Yesterday I had the honor and privilege to meet WW2 82nd Airborne veteran Sgt. George Cross who is 99 years young. He goes to the same bar everyday and that’s where I talked to him. He told me stories about how he parachuted into Normandy on D’day, slit a sleeping Germans throat, fought in the battle of the Bulge, and was fortunate to not receive one scratch on him during the war. I will never forget talking to him. Thank you veterans for your service and love of country those 80 years ago! Also great video!
Whereabouts are you I would fly there just to shake Sgt. Cross' hand. I went to the 80th Anniversary of DDay just to shake the hands of WW2 Vets. I was at Normandy Victory Museum on June 5th where this video was made. Got to Paris in the morning after a 15 hour flt and drove straight there. Life changing event just to see and hear these Great Men !!
@@DDDD-pv7fw he lives in the Phoenix area in Arizona, if you do a Google search there’s a couple of articles and new specials about him. He didn’t mention he’s been interviewed hundreds of times but he loves telling stories.
So glad these vets are giving up their stories for posterity. We truly need to understand our History and it is to our advantage if we have the wit to listen and learn.
I'm so glad to see this video. I was there that day and I had the opportunity to meet you in person!! I don't think if you remember us, I was there with my husband and we had a nice talk about the only spanish that died on D-day. If you' re interested to know more about the subject I could recommend some information about it!! We' ve been following you since your beginnings on UA-cam and never lost one episode. Keep it like that!! You have two unconditionals here!! 💪
Always great to see my dad walk across the screen at 0:12 - 0:17😂 And to see a blip of myself at 7:56 in the back of the line with my dad waiting to get my book signed by the vets! Was great to meet you JD, thank you for the picture and thank you for all the time and effort you put in these videos, I agree the museum is great! Was an amazing day getting my book signed by multiple veterans and getting to take pictures with them! Even took a picture of you vlogging since I know you dislike video'ing yourself in public haha!
Holy cow JD! I was at the museum at the same time that you were and somehow didn't see you. Seeing the veterans was awesome. Paul taylor, Museum of the American gi, College Station Texas
The saying “the greatest generation” cannot be overstated. We will never see their like again. That’s why we stand in awe of them even as they are now old and frail
Want to know what the U.S. flag stands for? Ask the liberated people of WW2 in Europe and the liberated victims of the concentration camps. That's how where to get a rel idea of what America is about!
I'm so happy that this channel exists and that you guys were in Normandy for the 80th anniversary of the Normandy invasion and that you and Eric were there with those 4 veterans. I'm in total awe of that generation because of what they did for our country. My maternal grandfather was in the U.S. Navy during WW2 and was stationed in Australia. That aside, I met one of the Tuskegee Airmen my junior year of high school when he came to speak to all of the American History classes at my high school to tell his story. I didn't think much of it at the time, but now I'm grateful I heard his story because I was sitting on the edge of my seat the whole time in class just totally in awe of what he had done to keep our country safe. I know that this man went through a lot, but I'm still grateful for the fact that there are people like him who fought against the Nazis to help the Allied Forces win WW2. Thanks for posting this video and all of the others as well!! I hope all is well with the GMOH annex and everything that's needed to get it up and running so that it can be 100% open to the public!!
Thanks JD for showing the german panzers. A word of appreciation to the Major for the access, and the guide for his great effort for his English pronunciation. Merci @museedesblindes
Great video. Tragedy looms on both sides. One storms the beaches, the other side shoots back....in most cases, I guess none of them really "wanted to be there"...guess everybody really wanted to be home with their families....
I believe JD tried to get into the dragon museum, but they didn't like the idea of filming. But I could be wrong since I am thinking of a live chat from a couple years ago in which that museum was mentioned. But the dragon museum does sound fascinating!
Wow!! Very cool and just an awesome interview with Christy on his capture story! In the movie Fury they give a good understanding of what it was like going against those Tiger II’s …. They were beasts! But the sheer volume of Sherman’s was what helped defeat them! I learned that the weight of those Tigers was so heavy that some bridges couldn’t handle them.
