History Tidbit: "Mad" Jack Chruchill and Dr. Leonid Rogozov

Today's Tidbit is about two relatively bad ass guys you probably haven't heard of, but you should.


(he is probably the guy on the far right, the guy with the sword)

Jack Chruchill was one of the more bad-ass people in WW2 being an officer, he led his commando unit from the landing spot in Sicily and captured 42 men including a mortar squad.  Bad Ass am I right... okay so plenty of people did that, but did they carry a longbow, broadsword, and bagpipes.  No of course not. Well Jack Chruchill did Maybe that's why they called him "Mad" Jack, any way you look at it this dude was one tough cookie, even went on to say if the Yanks hadn't showed up the war would have gone on 10 more years.



   
    Dr. Leonid Rogozov

When your the only Doc in a thousand miles its best if you don't need a appendectomy but if you do you should be this guy.   
In 1961 Dr. Leonid was in need of a appendectomy or die its a tough choice when your the only doctor, so he decided that he would do it himself, so Novocaine, mirror, and two untrained helpers to hand him tools.  two hours later surgery was a success.  Even ole mad jack would have thought this guy was pretty bad-ass.


Well there's two people you probably have never heard of but now you have so thanks for reading  

History Tidbit - Hitlers Rail Guns Gustav and Dora

Schwerer Gustav

(Big ass gun)

The Schwerer Gustav was developed in the 1930s for the sole purpose of crushing Forts to the ground. Two would be built the First Gustav was captured by the allies the second Dora was destroyed by the Germans to avoid its capture.

It weighed somewhere in the area of 1350 tons (like 675 elephants) and was over 155 ft long (over half a football field) it is the largest weapon to be used in battle.

 It could fire a shell  almost 29 miles which is amazing since the shell itself weighed in at 10,600 to 15,700 lbs.  

The barrel was 31 in in diameter.

Needless to say it was somethings of a hassle to move around and repair so it was not used to a large degree in battle but it is still a fascinating weapon.

If you want to learn more about this brute here are some links to some good resources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schwerer_Gustav

http://historywarsweapons.com/schwerer-gustav-800mm-gun/

   

Thing of the Month: Fountain Pen

The Fountain Pen

(Pictured, Pilot Metropolitan)

This months "thing" is the fountain pen, for many the fountain pen is some what of a status symbol while for others who have never wrote with one know little or nothing about them.  Well lets start with a brief history of why they lost popularity.

1.  Ballpoint pens took over in the 1960s as the everyday pen and a cheaper option.

Like I said Brief. 

Anyhow the fountain pen has stuck around they are still an excellent writing tool and to many (including myself) out do most if not all ballpoint pens. Nothing beats the feel of a nicely weighted fountain pen in the hand and the smooth flow of ink that a good fountain pen has to offer.

So who is a fountain pen for?  They make a great gift for fathers day, groomsmen gifts, college graduates, and to the pen aficionados out there.

Go pick one up for your self you wont be disappointed.