Days the u. S. Army Heritage Education center in carlisle pennsylvania. ,at this event, this is a major complex on the Army Heritage trail. One can find living historians from all kinds of time periods, from the 17th century up to the present. My group is here this weekend to discuss the 75th anniversary of the normandy invasion, which is taking place this summer. And we thought it certainly fitting to commemorate that event. And us putting on these old uniforms, wearing old equipment, it certainly gives us a better perspective and appreciation of what the greatest generation went through. And if we can impart even a small inkling of that to passerbys and families who visit this place then we feel , like we have done a good job. The unit we portray is the Fourth Infantry Division. It is a unit that is sometimes overshadowed in the realm of world war ii history. Nevertheless, it was one of the spearhead units involved in the normandy invasion. It was some of the first amphibious troops who were ashore. And they waded ashore on utah beach. Unbeknownst to many of them, they had landed on the wrong sector. They had landed half a mile off course. And there was a little bit of uncertainty, perhaps hesitation as to exactly what they should do. But the assistant Division Commander, Theodore Roosevelt junior, son of the president , who was the oldest american participant in the invasion, said very defiantly we are going , to start the war right here. Indeed, that is what they did. They carried the fight inland to the normandy countryside, where they really began to tally up casualties. The unit fought all around mainland europe. They were the First American troops into paris, the First American troops into germany. But unfortunately it inflicted a grim toll. The unit in its entirety suffered about 250 casualties. There was just a perpetual stream of wounded, killed, and then replacements, and their replacements after that were being wounded and killed. It was a devastating affair, but many of the men in the unit had the Firm Conviction they needed to do this because there was really no other choice, this was the price of stopping fascism and it spread. Its spread. And as many world war ii veterans say to this day it is , something that had to be done. And it five years later, that something that they still firmly believe in. Of course Theodore Roosevelt junior had a long military lineage in his family. Up father of course stormed San Juan Hill in 1898. Then a number of years later, Theodore Roosevelt expected all his sons to serve in world war i. Theodore roosevelt said of his sons, he said i would look upon them with shame if they did not serve, the same way i would look upon my daughters in shame if they did not have children. Junior really lived up to those expectations. He served in world war i. He was a political rival with cousin Franklin Roosevelt during the great depression. But when world war ii started, the two cousins put their differences aside. Junior wanted to get into the military again. Initially, he served as the first commander in the third infantry division. He served in the big red one, which was one of the few Battle Tested divisions to go into normandy. However roosevelt did not gain a , lot of acclaim or trust in the eyes of omar bradley or George Patton. Theodore roosevelt junior had a command persona and that was not up to snuff with someone who was as polished as George Patton was. Omar bradley thought he had gotten too comfortable and too cozy with some of the soldiers, and there wasnt that rigid discipline that makes a good soldier a good soldier. He was removed from command from the third infantry division. He landed a spot as the assistant Division Commander in the Fourth Infantry Division in the months immediately prior to the normandy invasion. Roosevelt pleaded with his commander, general barton. And he was just unceasing. He wanted to go ashore with his men. Acquiescedfinally and realized that this was going to be the end of his general, his health was failing, he was suffering from chest pains, he had very bad arthritis. His mobility in some cases was very limited, but nonetheless he went ashore with the Fourth Division in one of the secondary waves on june 6. He had a cane in one hand, a pistol in the other. And he stayed with his men through thick and thin. He rode around in his jeep, which was called rough riders, named after his fathers unit. Unfortunately his poor health , did catch up with him. Only a few weeks after the invasion he suffered a fatal heart attack. He also becomes one of the highest ranking americans to be killed in france as the invasion was ongoing as well. And he rests in the normandy American Cemetery to this very day, right next to the remains of his brother quinton, who was killed in the first world war. So right now, we would like to walk you through the camp a little bit and offer a little bit of perspective on the gis, their experience. We will start around the back. Now, often when americans think of the Second World War, they think of helmets, think of weapons, think of sherman tanks. Stuff, too. His it is the subtle small stuff, the everyday stuff that soldiers use on an everyday basis. They certainly were not eating fivestar meals as they were out in france. These units of food that would come for breakfast and dinner and supper were really the staples of the g. I. Diet. And often there would be a small can of food inside, some crackers, some bubblegum. In other instances, they would even include cigarettes, which were part of the ration. If they were lucky they might be able to acquire a radio along the way. But you know, when folks look at this sort of stuff, it offers them a moment of empathy. You know when you look at , Something Like tooth powder or a razor blade, these were the ourgs we would see on fathers and grandfathers bathroom shelves. It is often everyday stuff that fascinates me. And fascinates