In this episode of the WW2 Podcast, I'm joined by Robby Houben from the Belgian Royal Military Museum to discuss the Renault FT. This small but revolutionary French tank changed armoured warfare.

Designed during the First World War, the FT introduced the fully rotating turret and tracked layout that became the blueprint for every tank that followed. We talk about its design, its service life between the wars, and how it was still seeing action when the Second World War began.

You can see an original Renault FT on display at the Belgian Royal Military Museum in Brussels.

Robby also shares his passion for armoured vehicles on YouTube — check out his channel Two Dudes Talking Tanks.

If you enjoy the show, remember — it's just me here behind the mic. I research, record, and edit every episode myself. Your support on Patreon helps keep the podcast going. Patrons get ad-free listening and bonus excerpts from interviews that didn't make it into the main episodes.

 Find out more at patreon.com/ww2podcast

 

 

General Lucian K. Truscott was one of the United States Army's most capable commanders of the Second World War. Known for his aggressive leadership and determination, Truscott led American forces in North Africa, Sicily, at Anzio, and later in southern France and Germany. Despite his impressive record, he remains one of the lesser-known U.S. generals of World War Two.

In this episode of the WW2 Podcast, I'm joined by military historian Glyn Harper, emeritus professor of war studies at Massey University in New Zealand. Glyn is the author of General Lucian K. Truscott: "Quite a Talent for Fighting", a new biography that explores Truscott's remarkable career and lasting contribution to the Allied victory in Europe.

 

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What was the situation in Burma following the Allied victories at Imphal and Kohima?

By the summer of 1944, those two hard-fought battles had marked a major turning point in the Burma campaign. Japanese forces were in retreat, and the initiative had passed firmly to the Allies. But pushing into central Burma would require bold strategy, speed, and coordination across air, land and river.

I'm joined by Jack Bowsher, author of Thunder Run: Meiktila 1945. We will be discussing the dramatic and fast-paced battle for Meiktila, a pivotal moment in the Allied drive south that contributed significantly to the conclusion of the Burma campaign.

 

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Don Townsend joined the British army as a private in 1940 and saw service in Egypt, then India and Burma. After five years of active service he left the army as a Major.

I'm joined by Don's son, David has compiled his father's wartime letters home to his family and future wife into the book My Road to Mandalay.

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The Waffen-SS was one of the most formidable German military formations of the Second World War. Feared for its tenacity and ruthlessness in battle, notorious for the atrocities it committed.

As a distinct fighting force derived from the Nazi Party's SS organization, it stood apart from the other units of the German army. Its origins, structure and operational role during the war are often misunderstood, and the controversy still surrounding its conduct makes it difficult today to get an accurate picture of its actions and its impact on the fighting.

To discuss the SS, I'm joined once more by Anthony Tucker-Jones, whose book Hitler's Armed SS: The Waffen-SS at War, 1939-1945 was released last year.

 

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The Parachute Regiment was formed in June 1940 and eventually raised 17 battalions. It would see service in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, Normandy, Arnhem and would cross the Rhine as part of the largest airborne assault ever undertaken.

To discuss the formation of the regiment and its history through WWII, I'm joined by historian and broadcaster Mark Urban, who has written an authorised history of the regiment called Red Devils: The Trailblazers of the Parachute Regiment in World War Two.

 

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During WWII, the whole of Britain's coastline was involved in the struggle against the Nazis. In 1940-41 invasion was the main threat. Many towns and cities around the coast, such as Plymouth, Portsmouth, Hull and Great Yarmouth, were the targets of devastating air raids. The East Coast was pivotal to North Sea operations against enemy mining and E-boat operations, and the Western ports, particularly Liverpool, were crucial to the vital Atlantic convoys and the defeat of the U-boat threat.

In this episode, I'm joined once more by the cultural and social historian Neil R Storey to discuss Britain's Coast at War, which is also the title of his book Britain's Coast at War: Invasion Threat, Coastal Forces, Bombardment and Training for D-Day.

 

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In this episode, we're going to be looking at US Navy combat divers. The Combat Demolition Unit would land on D-Day with the first wave of troops. It was their job to clear coastal defences that might get in the way of landing craft. 

In the Pacific, Underwater Demolition Teams were carrying out similar tasks on islands such as Iwo Jima and Okinawa. 

