America's Arctic War - The Aleutians Campaign
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- Опубліковано 1 жов 2024
- curiositystrea...
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It was the only land campaign on US soil during WW2 - the Battle of the Aleutian Islands off Alaska, where US and Japanese soldiers fought in Arctic conditions.
Dr. Mark Felton is a well-known British historian, the author of 22 non-fiction books, including bestsellers 'Zero Night' and 'Castle of the Eagles', both currently being developed into movies in Hollywood. In addition to writing, Mark also appears regularly in television documentaries around the world, including on The History Channel, Netflix, National Geographic, Quest, American Heroes Channel and RMC Decouverte. His books have formed the background to several TV and radio documentaries. More information about Mark can be found at: en.wikipedia.o...
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Disclaimer: All opinions and comments expressed in the 'Comments' section do not reflect the opinions of Mark Felton Productions. All opinions and comments should contribute to the dialogue. Mark Felton Productions does not condone written attacks, insults, racism, sexism, extremism, violence or otherwise questionable comments or material in the 'Comments' section, and reserves the right to delete any comment violating this rule or to block any poster from the channel.
My great uncle was one of the Canadians who died during this campaign. Killed by a Japanese land mine. Thank you Mark for highlighting this rarely talked about military operation.
My thanks to your great uncle who fought and lost his life so we could love ours the way we do now. My thanks might seem meaningless but it is not as I love the western way of life that was preserved by such sacrifices as your great uncle.
Honor the Brave!
Many thanks to your great uncle for his sacrifice and service to the security of North America and victory in the war.
Condolences for your uncle. My great uncle was also there on the US side.
🇨🇦 My Uncle (Roy Bickle) was there, he didn’t see any of the fighting. He would land on three more islands and become a part of a garrison there until the end of the war. “One of the lucky ones” as he was described he served but never saw combat.
My dad fought in the Aleutian Islands. William Anderton, RM1C, USS Detroit. He’s 99 now living in Lenexa Kansas.
My father was on Attu, received a Bronze star, he was on a heavy machine gun team. I live in Leawood, KS would be honored to meet your father someday.
Hero's
You guys ever stop to think perhaps your giving out too much information?
Old Cremona my father was in the U.S. Navy & the Aleutian campaign was his first taste of war in the Pacific.
My Dad also fought in the Aleutians. He served in the U.S. Army 7th Infantry Division. He passed away last year at a good old age. He was 102. Rest In Peace Dad.
Settling in tucked into bed under a warm quilt ready to enjoy this chilly tale of arctic warfare 🥶
Glad it’s not just me 😂
Just had soup and grilled cheese vs. frozen c-rations.
It’s wonderful isn’t it?!?!
What's really chilling is that Canadian/US KD ratio differential. That battle deserves it's own segment!
Don’t let the bed bugs bite!
Who else just clicks like while the opening music is still playing?
Think that's most of us
Nope. I waited 'till the end.
Guilty as charged.
Yea man. His content is great. And well researched.
Always
No conspiracy theories, just forgotten facts. Love the channel
Also, you will note, a lack of aliens.
I wonder if there'll ever be an episode on USS Liberty.
WW2 never happened it was a plot by the Clinton's and George Soros to stack the vote in Michigan 2020.
Bald and Bankrupt
There are lots of war relics - many of them Japanese - on these islands, protected by the remote location. Enter "Kiska Island" or "Attu Island" on Google Images and see for yourself. Warning: Beware of unexploded WWII ordnance if you are lucky enough to somehow get there, special permission is required from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
My father is 92 and I was just showing him a youtube video of the sinking of Bismarck. He told me how he heard about the sinking on his grandfather's crystal radio.
Then he wanted to know if there were any videos about the fighting in the Aleutians, which he had heard just a little bit about. And in ticks this great video from Mark Felton! He was elated.
Most old people who didn't happen to be in Europe will tell you that during the entire war they had no clue what's actually happening, except what the radio told them. This is particularly true for Americans and Canadians. Interest in WW2 events started in the 1950's when the events were slowly revealed and people began to get answers. This is why they made so many big budget war movies in the 1960's, and it also explains the inaccuracies. We only began to get a somewhat full picture in the 1990's.
there is also a documentary on netflix!
@@nematolvajkergetok5104 In Australia, I remember people saying they didn't hear about the Japanese bombing Darwin and other northern locations until after the war.
@@matydrum what's it called
@@iamarbiter6469 type aleucian or even just ww2 in the netflix search bar you should find it. I dont know if they still have it but they also used to have an awesome old film on a p-47 squadron in europe, in color, all filmed on the front, amazing stuff!
I knew a guy who fought there with the Navy. The weather was cold, foggy, and icy, the windchill was deadly, even the sea states were brutal. Ice formed on the ships and constantly had to be chipped off, and very few American ships were committed. The battle of Kormandosky was horrible. He felt unappreciated because no one remembered this campaign. Thanks for reminding us of these events.
