1.
United States Army
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The United States Armed Forces are the federal armed forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, from the time of its inception, the military played a decisive role in the history of the United States. A sense of unity and identity was forged as a result of victory in the First Barbary War. Even so, the Founders were suspicious of a permanent military force and it played an important role in the American Civil War, where leading generals on both sides were picked from members of the United States military. Not until the outbreak of World War II did a standing army become officially established. The National Security Act of 1947, adopted following World War II and during the Cold Wars onset, the U. S. military is one of the largest militaries in terms of number of personnel. It draws its personnel from a pool of paid volunteers. As of 2016, the United States spends about $580.3 billion annually to fund its military forces, put together, the United States constitutes roughly 40 percent of the worlds military expenditures. For the period 2010–14, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute found that the United States was the worlds largest exporter of major arms, the United States was also the worlds eighth largest importer of major weapons for the same period. The history of the U. S. military dates to 1775 and these forces demobilized in 1784 after the Treaty of Paris ended the War for Independence. All three services trace their origins to the founding of the Continental Army, the Continental Navy, the United States President is the U. S. militarys commander-in-chief. Rising tensions at various times with Britain and France and the ensuing Quasi-War and War of 1812 quickened the development of the U. S. Navy, the reserve branches formed a military strategic reserve during the Cold War, to be called into service in case of war. Time magazines Mark Thompson has suggested that with the War on Terror, Command over the armed forces is established in the United States Constitution. The sole power of command is vested in the President by Article II as Commander-in-Chief, the Constitution also allows for the creation of executive Departments headed principal officers whose opinion the President can require. This allowance in the Constitution formed the basis for creation of the Department of Defense in 1947 by the National Security Act, the Defense Department is headed by the Secretary of Defense, who is a civilian and member of the Cabinet. The Defense Secretary is second in the chain of command, just below the President. Together, the President and the Secretary of Defense comprise the National Command Authority, to coordinate military strategy with political affairs, the President has a National Security Council headed by the National Security Advisor. The collective body has only power to the President
2.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
3.
Canada
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Canada is a country in the northern half of North America. Canadas border with the United States is the worlds longest binational land border, the majority of the country has a cold or severely cold winter climate, but southerly areas are warm in summer. Canada is sparsely populated, the majority of its territory being dominated by forest and tundra. It is highly urbanized with 82 per cent of the 35.15 million people concentrated in large and medium-sized cities, One third of the population lives in the three largest cities, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Its capital is Ottawa, and other urban areas include Calgary, Edmonton, Quebec City, Winnipeg. Various aboriginal peoples had inhabited what is now Canada for thousands of years prior to European colonization. Pursuant to the British North America Act, on July 1,1867, the colonies of Canada, New Brunswick and this began an accretion of provinces and territories to the mostly self-governing Dominion to the present ten provinces and three territories forming modern Canada. With the Constitution Act 1982, Canada took over authority, removing the last remaining ties of legal dependence on the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Canada is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy, with Queen Elizabeth II being the head of state. The country is officially bilingual at the federal level and it is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many other countries. Its advanced economy is the eleventh largest in the world, relying chiefly upon its abundant natural resources, Canadas long and complex relationship with the United States has had a significant impact on its economy and culture. Canada is a country and has the tenth highest nominal per capita income globally as well as the ninth highest ranking in the Human Development Index. It ranks among the highest in international measurements of government transparency, civil liberties, quality of life, economic freedom, Canada is an influential nation in the world, primarily due to its inclusive values, years of prosperity and stability, stable economy, and efficient military. While a variety of theories have been postulated for the origins of Canada. In 1535, indigenous inhabitants of the present-day Quebec City region used the word to direct French explorer Jacques Cartier to the village of Stadacona, from the 16th to the early 18th century Canada referred to the part of New France that lay along the St. Lawrence River. In 1791, the area became two British colonies called Upper Canada and Lower Canada collectively named The Canadas, until their union as the British Province of Canada in 1841. Upon Confederation in 1867, Canada was adopted as the name for the new country at the London Conference. The transition away from the use of Dominion was formally reflected in 1982 with the passage of the Canada Act, later that year, the name of national holiday was changed from Dominion Day to Canada Day
4.
