This date in history

[_dgn_]

May 7, 1954, last day of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. Time for the last offensive of the North Vietnamese communists, started on May 1.

25 000 Vietnamese soldiers assault the remaining french troops (3000 men) . Combat stations are taken one after the other during all the day. At 5:00 p.m, the HQ ("PC GONO") falls. The radio operators blow up their equipment after the last message indicating their encirclement.

At 5:30 p.m, ceasefire order is given in the entrenched Dien Bien Phu camp. No white flags, everything must be blowed up or destroyed (or for weapons, dismantled). On the support point "Eliane 12", Lt Jacques ALLAIRE (now colonel and 96 years old), leader of the mortar platoon of the 6th Colonial Parachute Battalion (6e BPC), demands a written order from his leader, Major Marcel BIGEARD, to stop firing. But in some areas, fighting continues (concerning not only paratroopers or Legionnaires), but ammo is sometimes missing, so close combat is general. In this case, the french "secret weapon" is used : bayonet (and US Mk III combat knife for the paratroopers and Legionnaires). Naturally, it's soon the end.

But on the large strongpoint "Isabelle", the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment resists despite the massive bombardment of all the North-Vietnamese artillery. On April 30, it just celebrated the Battle of Camerone, the symbol of the Foreign Legion. In the same spirit, at one o'clock in the morning, May 8, 1954, the remains of the Regiment (mainly from its 3nd Battalion) managed to break out, but less than a hundred Legionaires managed to cross the communist lines, after numerous ambushes.

All were faithful to the latin maxim (Rom had its Legion, too !) : "More Majorum" ("according to the custom of the ancestors").

With all respect.

Cheers.

[Aktungbby]

Originally Posted by _dgn_

On 30th April 1863, in the "Hacienda Camarón" in Mexico, about sixty Legionnaires, belonging to the 3rd Company of the First Foreign Regiment and led by the Captain Jean DANJOU, withstood a force of 3,000 Mexican soldiers for most of the day.

The "Camerone spirit" was born ...

Now, it's time for the traditional blood sausage ... and for some (?) beers !

Cheers.

Originally Posted by _dgn_

May 7, 1954, last day of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. Time for the last offensive of the North Vietnamese communists, started on May 1.

25 000 Vietnamese soldiers assault the remaining french troops (3000 men) . Combat stations are taken one after the other during all the day. At 5:00 p.m, the HQ ("PC GONO") falls. The radio operators blow up their equipment after the last message indicating their encirclement.

At 5:30 p.m, ceasefire order is given in the entrenched Dien Bien Phu camp. No white flags, everything must be blowed up or destroyed (or for weapons, dismantled). On the support point "Eliane 12", Lt Jacques ALLAIRE (now colonel and 96 years old), leader of the mortar platoon of the 6th Colonial Parachute Battalion (6e BPC), demands a written order from his leader, Major Marcel BIGEARD, to stop firing. But in some areas, fighting continues (concerning not only paratroopers or Legionnaires), but ammo is sometimes missing, so close combat is general. In this case, the french "secret weapon" is used : bayonet (and US Mk III combat knife for the paratroopers and Legionnaires). Naturally, it's soon the end.

But on the large strongpoint "Isabelle", the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment resists despite the massive bombardment of all the North-Vietnamese artillery. On April 30, it just celebrated the Battle of Camerone, the symbol of the Foreign Legion. In the same spirit, at one o'clock in the morning, May 8, 1954, the remains of the Regiment (mainly from its 3nd Battalion) managed to break out, but less than a hundred Legionaires managed to cross the communist lines, after numerous ambushes.

All were faithful to the latin maxim (Rom had its Legion, too !) : "More Majorum" ("according to the custom of the ancestors").

With all respect.

Cheers.

Well oddly....my wife is serving me up a fine meal of crockpot Chicken Marengo named for at least one French victory-The original dish was named to celebrate the Battle of Marengo, a Napoleonic victory of June 1800. Even his horse was named Marengo ....there is no Pollo Camarón nor a tasty Fricassée Điện Biên Phủ, " An army travels on it's stomach'' as the saying goes ....but only la victoire gets entrées named after them.

[_dgn_]

Originally Posted by Aktungbby

Well oddly....my wife is serving me up a fine meal of crockpot Chicken Marengo named for at least one French victory-The original dish was named to celebrate the Battle of Marengo, a Napoleonic victory of June 1800. Even his horse was named Marengo ....there is no Pollo Camarón nor a tasty Fricassée Điện Biên Phủ, " An army travels on it's stomach'' as the saying goes ....but only la victoire gets entrées named after them.

"Bon appétit" or "Guten Appetit.", Aktungbby. You're lucky to have a real "cordon bleu" for your wife. A small detail, the recipe has many variants, including the veal meat (the tasty "Marengo veal"). On the other side (British), you find the "Wellington beef" ...