Great Vid as usual and also good to see Eric there with ya. Also my Wife is a nurse at our VA Hospital and does primarily home base care and even has a WWII veteran as one of her clients. I was telling her about Andrew’s two books and she went out bought them both supposedly for me for Father’s Day but is currently reading the first one and just told me she was on Woody Williams chapter which incidentally he grew up 15 miles where I did and still do. I’ll get to start reading them when she’s done with the first. 👍👍
You can see them all in the French Tank Museum in Samur . Musee de las Blindes.. One of three bucket list Armoured tank Museums in Europe. Also visit two in England, one at Duxford IWM , also the Bovington Tank Museum UK .
JD you need to visit the Bovington Tank Museum in Dorset, England. The biggest range of armour you will find anywhere, from WW1 to present & with a massive WW2 range. Often some of it is driving around too! A really great day out
Thank you JD and confirmed by Erik that the Normandy Museum was a good one. See the old German Tanks was really a nice extra. Thank you for sharing.💯❤️👊👍
great video museum and the tanks are just great. thanks for sharing i really enjoyed it. the french did a great job on the displays in the museum. great stuff
As I have told you on the past, you put Ken Burns to shame. Your videos are so informative and so personal. Your videos put us right there with you. Thank you.
JD's putting Ken Burns to shame all right. Burns has gotten left-wing political, JD just tells it like it was and lets us make up our own minds, as it should be. That commencement address Burns made recently was pathetic.
Tiger 2 is two tanks. I think turret is from a command tank. I think both recovered in Normandy. The lynx is unknown but said to have served in Normandy. The PzIV I think is unknown if my memory serves
Grest video of the times of the Greatest Generation, the history on the tanks that still function really great just as a few of the air craft are still working.
Your German tank expert was wrong about the side armor on the panzer 4 it wasn't designed to stop small arms. It was spaced to help against certain anti tank rounds. Useful against kinetic anti tank rounds
The biggest disappointment in the video is that you didn’t bump your noggin on anything. It’s been awhile since you cracked your coconut, or you’re getting better at editing those moments out 🤣🤣Great video, can’t wait until the next one drops!
At that stage in the war, some tried surrendering to front line troops who were too busy to accept them, so they just sent them towards the allied rear. They sometimes were desperate to find someone in uniform to surrender to, preferably not the Resistance. Not all of the 'German soldiers' were even German, there were a lot of ost-truppen who were not too keen to die for Germany.
@@ronowens7010 - Ahhh. So there was a group of female pilots called the WASPs (Women’s Airforce Service Pilot) but they didn’t see combat. Definitely made an important contribution and I hope to visit the museum dedicated to them at some point.
If you go by the strict definition of what a tank was, The Konigstiger was the heaviest. If you go by armored vehicle definition, there were several vehicles that were heavier There was the Jadgtiger, tortoise, TOG II, Maus, T28 which was actually classified as a tank! The Jagdtiger was the only one to see combat though!
That Tiger 2 is super impressive. I believe this tank was a part of the unit under the direct control of Hitler. I forget the unit, but he was asleep, and did not release this until to the Normandy front until the 2nd day? I need to go research this again.
Some extra info. No Tiger IIs fought in Normandy until July when Schwere Panzer Abteilung 503, with 12 of them, faced the British near Caen, just before Operation Goodwood. Tiger Is of Schwere SS Panzer Abteilung 101 started moving towards Normandy on the 7th June, the day after D-Day, with the forward most elements reaching the front on the evening of the 12th, and went into action the next morning against the British at Villers Bocage. No Tigers engaged any American forces in the Normandy fighting. The first Tigers the Americans engaged in France wasn't until the neared Paris at the end of August. A couple of units with Tiger IIs (503 and SS101) turned up there with small numbers of them. Cheers.