Two of my uncles faced the same conditions on the Arctic convoys when they were in the merchant navy during the war. The trips were in winter to avoid the worst of the Luftwaffe's attention. Brutal hardly covers it.
@Jean Jourdain you must be French... 🤔 🙄 😆
@Jean Jourdain - like the French Army 🤣
@Jean Jourdain why was it pointless?
@Jean Jourdain It defeated a fascist regime that murdered 6 million innocent civilians and stopped a totalitarian nazi onslaught against Europe and its peoples. If you call that pointless, I can’t agree with you.
My great uncle was killed in the Battle of Attu.
He was a Japanese military doctor.
I attended a memorial service held at Yasukuni Shrine with the grandchildren of Colonel Yamazaki and the bereaved families in May.
I hope that one day all the remains left on Attu Island will be returned to their homeland.
But the Japanese government is reluctant to collect the remains of the war dead, so I honestly don't know how individuals can collect the remains of Attu Island, a U.S territory...
There is no doubt that cooperation between the understanding American people and the American government is essential.
May the friendship between Japan and the United States last forever.
The friendly fire incident was caused by an optical aleutian.
🥶🙈
Hell yeah, when he first said "Aleutian islands" I understood "Illusion islands", but I thought "OK, maybe this is because I'm actually German. A native English speaker would not misunderstand that." :-D
I hate you lol
Too soon. It'll always be too soon...
@@Rauschgenerator Ja👍
Nothing like spending my Friday watching a high quality Felton video
“High quality Felton video” is a redundant phrase as there is no other kind of Felton video.
I can't wait 6 days to watch it.
Thank you so much. My dad, SSGT Edward Gresham USAAC was on Adak. Not much is said about the North Pacific in documentary’s. He enlisted on Dec 8,1941. He was 17 turned 18 in January. He told me about the freezing cold and the horrible wind. He passed four years ago next month, my daddy is my hero.
I spent many a dreary port call on many of those islands while in the service. However, I was fond of exploring the old fortifications, enjoying a beer and taking in the commanding views. Breathtaking during the summer. Another great video Mark. 👍
My Grandfather told my dad that besides the battle it was some of the most beautiful country he'd ever seen...for a small town Kentucky boy
I would love to see these islands myself!
Actor Charlton Heston, famous for his movies like the 1970 Midway, Ben-Hur, and playing Moses in the Ten Commandments. Was a radio operator on a B-25 with the 11th AF during this campaign
Thanks for the interesting information!
I have Two of his Books. .and Autographs.
Imagine tuning in your aerial radio and hearing Heston's voice over the net.
All very realistic.
@@RCAvhstape Possibly more like Heston tapping out morse code over the net.
It’s 1 am where I am, i’m drunk, i’m tired but I need to get my fix of Mark Felton
Most people would settle for pizza. But we're not most people
Godspeed my boy
Did you sad some whiskey buddy ?
‘I was invalided out of the Pacific war’ -malaria? Heatstroke? No-frostbite
I bet there would have been days you would have loved some of that ice.
9:00 Obviously not footage from that battle.
My uncle Joe Hoffart was in the Canadian Rocky Mountain Rangers and was on Kiska. It was very windy and the Japanese left a lot of booby-traps. One of his lieutenants picked up a telephone in a cave that had been a strong point and it blew up, plastering him all over the ceiling. They were glad to leave that horrible island! He next went to Europe to fight the Germans and was there until 1946.
My pops spent a good part of the war in the Seabees building landing strips in the Aleutians. Being from Mississippi, he was duly impressed with the constant COLD.
I remember that campaign. It's when the Americans reconquered Anchorage from the Red Chinese in 2077.
2027
2021
Communism is the very definition of failure.
Blowing up those gun positions. Tough war. But you get the stealth armour which goes well with the suppressed assault rifle
Last time I was this early, China was grateful for the help in WW2
My Grandfather spent part of the war building airstrips on the Alutian islands. I am sure he would be pleased that his contribution to the war had not been forgotten.
There were numerous airfields built along the WWII Alaska-Yukon Hwy for aircraft being sent to Russia too.
Give your grandfather a hug for all of us, for all of humanity!
Probably SEABEES a L ways forgotten
My Grandfather served in this battle. Unfortunately, the women in my family hated him and disregarded his service. Thus, this part of our family's history was lost.
Thank you for posting this video!
Things do have an unfortunate way of sometimes going horribly wrong when Canadian and American forces attempt to work together in wars. On Sept. 4, 2006 two American A-10 Thunderbolts mistakenly fired on Canadian troops operating in Afghanistan killing four and injuring thirty.
Allied Officer 1: We can expect heavy casualties on this operation.
Allied Officer 2: Strong enemy presence?
Allied Officer 1: No, Americans alongside us.
