background preloader

Remembering Pearl Harbor @ nationalgeographic.com

Remembering Pearl Harbor @ nationalgeographic.com

Remembering Pearl Harbor: The USS Arizona Memorial Today the battle-scarred, submerged remains of the battleship USS Arizona rest on the silt of Pearl Harbor, just as they settled on December 7, 1941. The ship was one of many casualties from the deadly attack by the Japanese on a quiet Sunday that President Franklin Roosevelt called "a date which will live in infamy." The Arizona's burning bridge and listing mast and superstructure were photographed in the aftermath of the Japanese attack, and news of her sinking was emblazoned on the front page of newspapers across the land. More than a million people visit the USS Arizona Memorial each year. Ghost Army History and deployment[edit] Inspiration for the unit came from the British units who had honed the deception technique for the battle of El Alamein in late 1942. The U.S. unit had its beginnings at Camp Forrest, Tennessee, and was fully formed at Pine Camp, NY (now Fort Drum), before sailing for the United Kingdom in early May 1944. Some troops went to Normandy two weeks after D-Day, where they simulated a fake Mulberry harbour at night with lights which attempted to draw German artillery from the real ones. As the Allied armies moved east, so did the 23rd, and it eventually was based within Luxembourg, from where it engaged in deceptions of crossings of the Ruhr river, positions along the Maginot Line, Hürtgen Forest, and finally a major crossing of the Rhine to draw German troops away from the actual sites. Recruiting[edit] Ghost soldiers were encouraged to use their brains and talent to mislead, deceive and befuddle the German Army. Tactics[edit] Visual deception[edit] Atmosphere[edit]

Related: