As a Pole, I must thank you very much for mentioning our great General Maczek again. Much respect and appreciation for the great work you are doing. It's a pleasure watching your channel.
It's sad that he wasn't given a war pension. It should have been the very minimum the British Government owed him for his services. Perhaps some silly technicality about him not being a British citizen. 😞 I hope in his retirement he found happiness among a community that looked after him.
@@remaincalm2with all respect... why should britain give him a pension? He fought against Britain in WW1 and wasn't fighting for Britain for Britain's sake in WW2. How many British veterans got pensions off the poles I wonder considering we went to war on their behalf in the first place. I have great respect for the poles, but there's limits... my grandfather didn't get a pension either. He wasn't injured in the war so got nothing either.
As a half Pole, whose wife spent years researching and writing a book on General Anders, it is nice to see Maczek recognised for his longevity and his defence of his homeland.
Dr. Felton, I don’t know how you do it but, you NEVER fail to present fascinating and interesting mini docs. Never even seen an average one. All are outstanding. My favorite still remains the one of the East German Boy Scouts training with miniature panzers. The music and sense of humor during your commentary is a riot!
I gotta agree, the music especially, when I first heard it together with Dr. Felton’s voice I was confused as hell. I thought this must be somehow recorded during WW2, I was super surprised to find out this is all new content!
My grandfather was a combat vet of the Pacific and got a battlefield commission. He went on to serve in Korea and Vietnam. He’s been gone six years now and I miss him. Thanks Dr. Felton for keeping this history alive.
May he rest in peace❤ A lot of these vets lived these unbelievable real hell After seeing that how some made it to over 100 yrs old is also unbelievable😮❤😢
Omar Bradley made it to 1981. When I was an ROTC cadet at the University of Arizona in the early 80s, we had a captain named Funderburg who had been Bradley's aide. Generals of the Army remain part of the Army after leaving active service. CPT Funderburg described the general as the Army's de facto professor emeritus. Funderburg had a wonderful picture of himself pushing Bradley in a wheelchair. He also described Bradley as an absolutely wonderful man. The warm smile on Bradley's faced most definitely evidenced that contention.
My grandfather had a frame and personally signed color photo of retired Gen Bradley in uniform. On the same wall, he had a personally signed photo of him shaking hands with Pres. Reagan at Pointe du Hoc, Normandy, 1984. Grandfather was in Col Rudder's LCA when the 2nd Rangers assaulted the Pointe. He was the battalion demolition officer. He was a proud Ranger and served his country and state with distinction until retirement. He passed away when I was in college. I still miss him.
Until very recently there was a tiny shop I passed in an area of Edinburgh, with a window display, bleached by the sun, that hadn't changed in decades. The old chap running it worked well past retirement before finally closing it. It was only a couple of years later when he passed away and was in the local papers that I learned the old chap running that shop had been a mechanic in 617 Squadron, the Dambusters. All those years I passed his old shop and had no idea of the little slice of history on my own doorstep. As Mark commented, there are fewer and fewer of these veterans left, and quite often we don't even know that the very elderly person we see once took part in that titanic struggle, because they tend to be very quiet about it.
My father served in the 1st Polish Armoured division under General Maczek. He passed away at the age of 98 having never spoken about his 4 gallantry medals. Must have been something about that generation, they were a special breed,God rest their souls..
@@giovannidispirito9056 Krzyz Waleczny, 4 times according to the book The Black Devils, A Doomed Odyssey . Worth a read if you like your WW2 background info.
I remember seeing General Omar Bradley introduced at a variety of events during the 1970's -- I believe as "the last five-star general". He always received a standing ovation.
Another Canadian General who passed away in December 2007. Lieutenant General Robert William Moncel OC DSO OBE CD (9 April 1917 - 10 December 2007) In August 1944 at the age of 27, he was promoted to Brigadier, the youngest ever Canadian to achieve that rank. In the Normandy campaign, he was the commanding officer of the 4th Canadian Armoured Brigade until the end of the war in 1945.
Sounds like an astrik should be added. 27 is insane for a victorious military. More or less Venezuela style which is not credible at all. To most people this example should absolutely be excluded.
My dad is the commander of the VFW in my hometown. He's a Vietnam vet. There are a couple WW2 vets left, but they will be gone soon. We were cleaning out a closet last year and found an old Mosin Nagant rifle from WW2!
I know two more personally. My grandmother is 98, she was a "Flakwaffenhelferin" in 1944-45. And my friend, he turned 100 on Saturday. He was a pilot in the Luftwaffe, still drives a car and goes to the gym and sauna.
@@OswaldOstfalen well, thankfully soon all the Nazis, war criminals, will be gone! The Germans who helped the genocidal regime keep going by their willful participation will soon only be a bad memory of the past!
My Mum lived next door to Brigadier Hill after the war. She said he was a very nice man. She looked after his baby daughter when he had to rush off to rescue people from the floods on the Lincolnshire coast.
There's an elderly gentleman who comes in to The store I work at every so often and we talk. And I found out he was actually a D-Day Veteran, he's now a 100 two, and his mind is a sharp is ever. It's awesome that he comes in And we just talk like two old friends
12:48 Sun Yuanliang had the reputation of being the “escape general”. He was also the last surviving member of the first graduatng class of the ROC military academy (Whampoo Academy).