I'm joined by Andrew Dubbins. Andrew managed to track down one of the surviving divers who landed on Omaha beach, then was shipped to the Pacific to land on Iwo Jima and Okinawa. His book is Into Enemy Waters: A World War II Story of the Demolition Divers Who Became the Navy SEALS.

 

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In late 1944, as a precursor to the invasion of the Philippines, U.S. military analysts decided to seize the small island of Peleliu to ensure that the Japanese airfield could not threaten the invasion forces. 

It was estimated that the island would fall in a week or so. In fact, the fighting on Peleliu would go on for 74 days. The US would pay a heavy price for capturing the island with a higher casualty rate than the fighting on Iwo Jima and Okinawa.

In this episode, I'm joined by Pacific War historian Joseph Wheelan, author of Bitter Peleliu: The Forgotten Struggle on the Pacific War's Worst Battlefield.

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After the failure to take Moscow in the autumn of 1941, the Germans were left with a large salient bulging into the Russian lines, extending to the town of Rzhev.

The battles around Rzhev were some of the bloodiest battles of the war for the Russians. Though millions of men would fight and die in the vast tract of forests and swamps, the Rzhev Salient does not have the name recognition of Leningrad or Moscow.

I'm Joined by Prit Buttar, author of Meat Grinder: The Battles for the Rzhev Salient, 1942–43.

Prit was last with us discussing the defeat of Army Group South in 1944 in episode 136.

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I seem to have had a good run of episodes this year looking at operations from the German perspective. In this episode, we are off to the Pacific to look at the Japanese perspective of the war.

I'm joined by Peter Williams.

Peter lived in Japan for four years. Whilst he was there, he interviewed Japanese veterans of the Second World War. His book 'Japan's Pacific War' collects together over 40 interviews with veterans who predominantly fought against the Australians.

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At the outbreak of WWII, the ancient gothic castle of Colditz was converted into a prisoner-of-war camp. Its location on a rocky spur overlooking a river made it the ideal location for a high-security prison, or so the Germans thought.

Sent to Colditz were some of the most difficult allied prisoners-of-war.

Made famous after the second world war in memoirs, films and TV, Colditz was known for its multiple escape attempts, some of great derring-do, others were feats of ingenuity and engineering.

In this episode, I'm joined by Ben Macintyre.

Ben is the bestselling author of books including Agent Sonya, SAS: Rogue Heroes, The Spy and the Traitor, Agent Zigzag, Operation Mincemeat and A Spy Among Friends. Ben's new book Prisoners of the Castle: An Epic Story of Survival and Escape from Colditz, the Nazis' Fortress Prison takes a new look at the Colditz and really fills out the story.

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The evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk in 1940 is one of the iconic moments of the Second World War. The miracle of the 'little ships' plucking soldiers off the beaches is regularly played out in the popular media, including the 1958 and 2017 films 'Dunkirk'. But, this is very much the British narrative. What if we turn the tables to look at the fighting from the German perspective?

Joining me once more is Robert Kershaw.

Robert was last with us to discuss D-Day and the landings at Omaha beach (in episode 92). He has a new book, 'Dünkirchen 1940: The German View of Dunkirk'.

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In this episode of the WW2 Podcast, we're turning our attention to the opening phase of one of the most brutal and vast campaigns of the Second World War—Operation Barbarossa.

On 22 June 1941, Hitler launched his long-anticipated invasion of the Soviet Union. In the first two weeks, the German Wehrmacht made some of its fastest advances of the war. Panzer groups surged deep into Soviet territory, clashing with Russian armoured forces—encounters that were sometimes unexpected and, for both sides, revealing.

To explore this dramatic opening stage of the war in the East, I'm joined by Richard Hargreaves, author of Opening the Gates of Hell, which examines the scale, speed, and shock of Barbarossa's beginning.

 

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In this episode, we are looking at the closing weeks of the war in 1945. August would see the Russians enter the war with Japan, the atomic bombs dropped, and an attempted coup in Japan. The culmination of which would be the final declaration of surrender by Japan's Emporer Hirohito on the 15th of August, followed a couple of weeks later by the formal ceremony on the USS Missouri presided over by General MacArthur.

I am joined by Barrett Tillman.