The worst unintentional friendly fire might have been in Korea, when the North Koreans figured out the UN force ground signals (to overhead aircraft) and began copying them to confuse American and other coalition pilots. This led to a couple of horrible tragedies where the pilots didn't realize their mistake until it was too late. I think they did change the messaging system, but talk about a MAJOR loss of communications to the enemy.
My granddad Charlie Farmer was in this, wounded twice on Attu Island. RIP you old fart, we miss you
I bet Gramps was one tough S.O.B,but a nice,fun guy to be around.
@@spiderreed350 He was indeed. I was in awe of him, he was larger than life. And to hear him tell it he got shot up by the entire Japanese army
@@tbrian420 wow.I used to pick the braines of the vets from ww2,Korea, Vietnam at the VFW in Ct back in the 1980' and 90's.I was so intrigued by the stories. But nowadays the ww2 vets are around 100 years old,there's very few left.I just have the utmost respect for them all.I just wish our country did a lot more for those brave souls.
@@spiderreed350 Indeed. Our treatment of vets has always been shameful. Read about the "Bonus Army" from WW1 if haven't already.
@@tbrian420 I will check that out,thanks.
I know this campaign really was overshadowed by battle of midway and considered as a "background battle" but one can die just as easily. Pretty brutal conditions too.
If I remember right the Canadians on Kiska wore a combination of Canadian and American gear in hopes of avoiding friendly fire incidents, obviously, it didn't work.
My Uncle was in the Rocky Mountain Rangers in Kiska. He did wear a combination of US and Canadian kit. Not for the friendly fire issue. The US was tasked with supply of the mission. The Canadian army used their own firearms but used a strange combination of kit. He kept his US kit and wore it through the war in NW Europe. His US jacket was far more comfortable than the itchy wool one that they were issued. He didn’t care what he wore in Europe.
@stubs 1 like? I can’t recall any other units that had US kit in the Canadian army. Plenty of weapons as you could find Thompson’s, the occasional 1911 but I don’t think there was too much kit worn except for 13th Canadian Infantry Brigade.
@stubs 1 And up to the release of the M1 helmet, US troops had worn the British model helmet!
@stubs 1 No they did NOT. Canadian units were initially equipped with British equipment and then by Canadian manufactured British equipment. Radios, Bren guns, Sten guns, Lee-Enfield rifles, Mills bombs, Universal carrier AFVs, anti-tank guns, field artillery and ammo. US Lend-Lease fighting equipment supplied was C-47 transport planes, some medium bombers, Jeeps, M3 half tracks, and SOME M4 Sherman tanks (a fraction of total British wartime tank manufacture). It's also forgotten that the British Commonwealth supplied huge quantities of raw materials, gasoline, metals and foodstuffs to the US war effort as well as tech (radar, radionav, artillery) as well as finished products such as Australian radios and British artillery ammo as 'REVERSE LEND-LEASE'. It's a MYTH that "America supplied everyone".
The Americans did find out casualty wise that attacking Canadians is a generally bad idea....
That's soldiers were heroes ,alone of Fighting the could . I no imagine the soffering, here in Brazil climate tropical . Thanks Mr. Felton , great job .
Tinha que ter um brazuca puxa saco de gringo por aqui... No mínimo é crentelho e bolsomínion, acertei?
Video suggestion: The land battle on Greenland between secret German radio stations and the Greenland Dog Sleigh Patrol, guest starring Bernt Balchen with four US bombers.
Can you elaborate? I am interested in this subject.
@@Schalazarro Why, this is exactly why I suggested it to Dr. Felton. In a nutshell, the Germans kept sending 10-15 strong crews to set up weather observation and radio listening stations on the Eastern shore of Greenland while the Americans were building airbases on the Western side. Greenland, at the time technically an independent nation, set up an "army" of 15 hunters to look out for these German stations. This was the smallest army in the war. Eventually an odd kind of warfare developed: teams of 2-3 people playing deadly hide and seek in the vast Arctic ice field, occasionally firing a few shots, burning shelter houses. Ultimately the US Army Air Force used two B-24's, supported by two B-17's as "escort fighters" against German Condors, to bomb a shelter house occupied by the Germans and later one of these bases. These were the first air attacks beyond the polar circle, and they were commanded by none else than Col. Bernt Balchen, the world famous Norwegian-American aviator, who, among other things, was Richard Byrd's pilot during the first ever flight over the South Pole. Recommended reading: Bernt Balchen: War Below Zero. You can find and read it online.
@@nematolvajkergetok5104 This is incredible story! Would be great if mr.Mark would do a video about it.
@@nematolvajkergetok5104 @Nem a Tolvajkergetők My father was there and from what I could find out was not on the west side of the island and was supporting the 115 strong "army" of Greenland as he never mentioned air bases. I would like to see more on this too.
