A common soldier's tale, no matter what uniform they wear.
- Thread starter diopter
- Start date
Dark Alley Dan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Darkest Edmonton
Quite the man. Humble, quiet, but under the right circumstances, an absolute tiger.
I hadn't realized the Portuguese fought in WW1. Learn something new every day.
I hadn't realized the Portuguese fought in WW1. Learn something new every day.
x2. guess it depends on whose history books you read.
Grizz
Sad but oh so true. So many soldiers did things like this that went unrecognized. Many fought till they died and nobody was there to witness it. Lest we forget. Today we bandy the term hero around so easily and we forget about people like this who were true hero's.
highlander
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Newfoundland
So basically, his government treated him pretty much the same way our government treats it's veterans now.
Like they say, some things never change.
Like they say, some things never change.
Portugal sent what it could, being Britain's oldest ally. The alliance actually dated from the time of Prince Henry the Navigator and it went very much both ways; when Portugal and Spain were invaded by Napoleon, the British sent an army; the result is called the Peninsular War. It is from the Peninsular War that we get such things as Rifle regiments -- two of them -- the first Rifle regiments to be raised; we also get the "Sharpe" books and videos.... and the word "guerrilla".
When the Great War broke out, Portugal sent what it could raise, which amounted to ONE battalion of men, armed with Vergueiro rifles which took the 6.5x58 cartridge..... which was only being made in Germany. Britain designated this single battalion as the "Portuguese Brigade" as a face-saving matter..... and supplied the Portuguese troops with such things as Lee-Enfields (traded for the Vergueiros, which ended up on South Africa, closer to a supply of Portuguese ammunition in Angola), Vickers guns, Lewises when they began to become available, steel helmets, rations, better boots, gas masks (once they were invented) and the remaining tools of a modern war. Later, when Portugal sent enough men to actually CLAIM a Brigade, the British changed the name to the Portuguese Division.
There is no doubt that the manpower was good and the Portuguese soldiers as brave as any; they just got very little ink from the media of that time.... and this oversight has continued to this day.
We SHOULD give honour to our Portuguese allies; they certainly PAID enough for it!
When the Great War broke out, Portugal sent what it could raise, which amounted to ONE battalion of men, armed with Vergueiro rifles which took the 6.5x58 cartridge..... which was only being made in Germany. Britain designated this single battalion as the "Portuguese Brigade" as a face-saving matter..... and supplied the Portuguese troops with such things as Lee-Enfields (traded for the Vergueiros, which ended up on South Africa, closer to a supply of Portuguese ammunition in Angola), Vickers guns, Lewises when they began to become available, steel helmets, rations, better boots, gas masks (once they were invented) and the remaining tools of a modern war. Later, when Portugal sent enough men to actually CLAIM a Brigade, the British changed the name to the Portuguese Division.
There is no doubt that the manpower was good and the Portuguese soldiers as brave as any; they just got very little ink from the media of that time.... and this oversight has continued to this day.
We SHOULD give honour to our Portuguese allies; they certainly PAID enough for it!
There's a Portuguese war cemetery at Neuve Chapelle not too far from Armentieres proximate to the Indian cemetery. Both have a rather forlorn look and aren't visited to the same extent as the Brit/Cdn/Aus cemeteries.
- Location
- land of f-cktards
like this story about how much its costing our government to take the vets to court ?
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/veterans-pensions-benefits-court-1.4608601
