We Few… We Happy Few….
October 25th is St. Crispin’s Day. This video excerpt of the Band of Brothers speech, from Kenneth Branagh’s “Henry V” movie is the possibly best of the many versions by many, many actors.
Following the battle, the King asked for the Non Nobis and Te Deum.
Category: Gathering of Eagles, Historical
Will commemorate the day by participating in a funeral for a Viet Nam veteran. Seems appropriate…
I always enjoyed Jonn making this post, honoring this day once each year. RIP John Lilyea. Not forgotten.
Amen Brother, Jonn will never be forgotten!
He will always be a true hero in my eyes!
BZ Jonn!
RIP
On this St. Crispin’s Day I remember all those martyrs slain on the altar of self-proclaimed fakery and phoniness so eloquently detailed in the blogs of TAH and MP. Together these cowards formed a “band of brothers” in deceit and deception before being slain by the sword of righteous truth wielded by the Valor Guardians’ brigade of investigative warriors.
A solemn day to remember, and rededicate ourselves to protecting freedom, honor, and nobility.
We Few…We Band of Brothers…
Today is the 75th anniversary of perhaps the greatest, most courageous feat of arms in the annals and history of the United States Navy. On this day in 1944 off the coast of Samar during the Battle of Leyte Gulf, a puny American force (TAFFY 3) of 6 little escort carriers and 7 destroyers and destroyer escorts took on the might of Takeo Kurita’s Imperial Japanese Center Force of 4 battleships, 8 cruisers, and 11 destroyers.
This unequal battle should have resulted in the complete annihilation of the American task group, as well as of MacArthur’s landing force they were supporting, but it ended instead with the withdrawal and retreat of the mighty Japanese force because of the bloody courage and sheer will of the fighting sailors and airmen of TAFFY 3 in fending off the Japanese charge. TAFFY 3 lost 2 CVEs and 3 DDs/DEs and a thousand sailors in this unequal fight, but forced the Kurita force to withdraw with the loss of 3 heavy cruisers and numerous other damaged ships, thus saving MacArthur’s invasion of Leyte.
“We Few…We Band of Brothers” has never been more aptly used than to describe the men of TAFFY 3 who fought, died, persevered on this day in 1944…
I will lift a glass to TAFFY 3 tonight.
Tequila will be served tonight in honor of CPL Victor Langarica, KIA 20 JAN 07.
Still pissed at you Vic, but we’ll discuss that at a later time.
http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/vmlangarica.htm
As much as I like the “band of brothers” speech, my favorite from Henry V will always be “once more unto the breech” (Act III Scene 1):
Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more;
Or close the wall up with our English dead!
In peace there’s nothing so becomes a man,
As modest stillness and humility;
But when the blast of war blows in our ears,
Then imitate the action of the tiger:
Stiffen the sinews, conjure up the blood,
Disguise fair nature with hard-favoured rage:
Then lend the eye a terrible aspect;
Let it pry through the portage of the head,
Like the brass cannon; let the brow o’erwhelm it
As fearfully as doth a galled rock
O’erhang and jutty his confounded base,
Swill’d with the wild and wasteful ocean.
Now set the teeth and stretch the nostril wide;
Hold hard the breath and bend up every spirit
To his full height. On, on, you noblest English,
Whose blood is fet from fathers of war-proof!
Fathers that, like so many Alexanders,
Have in these parts from morn till even fought,
And sheathed their swords for lack of argument.
Dishonour not your mothers: now attest,
That those whom you call’d fathers did beget you.
Be copy now to men of grosser blood,
And teach them how to war. And you, good yeoman,
Whose limbs were made in England, show us here
The mettle of your pasture: let us swear
That you are worth your breeding; which I doubt not;
For there is none of you so mean and base,
That hath not noble lustre in your eyes.
I see you stand like greyhounds in the slips,
Straining upon the start. The game’s afoot:
Follow your spirit; and upon this charge,
Cry ‘God for Harry! England! and Saint George!’
Thanks for that, Martinjmpr.
One ‘speech’ that I have thought of many times, as I watched and/or listened to Green Shooters I had trained and/or led as they took the initial steps of a large force as it began to Storm through a BREACH (unintended, honest 😉 ) they themselves created. 🙂
For those who want to see the Branagh version:
Today also marks the 165th anniversary of “The Charge of the Light Brigade” involving the British light cavalry led by Lord Cardigan against Russian forces during the Battle of Balaclava on 25 October 1854 in the Crimean War.
The bugle sounds as the charge begins
But on this battlefield no one wins
The smell of acrid smoke and horses breath
As you plunge into a certain death
And as I lay there gazing at the sky
My body’s numb and my throat is dry
And as I lay forgotten and alone
Without a tear I draw my parting groan
THE TROOPER by Iron Maiden (1983)
Up the irons! Stay heavy!