Empire of Japan
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The Empire of Japan was the historical Japanese nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 to the enactment of the 1947 constitution of modern Japan. Imperial Japans rapid industrialization and militarization under the slogan Fukoku Kyōhei led to its emergence as a world power, after several large-scale military successes during the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Pacific War, the Empire also gained notoriety for its war crimes against the peoples it conquered. A period of occupation by the Allies followed the surrender, Occupation and reconstruction continued well into the 1950s, eventually forming the current nation-state whose full title is the State of Japan or simply rendered Japan in English. The historical state is referred to as the Empire of Japan or the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan in English. In Japanese it is referred to as Dai Nippon Teikoku, which translates to Greater Japanese Empire and this is analogous to Großdeutsches Reich, a term that translates to Greater German Empire in English and Dai Doitsu Teikoku in Japanese. This meaning is significant in terms of geography, encompassing Japan, due to its name in kanji characters and its flag, it was also given the exonym Empire of the Sun. After two centuries, the policy, or Sakoku, under the shoguns of the Edo period came to an end when the country was forced open to trade by the Convention of Kanagawa in 1854. The following years saw increased trade and interaction, commercial treaties between the Tokugawa shogunate and Western countries were signed. In large part due to the terms of these Unequal Treaties, the Shogunate soon faced internal hostility, which materialized into a radical, xenophobic movement. In March 1863, the Emperor issued the order to expel barbarians, although the Shogunate had no intention of enforcing the order, it nevertheless inspired attacks against the Shogunate itself and against foreigners in Japan. The Namamugi Incident during 1862 led to the murder of an Englishman, Charles Lennox Richardson, the British demanded reparations but were denied. While attempting to exact payment, the Royal Navy was fired on from coastal batteries near the town of Kagoshima and they responded by bombarding the port of Kagoshima in 1863. For Richardsons death, the Tokugawa government agreed to pay an indemnity, shelling of foreign shipping in Shimonoseki and attacks against foreign property led to the Bombardment of Shimonoseki by a multinational force in 1864. The Chōshū clan also launched the coup known as the Kinmon incident. The Satsuma-Chōshū alliance was established in 1866 to combine their efforts to overthrow the Tokugawa bakufu, in early 1867, Emperor Kōmei died of smallpox and was replaced by his son, Crown Prince Mutsuhito. On November 9,1867, Tokugawa Yoshinobu resigned from his post and authorities to the Emperor, however, while Yoshinobus resignation had created a nominal void at the highest level of government, his apparatus of state continued to exist. On January 3,1868, Satsuma-Chōshū forces seized the palace in Kyoto. On January 17,1868, Yoshinobu declared that he would not be bound by the proclamation of the Restoration, on January 24, Yoshinobu decided to prepare an attack on Kyoto, occupied by Satsuma and Chōshū forces
5.
