" and live with them in one state.:sneaky:
 

Joseph Cosgrove

Moderator
Legionnaire
Joined
Jul 13, 2013
Messages
9,556
Reaction score
7,900
Location
Thailand
Home Country
New Zealand
Sorry to all the South Africans on here, it's a day late:
11 1899 October the Boer war (or at least one of them):

The South African Boer War begins between the British Empire and the Boers of the Transvaal and Orange Free State.
The Boers, also known as Afrikaners, were the descendants of the original Dutch settlers of southern Africa. Britain took possession of the Dutch Cape colony in 1806 during the Napoleonic wars, sparking resistance from the independence-minded Boers, who resented the Anglicization of South Africa and Britain’s anti-slavery policies. In 1833, the Boers began an exodus into African tribal territory, where they founded the republics of the Transvaal and the Orange Free State. The two new republics lived peaceably with their British neighbors until 1867, when the discovery of diamonds and gold in the region made conflict between the Boer states and Britain inevitable.
Minor fighting with Britain began in the 1890s, and in October 1899 full-scale war ensued. By mid June 1900, British forces had captured most major Boer cities and formally annexed their territories, but the Boers launched a guerrilla war that frustrated the British occupiers. Beginning in 1901, the British began a strategy of systematically searching out and destroying these guerrilla units, while herding the families of the Boer soldiers into concentration camps. By 1902, the British had crushed the Boer resistance, and on May 31 of that year the Peace of Vereeniging was signed, ending hostilities.
The treaty recognized the British military administration over Transvaal and the Orange Free State and authorized a general amnesty for Boer forces. In 1910, the autonomous Union of South Africa was established by the British. It included Transvaal, the Orange Free State, the Cape of Good Hope, and Natal as provinces.

Boer in Afrikaans means farmer -so I am led to believe.

Just to take a side step and reply to a comment that sexpert made to Chas concerning why the first commandos were army:

Well it's all to do with the Boers. No really! The word commando stems from the the Afrikaans word Kommando which means Command. The great man Sir Winston Churchill himself was captured by the Boers after resigning his commission and working as a war correspondent, (which is unusual because it took him three attempts to get to Sandhurst, He later escaped and was given a hero's welcome back in Blighty.

He was so impressed with guerrilla tactics, he said to himself that that is the kind of way to put mayhem into the enemies communications and transport. Get behind the lines and hit them below the belt.
Which led to Adolf stating any commandos caught were to be executed.

Why did he pick army and not the Royal Marines (BTW the Royal was added April 1802- because of the exceptional bravery shown throughout the "French wars"), because quite simply the Marines were too busy with manning the ships guns RM artillery and gaurding their bases, many of them overseas, - MNBDO Mobile Naval Base Defense Organization.
And besides The Boers were army, or at least they weren't Navy and therefore the Navy would have nothing to do with any of the these skull skulduggery, cloak and dagger army tactics.:rolleyes:

It wasn't until Montgomery insisted that that this most prestigious of outfits -for want of a better word- should be sent to Scotland and train in commando techniques that in '43, the Royal Marines could add Commando to their official title. Needless to say that this did not go down well with the Army commandos who had been in the thick of it from the beginning:sick:

The irony of it all is that after the 2nd world war, the Army commando units were disbanded and the SBS were placed under the charge of the RM, both are still going strong.
 
Joined
Mar 23, 2018
Messages
5,481
Reaction score
2,205
Location
UK
Home Country
United Kingdom
Army commando units were disbanded and the SBS were placed under the charge of the RM, both are still going strong.
Great Info Joe. We still have the All arms commando course (as you know) they come back to a regular army unit when/if they leave the commando unit.. Like 29 commando RA. I think they even wear a Patch now saying Army commando on their arm. In your day Joe the dagger Patch.
 
