History Professor Breaks Down Band of Brothers Ep. 6 "Bastogne" / Reel History
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- Опубліковано 16 кві 2021
- Reel History delves into historical films to separate fact from fiction. These engaging episodes explore, contextualize, and clarify stories related to the most famous historical movies. In contrast to the more prevalent "reaction" videos, these installments seek not only to entertain but to educate and inform.
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HBO's 2001 series Band of Brothers brought television to a whole new level. Produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks, it brought cinema quality story telling and production to the small screen and has become a classic historical mini series for many.
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They missed a trick with this episode. In the book, Ambrose describes an event where Shifty Powers saw something odd behind the German lines, and called for Sgt Lipton. Lip rocks up to Shifty's position and, after Shifty tells him where to look and what to look for, Lip observes through binos and then quickly calls for Capt. Winters. When the Capt gets to their position He observes what Shifty had seen and is able to pinpoint a previously unknown German Artillery gun! Shifty had seen this elevated gun from OVER a mile away, through fog and snow and the bad weather with Mk.1 Eyeball!!!! THAT was how good his vision was. His instinct told him that whatever it was was TOO straight and unnatural for the Ardennes.
Powers spotted a tree that was "not there the previous day."
It was disguised as a tree. You told that whole story and got it wrong.
@@sammill1316 That is why I said "Event", because I couldn't remember the full details!! I saw this video and recalled the basic outline of an occurrence that didn't appear in the episode, but was in the book!!
I love how Shifty gave credit to his father for being a better shot than he was.
That's not exactly how it was described in the Ambrose's book. Shifty Powers spotted far away in a distance (as you stated about a mile away) a new tree, in a huge forest full of nearly identical trees, that wasn't there yesterday, and since fullgrown trees don't sprout overnight he instantly figured that something isn;t right and reported it to Sgt (soon to be lieutenant) Carwood Lipton who believed him as he knew Shifty's reputation as eagle eyed sniper and pushed this info up the chain of command. It turn's out what shifty saw was a camouflage for a kraut artillery piece, and if I remember correctly it was soon destroyed by allied counter battery fire.
In 2016 my daughter bought tickets to the Band of Brothers reunion in Bastogne and I met many of these actors. The actor that played Doc Roe is a kind, intelligent, interesting man.
I've never met Shane Taylor but I saw on Instagram that he's visited and left flowers on Renee's grave ❤
It was this episode and Doc Roe in particular that inspired me to become a combat medic.
I first watched this episode during my first month in training in the Norwegian Navy, and what i initially intended was to seek a career in the coastal rangers.
After having seen this episode and read more about Doc Roe online, i became more interested in the role of first aid in modern combat scenarios.
I expressed that interest to my Lt, and he lent me his personal books and educational material, as he had been trained as a combat medic before he became an officer.
I altered my path from seeking a career in the coastal rangers, and luckily thanks to performance in initial training i was allowed to have my pick of where to serve later.
I chose the medical branch of the Norwegian army, and went on to serve 10 years as a combat medic, eventually holding the title of Senior specialist combat medic with a wide field of expertise pointed to blast injuries, prolonged field care, and mass casualty scenarios which i brought with me to the theatre of Afghanistan.
I eventually burnt out due to a physical injury as well as PTSD catching up with me, which i am still working to get through to this day.
Despite the heavy price to pay, I have no regrets about my choice to serve as a medic, and wouldn't trade it for anything.
What a great story thank you for your service! I hope you’re doing alright, I respect you going over there
it's men like you that do the highest honor to Eugene Roe's legacy. We're all better off for your life choices my friend.
So the Greatest Generation doesn't just influence Americans to help their fellow man. I am honored that the behavior of this American soldier influenced you in such a profound way. Thank-you for all the good you have done.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you
as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not
be afraid.
Sad to see Damian Lewis who played Winters lost his wife to cancer yesterday. She had appeared in Peaky Blinders and Harry Potter
Oh no.
That's very sad. My best to their familys.
Who was she in Harry Potter?
@@shinkicker404 Narcissa Malfoy
Wait she was Helen mccoy
Roe is definitely my favorite "character" (If you can call real people characters...) of Band of Brothers. As a healthcare worker and being Louisiana born-and-raised I very much enjoyed that he basically had his own episode dedicated to him. I always enjoy when medics and corpsmen get some spotlight.
They are some of the most REAL heros
Doc Roe is such an interesting character. He shows us how much shit Medics go through and how hard it is being a medic on front line combat
Renée Lameir was posthumously knighted in the order of the crown in 2010 (belgian order) She realy is an example of couragous civilians in the war.