7th Infantry Division (United States)
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The 7th Infantry Division is an infantry division of the United States Army. Today, it exists as a unique 250-man deployable headquarters based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord overseeing several units, the division was first activated in December 1917 in World War I, and based at Fort Ord, California for most of its history. Following the Japanese surrender in 1945, the division was stationed in Japan and South Korea and it took part in the Inchon Landings and the advance north until Chinese forces counter-attacked and almost overwhelmed the scattered division. The 7th later would fight in the Battle of Pork Chop Hill, from 1953 to 1971, the 7th Infantry Division defended the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Its main garrison was Camp Casey, South Korea, during these occupation duties, the division saw a complete reorganization in compliance with the Reorganization Objective Army Divisions plan. The divisions former headquarters company grew into the 1st Brigade, 7th Infantry Division while the 13th Infantry Brigade was reactivated as the 2nd Brigade, the 14th Infantry Brigade was reactivated as the 3rd Brigade, 7th Infantry Division. In 1965 the division received its distinctive insignia, which alluded to its history during the Korean War. On 2 April 1971, the returned to the United States and was inactivated at Fort Lewis. In October 1974 the 7th reactivated at its former garrison, Fort Ord, in the late 1980s, it briefly saw action overseas in Operation Golden Pheasant in Honduras and Operation Just Cause in Panama. In the early 1990s, it provided support to the civil authorities in Operation Green Sweep. In 1994, the division was inactivated at Ft. Ord and Ft Ord was closed, as per BRAC rulings. Reactivated in 1999 at Ft Carson, Colorado, where the final role was as a training and evaluation unit for Army National Guard brigades. On 26 April 2012, the Department of Defense announced the 7th Infantry Division headquarters would be reactivated as an administrative unit and this was done on 10 October 2012 at Joint Base Lewis McChord. The 7th Infantry Division was activated on 6 December 1917, exactly eight months after the American entry into World War I, as the 7th Division of the Regular Army at Camp Wheeler, Georgia. One month later, it prepared to deploy to Europe as a part of the American Expeditionary Force, two brigades were assigned to the division, the 13th Infantry Brigade and 14th Infantry Brigade, together with supporting units. Most of the division sailed to Europe aboard the SS Leviathan, while on the Western Front, the 7th Division did not see action at full divisional strength, though its infantry and reconnaissance elements did engage German forces. On 11 October 1918, it first came under fire and later, at Saint-Mihiel. Elements of the 7th probed up toward Prény near the Moselle River, capturing positions and it was at this time that the division first received its shoulder sleeve insignia
6.
Division (military)
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A division is a large military unit or formation, usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. Infantry divisions during the World Wars ranged between 10,000 and 30,000 in nominal strength, in most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, in turn, several divisions typically make up a corps. In the West, the first general to think of organising an army into smaller units was Maurice de Saxe, Marshal General of France. He died at the age of 54, without having implemented his idea, victor-François de Broglie put the ideas into practice. He conducted successful practical experiments of the system in the Seven Years War. The first war in which the system was used systematically was the French Revolutionary War. It made the more flexible and easy to manoeuvre. Under Napoleon, the divisions were grouped together into corps, because of their increasing size, napoleons military success spread the divisional and corps system all over Europe, by the end of the Napoleonic Wars, all armies in Europe had adopted it. In modern times, most military forces have standardized their divisional structures, the peak use of the division as the primary combat unit occurred during World War II, when the belligerents deployed over a thousand divisions. With technological advances since then, the power of each division has increased. Divisions are often formed to organize units of a particular type together with support units to allow independent operations. In more recent times, divisions have mainly been organized as combined arms units with subordinate units representing various combat arms, in this case, the division often retains the name of a more specialized division, and may still be tasked with a primary role suited to that specialization. For the most part, large cavalry units did not remain after World War II, in general, two new types of cavalry were developed, air cavalry or airmobile, relying on helicopter mobility, and armored cavalry, based on an autonomous armored formation. The former was pioneered by the 11th Air Assault Division, formed on 1 February 1963 at Fort Benning, on 29 June 1965 the division was renamed as the 1st Cavalry Division, before its departure for the Vietnam War. After the end of the Vietnam War, the 1st Cavalry Division was reorganised and re-equipped with tanks, the development of the tank during World War I prompted some nations to experiment with forming them into division-size units. Many did this the way as they did cavalry divisions, by merely replacing cavalry with AFVs. This proved unwieldy in combat, as the units had many tanks, instead, a more balanced approach was taken by adjusting the number of tank, infantry, artillery, and support units. A panzer division was a division of the Wehrmacht and the Waffen-SS of Germany during World War II
7.