Joined
Mar 23, 2018
Messages
5,481
Reaction score
2,205
Location
UK
Home Country
United Kingdom
Yeah they changed the insignia
 

Joseph Cosgrove

Moderator
Legionnaire
Joined
Jul 13, 2013
Messages
9,556
Reaction score
7,900
Location
Thailand
Home Country
New Zealand
14 October1066 Battle of Hastings (Also Erika's birthday;))

In 1066 the course of British history changed forever when William, the Duke of Normandy, landed on the southern coast of England and seized the country from its Anglo-Saxon king Harold Godwinson. The French had a long history of claims in England, and in 1002 the English king Aethelred the Unready married the sister of Richard II, the Norman duke.

The Normans weren't the only ones keen on the English throne - the Norwegians, led by King Harald Hardrada, invaded northern England but Harold defeated them at the Battle of Stamford Bridge on September 25, but at the cost of severely weakening his army immediately prior to William the Conqueror's invasion.

William invaded with around 7,000-12,000 men, and constructed a castle in the area of Hastings. This is where the famous Battle of Hastings would happen, on October 14, 1066. King Harold was killed (by an arrow to the eye according to legend - though this is debated among historians)* and William marched on London, eventually receiving the capitulation of the English barons and Harold's uncrowned successor Edgar Aetheling.

William was crowned on 25 December 1066 and reigned until 1087. The conquest introduced the Norman language to England, eliminated the English elite, changes to governance and the formal elimination of slavery.

* It is also debated by historians that Harold's mother was watching during archery practice. One archer was so clumsy that Harold's mum says "you want to watch that one, he'll end up having someone's eye out". :unsure: :)
* Another highly debated legend by historians is that just before Harold went into battle his mum warned : watch your back son and keep your eye open for any stray arrows.o_O:)
1571029098062.png
Harold's death scene from the Bayeux tapestry
 

Joseph Cosgrove

Moderator
Legionnaire
Joined
Jul 13, 2013
Messages
9,556
Reaction score
7,900
Location
Thailand
Home Country
New Zealand
1415 Battle of Agincourt

Battle of Agincourt, (October 25, 1415), decisive battle in the Hundred Years’ War (1337–1453) that resulted in the victory of the English over the French. The English army, led by King Henry V, famously achieved victory in spite of the numerical superiority of its opponent. The battle repeated other English successes in the Hundred Years’ War, such as the Battle of Crécy (1346) and the Battle of Poitiers (1356), and made possible England’s subsequent conquest of Normandy and the Treaty of Troyes (1420), which named Henry V heir to the French crown.

Now I know that not many of you are interested in what took place in 1415, however, it may interest some to know where the great British tradition of giving the the two fingered 'up yours' comes from.

1572017387863.png 1572017469597.png 1572017552536.png 1572017671003.png

It just so happens that after the battle of Agincourt, where the English introduced the Longbow which in those days was the equivalent of the 12.7 or .50 calibre if you prefer. The range and precision took the French completely by surprise.
The Brits would line up their archers and just to p$ss of the froggies would give them the the two fingers while getting ready to go to battle.

NB, the last photo is Sir Winston giving a "V" for victory.
 

Joseph Cosgrove

Moderator
Legionnaire
Joined
Jul 13, 2013
Messages
9,556
Reaction score
7,900
Location
Thailand
Home Country
New Zealand
Is it too late ? Possible Brexit solution???

05 November 1605

Guy (Guido) Fawkes tries to blow up the houses of parliament:
Guy Fawkes or bonfire night is an annual commemoration observed on 5 November, primarily in the United Kingdom. Its history begins with the events of 5 November 1605, when Guy Fawkes, a member of the Gunpowder Plot was arrested while guarding explosives the plotters had placed beneath the house of Lords.

Celebrating the fact that king James the 1st had survived the attempt on his life, people lit bonfires around London; and months later, the introduction of the Observance of November 5th act enforced an annual public day of thanksgiving for the plot's failure.

