1.
United States Navy
–
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U. S. Navy is the largest, most capable navy in the world, the U. S. Navy has the worlds largest aircraft carrier fleet, with ten in service, two in the reserve fleet, and three new carriers under construction. The service has 323,792 personnel on duty and 108,515 in the Navy Reserve. It has 274 deployable combat vessels and more than 3,700 operational aircraft as of October 2016, the U. S. Navy traces its origins to the Continental Navy, which was established during the American Revolutionary War and was effectively disbanded as a separate entity shortly thereafter. It played a role in the American Civil War by blockading the Confederacy. It played the role in the World War II defeat of Imperial Japan. The 21st century U. S. Navy maintains a global presence, deploying in strength in such areas as the Western Pacific, the Mediterranean. The Navy is administratively managed by the Department of the Navy, the Department of the Navy is itself a division of the Department of Defense, which is headed by the Secretary of Defense. The Chief of Naval Operations is an admiral and the senior naval officer of the Department of the Navy. The CNO may not be the highest ranking officer in the armed forces if the Chairman or the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The mission of the Navy is to maintain, train and equip combat-ready Naval forces capable of winning wars, deterring aggression, the United States Navy is a seaborne branch of the military of the United States. The Navys three primary areas of responsibility, The preparation of naval forces necessary for the prosecution of war. The development of aircraft, weapons, tactics, technique, organization, U. S. Navy training manuals state that the mission of the U. S. Armed Forces is to prepare and conduct prompt and sustained combat operations in support of the national interest, as part of that establishment, the U. S. Navys functions comprise sea control, power projection and nuclear deterrence, in addition to sealift duties. It follows then as certain as that night succeeds the day, that without a decisive naval force we can do nothing definitive, the Navy was rooted in the colonial seafaring tradition, which produced a large community of sailors, captains, and shipbuilders. In the early stages of the American Revolutionary War, Massachusetts had its own Massachusetts Naval Militia, the establishment of a national navy was an issue of debate among the members of the Second Continental Congress. Supporters argued that a navy would protect shipping, defend the coast, detractors countered that challenging the British Royal Navy, then the worlds preeminent naval power, was a foolish undertaking. Commander in Chief George Washington resolved the debate when he commissioned the ocean-going schooner USS Hannah to interdict British merchant ships, and reported the captures to the Congress
2.
United States Marine Corps Aviation
–
United States Marine Corps Aviation is the air component of the United States Marine Corps. Marine aviation has a different mission and operation than its ground counterpart, and thus, has many of its own histories, traditions, terms. The Corps operates both rotary-wing and fixed-wing aircraft mainly to transport and close air support to its ground forces. However, other types are also used in a variety of support. Marine aviation officially began on 22 May 1912, when First Lieutenant Alfred Austell Cunningham reported to Naval Aviation Camp in Annapolis, Maryland, for duty in connection with aviation. On 20 August of that year, he became the first Marine aviator, as he took off in a Burgess Model H given to him by the Burgess Company in Marblehead Harbor in Marblehead, Massachusetts. In 1915, the Commandant of the Marine Corps authorized the creation of a Marine Corps aviation company consisting of 10 officers and 40 enlisted men. The first official Marine flying unit arrived with the 17 February 1917, the first major expansion of the Marine Corps air component came with Americas entrance into World War I in 1917. By the end of the war, several Marine Aviators had recorded air-to-air kills, the United States also embraced its role of global power and the Marine Corps became the preferred force for military intervention, where the Marines went, so went Marine aviation. It was in Haiti that Marines began to develop the tactic of dive bombing, while other nations and services had tried variations of this technique, Marine Aviators were the first to embrace it and make it part of their tactical doctrine. And besides dive-bombing Marine aviation in Nicaragua developed the skill of air resupply of outposts dropping bundles from Fokker F. VII tri-motors, also taking place during the 1920s was that Marine squadrons began qualifying on board aircraft carriers. Prior to this, Marine squadrons were loosely controlled with regard to doctrine and this assignment enabled nearly 60% of active duty aviators at the time to be exposed to a disciplined training syllabus under a clearly defined mission. The turning point for the survival of Marine Air came with the structural change of the establishment of the Fleet Marine Force in 1933. This shifted Marine doctrine to focus less on expeditionary duty and more on supporting amphibious warfare by seizing advance naval bases in the event of war. This organization would remain until June 1940 when Congress authorized the Marine Corps 1,167 aircraft as part of its 10,000 plane program for the Navy. On 7 December 1941, the day of the attack on Pearl Harbor, World War II would see the Marine Corps air arm expand rapidly and extensively. They would reach their peak number of units with 5 air wings,31 aircraft groups and 145 flying squadrons, during the war, and for the next fifty years, the Guadalcanal Campaign would become a defining point for Marine Aviation. Because of the way the Pacific War unfolded, Marine Aviation was not able to achieve its 1939 mission of supporting the Fleet Marine Force at first
3.
Squadron (aviation)
–
In most armed forces, two or more squadrons will form a group or a wing. Some air forces use the term squadrons for non-flying ground units. In contrast to United States Air Force units where flying squadrons are separate from supporting administrative and aircraft maintenance squadrons, in United States Marine Corps Aviation the nomenclature squadron is also used to designate all battalion-equivalent, aviation support organizations. These squadrons include, wing headquarters, tactical air command, air control, air support, aviation logistics, wing support, exceptions are USN helicopter mine countrmeasures squadrons, USMC composite medium tilt-rotor squadrons, heavy helicopter and light/attack helicopter squadrons, and Marine attack squadrons. Although part of U. S. naval aviation, United States Coast Guard aviation units are centered on an air station versus a squadron or group/wing organizational structure, the one exception to this is the Coast Guards Helicopter Interdiction Squadron, which is engaged primarily in counter-narcotics interdiction operations. In U. S. Army Aviation, flying units may be organized in battalions or squadrons reporting to an aviation brigade, an escadron is the equivalent unit in Frances Armée de lAir. It is normally subdivided into escadrilles of eight aircraft, in the Air Training Corps of the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth nations, a Squadron is a group of cadets who parade regularly. In the U. S. Civil Air Patrol, a squadron is the administrative unit. In the Swedish Air Force a helicopter squadron is a detachment from the Helicopter Wing
4.
Strategic bombing
–
One of the aims of war is to demoralize the enemy, so that peace or surrender becomes preferable to continuing the conflict. Strategic bombing has been used to this end, because the term has pejorative connotations, some, including the Allies of World War II, have preferred to use euphemisms such as will to resist and morale bombings. The theoretical distinction between tactical and strategic air warfare was developed between the two world wars, some leading theorists of strategic air warfare during this period were the Italian Giulio Douhet, the Trenchard school in the United Kingdom, and General Billy Mitchell in the United States. One of the aims of war is to demoralise the enemy, facing continual death, when such attacks were tried in the 1930s—in the Spanish Civil War and the Second Sino-Japanese War—they were ineffective. Commentators observed the failures and some air forces, such as the Luftwaffe, Terror bombing is an emotive term used for aerial attacks planned to weaken or break enemy morale. Use of the term to refer to aerial attacks implies the attacks are criminal according to the law of war, or if within the laws of war are nevertheless a moral crime. The Allied governments usually described their bombing of cities with other such as area bombing or precision bombing. He then added in a remark that the raid also helped destroy what is left of German morale. Howard Cowan, an Associated Press war correspondent, filed a story about the Dresden raid, there were followup newspaper editorials on the issue and a longtime opponent of strategic bombing, Richard Stokes, MP, asked questions in the House of Commons on 6 March. The first bombing of a city was on the night of 24–25 August 1914, the first effective strategic bombing was pioneered by the Royal Naval Air Service in 1914. The mission was to attack the Zeppelin production lines and their sheds at Cologne, led by Charles Rumney Samson the force of four aircraft inflicted minor damage on the sheds. The raid was repeated a month later with more success. Within a year or so, specialized aircraft and dedicated bomber squadrons were in service on both sides. These were generally used for bombing, the aim was that of directly harming enemy troops, strongpoints, or equipment. Eventually, attention turned to the possibility of causing harm to the enemy by systematically attacking vital rear-area resources. The most well known attacks were those done by Zeppelins over England through the course of the war, in all, four people were killed and sixteen injured, and monetary damage was estimated at £7,740. German airships also bombed on other fronts, for example in January 1915 on Liepāja in Latvia, in 1915 there were 19 more raids, in which 37 tons of bombs were dropped, killing 181 people and injuring 455. London was accidentally bombed in May, and in July the Kaiser allowed directed raids against urban centers, there were 23 airship raids in 1916, in which 125 tons of ordnance were dropped, killing 293 people and injuring 691
5.
Imperial German Navy
–
The Imperial German Navy was the navy created at the time of the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the small Prussian Navy, which primarily had the mission of coastal defence, Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded the navy, and enlarged its mission. The key leader was Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz, who expanded the size and quality of the navy. The result was an arms race with Britain as the German navy grew to become one of the greatest maritime forces in the world. The German surface navy proved ineffective during World War I, its only major engagement, however, the submarine fleet was greatly expanded and posed a major threat to the British supply system. The Imperial Navys main ships were turned over to the Allies, all ships of the Imperial Navy were designated SMS, for Seiner Majestät Schiff. The Imperial Navy achieved some important operational feats, the Navy also emerged from the fleet action of the Battle of Jutland having destroyed more ships than it lost, although the strategic value of both of these encounters was minimal. The Imperial Navy was the first to operate successfully on a large scale in wartime, with 375 submarines commissioned by the end of the First World War. The unification of Germany under Prussian leadership was the point for the creation of the Imperial Navy in 1871. The newly created emperor, Wilhelm I, as King of Prussia, had previously been head of state of the strongest state forming part of the new empire, supreme command was vested in the emperor, but its first appointed chief was General der Infanterie Albrecht von Stosch. Kiel on the Baltic Sea and Wilhelmshaven on the North Sea served as the Navys principal naval bases, the former Navy Ministry became the Imperial Admiralty on 1 February 1872, while Stosch became formally an admiral in 1875. Initially the main task of the new Imperial Navy was coastal protection, with France, the Imperial Navys tasks were then to prevent any invasion force from landing and to protect coastal towns from possible bombardment. In March 1872 a German Imperial Naval Academy was created at Kiel for training officers, followed in May by the creation of a Machine Engineer Corps, in July 1879 a separate Torpedo Engineer Corps was created dealing with torpedoes and mines. In May 1872 a ten-year building programme was instituted to modernise the fleet, the building plan had to be approved by the Reichstag, which controlled the allocation of funds, although one-quarter of the money came from French war reparations. In 1883 Stosch was replaced by general, Count Leo von Caprivi. At this point the navy had seven armoured frigates and four armoured corvettes,400 officers and 5,000 ratings, in October 1887 the first torpedo division was created at Wilhelmshaven and the second torpedo division based at Kiel. In 1887 Caprivi requested the construction of ten armoured frigates, greater importance was placed at this time on development of the army, which was expected to be more important in any war. This shortened the journey for commercial ships, but specifically united the two areas principally of concern to the German navy, at a cost of 150 million marks, later, the protection of German maritime trade routes became important
6.
