A Bloody Battle: How the Allies Defeated The 12th SS Division | Normandy WW2
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- Опубліковано 5 вер 2024
- Join us as we delve into the intense and dramatic events of World War II during the Battle of Norrey-en-Bessin and Rots. In this gripping video, we explore the pivotal moments and fierce confrontations involving the notorious 12th SS Panzer Division "Hitlerjugend."
In June 1944, following the D-Day landings, Allied forces aimed to break through German defenses in Normandy. The 12th SS Division, composed primarily of fervent Hitler Youth members, faced off against determined Canadian and British troops. The ensuing battles at Norrey-en-Bessin and Rots were marked by brutal combat, strategic maneuvers, and significant losses on both sides.
Discover the tactics employed by both the Allies and the Axis powers, the heroism and sacrifices of the soldiers, and the ultimate impact these battles had on the Normandy campaign. Through archival footage, detailed maps, and expert analysis, we bring history to life, shedding light on this crucial yet often overlooked chapter of WWII.
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#WWII #Normandy #12thSSDivision #History #WorldWar2
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#tactical #guns #military #history #army #soldier #ww2 #germany #usa #history #hellletloose #veteran
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I've followed you for a while Rob and I'm not surprised at all by this video. If you're new to History Explorer go check out his older videos!
Thank you! That means a lot to me 👍 🙏
@thehistoryexplorer I've been following your work for awhile and aside from the obvious dedicated, hard work you've put in to match people with names and pix with places I must share my amazement with how many places are now much the same as they were then other than being fixed up where required. You would NEVER see that in the US. All of those broken buildings would be gone and an apartment in its place. Or a shopping mall, something new and trendy. The older I get, the more I see my country as the money grubbing, selfish nation that has traveled sooo far from what the founders intended.
@@magicklady82 couldn’t agree with you more!
@@thehistoryexplorer German boys who fight for Germany must be "brainwashed". Aha. Why?
These are brilliant and very informative videos, I strongly recommend them. Thank you.🇬🇧
Very well done! As a Canadian Veteran I'm happy to see successes, but at the same time, am horrified by the realities of war. The then/now images are simply stunning. So well done!
there are no winners in war, as they say
As a fellow Canadian, thank you for your service 🇨🇦
The winner of the wars are usually the following generations, however, many don’t realize it!❤
Greetings from Poland
Great work as always.
As a kid I grew up in Breslau (today's Wroclaw) old german city which stood longer than Berlin itself during the last days of WW2.
To this day you can find old bunkers and shelters facing east, from where soviet attack was expected.
What I wanna say is that I know the feeling when you stand at the place where something big happened. But when one has old pictures as well to compare with, this feeling is a lot stronger.
Thank You for your work.
You are most welcome my friend
Check the ones at :15 the vegetation on the wall and the background tree are identical in both. There been faked.!
The Poles played a huge role in Normandy, often fighting side-by-side with the Canadians. They're sadly often overlooked.
One of the most mesmerizing videos I've ever seen on YT. The linking of the narration with the before and after videos brought the battle to life. Thanks
Thank-you for doing these. I’m proud of what the Canadians were able to do all those years ago. We seem to get lost in the American and British retelling of the history, and we are loathe to brag about ourselves. My Grandfather fought as an infantryman corporal part of the Calgary Highlanders. It’s good to keep their memories alive.
I'm a US history teacher and I always remind my students that our friendly neighbors to the North were involved in both World Wars before America got involved. It ain't lost on this guy sir! They stormed Normandy and ended Hitler's reign as much as anyone.
Iam Dutch, my country was liberated mainly by Canadians. We didn’t forget, we owe those men so much!
I’m a Canadian whose father and uncle fought in WWII. I’ve visited France and toured the Abby where the Canadians were executed by the SS. Extremely somber experience. RIP all fallen heroes! 🙏🇨🇦
I’ve made a video on Abbey Ardennes, looking at the background to the events and explaining what happened. You might find that one interesting too
@@thehistoryexplorerla guerra saca lo mejor y lo peor de sus participates.