Barrett specializes in naval and aviation topics and has a prestigious back catalogue. His latest book is When the Shooting Stopped: August 1945.

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In this episode of the podcast, we shine a light on the naval conflict in the Mediterranean and the Middle East. 

This proved to be a prolonged conflict, waged at differing times against the combined forces of Italy, Germany and Vichy France over a wide area stretching from the coastal waters of Southern Europe in the north to Madagascar in the south and Africa's Atlantic coast in the west to the Persian Gulf in the east. 

Utilizing a variety of weapons, including surface warships, submarines, and aircraft along with sizable merchant fleets, the British and their subsequent American partners would maintain vital seaborne lines of communication, conducting numerous amphibious landings, interdicting Axis supply activities, eventually eliminating all semblances of Axis maritime power within the theatre.

I'm joined once more by Brian Walter.

If you recall, Brian joined me in episode 127 to discuss the battle of the Atlantic. Brian has a new book Blue Water War: The Maritime Struggle in the Mediterranean.

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The German offensive to capture Stalingrad began in August 1942, using Friedrich Paulus's 6th Army and elements of the 4th Panzer Army. The attack was supported by intense bombing that reduced much of the city to rubble. The battle quickly degenerated into house-to-house fighting, as both sides fought for the city on the Volga. 

By mid-November, the Germans were on the brink of victory as the Soviet defenders clung to a final few slivers of land along the west bank of the river. Then, on 19 November, the Red Army launched Operation Uranus, targeting the weaker Romanian armies protecting the 6th Army's flank and the Germans in Stalingrad were surrounded and cut off. 

Hitler was determined to hold the city insisting that Paulus hold out and the 6th Army would be supplied by air. With the airlift a disaster, in February 1943, without food or ammunition, some 91,000 starving Germans surrendered. 

In this episode of the podcast, I'm joined once more by Jonathan Trigg. Jon specialises in looking at aspects of the war from the German perspective so in episode 147 we looked at Operation Barbarossa, in 115 Jon and I discussed the end of the war and in 102 we talked about D-Day. 

Jon's new book is The Battle of Stalingrad Through German Eyes: The Death of the Sixth Army.

Patreon:
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I've been trying to slip in an extra episode of the podcast for a while but never seem to manage it! I hope you find this interesting.

Running at the Alexandra Palace Theatre this summer is Tom, Dick and Harry, a play telling the story of the great escape. I thought it might be interesting to talk about how you take a story so familiar to many of us - growing up watching endless re-runs of the film - and change that into a stage play. How do you deal with the fantastic, which is true, but on top of that, you need to deal with the legend, which might have little relation to what actually happened?

I'm joined by Theresa Heskins.

Theresa is the artistic Director of New Vic of the Theatre and also the Writer and Director of Tom, Dick and Harry.

You can find details of the play here:
https://www.alexandrapalace.com/whats-on/tom-dick-and-harry/

Join me on Patreon
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In December 1944 the Germans launched the battle of the Bulge, their last major offensive in the west. Commencing in the depths of winter, with the hope that the weather would neutralise allied air superiority, three German armies attacked through the Ardennes. 

We have looked at part of the Ardennes offensive before but from the American perspective. In this episode, I'm joined by Anthony Tucker-Jones and we are going to reverse the tables and look at the operation from the German point of view.

Anthony has joined us before in episode 156 when we discussed Winston Churchill. This time we are looking at his book Hitler's Winter: The German Battle of the Bulge.

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The usual historical narrative of the U-boats during WWII usually revolves around the 'Battle of the Atlantic', and the struggle over the convoys bringing vital supplies to Britain. 

But the story of the U-boat war is much more complex, they went into action on the first day of hostilities with Britain and France and operated in nearly every theatre of operation in which the Wehrmacht served, and within all but the Southern Ocean. 

To discuss the global U-boat war I am joined by Lawrence Paterson, author of The U-Boat War: A Global History 1939–45.

Patreon:
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Operation Foxley was the name of the secret plan supported by Winston Churchill to assassinate Hitler in 1944-45. Different methods of assassination were considered, such as a sharp shooter or poisoning, through to a more elaborate plan that included hypnotism.

I'm joined by Eric Lee.