U-boat
–
U-boat is the anglicised version of the German word U-Boot, a shortening of Unterseeboot, literally undersea boat. While the German term refers to any submarine, the English one refers specifically to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare role. Austro-Hungarian navy submarines were known as U-boats. The first submarine built in Germany, the three-man Brandtaucher, sank to the bottom of Kiel harbor on 1 February 1851 during a test dive, the inventor and engineer Wilhelm Bauer had designed this vessel in 1850, and Schweffel & Howaldt constructed it in Kiel. Dredging operations in 1887 rediscovered Brandtaucher, it was raised and put on display in Germany, there followed in 1890 the boats WW1 and WW2, built to a Nordenfelt design. The SM U-1 was a completely redesigned Karp-class submarine and only one was built, the Imperial German Navy commissioned it on 14 December 1906. It had a hull, a Körting kerosene engine. The 50%-larger SM U-2 had two torpedo tubes, the U-19 class of 1912–13 saw the first diesel engine installed in a German navy boat. At the start of World War I in 1914, Germany had 48 submarines of 13 classes in service or under construction, during that war the Imperial German Navy used SM U-1 for training. Retired in 1919, it remains on display at the Deutsches Museum in Munich, on 5 September 1914, HMS Pathfinder was sunk by SM U-21, the first ship to have been sunk by a submarine using a self-propelled torpedo. On 22 September, U-9 sank the obsolete British warships HMS Aboukir, HMS Cressy, for the first few months of the war, U-boat anticommerce actions observed the prize rules of the time, which governed the treatment of enemy civilian ships and their occupants. On 20 October 1914, SM U-17 sank the first merchant ship, surface commerce raiders were proving to be ineffective, and on 4 February 1915, the Kaiser assented to the declaration of a war zone in the waters around the British Isles. This was cited as a retaliation for British minefields and shipping blockades, under the instructions given to U-boat captains, they could sink merchant ships, even potentially neutral ones, without warning. In February 1915, a submarine U-6 was rammed and both periscopes were destroyed off Beachy Head by the collier SS Thordis commanded by Captain John Bell RNR after firing a torpedo, on 7 May 1915, SM U-20 sank the liner RMS Lusitania. The sinking claimed 1,198 lives,128 of them American civilians, munitions that it carried were thousands of crates full of ammunition for rifles, 3-inch artillery shells, and also various other standard ammunition used by infantry. The sinking of the Lusitania was widely used as propaganda against the German Empire, a widespread reaction in the U. S was not seen until the sinking of the ferry SS Sussex. The sinking occurred in 1915 and the United States entered the war in 1917, the initial U. S. response was to threaten to sever diplomatic ties, which persuaded the Germans to issue the Sussex pledge that reimposed restrictions on U-boat activity
7.
Belgium
–
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a sovereign state in Western Europe bordered by France, the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, and the North Sea. It is a small, densely populated country which covers an area of 30,528 square kilometres and has a population of about 11 million people. Additionally, there is a group of German-speakers who live in the East Cantons located around the High Fens area. Historically, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg were known as the Low Countries, the region was called Belgica in Latin, after the Roman province of Gallia Belgica. From the end of the Middle Ages until the 17th century, today, Belgium is a federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. It is divided into three regions and three communities, that exist next to each other and its two largest regions are the Dutch-speaking region of Flanders in the north and the French-speaking southern region of Wallonia. The Brussels-Capital Region is a bilingual enclave within the Flemish Region. A German-speaking Community exists in eastern Wallonia, Belgiums linguistic diversity and related political conflicts are reflected in its political history and complex system of governance, made up of six different governments. Upon its independence, declared in 1830, Belgium participated in the Industrial Revolution and, during the course of the 20th century, possessed a number of colonies in Africa. This continuing antagonism has led to several far-reaching reforms, resulting in a transition from a unitary to a federal arrangement during the period from 1970 to 1993. Belgium is also a member of the Eurozone, NATO, OECD and WTO. Its capital, Brussels, hosts several of the EUs official seats as well as the headquarters of major international organizations such as NATO. Belgium is also a part of the Schengen Area, Belgium is a developed country, with an advanced high-income economy and is categorized as very high in the Human Development Index. A gradual immigration by Germanic Frankish tribes during the 5th century brought the area under the rule of the Merovingian kings, a gradual shift of power during the 8th century led the kingdom of the Franks to evolve into the Carolingian Empire. Many of these fiefdoms were united in the Burgundian Netherlands of the 14th and 15th centuries, the Eighty Years War divided the Low Countries into the northern United Provinces and the Southern Netherlands. The latter were ruled successively by the Spanish and the Austrian Habsburgs and this was the theatre of most Franco-Spanish and Franco-Austrian wars during the 17th and 18th centuries. The reunification of the Low Countries as the United Kingdom of the Netherlands occurred at the dissolution of the First French Empire in 1815, although the franchise was initially restricted, universal suffrage for men was introduced after the general strike of 1893 and for women in 1949. The main political parties of the 19th century were the Catholic Party, French was originally the single official language adopted by the nobility and the bourgeoisie
8.
World War I
–
World War I, also known as the First World War, the Great War, or the War to End All Wars, was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history and it was one of the deadliest conflicts in history, and paved the way for major political changes, including revolutions in many of the nations involved. The war drew in all the worlds great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances, the Allies versus the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary. These alliances were reorganised and expanded as more nations entered the war, Italy, Japan, the trigger for the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. This set off a crisis when Austria-Hungary delivered an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia. Within weeks, the powers were at war and the conflict soon spread around the world. On 25 July Russia began mobilisation and on 28 July, the Austro-Hungarians declared war on Serbia, Germany presented an ultimatum to Russia to demobilise, and when this was refused, declared war on Russia on 1 August. Germany then invaded neutral Belgium and Luxembourg before moving towards France, after the German march on Paris was halted, what became known as the Western Front settled into a battle of attrition, with a trench line that changed little until 1917. On the Eastern Front, the Russian army was successful against the Austro-Hungarians, in November 1914, the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers, opening fronts in the Caucasus, Mesopotamia and the Sinai. In 1915, Italy joined the Allies and Bulgaria joined the Central Powers, Romania joined the Allies in 1916, after a stunning German offensive along the Western Front in the spring of 1918, the Allies rallied and drove back the Germans in a series of successful offensives. By the end of the war or soon after, the German Empire, Russian Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire, national borders were redrawn, with several independent nations restored or created, and Germanys colonies were parceled out among the victors. During the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, the Big Four imposed their terms in a series of treaties, the League of Nations was formed with the aim of preventing any repetition of such a conflict. This effort failed, and economic depression, renewed nationalism, weakened successor states, and feelings of humiliation eventually contributed to World War II. From the time of its start until the approach of World War II, at the time, it was also sometimes called the war to end war or the war to end all wars due to its then-unparalleled scale and devastation. In Canada, Macleans magazine in October 1914 wrote, Some wars name themselves, during the interwar period, the war was most often called the World War and the Great War in English-speaking countries. Will become the first world war in the sense of the word. These began in 1815, with the Holy Alliance between Prussia, Russia, and Austria, when Germany was united in 1871, Prussia became part of the new German nation. Soon after, in October 1873, German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck negotiated the League of the Three Emperors between the monarchs of Austria-Hungary, Russia and Germany
9.
United States Secretary of the Navy
–
The Secretary of the Navy is a statutory office and the head of the Department of the Navy, a military department within the Department of Defense of the United States of America. The Department of the Navy consists of two Uniformed Services, the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps. In effect, all authority within the Navy and Marine Corps, specifically enumerated responsibilities of the SECNAV in beforementioned section are, recruiting, organizing, supplying, equipping, training, mobilizing, and demobilizing. The Secretary also oversees the construction, outfitting, and repair of ships, equipment. The Secretary of the Navy is a member of the Defense Acquisition Board, chaired by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, the CNO and the Commandant act as the principal executive agents of the SECNAV within their respective services to implement the orders of the Secretary. The United States Navy Regulations is the principal regulatory document of the Department of the Navy, the Chief of Naval Operations and the Commandant of the Marine Corps have their own separate staffs, the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations and Headquarters Marine Corps
10.
Ostend
–
Ostend is a Belgian coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke, Raversijde, Stene and Zandvoorde, in earlier times, Ostend was a small village built on the east-end of an island between the North Sea and a beach lake. Although small, the rose to the status of town around 1265 when the inhabitants were allowed to hold a market. The major source of income for the inhabitants was fishing, the North Sea coastline has always been rather unstable and in 1395 the inhabitants decided to build a new Ostend behind large dikes and further away from the always-threatening sea. The strategic position on the North Sea coast had major advantages for Ostend as a harbour, the town was frequently taken, ravaged, ransacked and destroyed by conquering armies. The Dutch rebels, the Gueuzen, took control of the town and this shocking event set in motion negotiations that led to a truce several years later. When the truce broke down, it became a Dunkirker base, after this era, Ostend was turned into a harbour of some importance. In 1722, the Dutch again closed off the entrance to the worlds biggest harbour of Antwerp, therefore, Ostend rose in importance because the town provided an alternative exit to the sea. The Belgium Austriacum had become part of the Austrian Empire, the Austrian Emperor Charles VI granted the town the trade monopoly with Africa and the Far-East. The Oostendse Compagnie was allowed to found colonies overseas, however, in 1727 the Oostendse Compagnie was forced to stop its activities because of Dutch and British pressure. The Netherlands and Britain would not allow competitors on the trade level. Both nations regarded international trade as their privilege, on 19 September 1826 the local artillery magazine exploded. At least 20 people were killed and a further 200 injured, the affluent quarter of dHargras was levelled and scarcely a building in the city escaped damage. Disease followed the leading to further deaths. The harbour of Ostend continued to expand because the harbour dock, in 1838, a railway connection with Brussels was constructed. Ostend became a harbour to England in 1846 when the first ferry sailed to Dover. Very important for the image of the town was the attention it started to receive from the Belgian kings Leopold I, both liked to spend their holidays in Ostend. Important monuments and villas were built to please the Royal Family, including the Hippodrome Wellington horse racing track, the rest of aristocratic Belgium followed and soon Ostend became known as The Queen of the Belgian sea-side resorts
11.