@philgoldsney5951 My sister in law's step dad served in the Canadian Army in WW2. He grew up during the Great Depression on a ranch in west central Canada. Their only protein were the turkeys they raised. He grew to hate turkey meat, smell and even the thought of turkey! His first months in the Army, he recalled, had the best chow he had ever eaten. They landed in Europe and all he got was tins of pressed turkey! R.I.P. Walter King.
WW2 vets dwindling down fast now. My father was a ww2 vet born in 1924. I was born in the mid late 50s and remember when the vets were still young men.
Me tooooo
My dad born in the 1920s and me mid 50s
Me, three! Dad born 1924; Battle of the Bulge veteran. I was born 1953. My Dad suffered terribly from “battle fatigue”, as they called it then, for at least 10 yrs; overcame it, but NEVER forgot his fallen brothers.💔❤️🩹❤️ #MyHERO
Excellent video, thanks for doing it. One of my mom’s brothers was in the First Hussars, he was KIA (with no known grave) against 12 SS in the Battle of Le Mesnil-Patry on 11 June. Less than two weeks earlier, one of her other brothers in 3 Field Regt RCA had been KIA in Italy.
That’s terrible. So sorry to hear it
Thanks. So many families on both sides had to endure loss of loved ones, terrible.
You’ve done an amazing job with the “then and now” pics, and with the various backstories.
The Battle of Le Mesnil-Patry is worth looking into.
Thank you for his service. I am sorry for your loss. God bless your family. May he rip ❤
So much sacrifice for freedom.
For anyone interested in this part of the war, specially the fight between the Canadians and the Germans in the early stages of D-day,
"The reaper's harvesting summer", the 12thss-panzer division "Hitlerjugend" in Normandy, by Angelos N. Mansolas, is a must read.
The close combat and often hand to hand combat between these two adversaries was brutal.
I don’t think the true contribution and heroism of the Canadian troops is properly understood or recognised.
@@andywalsh8761 Well, let´s not exaggerate this "heroism" of the Canadians. Considering the facts of Germans beeing outnumbered, no air support, bad supplies and, most of the german units being not well trained in this phase of the war, the achievement of the Canadians and the allied military on the battlefield in general is far of beeing outstanding.
I've seen these photos before and wondered about these guys. Awesome research. Thanks for telling the story of these photos. Tragic lives, brainwashed fanatics, fighting for the wrong cause and not exactly covering themselves with glory.
😂Great videos and love reading WWII history. Born on 5/14/45, an American, I used to talk with my father about The War. My father and his brothers were Army members during fighting throughout Europe. My Uncle Donald was shot down in Nov. '44 and is buried in Belgium. To this day I remember my grandmother crying whenever he son was spoken of, and was a Goldstar mother as it was called then
Thank you for sharing. These stories are heartbreaking aren’t they
Excellent video. The story behind the photos really gives meaning to the faces. Thank you.
This video is what I watch these historical channels for. The way you took apart photos that would otherwise leave everything to the imagination is nothing short of fascinating. Two simple photos of a Panther tracking through a town, when the action in them is explained then become riveting. Suddenly the boys and men are made real by your accounting, they are people with a path and a story in both long and short term, and we share this experience with them. I had to watch twice to know what I had just seen. Amazing work, thank you for this presentation.
That comment really means the world to me. Thank you my friend 👍
Another insightful video sharing a piece of history. Your work is outstanding. The then and now photos are very well done.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Presentation is excellent but very tragic and hope no more such insane wars. Feel sad for the brave soldiers and common citizens. 😢
It is a sad story isn’t it. I hope it shows the brutality of war
@thehistoryexplorer it is very sad, but unfortunately, we humans don't realize and keep destroying.
Absolutely brilliant. Very well researched. 👏
Thank you
Great video from a WW2 obsessed viewer. Thanks
These videos are a remarkable portrait of the events in Normandy 80 years ago. I think that you have done a great service by reminding us that these men (and boys) were humans trying to cope with the most stressful circumstances imaginable. I have read about the grim fight between 12 SS Hitler Jugend and the Canadian Army in Normandy, but your videos bring to life what a personal struggle it was. Well done!
Thank you for such a well researched and presented video.
Your videos, I think are the best of all those produced on D Day.
Excellent content, it was quite a shock to see those young men receiving medals. Made me think of my sons, and how war uses so many young people.
