Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck

This guy was an amazing general. Outnumbered by a LOT, all the time, all he did was win...every time.

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I like this actor!

Cesar Julio Romero, Jr., was contracted with Twentieth Century-Fox in 1937 and starred in nearly 50 films before WW2; however, after the US entered the war, Romero preferred to serve his country. On Oct 22, 1942, he enlisted in the US Coast Guard as an Apprentice Seaman. His enlistment made national headlines.
According to the US Coast Guard Official website: "In Oct 1942, Romero voluntarily enlisted in the US Coast Guard and saw service in the Pacific Theatre. After 10 weeks at the Coast Guard’s West Coast boot camp, in Alameda, California, Cesar reported aboard the Coast Guard-manned assault transport USS Cavalier in Nov., 1943 and saw action at Tinian and Saipan.
"Romero preferred to be one of the crew and asked for no special privileges, which he did not receive.
His shipmates admired him for this and for his exceptionally hard work. Romero was considered to be one of the best winch operators, swinging 18,000 lb. barges from their deck cradles over the side of the transport during invasions or while loading cargo. Among other duties he was first powderman on the forward five-inch gun. When an occasion permitted recreation, Romero helped put on a variety show for the crew. Later in the war he assisted in Bond rallies." - US Coast Guard press release
Cesar Romero was honorably discharged from the US Coast Guard with the rank of Chief Boatswain's Mate at the end of the war.
With a career that spanned almost six decades, Cesar Romero was a star of stage, screen, television and radio.
Chief Boatswain's Mate Cesar Romero passed away in California on Jan 1, 1994, at the age of 86.

On March 18, 1942, three U.S. Navy airmen, Harold Dixon (41), Tony Pastula (24), and Gene Aldrich (22), sat on a small life raft in Honolulu, telling reporters how they survived one of WW2 most incredible ordeals.

Their story began on Jan 16, 1942, when they took off from the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise on a patrol mission over the Pacific. Flying in a Douglas TBD Devastator, they were ordered to keep radio silence. During the mission, they became lost and could not find their way back to the carrier.
With fuel nearly gone, pilot Harold Dixon was forced to land the plane on the open ocean. The aircraft sank fast, taking most of their survival gear with it. The three men climbed into a tiny rubber raft with very limited food and water.

(Pastula, Dixon & Aldrich)

For 34 days, they drifted more than 1,000 miles, surviving on rainwater and small rations. Against all odds, they reached Pukapuka Atoll, a friendly island. A week later, a Navy seaplane rescued them, alive, exhausted, but unbroken.

(The raft used by the Americans)

Audie Murphy went from a small-town Texas farm kid to becoming one of the most decorated American soldiers of WWII. Despite his small stature, he repeatedly held off larger German forces, most famously standing his ground against tanks and infantry while wounded — actions that earned him the Medal of Honor.

After the war he returned home, struggled with what we now recognize as PTSD, and later became a successful actor — even starring as himself in To Hell and Back. Always thought his story was a strong reminder that real heroes don’t always look the way you expect.

"On the morning of 7 April 1945, Capt Charles Hazlitt Upham, the only combat soldier to receive the Victoria Cross twice, stood before King George VI in the ballroom of Buckingham Palace for his investiture.
The NZ infantryman, already a holder of the VC for extraordinary bravery on Crete in 1941, had earned a bar to it for repeated acts of valour and leadership during the Western Desert campaign in 1942. Now, with his citation being read aloud, he faced the King—himself a veteran of the WW1—who pinned the decoration to his tunic with quiet respect. The ceremony took place amid the final months of the war in Europe, a time when such moments of recognition carried profound meaning for a nation and its allies still fighting for victory.

King George VI, who had refused to leave London during the Blitz and who spoke directly to his people through every dark hour, understood courage intimately. In shaking hands with Upham—a modest, determined soldier who had faced death repeatedly and survived—he honoured not only one man's gallantry but the countless acts of bravery performed by ordinary men and women across the conflict.

