RT @project4_4: Exciting opportunity for educators below! ⬇️ No. 2 Construction Battalion: A student led digital project to make history…

@Medical_Int This project is aimed for high school students

RT @project4_4: Time to dust this off?

Time to dust this off?

@timecaptales The modern APC - Canadian Kangaroo invited by Canadian General Guy Simmonds during the Battle of Normandy!

RT @project4_4: In December 1943, the Canadians faced a daunting obstacle in their advance up the Italian peninsula: the Moro River. After…

RT @project4_4: In December 1943, the Canadians faced a daunting obstacle in their advance up the Italian peninsula: the Moro River. After…

In December 1943, the Canadians faced a daunting obstacle in their advance up the Italian peninsula: the Moro River. After hard fighting from Sicily, the 1st Canadian Infantry Division now had to dislodge battle-hardened Germans of the 90th Light Infantry Division from the river's deep gullies and ravines to open the road to Ortona. The Moro was a narrow watercourse, but heavy rains had swollen it into a significant barrier, with steep banks rising to a patchwork of olive groves, vineyards and stone farmhouses. The Germans had cunningly exploited this terrain, fortifying reverse slope positions to repel any assault. The stage was set for a bitterly-contested crossing. On December 6, Brigadier Hoffmeister launched a two-pronged attack. The Seaforth Highlanders would seize San Leonardo to cover engineers bridging the river. To the west, the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI) would establish a bridgehead at Villa Rogatti to outflank the enemy and cut the lateral road to Ortona. Surprise was deemed crucial. Both attacks went in at midnight without preliminary artillery bombardments. Each battalion had a squadron of the 4th Armoured Brigade in support. The Patricias' assault began well, catching the defenders of the 200th Panzergrenadier Regiment off guard. Two PPCLI companies stormed Villa Rogatti in the darkness, clearing it after silencing several German machine gun posts. The Seaforths fared worse at San Leonardo. Their C Company was pinned down just 100 yards across the Moro, raked by heavy fire. An A Company flanking attack failed to materialize when the company commander and sergeant major fell wounded. After 5 hours of fighting, the Seaforths clung precariously to a small bridgehead, well short of their objective. The Germans reacted forcefully. At 9 AM on December 6, the 200th Panzergrenadiers counterattacked the PPCLI at Villa Rogatti. Advancing through the morning mist and olive groves, they ran into a storm of fire from the dug-in Patricias and their supporting Shermans. The Germans pulled back at 11:30, mauled. A second counterattack at 2:30 PM was even fiercer. Panzergrenadiers surged forward again, this time with Mark IV tanks of the 26th Panzer Regiment. In a brutal 2-hour clash, the Patricias knocked out 5 tanks, took 40 prisoners, and counted 100 enemy dead. An anti-tank PIAT claimed one of the panzers. But holding firm cost the Canadians 52 wounded, 8 dead and 8 captured. Though the PPCLI had prevailed at Villa Rogatti, the precarious Seaforth bridgehead at San Leonardo was abandoned. Consolidating the gains would take days of grim fighting. Still, a foothold was secured across the Moro's defender. The road to Ortona was opened, if only just. The battle for the Moro River had just begun. In the days ahead, Canadians would matches themselves against some of Hitler's finest troops amid the rugged gullies and shattered farmhouses astride the Ortona road. Harsh December weather would turn the battlefield into a frigid sea of mud. But that lay ahead. For now, the Canadians had breached the river barrier and established a firm base for further attacks. 📷Infantrymen of The Seaforth Highlanders of Canada searching German prisoners near the Moro River, Italy, 8 December 1943 📷Infantrymen of The Seaforth Highlanders of Canada searching German prisoners near the Moro River, Italy, 8 December 1943 📷Burial service for a Canadian soldier killed by shell-fire, San Leonardo di Ortona, Italy, 10 December 1943

