People like you keep history alive. I'm 36 and love history. Hopefully younger people carry it on and put their phones down. When it gets forgotten it's repeated. Thanks.
I'm 37 and love history too, but one of the greatest tools to access history is our phones! It's about getting the younger ones intrested in it. There has been some absolutely amazing people in history, some monsters too. But you know what they say...
Couldn’t agree more with you. I wish more people appreciated history as you do, they might actually learn how important history is..For those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it! This especially applies to war, I was in the army and I assure you, there is no glory in combat just fear pain and suffering. If more people studied history as you do it could save a lot of terrible suffering. Sincerely, Doc Ex combat medic
@@beanie1792 I can guess, Those that don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it? I’m 62 and get frustrated that younger people don’t know history or appreciate the sacrifices made by my parents generation fighting WWII for our freedom. I was a medic in the army for over 6 years. I experienced limited combat but enough to know that war is not pleasant and consists mostly of hours of boredom interspersed with terrible moments of fear, pain, suffering and misery. If people learned from history maybe the suffering could be avoided. It shocks me when I hear kids today that have never heard of WWII let alone WWI , Korean War or even Vietnam. Sincerely, Doc
Amazing how much of a single person's life can be stuffed onto their person. And each man in the front carried something that his friends did, and some that were just for him. Something every soldier throughout time probably understands. Love these videos and can't wait for the medieval medicine one.
Kevin, I so enjoy just listening to you talk in your calm even voice. In a chaotic day, it's a respite for sure. On top of that, your love for the subject of history and military is obvious. Your interest in what you speak about makes the listener even more interested. Thanks for doing what you do!
Seriously love this channel. The little tidbits of history you bring to attention that are overlooked tend to be the more interesting ones I think. Stay warm this winter History Squad! BTW, I really hope you cover the 1914 Christmas Truce. Love to hear your take on it.
You always give such fascinating tidbits of obscure history. Thank you so much for making the past more relatable. Hope you had a wonderful Christmas surrounded by family, friends, and peace.
Fmr US Army 1980s. When I got home my friends called me “Spoon Boy” - I ate everything quickly with just a spoon. Took a long time to eliminate that habit.My Great Uncle ( I had the honor of meeting at age 7) served in WW1. God bless You for this-
I know that feeling. Funny enough in 1980 I had leave from Northern Ireland and I'm around a table in a restaurant with my family and everyone stopped to look at me in horror as I lifted up my plate and shovelled it all in with a spoon
Greetings once again from nova Scotia, thanks Kevin, I really enjoyed this one. I love how much things have changed, but are still the same. I wanted to say how much I admire the respect you have for those who came before us, the reverence for the every day soldiers, those who served. Blessings, stay warm, be safe and as always best regards, Arthur
I've seen in WW1 archaeological digs the only way to identify skeletal remains of the falling are Spoons because the soldiers would carve their names , initials or service number on the spoons to stop them from being stolen by their trench mates.
Splendid video, Kevin. The detailed minutiae are what make history come alive. As a former Grunt (squaddie, later a Rupert), these details are very interesting, and they connect with my experiences.)
Very interesting! We have learned a lot of warfare since then, and not even the battlefield but logistics and supply side. That spoon would be something you would not want on your calf, easily collecting dirt and such. The dog tags being cardboard are also kind of a sad issue considering how hard it would be to ID from a corpse in a muddy trench. It is interesting how revolutionary the 1900s were across the board.
@historysquad can you do an episode about your uncle please if it doesn't upset you that is I'm sure we would love to hear what he did and what regiment he was and combat he saw. With respect to you uncle
My Good Sir, your dedication abs commitment to your videos is admirable. The length you go to accurately depict the clothes/uniforms is astounding. Please keep it up. Your a great historian
My uncle served in the first world war Daniel Laidlaw luckily he is immortalised in a documentary but sadly most weren’t, it’s always interesting seeing these sort of videos as often the soldiers are just viewed as objects that were there and not people with their own lives with pockets full of personal items just like us now.
Like the way you take time to reply and like your viewers comments. So many 'youtubers' do not take the time to do such. Very interesting pieces of history info Kev.