This photograph captures a rare and powerful intersection: a king who led through example meeting a soldier who fought beyond example, in a room heavy with history yet filled with the simple dignity of shared respect. A timeless reminder that true valour needs no fanfare—only the quiet acknowledgment of one brave soul to another".

"Mush" Morton and the USS Wahoo

Yeah, this is a bit long but it's the Fat Electrician so I figured no one would really mind too much.

May 3, 1945 — As the war in Europe neared its end, senior German officers arrived near Hamburg seeking surrender. They were received by Miles Christopher Dempsey (1896/1969) commander of the British Second Army, who verified their authority—but chose not to take the historic moment for himself. Instead, he sent them onward, allowing Bernard Montgomery to formally accept the surrender the following day at Lüneburg Heath surrender. It was a quiet decision, but one that would shape how history remembered the end of the war, placing another name in the spotlight while his own remained largely unknown.
Yet Dempsey’s record spoke for itself. On D-Day landings, he commanded forces across Gold, Sword, and Juno beaches, leading over half a million men into occupied Europe. His rapid advances after Normandy liberated Brussels and Antwerp, and he became the first British commander to cross the Rhine in 1945.

In 1912, Milunka Savić (1895/1973) - a woman, really- made a decision that would define her life and etch her name into history. When her brother was too ill to serve in the Balkan Wars, she cut her hair, donned men’s clothing, and joined the Serbian army under the name Milun Savić.
Milunka fought undetected for nearly a year, proving herself to be an elite soldier and a gifted grenadier. Her secret was only revealed during the Second Balkan War (1913) at the Battle of Bregalnica, where she was wounded in the chest by a Bulgarian shell. While treating her injuries, army doctors discovered “Milun” was actually a woman.
When her true identity was revealed, her commanding officer was in a bind. She was one of his best soldiers, but military law didn’t exactly have a “decorated female infantry” clause. He offered her a transfer to a nursing division. Milunka refused, insisting she belonged on the front lines. The officer told her he would think it over and give her an answer the next day. Milunka reportedly stood at attention and replied: “I will wait.” After standing in the cold for only an hour, the officer relented and sent her back to the infantry.
During the Great War, Savić’s reputation reached international proportions. She was a key member of the elite “Iron Regiment.” Her skill with hand grenades was particularly feared; she was known for her "accuracy of a sniper" when clearing enemy trenches.

She is the only woman to ever receive the French Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 with a gold palm. She was also awarded the British Order of St Michael and St George, the Russian Order of St. George, and the French Legion of Honour (twice).
Despite her fame, Milunka’s later years were defined by quiet selflessness. After the war, she turned down an offer to move to France (where she would have received a comfortable pension) to stay in Belgrade. She worked as a cleaning lady, a bank teller, and a factory worker. However, she used her modest means to adopt and raise over 30 orphaned children in addition to her own daughter.

Milunka died in 1973 at the age of 84. Today, she is remembered as a national hero in Serbia, a woman who went to war for her brother and ended up becoming a legend of the 20th century.

Desmond Doss served as a U.S. Army medic with the 77th Infantry Division during World War II and became one of the most unlikely heroes of the Pacific. A devout Seventh-day Adventist, he refused to carry a weapon, earning him the label of conscientious objector — and no small amount of skepticism from fellow soldiers early on. But in combat, particularly during the brutal fighting on Okinawa in 1945, Doss proved his worth beyond any doubt. While his unit suffered heavy casualties atop the Maeda Escarpment—nicknamed “Hacksaw Ridge”—Doss repeatedly ran into enemy fire to treat and evacuate the wounded, often staying behind after ordered retreats to search for survivors.

