Chester Alan Arthur (1829–1886) was the21stPresident of the United States (1881–1885). Taking office afterthe assassination ofJames A. Garfield, Arthur struggled to overcome suspicions of his beginnings as a politician from the New York CityRepublican machine, succeeding at that task by embracing the cause of civil service reform. His advocacy for thePendleton Civil Service Reform Act was the centerpiece of his administration. Arthur grew up inupstate New York and practiced law in New York City. Appointed by PresidentUlysses S. Grant to the powerful post ofCollector of the Port of New York in 1871, Arthur was an important supporter of Conkling and theStalwart faction of the Republican Party. When Garfield won the Republican nomination for President in 1880, Arthur was nominated for Vice President tobalance the ticket by adding an eastern Stalwart to it. After just half a year as Vice President, Arthur found himself in theExecutive Mansion. To the surprise of reformers, he signed the Pendleton Act into law, and enforced its provisions vigorously. He won plaudits for his veto of a Rivers and Harbors Act that would have appropriated federal funds in a manner he thought excessive and presided over the rebirth of theUnited States Navy, but was criticized for failing to alleviate the federal budget surplus that had been accumulating since the end of the Civil War. In poor health, he retired at the close of his term. TheNew York World summed up Arthur's presidency at his death in 1886: "No duty was neglected in his administration, and no adventurous project alarmed the nation".
Air Vice MarshalFrancis Masson (Frank)Bladin,CB,CBE (1898–1978) was a senior commander in theRoyal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Born in ruralVictoria, he graduated from theRoyal Military College, Duntroon, in 1920. Bladin transferred from theArmy to the Air Force in 1923, and learned to fly atRAAF Point Cook, Victoria. He held training appointments before taking command ofNo. 1 Squadron in 1934. Quiet but authoritative, he was nicknamed "Dad" in tribute to the concern he displayed for the welfare of his personnel. Rankedwing commander at the outbreak of World War II, by September 1941 Bladin had been raised to temporaryair commodore. He becameAir Officer Commanding North-Western Area in March 1942, following the firstJapanese air raids onDarwin, Northern Territory. Personally leadingsorties against enemy territory, he earned the United StatesSilver Star for gallantry. In July 1943, Bladin was posted toNo. 38 Group RAF in Europe, where he wasmentioned in despatches. He was appointedCBE the same year. Promoted actingair vice marshal in 1946, Bladin was among the coterie of senior officers who helped reshape the post-war RAAF. His roles in the late 1940s and early 1950s included Chief of Staff of theBritish Commonwealth Occupation Force in Japan, Air Officer Commanding Eastern Area (laterRAAF Air Command), and Air Member for Personnel. AppointedCB in 1950, he retired to his country property in 1953. He was active for many years in veterans' affairs before his death in 1978 at the age of seventy-nine.
HMSHood was the lastbattlecruiser built for theRoyal Navy. She was involved in a number offlag-waving exercises between her commissioning in 1920 and the outbreak of war in 1939, including a circumnavigation of the globe with theSpecial Service Squadron in 1923 and 1924. She was attached to theMediterranean Fleet following the outbreak of theSecond Italo-Abyssinian War. When theSpanish Civil War broke out,Hood was again assigned to the Mediterranean Fleet until returning to England in 1939 for an overhaul. By this point,Hood's usefulness had deteriorated because of advances in naval gunnery. She was scheduled to undergo a major rebuild in 1941, but the outbreak ofWorld War II forced her into service without the upgrades. When war was declared in September 1939,Hood was operating in the area around Iceland, and spent the next several months hunting for Germancommerce raiders andblockade runners. After a brief overhaul to her engine plant, she sailed as theflagship ofForce H, and participated in thedestruction of the French Fleet at Mers-el-Kebir.Hood was then dispatched toScapa Flow, and operated in the area as a convoy escort and later as a defence against a potential German invasion fleet. In May 1941, she and thebattleshipHMS Prince of Wales were ordered to intercept theGerman battleship Bismarck which was en route to attack convoys in theAtlantic. On 24 May 1941,Hood was struck by several German shells early in theBattle of the Denmark Strait and exploded; the loss had a profound effect on the British.Prime MinisterWinston Churchill ordered the Royal Navy to "sink theBismarck", and this was accomplishedon 26–27 May
TheNorthrop YF-23 orNorthrop–McDonnell Douglas YF-23 was an American single-seat, twin-enginefighter aircraft designed for theUnited States Air Force (USAF). The design was a finalist in the USAF'sAdvanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) competition, battling theLockheed YF-22 for a production contract. Two YF-23 prototypes were built with the nicknames "Black Widow II" and "Gray Ghost". In the 1980s the USAF began looking for a replacement for its fighter aircraft, especially to counter the USSR's advancedSu-27 andMiG-29. Several companies submitted design proposals; the USAF selected proposals fromNorthrop andLockheed. Northrop teamed withMcDonnell Douglas to develop the YF-23, while Lockheed,Boeing andGeneral Dynamics developed the YF-22. The YF-23 was stealthier and faster, but less agile than the competition. After a four-year development and evaluation process, the YF-22 was announced the winner in 1991 and entered production as theLockheed Martin F-22 Raptor. The U.S. Navy considered using the production version of the ATF as the basis for a replacement to theF-14, but these plans were later canceled. As of 2009, the two YF-23 prototypes were museum exhibits.