First Special Service Force
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The 1st Special Service Force, was an elite American-Canadian commando unit in World War II, under command of the United States Fifth Army. The unit was organized in 1942 and trained at Fort William Henry Harrison near Helena, Montana in the United States, the Force served in the Aleutian Islands, and fought in Italy, and southern France before being disbanded in December 1944. The modern American and Canadian special operations forces trace their heritage to this unit, in 2013, the United States Congress passed a bill to award the 1st Special Service Force the Congressional Gold Medal. Geoffrey Pyke was an English journalist, educationalist, and later an inventor whose clever, in lifestyle and appearance, he fitted the common stereotype of a scientist-engineer-inventor or in British slang, a boffin. This was part of the British approach in World War II of encouraging innovative warfare methods, Pyke, working for the British Combined Operations Command, envisioned the creation of a small, élite military force capable of fighting behind enemy lines in winter conditions. This would have been a unit that could be landed, by sea or air, into occupied Norway, Romania. In Norway, the chief industrial threat was the creation of the water used in the German atomic weapon research at Rjukan. Furthermore, attacks on Norwegian power stations, which supplied the country with 49% of its power, might drive the Axis powers out of the country and give the Allies a direct link to Russia. In Romania, there were the strategically important Ploiești oil fields that met one quarter of the Germans consumption, Pyke requested that a tracked vehicle be developed especially for the unit, capable of carrying men and their equipment at high speed across snow-covered terrain. These troops would be equipped with Pykes proposed snow vehicle, Pyke persuaded Mountbatten that such a force would be invulnerable in its glacier strongholds and would tie down large numbers of German troops trying to dislodge it. However, given the demands upon both Combined Operations and British industry, it was decided to offer it instead to the United States at the Chequers Conference of March 1942, General George Marshall, Chief of Staff of the United States Army, accepted the suggestion for Project Plough. In April 1942, since no suitable vehicle existed, the U. S. government asked automobile manufacturers to look into such a design, studebaker subsequently created the T-15 cargo carrier, which later became the M29 Weasel. In May 1942, the papers for Plough were scrutinized by Lieutenant Colonel Robert T. Frederick. Frederick predicted Plough would be a fiasco on the following grounds. Firstly, he argued that Plough endeavored to achieve unrealistic objectives with the amount of troops that the called for. Similarly, he argued that the small, elite division would be outnumbered, furthermore, Frederick concluded that there was no concrete way to evacuate the troops after a mission. Finally, the plan had called for troops to be dropped by airplane to their targets, General Marshall and General Eisenhower had already agreed to the operation with the British High Command and were unwilling to compromise a chance to open an American front in Europe. It was believed that Plough offered the possibility of defeating the Germans, the sooner the Germans were defeated, it was argued, the sooner this would become a reality
8.
Aleutian Islands Campaign
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The islands strategic value was their ability to control Pacific transportation routes, which is why U. S. General Billy Mitchell stated to the U. S. Congress in 1935, I believe that in the future, I think it is the most important strategic place in the world. The Japanese reasoned that control of the Aleutians would prevent a possible U. S. attack across the Northern Pacific, similarly, the U. S. feared that the islands would be used as bases from which to launch aerial assaults against the West Coast. A battle to reclaim Attu was launched on May 11,1943, on 15 August 1943, an invasion force landed on Kiska in the wake of a sustained three-week barrage, only to discover that the Japanese had withdrawn from the island on July 29. The campaign is known as the Forgotten Battle, due to its being overshadowed by the simultaneous Guadalcanal Campaign, in the past, many Western military historians believed it was a diversionary or feint attack during the Battle of Midway, meant to draw out the U. S. Pacific Fleet from Midway Atoll, as it was launched simultaneously under the same commander, before Japan entered World War II, its Navy had gathered extensive information about the Aleutians, but it had no up-to-date information regarding military developments on the islands. With that force, Hosogaya was first to launch an air attack against Dutch