What possesses a unit of soldiers to run headlong into a frontal assault on a heavily defended position, knowing that the chances of success aren't great and that they could die? Many might ask: aren't they scared? The answer is: of course they are. That's not really what matters at that moment, however. President Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, "Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the assessment that something else is more important than fear." Nowhere in American military...
The Christy Collection
Military Stories and Articles
WW2 – The Battle Of Dutch Harbor
The Aleutian Islands are known for their rugged, treeless tundra and almost perpetually foul weather, but during the early days of World War II, they were considered a valuable piece of real estate. Fresh off their success at Pearl Harbor, the Japanese were looking to consolidate their gains in the Pacific while also stymying any potential U.S. attacks against their home islands. The Aleutians - situated at the center of the shortest route between the United States and Japan - were viewed as a...
WW1 – When Johnny Comes Marching Home
When war raged through Europe in the summer of 1914, the American public wanted nothing to do with it. Not our war, they said. President Woodrow Wilson agreed. He pledged neutrality for the United States. But over the next few years, three incidents turned public option away from isolationism to one of wanting to take action against Germany and its allies. First was when a German submarine torpedoed the British-owned passenger liner Lusitania without warning, killing 1,2,00 passengers,...