visitors as well. So we will talk a little bit more about magazines, the press, the newspapers as well, at one of our leader stops. So we will head over here to our recreation of a rather small g. I. Encampment. And as you can see our members , are having lunch, chowing down in a very authentic way. , and very authentic to nap a common staple of the g. I. Experience. The american soldier was about 22 years of age, weighed about 150 pounds. He had gone through the great depression. It was used to sacrifice and be ing short on supplies. Unfortunately, that prepared a lot of American Youth for the forthcoming struggles in this global war. Among some of the most iconic features of the american uniform is the helmet itself. And for all intensive purposes, this was the home of the american g. I. And it was a multipurpose tool, it would be used not only for rainingon against fragments, shells, rocks, what have you, he could also use it for a lot more things. This is an original helmet. I do not know who used it, but i carry it on in his memory nonetheless. What manufacturers would do with the steel pots, in order to diminish the shine and enhance the camouflage of it, they would mix sand within the green paint. That rough texture you see on the helmet would diminish the shine and offer additional camouflage. Now there are other things a , soldier could do as well. He could use it as a digging tool. If he wanted to he could take out the inside liner and use it as a pot. Because, after all, it was a steel pot. If you were lucky enough to find an egg, you may be able to cook it inside of that. You could use it as a washbasin, hold it underneath you, be able to shave your face, use it as a chair, as a pillow. One of the really notable phrases of the Second World War was helmet for my pillow. Asnally, it could be used storage in a way. Something that was popular among the troops were small compact books that were called Armed Services additions. American publishers gave these out by the tens of millions during the war. American soldiers love of reading and literacy that they would use after the war to use the g. I. Bill and attain Higher Education was really instilled during that time. So they could shove the books in here. What they would do most is they would put photographs inside. This is actually a photo of my grandmother gertrude and what she looked like during the world war ii years. And like many Young American women, she married a world war ii veteran when he came home from the service. And i carry this photo not only in honor of her but the man she married at the end of the war as my way of paying small tribute to some of my family history. An m1 garandd have please. This is the primary weapon of an american soldier fighting in europe. This could be slid back like this. You could put an eightround block within the rifle. And general patton said this was essentially the weapon that would help win the Second World War. It is quite hefty, quite heavy. But it really made a major contribution to the american war effort. And indeed, it was used in the korean war and in some circumstances the vietnam war. Militaries tosome this very day that have a surplus of these and they still use them in their active military. Thank you very much. As we kind of browse the camp here and look at all of the equipment, it really gives us a sense of the things the soldiers carried. When some of the first initial waves of the normandy invasion took place a lot of these , american combatants had 70, 80, sometimes 90 pounds of gear on them. For thecodename operation they were participating in was known as operation overlord. It could have been operation overload. Because these guys were packed down like mules. When i talk about this in the classroom, or when a young dress upmes, we might a kid in a dda kit to give them a sense of the war, it really weighs down on them physically and psychologically. To think that they were wearing 80 pounds of gear, they are being heaved off the Landing Craft into seven feet of water, while people are shooting at them. They then need to waddle up several hundred yards of beach that has landmines and obstacles. All throughout. And when you take that into consideration, it really gives you a humbling perspective on what the dday experience was, not only for americans, but for the british, french and canadian troops that stormed ashore that day as well. You are well to consider this weight of war and the things they carried as we think about the 75 years later. The american tents that u. S. G. I. s used was in many ways it symbolized the notion of teamwork and the essence of camaraderie. Because there would be one half of a tent and each soldier would have one half of a tent, and in order to have a full tent you needed to team up with a battle buddy, so you could share one. There were variations on this. And how they used it. As tents often got as big their creativity, sometimes they would get six or eight of them together. Then you could pile eight guys into it and in the fall or winter, all those additional people inside of the tent will offer additional body heat. Might keep you warmer. Unfortunately for a lot of guys , they move so frequently and quickly that a lot of times they didnt even have the opportunity to set up a tent or encampment perhaps like we have here today. And, you know the advance into , europe was mountainous and wasonotonous and it strenuous, and it brought about some of the most enduring hardships that could be imagined. There is one story of an american lieutenant that we like to share with visitors and students. He was in the fourth entry fee fourth infantry, george wilson, and he wore the same pair of socks for five months. He never once had the opportunity to take off his shoes and wash his feet. Come spring of 1945 when he finally had an opportunity to bathe, he went to take off his socks and it peeled the skin off of his feet. When we think of