Very interesting to study the relationships between History and cooking. A prominent example : a French town, Bayonne, is mainly known for creating a sauce, the bayonnaise (now named "mayonnaise"), and a sword, the bayonet ...

I'm now working on the french Wiki page about my first (after my officer training in the Saumur Cavalry School) military unit (8ème Régiment de Dragons or 8th Dragoon Regiment), an very old formation (established in March 1674). Naturally, it took part to many battles (the list is quite long), with victories and defeats. Neerwinden, Fontenoy, Rossbach ... during the french monarchy, and many others during the "Révolution" and the "Empire". Thus, Rivoli in 1797, and Marengo in 1800 (14th June), where its both gained the battle honours. So, Marengo is an important battle and date for me !

Generally, the good memories are preserved, like the victories, and you name a lot of things in their memory (even cooking recipes). In Paris, a train station is named "Austerlitz", in London, it's "Waterloo" for an equivalent place ...

But what about defeats ? We need to learn from that (see the german song "Wir sind des Geyers schwarzer Haufen" :Geschlagen ziehen wir nach Haus, uns’re Enkel fechten’s besser aus" or "Beaten, we move home, our grandchildren will fight better"). But, in some circumstances, a "defeat" seems to be close to success : in the Battle of Thermopylae, the 300 Spartan hoplites were crushed, but they held the pass, giving time for their allies to organize themselves. War is, in fact, the good organisation of time and means : a delay fight is cheaper in men than a frontal shock. So Camerone was the success of a mission : a flanking patrol for the benefit of an important, but slow convoy of cannons, supplies and gold (of the balance of all the army). 1200 Mexican infantrymen (and 800 horsemen) were fixed, throughout the day, by a handful of men, far away from the convoy road.

In any case, the goal is "to do the job" as well or better as his predecessors ("More majorum") ... so French soldiers in Dien Bien Phu held their positions to the end, usually to the last cartridge, as their comrades in Fort Vaux, in june 1916, or the 9 soldiers of the Pont-Saint-Louis casemate, during the Franco-Italian fights for Menton, in June 1940.

Again, with all respect.

Cheers.

[Jimbuna]

1895 China cedes Taiwan to Japan under Treaty of Shimonoseki.

1945 V-E Day: World War II ends in Europe after Germany signs an unconditional surrender.

1958 "Dracula" film starring Christopher Lee as the eponymous vampire, directed by Terence Fisher is the first Hammer Horror film released.

1980 World Health Organization announces smallpox has been eradicated.

[Jimbuna]

1386 Treaty of Windsor between Portugal and England (oldest diplomatic alliance in the world still in force)

1941 British intelligence at Bletchley Park breaks German spy codes after capturing Enigma machines aboard the weather ship Muenchen.

1945 Norwegian nazi collaborators Vidkun Quisling arrested.

1945 The Soviet Union marks Victory Day.

1945 Hermann Goering is captured by the United States Army.

[Jimbuna]

1801 First Barbary War: The Barbary pirates of Tripoli declare war on the United States of America (1st US foreign war)

1857 Indian mutiny against rule by the British East India Company begins with the revolt of the Sepoy soldiers in Meerut.

1915 Canadian physician Cluny MacPherson first presents his gas mask invention to the British War Office.

1917 Atlantic ships get destroyer escorts to stop German attacks.

1918 HMS Vindictive sunk to block entrance of Ostend Harbour.

1940 Winston Churchill succeeds Neville Chamberlain as British Prime Minister.

1941 Adolf Hitler's deputy Rudolf Hess escapes to Britain to open secret negotiations with the Allies, parachuting into Scotland.

1960 US atomic submarine USS Triton completes 1st submerged circumnavigation of the globe.

[Mr Quatro]

I hope today (Mothers Day) is a historical turning point day for the world as we transition from the Covid-19 to a more open society that will never be the same again

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Mr Quatro

I hope today (Mothers Day) is a historical turning point day for the world as we transition from the Covid-19 to a more open society that will never be the same again

Also in Australia I believe, not sure about any other countries.