I think he already covered this awhile back.
I'm a simple man, i see Dr. Felton and i click.
My father-in-law served in Adak during WW2 as a signalman. He survived WW2, missed his homeward bound ship, which sank.
Consequently, his mother got a telegram of his death.
He boarded another ship, made it safely home. At 3 AM he knocked on his mother's door - at first his mom thought she was seeing a ghost! It was a very happy reunion.
That's quite a story! I wonder what stroke of luck caused him to miss his ship?
Thank you Dr. Felton for an episode on the war in the Aleutians. My father’s Catalina went down during the Battle of Dutch Harbor, the opening salvo of the Battle of Midway. With his 30 days of Survivor’s Leave, he went home to Chicago to marry my Mom. Again, thank you.
I am surprised Mark did not include the Japanese bombing of Dutch Harbor, Alaska, by the light aircraft carriers Ryujo and Junyo in the opening phase of this campaign in Mid-1942 as part of this video.
I was just about to sleep. Damn you, Mark Felton!
Damn you, Mark Felton? You know you don't mean it.
@@bigblue6917 I don't :)
Fact:Ha-Go tank is the only Axis Tank that land on American soil
Or any kind of enemy tank that's not a war trophy.
There are lots of war relics - many of them Japanese - on these islands, protected by the remote location. Enter "Kiska Island" or "Attu Island" on Google Images and see for yourself. Warning: Beware of unexploded WWII ordnance if you are lucky enough to somehow get there, special permission is required from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
Ha-Go ... is that what the crew say when they finally get it started?
Hey Mark, just wanna let you know how much we appreciate the work and effort that goes into these vids. Thank you for telling history and keeping it alive
I knew a fellow from my Regiment, the PPCLI, who was in the Aleutian Islands during the War. All he told me was, it was bloody cold. I live on Vancouver Island recognize names like Kiska.
Is he still alive?
I would have thought Canadians would have been more used to the cold
@@bigblue6917 - I don't know where Big Boy Blue's friend was from but Vancouver is the mildest part of Canada; many winters, it doesn't snow at all and average temperatures are something like 7C. Not tropical but certainly not the Arctic wasteland most foreigners imagine. Farther north and east though will be noticeably colder; then you get into temperatures and snow approaching Siberia in many places.
I've some pictures, from my mums first husband.I believe he was with the London Fusiliers, maybe subbed to the special services( Devil's Brigade). He did survive this campaign, he's buried in Belgium.
@@bigblue6917 i live in saskatchewan, its colder here than Alaska, but I can testify that - 30 clear calm and sunny feels much warmer than -5 damp with a high wind . My father lived back east , said cattle and horses needed to be kept in at - 10 or they might freeze, here they can survive -50
Ohhh Happy Friday!
Dr Felton is finally here to make my birthday complete ♥️
Peace
Charlie 🇬🇧
Happy Birthday!
10:16 mark Yes US and Canadian forces. This was the first deployment of the Devil's Brigade.
As well as canadians from 6th infantry div and 13th brigade.
The 1SSF was there, but so were units from the Canadian Army, part of 6th Division.
Nah, I saw the movie and that part wasn't in there.
My grandfather was a USN Seabee that fought & built airstrips on Attu in 1943. I have his photo album which is full of great photographs from his time there, including a few captured Japanese photos.
WOW, rare stuff. Can you post these photos on-line? Maybe titled: "Attu Island 1943 - A Veteran's Photos".
Same here. I found an old photo album of Adak and Kiska. Has pictures of dead Japanese and GI’s, the invasion fleet, etc. Really wild stuff. I’d like to send the images to someplace that documents such things, but I don’t know where.
Go SEABEES always forgotten. Not by me
Last time I was this early, the Japanese still had 6 aircraft carriers...
Well, now that’s just mean.
It’s true, but still mean.
lmao
Wait till you get to the Midway point......
@@ezekielhuzarski9171 That helped them a lot......
@@ezekielhuzarski9171 20 Decades of naval technology aft of those dates belonged to one little island and it wasn't Japan. Types of ships doesn't make them good at the job. What makes them good is being battle winning. Japan had a good naval fleet but it was cut in half at Midway. Facts is facts.....
My Grandpa's brother was a part of this. The jeep he was in flipped and he broke his back.
My grandpa also served in the Pacific under MacArthur
I had a neighbor years ago who was stationed there. He told me all the miss fits were sent there. The winter gear was non existent and they were very unprepared. There were more casualties from frost bite than anything else.
It wouldn't have been helped by the supply situation ... you know, where some supply clerk gets one digit wrong and instead of being sent 100 winter sleeping bags you get a fire truck instead.
I live in Alaska on the Kenai Peninsula and I have to say it's great to hear you cover this Mark. It's a subject that isn't talked about in school or anywhere really. Thanks for covering this often forgotten part of the war.