Zeebrugge
–
Zeebrugge is a village on the coast of Belgium and a subdivision of Bruges, for which it is the modern port. Zeebrugge serves as both the port of Bruges-Zeebrugge and a seafront resort with hotels, cafés, a marina. An expressway to Bruges connects Zeebrugge to the European motorway system, one can also get to and it is Belgiums most important fishing port and the wholesale fish market located there is one of the largest in Europe. Zeebrugge has the largest LNG terminal complex in Europe, the harbour was the site of the Zeebrugge Raid on 23 April 1918, when the British Royal Navy temporarily put the German inland naval base at Bruges out of action. Admiral Roger Keyes planned and led the raid that stormed the German batteries and this action blocked access to the port and prevented U-boats and other shipping from using it. The raid, although a morale boosting victory in Britain, was only a military success. Later, Zeebrugges harbour was the scene of disaster when in 1987 the MS Herald of Free Enterprise passenger ferry capsized killing 193 people
12.
Bruges
–
Bruges is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country. The area of the whole city amounts to more than 13,840 hectares, including 1,075 hectares off the coast, the historic city centre is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO. It is oval and about 430 hectares in size, the citys total population is 117,073, of whom around 20,000 live in the city centre. The metropolitan area, including the commuter zone, covers an area of 616 km2 and has a total of 255,844 inhabitants as of 1 January 2008. Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, such as Amsterdam and Stockholm, Bruges has a significant economic importance thanks to its port and was once one of the worlds chief commercial cities. Bruges is well known as the seat of the College of Europe, the name probably derives from the Old Dutch for bridge, brugga. Also compare Middle Dutch brucge, brugge, and modern Dutch bruggehoofd, the form brugghe would be a southern Dutch variant. The Dutch word and the English bridge both derive from Proto-Germanic *brugjō-, Bruges was a location of coastal settlement during prehistory. This Bronze Age and Iron Age settlement is unrelated to medieval city development, in the Bruges area, the first fortifications were built after Julius Caesars conquest of the Menapii in the first century BC, to protect the coastal area against pirates. The Franks took over the region from the Gallo-Romans around the 4th century. The Viking incursions of the century prompted Count Baldwin I of Flanders to reinforce the Roman fortifications, trade soon resumed with England. Bruges received its city charter on 27 July 1128, and new walls and canals were built, in 1089 Bruges became the capital of the County of Flanders. Since about 1050, gradual silting had caused the city to lose its access to the sea. A storm in 1134, however, re-established this access, through the creation of a channel at the Zwin. The new sea arm stretched all the way to Damme, a city became the commercial outpost for Bruges. Bruges had a location at the crossroads of the northern Hanseatic League trade. They developed, or borrowed from Italy, new forms of merchant capitalism, whereby several merchants would share the risks and profits and they employed new forms of economic exchange, including bills of exchange and letters of credit. The city eagerly welcomed foreign traders, most notably the Portuguese traders selling pepper and other spices, the citys entrepreneurs reached out to make economic colonies of England and Scotlands wool-producing districts
13.
Coastal submarine
–
A coastal submarine or littoral submarine is a small, maneuverable submarine with shallow draft well suited to navigation of coastal channels and harbors. Although size is not precisely defined, coastal submarines are larger than midget submarines, space limitations aboard coastal submarines restrict fuel availability for distant travel, food availability for extended patrol duration, and number of weapons carried. Within those limitations, however, coastal submarines may be able to reach areas inaccessible to larger submarines, improved versions of UB and UC coastal submarines were devised. The 30th U-boat Flotilla of six Type II U-boats was transported overland on the Autobahn, german Warships of the Second World War
14.
English Channel
–
The English Channel, also called simply the Channel, is the body of water that separates southern England from northern France, and links the southern part of the North Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. It is about 560 km long and varies in width from 240 km at its widest to 33.3 km in the Strait of Dover and it is the smallest of the shallow seas around the continental shelf of Europe, covering an area of some 75,000 km2. The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the English Channel as follows, a line joining Isle Vierge to Lands End. The southwestern limit of the North Sea, the IHO defines the southwestern limit of the North Sea as a line joining the Walde Lighthouse and Leathercoat Point. The Walde Lighthouse is 6 km east of Calais, and Leathercoat Point is at the end of St Margarets Bay. The Strait of Dover, at the Channels eastern end, is its narrowest point and it is relatively shallow, with an average depth of about 120 m at its widest part, reducing to a depth of about 45 m between Dover and Calais. Eastwards from there the adjoining North Sea reduces to about 26 m in the Broad Fourteens where it lies over the watershed of the land bridge between East Anglia and the Low Countries. It reaches a depth of 180 m in the submerged valley of Hurds Deep,48 km west-northwest of Guernsey. The eastern region along the French coast between Cherbourg and the mouth of the Seine river at Le Havre is frequently referred to as the Bay of the Seine. There are several islands in the Channel, the most notable being the Isle of Wight off the English coast. The coastline, particularly on the French shore, is indented, several small islands close to the coastline, including Chausey. The Cotentin Peninsula in France juts out into the Channel, whilst on the English side there is a parallel channel known as the Solent between the Isle of Wight and the mainland. The Celtic Sea is to the west of the Channel, the time difference of about six hours between high water at the eastern and western limits of the Channel is indicative of the tidal range being amplified further by resonance. It was never defined as a border and the names were more or less descriptive. It was not considered as the property of a nation, strangely, before the development of the modern nations, British scholars very often referred to it as Gaulish and the French one as British or English. The name English Channel has been used since the early 18th century. In modern Dutch, however, it is known as Het Kanaal, later, it has also been known as the British Channel or the British Sea having been called the Oceanus Britannicus by the 2nd-century geographer Ptolemy. The same name is used on an Italian map of about 1450, the Anglo-Saxon texts often call it Sūð-sǣ as opposed to Norð-sǣ
15.
North Sea
–
The North Sea is a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean located between Great Britain, Scandinavia, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the ocean through the English Channel in the south and it is more than 970 kilometres long and 580 kilometres wide, with an area of around 570,000 square kilometres. The North Sea has long been the site of important European shipping lanes as well as a major fishery, the North Sea was the centre of the Vikings rise. Subsequently, the Hanseatic League, the Netherlands, and the British each sought to dominate the North Sea and thus the access to the markets, as Germanys only outlet to the ocean, the North Sea continued to be strategically important through both World Wars. The coast of the North Sea presents a diversity of geological and geographical features, in the north, deep fjords and sheer cliffs mark the Norwegian and Scottish coastlines, whereas in the south it consists primarily of sandy beaches and wide mudflats. Due to the population, heavy industrialization, and intense use of the sea and area surrounding it. In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean, in the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively. In the north it is bordered by the Shetland Islands, and connects with the Norwegian Sea, the North Sea is more than 970 kilometres long and 580 kilometres wide, with an area of 570,000 square kilometres and a volume of 54,000 cubic kilometres. Around the edges of the North Sea are sizeable islands and archipelagos, including Shetland, Orkney, the North Sea receives freshwater from a number of European continental watersheds, as well as the British Isles. A large part of the European drainage basin empties into the North Sea including water from the Baltic Sea, the largest and most important rivers flowing into the North Sea are the Elbe and the Rhine – Meuse watershed. Around 185 million people live in the catchment area of the rivers discharging into the North Sea encompassing some highly industrialized areas, for the most part, the sea lies on the European continental shelf with a mean depth of 90 metres. The only exception is the Norwegian trench, which extends parallel to the Norwegian shoreline from Oslo to a north of Bergen. It is between 20 and 30 kilometres wide and has a depth of 725 metres. The Dogger Bank, a vast moraine, or accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris and this feature has produced the finest fishing location of the North Sea. The Long Forties and the Broad Fourteens are large areas with uniform depth in fathoms. These great banks and others make the North Sea particularly hazardous to navigate, the Devils Hole lies 200 miles east of Dundee, Scotland. The feature is a series of trenches between 20 and 30 kilometres long,1 and 2 kilometres wide and up to 230 metres deep. Other areas which are less deep are Cleaver Bank, Fisher Bank, the International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the North Sea as follows, On the Southwest
16.
Western Approaches
–
The Western Approaches is an approximately rectangular area of the Atlantic ocean lying immediately to the west of the British Isles. The north and south boundaries are defined by the corresponding extremities of the British Isles, the coast of the mainland forms the eastern side and the western boundary is the 30 degree meridian, which passes through Iceland. The area is important to the United Kingdom, because many of its larger shipping ports lie within it. Since almost all shipping to and from the United Kingdom passed through this area, GIUK gap Long Forties Broad Fourteens Western Approaches Command Denys Rayner
17.
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
–
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was established as a sovereign state on 1 January 1801 by the Acts of Union 1800, which merged the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland. The growing desire for an Irish Republic led to the Irish War of Independence, Northern Ireland remained part of the United Kingdom, and the state was consequently renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Britain financed the European coalition that defeated France in 1815 in the Napoleonic Wars, the British Empire thereby became the foremost world power for the next century. The Crimean War with Russia and the Boer wars were relatively small operations in a largely peaceful century, rapid industrialisation that began in the decades prior to the states formation continued up until the mid-19th century. A devastating famine, exacerbated by government inaction in the century, led to demographic collapse in much of Ireland. It was an era of economic modernization and growth of industry, trade and finance. Outward migration was heavy to the colonies and to the United States. Britain also built up a large British Empire in Africa and Asia, India, by far the most important possession, saw a short-lived revolt in 1857. In foreign policy Britain favoured free trade, which enabled its financiers and merchants to operate successfully in many otherwise independent countries, as in South America. Britain formed no permanent military alliances until the early 20th century, when it began to cooperate with Japan, France and Russia, and moved closer to the United States. A brief period of limited independence for Ireland came to an end following the Irish Rebellion of 1798, the British governments fear of an independent Ireland siding against them with the French resulted in the decision to unite the two countries. This was brought about by legislation in the parliaments of both kingdoms and came into effect on 1 January 1801, however, King George III was bitterly opposed to any such Emancipation and succeeded in defeating his governments attempts to introduce it. When the Treaty of Amiens ended the war, Britain agreed to return most of the territories it had seized, in May 1803, war was declared again. In 1806, Napoleon issued the series of Berlin Decrees, which brought into effect the Continental System and this policy aimed to eliminate the threat from the British by closing French-controlled territory to foreign trade. Frances population and agricultural capacity far outstripped that of the British Isles, Napoleon expected that cutting Britain off from the European mainland would end its economic hegemony. The Spanish uprising in 1808 at last permitted Britain to gain a foothold on the Continent, after Napoleons surrender and exile to the island of Elba, peace appeared to have returned. The Allies united and the armies of Wellington and Blucher defeated Napoleon once, simultaneous with the Napoleonic Wars, trade disputes, arming hostile Indians and British impressment of American sailors led to the War of 1812 with the United States. The war was little noticed in Britain, which could devote few resources to the conflict until the fall of Napoleon in 1814, American frigates inflicted a series of defeats on the Royal Navy, which was short on manpower due to the conflict in Europe
18.
