BBC today and all day no doubt, until at least Armistice Day on the 11th, if not longer, Harry (Are they all called Harry? Tom?) records a song with Aled Jones and takes a train from Penzance to Paddington dropping wreaths off at each stop. What no Paisley Gilmour Street?
Does any nation go on about World War II as much as England does, implying they won it themselves and flying spitfires everywhere, forgetting the angry young Czechs, Slovaks and Poles who downed more Germans than any Brit ever did, forgetting the millions of Russians and east Europeans who died.
Correct me if I’m wrong but does any other nation go on about this to the same extent?
I feel sure it’s a more restrained commemoration in Scotland despite suffering more army deaths per head than other parts of the UK.
No it’s not a debunked myth, any more. Read on.
On 10th August 2014, with clear political intent, the Scotsman allowed Sir Hew Strachan to confirm it as a myth:
Great War worst for Scots troops ‘a myth’
https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/great-war-worst-scots-troops-myth-1529401
In Patrick Watt’s Manpower, Myth and Memory: Analysing Scotland’s Military Contribution to the Great War in the Journal of Scottish Historical Studies, on 24th May 2019 based on extensive research, a different fact emerges:
Overall, 91,800 out of the 702,410 fatalities sustained by the British Army were born in Scotland. This is a 13.07 per cent share of the British total, some 2.6 per cent higher than Scotland’s share of the British population. Even using the highest estimate of British army casualties supplied by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (759,062 soldiers) gives a 12.09
per cent share of the British total, compared to 10.47 per cent of the British
population. The combined total of war dead for all three services – 102,500
soldiers, sailors and airmen – means that 13.78 per cent of the ‘official’ British total from 1921, or 12.32 per cent of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission total were born in Scotland. Therefore, it can be said with certainty that men born in Scotland did suffer disproportionately more deaths during the war than the other nations of the United Kingdom.
It’s a long hard read at:
Peter Hitchen’s book, The Phoney Victory, the world war 2 illusion, is an interesting read and sheds some light on the ongoing propaganda concerning WW2 and the supposed special relationship between USA/UK.
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I can’t get that long read to open. It looks from a study of War Memorials that something like 26% of Scottish Army got killed. Probably because there was a greater concentration of Infantry from Scotland.
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And let us never forget all the promises made by Colonial Governor Generals in Former colonies the rewards that would be given in the form of guaranteed jobs education etc.
If they volunteered to join up
No need to say those promises NEVER kept
Now that is a turn up for the books tis it not
And the glaring fact that the USSR win the war
General Heinz Guerdien one of the Whermact Snr. Commanding officers who meticulously kept diaries many daily entries running into page after page detailing and commenting on the field reports of the previous day
Well near the end of the Battle of Krusk in the prippet marshes, which was and forever be the largest tank armoured battle ever
His diary entry simply read Germany is finished will explain tomorrow
A synopsis of his next day entry
We have lost more Panzers than we can ever replace, Production of Tiger Tanks at the expense of Panzer 3 & 4,s is down to less that 80 / month
Meanwhile the excellent Soviet T 32 for which we have no match for are being pumped out at over 800 every month
As a officer and gentleman of the Whermact
My duty is no longer to Germany but that of the men under my command , who my sole endeavours are to get as many as possible safely back home to their families and rebuild what no doubt will be a destroyed Homeland
As the Soviets take their justified revenge for what Hitler inflicted upon theirs by issue of his Fhurer directive upon the start of Operation Barbarosa
A order i informed all under my command to disobey and if not they would be court marshalled
And let the Record show that I flew back to Berlin to personally inform Hitler that i will not obey such a order Prior to launching the attack upon the Soviets
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26 millions Russian died. Saving the West. The Russian winter. Napoleon
1/2million Britain
1/2million France
2million US (1941)
Russian and Germany have had enough of war.
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There were more Scots in the army (pro rata) because of higher unemployment in Scotland.
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26million Russian died.
Russia and Germany have had enough of war.
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