After the War was over

By Dean McCleland in Military History 3 Comments

Victory in Europe Day, generally known as VE Day, was the public holiday celebrated on 8 May 1945 to mark the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Nazi Germany’s unconditional surrender of its armed forces.

The war might have been over, the rebuilding of shattered lives, buildings and infrastructure could only now commence. Finally, it was a time of retribution for the vile deeds of the Axis countries both in Europe and in the East.

This blog is a pictorial representation of the issues that had to be addressed in this brave new world.

Main picture: A Japanese man amid the scorched wreckage and rubble that was once his home in Yokohama, Japan

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Even the Nazis could not prevent a Rugby “International” from being Played

By Dean McCleland in Military History 5 Comments

White South Africans are addicted to rugby. Whether it is as a player or a spectator, through trying experiences I have learnt that this relationship may not be tampered with, as these rugby addicts cannot resist the lure of the game. Soccer might be endowed with the sobriquet “The Beautiful Game” but rugby is definitely the macho man’s game. This fact is attested to when the South African POWs during WW2 arranged an “International” Rugby game in a German POW Camp. It is a matter of record that in spite of most of the items required to hold an authentic rugby match were not readily available, ingenuity and improvisation were the mothers of invention. 

As if to confound their critics, this game was held in Stalag IV-B conforming to the dress code and rules of the games. It was that spirit that embodies the game.

Main picture: Springbok Rugby Team at Stalag IV-B in 1944. Back row, left to right: Oehley, Van Huyssteen, Kaplan, Timm, Coetzee, N. Hinds, Boet Wessels, Heydenrych, Youngleson, Foster, Chapman, Rahl. Middle row: Fabricius, Moore, Ackermann, Major Ochse (medical officer), Fiks van der Merwe (captain), Katzeff, Van der Westhuizen, Ritchie, Hultzer, Zietsman. Front row: Marais, R. Hinds, Sephton.

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Effect of WW1 100 years after it Ceased

By Dean McCleland in Military History 0 Comment

WW1 is still emblematic and notorious for killing on an industrial scale. What is little known outside France is that a huge area has been designated as the so-called zone rouge [red zone in English], where entry is prohibited even a 100 years after this calamitous event.

Certain sections of this demarcated area have been so thoroughly contaminated that, in all probability, they will still be designated as no-go zones in 10 000 years’ time.

This is the tale of that forbidden no-man’s land, no longer protected by stuttering machine guns but by various poisons which have contaminated the ground.

Main picture: Enter the prohibited zone / Zone interdite / Sperrgebiet – pick your language of choice – with me at your own risk

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I slipped the Sultry Bonds of Earth

By Dean McCleland in Military History 2 Comments

This sonnet by John Magee, written in September 1941, about his experience in flying a Spitfire will forever epitomise for me the elegant and sleek lines of that iconic plane.  At 80 years old on 5th March 2016, it has certainly aged gracefully. Of the 20,351 built only 55 are still flying today. To celebrate its diamond anniversary milestone, aerial photographer John Dibbs and wordsmith Tony Holmes have created an epic & fitting tribute to the Supermarine Spitfire. 

These legends of WW2 and the Battle of Britain in particular are captured by John Didds in pin-sharp pictures using only a hand-held camera. John Dibbs took years of being flown to within 15 feet of these planes to capture the stunning pictures below. 

This is tribute both to the enduring beauty of the plane and to the skill and experience of John Dibbs.

Main picture: AR614 tears through the sky over the white cliffs of Dover

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Lt Freddie Zeelie – In Memoriam

By Dean McCleland in Military History 17 Comments

During my National Service training in 1972, I was assigned to Charlie Company 3 SAI based in Oudshoorn. Unlike most platoons, our platoon leader was a more experienced and professional Lieutenant. Lt Freddie Zeelie was different not because he was a PF Officer but because he displayed more wisdom and insight whilst treating us like adults unlike the other National Service Officers and Non-Commissioned Officers. This must never imply that he was soft on us. No siree! WE HAD TO BE THE BEST PLATOON. To achieve that, he worked us harder than any CF officer but without the bullsh*t.

Main picture: Lt Zeelie circled in the bottom left with me circled on the top right hand side.

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Beaches of D-Day: Images of June 1944 versus June 2016

By Dean McCleland in Military History, Other Galleries 2 Comments

Seventy two years after the D-Day landings on the beaches of Normandy in France, are the places in these iconic images still recognisable today? Surprisingly most locations can still be identified 72 after that momentous and pivotal day.

Four years ago, Nigel and I traipsed across some of these beaches and cliffs. Standing at the German gun emplacements on Omaha Beach, one wonders how anybody could have survived the landing on this exposed beach.

Main picture: The sounds of Nazi jackboots have been replaced with the slap of sandals on the tar

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The Sins of our Fathers

By Dean McCleland in History, Military History 1 Comment

What does one feel about one’s parent if one’s father is culpable of some heinous crime? Is it denial or loathing? It can never be both or even some adulterated commingled version. Whenever the latter occurs, ones protestations in support of one’s parent become self-serving, irrational and tenuous whilst never addressing the real issue at hand. Such is the case with Horst von Wächter, son of Baron Otto Gustav von Wächter, Governor of Galicia during WW2. 

How does Horst today at 77 years of age, reconcile his vision of a loving father with that of a monster who was responsible for the deaths of at least 100,000 Jews? 

This is the tale of convoluted denial against all the evidence to the contrary. 

Main picture: Horst Von Wachter, Philippe Sands and Niklas Frank behind the scenes of My Nazi Legacy  Continue reading

Will the HE-115 Float Plane ever grace the Skies again?

By Dean McCleland in History, Military History 0 Comment

Of all the war planes of WW2, the HE-115, a twin-engine three-seater float plane, did not make a huge contribution. In total only 138 were ever built of which 6 were sold to the Norwegians before the Germans invaded them and twelve were sold to the Swedish. Nonetheless I am extremely critical of the decision that most surviving planes which were deemed obsolete, were merely sold as scrap rather than trying to preserve a large number of copies of them. Even the venerable Lancaster bomber suffered this ignominious fate resulting in there being only one copy still in flying condition today.

After finding another wrecked HE-115 in 2013, that makes a total of three available for restoration and perhaps flight? What is the prognosis of at least one HE-115 flying again? 

Main picture: HE-115 recovered from Hafrsfjord in Norway on 12th June 2012

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Survival against Exceptional Odds

By Dean McCleland in Military History, Other Opinion Pieces 0 Comment

A week ago my blog “Landing without an Elevator or Rudder” showcased a South African example of a miraculous escape when an airforce Dakota was almost downed by a Soviet SAM-7 anti-aircraft missile. This week’s example relates to a US Airforce B-17 Bomber which had accidently been rammed by a German fighter over Tunis harbour. To say that their air crews changes of survival were negligible is an understatement. Yet they did.

This is their story.

Main picture: A crippled B-17

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Twelve Days in the Summer of 1588

By Dean McCleland in History, Military History 0 Comment

During those few days, the ultimate fate of England would be sealed. If the Armada of King Phillip II of Spain prevailed over the fleet of Queen Elizabeth I of England, then the future primacy of Spain as a world super power would be indisputable. Apart from Elizabeth’s head & England’s independence but also at stake was the future America as a Spanish colony as would South Africa.

Why were the British able to prevail against a superior force?

Main picture:  An engraving of the route of the Armada

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