Thursday, June 27

More interesting pictures.... and some other stuff....

More interesting pictures from another Time Life retrospective [clicky]... [post edit - link long gone but I managed to re-find some of the pictures below - StW 1/'19 - if it's still there - this is just as good https://sandroesposito.wordpress.com/2012/09/11/rare-colour-photos-of-before-and-after-d-day-wwii/]

I thought this was amazing - want to know what feldgrau (or GI issue) looks like under combat/campaign conditions? Here you go... (and this to me is where the re-enactors have it soooooo wrong.... they're always too clean, and they're also too errrrr..... "healthy" looking... 😏)

Another thought when I looked at this picture - there's not a smile among them - they don't look relieved to have been captured - is it me or do those guys look like they were quite ready to carry on but for the fact they'd been captured? Interesting....


Labelled "An abandoned German machine gun, France, June 1944" but it looks French to me - a Hotchkiss Model 1914 [clicky] - perhaps liberated in 1940 and put to use against it's previous owners???


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Got an email about this today - very interesting!




Being hosted at the National Army Museum - more information here [clicky]
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Re. random new year resolution #2 [clicky] - I've just spotted it's the 370th Anniversary of the battle on the 13th July - serendipity??! 😀

12 comments:

  1. The Germans used a lot of captured French equipment and British stuff too.

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    1. Fran - they did... it's a fascinating photo on many levels - have you noticed that the barrel only just clears the wall in front... and the bit of liberated carpet to make it more comfortable for the firer... and the rifle leaning against the wall in the background....

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  2. Loved the first pic, it looks like it could have been taken yesterday.

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    1. Ray - agreed - it was what caught my attention... was surprised the amount of green in the colour of the uniforms - no grey at all really, more a greeny brown.... and I was more surprised at how light the American uniforms are - expected much darker...

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  3. Like the look of Toy Soldier Weekend - thanks for the heads up on that.

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    1. Legatus - mon plaisir... I'm tempted as well!

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  4. That picture is a very cool find. Thanks for sharing. And I agree, they still look like they are ready to continue the fight.

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    1. DFlyn - thanks - it pays close examination - albeit as Tim says below, the picture is posed and they may be preparing themselves for something they imagine is worse than having their picture taken..

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  5. Can't help but look at that first picture and wonder, where are they now???

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    1. Scott - oh man, wouldn't that be interesting to know!

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  6. I think the guy on the extreme right of the picture looks like he may almost have a smile.

    It could be that they've JUST been captured and and are worried that they're about to be lined up against a wall and shot - which their superiors may have been warning will be their fate if they dared surrender?

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    1. Tim - a good thought indeed - they look pretty tough customers though - and these guys appear to be plain Heer from their uniform markings, rather than one of the "elite" formations....

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