Allies of World War I
–
The Allies of World War I were the countries that opposed the Central Powers in the First World War. The members of the original Triple Entente of 1907 were the French Republic, the British Empire, Belgium, Serbia, Greece, Montenegro, and Romania were affiliated members of the Entente. The 1920 Treaty of Sèvres defines the Principal Allied Powers as the British Empire, French Republic, Italy, the Allied Powers comprised, together with the Principal Allied Powers, Armenia, Belgium, Greece, Hejaz, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serb-Croat-Slovene state and Czechoslovakia. The U. S. declaration of war on Germany, on 6th April 1917 was on the grounds that Germany had violated its neutrality by attacking international shipping and it declared war on Austria-Hungary in December 1917. The U. S. entered the war as a power, rather than as a formal ally of France. Although the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria severed relations with the United States, the Dominion governments did control recruiting, and removed personnel from front-line duties as they saw fit. From early 1917, the War Cabinet was superseded by the Imperial War Cabinet, in April 1918, operational control of all Entente forces on the Western Front passed to the new supreme commander, Ferdinand Foch of France. The Austrian Empire followed with an attack on the Serbian ally Montenegro on 8 August, on the Western Front, the two neutral States of Belgium and Luxembourg were immediately occupied by German troops as part of the German Schlieffen Plan. On 23 August Japan joined the Entente, which then counted seven members, the entrance of the British Empire brought Nepal into the war. In 1916, Montenegro capitulated and left the Entente, and two nations joined, Portugal and Romania, on 6 April 1917, the United States entered the war. Liberia, Siam and Greece also became allies and this was followed by Romanian cessation of hostilities, however the Balkan State declared war on Central Powers again on 10 November 1918. In response to the Germans invasion of neutral Belgium, the United Kingdom declared war on Germany on 4 August 1914, gibraltar, Cyprus and Malta were British dependencies in Europe. The UK held several colonies, protectorates, and semi-autonomous dependencies at the time of World War I, in Eastern Africa the East Africa Protectorate, Nyasaland, both Northern and Southern Rhodesia, the Uganda Protectorate, were involved in conflict with German forces in German East Africa. In Western Africa, the colonies of Gold Coast and Nigeria were involved in actions against German forces from Togoland. In Southwestern Africa, the dominion of South Africa was involved in military actions against German forces in German South-West Africa. Canada and Newfoundland were two autonomous dominions during the war that made major contributions to the British war effort. Other British dependent territories in the Americas included, British Honduras, the Falkland Islands, British Guiana, and Jamaica. The UK held large possessions in Asia, including the Indian Empire which was an assortment of British imperial authorities in the territory now defined as India, Bangladesh, Burma, australia and New Zealand were two autonomous dominions of the UK in Oceania during the war
19.
Naval aviation
–
Naval aviation is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. In contrast, maritime aviation is the operation of aircraft in a maritime role, an exception to this is the United States Coast Guard, which is considered part of U. S. naval aviation. S. Naval aviation, whether based afloat or ashore, Naval aviation is typically projected to a position nearer the target by way of an aircraft carrier. Carrier-based aircraft must be enough to withstand demanding carrier operations. Early experiments on the use of kites for naval reconnaissance took place in 1903 at Woolwich Common for the Admiralty, in 1908 Prime Minister H. H. Asquith approved the formation of an Aerial Sub-Committee of the Committee of Imperial Defence to investigate the potential for naval aviation. This resulted in the construction of Mayfly in 1909, the first air component of the navy to become operational, and the genesis of modern naval aviation. Two hundred applications were received, and four were accepted, Lieutenant C R Samson, Lieutenant A M Longmore, Lieutenant A Gregory and Captain E L Gerrard, RMLI. The French also established an aviation capability in 1910 with the establishment of the Service Aeronautique. U. S. naval aviation began with pioneer aviator Glenn Curtiss who contracted with the Navy to demonstrate that airplanes could take off from, one of his pilots, Eugene Ely, took off from the USS Birmingham anchored off the Virginia coast in November 1910. Two months later Ely landed aboard another cruiser, USS Pennsylvania, in San Francisco Bay, however, the platforms erected on those vessels were temporary measures. The U. S. Navy and Glenn Curtiss experienced two firsts during January 1911, $25,000 was appropriated for the Bureau of Navigation to purchase three airplanes and in the spring of 1911 four additional officers were trained as pilots by the Wright brothers and Curtiss. A camp with a landing field was established on the Severn River at Greenbury Point, near Annapolis. Mustin successfully tested the concept of the launch in August 1912. The first permanent naval air station was established at Pensacola, Florida, in January 1912, the British battleship HMS Africa took part in aircraft experiments at Sheerness. Africa then transferred her flight equipment to her sister ship Hibernia, in May 1912, with Commander Samson again flying the S.38, the first ever instance of an aircraft to take off from a ship which was underway occurred. Hibernia steamed at 10.5 knots at the Royal Fleet Review in Weymouth Bay, Hibernia then transferred her aviation equipment to battleship London. The first aircraft participation in naval manoeuvres took place in 1913 with the cruiser Hermes converted into a seaplane carrier, in 1914, naval aviation was split again, and became the Royal Naval Air Service. However, shipboard naval aviation had begun in the Royal Navy, other early operators of seaplanes were Germany, within its Marine-Fliegerabteiling naval aviation units within the Kaiserliche Marine, and Russia
20.
Ardres
–
Ardres is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. Ardres is located 10.1 mi by rail S. S. E. of Calais and it is one of three towns known as the Les Trois Pays, the other two being Guînes and Licques. Ardes, the first town in the French kings land, has a rich and vibrant history as a military, the Field of the Cloth of Gold, where Henry VIII of England and Francis I of France met in 1520, was at Balinghem in the immediate neighbourhood. The town is an important market for cattle, major tourist attractions at Ardres include the Chapelle des Carmes and the Eglise Notre Dame de Grâce. There are also some lakes which provide fishing and sailing
21.
Calais
–
Calais is a town and major ferry port in northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the prefecture is its third-largest city of Arras. The population of the area at the 2010 census was 126,395. Calais overlooks the Strait of Dover, the narrowest point in the English Channel, which is only 34 km wide here, the White Cliffs of Dover can easily be seen on a clear day from Calais. Calais is a port for ferries between France and England, and since 1994, the Channel Tunnel has linked nearby Coquelles to Folkestone by rail. Due to its position, Calais since the Middle Ages has been a major port and it was annexed by Edward III of England in 1347 and grew into a thriving centre for wool production. The town came to be called the brightest jewel in the English crown owing to its importance as the gateway for the tin, lead, lace. Calais was a possession of England until its capture by France in 1558. In 1805 it was an area for Napoleons troops for several months during his planned invasion of the United Kingdom. The town was razed to the ground during World War II. During World War II, the Germans built massive bunkers along the coast in preparation for launching missiles on England, the old part of the town, Calais proper, is situated on an artificial island surrounded by canals and harbours. The modern part of the town, St-Pierre, lies to the south, south east of the Place is the church of Notre-Dame, built during the English occupancy of Calais. It is arguably the only built in the English perpendicular style in all of France. In this church former French President Charles de Gaulle married his wife Yvonne Vendroux, south of the Place and opposite the Parc St Pierre is the Hôtel-de-ville, and the belfry from the 16th and early 17th centuries. Today, Calais is visited by more than 10 million annually, although the early history of habitation in the area is limited, the Romans called the settlement Caletum. Julius Caesar mustered 800 to 1,000 sailing boats, five legions, as the pebble and sand ridge extended eastward from Calais, the haven behind it developed into fen, as the estuary progressively filled with silt and peat. Calais was improved by the Count of Flanders in 997 and fortified by the Count of Boulogne in 1224, in 1189, Richard the Lionheart is documented to have landed at Calais on his journey to the Third Crusade. Angered, the English king demanded reprisals against the citizens for holding out for so long
22.
Dunkirk
–
Dunkirk is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It lies 10 kilometres from the Belgian border, the population of the city at the 2012 census was 90,995 inhabitants. The name of Dunkirk derives from West Flemish dun and kerke, nowadays, Dunkirk is the worlds northernmost Francophone city. About 960AD Count Baldwin III had a wall erected, in order to protect the settlement against Viking raids. The surrounding wetlands were drained and cultivated by the monks of nearby Bergues Abbey, the name Dunkirk was first mentioned in a tithe privilege of 27 May 1067, issued by Count Baldwin V of Flanders. Count Philip I brought further large tracts of marshland under cultivation, laid out first plans to build a Canal from Dunkirk to Bergues and vested the Dunkirkers with market rights. However, in the course of the Western Schism from 1378, English supporters of Pope Urban VI disembarked at Dunkirk, captured the city and they were ejected by King Charles VI of France, but left great devastations in and around the town. Upon the extinction of the Counts of Flanders with the death of Louis II in 1384, Flanders was acquired by the Burgundian, the fortifications were again enlarged, including the construction of a belfry daymark. As Maximilian was the son of Emperor Frederick III, all Flanders was immediately seized by King Louis XI of France. However, the defeated the French troops at the 1479 Battle of Guinegate. The area remained disputed between Spain, the United Netherlands, England and France. At the beginning of the Eighty Years War, Dunkirk was briefly in the hands of the Dutch rebels, Spanish forces under Duke Alexander Farnese of Parma re-established Spanish rule in 1583 and it became a base for the notorious Dunkirkers. The Dunkirkers briefly lost their home port when the city was conquered by the French in 1646, in 1658, as a result of the long war between France and Spain, it was captured after a siege by Franco-English forces following the battle of the Dunes. The city along with Fort-Mardyck was awarded to England in the peace the following year as agreed in the Franco-English alliance against Spain and it came under French rule when Charles II of England sold it to France for £320,000 on 17 October 1662. The French government developed the town as a fortified port, the towns existing defences were adapted to create ten bastions. The port was expanded in the 1670s by the construction of a basin that could hold up to thirty warships with a lock system to maintain water levels at low tide. The basin was linked to the sea by a channel dug through coastal sandbanks secured by two jetties and this work was completed by 1678. The jetties were defended a few years later by the construction of five forts, Château dEspérance, Château Vert, Grand Risban, Château Gaillard, an additional fort was built in 1701 called Fort Blanc
23.