Children dress up a kind of doll to resemble Guy Fawkes. Basically you get an old pair of your dad's trousers and stuff it with newspaper and tie off the bottoms with string. You do the same with an old long sleeves shirt and put a mask on it and then top it off with a hat.

Next you sit outside a strategic place ( a pub at lunch time is usually a good place) with a sign saying "penny for the guy" I suppose with inflation it'll probably be "a quid (pound) for the guy" 👨‍🎓

1572929111653.png

at the end of the day the dummy is placed on top of the bonfire and burnt.
And of course there are fireworks. ;)

"Remember, remember the 5th of November"

Just in case you think that who cares about good old Guy? You see him him at every demonstration:
1572929488560.png Yes that is a Guy Fawkes mask.:coffee:
 

hotsauced

Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2017
Messages
104
Reaction score
104
Location
Los Angeles
Home Country
United States
Is it too late ? Possible Brexit solution???

05 November 1605

Guy (Guido) Fawkes tries to blow up the houses of parliament:
Guy Fawkes or bonfire night is an annual commemoration observed on 5 November, primarily in the United Kingdom. Its history begins with the events of 5 November 1605, when Guy Fawkes, a member of the Gunpowder Plot was arrested while guarding explosives the plotters had placed beneath the house of Lords.

Celebrating the fact that king James the 1st had survived the attempt on his life, people lit bonfires around London; and months later, the introduction of the Observance of November 5th act enforced an annual public day of thanksgiving for the plot's failure.

Children dress up a kind of doll to resemble Guy Fawkes. Basically you get an old pair of your dad's trousers and stuff it with newspaper and tie off the bottoms with string. You do the same with an old long sleeves shirt and put a mask on it and then top it off with a hat.

Next you sit outside a strategic place ( a pub at lunch time is usually a good place) with a sign saying "penny for the guy" I suppose with inflation it'll probably be "a quid (pound) for the guy" 👨‍🎓

View attachment 5517

at the end of the day the dummy is placed on top of the bonfire and burnt.
And of course there are fireworks. ;)

"Remember, remember the 5th of November"

Just in case you think that who cares about good old Guy? You see him him at every demonstration:
View attachment 5518 Yes that is a Guy Fawkes mask.:coffee:

Remember remember the fifth of November, gun powder, treason , and plot

 

mark wake

Legionnaire
Joined
Jun 12, 2013
Messages
1,196
Reaction score
1,288
Location
connecticut
Home Country
United States
Is it too late ? Possible Brexit solution???

05 November 1605

Guy (Guido) Fawkes tries to blow up the houses of parliament:
Guy Fawkes or bonfire night is an annual commemoration observed on 5 November, primarily in the United Kingdom. Its history begins with the events of 5 November 1605, when Guy Fawkes, a member of the Gunpowder Plot was arrested while guarding explosives the plotters had placed beneath the house of Lords.

Celebrating the fact that king James the 1st had survived the attempt on his life, people lit bonfires around London; and months later, the introduction of the Observance of November 5th act enforced an annual public day of thanksgiving for the plot's failure.

Children dress up a kind of doll to resemble Guy Fawkes. Basically you get an old pair of your dad's trousers and stuff it with newspaper and tie off the bottoms with string. You do the same with an old long sleeves shirt and put a mask on it and then top it off with a hat.

Next you sit outside a strategic place ( a pub at lunch time is usually a good place) with a sign saying "penny for the guy" I suppose with inflation it'll probably be "a quid (pound) for the guy" 👨‍🎓

View attachment 5517

at the end of the day the dummy is placed on top of the bonfire and burnt.
And of course there are fireworks. ;)

"Remember, remember the 5th of November"

Just in case you think that who cares about good old Guy? You see him him at every demonstration:
View attachment 5518 Yes that is a Guy Fawkes mask.:coffee:
I remember as a kid up north looking at all the bonfires being 🔥on guy fawkes night. we lived in a cottage in northumberland. After school I had to collect firewood so that there would be enough for cooking and such. Years later i stood around legion fires. Deserts/ jungles/or in the mountains of Corsica with my comrades singing those songs remembering home.
 

