A week in history: April 20 to 27
Michael Chudzinski
Issue date: 4/20/09 Section: Features
First off I would like to thank all of you, the loyal readers who find it within themselves to suffer through my turgid prose every week, for coming to the presentations last Thursday. Now you know that I'm an even worse speaker than I am writer. More importantly I would like to thank you for not throwing rotten fruit at me, even though I may have deserved it. Also, thanks and congratulations to all the presenters and to those who made it possible! It was a tremendous success, and everyone should be proud of what they accomplished.
It was brought to my attention afterward that I did omit one thing, however, that would have been the most crucial piece of information to pass along to all of you. But in a way I think that this may be better since it will reach a much wider audience, so hopefully I will be forgiven, but odds are I will be hearing about this omission for quite a while. The Middle East is not a country nor is it a continent. Instead it is a bunch of countries that span across a couple of continents. Depending upon whom you ask the countries that comprise what we call the Middle East will change, so I won't even try and weigh in on the issue of what constitutes a Middle Eastern nation and leave that to the experts. Now that is finished we can get to the history, the stuff that I know about.
On April 20, 1861 Robert E. Lee resigned his commission in the United States Army so that he could join the Army of Virginia. It's important to point out the fact that by becoming a general in the Virginian Army that he didn't assume command of all Confederate forces. Not that any one person was able to take command of the entire Confederate army since they were so individualistic that no one would stand for it. Even Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederacy, had enough trouble trying to keep all of the states in line and on task. Well I guess he ended up backing the wrong horse in that race. Serves him right!
Also, 1918 Manfred von Richthofen, more famously known as the 'Red Baron', collected his seventy-ninth and eightieth aerial victories. The next day on April 21 he was shot down and killed over Vaux sur Somme by Canadian pilot Captain Arthur Brown. Even though he was seriously wounded Richthofen was still able to land his plane in a field before finally succumbing to his wounds. Some controversy surrounds the question if Brown actually did shoot down the 'Red Baron.' Personally, I give credit to Snoopy for the victory, but that's just my opinion.
Moving from World War I to World War II on April 20, 1945, Hitler surfaced from his bunker for the last time. On this last visit Hitler was awarding Iron Crosses to members of the Hitler Youth. The pictures of this occasion are disturbing not because of Hitler, but because of how young the medal recipients were, and also how older soldiers are seen standing next to these young children. For some reason I think that there will be a few conspiracy theorists that will start saying that Hitler did not kill himself in the bunker, and instead went to South America. The idea that Snoopy shot down the 'Red Baron' makes more sense than that nonsense. Also am I the only one who has a bunch of submarine jokes pop into their head when they read of 'Hitler surfacing.' Also I keep having Moby Dick flash through my head, with some very heavy emphasis on the latter half of the title.
It was brought to my attention afterward that I did omit one thing, however, that would have been the most crucial piece of information to pass along to all of you. But in a way I think that this may be better since it will reach a much wider audience, so hopefully I will be forgiven, but odds are I will be hearing about this omission for quite a while. The Middle East is not a country nor is it a continent. Instead it is a bunch of countries that span across a couple of continents. Depending upon whom you ask the countries that comprise what we call the Middle East will change, so I won't even try and weigh in on the issue of what constitutes a Middle Eastern nation and leave that to the experts. Now that is finished we can get to the history, the stuff that I know about.
On April 20, 1861 Robert E. Lee resigned his commission in the United States Army so that he could join the Army of Virginia. It's important to point out the fact that by becoming a general in the Virginian Army that he didn't assume command of all Confederate forces. Not that any one person was able to take command of the entire Confederate army since they were so individualistic that no one would stand for it. Even Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederacy, had enough trouble trying to keep all of the states in line and on task. Well I guess he ended up backing the wrong horse in that race. Serves him right!
Also, 1918 Manfred von Richthofen, more famously known as the 'Red Baron', collected his seventy-ninth and eightieth aerial victories. The next day on April 21 he was shot down and killed over Vaux sur Somme by Canadian pilot Captain Arthur Brown. Even though he was seriously wounded Richthofen was still able to land his plane in a field before finally succumbing to his wounds. Some controversy surrounds the question if Brown actually did shoot down the 'Red Baron.' Personally, I give credit to Snoopy for the victory, but that's just my opinion.
Moving from World War I to World War II on April 20, 1945, Hitler surfaced from his bunker for the last time. On this last visit Hitler was awarding Iron Crosses to members of the Hitler Youth. The pictures of this occasion are disturbing not because of Hitler, but because of how young the medal recipients were, and also how older soldiers are seen standing next to these young children. For some reason I think that there will be a few conspiracy theorists that will start saying that Hitler did not kill himself in the bunker, and instead went to South America. The idea that Snoopy shot down the 'Red Baron' makes more sense than that nonsense. Also am I the only one who has a bunch of submarine jokes pop into their head when they read of 'Hitler surfacing.' Also I keep having Moby Dick flash through my head, with some very heavy emphasis on the latter half of the title.
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William
posted 4/23/09 @ 6:52 PM EST
The Red Baron was shot down by an Australian, Cedric Popkin.
For 80 years the Royal Air Force maintained that a Canadian pilot, Roy Brown, fired the fatal bullet but in 1997 research indicated that credit should go to a ground-based machine gunner from the Australian Imperial Force, probably Sergeant Cedric Popkin. (Continued…)
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