It certainly does. You don’t see old people who have lived their lives fighting
Thank you for the reality of war and the youth that fought for ideals of old men.
People often do not realise that war pulled these mere kids into conflict
The ideas were not those of old men. They were most definitely of vibrant, youthful men. Old men want to live in peace. Young, ambitious men want war.
do you really think anything has changed?
They were not fighting for the ideals of old men. In fact, it was the old men of Germany who did not want or support this war!
I recently found your channel and man I enjoy your good work. Thanks a lot from Germany👍🏻
You are very welcome! I wish the videos reached more people 👍
Thank you for your great contribution....one has to see your painstaking "then and now" photos. I would like to highlight (obviously to those that will immediately believe I am pro anything this regime produced) but there are witness confessions that even from the start of DDay that Canadians were not taking prisoners themselves..as (and many have said for US paratroopers NOT taking prisoners..with the "excuse" that paras are only lightly armed and supplied and DO NOT have that capacity to "maintain" prisoners..so they are "dispatched)
They themselves had not taken prisoners...believe me..I too have been a front line soldier..in the British Army..and news travels FAST..even without mobile phones etc. My late Grandfather was taken prisoner by the Germans and even in my young days of asking him about his captivity..he spoke of such things..
Also it must be noted that Meyer was indeed captured himself and faced a court that condemned him to death..however..it was a Canadian officer that stated they actually shot prisoners too.
I am in not in any way condoning either actions by either the SS or the Canadians..but a perspective has to be made either subjectively and or objectively about what happened at this pinnacle time...that BOTH sides KNEW was a DESPERATE struggle that actually took "the gloves off" for many..that paid an unnecessary price
It is virtually impossible to make any valid comparison between the Allied armies and the Nazi SS, or even Wehrmacht. Murdering civilians and POWs was absolutely common among the SS wherever they went. The Wehrmacht murdered millions upon millions of civilians on the eastern front, and more than a few on the western front. There is no moral equivalence. And I don't believe in war, period. But there is no comparison.
I have no doubt there were less than legal activities that took place on all sides. A sad truth of war
Great video. Calm and measured presentation. Its somehow remarkable to me that people live right there, where history was made. But i suppose you can say that of every inch of France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany...
Thank you very much! Sadly most of Normandy saw events like this
Your work is amazing, thank you.
Thank you!
I truly enjoy your informative and heartbreaking videos. The music is heartfelt, and the then and now photos are priceless. I joined your patreon membership as one of the 13. I am so proud of the British, Canadian and American and all Ali soldiers that faced evil straight on. Unfortunately, these days in the States, many of our young men don’t possess the same type of devotion to Country and sacrifice for the greater good of people. Thank you for remembering and honoring our fallen heroes. Your accent to an American is beautiful and calming. God bless you always!
Thank you so much my friend. I really appreciate your support…I’m also glad you like my accent as I’ve received some stick for it! Ha!
Your photography is simply amazing. The stories you have shared is so breathtaking. Thank you
Many thanks
thanks for showing and telling us the faces and names of this fierce engagement. much closer than the usual places, times and the push and pull of the history book. keep up the excellent work
Appreciate it! Thank you
07/12/24: Superbly well-thought-out and narrated. Thank you.
Thank you
Thank you for telling the story as it really was. Your research must have taken a lot of time. The matching of the photos is amazing.
I've loved every aspect of the ww2.ive said since I was a teenager,till now I'm 58.you learn something new everyday about the battles that occured.an amazing video I've just watched.well done.triggers my curiosity evenore
That is awesome! So glad you enjoyed it and say new information
I absolutely love your work. Keep the videos coming bud!
Thank you buddy. Appreciate it 👍
Thank you for all your hard work putting these videos together!
Thanks for sharing some history. Too often the 12th SS is glorified even though they failed to push the Canadians back into the sea as they were ordered to do. It is my understanding that only a few thousand out of the 20,000 Hitler Youth made it out of Normandy alive.
The real glory goes to people like one of my neighbors who volunteered to fight fascism. He served with the Queens Own Rifles of Canada and landed on D Day and fought across Europe. He never spoke of his ordeals but had multiple medals and wounds. A true hero!!!
