Tag: Normandy Invasion

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Logistics Genius

He once told his son, “To be a leader or commander, you must have some ‘son of a bitch’ in you.” Well, Gen. Lucius Clay was certainly not short of that trait. Nicknamed “The Great Uncompromiser” or “The Kaiser,” Clay’s reputation was built on his ability to manage large construction projects and solve complicated logistic problems. Gen. Clay had his fingerprints on some of modern history’s iconic (and dangerous) military and political events.

Official portrait of Gen. Lucius D. Clay after returning from Berlin to Washington, D.C. Photo by anonymous (c. May 1949). Official military records. PD-U.S. government. Wikimedia Commons.
Official portrait of Gen. Lucius D. Clay after returning from Berlin to Washington, D.C. Photo by anonymous (c. May 1949). Official military records. PD-U.S. government. Wikimedia Commons.

 It’s interesting how a blog evolves. I decided to write about Gen. Clay and his role in solving supply chain problems immediately after D-Day and that would be it. However, as I researched the general, I found he was involved in so many other important events that my original content kind of took a back seat to his other accomplishments.

REVOLUTIONARY PARIS – Volume One & Volume Two

 

These books are about Paris. They are about the places, buildings, sites, people, and streets that were important parts of the French Revolution. You are about to enter a journey into history beginning in 1789 at the village of Versailles with the procession of the Estates-General and ending on the Place de la Révolution with the execution of Maximilien Robespierre on 28 July 1794. This is your personal walking tour of the French Revolution as it occurred in Paris and Versailles.

Did You Know?

Did you know there is some really neat information out there that you can use at your next cocktail party to wow your friends?

Nine out of every ten living things live in the ocean.

Peanut oil is used for cooking in submarines. It doesn’t smoke unless heated > 450oF.

In ancient times, strangers shook hands to show they were unarmed.

A grave stele from c. 400 B.C. in Pentelic marble depicting a handshake between a youth and a bearded man. Photo by Sandy Ross (c. November 2023). National Archaeological Museum of Athens.
A grave stele from c. 400 B.C. in Pentelic marble depicting a handshake between a youth and a bearded man. Photo by Sandy Ross (c. November 2023). National Archaeological Museum of Athens.

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James Bond’s Lover

One of the things that has made it so fun to research these various World War II stories is how, after a while, people and their stories begin to overlap. In other words, you find various individuals showing up in multiple events connected by other participants or just being within the same orbit. One of these human “conduits” was Ian Fleming (1908−1964), the author of the James Bond novels.

During World War II, Fleming was a commander in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (same rank and naval group as James Bond). He worked for The Admiralty in the Naval Intelligence Division as Rear Admiral John Godfrey’s personal assistant (codename: “17F”). Fleming had all of his fingerprints on military operations such as Mincemeat, Ruthless, and Goldeneye. While primarily an administrator, from time-to-time, Fleming was used as a field agent. Once, he was assigned to follow one of the British double agents working to deceive Hitler into thinking that Pas-de-Calais would be the Allied target for the invasion of Europe. (click here to read the blog, The Double Cross System). Fleming’s wartime experiences provided a plethora of ideas that show up in his Bond novels (click here to read the blog, Explosive Rats) including the ingenious devices used by Bond.

Ian Fleming in naval uniform. Photo by anonymous (c. 1940). Courtesy of Ian Fleming Images/Maud Russell Estate Collection.
Ian Fleming in naval uniform. Photo by anonymous (c. 1940). Courtesy of Ian Fleming Images/Maud Russell Estate Collection.

After the war, Fleming bought property in Jamaica (birthplace of the fictional James Bond) and named it GoldenEye. In early 1952, Fleming began to write his first spy novel, Casino Royale, wherein the reader is introduced to James Bond. While Fleming likely based some of his characters on singular persons, many of them were composites of multiple people Fleming knew during his military career. This certainly applies to 007. Read More James Bond’s Lover