Fascinating! Thank you for this.
I'm glad we got the perspective of a medic because it highlighted the logistical problems in Bastogne, focusing on the medic made it much easier to show they were fighting the environment and lack of supplies as much as the germans
When I was around 20, in maybe 1993, there was a really stern vet who would come into the tire store where I worked. Always wearing his black cap that read "Battered Bastards of Bastogne." He had an aura about him that said he was not to be fussed with, by anyone, ever. Some years later, perhaps ten, I had seen Band of Brothers and was working at another tire store when another gentleman wearing the same type of cap came in, and I was servicing his car. Very different demeanor about him. I offered my hand, "You were in Bastogne, sir?" He looked into my eyes as we shook hands and I could tell he was just ever so slightly shaken. "You know what Bastogne is?" to which I replied, "I do. Belgium." He shuddered. "My God, did they ever let us have it." I said nothing else about the matter and just continued on with my work. It's always stuck with me. "My God, did they ever let us have it."
the soldier captured by Captain Winters during the Battle of Bastogne was Private Fritz Engelbert, a German paratrooper who had been separated from his unit. He was taken prisoner by Winters while he was trying to relieve himself in the woods. He later escaped from a POW camp and rejoined the German army. He survived the war and died in 2004 at the age of 83.
There were no German POW escapes from POW camps, except one before 1941, where the escapee went to the States from Canada, but was interned there. If this person absconded, it was from a temporary holding camp where they were held "on parole" - that means the captured soldier had given his word not to escape until after he reached an official POW camp. It's under the Geneva Convention rules, parolees who break their word can be shot on sight or on recapture. Was your guy one of these?
I was at a Carlisle car event when I saw an old man wearing a hat with Bronze Star on it. I had to thank him and I discovered he was from Easy Co. I asked him if he had any funny stories. Well during Bastogne a cow wandered into their trenches and Winters tells them "shoot that f**king cow!!". The gentleman said it startled them because Winters never used such language. The gentleman said that steaks were all around for everybody. What a treasure.
being a farm boy from pennsylvania, winters probably knew where the best steaks came from XD
Speaking of friendly fire, one of the more famous allied soldiers injured by our own side was James Doohan (who later played Scotty in Star Trek). He was hit 6 times and probably lived because the bullet to the chest was stopped by a cigarette case. This was probably one of the few times in history that smoking saved someone's life. He also lost a finger, which he mostly hid during his acting career.
I’ve watched and re-watched this series through several times; a statement said by one of the Easy veterans during the interview at the first part of this episode has always stuck with me. The gentleman says “on a real cold night, my wife will tell you the first thing I say when I lie down for bed is I’m glad I’m not in Bastogne.” Humbling, considering the Bastogne winter of 1944 was one of the coldest on record. The average temperature was about 20 degrees Fahrenheit.
Given Dike's medals, I suspect he might have been suffering from combat fatigue like Buck. But the men didn't know him so he got none of the sympathy Buck got.
Also, he was *shot* in the shoulder at Foy. He didn't just freeze up.
The BOB wiki covers this.
Yep absolutely true. Dike was a decorated man who had saved people from direct fire, risking his own life.
What he did at Foy was because of a shoulder wound and intense pain and shock. He did t do his job too well, but definitely not as bad as presented here.
Well that's a kick in the a$$. The series painted him as more or less an incompetent coward. Thanks for that information. It's sad his reputation is going to be besmirched for a long time in many peoples eyes. He may have lost his ability to command in the clutch, but it sounds like there was more to the story than what they portrayed in BoB.
Meanwhile, some army jerk is thinking "NO EXCUSES!" in their head.
The German's last major offensive on the western front. And they encircled troops who are specialized in kicking ass while encircled. There are alot of ironies in the war, but I've always found the Ardennes Counteroffensive the be one of the most ironic.
Really loving this breakdown series so far!
My Grandfather was in the 101st and was surrounded in Bastogne. He was also a medic so I thought it was cool that Bastogne centered around the Doc Roe.
Great commentary as always Professor J. This is hands down my favorite episode even though it’s a stark contrast from the others as we experience it from medic Doc Roe’s point of view. It’s just a gritty, emotional, & realistic depiction of the harsh realities of war. Soldiers aren’t only fighting the enemy but the elements & mental battles like impending cynicism trying to poison their minds & morale. It’s an emotional journey that makes you feel like you’re there. You feel the cold.