Hello JD done it again another fantastic video thank you & I really want to go to Normandy soo badly it’s on my bucket list & greetings from United Kingdom 🇬🇧
The Australian armour and artillery museum in Cairns Queensland Australia has a huge collection of running and non running tanks and armoured vehicles. They are currently restoring a Panzer 2 and a stug 3 b and g units. All running and working condition. They do have a running panther Panzer IV and tiger 1 but it's currently not running. This a great museum to visit. Highly recommended
0:12 Hello JD It's me Sonny the history buff from Germany.....We talked a bit at the museum in front of the bus as you were visiting it. I can be seen a bit at 0:12...the tall guy in paratrooper uniform with black hair😅 Thank you so much for your great work....You're clearly my favorite UA-camr😃😎
You guys need to visit the "Big Red 1" ...1st Infantry Division museum in Wheaton Illinois. Its on the Cantigny Estate which is the Robert McCormich Estate. Robert McCormick was an artillery Colonel in WW1 at the battle of Cantigny. Its spectacular....we have been going every year for the last 20 years. Some of the most beautiful grounds in Illinois and the Museum is second to none. The museum portrays every campaign that the Big Red 1 was involved in, which is really everything. You guys would love it.
As a former M1 Abrams tanker, I do love the tank exhibits.
Yesterday I had the honor and privilege to meet WW2 82nd Airborne veteran Sgt. George Cross who is 99 years young. He goes to the same bar everyday and that’s where I talked to him. He told me stories about how he parachuted into Normandy on D’day, slit a sleeping Germans throat, fought in the battle of the Bulge, and was fortunate to not receive one scratch on him during the war. I will never forget talking to him. Thank you veterans for your service and love of country those 80 years ago!
Also great video!
Whereabouts are you I would fly there just to shake Sgt. Cross' hand. I went to the 80th Anniversary of DDay just to shake the hands of WW2 Vets. I was at Normandy Victory Museum on June 5th where this video was made. Got to Paris in the morning after a 15 hour flt and drove straight there. Life changing event just to see and hear these Great Men !!
@@DDDD-pv7fw he lives in the Phoenix area in Arizona, if you do a Google search there’s a couple of articles and new specials about him. He didn’t mention he’s been interviewed hundreds of times but he loves telling stories.
Love that people still come out and honor these heroes!
This is really cool. Most people want autographs from athletes, or celebrities, but getting an autograph from a Vet? That's something truly special.
It’s because you’re a rockstar JD! I don’t know why you don’t have millions of subscribers honestly. Top notch videos ALWAYS! Thanks!
Was thinking the same thing. Why only 637K followers?
Who??? What band?
I can tell you why he doesn’t have more it’s because to many people younger people don’t care about history or our vets and it’s heartbreaking
Jimi Hendrix was a Rock Star
JD Is The Greatest Showman
Hat's off to you JD
& the Greatest UA-cam channel
of all time
Agreed
So glad these vets are giving up their stories for posterity. We truly need to understand our History and it is to our advantage if we have the wit to listen and learn.
Would really love to see you revisit the museum on a less hectic day. The German tanks were great.
I'm so glad to see this video. I was there that day and I had the opportunity to meet you in person!! I don't think if you remember us, I was there with my husband and we had a nice talk about the only spanish that died on D-day.
If you' re interested to know more about the subject I could recommend some information about it!!
We' ve been following you since your beginnings on UA-cam and never lost one episode. Keep it like that!! You have two unconditionals here!! 💪
Always great to see my dad walk across the screen at 0:12 - 0:17😂 And to see a blip of myself at 7:56 in the back of the line with my dad waiting to get my book signed by the vets!
Was great to meet you JD, thank you for the picture and thank you for all the time and effort you put in these videos, I agree the museum is great!
Was an amazing day getting my book signed by multiple veterans and getting to take pictures with them! Even took a picture of you vlogging since I know you dislike video'ing yourself in public haha!
Ha! Great meeting you all.
What a museum! What an event! That’s awesome, getting private access to the tanks. That King Tiger is a beast.
Wonderful video but that guide with the tanks was incredible. Great info. THANKS!!!!
Il est guide au musée de Saumur.
Holy cow JD! I was at the museum at the same time that you were and somehow didn't see you.
Seeing the veterans was awesome.