Eric has been with us before, in episode 130, to discuss the Georgian uprising against the Germans on the Dutch island of Texel at the end of the war. His new book is Britain's Plot to Kill Hitler: The True Story of Operation Foxley and SOE.

Patreon:
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In episode 158, I talked to Henry Sledge about his father's experiences with the US Marines in the Pacific, which led me to rewatch the 2010 TV miniseries The Pacific. The show revolves around three lead characters, Eugene Sledge, Robert Leckie and John Basilone.

Basilone received the Medal of Honor for heroism above and beyond the call of duty during the Battle for Henderson Field in the Guadalcanal Campaign and would go on to be posthumously awarded the Navy Cross.

In this episode, I am joined by Dave Holland.

Dave is a former marine and battlefield tour guide on Guadalcanal. On his youtube channel, Guadalcanal - Walking a Battlefield, Dave takes the viewer to Guadalcanal and explains the battlefields and shows you what exists today from WWII.

Rodolfo Graziani, Marshal of Italy, Viceroy of Ethiopia and one of Mussolini's most valued generals remains to this day a divisive figure in his homeland. Revered by some Italians as a patriot and vilified by others as a murderer.

From the allied perspective, he was the Italian general whose troops surrendered en masse to the British during operation Compass, which almost knocked the Italians out of North Africa in 1941.

But what is the true story of Rodolfo Graziani?

Today I am joined by James Cetrullo.

For the first time, James has translated from Italian the biography Rodolfo Graziani: Story of an Italian General written by Alessandro Cova.

Patreon:
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In 1940 the British Purchasing Commission approached North American Aviation (NAA) to build under license Curtis P-40 fighters. NAA suggested that rather than produce an old design they proposed a new design, this would become the P-51 Mustang.

When fitted with the Roll-Royce Merlin engine, the Mustang would be one of the most important fighters of the war. With its ability to carry tremendous amounts of fuel, the plane was able to fly deep into Europe providing fighter escort for the bomber groups. Over the skies of Germany, it proved more than a match for what the Luftwaffe could throw at them.

Joining me is Chris Bucholtz.

Chris is an aviation historian with a prolific body of work. He previously joined me in episode 110 to discuss the P-47 Thunderbolt. His new book published by Osprey is P-51B/C Mustang: Northwest Europe 1943-44.

Patreon:
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When we talk about the Second Front, most of us think of the Allied invasion of Northwest Europe—D-Day, June 1944. But in his new book, Second Front: Anglo-American Rivalry and the Hidden Story of the Normandy Campaign, historian Professor Marc Milner offers a different perspective.

What if the real second front wasn't in Normandy, but in Washington?

Milner argues that while Britain fought alongside the United States on the battlefields of Europe, it was also engaged in a very different kind of struggle across the Atlantic: a political and diplomatic battle to retain its influence over an increasingly dominant America.

By the time Allied troops landed in France, the United States had not only become the senior partner in the alliance but had begun reshaping the postwar world, often at the expense of British interests. 

But as we'll hear, this wasn't just about wartime politics or military planning. The roots of Anglo-American rivalry ran much deeper, stretching back to the way each nation remembered the First World War.

Joining me to discuss all this is Professor Marc Milner.

On September 1, 1939, the day World War II broke out in Europe, Gen. George Marshall was sworn in as chief of staff of the U.S. Army. Ten months later, Roosevelt appointed Henry Stimson secretary of war. For the next five years, from adjoining offices in the Pentagon, Marshall and Stimson headed the army machine that ground down the Axis. 

In this episode, we're going to be discussing the relationship between the two men as they negotiated the war.

Joining me is Edward Farley Aldrich author of The Partnership: George Marshall, Henry Stimson, and the Extraordinary Collaboration That Won World War II.

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The expansion of British industry to cater for war production began to be put in place in the 1930s. But still with the outbreak of war Britain needed to stretch every sinew to harness, coordinate and maximise its resources. Firstly to defend itself and then to help liberate Axis-occupied countries.

In this episode, I'm joined by Neil Storey.

Neil is an award-winning social historian and lecturer specialising in the impact of war on twentieth-century society. His new book is Wartime Industry.