world war ii, we think of combat, we think of tanks. Its small Human Interest stories like that that illustrate the g. I. Experience more than anything else. They are short on supplies they , go into wintertime combat without proper clothing or equipment. And it was certainly no vacation. The story of artifacts is nothing without the story of people. And when visitors come into our various displays, we like them to reflect upon that Human Element as well. Here on this board we have a few tangible reminders of all of that. Are copiest notably of a dday diary that was kept by a lieutenant in the Fourth Infantry Division. This gentleman pictured on the right, his name was sidney. And he and his men operated an 81 millimeter mortar, one of which i will be showing you here in a moment, as they landed on utah beach. And some of the words he has to offer about his experiences are quite profound. He talks about his men, his comrades falling to his left and right. He is scavenging the beach, looking for equipment he can pick up that he knows he will need for later along the way. Once again, that personal element really helps bring history to life and that is one of the fundamental reasons of why we are out here. To impart knowledge to younger generations who may not have the opportunity to talk with a world war ii veteran, so we see ourselves as an important conduit of sorts in transferring on this knowledge to other people. Another notable individual we see on here is another lieutenant in the Fourth Infantry Division, whose name was bill chapman. , he andney, he operated his men, an 81 millimeter mortar. He offers all sorts of unique perspectives and there was a book recently written about him. Later on in the war, the Fourth Infantry Division served in a forest. For those that were lucky enough to survive it, they called it the death factory because it was this perpetual Conveyor Belt of men being sent to the front lines almost needlessly or heedlessly. Mr. Chapman was one of the lucky survivors of the carnage. Now as a lot of the , servicemembers were working european across the continent, something that gave them added inspiration or information was things like this. And this is a reproduction of stars stripes, which was the official army newspaper, still in publication to this very day. And at this issue is a copy from june 7, 1944. And there were two big events that happened there, one is a bit overshadowed. Because just two days before the invasion of normandy took place the city of rome was also , liberated. H for thewas a mad das headlines who would grab the , most attention, grab the most news. Their Commanding Officer was a bit jealous by the level of headlines the normandy invasion grabbed. And indeed there were 150,000 troops involved. Soldiers got somewhat fragmentary reports here in this early edition, talking about the invasion. But periodicals like this really underscored a bigger about why point americans believed they were fighting this war. They saw freedom of speech, the freedom of press and the sanctity of journalism and literacy as a fundamental element of why they were fighting this war. Their access to information, access to books, they truly believed that was part of the democratic notion that represented their country. And in some ways those notions are outlined in the speech general eisenhower issued to his troops on the eve of the day. It is a very short concise , address. This was issued by the tens of thousands in leaflet form to the troops. He also delivered a radio address, where he outlined this as well. In many ways it could be considered the 1944 equivalent of the gettysburg address. Eisenhower saying we have a fight to continue. It is a horrible fight, but it must go on because the consequences of not doing so, or losing it, or almost too horrific to take into comprehension. Much like slavery needed to be destroyed, fascism and the form of slavery that came with it was also something that needed to be defeated. And so his men took this message to heart. Eisenhower developed a strong decor with american soldiers. He cared about them and they knew it. That was one reason why they fought so hard and so diligently on his behalf. And the harder they fight the war, the sooner the war will be over. Another element i would like to show you is a weapon that we have over here. And this is an 81 millimeter mortar. I mentioned this a little bit and some of our talks prior to all of this. And my good friends mike and andy are going to tell us a little bit about that. Hello, everybody. I am here to talk to you about the 81 millimeter mortar. This was designed by the french in the 30s. The u. S. Army got a hold of it. They liked the idea because up until that point, the mortars could not be transported they , couldnt really move around the battlefield. Once they got in place they sat there. World war i was more stagnant than world war ii. The mortars could sit there, it wasnt a big deal. But they wanted something more mobile for world war ii and this fit the bill. The germans had a similar weapon, they fired an eight centimeter mortar. One millimeter smaller than ours. We could fire their rounds out ours they couldnt fire our rounds out of theirs. Three men would carry this in different pieces. You have the barrel, the bipod and the base down here. Each piece weighs 43 pounds. One guy would carry each piece and then a bunch of guys would be carrying all the ammo. Which you can see to the right. The smaller round here, these are the m 43 rounds. They are in a cardboard transport tube that is semiwaterproof. This around could go 3300 yards and it was used for antipersonnel vehicle. Pretty much of the mortar rounds that a crew like this would use. You have increment charges in the end. That is what actually produces the blast that propels the mortar round out of the two. Ube. , so theperquick fuse second it touches anything it is going to explode. This bigger ro