Caproni Ca.5
–
The Caproni Ca.5 was an Italian heavy bomber of the World War I and the postwar era. It was the version of the series of aircraft that began with the Caproni Ca.1 in 1914. By late World War I, developments in technology made older bomber designs unable to penetrate targets defended by modern fighters. Apart from greater power, various refinements were made to the design, including modifications to the nacelle and undercarriage. The first prototype flew in late 1917 and the type remained in production until 1921, some 659 of all versions were built by Caproni, and another three were licence-built in the US. Planned licensed production in France was cancelled with the end of the war, during the war, Caproni designated these aircraft according to the total power of their engines. The Ca.5 was a biplane of a wooden construction. The crew of four was placed in a central nacelle. The rear gunner manned upper machine guns, standing upon the engine in a protective cage. Armament consisted of two to four Revelli 6.5 mm or 7.7 mm machine guns, one on a front ring mount and one, bombs were suspended under the hull. Ca.44 - main production version, originally powered by three Fiat A.12 engines of 149 kW each, hence the name Caproni 600 hp. Later, the A-12bis was used, and aircraft so equipped were known as Caproni 600/900 hps Ca.45 - variant selected for French service, Ca.46 - late-war variant with three 269 kW Liberty engines. Ca.47 - seaplane version of Ca.44 Ca.50 - Ca. 44s modified as air ambulances Ca.57 - - airliner conversion of war-surplus Ca. 44s
24.
Airco DH.4
–
The Airco DH.4 was a British two-seat biplane day bomber of World War I. It was designed by Geoffrey de Havilland for Airco, and was the first British two-seat light day-bomber to have a defensive armament. It first flew in August 1916 and entered service with the Royal Flying Corps in March 1917, the majority of DH. 4s were actually built as general purpose two-seaters in the United States, for service with the American forces in France. The DH.4 was tried with several engines, of which the best was the 375 hp Rolls-Royce Eagle engine. Armament and ordnance for the aircraft consisted of one 0.303 in Vickers machine gun for the pilot, two 230 lb bombs or four 112 lb bombs could be carried. The DH.4 entered service on 6 March 1917 with No.55 Squadron in France, the DH.4 was designed by Geoffrey de Havilland as a light two-seat day bomber powered by the new Beardmore Halford Pullinger engine. The prototype first flew in August 1916, powered by a prototype BHP engine rated at 230 hp, while the DH.4 trials were promising, the BHP engine required major redesign before entering production, and the Rolls-Royce Eagle engine was selected as the DH. 4s powerplant. The first order for 50 DH. 4s, powered by 250 hp Eagle III engines was placed at the end of 1916, the aircraft was a conventional tractor two bay biplane of all-wooden construction. The crew of two were accommodated in widely spaced cockpits, separated by the fuel tank and it was armed with a single forward-firing synchronised Vickers machine gun and one or two.303 in Lewis guns fitted on a Scarff ring fired by the observer. A bomb load of 460 lb could be fitted to external racks, as production continued, DH. 4s were fitted with Eagle engines of increasing power, settling on the 375 hp Eagle VIII, which powered the majority of frontline DH. 4s by the end of 1917. None of these engines could match the Rolls-Royce Eagle, however, in American production, the new Liberty engine proved suitable as a DH.4 powerplant. The Liberty was also to power the British DH. 9A. Production was by Airco, F. W. Berwick and Co, Glendower Aircraft Company, Palladium Autocars, Vulcan Motor and Engineering, a total of 1,449 aircraft were made in the UK for the RFC and RNAS. SABCA of Belgium made a further 15 in 1926, a total of 9,500 DH-4s were ordered from American manufacturers, of which 1,885 actually reached France during the war. After the war, a number of firms, most significantly Boeing, were contracted by the U. S. Army to remanufacture surplus DH-4s to DH-4B standard. Known by Boeing as the Model 16, deliveries of 111 aircraft from this manufacturer took place between March and July 1920, with 50 of them returned for further three years later. In 1923, the Army ordered a new DH-4 variant from Boeing and these three prototypes were designated DH-4M-1 and were ordered into production alongside the generally similar DH-4M-2 developed by Atlantic Aircraft. A total of 22 of the 163 DH-4M-1s were converted by the Army into dual-control trainers, the DH.4 entered service with the RFC in January 1917, first being used by No.55 Squadron
25.
Saint-Inglevert Airfield
–
Saint-Inglevert Airfield is a general aviation airfield at Saint-Inglevert, Pas-de-Calais, France. In the First World War an airfield was established near Saint-Inglevert by the Royal Flying Corps, later passing to the Royal Air Force on formation, in 1920, a civil airfield was established on a different site which was a designated customs airfield. During the Second World War, Saint-Inglevert was occupied by the Royal Air Force, the airfield was captured by the Germans towards the end of the Battle of France and occupied by the Luftwaffe. It was abandoned in 1941, but in 1943 field artillery units were based around the airfield as part of the Atlantic Wall, although civil flying returned to Saint-Inglevert post-war, the airfield was abandoned in 1957 and returned to agriculture. It was reopened by laéroclub du Boulonnais in 1986, Saint-Inglevert airfield is located on a 130-metre-high hill to the north west of the village of Saint-Inglevert, and east of Hervelinghen. It lies 13 kilometres south west of Calais, there was a Royal Flying Corps airfield at Saint-Inglevert during the First World War, but not on the site of the current airfield. In April 1918, No.21 Squadron Royal Air Force were based at Saint-Inglevert, flying Royal Aircraft Factory R. E.8 aircraft. From 29 June to 23 October, No.214 Squadron RAF were based there flying Handley Page O/400s, and in November, they were replaced by No.115 Squadron RAF, who were flying the same type of aircraft. Two more squadrons, No.97 Squadron RAF and No.100 Squadron RAF, were based there from 17 November, All Royal Air Force squadrons departed from Saint-Inglevert on 4 March 1919. In 1920, an airfield was established at Saint-Inglevert on a different site to the military airfield. Facilities developed over the years to two hangars, customs facilities and ultra short wave radio. In March 1920, a Notice to Airmen was issued stating that Saint-Inglevert was open and fuel, oil and water were available, a proposal to designate Saint-Inglevert as a customs airfield in order to relieve Le Bourget of some of its workload was made in April 1920. Facilities then in existence included hangars, repair facilities and a radio station, later that month, it was notified that an aerial lighthouse had been installed at the airfield, flashing the Morse letter A, and Saint-Inglevert became a customs airport on 20 May. By July, the provision of signals at Saint-Inglevert had begun. A 10-metre-long arrow was displayed indicating the wind direction, in August, it was reported that Saint-Inglevert was sending weather report by radio seven times a day to Le Bourget. By October, aids available included a windsock and a landing T, requirements for aircraft to perform clockwise or anticlockwise circuits when landing were indicated by the flying of a red or white flag respectively. The aerial lighthouse was reported to be out of action in November 1920. As part of a series of trials to assess the viability of civil aviation in France, three laps of a circuit Paris – Orléans – Rouen – Saint-Inglevert – Metz – Dijon – Paris were flown
26.
Sangatte
–
Sangatte is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department on the northern coast of France on the English Channel. Like many place names in French Flanders, the name is of Flemish origin, Sangatte became internationally famous because of the works for the Channel Tunnel and is the location for the tunnels French cooling station, its British counterpart being at Samphire Hoe. In addition, it is the French end-point for the HVDC Cross-Channel, blériot-Plage is named to commemorate Louis Blériot who, on the July 25,1909, was the first person to fly across the English Channel. He flew from the beach at Sangatte to the White Cliffs of Dover, the crossing took 37 minutes in his aeroplane, Blériot XI, built in collaboration with Raymond Saulnier. It was powered by a 3-cylinder 25 horsepower engine, at the western end of the beach, a statue of the French aviator Hubert Latham overlooks the sea. Latham was another pioneering cross-channel pilot whose earlier attempt on July 19 had failed, Sangatte also achieved notoriety as the location of a controversial refugee camp, colloquially dubbed Sans-gate. Nicolas Sarkozy, then Minister of the Interior, ordered its closure, there were riots in 2001 and 2002, the year the camp closed
27.
Oye-Plage
–
Oye-Plage is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Oye-Plage lies about 7 miles east of Calais, on the junction of the D219, the commune is nearly a mile from the English Channel. The name is first recorded as Ogia in the 8th century, the Vikings landed here in 879 with the aim of invading Moriny. In the county of Boulogne until 1259, Oye belonged to the counts of Artois until 1346 and it was at Oye chateau that a peace treaty was signed on July 6,1439 between France and England. There is nothing left of the castle and adjacent forts which were tasked to block the road against first the Flemish and then the Spanish. The only witness to the past, the tower, restored in 1953, was built by the English in 1553 under the reign of Mary I of England. In the church, dedicated to Saint-Médard, were buried many English killed during the siege of Calais in 1346, the port gradually silted-up and was finally closed in the eighteenth century. On 27 September 1992 the town of Oye-Plage was twinned with the small English village of Capel-le-Ferne, a partnership which remains to this day. Http, //oye-plage. fr/sepanouir/jumelage/ La Tour Penchée, A blockhouse built in the shape of a church steeple and its purpose was to deceive the Allied airmen who were bombing targets in Germany, as they often used visual cues for directions. This false tower could be confused with that of the town situated a few kilometres further south, when the war ended, they tried to destroy the building with explosives. Now the tower leans about twenty degrees, hence its name, the remains of the château, which was subject to many invasions, and was razed in 1558. The 391-hectare Nature Reserve of the Platier dOye, created in 1987, the war memorial, built in 1920. Communes of the Pas-de-Calais department INSEE commune file Official commune website Oye-Plage on the Quid website
28.
Eastleigh
–
Eastleigh is in Hampshire, England, and the main town in the Borough of Eastleigh. The town lies between Southampton and Winchester, and is part of the South Hampshire conurbation, the first substantial growth was as a railway town. Now it is home to businesses, including a manufacturing plant owned by Prysmian Cables & Systems. The town lies on the River Itchen, one of Englands premier chalk streams for fly fishing, the modern town of Eastleigh lies on the old Roman road, built in A. D.79 between Winchester and Bitterne. Roman remains discovered in the Eastleigh area, including a Roman lead coffin excavated in 1908, a Saxon village called East Leah has been recorded to have existed since 932 AD. There is additional evidence of settlement in a survey from the time which details land in North Stoneham being granted by King Æthelstan to his military aid. The prefix Est or East is thought to refer to its location relative to the settlement of Baddesley. The Domesday Book of 1086 gives a detailed account of the settlement. In 1838 the London and South Western Railway Company built a railway from Southampton to Winchester and it was decided to build a station near the little village of Barton. This railway station was originally named Bishopstoke Junction, in 1868 the villages of Barton and Eastley were combined into one parish. A parish church, the Church of the Resurrection, was built in the same year, a local noted author of many novels, Charlotte Yonge, donated £500 towards the building of the church. She was rewarded by being given the privilege to choose a name for the new parish and she chose Eastly, but with a new modern spelling, Eastleigh. In 1891 the L&SWR Carriage and Wagon Works from Nine Elms in London were transferred to Eastleigh and this was followed by the Nine Elms Locomotive Works which were moved there in 1909. These railway works were closed in 2006 but have since reopened, Eastleigh has seen a rapid and controlled expansion in residential, industrial and commercial development over recent years. The borough of Eastleigh was ranked the 9th best place to live in the UK2006 by a Channel 4 programme. The United States Navy established an air station on 23 July 1918 to assemble and repair Caproni Ca.5 and Airco DH.4. The base closed shortly after the First Armistice at Compiègne, perhaps Eastleighs best-known resident is the Spitfire aeroplane which was built in Southampton and first flown from Eastleigh Aerodrome. A replica has recently placed on the roundabout at the entrance to the airport
29.