Joseph Cosgrove

Moderator
Legionnaire
Joined
Jul 13, 2013
Messages
9,556
Reaction score
7,900
Location
Thailand
Home Country
New Zealand
09 November 1989
The fall of the Berlin wall.

Oops, now that's what I call a banane, watch and you'll understand :love:

However before we get to that, on the same day - different years-
1799 Napoleon Bonaparte pulls off a coup and becomes the dictator of France under the title of First Consul . Nice one Le petit caporal !
1953 Cambodia gets it's independence from France. We've been there twice, there are still the French built colonial buildings, mostly official government offices. In the capitol the streets and official buildings are written in Khmer, English and French. So what, big deal ! you may say, but this next bit of info about the 9th of November will blow your minds:

Neville Chamberlain Brit PM from 1937- 40 and Charles de Gualle French President '58-69 both died (30 years apart) on the same day, today. Told yez ;)

Now check out this banane:


Class !
 

Joseph Cosgrove

Moderator
Legionnaire
Joined
Jul 13, 2013
Messages
9,556
Reaction score
7,900
Location
Thailand
Home Country
New Zealand
11 November 1918
It's only 6 minutes long.
Here's something I wrote yesterday using word - because I knew that I'd be busy today, which could explain why the font is slightly different. For those who can't be bother watching 6 minutes of video, skip through to the 3 min 17 second to better understand this:

One of the major problems of the war was how to repay the money that was spent during it. OK, Germany was given a hefty fine, however that wasn’t nearly enough. One bright spark said: why don’t we take all their ships and either scrap them for their metal or increase our own navies. The second option was quickly pushed to one side; after all the great war was the war to end all wars.

The representative of the German navy Franz Von Hipper met the Brit admiral David Beatty on his flag ship HMS Queen Elizabeth (scrapped in 1948. -Although under ancient sailor’s superstition it is unlucky to rename a ship, it has always been a Navy tradition to give a new ship an old name. Hence the new Brit aircraft carrier being named HMS Elizabeth. 👨‍🎓

It was decided that the fleet would sail to Scapa Flow in the Orkeny islands, Scotland with a skeleton crew while they decided on its fate. 70 ships in all, two were lost on the way, one due to engine trouble and the other hit a mine.:whistle:

Admiral Beatty sent a message : The German flag will be hauled down at sunset today and will not be hoisted again without permission.

Now comes the interesting part. The British Navy who were guarding the ships decided to go on Naval maneuvers (y)and left only a couple of ships to watch over the fleet.

Rear admiral Ludvik Von Reuter who replaced Hipper gave the order by semaphore (flags) and signal lights “Scupper the fleet”. o_O😲Which they did by opening seacocks* and portholes and opening watertight doors and in some cases boring holes below the waterline.

This is said to have really p$ssed off the French and Italians who were hoping to get a quarter to the fleet each. In the end 52 ships were sunk and the Brits got all the salvage rights.:love:

*Seacocks are valves which allows water in (or out-) in cases where there is a fire on a warship and there is a chance that shells may explode.
 

Le petit caporal

Legionnaire
Joined
Sep 4, 2017
Messages
5,490
Reaction score
4,188
Location
Nimes
Home Country
North Korea
Earth quake near here (5.4). I felt it in my high rise building (10 th floor)
Épi centre, Montélimar in thé Drôme, but reached Grenoble, Avignon, Montpellier and Nîmes
Mid day
 

Surfguy

Super Active Member
Joined
Aug 27, 2011
Messages
1,528
Reaction score
773
Location
Wales Mostly
Home Country
United Kingdom
11 November 1918
It's only 6 minutes long.
Here's something I wrote yesterday using word - because I knew that I'd be busy today, which could explain why the font is slightly different. For those who can't be bother watching 6 minutes of video, skip through to the 3 min 17 second to better understand this:

One of the major problems of the war was how to repay the money that was spent during it. OK, Germany was given a hefty fine, however that wasn’t nearly enough. One bright spark said: why don’t we take all their ships and either scrap them for their metal or increase our own navies. The second option was quickly pushed to one side; after all the great war was the war to end all wars.