[Aktungbby]

Originally Posted by Jimbuna

not another day of spamming

1958: Minnesota becomes the 32 state of the United States; and ha s a profound effect on history! Britain will win WWII as 'an army travels on it's stomach' and much of that consisted of SPAM invented in Austin, Minnesota

Originally Posted by well fed Brit civilian

From then on we seemed to suddenly change pace. The Americans were now in the war, Monty gave us a huge victory at El Alamein and we never looked back.
It sounds impossible but did Spam win the war for us in the boost it gave to morale and our taste buds. Was it good old "Supply Processed American Meat" that finally beat the Germans? I wonder?
I know it is scoffed at now and put down as rubbish by the gourmet's of today but I still love my fried spam sandwich and so did my Grandson.

https://theconversation.com/how-world-war-ii-rationing-gave-us-a-liking-for-spam-35975 and of course gave rise to the coveted award for worldwide cleanliness in the forum:

Originally Posted by General Dwight D. Eisenhower to Hormel president

“During World War II, of course, I ate my share of Spam along with millions of other soldiers. I’ll even confess to a few unkind remarks about it—uttered during the strain of battle, you understand. But as former Commander-in-Chief, I believe I can still officially forgive you your only sin: sending us so much of it.”

Perhaps the famous Tommy Trinder complaint should have been:" Damned Yanks: OverHere, Overpaid ...and OverSpammed!" https://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/oversexed-overpaid-and-over-here.html

[Jimbuna]

1812 British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval is assassinated by John Bellingham in the lobby of the House of Commons, London. Ironically, descendants of both later elected to Parliament at the same time.

1924 Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft and Benz & Cie begin their first joint venture (later merge into Mercedes-Benz)

1941 First Messerschmidt 109F shot down above England.

1960 Israeli soldiers capture Adolf Eichmann in Buenos Aires..

1985 56 die and at least 265 are injured at Bradford City football ground in the worst fire in English football history.

[ABBAFAN]

1918, while acting as a troop transport, White Star liner RMS (HMTS)Olympic, sister to the late Titanic and Britannic, rams and sinks U-103.
So far the only instance of a liner sinking an enemy warship.

[Aktungbby]

Originally Posted by ABBAFAN

1918, while acting as a troop transport, White Star liner RMS (HMTS)Olympic, sister to the late Titanic and Britannic, rams and sinks U-103.
So far the only instance of a liner sinking an enemy warship.

To be sure RMS Olympic had ample practice in rammings with warships as evidenced in 1911's collision with HMS Hawke. At the time RMS Olympic was captained by the same captain Smith of the Titanic disaster White Star Lines was held to blame for the collision:
By the 1918 encounter with U-103 A dazzling performance by HMT Olympic: with it's business end as seen by U-103....too late The open hatch in the video gives credence to the official record that all but 9 crewmen got out after sinking-35 survived and were taken to Queenstown. And of course there is the profit motive:

Originally Posted by video notes

My father was 16yrs of age on board the Olympic when it hit this Submarine - he told me (and I still have the recording of him saying it) that about 4am one morning they were awakened by the sound of the forward guns firing. He recorded no sound of any contact with anything - but on arrival in Southampton the ship was in dry dock for 9 days whilst they filled the bow area with concrete (it was spewing water when he looked at it). The ship had been fitted with a 2x1ft pointed iron spike (specifically for ramming things) and this was bent over when he saw it. Maybe the propellers also hit but certainly the front spike did as well. He also tells that when they next returned to Southampton they were all told to report to the Paymaster and to take 4d (4 old pence) with them and they all received 30 shillings - in other words they all received 29shillings and 8pence as prize money for sinking the Submarine. I have it in his own voice and words so have no reason to disbelieve him.

[Jimbuna]

1797 Nore Mutiny: British Royal Navy sailors mutiny on the Thames, England and blockade London.

1932 Body of kidnapped son of Charles Lindbergh is found in Hopewell, New Jersey.

1940 Nazi blitzkrieg and conquest of France begins with the crossing of the Muese River.

1941 Martin Bormann succeeds Rudolf Hess as Adolf Hitler's deputy.

1942 U-boat sinks American cargo ship at mouth of Mississippi River.

1943 Axis forces in North Africa surrender.

[Jimbuna]

13th May 1920

La Targette, France (French military cemetery)


Ship Losses:

Florence Thurlow (United States) The schooner collided with Laramie ( United States) off New York and was abandoned. Her crew were rescued by Laramie.
RIMS Mayo (Royal Navy) The Royal Indian Marine transport collided with Arankola ( United Kingdom) at Rangoon and was run ashore. She became a total loss.

[Jimbuna]

1787 Arthur Phillip sets sails with 11 ships of criminals to Botany Bay, Australia.

1915 US Secretary of State Bryan sends a note to Germany demanding that Germany disavow the attacks on the Lusitania and make immediate reparations; however, the note is written only to 'pacify exited public opinion', according to Bryan.

1916 Lafayette Escadrille, an American air force unit under French command comprised of volunteers to fight for France, see first combat at the Battle of Verdun.

1940 Winston Churchill says "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat" in his first speech as Prime Minister to British House of Commons.

1946 US sentences 58 camp guards of Mauthausen concentration camp to death.

1949 First British-produced jet bomber, the Canberra, makes its first test flight.