SMSGrosser Kurfürst was the secondbattleship of the four-shipKönig class. She served in theGerman Imperial Navy duringWorld War I. The battleship was laid down in October 1911 and launched on 5 May 1913. She was formally commissioned into the Imperial Navy on 30 July 1914, days before the outbreak of war between Germany and the United Kingdom.Grosser Kurfürst was armed with ten 30.5-centimeter (12.0 in) guns in five twin turrets and could steam at a top speed of 21knots (39 km/h; 24 mph). Along with her threesister ships,König,Markgraf, andKronprinz,Grosser Kurfürst took part in most of the fleet actions during the war, including theBattle of Jutland on 31 May and 1 June 1916. The ship was subjected to heavy fire at Jutland, but was not seriously damaged. She shelled Russian positions duringOperation Albion in September and October 1917.Grosser Kurfürst was involved in a number of accidents during her service career; she collided withKönig andKronprinz, grounded several times, was torpedoed once, and hit a mine. After Germany's defeat and the signing of theArmistice in November 1918,Grosser Kurfürst and most of thecapital ships of theHigh Seas Fleet were interned by theRoyal Navy inScapa Flow, andscuttled on 21 July 1919.
USSConstellation engaging the French frigateLa Vengeance
TheUSSConstellation vsLa Vengeance, or theAction of 1 February 1800, was asingle-ship action fought between frigates of theFrench Navy and theUnited States Navy during theQuasi-War. The battle resulted in the AmericanfrigateUSS Constellation severely damaging the French frigateLa Vengeance and forcing her to flee. In 1798, anundeclared war had begun between the United States and France due to French seizures of Americanmerchantmen. As part of an American effort to deter French attacks, CommodoreThomas Truxtun led an Americannaval squadron that was dispatched to theLesser Antilles. Learning that regular French naval forces were in the region, Truxton set out in hisflagshipConstellation and sailed toGuadaloupe to engage them. On 1 February 1800, while nearing the French colony,Constellation met François Marie Pitot's frigateLa Vengeance of the French Navy. Regardless of Pitot's attempts to flee, his frigate was drawn into a heavy engagement withConstellation. Although the French frigatestruck her colors (surrendered) twice,Constellation was unable to takeLa Vengeance as aprize. Eventually Pitot was able to escape with his frigate toCuraçao, though only after sustaining severe casualties and damage to his vessel. Truxton's ship also suffered heavy damage and was forced to sail toJamaica for repairs before returning home to a hero's welcome.