Patreon:
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Tobruk was one of the greatest Allied victories – and one of the worst Allied defeats – of the Second World War. Almost from the start of producing the podcast I've wanted to do an episode looking at Tobruk. I think it probably first gets a mention in episode 11 when we looked at Richard O'Connor, since then the town has come up in numerous episodes.

I'm joined by David Mitchellhill Green

David is the author of Tobruk: Rommel and the Battles Leading to his greatest victory. It is a fascinating read which places Tobruk in a wider history to help explain why it was strategically important.

Patreon:
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We are back in the Pacific, this time looking at the air war primarily over Guadalcanal. US Marine aviators landed on the island shortly after the Marine ground forces. As Japanese troops held out on Guadalcanal, the skies over the island were heavily contested. In this episode, we are focusing on the top-scoring marine pilots over Guadalcanal.   Joining me is aviation historian Bill Yenne.   Bill Yenne is the author of more than three dozen books on historical topics and has contributed to encyclopedias of both world wars. His latest book is America's Few: Marine Aces of the South Pacific.   Patreon: patreon.com/ww2podcast

At the end WWII 473 men had been honoured by the United States for their bravery and sacrifice by receiving the Medal of Honor. The Medal was awarded to men of all ranks - from Lieutenant General Jonathan Wainwright at the top all the way down to 18-year-old Private Joseph Merrell. Although 1 million African Americans served in the military during the war, not one was awarded the Medal of Honor, this being despite some extraordinary acts of valour.

In 1993 a US Army commission reviewed cases from recipients of America's second-highest medal, the Distinguished Service Cross, and determined that a number of these men had been denied the Army's highest award simply due to racial discrimination.

In this episode, I'm joined by Robert Child author of Immortal Valor: The Black Medal of Honor Winners of World War II.

Patreon:
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When we think of the allied war effort it is all too easy to overlook some of the junior partners. In this episode, we are going to be looking at Mexico's commitment to the Second World War. The Mexican Expeditionary Airforce would serve in the Philippines as the 201st Fighter Squadron known as the 'Aztec Eagles'.

I'm Joined by Walter Zapotoczny whose new book is The Aztec Eagles: The Forgotten Allies of the Second World War.

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In September 1944 a young Marine name Eugene Sledge landed on the Pacific Island of Peleliu. As a mortarman, stretcher-bearer and rifleman Sledge would fight his way across Peleliu then the Japanese island of Okinawa, arguably two of the fiercest and filthiest battles of the Pacific campaign.

After the war, Eugene Sledge became a professor at Montevallo University and turned his diary notes from the war into a memoir of his experiences titled With the Old Breed. The book relates the dehumanising brutality displayed by both sides and the animal hatred that each soldier had for his enemy. Sledge writes of the conditions on the islands that meant the Marines often could not wash, stay dry, dig latrines, or even find time to eat. Suffering from constant fear, fatigue, and filth, the struggle of simply living in a combat zone was utterly debilitating for the Marines.

With the Old Breed has proved to be highly influential and has been used as source material for the Ken Burns PBS documentary The War (2007), as well as the HBO miniseries The Pacific (2010), where Eugene Sledge was played by Joseph Mazzello.

Joining me today is Henry Sledge, Eugene's son.

You can also find Henry presenting the podcast What's the Scuttlebutt.

Patreon:
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George S Patton Junior starred as an Olympic athlete in the 1912 Stockholm games. In 1916 under John J. Pershing Patton joined the Mexican Expedition against the paramilitary forces of Mexican revolutionary Francisco "Pancho" Villa. When the US entered the First World War Patton joined the new Tank Corps and commanded the U.S. tank school in France. Leading tanks into combat he would be wounded near the end of the war.

But Patton is best remembered for his exploits on the battlefields of WWII, and this is what what we are looking at in this episode, from Morocco, through Sicily to D-Day. 

Joining me is Kevin Hymel.

Kevin has worked as a historian for the US army and is currently doing work for the Arlington National Cemetery. He is also a tour guide for Stephen Ambrose Historical Tours. He is the author of Patton's Photographs: War as He Saw It and his new book is Patton's War: An American General's Combat Leadership, Volume I: November 1942 - July 1944.

Patreon:
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From his earliest days, Winston Churchill was a risk-taker. As a young Lieutenant in the army he charged with the cavalry at the battle of Omdurman, he saw action on the North-West Frontier and took a trip to Cuba to observe the war there. As a journalist, he covered the Boer War putting himself in harm's way on numerous occasions. 