It is good to point out that Sun received permanent appointment to general rank before mobilization in 1937. The Chinese Nationalist government virtually stopped making permanent appointments afterwards, and senior military commanders were allowed to promote someone on the spot based on position held, but that did not affect permanent appointment status. And the rule of thumb was that whoever was in command of a brigade was authorized to be appointed as major general. Towards the end of war, many corp commanders were wearing LTG ranks, but they were only permanently appointed as colonels.
If we factor this into account, the last surviving Chinese WW2 generals were: - General Xiao Ke (1907-2008), held the deputy divisional commander position, was wearing LTG rank and recognized by the Nationalist government. - General Lu Zhengcao (1904-2009), held command at the same level as General Xiao Ke, and officially confirmed as colonel before 1937, but whether he was wearing general rank is unknown. - General Zhang Zhen (1914-2015), held command of a brigade, but did not wear general rank.
@@petershen6924 Hau Pei-tsun died in 2020 aged 100, Chief of Staff to the ROC's armed forces in the 1980s. not a General during WWII but served in the India/Burma theatre as an officer - I'd wager he was the last public figure in Taiwan and probably China too to have served in WWII/Second Sino-Japanese War. I know him because he gave an interview to the BBC in 2017 about Chiang Kai-Shek.
You are a star. Keep it up. As a history MA, not modern European history, and a 35 year RAF fast jet pilot, history has been an abiding fascination. You are nailing it Dr Mark!
My late friend used to write letters to German generals in the early 1950s and many would reply and send him letters and sometimes parts of their old uniforms or medals, photos, and copies of their award documents. When he passed away I was able to acquire all of his paper items and photos. Interesting stuff!
Polish generals in exile in the UK really got shafted. I feel at least pride that the Netherlands at least awarded him some pension for his outstanding service. Hail Maczek, Sosabowski and all the fine men and women, and bears, of the Free Polish armed forces.
@@chaptermasterpedrokantor1623 the UK was the only country in Europe to give these Generals and soldiers the opportunity to fight for their country, so fancy do dah , the NL gave them a pension , seeing as the UK took the economic brunt of the war in Europe, should the UK have supported every free french, free polish and so on for the rest of their live. The Brits did'nt owe him a pension, the Germans and Russians did for invading his country
@@RickJZ1973 kinda getting annoyed by this attitude , the UK did'nt invade Poland, Germany and Russia did, people seem to forget that, oh wait the UK the bad guys because in a time of Rationing, extreme hardship, 5+ years of war, paying the costs for continentals failures , we where expected to pay for the pensions of every lost soldier So what is the utter Disgrace is Germany and Russia , and what point did the UK become Poland's parents and responsible for their wellbeing, we did enough for Poland , more than any country in Europe. We owe them nothing
This is the only channel that doesn't endlessly visit the same old generic ww2 info. Dr. Felton never ceases to deliver original takes on fascinating information.
My great uncle fought in the Canadian Army at age 16 at the Battle of Ortona, having lied about his age. He died prematurely at age 57 in 1984 from smoking 3 packs of cigarettes a day, but he worked full time all this time until he was diagnosed. Because of his influence I joined the Army right after high school and fought in 2 wars myself, no regrets...
@@leannecurtis1582 No, and I also do not drink. I developed my "feel good" personal reward system in my teens after seeing Arnold Schwarzenegger in the movie "Pumping Iron" where he said NOTHING feels as good as lifting weights and feeling "Pumped" so I do that 3 to 4 days a week still...
I can not thank You enough Mark for everything You do here on UA-cam, to spread true history, and as a man from Poland I also thank You deeply for every polish accent You so often mention!
As an Englishman I thank the Polish for the huge help the Polish gave defending The United Kingdom, without Polish pilots, scientists and engineers I likely would never have been born. Not enough recognition goes to the Polish who fought on the side of Britain during the battle of Britain, from the memory of what I've read and been taught the Polish did more than the Americans during the battle of Britain.
My father was a Combat Veteran with the US Army Air Force in the South Pacific Campaign on Guam, Tinian, Saipan and Iwo Jima. Dad was a Staff Sergeant and a Flightline Engineer and Mechanic on the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt.
It's truly amazing hearing these stories. In high school in the late 90s I worked as a waiter at a retirement home and had the opportunity to serve a WW1 veteran who was 108 at that time. He was very polite and pleasant. Truly amazing experience for me to be around this generation.
@@tommo9757 the last official wwI vet to die was a woman (raf canteen worker - Florence Greene ( i think). Last male vet was Claude Choute - navy vet died in Australia.
My dad introduced me to Generals, Alexander and Slim, one remembrance day at the cenotaph, back in the seventies. Nice, gentleman, listened to this sixteen year old 's blathering.
Something interesting happened recently with my nephew involving my wwii vet grandfather. Coincidentally its very much in line with this video. A Couple weekends ago The whole family took a day trip to the naval aviation museum in pensacola. Naturally there were many wwii era planes in display. My nephew took a great interest and made a comment about how long ago wwii took place. I said yes it was and asked if he knew both of his great grandfathers were in the war. My brother had not told him and so this really piqued his interest and he asked if i had met either one of them (hes very young) and i told him yes i had my one grandfather for 18 years but the other passed before i was born. He was astounded and it occurred to me that wwii vets are becoming more like wwi vets were when i was young and how lucky i was to have known several in my family and elsewhere.
