We're the Military and Airpower Guys of Jonah Goldberg of National Review Online + a stray we found wandering around looking lost. All original material JHD, BHD, JR, WT, and KA 2003-2010 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html Sat, 24 Mar 2012 15:48:28 Z Movable Type 4.12 en Copyright 2012 http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification 15 September, 1916. The British offensive on the Somme, one of the bloodiest fights the Brits ever fought, is starting to lag. Something is needed to give it a kick, a push - get over that next hill, clear the Boche from that wood... break into the green fields beyond, where there are no trenches, no wire, no interlocking fields of fire from Maxim guns, and the Cavalry can finally earn their pay and fodder, damn those hoity-toity prima donnas! So, we'll try a new weapon, one that Colonel Swinton has been working on with the Holt Tractor Company,... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html Fri, 15 Sep 2006 08:03:22 -0600 More or less. Lone Pine and The Nek were the "diversionary" acttacks by the Austalians to draw off the Turks to allow the British Landings at Suvla to go in with minimal oposition and then get up to Chunuk Bair and take over from the NZ Brigade. The Australians aren't really into the concept of "diversion" and got a little pathalogical. Won a seven VC's and a small about of ground, about the size of two soccer fields and lost a lot of men. The Wellingtons won nothing although one VC was awarded to signals Cpl Cryril Bassett who also served throughout WWII and reached the rank of Lt Col. In his words "All my mates ever got were wooden crosses". Lone Pine and The Nek were the actions depicted in the Peter Weir film "Gallipoli" with Mark Lee and some other more minor Australian actor. "Chunuk Bair" was a film basied on the play "Once on Chunuk Bair" by Maurice Shadbolt and stared a whole lot of minor soap actors, Robert Powell and me. Ok I didn't get much screen time but for what I got paid my rate worked out at about $3,000/hr. It sucked with a pathetically tiny budget of 1 mill NZ but I'm hoping Peter Jackson will get to it one day. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50541 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50541 Sun, 17 Sep 2006 01:03:47 -0600 Isn't Sari Bair/Lone Pine/Chunuk Bair the same fight? http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50527 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50527 Sat, 16 Sep 2006 19:03:01 -0600 Well what throws you is that August 8th is not a mounted corps day, its grunt time. It's only Corps Day for the Wellington's. All the the other kiwi infantry battalions have April 25th. I'm asuming I don't have to explain that one. August 8th the Wellington's took Chunuk Bair the highest point on the Sari Bair range and held it for 36 hours while the Bristish sat at Suvla drinking tea. Of the 770 who began the battle 70 were still alive only 11 had not been wounded. The Bristish regulars were punted off 20 minutes after they arrived. British offical history still credits two British officers with being the first to see the other side (bullshit) and blame the Wellingtons CO Malone with the final failure of the operation (utter bullshit) He was one of a very small number of officers who did his job, one of the others being Mustafa Kamal. Malone was blamed as on the previous day he had refused to advance up Rhododendron Ridge which was exposed to enfilade mg fire. The Auckland bn had just tried it and lost 300 men in 20 minutes. Malone took Chunuk Bair in the dark early the next morning. Malone was killed by a shell from a British destroyer. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50525 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50525 Sat, 16 Sep 2006 17:41:45 -0600 Um, Nixon resigns? Amiens? No, you guys didn't play in that one. Sari Bair/Lone Pine? That went from 6-10 August. Hmmm. Then there's Romani, near the Suez, which was won largely by mounted Aussie and Kiwi troops, but was over before August 8th. I dunno. Ya stumped me. And I would note the RNZAC does not maintain a decently informative website, either! 8^( http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50518 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50518 Sat, 16 Sep 2006 08:35:33 -0600 Cambrai is observed November 20th. It's one of my two corps days. The other is August 8th. Guess the battle. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50515 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50515 Sat, 16 Sep 2006 02:54:29 -0600 Interesting piece of music, but "La Marseillaise"? Cheers http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50500 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50500 Fri, 15 Sep 2006 14:49:03 -0600 No, nor of the French first use, nor of the German, nor the American, or Italian, or Russian... because this was about the debut of the tank in combat... 15 September, 1916. Brevity, Ry, Brevity. Stick to the point, don't get mired in all the possibilities... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50499 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50499 Fri, 15 Sep 2006 14:39:01 -0600 Cambrai? ]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50494 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50494 Fri, 15 Sep 2006 13:45:24 -0600 Well I have been resisting it all morning .... but no more. jim b clears his throat and strikes a pose on stage left ........... Taaaaaaaannkssssss for the mem-ooooo-ries http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50486 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50486 Fri, 15 Sep 2006 10:46:41 -0600 Three cheers for the Holt "Creeping Grip" thingy! Gotta' luv 'dem clanky things. (As I do, having dwelt within the M48A2, M60A1 and A2, M551 and M113 ACAV). Thanks for observing this "anniversary". D. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50485 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50485 Fri, 15 Sep 2006 10:42:18 -0600 Panzers to the fore! (heh: husky Americans) http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50480 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50480 Fri, 15 Sep 2006 09:41:48 -0600 That's awesome. I love the "husky men" ad. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50475 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/09/here_she_comes_the_debutante.html#comment-50475 Fri, 15 Sep 2006 08:31:31 -0600