Was it covered at your school as a kid?
I assume Alaskans get more Alaska history than Utahans.
Aye I’m also live on the peninsula, what town?
@@DAndyLord barely in normal school, but I did read a good book on it
@@taylor5065 I live in Clam Gulch but Kenai and Soldotna are the two towns I send most of my time for work. Where are you at?
There's not much reason to talk about it, since it was basically a feint to distract from Midway. The Japanese could have been starved out without any real issue, but Island Hopping wasn't really appreciated at the time.
Guam and other islands were “sovereign U.S. territory” and occupied earlier.
Says you! You're just a bill! Yeah you're only a bill, and you'll never be a law!
In fact Japan itself was widely regarded as a rogue American province.
@Guy Incognito Wake Island?
Yet another little known, fascinating episode of WW2 revealed by the good doctor!
I suggest doing something on the “Liberated” US ,British , French POW’s in Eastern Europe by the Red Army.
That's got to be interesting. 👍
Back in the day we knew an English POW who had been freed by advancing Soviet troops. There was no bollocks about him being sent to a recuperation camp to be checked out by medical staff. He was simply given a rifle and told he would now be fighting alongside the Russians. He never talked about what he'd witnessed but we got the message it wasn't pretty.
@Josef D Yes look up the Nemmesdorf Massacre. The French and Belgain POWs were executed by the Red Army
I thought in 1990’s that Russia admitted to keeping American, British, Canadian, Australian, and many other former POWs (usually spies or intelligence operatives) recapture from Germany in Soviet prisons for use as hostages in future actions against western powers held till their deaths and removed all evidence of their existence in the Soviet Union, however one must note that Soviet Union did liberate and return almost all allied POWs to their respective nations exceptions however there are some French POWs were kept but eventually returned/traded for liberated Soviet POWs . That would be a very interesting topic if nothing else it make a great controversy !?
Mahad Hosh the French weren’t in the position to do anything and the fact goebbels used it as propaganda gave the Russians an easy denial.
My grandfather fought there. A native Alaskan. He said the majority of the men came from down south. The clothing and equipment made most men succumb to that climate. You were more likely to face frozen feet than enemy. He made a sling once, from a dead soldier's boot tongue as they tried to advance. Cut it off with the laces. He grew up making hunting contraptions for necessity similar to the "David vs goliath" in rural Alaska. As men went to man a gun beneath a hill and all died trying. He made that one thing he knew the best he could. Slung it the best he could, and to his disbelief...it worked. They advanced and took that hill. He never told his kids about these events. He did tell my father who was his son in law. Who only told me after he passed away. He died on June 15 2009 in Anchorage, Alaska. Grandpa was born Sept. 26, 1919, in Marshall. He served in the U.S. Army's 317th Infantry Division during World War II in the Aleutians campaign. He was honorably discharged in 1947.
He retired from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Alaska Railroad, on Sept. 23, 1977, after 31 years.
Fred was married to Mary Goode Pete for 53 years until her death on May 6, 2006. They enjoyed the outdoors, going on family vacations, hunting, trapping, camping and picking berries. He also was a great carpenter.
They lived in North Pole from 1952 until 1977, when they moved to Selawik.
These men fought a good fight. Let us never forget their bravery and commitment to push through....regardless of the hellish cold and relentless enemy they faced.
Thanks. My Dad was at Attu and Kiska. He just missed being in the location of the last charge on Attu. Some of his friends survived by playing dead. The Japanese over ran hospital tents. Many Japanese were so exhausted and tired of the cold they killed themselves with Grenades . He was in a number of amphibious assaults in the Pacific. He said that the Assault on Kiska scared him the most as the landing sites were so open and rocky. He was glad the Japanese were gone. It's and interesting Campaign that should get more attention.
My Great Uncle served there. He said the ships were covered with ice and guys would slide off. He was a Tech Sgt and shared a tent with another Sergeant. He said the other Sergeant would make his men get out in the cold to drill. One day, one of the guys walked into their tent and shot the guy and walked back out. Nothing became of it.
not long ago they found the body of a US Soldier that has been missing from the war.
A (late) friend of mine served with the US Army in the Aleutians as a teenager. He didn't see combat, but remembers being freaked out by the northern lights. Nobody in command could explain what they were all seeing.
The Americans lost twice as many men to disease then they did actual fighting on attu, with around 549 dying in combat and 1,814 from illness. Such a grim and sadly forgotten battle
Fantastic video as always Mark Felton! The Aleutian campaign is one of my personal favorite overlooked stories of WWII. A friend of my parents when they lived in Alaska was Charles “Muktuk” Marston who helped form Alaska’s Home Guard largely made up of Inuit soldiers in response Mio the Japanese invasion of the Aleutians. Later on he helped draft Alaska’s state constitution and to help secure civil rights for Native Alaskans. Also the Aleutians were the first campaign fought by my state, Colorado’s most celebrated unit, the 10th Mountain Division(at the time known as the 87th Mountain Infantry Regiment).