Aged 25 he entered the house of commons and held many of the great offices of state including First Lord of the Admiralty at the outbreak of the First World War, then minister of munitions and at the close of the war Minister for War and Air. 

I'm joined by Anthony Tucker-Jones.

Anthony is a British former defence intelligence officer and a widely published military expert. His new book Churchill, Master and Commander: Winston Churchill at War 1895–1945 assesses how Churchill's formative years shaped him for the difficult military decisions he took when he became Prime Minister in 1940.

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7th December 2021 marks the 80th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor that brought the United States of America into the Second World War.

On the morning of 7th December 1941, just before 8am the Japanese launched their attack on the US naval base of Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Hawaii.

The Japanese planned the attack as a first strike to cripple the US fleet in the Pacific and prevent America from intervening in other Japanese Pacific Operations. From six Imperial Japanese Aircraft carriers, over 350 planes flew in two waves attacked the American base. Eight US Navy battleships would be damaged, four sunk, along with other cruisers and destroyers. Crucially, one element of the US Pacific fleet escaped the preemptive strike. The American Aircraft Carriers were all absent from Pearl Harbor on the day of the attack.

Roosevelt would proclaim the 7th December 1941 as a 'date that would live in infamy'.

Joining me to discuss the attack on Pearl Harbor is Mark Stille.

Mark is a naval historian who is prolific in his studies on the naval war in the Pacific. He has written Tora! Tora! Tora!: Pearl Harbor 1941 for Osprey and has two new books out looking at the whole of the US Naval Campaign in the Pacific The United States Navy in WWII: From Pearl Harbor to Okinawa and Pacific Carrier War: Carrier Combat from Pearl Harbor to Okinawa.

Patreon:
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In this episode, we're doing something a little different. I recently joined Scott Bury on his podcast Beyond Barbarossa, which takes a close look at the Eastern Front of the Second World War from a Soviet perspective. Together, we explored the topic of American aid to the USSR through the Lend-Lease program.

The usual narrative often paints Lend-Lease as the lifeline that saved the Soviet Union. But, as with most things in history, the reality is far more complex. While Lend-Lease undeniably made a difference—especially in the war's later stages—its impact, timing, and strategic value are worth examining more closely.

So, in this episode, we dig into what was actually sent, when it arrived, how it was used, and whether or not it really was decisive in turning the tide on the Eastern Front.

 

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In this episode we are discussing chemical weapons. It might seem like an odd topic, unlike the First World War which saw the deployment of gas, chemical weapons were not used on the battlefield of Europe in WWII. But there was a fear of them being used; everyone carried a gas mask and the belligerent nations had huge chemical weapons industries working throughout the war.

I'm Joined by Brett Edwards. 

Brett is a senior lecture at Bath University, he is also the host of the poisons and pestilence podcast.

One lesson the allies learned from the fall of France in 1940 was that civilian populations needed managing, to keep them away from military operations. As the allied troops came-a-shore after D-Day in June 1944, with them would be Civil Affairs units. These units were to act as liaisons between the allied combat troops and the civilians they encountered. The remit for the Civil Affairs units was wide and extremely varied, from keeping roads clear of refugees to feeding and housing local populations that war had ravaged.

Joining me today is David Borys. 

David is a Canadian academic whose book Civilians at the Sharp End looks at the experiences of the Civilian Affairs units attached to the Canadian First Army. David is also the host of the popular podcast Cool Canadian History, a bi-weekly podcast on everything and anything to do with Canadian History.

Before the outbreak of war, the US Navy and the Marines had put considerable effort into developing a doctrine to support amphibious operations from ship to shore gunfire. When the marines landed on Tarawa in November 1943, it would be the first serious test of this doctrine.

In this episode, I'm joined by Donald Mitchener to discuss the doctrine and how it developed from those initial assault landings on Tarawa through to the end of the war.

Donald is a lecturer at the University of North Texas and author of ​​U.S. Naval Gunfire Support in the Pacific War.

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I've an incredible story for you in this episode of Shanghai born John Robin Greaves, 'Jack', who emigrated to Australia in 1939 and volunteered for the Australian Imperial Force to serve overseas. The army would send Jack to the Middle East then to Greece, where he would be captured Germans.