Caproni
–
Caproni was an Italian aircraft manufacturer founded in 1908 by Giovanni Battista Gianni Caproni. It was initially named, from 1911, Società de Agostini e Caproni, Caproni made the first aircraft of Italian construction in 1911. The manufacturing facilities were based in Taliedo, a district of Milan, close to Linate Airport. During World War I, Caproni developed a series of heavy bombers, used by the Italian, French, British. Between the world wars, Caproni evolved into a large syndicate named Società Italiana Caproni, Milano, the main subdivisions were Caproni Bergamasca, Caproni Vizzola, Reggiane and engine manufacturer Isotta-Fraschini. Between the world wars, Caproni produced mostly bombers and light transport planes, the Società Italiana Caproni ceased to exist in 1950, although one of its divisions, Caproni Vizzola endured until 1983 when it was bought by Agusta
30.
Fiat Automobiles
–
Fiat Automobiles S. p. A. is the largest automobile manufacturer in Italy, a subsidiary of FCA Italy S. p. A. which is part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Fiat Automobiles S. p. A. was formed in January 2007 when Fiat reorganized its automobile business, Fiats main market is Europe, mainly focused in Italy. Historically successful in citycars and supermini sector, currently Fiat has a range of models focused on two segments. Fiat does not currently offer any large family car, nor an executive car - these market segments have, to some extent been covered by the Lancia and Alfa Romeo brands, which Fiat also owns. Fiats share of the European market shrank from 9.4 per cent in 2000 to 5.8 per cent in the summer of 2004, at this point Sergio Marchionne was appointed as Fiats chief executive. By March 2009 their market share had expanded to 9.1 per cent, Fiats built their five-story Lingotto plant in 1915 through 1918, at the time it was Europes largest car manufacturing plant. Later the Mirafiori plant was built, also in Turin, to prepare for production of the all-new Fiat 128, Fiat opened their Rivalta plant in October 1968. Until the 128 entered production, the plant was used to build versions of the 850 and 124 as well as parts for the Fiat Dino. Fiats 2014 range of car engines comprised eleven units, eight petrols. The second generation Punto was a seller in the UK after its October 1999 launch. The original Fiat 500 had been one of the few competitors for the iconic Mini during its 1960s heyday. Fiat has invested for a time in South America, mainly in Brazil. They built their first Brazilian car plant in the Greater Belo Horizonte city of Betim in 1973, recently a brand new model developed in Brazil has been launched, the Fiat Uno. Other European models are imported to Brazil, Fiat 500. Some others are still in production, Punto, Idea, Bravo, Fiat has a long history in the United States. In 1908, the Fiat Automobile Co. was established in the country and a plant in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. began producing Fiats a year later, like the Fiat 60 HP and the Fiat 16-20 HP. These luxury cars were produced long before Chrysler Corp. was formed in 1925 from older manufacturers that were acquired by Walter P. Chrysler, the New Jersey factory was closed when the U. S. entered World War I in 1917. Fiat returned to North America in the 1950s, selling the original 500, Fiat 600 Multipla, Fiat 1100, Fiat 1200, for example the Fiat 124 Sport Spider and the Fiat X1/9
31.
Armistice of 11 November 1918
–
It went into effect at 11 a. m. Paris time on 11 November 1918, and marked a victory for the Allies, the Germans were responding to the policies proposed by U. S. President Woodrow Wilson in his Fourteen Points of January 1918. Although the armistice ended the fighting, it took six months of negotiations at the Paris Peace Conference to conclude the peace treaty. In addition, he recommended the acceptance of the demands of US president Woodrow Wilson including putting the Imperial Government on a democratic footing, hoping for more favorable peace terms. As he said to officers of his staff on 1 October, on 3 October, the liberal Prince Maximilian of Baden was appointed Chancellor of Germany, replacing Georg von Hertling in order to negotiate an armistice. In the subsequent two exchanges, Wilsons allusions failed to convey the idea that the Kaisers abdication was a condition for peace. The leading statesmen of the Reich were not yet ready to contemplate such a monstrous possibility, in late October, Ludendorff, in a sudden change of mind, declared the conditions of the Allies unacceptable. He now demanded to resume the war which he himself had declared lost only one month earlier, however the German soldiers were pressing to get home. It was scarcely possible to arouse their readiness for battle anew, the Imperial Government stayed on course and Ludendorff was replaced by Wilhelm Groener. On 5 November, the Allies agreed to take up negotiations for a truce, the latest note from Wilson was received in Berlin on 6 November. That same day, the led by Matthias Erzberger departed for France. For example, they assumed that the de-militarization suggested by Wilson would be limited to the Central Powers, there were also contradictions with their post-War plans that did not include a consistent implementation of the ideal of national self-determination. Also on 9 November, Max von Baden handed over the office of Chancellor to Friedrich Ebert, eberts SPD and Erzbergers Catholic Centre Party had enjoyed an uneasy relationship with the Imperial government since Bismarcks era in the 1870s and 1880s. They were well represented in the Imperial Reichstag, which had power over the government. Their prominence in the negotiations would cause the new Weimar Republic to lack legitimacy in right-wing. The Armistice was the result of a hurried and desperate process and they were then entrained and taken to the secret destination, aboard Ferdinand Fochs private train parked in a railway siding in the forest of Compiègne. Foch appeared only twice in the three days of negotiations, on the first day, to ask the German delegation what they wanted, the Germans were handed the list of Allied demands and given 72 hours to agree. The German delegation discussed the Allied terms not with Foch, but with other French, the Armistice amounted to complete German demilitarization, with few promises made by the Allies in return
32.
Handley Page Type O
–
The Handley Page Type O was an early biplane bomber used by Britain during the First World War. The Type O was the largest aircraft that had built in the UK. Most were built in two versions, the Handley Page O/100 and Handley Page O/400, the bombers were used in France for tactical night attacks on targets in German-occupied France and Belgium and for strategic bombing of industrial and transport targets in the Rhineland. Some aircraft were diverted to anti-submarine reconnaissance and bombing in the Tees estuary in 1917. The impression made by the Type O was such that for years after the war, any large aircraft came to be called a Handley Page in Britain. Sueter requested a bloody paralyser of an aircraft for long-range bombing, the phrase had originated from Commander Charles Rumney Samson who had returned from the front. A prototype had already been commissioned from J Samuel White & Co. of Cowes, Handley Page suggested building a land-based aircraft of similar size, and a specification was drawn up around his suggestions and formally issued on 28 December 1914 for four prototypes. It called for a biplane to be powered by two 150 hp Sunbeam engines, which was required to fit in a 75 ft ×75 ft shed. It was to carry six 100 lb bombs and have armour plating to protect crew, the crew of two were to be enclosed in a glazed cockpit and the only defensive armament planned was a rifle to be fired by the observer/engineer. The name O/100 came from the proposed wingspan of the aircraft prefixed by an O, the outline design was approved on 4 February 1915, with 250 hp Rolls-Royce Eagle engines and on 9 February the contract was amended to include a further eight aircraft. Balanced ailerons were fitted to the wing only and extended beyond the wing trailing edge. The engines drove four-bladed propellers, rotating in opposite directions to cancel the torque and were enclosed in armoured nacelles, mounted between the wings on tubular steel struts. The nacelles had a long tapered fairing to reduce drag, to clear the wing rigging wires when the wings were folded, construction of the fuselage and flying surfaces was primarily of spruce, with much reduction in weight by extensive use of hollow section members. The four prototypes and first production batch of six aircraft were built at Cricklewood, the first flight of the prototype, serial number 1455, was made at Hendon on 17 December, when a short straight flight was made, the aircraft taking off without trouble at 50 mph. A second flight was made the day, when it was found that the aircraft would not fly faster than about 55 mph. This was blamed on the drag caused by large honeycomb radiators, after minor modifications, the aircraft was flown to RNAS Eastchurch, where full-speed trials were made. On reaching 70 mph, the unit began to vibrate and twist violently, the pilot immediately landed. Reinforcement failed to cure the problem, the cockpit and most of the armour plating were also removed
33.
No. 214 Squadron RAF
–
No.214 Squadron is a former unit of the Royal Air Force. No 214 Squadron was formed from No.14 Squadron Royal Naval Air Service, 7A Squadron RNAS only taking on the new number on 9 December 1917. With the creation of the RAF from the Royal Flying Corps and it was later given the fuller title No 214 Squadron. No.214 Squadron started with the Handley Page Type O/100 bomber, from 29 June to 23 October 1918,214 Squadron was based at RAF Saint Inglevert. Post war the squadron was moved to Egypt but it was disbanded on 1 February 1920 with its crew, on 16 September 1935 B Flight of No.9 Squadron RAF was used to create a new 214 Squadron. Again a bomber squadron it had the Vickers Virginia Mk, X night-bombers at RAF Boscombe Down. By the outbreak of the Second World War it had re-equipped the Vickers Wellington which were replaced in 1942 with the larger Short Stirling, having moved to RAF Stradishall. At a time when Stirling losses led to the aircraft being withdrawn from bombing Germany the squadron transferred to RAF Downham Market in December 1943. In January 1944, the squadron was converted to special operations, the squadron used the Boeing Fortress Mk II and Mk III and Stirlings. They used the jamming system codenamed Airborne Cigar to block German night fighter communications, at least some of 214 Squadrons B-17s were equipped with Piperack which countered the Germans Lichtenstein SN-2 aerial intercept radar. It operated the Vickers Valiant from RAF Marham, from 21 January 1956 until 28 February 1965, leonard Trent, a Victoria Cross winner, was the first CO of the Valiant squadron. The Valiant was at first active as a V bomber but was converted to tankers. Disbanded in 1965 it reformed the following year with the Handley Page Victor tanker, on 19 August 1968 Victor K1 XH646 collided in mid-air near Holt, Norfolk in bad weather with a 213 Squadron English Electric Canberra WT325, all four crew members of the Victor died. On 10/11 August 1943, Flight Sergeant Harry Ernest Hall was pilot of an aircraft which was returning from operations. When approaching Bexhill on the South Coast of England the aircraft ran out of fuel, the crew were temporarily knocked out by the impact and the aircraft filled rapidly with water. F/S Hall was the first to recover and his first thoughts were for the safety of his crew and he then returned to the aircraft to search for the navigator and flight engineer who were missing. Five members of the crew were picked up by an air/sea rescue launch. In a desperate situation, aggravated by darkness, F/S Hall displayed extreme courage, unfortunately F/S Hall was killed on operations six weeks later
34.