The father of one of my boyhood friends, a neighbor just across the street, the was caught up in this.
He was with a mechanized artillery outfit.
Cold, foggy gray and dismal was how he put it. Many fellow veterans refused to believe that the US had fought in Alaska. ( The news witheld from the Public during the war.)
One of his hobbies was to start fights at the many bars in town. The other to drive stock cars.
Interesting guy, he always let us keep some of the change from cashing in the beer bottles for the bottle deposit, this back when the glass beer bottles were washed, sanitized and refilled.
My Father-in-Law was in the Aleutians...at Dutch Harbor. He was in the Army and they cleared the snow from the runways and guarded the airfield. He said the weather conditions were extremely dangerous for the aircraft...fog, snow, sleet and high winds caused many plane crashes. On at least one occasion they were bombed by Japanese aircraft. He did bring home many Eskimo artifacts which my wife and her six brothers and sisters used for "show and tell" presentations in grade school. The Nuns did not know there were battles in Alaskan territory during the war!
Wow! I knew the Japanese invaded some islands in the Aleutian Islands, but i didn't know it was that important.
This channel never ceases to amaze
Called research.
The Americans and Canadians accidentally fighting each other must have been a “bruh” moment for the generals
Americans have an gigantic track record of killing friendly soldiers. In every war they fought. Which according to Wikipedia, are over 400 (wars).
I would not be surprised by this at all. Japanese on American soil not a well-known fact by Americans? This is also where we were able to get our hands on an almost intact Zero fighter for the first time. It was a small theater TBH.
A family member who is not biologically related but considered family was on DD475 USS Hudson up in the Aleutian islands
He was a intelligence officer. We still have some of the orders including , orders for the surrender of the Japanese and he was at on point in charge of the guns onboard which we have the book he was given that explained all US naval guns inside and out. It was classified at the time. I want to know where I would go to learn more about him. His name was Edwin Ace Parker. Sadly he passed away four years ago.
Could you imagine have to fight a battle in that frozen hellhole? Maybe better to have cut off their supplies and leave them there to freeze and starve.
My father in law was one of Castner's cutthroats, he earned bronze star on Attu.
My grandfather was in the navy and stationed at Dutch Harbor. He never spoke a word about it.
I live in Alaska, so this comes close to home for me.
I live in an igloo so this comes close to home for me
This is the 3rd video I've seen today when I've showed up minutes after it came out. Nice
Thank god. You saved me from Friday night tv. Thanks very much
Nobody:
My finger: "Accidentally clicks"
Mark Felton: *Hello there*
It's a Happy Accident, as Bob Ross would say.
-Americans fighting Japanese in the Aleutians: 1:4 casualty rate.
-Americans fighting Canadians in the Aleutians: 4:1 casualty rate.
-The moral: be extra polite to our neighbors to the north!
I had a teacher in high school who was stationed in the Aleutions in WWII. He told how the soldiers made alchohol using raisins. They called it 'raisin jack'.
Amazing to me that no one knew that the Japanese were not even there. Sir Mark as usual you never disappoint. 🇺🇸🇬🇧
The power of American and Canadian shelling of Kiska, drove the Japanese off the Island or the Japanese realised there was no strategic advantage for them to hold it and better to deploy their forces elsewhere. And perhaps the 'Friendly Fire' incident on Kiska, although tragic, was a good lesson on communications and identification that served to save lives in later battles. One would hope so.
They had value. Once reclaimed, US bombers could reach Northern Japan.
@@WALTERBROADDUS That was probably the primary reason for the Japanese occupying them.
@@WALTERBROADDUS but the U.S. could bomb Japan from Attu without Kiska.
On Google Earth you can see what look like shell craters, many water-filled, around Gertrude Cove (shown on the map at 11:30) as well as zigzag trenches parallel to the beaches on the isthmus/peninsula.
My grandfather was in the Aleutian island campaign. Aircraft mechanic
Great work as always, Dr. Felton.
Greetings from Uruguay.
The battle of Kiska sounds like a SOUTH PARK episode.
Right? Must have been an embarrassment for both sides. Although terrible, I'm at least curious how it was so one-sided for the Canadians.
I don't know why but I still find myself amazed at the footage you are able to locate and present to us. How you keep doing it at the frequency you achieve is beyond my comprehension but please don't stop. I have become accustomed now to sitting on my lounge with my mouth open. Thank you just does not seem adequate.
I suspect a lot of the footage is filmed elsewhere but is used to tell the story. It's not misleading because helps us understand what happened.
@@TheJohhnyrotten you may be correct. I still find it incredible some of the footage he presents.
Imagine being told that you’re being sent to the Pacific but instead of fighting on tropical islands against an unrelenting enemy you’re sent to a frozen hellhole to fight an unrelenting enemy.