Harbor, Hosogaya was instructed to destroy whatever American forces and facilities were found on Adak—the Japanese did not know the island was undefended. The naval commander was Rear Admiral Robert A. Theobald, commanding Task Force 8 afloat, Task Force 8 consisted of five cruisers, thirteen destroyers, three tankers, six submarines, as well as naval aviation elements of Fleet Air Wing Four. Once the enemy planes were removed, Naval Task Force 8 would engage the enemy fleet, on the afternoon of 2 June, a naval patrol plane spotted the approaching Japanese fleet, reporting its location as 800 miles southwest of Dutch Harbor. Eleventh Air Force was placed on full alert, shortly thereafter bad weather set in, and no further sightings of the fleet were made that day. Making use of cover, the Japanese first raided the naval base at Dutch Harbor on June 3,1942. The striking force was composed of Nakajima B5N2 Kate torpedo bombers from the carriers Junyō, however, only half of the striking force reached their objective. The rest either became lost in the fog and darkness and crashed into the sea or returned to their carriers, seventeen Japanese planes found the naval base, the first arriving at 05,45. Startled by the American response, the Japanese quickly released their bombs, made a strafing run. As a result, they did damage to the base. On June 4, the Japanese returned to Dutch Harbor and this time the Japanese pilots were better organized and prepared. When the attack ended that afternoon Dutch Harbor oil storage tanks were burning, the partly demolished. However, the weather in turn caused the Japanese to cancel plans to invade Adak with 1,200 men
9.
Allies of World War II
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The Allies of World War II, called the United Nations from the 1 January 1942 declaration, were the countries that together opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War. The Allies promoted the alliance as seeking to stop German, Japanese, at the start of the war on 1 September 1939, the Allies consisted of France, Poland and the United Kingdom, and dependent states, such as the British India. Within days they were joined by the independent Dominions of the British Commonwealth, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Poland was a minor factor after its defeat in 1939, France was a minor factor after its defeat in 1940. China had already been into a war with Japan since the Marco Polo Bridge Incident of 1937. The alliance was formalised by the Declaration by United Nations, from 1 January 1942, however, the name United Nations was rarely used to describe the Allies during the war. The leaders of the Big Three – the UK, the Soviet Union, in 1945, the Allied nations became the basis of the United Nations. The origins of the Allied powers stem from the Allies of World War I, Germany resented signing Treaty of Versailles. The new Weimar republics legitimacy became shaken, by the early 1930s, the Nazi Party led by Adolf Hitler became the dominant revanchist movement in Germany and Hitler and the Nazis gained power in 1933. The Nazi regime demanded the cancellation of the Treaty of Versailles and made claims to German-populated Austria. The likelihood of war was high, and the question was whether it could be avoided through strategies such as appeasement, in Asia, when Japan seized Manchuria in 1931, the League of Nations condemned it for aggression against China. Japan responded by leaving the League of Nations in March 1933, after four quiet years, the Sino-Japanese War erupted in 1937 with Japanese forces invading China. The League of Nations condemned Japans actions and initiated sanctions on Japan, the United States, in particular, was angered at Japan and sought to support China. In March 1939, Germany took over Czechoslovakia, violating the Munich Agreement signed six months before, Britain and France decided that Hitler had no intention to uphold diplomatic agreements and responded by preparing for war. On 31 March 1939, Britain formed the Anglo-Polish military alliance in an effort to avert a German attack on the country, also, the French had a long-standing alliance with Poland since 1921. The Soviet Union sought an alliance with the powers. The agreement secretly divided the independent nations of eastern Europe between the two powers and assured adequate oil supplies for the German war machine, on 1 September 1939, Germany invaded Poland, two days later Britain and France declared war on Germany. Then, on 17 September 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Poland from the east, a Polish government-in-exile was set up and it continued to be one of the Allies, a model followed by other occupied countries. After a quiet winter, Germany in April 1940 invaded and quickly defeated Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Britain and its Empire stood alone against Hitler and Mussolini
10.