Thank you Dr. Felton; especially for the information about General Ralph Smith. My father served in Headquarters company of the 27th Inf Div from Hawaii to Okinawa .
I had the absolute privilege of meeting Gen James Hill during the 50th anniversary of the D Day landings. An icon of British Airborne Operations of that time he had more than enough time to speak to the serving soldiers whom he regaled with the history of that period.. not just generic historical stuff but mentioning individual soldiers down to private level from personal memory. Some of which were stood amongst us all ready to answer any questions and to tell their own versions of events. Individual Locations with pin point accuracy of specific moments of where people died and who they were etc. even down to who buried them. As a serving soldier, I, along with my battalion had jumped into Ranville DZ on the 5th June 1994 to commemorate the D Day Airborne Assault.. we had been given exact copies of the maps issued to British Airborne personnel for the operation. James Hill was kind enough to sign my copy along with several other officers and men from that operation. These men were LEGENDS and to meet them and listen to them recount the events on the very ground they fought was an eye opening and very humbling experience. I add Brig James Hill’s personal notes submitted to Paradata below. www.paradata.org.uk/article/personal-account-brig-james-hills-experiences-normandy
Remember watching that very televised descent on the tv that afternoon, a year after I'd taken my young family to Normandy, to show them..... Salute, Sir.
Very interesting as per usual Mark, Bravo!!. James (Speedy )Hill was my Grandmothers 1st cousin, He was harder than a coffin nail. Along with trying to capture three tanks with his revolver, you neglected to mention that when he jumped on D-day(at the head of his men) he had half his ass cheek shot off during the parachute descent. When he was seen by the Medic he was told that he would need to be evacuated, the Medic was informed under no circumstances was he going to be evacuated, and to patch him up as best he could. James then returned to his command and had to be driven while standing up in his Jeep because he could not sit . I never realized that he he was the last ww2 General. He was tough old Codger.
I have absolutely NO problem with calling them the greatest generation, I wish that each and every one of them got to hear that moniker. I was very fortunate to shake the hand of the last surviving (now deceased) member of the Doolittle raid, Lieutenant Colonel Richard E. Cole when he visited the Planes of Fame museum in Chino California in 2017. When I got my chance to take a picture with him I said, "History will never forget what you guys did," and he turned to me and said, "Thank you." I suffer from some depression and don't get out of the house too much but I am so happy that I made that effort and was able to shake the hand of history.
Great video as always, Dr. Felton. I shall be grateful if you can cover the following topics from WW2 in future videos: 1. Shetland Bus 2. The Great German Spy Cicero 3. Italian involvement in the Battle of Britain
@@MarkFeltonProductions Lieutenant-general Robert Moncel was the youngest general officer in the Canadian Army when promoted to Brigadier on 27 August 1944, at the age of 27. He died December 10, 2007, aged 90.
@@MarkFeltonProductionsWhile the king of Romania never saw action, he was the commander-in-chief _(although Antonescu was was de-facto chief)_ of Romania and outlived all of them. With Hans von Seggern and Karl-Günther von Hase, the last two major's of the Wehrmacht died shortly after another in 20/21. But I guess there're probably still some centenarian captain's alive, nobody keeps track of. In the end young officer's got a faster promotion.
This is exactly the material that needs to be in our education system in the USA. I have learned so much from your work that was not taught in school. Keep up the hard work and thanks for enlightening those who dig for truth from our past!
As always fascinating stuff. You did omit one, perhaps a technicality. King Michael I of Romania also held the rank of Marshal of the Armed Forces of Romania during the war and died in 2017.
I enjoy every episode. Dr. Felton you leave no stone unturned, finding and presenting the most interesting facets of history. Your episodes touching on Festung Breslau gave me more insight about what my father’s family experienced. Thank you Doctor Felton
My father served as a carpetbaggers over France and Norway. They supplied under cover operations and dropped spies. He also operated with OSS flying in Sweden as civilian employees of American Airlines mostly related to Norwegian operations. Since these were all top secret we have found it difficult to piece together his career. Could you perhaps research these largely unknown operations
Great work Dr Felton! However just one point...I'm not sure if this was an exhaustive list, but there are two Canadian combat Generals to mention: MGen Bert Hoffmeister (commander 5th Can Armoured Div) and MGen George Kitching (commander 4th Can Armoured Div), both of whom died in 1999. Cheers!
Slight correction in 12:34 : General Trettner resigned from active service in 1966 not as a "Generalmajor" (2 star). He became "Generalleutnant" (3 star) in 1960, and "General" (4 star) in 1964.
While in service I worked with a guy in communications. He was stationed in Europe during 1980s. A big fan of WW2 history he actually took the time to find some famous German generals and actually get thier autograph. I believe one of these autographs was from Adolph Galland.
My dad had a beautiful framed print of an ME 262 piloted by General Galland. He had autographed it as well. When my dad passed we were splitting up his stuff and my oldest brother got to pick first. He took the Galland print.
That was a great series of stories. I was shocked to find out how the Polish general was treated, and that the UK didn’t take care of a man who fought like a lion, effectively in support of British operations and units.