I’m an Army veteran but luckily got out during the initial stages of our wars in the Middle East. I was lucky that I didn’t see combat though I would have went if called & always felt a little guilt that some green private went when I could have helped more as a seasoned professional soldier. I was in the combat arms namely armor & we always trained hard. It wasn’t combat but we spent half the year out in the field either doing tank gunnery or force vs force exercises where we literally play war to the most realistic ends as possible. Anyway we were usually training in extreme heat like in California’s Mojave desert at Ft Irwin’s National Training Center or in the harsh winters of Colorado. You gain a robust appreciation for small comforts we often take for granted like running water, hot water, showers & a toilet. The longest I went without a shower was 19 days IIRC & we all smelled like death. Bastogne gives me flashbacks of winter training. I am grateful that I didn’t go to Iraq or Afghanistan. My second platoon sergeant who became a Sergeant Major was killed by a suicide bomber in Afghanistan & many of the young soldiers I trained & trained with went to war & many came back as different people. They went from being happy go lucky guys who were always laughing to being very serious, sullen & morose. Several soldiers didn’t make it back alive. It’s humbling & sad. RIP to all those who gave the ultimate sacrifice & thank you to all those who served.
Keep up the great work Professor Jared. Be safe & be kind everyone.😉👍
Prior to the 502nd moving into the wood line the first night, the wood line was manned by US combat engineers. My grandfather had landed at Omaha as part of a gap assault team, and ended up in the woods northeast of Bastogne the first night of the battle. He said every man in his unit - cooks, officers, engineers, clerks - paired off back-to-back with their M-1's at a wood line until dawn, 40 yards apart, one guy facing east looking for Germans, the other facing west looking out to make sure the airborne wouldn't mistake them for Germans.
Thanks for your heartfelt analysis of this BoB episode. I got to know a guy where I worked who was a former Navy Corpsman in Vietnam. He was the real thing, smart guy. He eventually retired because his knees were completely gone, bone on bone. I don't know what happened to him after that, but I wish the best for him in retirement. Take care John.
I like the bit of background storytelling outside the field hospital with how each time Rowe would visit the pile of bodies outside the hospital would be a little higher each time showing how desperate the situation was
There's tours that go through these towns and battle locations, the biggest thing I took away from it was just how large the battle was. Really cool opportunity
Check out the film “silent night”
It’s about a group of US soldiers and a group of German soldiers spending Christmas Eve in a small farmhouse with a Belgian lady and her son...
I loved that you nonchalantly mimiced "baaaabe" ...I've watched this series numerous times and in this episode, at that particular moment, I always do the same. God bless these young men and thank you for providing even more insight on the greatest generation of our lifetime.
the Black sky radio 2010-11 interviews with the men or family of easy and the actors, Roes grandson Chis is an awesome dude! hes a cop in texas, i consider him a friend, yet never met him, but dude is awesome! the book is so good
I've heard that Smokey visited his foxhole years later and actually found his coffee cup that he is shown dropping in this scene. If it's true, that is awesome!
Yep I’ve heard that as well numerous times! That’s crazy how that’s his cup and I hope that’s been passed onto someone
Thats hilarious. Real infantry story lol.
Yes, it is true. Actually he told them which hole he was in and later people dug there and found the cup. Which was one of the ways they cemented that these indeed were Easy companies positions.
@@ericharmon7163 one correction. He apparently walked to his hole himself, and pointed out to dig the bottom out because he knew it'd still be there.
You can see a clip somewhere of his son with the cast telling the story by the fox hole
@@phillydelphia8760 yes, I've seen it.
as we look into the battle of the bulge and this series touches more on the physiological toll i hope to see you review the pacific as that series does a magnificant job displaying the strress, exhaustion and physical damage of the war and the absoluter lack of glorifying war.
We dont pump out videos as fast as most channels (once a week or every other week) but keep an eye open because it's on the "to do list"
@@ReelHistory i’m so happy to see this reply. Take your time guys, it probably plays a role in the quality of the finished product 👍.
The Pacific is a bit more of a realistic, and maybe even a downer of a series. But, we need that. War is not pretty.
@@markothwriter to me, "the pacific" was sadly quite confusing. without narration i kept getting confused as to who is who. as it seemed to mostly shift around people, i felt i could not get individual impression of people ... they're all wearing uniforms, all short-haired ... so the melting away of the individual seems to have worked ...
sometimes you need a key, a kind of storyline that opens a narration/series ...
do you maybe have one that can unlock the pacific to me?
@@slavagriffin8689 I also found it confusing - which is realistic. But, it was tougher to get to know the characters. I only watched it once and didnt really follow it. So, yeah, I agree with you.
I’m happy to hear you’ll be examining Battleground. It is one on my favorite films about the war.