He must have seen some terrible things. I hope I got the balance right in this video
@@thehistoryexplorer....keep up with the great work that you do....E..
It is true the 12th SS were very badly beaten and were not treated kindly after word of their War Crimes spread. The Wehrmacht were treated with respect but not the murderers of the SS.
--
How were they (bad guys) supposed to prevail against overwhelming allied airpower and even heavy naval gunfire, In addition to the inexhaustible Canadian manpower, armour and artillery barrages?
Their politics and world view were detestable and they were stuck up, homicidal snobs, that's obvious, but they inflicted serious losses and did push allied and Canadian and Brits back numerous times and were at the time considered formidable troops by those that confronted them.
Also note, just to be fair, that over 1/3 lower ranks were conscripts and many were foreign born but understood German (Sudeten and Alsatian and Galician etc.
Over half were tranferals from the downsizing Luftwaffe and Navy... And we're not stoked to be placed into ground fighting units, let alone waffen ss.
P.S.
Allied commandos, rangers and paratroopers also routinely killed captured enemy troops.
That stuff started back during Sicily and by both sides.
Canadians did great, they faced serious opponents.
Post war, Kurt Meyer provisioned Canadian occupation units with beer from a brewery and distributor he worked for during second half of the 1950s and early 60s.
Classic battles...
Over 12,000 survived the Normandy battle.
There casualties in Normandy were approximately 8500.
Great work and background my friend. Excellent. Your stories come to life. From Texas.
Thank you very much buddy. Much appreciated
WOW! Fantastic photo comparisons in this one! I often wonder just how much you have to walk around these places with a picture in your hand looking for the small details that are still evident. I became fascinated by the magazine Then And Now from the 70's when i was a kid and remember how the author always talked about just how hard it was to find the exact locations that pictures were taken and that was only 30 years past the events! Thanks for all the hard work you put into these videos. It is much appreciated from the States where i cant easily get to the places you show.
It is my honour to be able to share these stories
Thank you for this superb video, you have not only done your photo and historic research exceedingly well, but you have also matched up photos with today's locations better than most that I have seen on UA-cam. The photo of Otto Funk is shown in many places. Georges Bernage and Frederick Jeanne's book Three Days in Hell shows the photo of Funk with a caption that basically says that he was tired, exhausted and shocked from seeing so many comrades die. However, Ive done my research, too and a couple of years ago learned that Funk and the others were witnessing Panther 326 be cleaned of the half remains of the commander and I believe that what Funk and the others were seeing was more deliberate and time consuming than being on the battlefield seeing bad things for a brief moment. So while I agree with everyone else about them being physically and mentally worn out and dealing with what they had already seen, in the photo of Funk, he is truly seeing something extremely repulsive at that moment.
The Commander of 326 Eismann (spelling) is shown in a film clip of Panthers rushing to Normandy but I don't have a reference for you. That clip notes that he would be killed by being shot in half in his cupola a number of days later. Lastly, Klaus Schuh, in the photo taken in the alley, looks more like a man of 30 rather than an 18 year old. That happened to hundreds of thousands of veterans. Not only did they have to become a man at 18, they also looked much older.
I am also in agreement that these young soldiers who should have been in the German Boy Scouts, but that was turned into the Hitler Youth, were indeed given a throughout indoctrination into NAZI ideology and from what I have read it was often impossible to denazify them after the war. One video I have seen was taken at a tank museum and several aging German vets were interviewed and to a man they agreed that Hitler was right and that the world should appreciate him for getting rid of so many Jews. Totally unrepentant, just able to get along in a world where Germany lost. Not all in the SS wanted to be there, many were drafted in. One, Otto Blasé, joined the Luftwaffe and wanted to be a pilot. He was even an officer. But the SS had lost so many officers that hundreds of officers from the Luftwaffe were sent to the SS in Russia. Blasé was now a tank commander in Michael Whittmann's company of Tigers. In Normandy, the day that Whittmann was killed he held a conference before the battle. Photos were taken. Otto Blasé is worn looking and wearing a great coat and is distracted. Whittmann noticed that and after the conference he spoke to Blasé and saw that he was sick and apparently had a fever. He ordered Blasé to go to the hospital immediately and not to return until he was well. During the battle in which Whittmann died, I think 5 other Tigers were destroyed, including the one Blasé was the commander of. Blasé was last seen during the war abandoning Tiger B #332 which the Americans captured and sent back to America where it now rests at Fort Benning Georgia. I had correspondence with Wolfgang Schneider in 2004 trying to figure out what happened to him, but none of the SS ever saw him again. I did some exhaustive research trying to find him. I cannot prove this but I believe this is what happened. He somehow made it to the United States in the early 50s and showed up at a Lutheran Church in the state of Wisconsin where he taught Sunday School. Later, he went to a Lutheran seminary and graduated and then returned to Germany and became a pastor at a church until his death in the early 2000s. Just wanted to point out that not all SS wanted to be SS or beloved their theology/ideology.
