As we travelled up the Rhine River, our second stop in Germany was at the city of Koblenz. The city is at the confluence of the Moselle and Rhine rivers, and the heights above the place give one a truly impressive vista. The fortress of Ehrenbreitstein in situated on a hill overlooking Koblenz. We toured […]
French Army on Parade in 1939 Here I write a cautionary tale about the destruction of a fine army and the ignominious collapse of a proud nation. It is the story of France, 1940. Parts of the story I have told before. This is a more complete account of the events leading up to May-June […]
1914 (Note: This post is only for those with an interest in military history. In it I describe cataclysmic events in the summer of 1914 when western civilization rushed into war, a war that tore Europe apart and left a terrible legacy that continues to exercise a malevolent influence on our world today. I wrote […]
Eighty years ago, on September 1, 1939, World War II began with the German attack on Poland. I told the story of World Wars I & II in my post titled “War and Madness.” Now, on the 80th anniversary of that event, I am publishing more details on World War II’s beginning. After World War […]
In the years leading up to World War I, French military thinkers had wavered back and forth over the best strategy and tactics to employ in the forthcoming struggle with Germany. Most of them were not pushing for conflct, but there was a general feeling that war was inevitable. In 1870-71 France had lost a […]
Evil exists. Sometimes people say that all men are basically good, and that we do evil things only when there has been a bad environment, poverty, lack of education or some other unfortunate cause. That is not true. I tend to believe what Johannes Gossner, 19th century Lutheran pastor and philanthropist, once wrote, “The heart […]
Jordans-Journey 