This episode highlights the "nurse" Renee and only makes slight reference to the "black" nurse. The "black" nurse was in fact Augusta Marie Chiwy. There is a great video entitled "The Forgotten Angel of Bastogne" by Martin King that points out that Augusta assisted the doctors more than Renee. Renee wasn't able to handle the gore and did more hand holding. Augusta even put on a uniform in order to go out and collect wounded Americans. Augusta passed away in 2015.
And Augusta also got blown through a wall during one bombardment, but survived relatively unscathed.
I worked with a man whose father fought at Bastogne. He said that later in life, if it ever snowed, his father would sort of huddle up under a ton of blankets and not talk to anyone. Reminded him too much of the war.
This show does a spectacular job at showing each soldier as an individual. You really get to see different sides of each of them and it shows that even though they are all completely different, they are family to each other now. I wish Eugene Roe had some more incidental screen time, but this series is about as good as it gets.
Anyway I just discovered and re-subbed to your channel again, UA-cam unsubscribed me for some reason. Oh well at least it gives me an excuse to watch this whole playlist again!
Any man that shaves with ice water is a badass.
62-year-old male crying for this nurse some 80 years ago. I don’t know why this hit me so hard maybe it’s her compassion. That makes me feel so sad.
That account at 17:30 of Julian and Heffron promising to meet the others parents if either of them died had me choking up with tears.
I met Donald Burgett about 8 or 9 years ago at a military museum in Frankenmuth MI. He was a local celebrity at his hometown of Howell MI. Burgett served in Company A of the 506th and wrote four books about his exploits in Normandy, Holland, Bastogne and across the Rhine, all of which are good reads. In in interesting in that was usually just a few hundred yards from Easy Company and mentions Colonel Sink and Major Winters in his books. Burgett died in March, 2017.
I'm enjoying all your commentaries on Band of Brothers and The Longest Day immensely. I find the details & insights that you provide just fascinating. I'd love to visit some of the historical sights where these battles took place with you or someone like you. I know I would very much enjoy that. My only contribution to this episode is that I understand when Hitler learned about the dogged defense of Bastogne by the 101st airborne division he said he wished he had soldiers who fought like that in his army.
Honestly, you have one of the very best channels on this platform. Thanks for the lessons Professor.
I've seen the show countless times, but only started reading the book a few days ago. These videos are terrific commentary to what I'm reading and the scenes I'm remembering as I go.
My father was in Fox company, 2 battalion 506th, 101st PIR. Original Toccoa man.
Following the arrival of Patton’s third army at Bastogne, my father met up with his brother serving under Patton.
I've been to the Bois Jacques, now called the Bois de la Pax, and the remnants of those foxholes are still there.
I love these videos. Watch them all day while I work. A suggestion though, when you do the picture in picture while you speak, it'd be great to see the footage clearly from the episodes as well as a video of yourself relaying the facts in the corner. Just a thought though. Keep it up!
Agreed
thanks for sharing your knowledge on here, we appreciate having someone narrate "between-the-lines" , you've done a lot of work and it's amazing to find channels like this that can breakdown what was real inside these awesome shows. I've read Citizen Soldiers and we have these movies but the real stories are really what matters, it's all story telling, and you are a great story teller! Thanks
I imagine the theory is that the enemy would not shoot a man wearing the red cross. This logic falls apart when you consider that a mortar round doesn't distinguish a non-combatant from a combatant.Also medics were specifically targeted by the Japanese in the Pacific theater, so paying them as non-combatants is indeed stupid.
Has to do with the Geneva Convention.
It's more so that it is difficult to be a non-combatant and receive combat pay at the same time. Its tragic, but that's how it was. - Andrew
My Grandfather had an immaculate pair of red cross arm bands from North Africa/Italy. He rarely wore them, and never wore them in combat because of the risk of being targeted.
@@ReelHistory ha, go look at the Iraq occupation, from what 10 years back, and they found that the male Infantry couldn't search the female Iraqi or talk to them (thanks to Islam traditions) so they had to get women who weren't really train for it to go out Combat missions. (Yes they weren't paid for Combat pay or ever at the same levels as the men would been paid back in the states for having the training.
@@mellonmarshall you couldn't be more incorrect... we have air force personnel collecting combat pay in fucking manas... which isn't even in a combat zone, and is complete with a bar on base. Any service member who is serving in a combat environment, gets combat pay regardless of whether or not they leave the wire or sit on a giant base like Bagram.