Naval mine
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A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, Naval mines can be used offensively—to hamper enemy shipping movements or lock vessels into a harbour, or defensively—to protect friendly vessels and create safe zones. Mines can be laid in many ways, by purpose-built minelayers, refitted ships, submarines and their flexibility and cost-effectiveness make mines attractive to the less powerful belligerent in asymmetric warfare. The cost of producing and laying a mine is usually anywhere from 0. 5% to 10% of the cost of removing it, parts of some World War II naval minefields still exist because they are too extensive and expensive to clear. It is possible for some of these 1940s-era mines to remain dangerous for many years to come, Mines have been employed as offensive or defensive weapons in rivers, lakes, estuaries, seas, and oceans, but they can also be used as tools of psychological warfare. Offensive mines are placed in enemy waters, outside harbours and across important shipping routes with the aim of sinking both merchant and military vessels. Defensive minefields safeguard key stretches of coast from enemy ships and submarines, forcing them into more easily defended areas, minefields designed for psychological effect are usually placed on trade routes and are used to stop shipping from reaching an enemy nation. They are often spread thinly, to create an impression of minefields existing across large areas, a single mine inserted strategically on a shipping route can stop maritime movements for days while the entire area is swept. International law requires nations to declare when they mine an area, the warnings do not have to be specific, for example, during World War II, Britain declared simply that it had mined the English Channel, North Sea, and French coast. Chinese records tell of naval explosives in the 16th century, used to fight against Japanese pirates and this kind of naval mine was loaded in a wooden box, sealed with putty. General Qi Jiguang made several timed, drifting explosives, to harass Japanese pirate ships, although this is the rotating steel wheellocks first use in naval mines, Jiao Yu had described their use for land mines back in the 14th century. The first plan for a sea mine in the West was by Ralph Rabbards, the Dutch inventor Cornelius Drebbel was employed in the Office of Ordnance by King Charles I of England to make weapons, including a floating petard which proved a failure. Weapons of this type were apparently tried by the English at the Siege of La Rochelle in 1627, American David Bushnell developed the first American naval mine for use against the British in the American War of Independence. It was a watertight keg filled with gunpowder that was floated toward the enemy and it was used on the Delaware River as a drift mine. In 1812 Russian engineer Pavel Shilling exploded a mine using an electrical circuit. Russian naval specialists set more than 1500 naval mines, or infernal machines, designed by Moritz von Jacobi and by Immanuel Nobel, the mining of Vulcan led to the worlds first minesweeping operation. During the next 72 hours,33 mines were swept, the Jacobi mine was designed by German born, Russian engineer Jacobi, in 1853. The mine was tied to the sea bottom by an anchor, a cable connected it to a cell which powered it from the shore
11.
Battle of Attu
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It is also the only land battle in which Japanese and American forces fought in Arctic conditions. The more than two-week battle ended when most of the Japanese defenders were killed in brutal hand-to-hand combat after a final charge broke through American lines. The strategic position of the islands of Attu and Kiska off Alaskas coast meant their location could control the sea lanes across the Northern Pacific Ocean, Japanese planners believed control of the Aleutians would therefore prevent any possible U. S. attacks from Alaska. This assessment had already been inferred by U. S, general Billy Mitchell who told the U. S. Congress in 1935, I believe that in the future, whoever holds Alaska will hold the world. I think it is the most important strategic place in the world, on 7 June 1942, six months after the United States entered World War II, the 301st Independent Infantry Battalion from the Japanese Northern Army landed unopposed on Attu. The landings occurred one day after the invasion of nearby Kiska, the U. S military now feared both islands could be turned into strategic Japanese airbases from which aerial attacks could be launched against the West Coast of North America. In Walt Disney′s 1943 film, Victory Through Air