Thanks for yet another outstanding video. I would like to know if you made a video about Brazil's participation with its Expeditionary Force and Air Force in the 2nd World War. There are many interesting things about his participation in the Italian Theater of Operations, as well as his achievements. One of the most interesting is that the share of its air force represented 5% of all Allied air support in Italy at the end of the war, but that its effort resulted in the highest efficiency rates in destroying all types of ground targets. In the end, his expeditionary force of around 25,000 received the surrender of nearly 15,000 Germans and Italians at Collechio-Fornovo. A remarkable feat for such a small force.
Thank you for talking about Polish fighters always with respect. Not many Englishman do that, maybe because not many man in general know about history.
I went to primary/junior school with the son of one of those who joined the WW2 RAF. Robert Grasweicz was my pals name, Iver County Primary School, early to mid 60's.
Maczek was actually of Slovene and Croatian origin, his last name meaning a cat (maček in kajkavian dialect), fitting for such a resourceful fellow. He also maintained correspondence with his croatian cousin Vlatko Maček, a key figure in Royal Yugoslav politics. Could you please include some of the Yugoslav partisan and Polish Underground generals? Their stories could prove to be a goldmine for your channel.
James Hill attended and was featured quite prominently in the D-Day 60 commemorations. If I remember rightly, he also made a speech or two at the time.
Great presentation. Sadly, each day we are losing WW II veterans. Recently, a veteran that turned 100 that lives close to my home was on the local news.
As a Pole, I must thank you very much for mentioning our great General Maczek again. Much respect and appreciation for the great work you are doing. It's a pleasure watching your channel.
It's sad that he wasn't given a war pension. It should have been the very minimum the British Government owed him for his services. Perhaps some silly technicality about him not being a British citizen. 😞 I hope in his retirement he found happiness among a community that looked after him.
Was glad that us Dutch didn't forget him, we are very grateful for the actions of Allied Poles and Canadians in liberating our country.
As a Pole, 1000% I'm glad he wasn't omitted and it's my fav WWII channel! 🖤
@@remaincalm2with all respect... why should britain give him a pension? He fought against Britain in WW1 and wasn't fighting for Britain for Britain's sake in WW2. How many British veterans got pensions off the poles I wonder considering we went to war on their behalf in the first place.
I have great respect for the poles, but there's limits... my grandfather didn't get a pension either. He wasn't injured in the war so got nothing either.
As a half Pole, whose wife spent years researching and writing a book on General Anders, it is nice to see Maczek recognised for his longevity and his defence of his homeland.
Dr. Felton, I don’t know how you do it but, you NEVER fail to present fascinating and interesting mini docs. Never even seen an average one. All are outstanding. My favorite still remains the one of the East German Boy Scouts training with miniature panzers. The music and sense of humor during your commentary is a riot!
Truly nothing sparks my interest than murderous villains dying a miserable death after long years of suffering.
It’s such a good channel
@@johnfinucane7124 yep, the BEST💪🏼
So true. An excellent channel !
I gotta agree, the music especially, when I first heard it together with Dr. Felton’s voice I was confused as hell. I thought this must be somehow recorded during WW2, I was super surprised to find out this is all new content!
My grandfather was a combat vet of the Pacific and got a battlefield commission. He went on to serve in Korea and Vietnam. He’s been gone six years now and I miss him. Thanks Dr. Felton for keeping this history alive.
I’m sorry for your loss.
@@dawsonbarrett8906 I appreciate that! I had a long time with him so I’m grateful.
God bless your grandfather. He was a badass and a hero. We stand on the shoulders of giants.
May he rest in peace❤
A lot of these vets lived these unbelievable real hell
After seeing that how some made it to over 100 yrs old is also unbelievable😮❤😢
Omar Bradley made it to 1981. When I was an ROTC cadet at the University of Arizona in the early 80s, we had a captain named Funderburg who had been Bradley's aide. Generals of the Army remain part of the Army after leaving active service. CPT Funderburg described the general as the Army's de facto professor emeritus. Funderburg had a wonderful picture of himself pushing Bradley in a wheelchair. He also described Bradley as an absolutely wonderful man. The warm smile on Bradley's faced most definitely evidenced that contention.
I was a pall bearer at his ft Sam funeral. Mark Clark was there and I occasionally worked for him. Nice guy,
This is who the Bradley fighting vehicle is named after.
My grandfather had a frame and personally signed color photo of retired Gen Bradley in uniform. On the same wall, he had a personally signed photo of him shaking hands with Pres. Reagan at Pointe du Hoc, Normandy, 1984. Grandfather was in Col Rudder's LCA when the 2nd Rangers assaulted the Pointe. He was the battalion demolition officer. He was a proud Ranger and served his country and state with distinction until retirement. He passed away when I was in college. I still miss him.
Until very recently there was a tiny shop I passed in an area of Edinburgh, with a window display, bleached by the sun, that hadn't changed in decades. The old chap running it worked well past retirement before finally closing it. It was only a couple of years later when he passed away and was in the local papers that I learned the old chap running that shop had been a mechanic in 617 Squadron, the Dambusters. All those years I passed his old shop and had no idea of the little slice of history on my own doorstep. As Mark commented, there are fewer and fewer of these veterans left, and quite often we don't even know that the very elderly person we see once took part in that titanic struggle, because they tend to be very quiet about it.
My uncle, John Waddman, a Sudbury, Suffolk chemist, was, in WW2, in 617, but not on those raids.