Thebackground of the Spanish Civil War dates from the end of the nineteenth century, when the owners of large estates held most of the power. In 1868 popular uprisings led to the overthrow of QueenIsabella II. In 1873 Isabella's replacement, KingAmadeo I of theHouse of Savoy, abdicated due to increasing political pressure, and the short-livedFirst Spanish Republic was proclaimed. After therestoration of the Bourbons in 1874,Carlists andanarchists emerged in opposition to the monarchy.Alejandro Lerroux helped bringrepublicanism to the fore inCatalonia, where poverty was particularly acute. Growing resentment of conscription and of the military culminated in theTragic Week inBarcelona in 1909. After theFirst World War, the working class, the industrial class, and the military united in hopes of removing the corrupt central government, but were unsuccessful. Fears of communism grew. A military coup broughtMiguel Primo de Rivera to power in 1923, and he ran Spain as a military dictatorship. Support for his regime gradually faded, and he resigned in January 1930. There was little support for the monarchy in the major cities, andKing Alfonso XIII abdicated; theSecond Spanish Republic was formed, whose power would remain until the culmination of theSpanish Civil War. Tensions rose in the period between 1934 and 1936. Lerroux'sRadical Republican Party formed a government and rolled back changes made under the previous administration. Open violence occurred in the streets of Spanish cities. APopular Front alliance was organised, which narrowly won the1936 elections. The expanding Fascist Falange created a sense of militancy on the streets. Several generals decided that the government had to be replaced if the dissolution of Spain was to be prevented. They organised amilitary coup in July, which started the Spanish Civil War.
TheBattle of Battle Mountain was an engagement betweenUnited Nations (UN) andNorth Korean forces early in theKorean War from August 15 to September 19, 1950, on and around theSobuk-san mountain area inSouth Korea. It was one of several large engagements fought simultaneously during theBattle of Pusan Perimeter. The battle ended in a victory for the UN after large numbers of US andRepublic of Korea (ROK) troops were able to prevent a North Korean division from capturing the mountain area. Operating indefense of Masan, theUS Army's25th Infantry Division placed its24th Infantry Regiment and5th Infantry Regiment on Sobuk-san to defend its two peaks, P'il-bong and Hill 665, which would later be known as "Battle Mountain." What followed was a month-long struggle with theNorth Korean People's Army's6th Division, in which Battle Mountain changed hands 20 times. During the deadlock, neither side was able to secure a definite victory in capturing the mountaintop, but the US forces succeeded in their mission of preventing the North Koreans from advancing beyond Battle Mountain, paving the way for the North Koreans' eventual defeat and withdrawal from the area after theBattle of Inchon.
HMSBelfast is amuseum ship, originally aRoyal Navylight cruiser, permanently moored inLondon on theRiver Thames and operated by theImperial War Museum. Construction ofBelfast began in December 1936. She was launched onSt Patrick's Day, 17 March 1938. Commissioned shortly before the outbreak of theSecond World War,Belfast was initially part of the British naval blockade against Germany. In November 1939Belfast struck a Germanmine and spent more than two years undergoing extensive repairs. Returning to action in November 1942 with improved firepower, radar equipment and armour,Belfast was the largest and arguably most powerful cruiser in the Royal Navy at the time.Belfast saw action escortingArctic convoys to theSoviet Union during 1943, and played an important role in theBattle of North Cape, assisting in the destruction of the German warshipScharnhorst. In June 1944Belfast took part inOperation Overlord supporting theNormandy landings. She was redeployed to the Far East in June 1945 to join theBritish Pacific Fleet.Belfast saw further combat action in 1950–52 during theKorean War and underwent an extensive modernisation between 1956 and 1959. A number of additional overseas commissions followed beforeBelfast entered reserve in 1963. In 1967, efforts were initiated to avertBelfast's expected scrapping and preserve her as a museum ship. A joint committee of the Imperial War Museum, theNational Maritime Museum and theMinistry of Defence was established, and reported in June 1968 that preservation was practical. In 1971 the government decided against preservation, prompting the formation of the private HMSBelfast Trust to campaign for her preservation. The efforts of the Trust were successful, and the government transferred the ship to the Trust in July 1971. Brought to London, she was moored on theRiver Thames nearTower Bridge in thePool of London. Opened to the public in October 1971,Belfast became a branch of the Imperial War Museum in 1978. A popular tourist attraction,Belfast receives around a quarter of a million visitors per year.