Capitulation to the Muslim culture while in the midst of warfare was nothing but a show of weakness. The entire concept of hearts and minds was what lead to what we saw recently with the taliban retaking and shitting on our 20 years of nation building.
Yes! Please cover the film "Battleground!"
I always found the Allied short term memory stunning that the Germans could traverse the Ardennes...we need to bring over more subscribers from Mark Felton, this is criminal.
Andrew here - I've listened to everything on both of Mark's channels, he does wonderful work. If you have connections to him send them our way haha
Felton's a raving anti Catholic. Typical Brit.
@@alswann2702 why is he a raving anti catholic and what’s a typical Brit?
What’s your nationality?
@@nigeh5326 hes trolling some people just go around calling him a Nazi and things like that. Just ignore them
Thank you for your wonderful message
According to my father, who ran landing craft for the Seebees, those helmets when combined with a sock for a filter make a mean cup 'o joe over a campfire on a beach!
Just discovered your channel. I have been binging it all day!!! Love it.
The Bastogne episodes of BoB are more compelling to me now. In December, 2019, we visited Bastogne, walked the fields and forests depicted in the series. The weather was chilly, but not snowing and I had 'appropriate' clothing/jacket. Still, it felt colder in the forest, giving me an glimpse of what the men went through.
I've stood in the foxholes of Easy Co. overlooking Foy. Walking through the trees to that point was intensely surreal. One point in your commentary, "White Christmas" was not published until 1954. So I would say the story of the radio picking that song up is fictitious. Love your work though. Thanks! ...Claude
Thanks! I believe your confusing the song with the movie. The song came out in 1942.
I can't thank the US and other allies enough for helping my grandparents live through the war and free Belgium from occupation.
Love these!
Great episode! Looking forward to your review of Battleground, one of my favorites!!
Battleground is my all time favorite movie and I hope you do cover that on here one day. I have thoroughly enjoyed your channel with Band of Brothers and Gettysburg so far.
"Alright, come on! Whadaya want these guys ta think ya are? A buncha WACs?"
Love your show man great job . Iv been a war buff since I was a child , iv read a watch everything out there.
Doing the pacific would be awesome too. Your breakdowns are my absolute favorite
Thank you!
Love that there was no music played for most of the episode, because it intensifies the circumstances that these men were under.
Ooooo yes such an amazing series great commentary
This is my favorite episode of Band of Brothers
Really enjoying this info.
This is the 101st division's first Christmas in battle. The year before they were in England.
I met Don Burguette many years ago at a MI chapter of Destroyer Escort Sailors Assn. monthly meeting when he was our keynote speaker. I subsequently went on to read his books and was very impressed by them. I intend to read the others mentioned in this series also... I am a amateur Naval Historian and always find fascinating information in te exploits of the other branches!
Have you seen ' Finding Augusta' tells the story about the other nurse and a man obsessed with finding out about her. He found her 🤗. She was in a nursing home but she responded to familiar questions when asked about the hospital in Bastogne
And I feel a special love for medics . I work in OR and I've seen things , not like in BoB , but gunshot wounds etc
The nurse from the Congo?
Thank you for these videos. Greetings from Denmark. :)
You're very welcome! Glad to have you along.
I think it is important, that we don't only remember the well known heroes of history, but also the unsung ones, that were doing great deeds behind the lines, like René (since I do not know how to spell it I will not type her last name out of respect) and her many many colleagues on both sides.
Amazing "new" channel.. just subbed! Keep it up
Thanks!
I really enjoy your commentary....very informative 👍
I appreciate that!
Medics were amazing. Running around a war zone with no weapon treating horrific injuries with little supplies. Never hear enough about them.
The
majority of medics in WW2 were armed, and especially as losses mounted, many were ordinary infantrymen that were given some medical training and had to learn the rest on the fly, but frequently functioned as ordinary infantrymen until someone was wounded.
There's something inexplicably amusing about the thought of a French hardware store. :D
Bastonge is in Belgium, not France. Both countries have had specialist stores long before the first " Pilgrim " arrived in North America.
I'm in the middle so I don't know if you cover it but Malarky did a special thing of having his boot wrapped in burlap bags. Then he poured water on them so ice formed on the outside of the bags... somehow, I am not a scientist I don't know, this insulated them and kept his feet warm. He got heckling for how silly it looked but it worked.
I suppose we used the same concept for insulation when building snow dens. You esentially heat up the snow pack and then let it freeze again to create a very hard and dense shell that holds the heat in created by your body, far better than powedered snow.
the socks thing is interesting.
.......i work in the field,
sometimes in the deep cold
.............always kept two pairs of gloves with me
........kept on pair in my arm pits at all times.
