During WW2, Ernest Hemingway used his fishing boat to hunt German U-boats in the Caribbean. ⚓️

The boat was armed only with Thompson machine guns & hand grenades, & Hemingway was given unlimited gasoline by the U.S. government. ⛽️

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In March of 1945, Marines of the 4th Marine Division take a well deserved break on Iwo Jima. 🪖

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82 years ago today, US Army Air Forces launch their first bombing raid on Berlin. 🇺🇸

A force of 730 bombers set off from England with hundreds of escort fighters. Fierce battles raged & resulted in heavy losses for both sides. ✈️

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81 years ago today, Marines from the 4th Marine Division check communication lines after conducting repairs during the Battle of Iwo Jima. 🪖

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In 1944, a wounded American soldier is loaded into a medic half-track converted to serve as an ambulance in Echtz, Germany. 🪖

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Marine Pvt. Thomas Underwood of the 4th Marine Division takes a well deserved sip of water from his canteen during the fighting on Saipan.🪖

Underwood was killed in action 81 years ago today, while fighting on Iwo Jima. He was 22 years old. 🪦

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On this day in 1946, Winston Churchill gives a speech at Missouri's Westminster College in which he famously declares that an "Iron Curtain" has descended across Europe. The former prime minister's words herald the beginning of the Cold War.

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82 years ago today, Seabees from Naval Construction Battalion No. 36 pause from their task of repairing the airstrip on Bougainville. ⚓️

The signs read "Keep 'em Flying, Emergency Strip Repair." 🇺🇸

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A Vought F4U Corsair breaks through the arresting gear while landing aboard the USS Charger in 1944. ✈️

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In March of 1945, paratroopers of the 17th Airborne give a haircut prior to their combat jump in Operation Varsity in this photo by the great Robert Capa🪂

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In March of 1945, Marines of the 5th Marine Division at their machine gun position on Iwo Jima. 🪖

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In March of 1945, soldiers of the 4th Armored Division transport two German POWs in the town of Hersfeld, Germany. 🪖

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81 years ago today, an American soldier searches surrendering German troops for weapons in Linnich, Germany. 🪖

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81 years ago today, one of the USS Alaska's Curtiss SC-1 floatplanes waiting for pickup by the ship's crane off Iwo Jima. ✈️

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81 years ago today, the crew of a 40mm quad anti-aircraft MG mount of the USS Alaska load clips off Iwo Jima. 🪖

The man at the right is Seaman 2nd Class Richard Roberts, and the gun captain (in the phone talker's helmet) is Gunner's Mate 2nd Class Glenn F. Groff.

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82 years ago today, 48 year old Corporal Roderick Loop says goodbye to his beloved son, Private William Loop in Anzio, Italy. 🪖

The father & son duo joined the Army together, and both became members of the 191st Tank Battalion. Both survived the war. 🇺🇸

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A Marine throws caution to the wind as he lights his pipe with his M2-2 Flamethrower still strapped to his back on Iwo Jima. 🔥

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Today in 1799, Jaffa falls to Napoleon after a four-day siege. The French plunder the city and slaughter more than 2,000 prisoners. Bonaparte believes the atrocities will cow the Ottomans in future battles; it actually makes them fight with greater ferocity.

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On this day in 1936, Hitler openly defies the Treaty of Versailles by ordering his army to reoccupy the Rhineland. Europe's powers do little to stop him. "If the French had marched in, we would have had to withdraw with our tails between our legs," Hitler will later admit.

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81 years ago today, an LCM loaded with troops pulls away from a troop transport and heads toward the shore on Iwo Jima. 🪖

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Paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division resting at the foot of Église Saint-Marcouf in a Normandy “Then & Now” 🇺🇸

Battlefield Tours creation 🎨

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