HMSEagle (pennant number 94) was an earlyaircraft carrier of theRoyal Navy. Ordered by Chile as theAlmirante Latorre-classbattleshipAlmirante Cochrane, she was laid down beforeWorld War I. In early 1918 she was purchased by Britain for conversion to an aircraft carrier; this work was finished in 1924. The ship was initially assigned to theMediterranean Fleet and then later to theChina Station.Eagle spent the first nine months ofWorld War II in theIndian Ocean searching for Germancommerce raiders. During the early part of the war, theFleet Air Arm was desperately short offighters andEagle was equipped solely withFairey Swordfishtorpedo bombers until late 1940. She was transferred to the Mediterranean in May 1940, where she escorted multipleconvoys toMalta andGreece and attacked Italian shipping, naval units and bases in the Eastern Mediterranean. The ship also participated in theBattle of Calabria in July, but her aircraft failed to score any hits when they attempted to torpedo Italian cruisers during the battle. WheneverEagle was not at sea, her aircraft were disembarked and used ashore. The ship was relieved by a more modern carrier in March 1941 and ordered to hunt forAxis shipping in the Indian Ocean and theSouth Atlantic. Her aircraft sank one Germanblockade runner and disabled a Germanoil tanker in mid-1941, before being ordered home in October. After completing a major refit in early 1942, the ship made multiple trips delivering fighter aircraft to Malta to boost its air defences in the first half of 1942.Eagle was torpedoed and sunk by theGerman submarine U-73 on 11 August 1942 while escorting a convoy to Malta duringOperation Pedestal.
If Day (Si un jour ... in French) was a simulatedNazi invasion of the Canadian city ofWinnipeg,Manitoba, and surrounding areas on February 19, 1942, during theSecond World War. It was organized by the Greater Winnipeg Victory Loan organization, which was led by prominent Winnipeg businessmanJ. D. Perrin. The event was the largest military exercise in Winnipeg to that point. If Day included a staged firefight between Canadian troops and volunteers dressed as Nazi soldiers, the internment of prominent politicians, the imposition of Nazi rule, and a parade. The event was a fundraiser for the war effort: overC$3 million was collected in Winnipeg on that day. It was later the subject of a 2006 documentary, and was included inGuy Maddin's filmMy Winnipeg.
John Raeburn Balmer,OBE,DFC (1910–1944) was a senior officer and bomber pilot in theRoyal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Born inBendigo, Victoria, he studied law before joining the RAAF as an air cadet in 1932. As aninstructor atPoint Cook in 1935–37, he achieved renown in Air Force circles when he reputedly parachuted from a training aircraft to motivate his pupil to land single-handedly. He also became known to the general public as a cross-country motorist, setting records for trans-Australia and round-Australia trips prior to World War II. In June 1940, Balmer was made the inaugural commander ofNo. 13 Squadron, operatingLockheed Hudsons out ofDarwin, Northern Territory. Within two years he was leading the RAAF's firstBristol Beaufort unit,No. 100 Squadron inNew Guinea, and was appointed anOfficer of the Order of the British Empire. Posted to England in June 1943, Balmer took command ofNo. 467 Squadron, flyingAvro Lancasters in theair war over Europe. He was awarded theDistinguished Flying Cross in April 1944, and promoted to temporarygroup captain the following month. Days later, on the night of 11/12 May, the last scheduled operation of his tour as commander, Balmer failed to return from a mission over Belgium. Initially posted as missing, his plane was later confirmed to have been shot down, and all of the crew killed. Balmer was buried outsideBrussels.
TheKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its variants were the highest awards in the military of theThird Reich duringWorld War II. It was awarded for a wide range of reasons and across all ranks, from a senior commander for skilled leadership of his troops in battle to a low ranking soldier for a single act of extreme gallantry. A total of 7,322 awards were made between its first presentation on 30 September 1939 and its last bestowal on 17 June 1945. This number is based on the analysis and acceptance of the order commission of theAssociation of Knight's Cross Recipients (AKCR). Presentations were made to members of the three military branches of theWehrmacht—theHeer (Army),Kriegsmarine (Navy) andLuftwaffe (Air force)—as well as theWaffen-SS, theReichsarbeitsdienst (RAD) and theVolkssturm. There were also 43recipients in the military forces of allies of the Third Reich. The 7,322 recipients are listed in the 1986 edition ofWalther-Peer Fellgiebel's book, [Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 – Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtsteile]Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) —The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War. In 1996 a second edition of this book was published with an addendum delisting nine of these original 7,323 recipients. Author and historian Veit Scherzer has cast doubt on a further 192 of these listings. The majority of the disputed recipients had received the award in 1945, when the deteriorating situation of the Third Reich during the final days of World War II left a number of nominations incomplete and pending in various stages of the approval process. Listed in these two articles are the seven Knight's Cross recipients whose last name starts with "Q" and the 104 Knight's Cross recipients whose last name starts in the range of "X" to "Z", although author and historian Veit Scherzer has challenged the validity of 2 of the latter.