To be honest I don’t know what’s worse
One is hot ,the other is cold, take your pick.
A new video from Dr. Felton??
Tea time!!
;)
I love the Red Orchestra 2 banzai sound effects
Was looking for this comment lol
@@oliverpeters3288 same here lol
That’s really surprising that there was a battle against USA vs Japan in Alaska during world war 2 this is a really fascinating story as usual mark
What a horrible friendly fire incident on Kiska! It really shows, that you need to know how to ID your targets.
In some conflicts they even tie colored bands to clothing and guns to see that they are not killing each other. Ive seen it done in Syria.
Greetings,
Jeff
We Canadians won
@@power2084 Thats uh... one way of looking at it. >__>
@@planescaped you bet it is !
There's a BC-based seine boat named for the battle of Attu. Its captained by a family friend, and I was just on her a few days ago as they were laid up in Nanaimo waiting for an opening. Fortuitous for you to post a video about the battle two days later.
Operation cottage. (battle of Kiska) where the Japanise win without existing. Now that's how it's done.
The evacuation of Kiska's Japanese personnel from under the nose of the USN is worth a video of its own. Quite an incredible story.
After the battle of Kiska, Japan said 'This was our plan all along!'
I recall that my Dad saying tha he had paticipated in the Attu and Kiska attacks. He was on one of the US Naval supply ships in the first and on a destoyer with the second. I later learned in ROTC that the Japanese invasions of the Aleutains was primarily as a militry fake out, or an attempt to do so, because Midway was the primary goal. I think that the Pacific War sounds a bit like a chess game too --- consider the battle of Gaudalcanal.
That sounds reasonable.
Nothing better than watching obscure epic Mark Felton videos 2 days before my birthday
Happy Birthday in advance!
@@MarkFeltonProductions thanks!
Good stuff. Would like to see a video on other Arctic warfare in WW2 -- Greenland, Iceland, Svalbard, Jan Mayen, etc. Recently they found remains of a German weather station in northern Canada that wasn't previously known.
Already made such a video.
My father ran a warehouse when I was a kid. He had a retired man who worked for him part time - his wife also worked for my dad and he wanted to keep busy.
When I was a teenager we had a blizzard that shut down the roads. So the man and his wife stayed the night with us.
He served in the Aleutian campaign. If anything this video understates the horrible conditions.
Thank you for reminding people of these forgotten battles.
So the only modern battle between the US and Canada, and they smoked us? Sounds about right 🤣
Don’t think much of Mark’s wall plastering skills but his channel is awesome 😊
I got into an argument in 10th grade with my history teacher over just this very area. He kept firm that no enemy had ever been able to invade US soil since Poncho. I brought this up & he got pissed & stated these islands were not part of the US & regardless he was referring to the "continental" US (which is NOT what he said). Just to end the argument & avoid punishment I conceded that "no not the continental US, but the islands were part of the US".
@Guy Incognito homeland should have been soil actually, sorry about that.
Ah yes! Mark Felton on a Friday! 👍
He would wait until reinforcements from Japan arrived.
Reinforcements from Japan never arrived...for anyone...anywhere.
The island contingents were just left to die with no support most of the time.
Mark, u should do a vid on the "ALCAN" highway. Prior to the war their was no road running all the way from the lower 48 to Alaska. It is one of the bigger engineering projects of the war.
That and the Canol pipeline project and refinery were also part of the effort to fortify Alaska and NW Canada. Would make a great subject!
By lower 48, I'm guessing that you mean States? As the 49th state would be Hawaii?
..and the Kemano Power Project built inside of a mountain during the Korean War.
@@randommadness1021 Oh Barry my man, where's ur pop culture history knowledge? Alaska is the 49th and Hawaii the 50th (actually they were both admitted in 59 but someones got be 49 and the other 50). Everyone knows Hawaii is 50 because Steve Maggaret works for "Hawaii 5-0"......now them, book em Dan-o.
@@randommadness1021 49th is Alaska, 50th is Hawaii. Lower 48 is a saying from before Hawaii's statehood and has just remained like many Alaskan specific sayings.
My Dad was in the landing force on Attu, 7th Div 32nd Inf., he received his first Purple Heart there. Later found out that my Father-In-Law was in the Sea Bees on Attu after the invasion force left.
The battle of the Aleutian Islands is also called The Forgotten War.
Also there's a 1965 WW2 movie based on the battle of Kiska "The Retreat from Kiska".
The authoritative book on this campaign is titled "The Thousand Mile War" and is still in print.
Nice, but I would recommend more maps and less propaganda reels. There was also a much bigger story in the advance of the Americans from Dutch Harbor, setting up airfields along the way before they got to range of Kiska. Also notable that the shelling and bombing was mostly ineffective except agains shipping... couldn't really see their targets.