Australian ABC journalist Stephen Hucheon has researched his uncle's story and produced a fantastic article for ABC available on their website.

You can find the full article here:
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-07-11/the-anzacs-who-beat-the-odds-and-escaped-from-greece/100284226

This discussion is part of a project looking at Australian's in the Mediterranean during WWII. Find out more at historyguild.org.

If you enjoyed the episode with Richard James, when we discussed The Australian's fight the French in Syria and the Lebanon, Richard has written an article on the topic for the history guild. You can find it here:
https://historyguild.org/australias-war-with-france/

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I recently read David Colley's The Folly of Generals: How Eisenhower's Broad Front Strategy Lengthened World War II.David has analysed some of the missed opportunities the allies had in 1944-45 in Europe. He argues that had Eisenhower been more adept at taking advantage of several potential breakthroughs in the Siegfried Line in the autmun of 1944 the war in the European Theatre of Operations might have ended sooner. 

It was such a fascinating read, so I thought I'd get David onto the podcast to examine Eisenhower's broad front policy.

David P. Colley is an award-winning journalist and author who has written for many national publications, including Army, World War II, American Heritage, and The New York Times. Among his books on military history are The Road to Victory, which received the Army Historical Foundation's Distinguished Book Award in 2000, Blood for Dignity, and Safely Rest. He has appeared on the History Channel and Eye on Books. Colley served in the ordnance branch of the U.S. Army.

Since starting the podcast, I've looked at the aspects of the war from the point of view of various countries. But, one glaring omission has been any Australian narrative of the war.

The Australians fought across the world on the land, sea and in the air air; notably in the Pacific and the Middle East, which is what we'll be discussing in this episode.

With the fall of France, her overseas territories predominantly remained loyal to the French Vichy regime. This was true for Syria and Lebanon. To the south were the British in Egypt.

With Rommel in the Western Desert and Germans fostering an uprising in Iraq, the British feared Germany might take control over of Syria and Lebanon. From there, the Nazis could supply the rebels in Iraq and threaten Egypt from two sides. Churchill ordered General Wavell to go on the offensive and take the French territories. The British didn't envisage the French putting up much of a fight.

The Australian 7th Division would make up the bulk of the allied attacking force.

Joining me is Richard James. Richard is the author of Australia's War with France: The Campaign in Syria and Lebanon 1941.

I'd like to thank David Phillipson, president of the Australian-based History Guild, charity which promotes historical literacy for all. David reached out to suggest I have a chat with James. If you're interested in finding out more about the History Guild, go to historyguild.org.

Patreon: patreon.com/ww2podcast

As the course of the second world war turned against the Third Reich some radical proposals and inventive designs, were put forward by armaments manufacturers, scientists, technicians, aircrew and even private individuals to the German Air Ministry for consideration as weapons to be utilised by the Luftwaffe. Some proposals were destined never to leave the drawing board, while others not only underwent trials but were issued to operational units and used in action.

In the episode I'm joined by Robert Forsyth.

Robert is an aviation historian who some of you may recall I chatted to in episode 52, when we looked at Luftwaffe units working with the U-Boats. Robert has a sumptuous new book available from Osprey Luftwaffe Special Weapons 1942–45.

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Buoyed by their victories over Poland and France, on the 22 June 1941 the Germans launched Operation Barbarossa, and over 3 millions men advanced over the border to attack Russia. The opening of the Eastern Front would be one of Hilter's most momentous decisions of WWII.

Having only signed a nonaggression pact with German in 1939, Stalin was taken by surprise. The opening weeks of the offensive were wildly successful for the Germans, but as the Panzer formations rapidly advanced the infantry struggled, on foot, to keep up. At Kiev, the Germans would take over half a million Russian soldiers prisoner. Barbarossa was a campaign where one Panzer Divisional commander queried if the Germans were 'winning themselves to death'.

Joining me for this episode is now regular of the podcast Jonathan Trigg. In episode 55 and 77 Jon and I looked at foreign recruits to the SS, in 102 we looked at D Day from the German perspective and in episode 115115 – To VE Day Through German Eyes we talked about the end of the war for Germany. Jonathan has been busy and has a new book available, Barbarossa Through German Eyes.