Andrew William "Nicky"Barr,OBE,MC,DFC &Bar (1915–2006) was a member of theAustralian national rugby union team who became afighter ace in theRoyal Australian Air Force (RAAF) during World War II. He was credited with twelve aerial victories, all scored flying theCurtiss P-40. Born in New Zealand, Barr was raised inVictoria and first represented the state in rugby in 1936. Selected to play for Australia against the United Kingdom in 1939, he had just arrived in England when the tour was cancelled following the outbreak of war. He joined the RAAF in 1940 and was posted toNorth Africa withNo. 3 Squadron in September 1941. His first three victories were attained in the P-40 Tomahawk and the remainder in the Kittyhawk. Barr's achievements as a combat pilot saw him awarded theDistinguished Flying Cross andBar. Shortly after taking command of No. 3 Squadron in May 1942, he was shot down and captured byAxis forces, and incarcerated in Italy. He eventually escaped and assisted otherAllied fugitives to safety, earning theMilitary Cross for his efforts. Repatriated to England, he saw action during theinvasion of Normandy in June 1944 before returning to Australia as a Chief Instructor withNo. 2 Operational Training Unit. After the war he became a company director, and rejoined the RAAF as an active reserve officer from 1951 to 1953. From the early 1960s he was heavily involved in the theoilseed industry, for which he was appointed anOfficer of the Order of the British Empire in 1983. He died in 2006, aged ninety.
TheNyon Conference, held inNyon, Switzerland, in September 1937, addressed international piracy in theMediterranean Sea, especially piracy aimed atintervention in the Spanish Civil War. TheUnited Kingdom andFrance led the conference, which was also attended byBulgaria,Egypt,Greece,Romania,Turkey, theSoviet Union andYugoslavia. The first agreement, signed on 14 September, dealt with plans to counterattack aggressivesubmarines. Naval patrols were established; the United Kingdom and France were to patrol most of the western Mediterranean and parts of the east, and the other signatories were to patrol their own waters.Italy was to be allowed to join the agreement and patrol theTyrrhenian Sea if it wished. A second agreement followed three days later, applying similar provisions to surface ships. Italy andGermany did not attend, although the former did take up naval patrols in November. In marked contrast to theNon-Intervention Committee and theLeague of Nations, this conference did succeed in preventing attacks by submarines.
SMSKaiserin ("His Majesty's ShipEmpress") was the third vessel of theKaiser class ofbattleships of theGermanImperial Navy.Kaiserin's keel was laid in November 1910 at theHowaldtswerke dockyard inKiel. She was launched on 11 November 1911 and was commissioned into the fleet on 15 May 1913. The ship was equipped with ten 30.5-centimeter (12.0 in) guns in five twin turrets, and had a top speed of 22.1 knots (40.9 km/h; 25.4 mph).Kaiserin was assigned to theIII Battle Squadron and later theIV Battle Squadron of theHigh Seas Fleet for the majority of her career, includingWorld War I. Along with her four sister ships,Kaiser,Friedrich der Grosse,König Albert, andPrinzregent Luitpold,Kaiserin participated in all of the major fleet operations ofWorld War I, including theBattle of Jutland on 31 May – 1 June 1916. The ship was also involved inOperation Albion, an amphibious assault on the Russian-held islands in theGulf of Riga, in October 1917. She also saw action during theSecond Battle of Heligoland Bight in November 1917. After Germany's defeat in the war and the signing of theArmistice in November 1918,Kaiserin and most of thecapital ships of the High Seas Fleet were interned by theRoyal Navy inScapa Flow. The ships were disarmed and reduced to skeleton crews while theAllied powers negotiated the final version of theTreaty of Versailles. On 21 June 1919, days before the treaty was signed, the commander of the interned fleet, Rear AdmiralLudwig von Reuter,ordered the fleet to be scuttled to ensure that the British would not be able to seize the ships.Kaiserin was raised in May 1936 and subsequentlybroken up for scrap.
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