Paul taylor, Museum of the American gi, College Station Texas
The saying “the greatest generation” cannot be overstated. We will never see their like again. That’s why we stand in awe of them even as they are now old and frail
Indeed - all gave some, some gave all!
It always amazes me how the people that we liberated are so grateful and never forget.
Want to know what the U.S. flag stands for? Ask the liberated people of WW2 in Europe and the liberated victims of the concentration camps. That's how where to get a rel idea of what America is about!
@@dan-me9ts I completely agree.
I'm so happy that this channel exists and that you guys were in Normandy for the 80th anniversary of the Normandy invasion and that you and Eric were there with those 4 veterans. I'm in total awe of that generation because of what they did for our country. My maternal grandfather was in the U.S. Navy during WW2 and was stationed in Australia. That aside, I met one of the Tuskegee Airmen my junior year of high school when he came to speak to all of the American History classes at my high school to tell his story. I didn't think much of it at the time, but now I'm grateful I heard his story because I was sitting on the edge of my seat the whole time in class just totally in awe of what he had done to keep our country safe. I know that this man went through a lot, but I'm still grateful for the fact that there are people like him who fought against the Nazis to help the Allied Forces win WW2. Thanks for posting this video and all of the others as well!! I hope all is well with the GMOH annex and everything that's needed to get it up and running so that it can be 100% open to the public!!
I’m visiting Normandy soon and I wanted to thank you for providing such fantastic guides to the area! I hope to make great use of them.
Bienvenue en Normandie !
@@chrisl211 Merci beaucoup
My dad was there 80 years ago before the museum later on little did he know when he was in Germany the souvenir he brought back was my mother.
That flag with all the writings looks very well preserved. Kool stuff on the German tanks!
Thanks JD for showing the german panzers.
A word of appreciation to the Major for the access, and the guide for his great effort for his English pronunciation. Merci @museedesblindes
Brilliant. Thank you for the walk through this wonderful museum.
Good job JD! My husband and I thank you for keeping history alive. We look forward to your shows.
It's because your content is amazing, and you share from the heart! Thank you for sharing these gentlemen and their stories with us!
And why wouldn't they watch your channel? It's not only informative, but it's just plain fun to watch ;-)
Great video. Tragedy looms on both sides. One storms the beaches, the other side shoots back....in most cases, I guess none of them really "wanted to be there"...guess everybody really wanted to be home with their families....
You should visit Dragon Man museum in Colorado Springs. He has a display of every war that America was in.
His German room is absolutely phenomenal; albeit disturbing at moments.
I believe JD tried to get into the dragon museum, but they didn't like the idea of filming. But I could be wrong since I am thinking of a live chat from a couple years ago in which that museum was mentioned. But the dragon museum does sound fascinating!
Wow!! Very cool and just an awesome interview with Christy on his capture story!
In the movie Fury they give a good understanding of what it was like going against those Tiger II’s …. They were beasts! But the sheer volume of Sherman’s was what helped defeat them! I learned that the weight of those Tigers was so heavy that some bridges couldn’t handle them.
Very cool tank tour!
Tank you. Tank you very much. 🙂👍
Great Vid as usual and also good to see Eric there with ya. Also my Wife is a nurse at our VA Hospital and does primarily home base care and even has a WWII veteran as one of her clients. I was telling her about Andrew’s two books and she went out bought them both supposedly for me for Father’s Day but is currently reading the first one and just told me she was on Woody Williams chapter which incidentally he grew up 15 miles where I did and still do. I’ll get to start reading them when she’s done with the first. 👍👍
You can see them all in the French Tank Museum in Samur . Musee de las Blindes.. One of three bucket list Armoured tank Museums in Europe.
Also visit two in England, one at Duxford IWM , also the Bovington Tank Museum UK .
JD you need to visit the Bovington Tank Museum in Dorset, England. The biggest range of armour you will find anywhere, from WW1 to present & with a massive WW2 range. Often some of it is driving around too! A really great day out
La plus grande collection c'est le musee des blindés de Saumur en France.
Awesome, video of Normandy history.
Keep up the great videos, man
You put yourself short you are great at bringing history to life
07:36 OH MY GOD!!! If I had that it'd be on my wall until the day I die!! That photo has been my wallpaper since I was 15...