As a veteran medic what shocked me was the number of wounded soldiers in WWI that did not know how to use their issued medical kit correctly. So many wounded poured the iodine directly into their wound (it destroys living tissue)rather than apply it to the bandage then place the bandage over the wound. I can’t imagine trying to fight infection without penicillin, we take antibiotics for granted today but my grandfather was wounded in the back of the neck at the Ypres salient. He survived the wound but nearly dies from infection. He passed away in 1954 before my birth but I was told the wound troubled him the remainder of his life. Hope you enjoyed our balmy Canadian winter, I was born in Manitoba, the prairies, mind you are colder than the other provinces, although I still don’t forgive my parents for immigrating here on certain bitter cold days, when they chose Canada over Australia! Sincerely, Doc
Someone I know here in Adelaide, Australia, bought an old book in a 2nd hand bookshop. In it he found a letter that a British soldier wrote to his wife, dated 1917 or so, but was never able to post. He traced the name of the wife on the letter, which also bore a British address. He found the great granddaughter of this couple and sent her the letter. Apparently, the soldier had died before he could send this letter, but how it ended up in South Australia is anyone's guess. If only these things that soldiers kept in their pockets and books could speak up and talk. Thank you again, Sir. This video simply proves an old assertion of mine: all soldiers have more in common than not, no matter what armies they serve with or what eras in history they might have done so.
What a lovely story, thanks. I worked at Dudley museum for short time, sadly no longer in existence, where a WW1 bible had been handed in and it had a bullet hole in it, half the bible was blood stained. We traced it to an Australian soldier that had been killed in France. His widow in England remarried after the war and kept his few possessions in a tin under the bed. Her new husband who had been a soldier in WW1 said 'we must keep it for him' but, as time went by, people passed away and the tin was thrown on a dump and found and brought to the museum. I've never forgotten when we handed the tin over to his Australian descendants who travelled half way around the world for the bible with a hole in it.
I bought a book which had been given as a gift in 1917, with that ornate Edwardian handwriting in the inscription. It was then passed on again in 1943. Also an issue of Union Jack from 1908, advertising an article about the German army in another magazine (probably the Penny Popular). Under the advert, somebody's despairingly scrawled ""last war", shall we ever learn?"
It is amazing how so little of what a soldier carried has changed. Of course there is no need for the pay book anymore, but overall things have remained essentially the same. Merry Christmas, and stay warm. Cheers from Texas.
Fantastic as always, Kevin! I would love to see a video of what a young Kevin carried in his pockets as a soldier or as a police officer. I'm sure that many of your viewers are former or current law enforcement officers or soldiers (myself included, I retired after 20 years of US Army service). Keep it up, Kev!!! 👍
So sorry -30 for you Kevin, and me in Florida and right now about 70 degrees in Tallahassee! So keep warm... Love how you review what the troops have and hold on to. Having been one myself. Remember on the DMZ Korea 1976, the Platoon Sergeant looks at me and says: "Hey Wolfgang, you are now our "hunter killer" team". So they gave me a 66mm LAW (Light anti Tank Weapon). And their I dug in behind the platoon position. Idea was if the N. Korean T 55 drives up I can take a nice quick shot before it pivot steers me into the soil. But no one said anyone attacking that day, so took my C Rat apart got the coffee, creamer, and cocoa beverage powder made some nice Mocha. You take the brown cardboard sides of the C Rat and the matches, tear them up and then from the coco bev can you cut it into a little stove, put the canteen cup on top and in 5 minutes brewing time its ok! Sipped and enjoyed being 20 years old and a long way from home. In my pockets had that can opener thing and yes the New Testament book of John, you know King James Version which is the only version I read today, lots of yanks like me. We had to all read it cover to cover when we got saved back at the old Baptist Church at Bienville Parish, Louisiana. My Uncle Jesse, made the motion that I be voted in as a member due to my conversion. He was a World War One American and occupation of Germany soldier. So glad it was only Mocha and not bits of me ground around. Just like every soldier another day with Tea or Coffee and a little grub... well you are still alive you sorry mother!!!! That is what it really means, you are young and still alive.. Old now... You get me in the heart. Peace to you in the name of Jesus, yes King James Version!!!
I really appreciate your history lessons! You add such a personal touch with the interesting tidbits and stories in your videos. I can’t wait to see what you upload next!