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In Britain, after the fall of France, there was the fear that the Germans may attempt a channel crossing and invade in 1940. If the Wehrmacht got shore in the south of England, facing them would have been a series of 'Stop Lines'.

These were defensives which comprised a series of pillboxes and anti-tank obstacles. They hoped these static defences would hold up any German advance long enough for the British to bring forward a mobile reserve.

During WWII this network of fortifications was spread across the country.

Protecting Britain from an invasion in Devon and Cornwall was the Taunton Stop line in the South West of the country.

To tell me all about Stop Lines is Andrew Powell-Thomas. Andrew is a military historian specialising in the military history of the West Country. He is also the author of The West Country's Last Line of Defence: Taunton Stop Line.

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On the heavy bombers the role of the crew members was symbiotic. The pilot needed the flight engineer to fly; the navigator got the plane to the target, and it was the bomb aimer that delivered the ordinance.  

Wartime films give the impression of the bomb aimer's job being simply to look through the bombsight and press the button to release the bombs at the right time. In actual fact, their job is much more sophisticated. They aided the navigator, took readings to be dialled into their computer connected bomb sight, and often they might also be expected to man a machine gun in the plane's nose.

In this episode I'm joined by Colin Pateman. If you recall in episode 76 I talked to Colin about Flight Engineers. Well, he's been busy since then and has just completed a new book Aiming for Accuracy which focuses on bomb aimers in the RAF.

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In this episode of the WW2 Podcast, I am joined by Professor James Crossland to discuss the extraordinary life of Robert Bruce Lockhart — a British diplomat, journalist, author, and secret agent.

Though not a household name, Lockhart was a key figure behind the scenes of 20th-century history. His career began before the First World War and took him from revolutionary Russia to wartime Britain, often placing him near the centre of power and influence. During the Second World War, he served as Director-General of the Political Warfare Executive, the organisation responsible for coordinating all British propaganda efforts against the Axis powers.

Lockhart's life reads like a spy thriller, full of intrigue, diplomacy, and covert operations. James Crossland, author of Rogue Agent: From Secret Plots to Psychological Warfare – The Untold Story of Robert Bruce Lockhart, sheds light on the man whose influence was far greater than his fame.

 

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Alan Brooke would take over as the British Chief of the Imperial General Staff in December 1941. For the rest of the war Brooke would organise and coordinate the British military effort, in such a role acted as Winston Churchill's senior military advisor.

Brooke's relationship with Churchill could be tempestuous. Brooke was not a 'yes man' and would stand up to Churchill. The two might argue, but Churchill never fired him and appreciated his candour.

History now often overlooks the contribution Brooke made to the war, in favour of commanders who were happy to seize the limelight. He is very much the forgotten Field Marshal.

Joining me is Andrew Sangster.

Andrew is the author of Alan Brooke: Churchill's Right-Hand Critic: A Reappraisal of Lord Alanbrooke. This is a new appraisal and biography of Brooke.

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When France capitulated in 1940 and the Vichy government came to power many of the French colonial possessions remained loyal to the new regime. The same was true for the Island of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean.

In this episode I'm joined by Russell Phillips.

Russell's book A Strange Campaign narrates the story of the battle for Madagascar, where British troops would fight the French for possession of the island.

If you want to hear more from Russell, spool back through the WW2 Podcast feed to episode 27. We discussed Operation Anthropoid, the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich and the destruction of the Czech village of Lidice as a reprisal by the Germans. Not only was the village physically destroyed all the visible remains were removed.

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Everyone remembers the role of Churchill and Roosevelt throughout the war, but there was a third man key to their relationship and of the three of them the only one to remain in power at the end of the war in August 1945.

Mackenzie King was the Prime Minister of Canada, the largest British Dominion and America's closest neighbour. By the start of the war, King knew both FDR and he'd been friends with Churchill since first meeting in 1905. He would serve as a lynchpin between the great powers, yet is now often overlooked.

Joining me is Neville Thompson.

Neville is a professor emeritus of history at the University of Western Ontario, where he taught modern British and European history. He is also the author of the wonderful book The Third Man: Churchill, Roosevelt, MacKenzie King, and the Untold Friendships That Won WWII which recounts the relationship between the three men based on King's personal diaries.

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