Thank you JD and confirmed by Erik that the Normandy Museum was a good one. See the old German Tanks was really a nice extra. Thank you for sharing.💯❤️👊👍
great video museum and the tanks are just great. thanks for sharing i really enjoyed it. the french did a great job on the displays in the museum. great stuff
I loved the museum. Nice collection.
Those German tanks were amazing. You are a Rock Star. Everyone knows you
👍🏻
As I have told you on the past, you put Ken Burns to shame. Your videos are so informative and so personal. Your videos put us right there with you. Thank you.
JD's putting Ken Burns to shame all right. Burns has gotten left-wing political, JD just tells it like it was and lets us make up our own minds, as it should be. That commencement address Burns made recently was pathetic.
Those tank exhibits were excellent, it would be really interesting to find out where they were recovered from.👍
Tiger 2 is two tanks. I think turret is from a command tank. I think both recovered in Normandy. The lynx is unknown but said to have served in Normandy. The PzIV I think is unknown if my memory serves
Enjoyed the information on the tanks.
Grest video of the times of the Greatest Generation, the history on the tanks that still function really great just as a few of the air craft are still working.
So glad to see Arthur Bostrum got some TV work after playing the French policeman in Allo Allo 🤣
Another excellent episode. Keep up the great work. Very nice!
Aus armor is building one those light panzer recon tanks practically from scratch!
Holy Wow, JD!
You should spent a moment at Saumur tank museum.There is a lot of stunning véhicule to see!
I love seeing the WWII vets being treated like rock stars. Hopefully by now they recognize how much they were appreciated.
Great video!
Those jerry cans on top of the panzer 2 make a great lighter i guess. Haha
Very interesting and informative
Thank you, JD!
Love the back ground music too
Your German tank expert was wrong about the side armor on the panzer 4 it wasn't designed to stop small arms. It was spaced to help against certain anti tank rounds. Useful against kinetic anti tank rounds
More videos! Yes!
I be there it's really good can't wait for the next one
I visited Normandy in 1994. 50th anniversary
the german tanks just look so cool
Awesome!
thanks another great1 u r the BEST
Fabulous fabulous.
C'est le monsieur de Saumur, il est formidable
Everyone should recognize you because you are "thee guy"
The biggest disappointment in the video is that you didn’t bump your noggin on anything. It’s been awhile since you cracked your coconut, or you’re getting better at editing those moments out 🤣🤣Great video, can’t wait until the next one drops!
The king tiger
I’m asking Santa for a king tiger tank this Christmas.
recognized the old hickory(30th division)patch on the uniform next to the signed Nazi flag you featured
70 tons in just one tank
thought i was watching Monty pythons at the end there.
Probably the most bizarre story I’ve ever heard. Germans surrendering to an unarmed guy taking a dump. 😄😄😄
At that stage in the war, some tried surrendering to front line troops who were too busy to accept them, so they just sent them towards the allied rear. They sometimes were desperate to find someone in uniform to surrender to, preferably not the Resistance. Not all of the 'German soldiers' were even German, there were a lot of ost-truppen who were not too keen to die for Germany.
What about doing the history of women during WW2 that were fighter pilots? If you did, what episode was that?
As far as the U.S., there were no female fighter pilots during WWII.
So there wasn't a group of women that flew in WWll called The Fly Girls?
I'm just asking cause I figured you would know more about WWll than I definitely do lol. I just happen to see a sign here in Texas about them.
I thought maybe that would be a good episode for your WWll shows your doing which I do enjoy and learned alot from.
@@ronowens7010 - Ahhh. So there was a group of female pilots called the WASPs (Women’s Airforce Service Pilot) but they didn’t see combat. Definitely made an important contribution and I hope to visit the museum dedicated to them at some point.
If you go by the strict definition of what a tank was, The Konigstiger was the heaviest. If you go by armored vehicle definition, there were several vehicles that were heavier There was the Jadgtiger, tortoise, TOG II, Maus, T28 which was actually classified as a tank! The Jagdtiger was the only one to see combat though!