They knew that War is Hell and lived it.
My father served in the 1st Polish Armoured division under General Maczek. He passed away at the age of 98 having never spoken about his 4 gallantry medals. Must have been something about that generation, they were a special breed,God rest their souls..
Do you know what medals your father received for his service?
@@giovannidispirito9056 Krzyż Walecznych, 4 times, according to the book, The Black Devils, A Doomed Odyssey.
@@giovannidispirito9056 Krzyz Waleczny, 4 times according to the book The Black Devils, A Doomed Odyssey . Worth a read if you like your WW2 background info.
@@tadeusz1 I’d be very interested in that one mate. Will add it to the bucket list and pick it up for a read at some point!
I remember seeing General Omar Bradley introduced at a variety of events during the 1970's -- I believe as "the last five-star general". He always received a standing ovation.
I remember watching a televised salute to Jimmy Doolittle in 1986 shocked he was still living. He died in 1993.
Another Canadian General who passed away in December 2007. Lieutenant General Robert William Moncel OC DSO OBE CD (9 April 1917 - 10 December 2007)
In August 1944 at the age of 27, he was promoted to Brigadier, the youngest ever Canadian to achieve that rank. In the Normandy campaign, he was the commanding officer of the 4th Canadian Armoured Brigade until the end of the war in 1945.
When he was promoted, my grandmother hadn't even been born yet, and I'm an adult.
Maybe he lived long enough to realize he fought for the wrong side.
@@frankp7411 consider touching grass and meeting women
Sounds like an astrik should be added. 27 is insane for a victorious military. More or less Venezuela style which is not credible at all. To most people this example should absolutely be excluded.
@@tulanebs are you high?
Poignant. Our grandmother, age 96, passed away yesterday. Grandfather was a U.S. Army infantryman during WWII, died in 2002.
I’m sorry for your loss.
May both of them rest in peace, true hero's, God Bless them, and my condolences to you and your family.
rest in peace
RIP
I'm happy you got to have her around for so long. Many people don't make 90, or even 80, let alone 96.
My dad is the commander of the VFW in my hometown. He's a Vietnam vet. There are a couple WW2 vets left, but they will be gone soon. We were cleaning out a closet last year and found an old Mosin Nagant rifle from WW2!
I know two more personally. My grandmother is 98, she was a "Flakwaffenhelferin" in 1944-45. And my friend, he turned 100 on Saturday. He was a pilot in the Luftwaffe, still drives a car and goes to the gym and sauna.
@@OswaldOstfalen well, thankfully soon all the Nazis, war criminals, will be gone! The Germans who helped the genocidal regime keep going by their willful participation will soon only be a bad memory of the past!
A Polish WW2 Colonel died recently as well. Not many officers of any rank left.
I fondly remember the series on BBC TV about castles by Lt.Gen. Sir Brian Horrocks.
Yes he passed this week. Oldest man in Poland and I believe the oldest ever war amputee
Especially since many of them were murdered by communists
Who’s the oldest living officers?
Polish 1st Army or 2nd Army?
My Mum lived next door to Brigadier Hill after the war. She said he was a very nice man. She looked after his baby daughter when he had to rush off to rescue people from the floods on the Lincolnshire coast.
There's an elderly gentleman who comes in to The store I work at every so often and we talk. And I found out he was actually a D-Day Veteran, he's now a 100 two, and his mind is a sharp is ever. It's awesome that he comes in And we just talk like two old friends
12:48 Sun Yuanliang had the reputation of being the “escape general”. He was also the last surviving member of the first graduatng class of the ROC military academy (Whampoo Academy).
It is good to point out that Sun received permanent appointment to general rank before mobilization in 1937. The Chinese Nationalist government virtually stopped making permanent appointments afterwards, and senior military commanders were allowed to promote someone on the spot based on position held, but that did not affect permanent appointment status. And the rule of thumb was that whoever was in command of a brigade was authorized to be appointed as major general. Towards the end of war, many corp commanders were wearing LTG ranks, but they were only permanently appointed as colonels.
If we factor this into account, the last surviving Chinese WW2 generals were:
- General Xiao Ke (1907-2008), held the deputy divisional commander position, was wearing LTG rank and recognized by the Nationalist government.
- General Lu Zhengcao (1904-2009), held command at the same level as General Xiao Ke, and officially confirmed as colonel before 1937, but whether he was wearing general rank is unknown.
- General Zhang Zhen (1914-2015), held command of a brigade, but did not wear general rank.
@@petershen6924 Hau Pei-tsun died in 2020 aged 100, Chief of Staff to the ROC's armed forces in the 1980s. not a General during WWII but served in the India/Burma theatre as an officer - I'd wager he was the last public figure in Taiwan and probably China too to have served in WWII/Second Sino-Japanese War. I know him because he gave an interview to the BBC in 2017 about Chiang Kai-Shek.
@@cybertronian2005 Colonel General Hao was a battalion commander (major) by the end of WWII. He was promoted to major general in 1958.
More fascinating stuff from Dr Felton. I am delighted that he is able to find more and more superbly narrated editions of history on military topics.
You are a star. Keep it up. As a history MA, not modern European history, and a 35 year RAF fast jet pilot, history has been an abiding fascination. You are nailing it Dr Mark!