Well, great video!
thank you very much. Great comment with lots of insightful anecdotes
The men on the other side were the same age, my dad was 18 when he jumped at Arnhem and he had a mate with him there who was 15 when he joined up. When the lad owned up to his real age after the war the powers to be made him stay in and go to Palestine with the rest of their unit.
My dad was born in 1914 and was 27 when he left for europe.
@@williambryan1103 if he was that late he must have been American
@@nickmail7604 yes!
My father in law was the same age. Just a few months difference. My dad went from european theater to the pacific theater.
@@williambryan1103 funny people Americans, can't spell theatre properly and whenever there is a world war they turn up 3 years late
Your channel is my favorite on UA-cam! "The Pacific" is the perfect background music. New sub here so trying to catch up on the older vids. Tysm!
Thank you! I hope you’ll watch more of the longer videos!
By coincidence I had been wanting to cover the later battles between 12th SS and 3 Cdn Div (during Charnwood) on my own channel and finally managed to put it up just this morning. And of course now that it is done, the algorithm is finally showing me your excellent work. Very effective use of then and now which I admire. It can't be stated enough just how poorly the 12th SS performed in the opening battles of the beachhead, and most histories fail to emphasize that the Canadians *knew* they would be called on to defeat the German armoured counter-attacks, which is why they were beefed up with self-propelled artillery. Marc Milner's book STOPPING THE PANZERS discusses this in detail, and he seems to have found interpretations of the Canadian operations in Normandy that have eluded other historians.
The 12th weren't even at the opening battles of the beachhead lol. They didn't arrive to the scene until a couple of days later and were fighting around Caen. And so you're saying the Canadian's prime mission was to hang around and wait for the Germans to counter attack? Well that is false. They, just as all other allied units, were meant to push forward and through the German defenses, and they were meant to secure Caen within 3 days at first, and when they failed, it was pushed to 2 weeks, which also failed.
Thank you. Great presentation 👍
Glad you enjoyed it my friend, as always your support it very appreciated
@@thehistoryexplorer You're welcome. Hope deployment was engaging. No pun intended.
.... incredibly well done! Thank you for all your hard work in telling this story to the world!
Great job!!, footage is awesome, I don't know how you guys find this stuff, been watching WW2 history My whole life, you guys have something different, good luck!!
Thank you my friend
Very well researched. Lots of answers to questions I’ve had for a long time, well done indeed
thanks, appreciate it a lot
Nice videos you produce. I thoroughly enjoy the in-depth analysis and pictures. Keep up the good work.
Thank you very much! Much appreciated
Hi buddy, fantastic footage. Can you believe it just kids' unreal but ferocious fighters. Thank you for sharing. cheers Gary 🇬🇧
Thanks Gary, appreciate the feedback my friend
Rob, your videos get better and better this one is breathtaking. I can’t stop watching it to think this actually happened is mind-boggling matched with the photos. Thank you very very much.👏
You are most welcome my friend. Really appreciate the feedback!
The Kamerad with the MG42 had have the 18 Birthday when Photo was taken....
Canadians know "why 45 were executed"..... The young SS-Men dont do it "'without reason by the way'".....
Excellent presentation! I always wondered what happened to the men in the pictures. Definitely keep it up!
Thank you! Will do!
