Question of the Hour

[redleafjumper]

xFusilier is correct with his answer on the motto - The Regiment de la Chaudiere.

 

[George Wallace]

You guys are just too good....On 21 Nov 1921, King George V proclaimed Canada's coat of arms and designated red and white to be the official Canadian national colours.

 

[George Wallace]

I found this in another thread and thought it was hilarious:

Uniforms of the Russian and the French Armies of the Napoleonic Wars, by the way these are more like paintings then actual pictures.

So...When was the first camera invented?

 

[geo]

1st camrea...
Are you including "daguerotype" (sp)
immage on copper plate that came out of France?

 

[AmmoTech90]

Who was Hamilcar Barca and what was his nickname?

He was Hannibal's father and commander of Carthage's army in the First Punic War.  Died in around 228 BC.
Nicknamed Barak/Barcas or lightning.

 

[redleafjumper]

Hey Ammotech, you got it!  They even named a glider after him in WW2, the Hamilcar.
I'll have tolook into this camera question but in the meantime...


What was operation Margaretha?

 

[AmmoTech90]

Thanks to DBA in my youth  ;D

No real idea on Operation Margaretha, but can anyone identify the man standing behind Churchill in this picture?

 

[redleafjumper]

Looks to me like Harry Truman.

 

[redleafjumper]

So Operation Margaretha, any takers?  It really shouldn't be too difficult to get this one...

 

[larry Strong]

So Operation Margaretha, any takers?   It really shouldn't be too difficult to get this one...

I'm back, been out of the loop for a few days. I guess it's a good thing to have a nice library upstairs ;D as the operation name won't "google"

"Operation Margaretha"

The German invasion of Hungary on 27.03.44, to bring them back into the fold, so to speak.

http://www.hungarian-history.hu/lib/montgo/montgo15.htm


Along with some so-so armour at the end, they were the only "Axis" formations left with the Wehrmacht on 08.06.45. The exhausted 1st Hungarian Army retreated into Moravia in Checkoslavakia were it built fortifications till the end of the war. After the German failure of the Lake Balaton offensive the 3rd Hungarian Army retreated westward, it lost it's 1st Hussar Div near Budapest, it's 2nd Armd, 27th Light, 9th and 23rd Reserve, and the 7th and 8th Depot Div's surrendered to the Americans in northern Austria, while the remainder which included the elite"Szent Laszlo" Parachute Div fought on the Austro-Yugoslav border before surrendering to British troops   08.45.

Who was "Szent Laszlo"?

 

[redleafjumper]

Larry, you are correct about Operation Margaretha.

Saint Laszlo was a Hungarian king and warrior highly respected for his leadership and courage.  He was touted to lead the third crusade but he died in 1195.  He was canonoized in 1169.  Hungarian soldiers to the end of World War 2 would cry out "Szent Laszlo protect and lead us" or something like that.

(edited to fix typo)

 

[redleafjumper]

What is the only thing that we eat that has never been alive?  (As a hint, it has been used to pay soldier's wages)

As this one is really easy, I ask that the person answering it provides a new question.

 

[clasper]

Salt (although MRE's are a close second...)

What was the name of soldier who lost siblings on D-day and inspired the story for Saving Private Ryan?

 

[redleafjumper]

Taken from: http://www.historyinfilm.com/ryan/

"Saving Private Ryan is a blockbuster depiction of the realities of war.   Winner of five Academy Awards including Steven Spielberg's Best Director, it is an unforgettable experience.   The film follows Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks) who, in the brutally real opening sequence, survives the landing at Omaha Beach.   He is then given a new mission: to find and extract Private James Francis Ryan (Matt Damon), one of four brothers, the other three of whom have been killed in action within days of each other.
The plot was inspired in part by the true story of Fritz Niland, one of four brothers from New York state who saw action during the war.   Two Niland brothers were killed on D-Day, while another was missing in action in Burma and was presumed dead, although he actually survived.   Fritz was located in Normandy by an Army chaplain, Reverend Francis Sampson, and taken out of the combat zone."

What was the device known affectionately as the "potato digger"?

(edited to add question)

 

[George Wallace]

Are you trying to distract us with the SPR story?

The only "Potato Digger" I know of is the Colt Machine Gun used in South Africa during the Boer War.

 

[redleafjumper]

Hi George, no attempt to distract, I just usually try to provide a question when I have the answer to one.

The Colt-Browning Machine gun of 1895 was commonly called the "potato digger" because of the swinging arm beneath the muzzle.

 

[RiflemanPhil]

A synonym for "wages" was first created by the Roman Empire. What was the Roman word, and what was behind this?

 

[redleafjumper]

This is directly related to my earlier question.  The word is salarium, later salary.  It referred to the salt that was in early time the pay for the legionary.  The salt could be used, sold or traded but it was a useful commodity that was valuable in that culture.

What were the "hetairai"?

 

[Danjanou]

What were the "hetairai"?

redleaf this is a family site. :-[

Basically highclass ladies of the ahem evening in Ancient Greece. More a courtesan or perhaps even akin to geisha than a common streetwalker.

http://penelope.uchicago.edu/~grout/encyclopaedia_romana/greece/hetairai/hetairai.html

 

[RiflemanPhil]

Who was the member of the british admiralty who developed the British navy (especially in the dreadnought class), at the turn of the 20th century? What famous three cruisers were he responsible for? (they all start with I). Which ones were sunk?