USS DeKalb (ID-3010)
–
Post war she returned to civilian service as the US transatlantic liner SS Mount Clay. The ship was a North German Lloyd mail ship and ocean liner built by AG Vulcan, Stettin, Germany, NDL had ordered her for the German Mail route between Germany and the Far East, for which she began her maiden voyage on 13 October. When the First World War broke out on 1 August 1914 she was in Shanghai, there she was quickly converted to an auxiliary cruiser for the Imperial German Navy by transferring the guns and crews of the German gunboats SMS Tiger and SMS Luchs to Prinz Eitel Friedrich. For the next seven months she operated on the seas with Vice Admiral Maximilian von Spees squadron off South American. She sank or captured ships in the Pacific and the South Atlantic. Among these was the schooner William P. Frye, captured on 27 January 1915 and scuttled the next day, on 11 March 1915 Prinz Eitel Friedrich, now low on supplies and burdened by over 300 prisoners, arrived at Newport News, Virginia. Allied warships were lying outside US waters and to them she exceeded the time limit under international law for a combatant ship to remain in a neutral port. As a result, the US authorities interned her, later she was moved, still under the German flag, to Philadelphia Navy Yard. On 11 April another NDL liner that had been operating as an auxiliary cruiser, when the United States entered the First World War in April 1917, US Customs officials seized her and she was transferred to the US Navy. She was reconditioned and refitted as a transport and renamed USS DeKalb after General Baron Johann de Kalb. She was commissioned 12 May 1917 with Commander W. R. Gherardi in command, DeKalb was assigned to the Cruiser and Transport Force, Atlantic Fleet, and on 14 June 1917 sailed in the convoy carrying the first troops of the American Expeditionary Forces to France. In the next 18 months DeKalb made 11 such voyages, carrying 11,334 soldiers safely, among these was the United States Marine Corps First Marine Aviation Force who flew the day wing bombers of the Northern Bombing Group. With the end of the war, DeKalb continued her transport duty returning 20,332 troops from Europe in eight voyages, on 6 September 1919 she was turned over to the Commandant, 3rd Naval District. She was decommissioned 22 September 1919 and returned to the United States Shipping Board for disposal the following day and she returned to civilian control, initially as DeKalb and, after 1920, as SS Mount Clay. She was then laid up until 1934 when she was scrapped and this article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
35.
Brest, France
–
Brest is a city in the Finistère département in Brittany in northwestern France. The city is located on the edge of continental Europe. Although Brest is by far the largest city in Finistère, the préfecture of the department is the much smaller Quimper, during the Middle Ages, the history of Brest was the history of its castle. Then Richelieu made it a military harbour, Brest grew around its arsenal, until the second part of the 20th century. Heavily damaged by the Allies bombing raids during World War II, at the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century, the deindustrialization of the city was followed by the development of the service sector. Nowadays, Brest is an important university town with 23,000 students, Brest is also an important research centre, mainly focused on the sea, with among others the largest Ifremer centre, le Cedre and the French Polar Institute. Brest’s history has always been linked to the sea, the Académie de Marine was founded in 1752 in this city, the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle was built there. Every four years, Brest hosts the festival of the sea, boats and sailors. Nothing definite is known of Brest before about 1240, when a count of Léon ceded it to John I, in 1342, John IV, Duke of Brittany, surrendered Brest to the English, in whose possession it was to remain until 1397. The importance of Brest in medieval times was great enough to rise to the saying. With the marriage of Francis I of France to Claude, the daughter of Anne of Brittany, the advantages of Brests situation as a seaport town were first recognized by Cardinal Richelieu, who in 1631 constructed a harbor with wooden wharves. This soon became a base for the French Navy, jean-Baptiste Colbert, finance minister under Louis XIV, rebuilt the wharves in masonry and otherwise improved the harbour. Fortifications by Vauban followed in 1680–1688 and these fortifications, and with them the naval importance of the town, were to continue to develop throughout the 18th century. In 1694, an English squadron under Lord Berkeley, was defeated in its attack on Brest. In 1917, during the First World War, Brest was used as the port for many of the troops coming from the United States. Thousands of such men came through the port on their way to the front lines, the United States Navy established a naval air station on 13 February 1918 to operate seaplanes. The base closed shortly after the Armistice of 11 November 1918, in the Second World War, the Germans maintained a large U-boat submarine base at Brest. In 1944, after the Allied invasion of Normandy, the city was almost totally destroyed during the Battle for Brest, with only a tiny number of buildings left standing
36.
No. 218 (Gold Coast) Squadron RAF
–
No.218 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was also known as No 218 Squadron after the Governor of the Gold Coast, the squadron was first formed at Dover on 24 April 1918, going into action a month later in France. The unit flew Airco DH. 9s in daylight bombing raids, in 1919, the unit was disbanded, having claimed 37 enemy aircraft during the war. With the onset of World War II, the unit was reformed on 16 March 1936 from elements of 57 Squadron at RAF Upper Heyford with the Hawker Hind, on 2 September 1939, the unit moved back to France, where it began dropping leaflets and flying reconnaissance missions. However, by June 1940, having suffered heavy losses while bombing advancing German troops, the unit was evacuated to England, in November, it rearmed with Vickers Wellingtons, and began bombing a wide variety of enemy targets with the new longer-range planes. In December 1941, the squadron began rearming with Short Stirlings, in July 1942, the unit moved to RAF Downham Market and in March 1944 to RAF Woolfox Lodge in Rutland. In August 1944, it moved once more, this time to RAF Methwold with the Avro Lancaster, just before the D-Day invasions in Normandy, the Short Sterling bombers of 218 Squadron undertook diversionary bombing raids against Wehrmacht shore defences near Pas de Calais. 218 squadron played a significant role in a known as Operation Glimmer in which Window was dropped to simulate a naval fleet headed towards the French coast. It is to the credit of the pilots and navigators of 218 Squadron that the German shore batteries opened fire on the ghost fleet that they created. In December 1944 it moved to Chedburgh as a transport unit and it ceased wartime operations in May 1945, just before the German surrender. Afterwards, it began performing a number of efforts in Europe, ranging from rescuing POWs to transporting food. 218 Squadrons awards include a Victoria Cross awarded posthumously to Flight Sergeant Arthur Louis Aaron for most conspicuous bravery during a raid on Turin on 12/13 August 1943. Despite his aircraft being damaged and suffering injuries, he brought his aircraft in to land at Bone. The unit was linked to No.115 Squadron RAF between February 1949 and March 1950 and also for the period June 1950 to June 1957. The squadron was reformed – as 218 Sqn. – on 1 December 1959 as one of 20 Strategic Missile squadrons associated with Project Emily, the squadron was equipped with three Thor Intermediate range ballistic missiles, and based at RAF Harrington in Northamptonshire. In October 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, the squadron was kept at full readiness, the squadron was disbanded on 23 August 1963, with the termination of the Thor Program in Britain. Phil Lamason Arthur Louis Aaron Hank Wardle Ronald Joseph Guntrip RAF History – Bomber Command 60th Anniversary RAF. mod. uk History
37.
No. 217 Squadron RAF
–
No.217 Squadron RAF was originally formed on 1 April 1918, from the No.17 Naval Squadron at Bergues, near Dunkerque. It conducted daylight raids using Airco DH. 4s on enemy bases, the squadron was disbanded on 18 October 1919, after the end of World War I. From May 1940, it was equipped with the Bristol Beaufort torpedo bomber, but because of problems with its Taurus engines, the squadron was ordered to Ceylon, via Gibraltar and Malta, in May 1942. En route, it conducted anti-shipping and mine-laying attacks for two months in the Mediterranean, in one incident, on 28 June 1942, the crew of a ditched Beaufort were rescued by an Italian CANT Z.506 seaplane. The Italian crew were overpowered and the Cant was flown to Malta where the Italians were made prisoners of war, crew losses were quite severe, with the remainder of the force arriving in Ceylon in July, with the ground echelon arriving by sea in August. On 15 March 1937, No.217 reformed as a reconnaissance squadron at Boscombe Down equipped with Ansons. On the outbreak of World War Two, it took up its station, for the next two years it was based at St. Eval which it occupied in an unfinished state in October 1939. In May 1940 No.217 began to receive Beauforts but teething troubles prevented these from being used operationally until 25 September, the Beauforts concentrated on attacks on enemy shipping and minelaying until transferred to Ceylon in May. The aircraft flew out via Gibraltar and Malta where they spent two months attacking enemy shipping in the Mediterranean, the ground echelon arrived in Ceylon in August where it received Hudsons for anti-submarine patrols, the Beauforts having been retained in the Middle East. New Beauforts began to arrive in April 1943, and by July the squadron had reverted to a strike unit, re-equipping with Beaufighters in July 1944. The Japanese made no attempts to attack Ceylon and No.217 spent its time defensively until May 1945. This was forestalled by the Japanese surrender and the aircraft never did get to Cocos remaining in Ceylon until disbanded on 30 September 1945. The squadron disbanded again on 31 March 1957, the last brief re-formation of No.217 Squadron out of No. Squadron motto, Woe to the unwary Squadron badge, A demi-shark erased No.217 Squadron RAF, No.217 Squadron, Planned One-Way Missions. Library Ref 019, Aircrew Association, Scottish Saltaire Branch, flying with 22 and 217 Squadrons, RAF. Library Ref 154, Aircrew Association, Scottish Saltaire Branch, No.216 -220 Squadron Histories. Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation
38.