That surrender story is almost as funny as when Iraqis surrendered to a news crew and when they surrendered to a drone
Sad how we went from the Greatest Generation to the W0RKest generation. T-2024
Got to love that Panther - Beautiful in spite of its flaws ? 🫡
JD, you've outdone yourself Brother and this may be my very favorite History Video. Thank You.
When you gotta go you gotta go 😅 at least take your gun with you. Just shows how young he was 😉 Cool museum and tanks 👍 Have to revisit that one.
I treasure your channel l thank you for working so hard to record history.
Very cool. Love your channel. My favorite
JD, I believe the Tiger II tank you saw is the world’s only operational one!
Il vient du Musée de Saumur, France.
For comparison the M1A1 Abrams Heavy weighs in at 72 tons.
That Tiger 2 is super impressive. I believe this tank was a part of the unit under the direct control of Hitler. I forget the unit, but he was asleep, and did not release this until to the Normandy front until the 2nd day? I need to go research this again.
Some extra info.
No Tiger IIs fought in Normandy until July when Schwere Panzer Abteilung 503, with 12 of them, faced the British near Caen, just before Operation Goodwood.
Tiger Is of Schwere SS Panzer Abteilung 101 started moving towards Normandy on the 7th June, the day after D-Day, with the forward most elements reaching the front on the evening of the 12th, and went into action the next morning against the British at Villers Bocage.
No Tigers engaged any American forces in the Normandy fighting. The first Tigers the Americans engaged in France wasn't until the neared Paris at the end of August. A couple of units with Tiger IIs (503 and SS101) turned up there with small numbers of them.
Cheers.
Shouldn't the german stuff be at the loser museum?
No, when you lose, the victors get to display your stuff.
Huge compliment to all your efforts making this channel when folks step up and say they watch! Thank you for taking us along.
Well I learned something new today! I would have put money on the T34 being the heaviest tank in WW2 but I was wrong! Fascinating stuff!
I was wondering when we’d see Erik. I’m sure he brought some amazing artifacts.
Hello JD done it again another fantastic video thank you & I really want to go to Normandy soo badly it’s on my bucket list & greetings from United Kingdom 🇬🇧
The Australian armour and artillery museum in Cairns Queensland Australia has a huge collection of running and non running tanks and armoured vehicles. They are currently restoring a Panzer 2 and a stug 3 b and g units. All running and working condition. They do have a running panther Panzer IV and tiger 1 but it's currently not running. This a great museum to visit. Highly recommended
Thankyou. Really enjoyed this I knew the tiger tank had heavy armour…but to actually see how thick wow!
0:12 Hello JD It's me Sonny the history buff from Germany.....We talked a bit at the museum in front of the bus as you were visiting it. I can be seen a bit at 0:12...the tall guy in paratrooper uniform with black hair😅 Thank you so much for your great work....You're clearly my favorite UA-camr😃😎
JD, you should do a blooper video with you being out somewhere and your fans interrupting you, etc. That would be interesting and funny.
It is incredible there are vets still alive.
You guys need to visit the "Big Red 1" ...1st Infantry Division museum in Wheaton Illinois. Its on the Cantigny Estate which is the Robert McCormich Estate. Robert McCormick was an artillery Colonel in WW1 at the battle of Cantigny. Its spectacular....we have been going every year for the last 20 years. Some of the most beautiful grounds in Illinois and the Museum is second to none. The museum portrays every campaign that the Big Red 1 was involved in, which is really everything. You guys would love it.
Great video. I've been following it
Great as always jD that's why we watch it's great stuff.
Very cool! I like the up close look at those tanks!
God bless the nice soldier and a bueatitful museum. God bless you showing us these places.😊
Brilliant work, JD.
Loved hearing the story from the vet at the beginning and seeing the tanks at the end. Many thanks JD!
😛😛😛😛😛😛😛😛❤❤❤❤❤👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
You ever look into DragonMans museums in Colorado Springs? Got prob more than all these
Va au musée de Saumur en France, tu verras des centaines de tanks