(..............it works.)
We always have more non combat injuries than combat injuries. That has happened since our Revolution....
I live out in the woods, wind and falling branches scare me
Love the vids! Could you possibly elaborate on why the friendly planes fired on their own men in the forest when they were about to give the drop? I’ve seen this show many times and have never known the reason for it
There is contention as to whether it was the allied aircraft mistaking them as Germans, or simply firing to clear the area of anybody to make room for the supply drop. In Don Malarkey's book he elaborated on the incident and it turns out nobody was sure, they simply ran for cover.
I find it impossible to pick a ‘best’ episode as they all have a ‘something’ that touches🤔 This has a tender moment again shared by the medium of Chocolate. Roe’s Cajun burr contrasting with the obvious French of the Nurse. Come War, Famine, Depression or whatever demand for Chocolate never wanes. Availability, rationing and price may factor but not the need. I am not a massive consumer but a segment of something relatively unpolluted by Milk, say 70%+, hits the spot particularly following a meal👍🏻 The realism of the Bastogne environment painstakingly recreated in a Hertfordshire warehouse beggars belief. The ‘snow’ is actually environmentally-friendly Cellulose and both foot crunching and the hoar breath of the actors was added by sound and cgi post-production. Indeed the gaunt red-nosed faces were made up as it was actually roasting in the film lot! The post-episode commentary from Bill and Babe overlooking Foy again is very emotive - good stuff once more Prof👍🏻
The comment about the trees being planted in rows remind that while at Bastogne a few years back. The student in Bastogne planted a tree for each soldier who fell in the battle and each tree had the soldiers name placed in front of the tree
All of Belgium's forests are managed. All trees are planted in rows so as to make it easy to cut and clear the forest when the trees are big enough.
Fourtently, during my 6 years of service, I always received Harizidus Duty pay. Aa an Airborn medic and the last 4 years as DUSTOFF medic.
God bless ya doc.
Thank you sir for patching our boys back up.
As a retired. 1st responder Medic Roe was also my favorite member of Easy co.
one thing they did perfectly in that episode was the fog
when you can see the background pretending to be open field or forest it's always covered in fog and something else takes your attention
Historical clarification: Renee Lemaire was not as skilled as depicted in BoB. She was more of a nurse assistant than a fully skilled RN. The real heroine was the Congolese-Belgian nurse named Augusta Chiwy. Nurse Chiwy was all but forgotten until Scottish historian Martin King made it his passion to track her down, which he did about 10 yrs ago in a nursing home near Brussels. Mr. King earned an Emmy for a documentary titled "Searching for Augusta," which can be seen on Amazon Prime. It was my pleasure to meet Mr. King when I lived in Belgium. Incidentally, learning French as I did during my time in Belgium, the town of Foy does not rhyme with boy... it is pronounced in French as "fwa."
"The real heroine..." brah Rene saved 6 guys from a fire. That alone qualifies her as a bonafide hero. No need to put someone down who lost her life saving people just because someone else doesn't receive the attention they deserve as well.
@@jbo4547 I ignore people like you with no sense of history...."brah". Casse toi.
@@dodgermartin4895 Well you literally did not just ignore me so......... Are you personally offended or something? Are you unable to see/have both of those women as hero figures at the same time? "No sense of history"?? Are you an idiot? Did "brah" really trigger you that much or something? Schmuck
I want to make a MINOR apology. I let myself be baited by someone who took the wrong approach in commenting on this thread. There are two FACTS here. (1) What I said in my premier posting was not meant to impinge on the courage of Rene Lemaire. The true historical account was that she did act bravely in Bastogne, and she lost her life doing so. which brings me to the next point: (2) The producers of BoB mischaracterized Rene Lemaire as being more qualified than what she was. She had minimal qualifications and experience as a healthcare provider, and in fact, she worked under the close direction of Augusta Chiwy, the Congolese nurse, who was lost to history until historian Martin King set that record straight. Please do that research.
@@dodgermartin4895 lol "baited" you made a stupid comment saying Rene wasn't a "true heroine" and i simply called that out. In the video he literally says she wasn't as trained as they show in the series, get the fuck off your high horse. Thanks for the info about that other woman though.
The nurse’s smile is more beautiful than the entire Austria countryside
I don’t remember if it was true, but I remember hearing somewhere, that the battle of The bulge also saw one of the coldest winters of the century. Temperatures fell to minus 40 degrees Celsius at Bastogne.
I remember last winter in my hometown we had minus 20 degrees for the first time in my life and man it was so damn cold. I can’t image how people could just sit in a foxhole during temperatures *twice* as low. Really shows you what the human body is capable of, if you have the right mindset and dedication.