The Naval battle of Komandanski was an epic one that might be worth more than a mention.
It could be argued that the americans should have just setup an airbase and bombed them weather permitting as harassment but making the resupply ships the real target.
They couldn't see their targets to hit them and both shelling and boming were mostly useless... but killing troop and supply ships was another matter.
There was a political will to "drive them out", but here, I think just picking off ships was a better tactic while harassing/recon missions would be secondary to keeping pilots from flying into the ocean.
The Attu landing was badly done (without enough cold weather clothing - weather claimed more lives than the Japanese did on land and in the air) and Kiska was abandoned before we could get to it. They were shelling the hell out of an abandoned base.
They didn't look like they were dressed for the conditions. Looked a lot like Korea would a few years later
My father served with the East Anglian Regiment in Korea and has remarked not only how brutally cold it was in winter where tents used to catch fire as the chimneys of their heater were seriously overstoked, but that the summers we’re oppressively hot as well, all of which added to the constant rear of being taken out by Chinese snipers! Being a first class shot with a 303 and a marksman with a Sten was always reassuring for him. I became close to a young South Korean couple when I walked the Camino in Spain last year and they were eternally grateful for the efforts to keep Korea free from communism.
Fear nor rear! Damned predictive texting!
I believe Dr. Felton made an error here. He says Aleutians was the only land campaign on American soil in WWII, Alaska at the time being a US territory. I believe however there was a land battle on Guam (2 actually) which was a US territory since 1898 and under US jurisdiction and thus US soil.
I find it interesting that Canadian troops when fighting in Europe were outfitted in British equipment, most notably wearing the soup-bowl helmets. During the invasion of Kiska, Canadian troops were outfitted in American-style infantry gear.
It is also interesting to note the Japanese troops that were evacuated out of Kiska were members of the Japanese Army 44th Independent Mixed Brigade. Ironically, the U.S. Army 7th Infantry Division who invaded Kiska - as well as Attu - would later meet the 44th Independent Mixed Brigade during the Battle of Okinawa less than two years later.
The 7th Infantry Division was being trained in the early days of the war in the Mojave desert in preparation for deployment for an Allied invasion of North Africa, which became known as Operation Torch. Imagine the surprise of the 7th Division troops when they were sent - not to fight the Germans in the sands of North Africa, but rather fight the Japanese in the sub-Arctic Aleutian Islands!
Of all of the division-sized combat forces in the Pacific Theater, the 7th Division certainly had the most interesting combat history; trained for desert warfare, its first combat was in the sub-Arctic Aleutians Islands in mid-1943. Next, the Division was part of the invasion of Kwajalein and Eniwetok Atolls in the tropical Marshall Islands in the Winter of 1944. Then the 7th Division was one of the units involved the invasion of Leyte in the Phillipines in October 1944. In the spring of 1945, the "Hourglass" Division was involved in the murderous Battle of Okinawa.
Hats off to the men of the U.S. Army 7th Infantry Division - they quite literally fought the entire scope of the Pacific War, from top to bottom and in between!
Awesome...thanks for the info
Wow. Never knew the Japanese actually occupied any American soil at all during WWII. That's a shame about the American/Canadian friendly fire battle. Would've thought somehow that they would have realised much sooner that it was friendlies they were fighting than they did. I know communication would have been difficult away up there, but you would think that someone would have spotted an American or Canadian flag well before it turned into a full scale assault. And I'm guessing this happened before the Americans broke the Japanese coms or they would've known about the Japanese evacuation?
Fun fact one of the only times a German soldier set foot on the Americas was in the islands of Martinique which was under Vichy french control the story is that a German submarine was forced to dock in the island due to some of its crew being extremely sick they were somewhat allowed to get supplies and medicine but only secretly as to not alert the Americans also there was combat in French Guiana via an American invasion and a free French uprising so the aluetian islands campaign wasn’t the only battle in the Americas
Well, the only battle that took place in one of the 50 states.
@@Dee-nonamnamrson8718 Alaska wasn't a state back then
Trooper_coolwarrior well so ain’t Guam or midway so it is the only time when the axis landed in us state soil
Actually, a few U-boatmen set foot on US beaches in WWII helping agents to land from rubber dinghies, and a whole armed team went fully ashore in Canada to set up an automatic weather station.
No the Germans also "invaded" Canada and Greenland, putting weather stations on both.
My Grandfathers George Gibson and Marvin Shelmam were there in WW2 in the US Army sadly I do not know ranks, unit or division, but they were both on the Island of Attu
8:48 BANZAI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
BANZAI!!!!!!
The only reason I know about this is that my father was on the USS Worden (DD352) that went down after it ran aground around Dutch Harbor. He ended up on the USS Heerman (yes, the one from the Battle of Leyte Gulf). Of course, I didn't find out any of this until after he died, since he never talked about he war.