Airco DH.9
–
The Airco DH.9 - also known after 1920 as the de Havilland DH.9 - was a British bomber used in the First World War. A single-engined biplane, it was a development of Aircos earlier, highly successful DH.4 and was ordered in large numbers for Britains Royal Flying Corps. The subsequently-developed DH. 9A had a powerful and reliable American Liberty L-12 engine. The DH.9 was designed by de Havilland for the Aircraft Manufacturing Company in 1916 as a successor to the DH.4 and it used the wings and tail unit of the DH.4 but had a new fuselage. This enabled the pilot to sit closer to the gunner/observer and away from the engine and fuel tank. Based on the estimates for the DH.9, and the similarity to the DH.4. The prototype first flew at Hendon in July 1917, unfortunately, the BHP engine proved unable to reliably deliver its expected power, with the engine being derated to 230 hp in order to improve reliability. This had an effect on the aircrafts performance, especially at high altitude. This meant that the DH.9 would have to fight its way through enemy fighters, while attempts were made to provide the DH. 9A to transform the aircraft. To boost the rate of production, quantity orders for the DH.9 were also placed with Alliance, G & J. Weir, Short Brothers, Vulcan, Waring & Gillow and National Aircraft Factories No.1 and No.2. The DH. 9s performance in action over the Western Front was a disaster, with losses incurred. Between May and November 1918, two squadrons on the Western Front lost 54 shot down, and another 94 written off in accidents, captain John Stevenson Stubbs managed 11 aerial victories in a DH9, including the highly unusual feat of balloon busting with one. The last combat use by the RAF was in support of the campaign against Mohammed Abdullah Hassan in Somalia during January—February 1920. Surprisingly, production was allowed to continue after the end of the war into 1919, following the end of the First World War, large numbers of surplus DH. 9s became available at low prices and the type was widely exported. The South African Air Force received 48 DH. 9s, and used them extensively, several South African aircraft were re-engined with Bristol Jupiter radial engines as the Mpala, serving until 1937. Because of the number of surplus DH. 9s available after the war many were used by air transport companies. They provided a useful load carrying capability and were inexpensive, early air services between London, Paris and Amsterdam were operated by DH. 9s owned by Aircraft Transport and Travel. A number of different conversions for use were carried out
39.
Tielt
–
Tielt is a Belgian municipality in the province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Tielt proper and the villages of Aarsele, Kanegem, some traces of Gallo-Roman occupation have been found in this area. The area was invaded by the Viking Rikiwulf of the Wulfing dynasty in 880, who built Rikiwulfinga-haim, in 1245, Margaret of Constantinople, Countess of Flanders gave the city its charter and decided to found a hospital here. A few years later, a place and cloth hall were built as well. Like neighbouring Roeselare, Tielt was made part of the Kortrijk province of Flanders, in the 13th and 14th century, the economy of most Flemish cities was based on the cloth industry, while the rural areas lived on the products of agriculture. In 1393, Philip the Bold decided to hold a fair in Tielt. The following decades, however, were hard on Tielt as it went through two fires and a couple of epidemics, including the plague. Tielt also went through a famine at the end of the 17th century. From about 1700 until the Belgian Revolution of 1830, the city prospered again, during World War I, the city became the headquarters for the German army. The bombing of the Second World War was a lot more destructive, most of the city centre had to be rebuilt. Today Tielt is a typical province town, which commercial, medical and educational services to the surrounding region. Industries, Seyntex, textile manufacturer Quadrant Plastics Manufacturer The Belfry, Cloth Hall, the city also houses some interesting churches such as Saint-Peter’s. From Tielt, there are several strolling and biking paths that allow the visitor to discover the region, every year, on the first week-end of July, the city celebrates the Europafeesten. This is the occasion for a braderie, street theatre, a festival, fireworks
40.
William M. Corry Jr.
–
William Merrill Corry Jr. was a Lieutenant-Commander in the United States Navy during World War I and a recipient of the Medal of Honor. Corry was born at Quincy, Florida, admitted to the Naval Academy in June 1906, he graduated in 1910 and spent the next five years serving in the battleship USS Kansas. In mid-1915, Lieutenant Corry began instruction in aviation at Pensacola, Florida and he had flying positions with the armored cruiser USS Washington between November 1916 and May 1917, then was an officer on the armored cruiser USS North Carolina. In August 1917, Lieutenant Corry began World War I service in France and he was promoted to Lieutenant Commander in July 1918. Corry remained in France for the rest of 1919 and the first half of 1920, in mid-1920, Lieutenant Commander Corry was assigned as aviation aide to the Commander-in-Chief, Atlantic Fleet, stationed on the Fleets flagship, USS Pennsylvania. In early October 1920, while on a flight from Long Island, New York, with another pilot, though thrown clear of the wreckage, the injured Corry ran back to pull the other officer free of the flaming aircraft. Badly burned during this rescue, William M. Corry died at Hartford on October 6,1920 and he posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his heroism during that accident. He is buried in Eastern Cemetery, Quincy, Florida, airfields at Pensacola, Florida, and three ships have been named USS Corry in his honor. Rank and organization, Lieutenant Commander, U. S. Navy, place and date, Near Hartford, Conn. Born, October 5,1889, Quincy, Fla, citation, For heroic service in attempting to rescue a brother officer from a flame-enveloped airplane. On 2 October 1920, an airplane in which Lt. Comdr. Corry was a passenger crashed and he was thrown 30 feet clear of the plane and, though injured, rushed back to the burning machine and endeavored to release the pilot. In so doing he sustained serious burns, from which he died 4 days later, list of Medal of Honor recipients during peacetime This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Naval History & Heritage Command. Lieutenant Commander William M. Corry Jr. USN. Naval History & Heritage Command, William M. Corry Jr. Medal of Honor recipient. United States Army Center of Military History, William M. Corry Jr. Claim to Fame, Medal of Honor recipients
41.
Alfred A. Cunningham
–
Lieutenant Colonel Alfred Austell Cunningham was a United States Marine Corps officer who became the first Marine Corps aviator and the first Director of Marine Corps Aviation. His military career included service in the Spanish–American War, World War I, Cunningham was born in Atlanta, Georgia. His interest in aviation began in 1903 when he watched a balloon ascend one afternoon, the next time the balloon went up he was in it and from then on he was considered himself a confirmed aeronautical enthusiast. He enlisted in the 3rd Georgia Volunteer Infantry regiment during the Spanish–American War and he spent the next decade selling real estate in Atlanta. During this time evinced an interest in aeronautics, making an ascent in 1903. At the age of twenty-seven, he returned to the military life and he was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps on 25 January 1909. He rented an airplane and gained permission from the Commandant of the Navy Yard to use a field at the Philadelphia Navy Yard for test flights. Biddle, himself a member of a prominent Philadelphia family, Cunningham was an avid supporter in the new conceptual Advanced Base Force and though he saw a role for aircraft, requesting assignment to the Navys flying school at Annapolis. Cunningham served in the Marine guards of New Jersey and North Dakota, in 1911, while he was stationed at the Marine Barracks, Philadelphia Navy Yard, he developed the inspiration to fly. Leasing a plane from a civilian aviator only $25 a month, he experimented in the airplane and he was promoted to the rank and grade of 1st Lieutenant in September 1911. Although the plane never left the ground, his profound faith and he reported six days later, on 22 May 1912, which is recognized as the birthday of Marine Corps aviation. He flew the Curtiss seaplane and became Naval Aviator No,5, and Smith became Naval Aviator No.6. Between October 1912 and July 1913, Cunningham made some 400 flights in the Curtiss B-1, conducting training and testing tactics, in August 1913, Cunningham sought detachment from aviation duty, on the grounds that his fiancée would not marry him unless he gave up flying. By November 1913, the Navy Department had assigned Cunningham to return to the Advanced Base School with the understanding that they would create a section for the force. Cunningham performed important reconnaissance roles for the force, which was fully functionable by 1914, later, he served on a board, headed by Captain Washington I. Chambers, USN, tasked with drawing up a plan for the organization of a naval aeronautical service. It was upon the recommendation of that board that the Naval Aeronautical Station at Pensacola, the following February, Cunningham was assigned duty at the Washington Navy Yard, assisting Naval Constructor Holden C. Richardson in working on the D-2 flying boat. Ordered to Pensacola for instruction in April 1915, Cunningham was designated Naval Aviator No.5 on 17 September 1915, Cunningham received orders on 26 February 1917, to organize the Aviation Company for the Advanced Base Force, at the Philadelphia Navy Yard
42.
Chester W. Nimitz
–
Chester William Nimitz was a fleet admiral of the United States Navy. Nimitz was the leading U. S. Navy authority on submarines. S, the chief of the Navys Bureau of Navigation in 1939, Nimitz served as Chief of Naval Operations from 1945 until 1947. He was the United States last surviving officer who served in the rank of fleet admiral and his frail, rheumatic father had died six months earlier, on August 14,1884. The best way to get along with either is to all you can, then do your best. His grandfather became a Texas Ranger in the Texas Mounted Volunteers in 1851 and he then served as captain of the Gillespie Rifles Company in the Confederate States Army during the Civil War. Originally, Nimitz applied to West Point in hopes of becoming an Army officer and his congressman, James L. Slayden, told him that he had one appointment available for the United States Naval Academy and that he would award it to the best qualified candidate. Nimitz felt that this was his opportunity for further education. He was appointed to the United States Naval Academy from Texass 12th congressional district in 1901, Nimitz joined the battleship Ohio at San Francisco, and cruised on her to the Far East. In September 1906, he was transferred to the cruiser Baltimore, on January 31,1907, remaining on Asiatic Station in 1907, he successively served on the gunboat Panay, destroyer Decatur, and cruiser Denver. The destroyer Decatur ran aground on a bar in the Philippines on July 7,1908 while under the command of Ensign Nimitz. The ship was pulled free the next day, and Nimitz was court-martialed, found guilty of neglect of duty, and issued a letter of reprimand. Nimitz returned to the United States on board USS Ranger when that vessel was converted to a school ship, in May of that year, he was given command of the flotilla, with additional duty in command of USS Plunger, later renamed A-1. He commanded USS Snapper when that submarine was commissioned on February 2,1910, in the latter command, he had additional duty from October 10,1911 as Commander 3rd Submarine Division Atlantic Torpedo Fleet. On the monitor Tonopah on March 20,1912, he rescued Fireman Second Class W. J. Walsh from drowning, receiving a Silver Lifesaving Medal for his action. In the summer of 1913, Nimitz studied engines at the diesel engine plants in Nuremberg, Germany, returning to the New York Navy Yard, he became executive and engineer officer of Maumee at her commissioning on October 23,1916. Under his supervision, Maumee conducted the first-ever underway refuelings, on August 10,1917, Nimitz became aide to Rear Admiral Samuel S. Robison, Commander, Submarine Force, U. S. On February 6,1918, Nimitz was appointed chief of staff and was awarded a Letter of Commendation for meritorious service as COMSUBLANTs chief of staff. On September 16, he reported to the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, from May 1919 to June 1920, he served as executive officer of the battleship South Carolina
,_cira_1918.jpg)