One of the few stories that my Dad talked about the Battle of the Bulge was indeed the habit of taking off his cold wet socks and placing them on his chest.
He always noted how cold that was initially, but he added that there was no way he was ever going to get trench foot.
I love the story about the canned peas! That's was a common practice in Iraq and Afghanistan too.
Could you do a review on General Patton?
30:30 at the New Orleans event last year, i really hoped Shane Taylor would treat us (and Robin Laing) to that line again.
favourite episode of the series. i love seeing the medic's perspective of war. a question though, if a fellow soldier died would it be bad form to take things from him like ammo, or even his jacket assuming there was no blood on it? I know Roe gives some random boots to Joe Toye. Just wondering if maybe the company frowned upon such actions as they had been fighting together for months by now.
It depends. Obviously ammunition is definitely taken and his weapon if needed and if u dont mind carrying it. Personal items is frowned upon.
Happened all the time, especially on d-day. Captain winters said this in an interview as he landed on d day without a weapon he came across a paratrooper that had been killed and took his weapon and ammunition. Obviously taking personal items was frowned upon.
Combat command "B" 10th Armored Division arrived the day before the 101st Airborne and set up 3 roadblocks just outside of Bastogne The german army attacked
Battle Ground is one of my favorite movies one of Ricardo Montalban's first movies.
On your observations on the ubiquity of the danger of trenchfoot, my family visited the Bastogne region and our tour guide mentioned, to the American soldiers on the ground, the event that ended up energizing them, inspiring as the defense of Bastogne was, was the rage and revenge-seeking following dissemination of the news of the ‘Malmedy Massacre,’ committed by lead elements of the SS column led by Joachim Peiper when his men machine gunned American prisoners. There was, of course, a very concerted effort by Allied High Command to do all it could to make sure American soldiers knew their potential fates if they surrendered.
The actions of Peiper’s men resulted in heightened levels of suffering amongst German soldiers taken prisoner when particularly vengeful Americans, using the bitterly cold conditions, were known to order German prisoners to remove their socks and boots and walk or stand in deep snow for 15-20 minutes, ample time to ensure their next stop would be an aid station for amputation of their feet. This was anything but an isolated instance in the days and weeks following Malmedy. There is only a very little controversy surrounding Peiper’s actions. Moments before his troops opened fire just off the road his units were using, in a yard at the base of a little hill, he was seen departing the scene in an open-topped car. A popular song common on Armed Forces radio, an upbeat American tune full of hope for Allied advances called something to the effect of ‘Hang our laundry on the Siegfried Line,’ apparently being belted loudly from the young Nazi commander just moments before shots rang out. He was not actually present for the slaughter and it’s unknown if he, specifically, ordered the murders. Peiper was in no way known for a surfeit of compassion or mercy for prisoners, specifically, or his enemy generally. There is no doubt the German plan demanded far more speed especially in the lead elements than it was physically possible to achieve and Peiper would not be at all interested in sparing men or time to the gathering or care of them. Even if he didn’t order that specific instance, it wasn’t outside his character and easily imaginable the event caused him no qualms whatsoever.
If Peiper did specifically order the executions, utterly contravening both letter and spirit of the Geneva Accords, of far more importance to him was carrying out the orders he’d been issued, full of contradictions though they were. If anyone could opine on methods for this spearhead element to both dash headlong to the Meuse, while simultaneously spreading out across the countryside locating Allied fuel dumps necessary to sustain that drive, given German complete lack of fuel, please be my guest. Peiper’s men and other lead elements did discover numerous fuel dumps during their drives made easy by quick thinking officers and men often acting without orders supervising their complete destruction by burning as German panzers rounded a nearby bend. Some of those crisp, clear days were marred by huge columns of inky, black smoke as many thousands of gallons of fuel were denied the enemy that required them to maintain any chance of successfully completing their mission.
As has been noted so often, the Germans achieved near total surprise for their initial attack, in a nod to another WWII film, ‘The imitation Game,’ by this stage in the war, even through the fog of massive doses of drugs, Hitler, too, began to suspect his communications weren’t as secure as he’d assumed. Enigma, while still being used, transmitted no messages regarding Operation Wacht am Rhein. German Commanders received only hand-carried orders. Telephones, too, were verboten for this operation. Turing’s work, though, still meant that the boast, “by the end of the war, it would have been faster for Hitler’s underlings to be informed of their orders from the Allies, following their interception and decoding, than solely through German channels,” was, essentially, true.