In December 1943, the Canadians faced a daunting obstacle in their advance up the Italian peninsula: the Moro River. After hard fighting from Sicily, the 1st Canadian Infantry Division now had to dislodge battle-hardened Germans of the 90th Light Infantry Division from the river's deep gullies and ravines to open the road to Ortona. The Moro was a narrow watercourse, but heavy rains had swollen it into a significant barrier, with steep banks rising to a patchwork of olive groves, vineyards and stone farmhouses. The Germans had cunningly exploited this terrain, fortifying reverse slope positions to repel any assault. The stage was set for a bitterly-contested crossing. Tweet 2: On December 6, Brigadier Hoffmeister launched a two-pronged attack. The Seaforth Highlanders would seize San Leonardo to cover engineers bridging the river. To the west, the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI) would establish a bridgehead at Villa Rogatti to outflank the enemy and cut the lateral road to Ortona. Surprise was deemed crucial. Both attacks went in at midnight without preliminary artillery bombardments. Each battalion had a squadron of the 4th Armoured Brigade in support. Tweet 3: The Patricias' assault began well, catching the defenders of the 200th Panzergrenadier Regiment off guard. Two PPCLI companies stormed Villa Rogatti in the darkness, clearing it after silencing several German machine gun posts. The Seaforths fared worse at San Leonardo. Their C Company was pinned down just 100 yards across the Moro, raked by heavy fire. An A Company flanking attack failed to materialize when the company commander and sergeant major fell wounded. After 5 hours of fighting, the Seaforths clung precariously to a small bridgehead, well short of their objective. Tweet 4: The Germans reacted forcefully. At 9 AM on December 6, the 200th Panzergrenadiers counterattacked the PPCLI at Villa Rogatti. Advancing through the morning mist and olive groves, they ran into a storm of fire from the dug-in Patricias and their supporting Shermans. The Germans pulled back at 11:30, mauled. A second counterattack at 2:30 PM was even fiercer. Panzergrenadiers surged forward again, this time with Mark IV tanks of the 26th Panzer Regiment. In a brutal 2-hour clash, the Patricias knocked out 5 tanks, took 40 prisoners, and counted 100 enemy dead. An anti-tank PIAT claimed one of the panzers. But holding firm cost the Canadians 52 wounded, 8 dead and 8 captured. Tweet 5: Though the PPCLI had prevailed at Villa Rogatti, the precarious Seaforth bridgehead at San Leonardo was abandoned. Consolidating the gains would take days of grim fighting. Still, a foothold was secured across the Moro's defender. The road to Ortona was opened, if only just. The battle for the Moro River had just begun. In the days ahead, Canadians would matches themselves against some of Hitler's finest troops amid the rugged gullies and shattered farmhouses astride the Ortona road. Harsh December weather would turn the battlefield into a frigid sea of mud. But that lay ahead. For now, the Canadians had breached the river barrier and established a firm base for further attacks. 📷Infantrymen of The Seaforth Highlanders of Canada searching German prisoners near the Moro River, Italy, 8 December 1943 📷Infantrymen of The Seaforth Highlanders of Canada searching German prisoners near the Moro River, Italy, 8 December 1943 📷Burial service for a Canadian soldier killed by shell-fire, San Leonardo di Ortona, Italy, 10 December 1943

RT @project4_4: 'Cuckoo', a German Panther tank captured in running order by the 4th Coldstream Guards, seen here in action against Geijste…

'Cuckoo', a German Panther tank captured in running order by the 4th Coldstream Guards, seen here in action against Geijsteren castle on the banks of the Maas, 29 November 1944.

RT @project4_4: On 28 Nov 1944, the Victory ship S.S. Fort Cataraqui entered Antwerp’s harbour as the port resumed operations after the Sch…

@AndrewRawson11 There is an excellent map that shows the horrifying situation in Antwerp and the devastation it has caused:

Learn more about the fight to clear the Scheldt Estuary here:

RT @project4_4: Ever wondered what it was like to be on the ground during the Normandy landings? Or how commanders planned operations that…

Jimmy Stewart rose from private to Brigadier General, leading bombing missions over Europe during the Second World War as a B-24 pilot. His service didn’t end there—he remained in the USAF Reserve and even observed a B-52 Arc Light mission in Vietnam. His life was as remarkable as any role he ever played

@TheMonologist Caption - a rigid Irish peasant meets Richard Attenborough’s Jurassic Park palaeontologist. 'So you’ve brought back dinosaurs, but still no cure for the blight?

@TheMonologist The soundtrack in A Bridge Too Far always gives me chills.. It perfectly matches the tension and scale of the story!