I used to think I knew a lot about WW2 as a layperson, not a professional historian. Mark always find new, interesting tidbits.
One thing he needs to cover, but never will, is aktion rheinland. Jews rebelled and were the real reason ww2 ended.
My late friend used to write letters to German generals in the early 1950s and many would reply and send him letters and sometimes parts of their old uniforms or medals, photos, and copies of their award documents.
When he passed away I was able to acquire all of his paper items and photos.
Interesting stuff!
Hello do you have anything on General Siegfried Westphal please?
Thats really cool
Woah! You should share them online somehow.
lie
@@montanacorpcynic!
What happened to that Polish general in the UK is criminal.
His family if there is any should be compensated with the value of the pension.
Polish generals in exile in the UK really got shafted. I feel at least pride that the Netherlands at least awarded him some pension for his outstanding service. Hail Maczek, Sosabowski and all the fine men and women, and bears, of the Free Polish armed forces.
As a brit I find disgraceful as well 😢.
@@chaptermasterpedrokantor1623 the UK was the only country in Europe to give these Generals and soldiers the opportunity to fight for their country, so fancy do dah , the NL gave them a pension , seeing as the UK took the economic brunt of the war in Europe, should the UK have supported every free french, free polish and so on for the rest of their live.
The Brits did'nt owe him a pension, the Germans and Russians did for invading his country
Deeply troubling. An utter disgrace.
@@RickJZ1973 kinda getting annoyed by this attitude , the UK did'nt invade Poland, Germany and Russia did, people seem to forget that, oh wait the UK the bad guys because in a time of Rationing, extreme hardship, 5+ years of war, paying the costs for continentals failures , we where expected to pay for the pensions of every lost soldier
So what is the utter Disgrace is Germany and Russia , and what point did the UK become Poland's parents and responsible for their wellbeing, we did enough for Poland , more than any country in Europe.
We owe them nothing
This is the only channel that doesn't endlessly visit the same old generic ww2 info. Dr. Felton never ceases to deliver original takes on fascinating information.
My great uncle fought in the Canadian Army at age 16 at the Battle of Ortona, having lied about his age. He died prematurely at age 57 in 1984 from smoking 3 packs of cigarettes a day, but he worked full time all this time until he was diagnosed. Because of his influence I joined the Army right after high school and fought in 2 wars myself, no regrets...
Nice.
Which ones?
@@TheBcoolGuy Bosnia and Kosovo
Did you smoke as well?
@@leannecurtis1582 No, and I also do not drink. I developed my "feel good" personal reward system in my teens after seeing Arnold Schwarzenegger in the movie "Pumping Iron" where he said NOTHING feels as good as lifting weights and feeling "Pumped" so I do that 3 to 4 days a week still...
I can not thank You enough Mark for everything You do here on UA-cam, to spread true history, and as a man from Poland I also thank You deeply for every polish accent You so often mention!
As an Englishman I thank the Polish for the huge help the Polish gave defending The United Kingdom, without Polish pilots, scientists and engineers I likely would never have been born. Not enough recognition goes to the Polish who fought on the side of Britain during the battle of Britain, from the memory of what I've read and been taught the Polish did more than the Americans during the battle of Britain.
My father was a Combat Veteran with the US Army Air Force in the South Pacific Campaign on Guam, Tinian, Saipan and Iwo Jima. Dad was a Staff Sergeant and a Flightline Engineer and Mechanic on the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt.
TY Dr. Felton for looking deep into such matters. Your research is that which fills the gaps
where others fail to go. Well done sir.
Mark, just wanted to tell you how much I enjoy your videos. You really bring history alive.
It's truly amazing hearing these stories. In high school in the late 90s I worked as a waiter at a retirement home and had the opportunity to serve a WW1 veteran who was 108 at that time. He was very polite and pleasant. Truly amazing experience for me to be around this generation.
Mr. Felton, you are truly a wealth of knowledge. Thank you for sharing.
Can you do a video on last WW2 veterans from all countries, such as Thailand, Burma, Mongolia and the smaller nations that fought
There are sill lots of WW2 veterans still alive.
@@kingjoe3rd I mean from the lesser nations (Lesser known)
I remember when the last WW1 veteran died, who was a British guy. My young son turned to me and said "does that mean we won?".
@@tommo9757was it Henry Allingham?
@@tommo9757 the last official wwI vet to die was a woman (raf canteen worker - Florence Greene ( i think). Last male vet was Claude Choute - navy vet died in Australia.
My dad introduced me to Generals, Alexander and Slim, one remembrance day at the cenotaph, back in the seventies. Nice, gentleman, listened to this sixteen year old 's blathering.
Informative, historical, accurate documentary.History at its best.
Something interesting happened recently with my nephew involving my wwii vet grandfather. Coincidentally its very much in line with this video. A Couple weekends ago The whole family took a day trip to the naval aviation museum in pensacola. Naturally there were many wwii era planes in display. My nephew took a great interest and made a comment about how long ago wwii took place. I said yes it was and asked if he knew both of his great grandfathers were in the war. My brother had not told him and so this really piqued his interest and he asked if i had met either one of them (hes very young) and i told him yes i had my one grandfather for 18 years but the other passed before i was born. He was astounded and it occurred to me that wwii vets are becoming more like wwi vets were when i was young and how lucky i was to have known several in my family and elsewhere.