Power, the use of the Aleutian Islands for American long-range bombers to bomb Japan from American territory was postulated, on 11 May 1943, units from 17th Infantry, of Maj. Gen. Albert Browns 7th U. S. Infantry Division made amphibious landings on Attu to retake the island from Japanese Imperial Army forces led by Colonel Yasuyo Yamasaki, despite heavy naval bombardments of Japanese positions, the American troops encountered strong entrenched defenses that made combat conditions tough. Arctic weather conditions and exposure-related injuries also caused casualties among U. S. forces. But after two weeks of fighting, American units managed to push the Japanese defenders back to a pocket around Chichagof Harbor. On 21–22 May 1943, a powerful Japanese fleet assembled in Tokyo Bay in preparation for a sortie to repel the American attempt to recapture Attu. The fleet included the carriers Zuikaku, Shōkaku, Junyō, Hiyō, the battleships Musashi, Kongō, Haruna, and the cruisers Mogami, Kumano, Suzuya, Tone, Chikuma, Agano, Ōyodo, however, the Americans succeeded in recapturing Attu before the fleet could depart. On 29 May 1943, without hope of rescue, Yamasaki led his troops in a banzai charge. The momentum of the attack broke through the American front line positions. Shocked American rear-echelon troops were soon fighting hand-to-hand combat with Japanese soldiers, the battle continued until almost all of the Japanese were killed. The charge effectively ended the battle for the island, although U. S. Navy reports indicate that groups of Japanese continued to fight until early July 1943. In 19 days of battle,549 soldiers of the 7th Division were killed, the Japanese lost over 2,351 men, only 28 prisoners were taken. Attu was to be the last action of the Aleutian campaign, the Japanese Northern Army secretly evacuated their remaining garrison from nearby Kiska, ending the Japanese occupation in the Aleutian Islands on 28 July 1943
12.
Marines
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Marine forces evolved to specialize in the skills and capabilities required for amphibious warfare. In the earliest day of naval warfare, there was little distinction between sailors and soldiers on a warship, in ancient China, the first well-known naval battles took place during the Warring States period, where kings ruling regional states battled against one another. Chinese naval warfare in ancient period featured grapple-and-hook, as well as ramming tactics with ships called stomach strikers. The Roman Navys two fleet legions, I Adiutrix and II Adiutrix, were among the first distinct naval infantry units, Marines of Italy was created as Fanti da Mar in 1550 in the Republic of Venice. The third oldest marine corps in the world was founded as the Terço of the Navy of the Crown of Portugal in 1618, predecessor to the modern Portuguese Marine Corps. The word marine is from the English adjective marine, meaning of the sea, via French marin, of the sea from Latin marinus itself from mare, from Proto-Indo-European *móri. The word marine was used for the forces of England. Typically, foreign equivalents are called naval infantry or coastal infantry, the word marine/marina means navy in many European languages such as Dutch, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Danish and Norwegian. Marine units primarily deploy from warships using boats, landing craft, hovercraft, specialist units are also trained in combat diving/combat swimming and parachuting. As well as operations, marine troops are also used in a variety of other. The Argentine Marine Corps is a part of the Argentine Navy, Argentine marines have the same rank insignia and titles as the rest of the navy. It is composed of a marine force, a southern marine force, a river operations battalion. The Argentine Marine Corps dates from 1827 when an infantry battalion was raised. This was expanded in 1880 but seven years later the corps was merged with the existing coast artillery, a series of reorganizations followed until responsibility for coastal defense was passed to the Argentine Army in 1898. Between 1935 and 1938 the marines reappeared in the form of five battalions of Marine Infantry, in 1968 the Infanteria de Marina was reorganized as a separate corps distinct from both Navy and Army. The 5th Battalion of the Argentine Marines fought in the Falklands War, the Bolivian Naval Force includes about 2,000 naval infantry personnel and marines. These are organised in the Almirante Grau Battalion, located at Tiquina on Lake Titicaca, the Corps of Naval Fusiliers, with about 15,000 men, is subordinate to the Brazilian Navy. The marine corps is composed of a brigade and some guard
United States
Canada
Japan