Over the course of a single night, he is credited with saving approximately 75 men, lowering them one by one down the face of the escarpment using a rope system he improvised under fire. Each time, he reportedly prayed, “Lord, help me get one more,” before returning into the chaos. Wounded multiple times himself in later actions, Doss refused evacuation until others were treated first. For his extraordinary bravery and selflessness, he was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Harry S. Truman—becoming the first conscientious objector in American history to receive it. His story stands as a reminder that battlefield courage can take many forms, and that sometimes the most unarmed man on the field can be the most dangerous to the enemy.

Lyudmila Pavlichenko was one of the most lethal snipers of World War II, serving with the Soviet Red Army during the brutal fighting on the Eastern Front. A university student when the war began, she volunteered for combat and quickly proved herself in the siege battles around Odessa and Sevastopol. By the time she was pulled from the front lines due to wounds, she had 309 confirmed kills—making her one of the most successful snipers in history. Her skill, patience, and ability to operate under constant pressure earned her the nickname “Lady Death” among German troops, who reportedly attempted to lure her out with taunts over loudspeakers.

After her combat service, Pavlichenko was sent on a goodwill tour to the United States, where she met President Franklin D. Roosevelt and became friends with Eleanor Roosevelt. Speaking to American audiences, she famously cut through the spectacle with a blunt reminder of the war’s reality: “I’m 25 years old and I have killed 309 fascist invaders. Don’t you think, gentlemen, that you have been hiding behind my back for too long?” It was a stark contrast to the usual wartime propaganda—a front-line soldier speaking plainly about what the war demanded.

I'm embarrassed to admit that I had never heard of Gen Walter Kruger until 

I stumbled upon this video. My bad.  Maybe the most competent all round soldier 

in U.S. history? I could argue that. 

Posted by: @mtk

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I'm embarrassed to admit that I had never heard of Gen Walter Kruger until 

I stumbled upon this video. My bad.  Maybe the most competent all round soldier 

in U.S. history? I could argue that. 

And with little fanfare. I was betting on a MacArthur or even Eisenhower. 😶 

Alvin Cullum York — Sergeant, U.S. Army (Medal of Honor)

Alvin York was a quiet farmer from Tennessee who became one of the most famous American soldiers of World War I. Initially reluctant to fight due to his religious beliefs, he eventually served with the 82nd Division in France. During the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in October 1918, York’s unit came under heavy machine-gun fire that pinned them down and caused significant casualties. With most of his comrades incapacitated, York took it upon himself to act.

Using his rifle and pistol with remarkable precision, he systematically eliminated multiple machine-gun positions and forced the surrender of a large German force—reportedly capturing 132 prisoners almost single-handedly. His actions broke the enemy resistance in that sector and allowed the American advance to continue. For this, he was awarded the Medal of Honor.

What makes York’s story stand out is not just the feat itself, but the man behind it. He had struggled deeply with the idea of going to war at all, only reconciling it through a sense of duty. After the war, despite offers of wealth and public attention, York largely returned to a quiet life, focusing on education and community work in Tennessee. His story became widely known through the film Sergeant York, but by all accounts, he remained the same modest man long after the spotlight faded—doing something extraordinary, and then going back to being ordinary.

Somebody else I should have known about.

The Last Stand of the Mobile Infantry [April Fool]

For all you Starship Troopers Fans!

Violette Szabo — SOE Agent (George Cross)

Violette Szabo was one of the most courageous agents of the Second World War, serving with Britain’s Special Operations Executive in occupied France. Born in 1921, she volunteered for highly dangerous clandestine missions, working with the French Resistance after D-Day to disrupt German movements behind the lines.

During her second mission in June 1944, Szabo was captured after a fierce firefight with German forces. Despite interrogation and brutal conditions, she refused to reveal any information. She was eventually deported to Ravensbrück concentration camp, where she was executed in early 1945 at just 23 years old.

For her extraordinary bravery, she was posthumously awarded the George Cross.

What makes her story stand out is the kind of courage it represents — not the chaos of the front line, but the quiet, deliberate choice to step into danger alone, knowing the risks. She carried out her mission with complete resolve, and when it mattered most, she did not break.