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Ernest Smith
Ernest Alvia "Smokey" Smith (3 May 1914 – 3 August 2005) was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. He was the last living Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross. Early life and career Born in New Westminster, British Columbia, Smith came of age during the Great Depression and, along with many others, struggled to find steady employment. He was 25 when he joined the Canadian Army on 5 March 1940, becoming part of The Seaforth Highlanders of Canada. In 1943, he first entered into combat. On 10 July 1943, he was part of the 1st Canadian Infantry Division landing in Sicily, remaining active throughout the Sicily and Italian campaign between July 1943 and February 1945. He participated in the fierce Battle of Ortona in December 1943. On the night of 21/22 October 1944 at the River Savio, in northern Italy, Private Smith was in the spearhead of the attac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
New Westminster
New Westminster (colloquially known as New West) is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada, and a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver Regional District. It was founded by Major-General Richard Moody as the capital of the Colony of British Columbia in 1858 and continued in that role until the Mainland and Island colonies were merged in 1866. It was the British Columbia Mainland's largest city from that year until it was passed in population by Vancouver during the first decade of the 20th century. It is located on the banks of the Fraser River as it turns southwest towards its estuary, on the southwest side of the Burrard Peninsula and roughly at the centre of the Greater Vancouver region. History The area now known as New Westminster was originally inhabited by Kwantlen First Nation. The discovery of gold in BC and the arrival of gold seekers from the south prompted fear amongst the settlers that Americans may invade to take over this lan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Sicily
Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4.7 million inhabitants, including 1.2 million in and around the capital city of Palermo, it is both the largest and most populous island in the Mediterranean Sea. Sicily is named after the Sicels, who inhabited the eastern part of the island during the Iron Age. Sicily has a rich and unique culture in #Art and architecture, arts, Music of Sicily, music, #Literature, literature, Sicilian cuisine, cuisine, and Sicilian Baroque, architecture. Its most prominent landmark is Mount Etna, the tallest active volcano in Europe, and one of the most active in the world, currently high. The island has a typical Mediterranean climate. It is separated from Calabria by the Strait of Messina. It is one of the five Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Thompson Submachine Gun
The Thompson submachine gun (also known as the "Tommy gun", "Chicago typewriter", or "trench broom") is a blowback-operated, selective-fire submachine gun, invented and developed by Brigadier General John T. Thompson, a United States Army officer, in 1918. It was designed to break the stalemate of trench warfare of World War I, although early models did not arrive in time for actual combat. The Thompson saw early use by the United States Marine Corps during the Banana Wars, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Irish Republican Army, the Republic of China, and the FBI following the Kansas City Massacre. The weapon was also sold to the general public. Because it was so widely used by criminals, the Thompson became notorious during the Prohibition era as the signature weapon of various organized crime syndicates in the United States in the 1920s. It was a common sight in the media at the time, and was used by both law enforcement officers and criminals. The T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Grenade
A grenade is a small explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a Shell (projectile), shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade generally consists of an explosive charge ("filler"), a detonator mechanism, an internal Firing pin, striker to trigger the detonator, an arming safety secured by a transport safety. The user removes the transport safety before throwing, and once the grenade leaves the hand the arming safety gets released, allowing the striker to trigger a Percussion cap, primer that ignites a fuze (sometimes called the delay element), which burns down to the detonator and explodes the main charge. Grenades work by dispersing fragments (fragmentation grenades), shockwaves (High explosive, high-explosive, Anti-tank grenade, anti-tank and stun grenades), chemical aerosols (Smoke grenade, smoke, Grenade#Chemical and gas, gas and Grenade#Chemi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
MP40
The MP 40 () is a submachine gun chambered for the 9×19mm Parabellum cartridge. Developed in Nazi Germany, it saw extensive service in the Axis powers , Axis forces during World War II. Designed in 1938 by Heinrich Vollmer with inspiration from its predecessor the , it was heavily used by infantrymen (particularly by platoon- and squad-leaders), and by Fallschirmjäger (World War II), paratroopers, on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern and Western Front (World War II), Western Fronts as well as by the crews of armoured fighting vehicles. Its advanced and modern features made it a favorite among soldiers and popular in countries from various parts of the world after the war. The Allies of WWII , Allies often referred to the MP 40 as the "Schmeisser", after the firearms-designer Hugo Schmeisser (1884-1953). In 1917 Schmeisser had designed the MP 18, which was the first mass-produced submachine gun. He did not, however, have anything to do with the design or developmen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Savio River