A very interesting video. Twenty years ago I interviewed a number of Canadian veterans on behalf of a UK author who was at the time writing two Second World War books. One of these veterans had landed on D-Day and went almost to the end of the war before badly wounded. I wished I'd had more time to speak with him about his experiences in Normandy but the subject of the book I was interviewing him for was post-Normandy until the beginning of 1945 and so that is what I focussed on. His story was quite remarkable, but, while my other veteran interviews found their way into the books, the author didn't use this one. I finally got around to writing it up on Linkedin a couple of years ago. He was a fascinating fellow and would have tangled with the 12th SS Panzer Division in Normandy.
Thanks for sharing. Very interesting
SO GLAD I found this channel!!! Very impressive & informative!!! You sure did alot of research. Well done on all your content mate.
Gary from Australia 🇦🇺
Welcome aboard! Thanks for the feedback Gary and I hope you enjoy the channel 👍
As you mentioned, the soldiers of the 12th SS Panzerdivision were brainwashed by years of influencing.
And as most se ior officers and NCO's came from the LAHSS Division, who had years of brutal fighting experience from the eastern front, the young soldiers surely wanted to show their determination!
I bet the old hands peppered their combat training with lots and lots of storys that fired the imagination of the boys! This sure enough had an impact, especially on the Panzergrenadiers, who are much closer to the enemy than tankers. Tankers need more discipline and are closer to their commanding officers than iinfantry soldiers. This gives the grenadiers a much more direct impression of combat. I am sure that those grenadirrs have had intense combat in the days before - Remember this was the 9th of june, they entered combat on the 7th, two days before - but not as close and not as critical as the attack on Norrey. They show signs of shock and they seem to have ultimately realised for the first time, where and to what they were into.
One can see it in the faces of the elder NCO's and officers who don't seem to be too worried.
The young men, some in direct combat contact for the first time, seeing that war has nothing of the propaganda bravdo at all, comrades sliced in two, horribly burned, their guts hanging out, lims blown off, bones broken and dying is painfull and horriffic...
They also must have got a first idea of the might of the allied attack a d what was com.ing up at them. Realising that germany had bitten off a peace too big, standing no chance against the might of allied military power.
It must be a result of these experiences, the pomitical brainwashing and the will to show the old hands that they are as tough as them which led to the massacres on canadian POW's.
I am in no way excusing anything and anybody, but i was surprised to learn that Fritz Witt, SS Brigadeführer asked for an investigation of the shootings and a written report from Kurt Meyer!
I am sure these events are connected and the deeper reason lies in the youth and indoctrination of the young men, as well as the eastern front - experience of the commanding officers.
I believe one can see things to come in the faces of the young soldiers in that small lane - some to collapse, some to run wild...
Well said. I think there is a realisation on their faces in the pictures. Oh shit…
Brainwashing or no, they were still killers.So much of the German atrocities and war crimes went unpunished. Excellent video.
@@michaeltroster9059 thank you my friend
Great coverage of dreadful fighting and horror of war. To find and explain the soldiers and events as they unfold in diagrams and actual locations brings the events as if it was yesterday. Many thanks and keep up the great coverage.
I really appreciate that, thank you
Admiro tu trabajo. Enhorabuena por este video. Cada fotografía, cada lugar que nos muestras es "una puerta de acceso al pasado", a los hechos que ocurrieron y a las personas que allí estuvieron. Muchas gracias por mostrarnos la historia de esta forma. Ver tus videos es apasionante. Gracias desde España.
Thank you my friend!
I have a Grandson of 21 and could not help but compare him to those young men having to witness some of the tragic events they did! Losing their friends and having to kill at that age must have been horrendous! It shows the power of the indoctrination they must have gone through! Thank you for posting this reminder of what our Greatest Generations went through!!
Terrible thought isn’t it? Just boys really
Brilliant video , thankyou !
I'm from Asia but I've been interested in the Normandy campaign since childhood, because of books and movies. I've been to Normandy many times, and am now beginning to take a deep interest in the Canadian experience there. Thanks for your work on this part of the Normandy campaign. I am new to your channel and will certainly continue to follow you. Well done!
Thank you my friend! Welcome aboard
Excellent video! I love the detailed info on the individuals.
The Canadian Army was indispensable to winning the war in the west; great video. Your observations of that alleyway today and 80 years ago are haunting...
Glad you enjoyed it!
Not to mention the Airmen..........