Thanks for sharing this great topics Dr Felton!
Can we just take a minute all off these guys are over 100 that alone has my respect holy crap im genuinly amazed
Not all, but most of them
Thank you Dr. Felton; especially for the information about General Ralph Smith. My father served in Headquarters company of the 27th Inf Div from Hawaii to Okinawa .
I’ve said before Mark Will hopefully never run out of the history of WW2.
He makes it so very interesting.
Thank you for all your diligent research….
I had the absolute privilege of meeting Gen James Hill during the 50th anniversary of the D Day landings. An icon of British Airborne Operations of that time he had more than enough time to speak to the serving soldiers whom he regaled with the history of that period.. not just generic historical stuff but mentioning individual soldiers down to private level from personal memory. Some of which were stood amongst us all ready to answer any questions and to tell their own versions of events. Individual
Locations with pin point accuracy of specific moments of where people died and who they were etc. even down to who buried them. As a serving soldier, I, along with my battalion had jumped into Ranville DZ on the 5th June 1994 to commemorate the D Day Airborne Assault.. we had been given exact copies of the maps issued to British Airborne personnel for the operation. James Hill was kind enough to sign my copy along with several other officers and men from that operation. These men were LEGENDS and to meet them and listen to them recount the events on the very ground they fought was an eye opening and very humbling experience.
I add Brig James Hill’s personal notes submitted to Paradata below.
www.paradata.org.uk/article/personal-account-brig-james-hills-experiences-normandy
Remember watching that very televised descent on the tv that afternoon, a year after I'd taken my young family to Normandy, to show them.....
Salute, Sir.
Dr. Felton, this video, and the one on the maltreatment of the former Polish generals were EXCELLENT!
It’s so incredible to think that well into my 20’s there was still someone alive who had commanded forces at Nanjing. Excellent video!
Never forget.
Very interesting as per usual Mark, Bravo!!. James (Speedy )Hill was my Grandmothers 1st cousin, He was harder than a coffin nail. Along with trying to capture three tanks with his revolver, you neglected to mention that when he jumped on D-day(at the head of his men) he had half his ass cheek shot off during the parachute descent. When he was seen by the Medic he was told that he would need to be evacuated, the Medic was informed under no circumstances was he going to be evacuated, and to patch him up as best he could. James then returned to his command and had to be driven while standing up in his Jeep because he could not sit . I never realized that he he was the last ww2 General. He was tough old Codger.
Dr. Felton: Answering the questions that I never knew I needed answered.
Fantastic work as per usual Dr. Felton
I have absolutely NO problem with calling them the greatest generation, I wish that each and every one of them got to hear that moniker. I was very fortunate to shake the hand of the last surviving (now deceased) member of the Doolittle raid, Lieutenant Colonel Richard E. Cole when he visited the Planes of Fame museum in Chino California in 2017. When I got my chance to take a picture with him I said, "History will never forget what you guys did," and he turned to me and said, "Thank you." I suffer from some depression and don't get out of the house too much but I am so happy that I made that effort and was able to shake the hand of history.
Great video as always, Dr. Felton. I shall be grateful if you can cover the following topics from WW2 in future videos:
1. Shetland Bus
2. The Great German Spy Cicero
3. Italian involvement in the Battle of Britain
I've already made No.3
@@MarkFeltonProductions Lieutenant-general Robert Moncel was the youngest general officer in the Canadian Army when promoted to Brigadier on 27 August 1944, at the age of 27. He died December 10, 2007, aged 90.
@@MarkFeltonProductionsWhile the king of Romania never saw action, he was the commander-in-chief _(although Antonescu was was de-facto chief)_ of Romania and outlived all of them.
With Hans von Seggern and Karl-Günther von Hase, the last two major's of the Wehrmacht died shortly after another in 20/21.
But I guess there're probably still some centenarian captain's alive, nobody keeps track of. In the end young officer's got a faster promotion.
My friend, you have the best channel on UA-cam. Thank you for what you do for us.
Waking up and seeing a new Mark Felton video is always a good way to start the day.
I have never failed to learn something new from one of these Felton videos. Thanks, and continue the mission, Dr. Felton!
TY mark, ive been having tough times because of health and watching your videos has helped keep my mind ocupied.
Thanks for the awesome content, Dr. Felton.
You do fantastic work, Mark!
This is exactly the material that needs to be in our education system in the USA. I have learned so much from your work that was not taught in school. Keep up the hard work and thanks for enlightening those who dig for truth from our past!
Amazing content. This is one of the best videos produced by Mark among many great ones.
Jaw dropping watch. Your videos are always so fascinating.
Thank you Dr Felton for bringing such entertaining & most informative videos.
Yes, we want to know about these moments In History.
💙💙💙
My amazement never seizes to stop. Your program educates me in war history in a way my teacher didn’t. Thank you 🙏
Wow it is surprising how many reach a hundred years or more. Very good researching Mr. Felton.
Mark, Thank you so much for this video! This is something I've tried to research many times with conflicting and erroneous results.
Just I time for a well needed lunch break...Mark Felton always has the best videos ❤
As always fascinating stuff. You did omit one, perhaps a technicality. King Michael I of Romania also held the rank of Marshal of the Armed Forces of Romania during the war and died in 2017.