The Savio is a river in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. Its source is in the province of Forlì-Cesena near Montecoronaro on Mount Castelvecchio which is near the western side of Mount Fumaiolo. The source is at an elevation of and is marked by an iron monument. A wolf (the symbol of Montecoronaro) and the rings of the ''caveja'' (a symbol of Romagna) are on this monument. The river flows near Verghereto and Bagno di Romagna as it winds through the mountains before entering Lago di Quarto. After leaving the lake, the river flows northeast near Sarsina (near the border with the province of Pesaro and Urbino) and Mercato Saraceno before flowing north. The river winds for along the valley. Its natural track has been preserved relatively well and, in the territory of Cesena, it shows an environment which is one of the purest of the whole Romagna. North of Cesena, the river crosses the border into the province of Ravenna. After a total course of the river enters the Adri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Sergeant
Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage from the British light infantry. The word "sergeant" derives from the Latin , 'one who serves', through the Old French term . In modern hierarchies the term ''sergeant'' refers to a non-commissioned officer positioned above the rank of a corporal, and to a police officer immediately below a lieutenant in the US, and below an inspector in the UK. In most armies, the rank of sergeant corresponds to command of a team/section (military unit), section, or squad. In Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth armies, it is a more senior rank, corresponding roughly to a platoon second-in-command. In the United States Army, sergeant is a more junior rank corresponding to a fireteam leader or assistant squad-leader; while in the United States Marine Corps ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Corporal
Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corresponds to commanding a Section (military unit), section or squad of soldiers. The word is a contraction from the Italian language, medieval Italian phrase ( [of soldiers]). While most Indo-European languages use this contraction, West Iberian languages use . Types * Lance corporal * * Corporal first class, First corporal * Second corporal * Master corporal * Corporal major * Corporal of horse * Corporal of the field * Staff corporal By country Australia Corporal is the second lowest of the non-commissioned officer ranks in the Australian Army, falling between lance-corporal and sergeant. A corporal is usually appointed as a section commander, and is in charge of 7–14 soldiers of private rank. They are assisted by a second-in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Panzergrenadier
(), abbreviated as ''PzG'' (WWII) or ''PzGren'' (modern), meaning ''Armoured fighting vehicle, "Armour"-ed fighting vehicle "Grenadier"'', is the German language, German term for the military doctrine of mechanized infantry units in armoured forces who specialize in fighting from and in conjunction with infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) – that is, armoured troop carriers designed to carry a mechanized squad of six to eight soldiers into, during and out of combat while providing Direct fire, direct fire support for those troops. The doctrine originated primarily in Nazi Germany during World War II and is today used by name in the countries of Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Sweden. Doctrine combat is conducted in close cooperation with IFVs. Each squad has its own designated IFV during battle. Combat can be conducted either from within the vehicle via portholes in the walls or hatches on the roof etc., so-called ''mounted combat'', or from outside the vehicle in its vic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Panther Tank
The Panther tank, officially ''Panzerkampfwagen V Panther'' (abbreviated Pz.Kpfw. V) with Sonderkraftfahrzeug, ordnance inventory designation: ''Sd.Kfz.'' 171, is a German medium tank of World War II. It was used in most European theatre of World War II, European theatres of World War II from mid-1943 to the end of the war in May 1945. The Panther was intended to counter the Soviet T-34 medium tank and to replace the Panzer III and Panzer IV. Nevertheless, it served alongside the Panzer IV and the heavier Tiger I until the end of the war. While having essentially the same Maybach V12 petrol (690 hp) engine as the Tiger I, the Panther had better gun penetration, was lighter and faster, and could traverse rough terrain better than the Tiger I. The trade-off was weaker side armour, which made it vulnerable to flanking fire, and a weaker high explosive shell. The Panther proved to be effective in open country and long-range engagements. The Panther had excellent firepower, p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
PIAT
The Projector, Infantry, Anti Tank (PIAT) Mk I was a British man-portable anti-tank weapon developed during the Second World War. The PIAT was designed in 1942 in response to the British Army's need for a more effective infantry anti-tank weapon and entered service in 1943. The PIAT was based on the spigot mortar system, and projected (launched) a 2.5 pound (1.1 kg) shaped charge bomb using a cartridge in the tail of the projectile. It possessed an effective range of approximately in a direct fire anti-tank role, and in an indirect fire role. The PIAT had several advantages over other infantry anti-tank weapons of the period: it had greatly increased penetration power over the previous anti-tank rifles, it had no back-blast which might reveal the position of the user or accidentally injure friendly soldiers around the user, and it was simple in construction. However, the device also had some disadvantages: powerful recoil, a difficulty in cocking the weapon, and early pro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