Excellent video and commentary . I toured that area of Normandy in 2017 concentrating on the Canadian advance and seeing the places in those historic photos was surreal.
'Soldiers are citizens of death's grey land....gaining no dividends from times' tomorrows'
Wilfred Owen....another excellent video Rob, how you going mate?
Hello Ron I’m doing well buddy! How are you doing? I’m going to be in your neck of the woods for a few months soon (assuming your still in the cold place)
@@thehistoryexplorer You'll be in the Cold Place just in time for autumn and winter! No I'm not there now, big move my side-I'm following the yellow brick road and returning to the Land Of Oz....the Green Machine made me an offer I couldn't say 'no' to....long story, not for this forum, might drop you an email ( =we've had comms by this means previously as you recall). Go well Rob, stay safe mate
Wow, I just want to say thank you. I'm a new subscriber and I'm going to binge watch most of your videos. I stumbled on your channel because I was interested about the story of the dead German soldier on the stairs of Cherbourg. I just visited Normandy recently for the second time, I visited a lot of iconic sights, but videos like yours, being so well documented with historical images, maps and anecdotes are so much more interesting. Cheers from Switzerland.
Thank you my friend! I hope I don’t let you down, my older stuff isn’t the best but I hope you can see I’ve improved along the way
the bitter and dark face of war😢
It really is isn’t it
@@thehistoryexplorer why?
@@AZƏRBAYCAN_AZE ?
Very well researched like how you named the soldiers and pointed them out and let us know if they survive the war well done
Thanks buddy. It’s was my pleasure
very good video, it brings history to life, there's something about Normandy even today in modern times, the history feels still alive, please keep up the good work 🪖☕️🥐
I intend to! thank you
thank you for bringing history time back to life and to the present day
You are very welcome!
Thank you for this excellent education. May we never forget.
You are most welcome
Great video, thank you.
You are most welcome!
New subscriber here. Thanks for your efforts in combining the photos and the history of these poor souls thrust into such horrific situations guided and encouraged by evil people/ governments/ corporations ….. plus many others entity’s if you catch my drift.
Thank you very much and I hope you enjoy my other videos 👍
One more thing about the grizzly details of this battle. German or not, I feel most empathy for anybody who would have to clean up the blood and innards of a battle commander - and somebody I really cared about as my commander and a genuine person - apparently some nice guy liked by his unit. How awful! As with all your videos, but especially this one, I am AMAZED you got the story behind the photos of German Tank 326! You, sir, are a gift to the UA-cams!
Wow you’ve made my day buddy. Really appreciate it. I hope more people get to see these videos and enjoy the stories behind them 👍
a simply outstanding video → one of the very best i’ve seen…
So glad you think so. That means a lot
Your work is simply amazing. I was totally captivated. Please do more videos like this.
Thank you! Will do! Check out my video on Omaha beach 👍
So many gave their lives on both sides , young men in the prime of life .
So true
Fantastic photos thank you very much
This was so different and refreshing telling the story behind the events and the photo’s..Many of the photos I’ve seen before..But now,thanks to this excellent video I know these photos better..
First time here and liked and sub..All the best and keep up the great work
This is great. This is how we want to review the wars. High def video and photos with names and stories attached to the very location. Would be interesting to see all the way back to civil war. Time traveling!
Thank you buddy! Really appreciate the feedback. I’d love to go to the US and cover the Civil War!
Brilliant video. As somebody who has written about these events, even I learned a few things. Canadians tend to be triumphalist about our WWI efforts, yet defeatist about our WWII contribution, a tendency I blame the McKenna brothers, and their "The Valour and the Horror" series for. Tim Cook and Mark Zuhelke have done a lot to counter this, but still much of our national narrative surrounding this pivotal battle is too negative. Thanks for presenting a more balanced perspective, and showing an early Canadian victory against the SS.
You are most welcome, I’m glad you enjoyed the video and it’s great that you discovered new information. I hope you watch other videos I’ve made
My gdad fought the 12th ss as part of the Normandy campaign and his hatred of the ss Jugend despite their youth never subsided. The unnecessary killing they did with such ferocity was so alien to him. He was badly injured later on but never held anything against the germans. Apart from that.
