Freshly minted member

Stomper · Jan 1, 2022

tac said:
My father came from a long line of down-trodden Irish peasants and my mom from a long line of orchard keepers - hence their name.

The Irish made an indelible and irreplaceable contribution to the new colonies, in particular the opening of the West - those that stayed in the East, likewise. As did the French, likewise, although the pages of the internet are filled with vituperative comments about their alleged lack of bottle when it comes to feats of arms in recent history. Without the incredible sacrifices of the French Home Army in May of 1940 - over ten thousand died in the defence of the coastal are around Dunkirk - the very real army of those that DID get away would have been lost, and England overwhelmed by hitler's stormtroopers. And as for you, without Lafeyette the New Continental Army may never have actually happened, and his powers of persuasion and military acumen passed into the rebellious colonists like water into a dying man.

Don't forget MG (Maj. Gen.) Baron von Steuben and his writing of, "Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States"….. which we still reverently refer to (or at least we did up until the mid-90's when I got out), "The Blue Book".

tac · Jan 1, 2022

Stomper said:
Don't forget MG (Maj. Gen.) Baron von Steuben and his writing of, "Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States"….. which we still reverently refer to (or at least we did up until the mid-90's when I got out), "The Blue Book".

No doubt he was a brilliant and innovative officer, bringing into being a genuinely formidable army based on his great prior experience back in Europe. His many improvements took the Continental Army from an ill-disciplined rabble who c**pped where they felt like and marched around like a 'herd of cattle going to the slaughterhouse', into a battle-winning fighting force. However, there was always a whiff of scandal about his deeply emotional 'friendship' with certain young men under his command that, in my view, detracts somewhat from his reputation.

Stomper · Jan 1, 2022

tac said:
You omitted to mention General Benedict Arnold, first a hero with both legs and then a traitor with just one. He, too was a brilliant officer who was neither Hun nor Frog.

With all the governmental shenanigans going on today, "traitor" is a relative term… especially these days, it seems.

Although I've not delved too deeply into (yet), Arnie is definitely a tragic case-study in colonial (revolutionary) American history. While he undisputedly was a fierce fighter and American patriot, it seems to me he was an archetype (of sorts) of the "attitude" pathway that McArthur (although not a traitor) ventured down, paving it with his (flamboyant) ego which ultimately put him at odds with his CINC…. and the rest "is history".

Well…… at least Armie had a gourmet breakfast egg dish named after him. (No?)