The representative of the German navy Franz Von Hipper met the Brit admiral David Beatty on his flag ship HMS Queen Elizabeth (scrapped in 1948. -Although under ancient sailor’s superstition it is unlucky to rename a ship, it has always been a Navy tradition to give a new ship an old name. Hence the new Brit aircraft carrier being named HMS Elizabeth. 👨‍🎓

It was decided that the fleet would sail to Scapa Flow in the Orkeny islands, Scotland with a skeleton crew while they decided on its fate. 70 ships in all, two were lost on the way, one due to engine trouble and the other hit a mine.:whistle:

Admiral Beatty sent a message : The German flag will be hauled down at sunset today and will not be hoisted again without permission.

Now comes the interesting part. The British Navy who were guarding the ships decided to go on Naval maneuvers (y)and left only a couple of ships to watch over the fleet.

Rear admiral Ludvik Von Reuter who replaced Hipper gave the order by semaphore (flags) and signal lights “Scupper the fleet”. o_O😲Which they did by opening seacocks* and portholes and opening watertight doors and in some cases boring holes below the waterline.

This is said to have really p$ssed off the French and Italians who were hoping to get a quarter to the fleet each. In the end 52 ships were sunk and the Brits got all the salvage rights.:love:

*Seacocks are valves which allows water in (or out-) in cases where there is a fire on a warship and there is a chance that shells may explode.
I wonder why the message wasnt sent back to the German fleet "The crews of scuttled ships will be shot in the water" their ships could have been useful and they owed GB hundreds of ships.
 

dusaboss

Hyper Active Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2016
Messages
4,545
Reaction score
1,640
Location
Serbia
Home Country
Yugoslavia
I wonder why the message wasnt sent back to the German fleet "The crews of scuttled ships will be shot in the water" their ships could have been useful and they owed GB hundreds of ships.
"They owed GB hundreds of ships." Hmmm, how's that? Always someone owes something to UK (England). How that can always be true?
Did UK ever owed and paid something to someone? Evan brexit would end up with EU owing money to UK. I don't know should I despise you are respect you because of all that shady games?
 

Joseph Cosgrove

Moderator
Legionnaire
Joined
Jul 13, 2013
Messages
9,556
Reaction score
7,900
Location
Thailand
Home Country
New Zealand
I wonder why the message wasnt sent back to the German fleet "The crews of scuttled ships will be shot in the water" their ships could have been useful and they owed GB hundreds of ships.
1573523828116.png
"The graves of German sailors shot while attempting to come ashore surrendering." 9 shot and killed and 16 wounded, while trying to make it to land. I suppose it was a question of moral, after all most were sick and tired of the war. BTW, I forgot to mention that the incident happened in June, so everyone was just trying to get back their lives in order.
"They owed GB hundreds of ships." Hmmm, how's that? Always someone owes something to UK (England). How that can always be true?
Did UK ever owed and paid something to someone? Evan brexit would end up with EU owing money to UK. I don't know should I despise you are respect you because of all that shady games?
31 December 2006

On 31 December 2006, Britain made a final payment of about $83m (£45.5m) and thereby discharged the last of its war loans from the US. By the end of World War II Britain had amassed an immense debt of £21 billion.

I remember reading in a newspaper a few years back that Britain were still paying off the French for the damage it had caused to their dock yards during WW2 on bombing raids. Normally I'd look up the article to back up my claims, however on this particular occasion, I haven't got time. So you'll just have to take my word on it.
 
Top