After the British Expeditionary Force had been evacuated from Dunkirk in 1940 [1], then Prime Minister Winston Churchill ordered the creation of a force capable of carrying out raids against German occupied Europe.  Churchill envisioned a “ … specially trained troops of the hunter class, who can develop a reign of terror down these coasts, first of all on the ‘butcher and bolt’ policy (hit and run).”  What transpired from Churchill’s order was the formation of the British Commando, an idea inspired by Lieutenant Colonel Dudley Clarke, whose suggestion was forwarded to General Sir John Dill, then serving as the Chief of the Imperial General Staff.  General Dill, who was aware of Churchill’s directive, approved Clarke’s proposal.

The Commandos were assigned to the operational control of the Combined Operations Headquarters with overall command assigned to Admiral Sir Roger Keyes, who was a veteran of the Gallipoli Campaign…

This subject is still a topic of debate, even to this day.   Please watch these 2 videos before giving me your opinion.  Thank You.

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Book Review – “Leora’s Letters”  by:  Joy Neal Kidney

No one warned me that when you read this book – you must be prepared to join the family.

Reading Leora’s Letters, you do not merely become acquainted with this close-knit, hard-working family – you become one of them.  In this tumultuous period of our history, you are transported into the  heartland’s home front and the different areas of combat of that age.  You can understand their dreams and hopes; feel their anguish, trepidation and heartaches and you pull for each member of that family to succeed just as you do for your own loved ones.

One need not be a WWII buff or knowledgeable of military operations to comprehend the Wilson brothers’ correspondences. …

 Preface

Today, Okinawa is the southern-most prefecture of Japan and accounts for two-thirds of the Ryukyu Island Chain that extends for a thousand miles from Kyushu to Taiwan.  It has a long and interesting history extending back to the Stone Age period.  It was once a kingdom in its own right and, because of its location, became an important trade center.  The kingdom entered into the Imperial Chinese tributary system during the Ming Dynasty beginning in the fifteenth century.

In 1609, Japanese warlords from present-day Kagoshima invaded the Ryukyu kingdom and forced the Okinawan king to accept the terms of the Tokugawa Shogun to become a vassal state, while at the same time maintaining is relationship with China as a tributary state.  Despite these two powerful controlling factors, the Okinawan kingdom retained a considerable degree of domestic political freedom for over two hundred years. 

My Aunt Eiko had these in a brown paper bag of all things.

Hundreds of old Japanese artwork kept by my Great-Grandfather Wakio Shibabayama.  Born August 17, 1874 in Kaga City of the Ishikawa Prefecture.

Sumi-e.  Watercolors.  Sketches.  On thinner-than-tissue rice paper.  Dog-eared from what appears to be many years of handling by my Great-Grandfather.

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My Aunt Eiko’s knowledge of Wakio (her grandfather on her mother’s side) is unfortunately sketchy.  No pun intended.

Her knowledge of these paintings is even sketchier unfortunately.

But they survived the war and I don’t know how they did.  They are so fragile to say the least.

Surprisingly, some artwork was painted on several sheets of rice paper glued together.  I don’t know what kind of glue it was but it sure beats Krazy Glue.  And it’s non-toxic to boot.  I think.

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An apparent samurai in full armor.

Aunt Eiko knows Wakio was…

Preface

Saipan is an island within the Marianas Island group.  It is 12 miles long and just under 6 miles wide, altogether encompassing around 90 square miles.  Following the Spanish-American War (1898), the United States occupied the island of Saipan, a Spanish-held territory, for a short period of time.  Subsequently, Spain sold the island to Germany in 1899.  Germany administered the island as part of German New Guinea, but there was never any serious attempt to develop of settle the island.  Essentially, control of Saipan remained in the hands of its Spanish/Mestizo landowners.

During World War I, Japan was an ally and therefore an enemy of Germany.  Japan “captured” Saipan and, with appreciation for their participation in World War I, the League of Nations granted to Japan formal control over it.  In time, Saipan became one of Japan’s more important possessions and a…