Key Battles of American History

In this episode Sean and James discuss Band of Brothers Episode 3: Carentan. Easy fights in the Battle of Carentan and loses several men. Rumors begin to circulate that Ronald Speirs killed a group of German prisoners. Private Albert Blithe, who has been struggling with shell shock, is finally spurred into action by Winters during the Battle of Bloody Gulch. Several days later, Blithe is shot through the neck by a sniper while on patrol.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this topical episode, commissioned by Early’s Raiders Major Doug Pergram, James discusses Revolutionary War artillery, including types of artillery and shot, how artillery were fired, and how they were used by both sides during the war. If you would like to commission an episode on a topic of your choosing, you can do so by joining Early’s Raiders at the Major level or higher. For more information, go to Patreon.com and search for Key Battles of American History.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode Sean and James discuss Band of Brothers Episode 2: Day of Days. On June 6, 1944, Easy Company parachutes into Normandy but is scattered and many land miles away from their designated drop zones. Most of Easy reconnects, but its company commander, First Lieutenant Thomas Meehan, is missing and presumed dead, so Winters assumes command as its highest-ranking officer. He successfully leads a small group of men in destroying German artillery emplacements firing on Utah Beach from Brécourt Manor despite the German defending force being larger. Winters also captures a map of all German artillery emplacements in Normandy. Winters and several other Easy Company members earn combat decorations for their part in the attack.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After the fall of the Philippines to the Japanese in May 1942, many Allied servicemen became prisoners. Those who survived their captivity would remain prisoners of the Japanese for nearly three years. One of these prisoners, George Darling of Deming, New Mexico, went on to write a memoir of his and his brother Gerald’s captivity in the Philippines. In this episode, James is joined by Jay Robison, a retired Air Force colonel, surgeon, and history buff…as well as James’ first cousin and a first cousin once removed to the Darling brothers. You will be fascinated by the Darling brothers’ story as Jay and James tell it.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode Sean and James introduce the award-winning Band of Brothers series and discuss Episode 1: Currahee. In 1942, Easy Company trains at Camp Toccoa, Georgia, under First Lieutenant Herbert Sobel, a strict disciplinarian who goes out of his way to find fault with his men. The company is shipped to England in September 1943, and as training progresses, Sobel's inadequacy as a leader in the field becomes evident. Now a captain, Sobel initiates a dispute with Lieutenant Richard "Dick" Winters, leading to Winters requesting a trial by court martial. These factors lead all of Easy's non-commissioned officers to resign en masse. Colonel Robert Sink, the regiment's commander, reassigns Sobel to command of a parachuting school for essential non-infantry personnel. With new leadership, Easy Company prepares for Operation Overlord. William Guarnere learns that his older brother Henry, a medic in the 1st Armored Division fighting in Italy, has been killed at Monte Cassino.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, James interviews Elizabeth Varon, the Langbourne M. Williams Professor of American History and Associate Director of the John L. Nau III Center for Civil War History at the University of Virginia, about her new book Longstreet: The Confederate General Who Defied the South. One of the Confederate Army’s most talented commanders, Longstreet was called “my old war horse” by Robert E. Lee. But within a few years of the end of the war, Longstreet had become a Republican and fought against many of his former Confederates, thus becoming persona non grata in the South. You’ll find this discussion of what Dr. Varon calls “the most remarkable political about-face in American history” fascinating. Join us!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

November 22 marks the 60th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. To commemorate this pivotal event in American history, learn more about Kennedy's 1963 Texas visit, reelection campaign, assassination, and legacy, with this excerpt from This American President.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, James interviews Philip Martin, author of From Orphan to High Flyer. In this book, Philip tells the story of his late friend Denis Eliot. Denis rose from the horrors of a Victorian-style British orphanage and brutal foster parents to command and pilot American-built RAF B-24 Liberators against the Japanese in Asia, then to fly RAF aircraft into the late 1950s during the Cold War, and finally to live a fulfilling existence beyond his time in the military. In the RAF, he defied death many times and was privileged to see lands far from where he was raised in the UK. Join James and Philip as they discuss Denis’ fascinating life and career.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, Sean and James review the 1953 film Stalag 17, which tells the story of a group of American airmen confined with 40,000 prisoners in a World War II German prisoner-of-war camp "somewhere on the Danube". The film focuses on one particular barracks, where the men come to suspect that one of their number is an informant.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The experiences of Allied prisoners of war in Germany are relatively well-known, thanks in part to movies and television shows that tell their story. However, few Americans know that over 400,000 Axis prisoners of war were held in hundreds of camps scattered around the United States. In this episode, Sean and James discuss what life was like for Axis prisoners of war held in the U. S.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.