It would be amazing to see you do some Korean War history. This always reminds me of The Battle of the Chosin Reservoir
Thanks for the recommendations, I can recommend the "Brothers in Arms"-games.
Out of all the stuff they didn't drop in for the soldiers, they didn't include winter clothing.....unbelievable that.
This became my favourite episode after a years into my annual re-watching of the series.
Loved Doc Rowe.
One thing I've always wondered was why did the fighters shoot at easy company? Was it confusion? To get them back out of the open? I know friendly fire happens more often than not on the ground, but did it happen often with air to ground attacks too?
This was asked already so sorry if I leave a detail out but from the accounts of the veterans, it was unclear if they were mistaken as germans or just clearing the area for the incoming drop. Don Malarkey wrote in his book that they had no idea why, they simply ran for cover.
The Luftwaffe bomb landed on a store and killed the 10th Armored wounded inside, not a church that the 101st were in.
Have you seen the English movie "The One That Got Away"? Luftwaffe POW escapes from Canada and returns to Germany in 1941...amazing story..
Now that is an angle of perspective I have not seen in film/TV before.
@@dirus3142 I believe the BF109 that he crash-landed in England is in an RAF museum to this day...
The One That Got Away (1957) starred Hardy Krüger as Luftwaffe Oberleutnant Franz von Werra, who twice escaped from POW camps in Lancashire and Derbyshire in England. On the second attempt, he nearly got to an RAF Hawker Hurricane by posing as an allied Dutch airman before he was recaptured. He was sent to a more secure camp in Canada and made a successful escape by jumping off the train before he even got to the camp, and then made a crossing of the frozen St Lawrence River to the USA, which was still neutral at the time. He managed to get back to Germany by way of Mexico, Peru, Brazil and Spain.
South African actor Hardy Krüger also played the fictional 'General Ludwig' in A Bridge Too Far, an amalgam of SS Divisional Commanders Harzer and Harmel of the 9.SS and 10.SS-Panzer-Divisions.
The title The One That Got Away was also used again as a book and 1996 film title, telling the story of the successful escape and evasion of SAS trooper Chris Ryan, from the compromised Bravo Two Zero patrol during the 1991 First Persian Gulf War. Chris was the only member of the 8-man patrol not killed or captured, and he put his successful escape to the Syrian border down to the fact that he was the one carrying the patrol's only night vision scope.
@@davemac1197 Thanks. Wouldn't mind a remake of the first film, but Hollywood would probably RAZZLE-DAZZLE it up and ruin it...like the way "A Night to Remember" (another great UK film) was supplanted by the the Awful "Titanic" movie...
@@georgemartin1436 - You're right. The interesting thing about the Bravo Two Zero film is that according to patrol leader Andy McNab, who wrote the book, a number of Hollywood studios were interested in buying the rights only to acquire the title and then make their own story, and only the BBC promised they would make the story in the book. So he sold the rights to the BBC and they made the film. Other members of the patrol, including Chris Ryan, disputed McNab's account, so even the accuracy of a book can be thrown into doubt. The escape and evasion of a pilot (I think he was a USMC Harrier pilot) shot down over Bosnia during the NATO mission there was completely re-written by Hollywood to produce Behind Enemy Lines starring Owen Wilson, so you're absolutely right with your point!
I know a great man that fought in the battle of bulge that passed away awhile back and up until he passed away, his wife said he would be screaming in bed because the blankets would be rubbing up against his feet that had frost bite. She said she would have to take the blanket off of his feet and he would sleep peaceful the rest of the night without pain from the blanket rubbing up against his feet.
BoB became a book and series necause of Doc Eugene Roe from Louisiana. Stephen Ambrose taught history in NOLA and met Doc randomly in a restaurant and struck up a friendship.
I didn't know this till later in life, but my father was one of Stephen's students at the University of New Orleans. Said he was a really great speaker when it came to getting his point across.
Hey Professor,
I really like your take on this BOB series.
There’s a movie called “ The Lost Battalion” it’s stars Ricky Schroder and a redheaded actor whose name escapes me at this time. He was in both movies. I would really love to see your take on that as well. It’s about a lost Battalion in World War I.
there's two guys in the lost battalion from bob. Robert strayer and Cleveland petty
1) Ive always appreciated that Speilberg and Hanks didnt neglecte military Chaplains.
2)I still dont undersatnd what was the deal with the USAAF fighters firing at the U S Army troops during the supply drop.
I think this was the first battle the the USA used radar active arty rounds causing a reliable airburst effect
Another good book in this time-frame is If You Survive.
George Wilson's story is a good read indeed!