I wish I had the chance to speak with more veterans
Wow.. this is a great. Both sides learned very quickly that going on the offence in Normandy was going to be very costly.
Offensive action is so difficult! Far easier to defend, which is why the allies relied so heavily on artillery and close air support to unpick the defences
@@thehistoryexplorer Yes, so true. Don't forget Naval as well. Keep those German formations close to the coast and the Navy has plenty of targets to choose from.
@@thehistoryexplorer Don't forget the navy. I was wondering how those panthers got flipped over like that lol
Thanks Rob, I've seen that photo a number of times, I always was curious about what happened to Otto Funk. He looks absolutely exhausted. At least he was able to survive the war. I'm 70 and live in Germany. I've known a few of the surviving Waffen SS soldiers over the years.
Glad I could shed some light on these pictures 👍
Loved this video and “Then and Now pics!”
Great presentation, kept me tight on my chair, pondering the tragedy of war.
I hope you'll enjoy my other videos too
Great video - really enjoyed this one. Love the photo overlays onto the footage too 👍
Thanks Rob!
excellent video of then and now . really puts the photos into context.
Wars are fought by kids. The old men start them and reap the whirlwind of the result
Very true. So sad
History coming to life before my eyes. Haunting compilation of then and now. Extremely well done.
Awesome, so glad you enjoyed it 👍
Thank you for your hard work and research!
👍
I saw your video due to youtube's placement of similar videos in the right column of the screen. I appreciated the active map showing the movement of the forces. I also liked how you showed the enthusiasm of the SS/Hitler youth and how it got them killed and contributed to the death and massacre of Canadians. As long as gung ho teens were active, the war would go on in a einsatzgrupen way in places.
Glad you enjoyed the video, I hope you’ll check out some more!
What a great insight to explain the faces behind the your videos. Great job rob look forward to watching more of your videos.👍👍
Thank you very much! Appreciate it 👍
Great video with great narration. It’s impressive you were able to identify the soldiers in the photograph.
Glad you enjoyed it and I hope you’ll watch my other videos too. Many more on the way
So interesting! Thank you
You are very welcome my friend
Brilliant, thank you.
This is an excellent and well-researched video and it's amazing that one small alleyway can tell so much D-Day history. I really enjoy seeing the "now and then" photos as they give a sense of place and of the drama and death that took place in the village. Handsome young men, but no sympathy for their indoctrination into a murderous and barbaric regime.
And I think you can treat yourself to a Pain au Chocolat! Best!
I'm on a diet! But thank you! ha
If there was such a thing as ghosts, those places you show so superbly would be filled with souls from all sides looking with disbelief and sadness at the world today and the lessons not learnt.. Just subscribed and looking forward to following your excellent work
After the tank ambush on 9 June as you stated many of the survivors were burned.
Canadian infantry shot dead the company medic as he was tending the wounded.
This greatly annoyed his comrades, one Unterscharfuhrer grabbed some grenades and killed the Canadians responsible, dragging a body into a crossroads and leaving it there as a warning.
I did read that but couldnt find any references other than what someone had written. I wouldn't surprise me as it would be difficult to distinguish between a medic and infanteer in those circumstances. Of course it could have been deliberate too
Wow, really.well done, poignant, balanced and superbly well researched. I had seen the photos of the sinister-looking SS men but you😮 have added new colour snd texture and brought it to life. I don't doubt the evil they were capable of but for you to have researched names and their fates post-war.
You also notice just how many MGs they had, so much more firepower and better equipment than an equivalent British or Allied section...
Brilliant clip of the battle for Caen, it seems the truth about how fierce the battles around Caen is only just being told, How slow Montgomery was to take the city is all you hear, it seems only now the stories of how many divisions were being sucked into the city to defend it that it was never going to be taken in a few days but turned into a brutal war of attrition. This video has got to be one of the best I’ve seen, outstanding work 👍
Really appreciate the research and details revealed in this video.
That’s great, glad you liked the video
Great video, I visited the spot back in July and with the photos it really gives you the feeling of that driveway and road. I wish I’d had this video with me as it would have bought it to life. Great work. John
Thank you very much for the kind feedback John
Excellent, very well produced.
Thanks
Brilliant video thank you
Glad you enjoyed it. Means a lot buddy