Ah, I made the same comment. But you beat me to it. Although everyone knows that general Antonescu was the real man in charge.
Great work as usual, Mark.
I enjoy every episode. Dr. Felton you leave no stone unturned, finding and presenting the most interesting facets of history. Your episodes touching on Festung Breslau gave me more insight about what my father’s family experienced. Thank you Doctor Felton
Loved it! Thank you for all you do, Dr. Felton.
My father served as a carpetbaggers over France and Norway. They supplied under cover operations and dropped spies. He also operated with OSS flying in Sweden as civilian employees of American Airlines mostly related to Norwegian operations. Since these were all top secret we have found it difficult to piece together his career. Could you perhaps research these largely unknown operations
Finally I’m early with an video of yours (I’m an big channel fan, you make amazing content) 💜
Dr. Felton keeps doing his home work for us. Thank you.
I have been wondering about this question. Once again Dr. Felton knew what we needed and researched it before it crossed our minds.
Great work Dr Felton! However just one point...I'm not sure if this was an exhaustive list, but there are two Canadian combat Generals to mention: MGen Bert Hoffmeister (commander 5th Can Armoured Div) and MGen George Kitching (commander 4th Can Armoured Div), both of whom died in 1999. Cheers!
Slight correction in 12:34 : General Trettner resigned from active service in 1966 not as a "Generalmajor" (2 star). He became "Generalleutnant" (3 star) in 1960, and "General" (4 star) in 1964.
This was fantastic! A grand slam as always Mr. Felton, thank you!
Thanks!
I found myself literally saluting the screen much of the entire program. Thanks for what you do, Felton...
Very interesting as always !! Love your channel !!
Thanks! Very interesting -
Thanks for another amazing video mr. Felton
Great content as always. The subscriber count is getting nearer and nearer the magic 2 million.
While in service I worked with a guy in communications. He was stationed in Europe during 1980s. A big fan of WW2 history he actually took the time to find some famous German generals and actually get thier autograph. I believe one of these autographs was from Adolph Galland.
My dad had a beautiful framed print of an ME 262 piloted by General Galland. He had autographed it as well. When my dad passed we were splitting up his stuff and my oldest brother got to pick first. He took the Galland print.
I met Gen. Maxwell Taylor when he gave a talk at Columbia University in NY in the late 70s.
Díky!
That was a great series of stories. I was shocked to find out how the Polish general was treated, and that the UK didn’t take care of a man who fought like a lion, effectively in support of British operations and units.
Wow, you've done it again. If I had my life over I would really like to study under your tuition and lectures. Thank you Professor Dr Mark Felton.
Marcek would have been most likely been known by my great uncle Edward Bernadzikowski as he was also in exile in Britain.
Bravo, Dr. Felton !
Mark Felton always delivers, thank you for the amazing content!
Thanks for yet another outstanding video. I would like to know if you made a video about Brazil's participation with its Expeditionary Force and Air Force in the 2nd World War. There are many interesting things about his participation in the Italian Theater of Operations, as well as his achievements. One of the most interesting is that the share of its air force represented 5% of all Allied air support in Italy at the end of the war, but that its effort resulted in the highest efficiency rates in destroying all types of ground targets. In the end, his expeditionary force of around 25,000 received the surrender of nearly 15,000 Germans and Italians at Collechio-Fornovo. A remarkable feat for such a small force.
One of your best videos.
I would like anyone involved with the bigest conflict in the history of man kind to be rememberd with some degree of respect
Awesome video. Thanks!
Fascinating. Really enjoyed this.
I see a new Dr Mark Felton video. I instantly watch and hit like before the first 5 secs have played. I am never disappointed.
The hard work and dedication to this research is second to none.
I appreciate your video's very much Mark thanks
Thank you for talking about Polish fighters always with respect.
Not many Englishman do that, maybe because not many man in general know about history.
I went to primary/junior school with the son of one of those who joined the WW2 RAF.
Robert Grasweicz was my pals name, Iver County Primary School, early to mid 60's.
Amazing video as always Dr. Felton you are one of the best channels in UA-cam
Absolutely a fascinating subject...
Thanks for your great videos, the best produced stuff on UA-cam
Maczek was actually of Slovene and Croatian origin, his last name meaning a cat (maček in kajkavian dialect), fitting for such a resourceful fellow. He also maintained correspondence with his croatian cousin Vlatko Maček, a key figure in Royal Yugoslav politics. Could you please include some of the Yugoslav partisan and Polish Underground generals? Their stories could prove to be a goldmine for your channel.
Thanks so much for this historic documentary !!
James Hill attended and was featured quite prominently in the D-Day 60 commemorations. If I remember rightly, he also made a speech or two at the time.
Great presentation. Sadly, each day we are losing WW II veterans. Recently, a veteran that turned 100 that lives close to my home was on the local news.
Thanks Doc. You might consider an episode on Quartermaster General Wagner who so accurately predicted the Logistics problems Barbarossa would face.
Always a good day when Dr. Felton drops an episode.
Excellent WORK... REMARQUABLE... THANK Y O U MISTER FELTON - - - FROM FRAN E LAPS FRANCE...
This channel is endlessly facinating
2:20 FYI, part of what was Galicia is still in Poland.
As always a very very informative video about history..thank you to the creators and contributors of this channel.