I absolutely adore these kinds of videos. Very simple yet informative. And im so very curious what a soldier during that era would have carried. Being an American airman myself during 99-04, always curious to see what similarities there would have been with a ww1 era soldier vs a more modern soldier Brilliant as always Kevin. You are a real treasure. A gentleman and a scholar. Wish you and your family a happy late Christmas, and a happy new year.
Well done thank you for doing what you do people should never forget what people went through back then if it wasn't for people like you everything would all be forgotten about and children need to know everything about wars and what it was all about thank you
Looking magnificent in that uniform Soldier! But apart from Duty that must be done I wouldn't have swapped my Christmas at home for the trenches. Those personal momentos are so important a reflection of lives that could have been. R.I.P. Uncle Albert and the rest.
Very interesting, thanks! Had no idea the variety of items a soldier would have on his person...& not counting his field kit, helmet & rifle...subbed...
Thank you for another interesting video. Really never thought about the problem with white handkerchiefs. Of course, I always carried brown. I hope you do a Christmas video. No matter your religion, it always seemed the Christmas season was dear to all soldier’s hearts.
your videos are the best Kevin. thank you for sharing all your knowledge. i am from the netherlands and was on a road trip last summer in northumberland. we visited Alnwick castle (beautifull!) and i saw this person shooting a longbow in the distance. had to get closer to check if it was you.. that would have bin a really big coincedince offcourse. i wish you and yours a merry christmas ♥
Brilliant Kevin as always. Often wondered what was in all those pockets! It's positively balmy here in the UK, only around -3 at the moment! Regards Mick
Nicely done! i felt memories allmost.😊👍i love your channel the History Squad .Allmost sent me back in time.the Canadians were the most daring warriors.
Good stuff. It's always interesting to see the little details that sometimes have absolutely nothing to do with the event that era came to be known for. A spoon, an old watch, a picture of some french lady. Who knows what other random stuff these lads would carry with them.
That's so very interesting, especially the "memento from France." That's something that isn't talked about much and it has never crossed my mind. But obviously it's something that's part of life, especially amongst the younger lads. I just have hard time figuring out how one would, umh, enjoy these mementos while crammed in with a whole lot of dudes. But maybe in a situations like that it doesn't even cross ones mind, one might wait until things are calmer and find a way to have some private corner in somewhere.
there is a museum in Point Cook Air training base in Australia that has a steel shaving mirror and a book (maybe a bible ) that has a bullet hole in the book and a dint in the mirror. it was kept by the soldier in his top left pocket at the war . good luck or good planning .
I very much enjoyed your film, Kevin. I was not aware of some of the items a chap carried with him. I have a few items of my grandfather's from WW1, including his trench maps brought home with him after being wounded, but it rang a bell when you were talking about identity discs. I have the oval aluminium identity bracelet he wore as a 2nd Lt. in the 1/5 Lincolnshire Regt. So many questions I would ask him now, but I am sensitive to the fact that often survivors of war would rather bury their experiences along with their fallen comrades. Flashbacks are a real bugg**!
Yes, I forgot to mention the ID bracelet. Did you know they were a private purchase? The men bought them themselves because they knew how flimsy the discs were.
@@thehistorysquad Hi Kevin, No, I didn't know they were privately purchased, but I am aware that an officer was required to purchase a number of items of kit himself, including his revolver. My grandfather still had his .455 Mk VI Webley & Scott well after WW2 (he was also Ammunition Officer for his Home Guard section in WW2). He handed it in during a weapons amnesty - surprised the desk sergeant when he popped it on the counter! The identity discs were rather flimsy. I have my father's RAF ones from WW2 and they were still just made from compressed board. The suspension cords were only string too. Wouldn't last too long under wet conditions. I can well understand that some WW1 soldiers would wish to purchase a more substantial identity bracelet. Keep up the good work Kevin - your films are always excellent!
My grandmother used to have a very realstic-looking and heavy Colt 1911 kicking around, she always told me it was "only a cap gun", but now I'm wondering... Also how a Brit would have got one, pretty sure tommies in WW2 still used revolvers.
@@worldcomicsreview354 Standard issue in the British Army was a revolver, but approximately 40,000 Colt 1911 and 1911A1 autos were issues after the Dunkirk evacuation, mostly to commandos and airborne troops, as well as the SOE.
No lightweight modern fibers either, all good solid clothing, but once it gets wet through - much gravity. Guard duty on a rainy night? - as your greatcoat slowly turns you into a sinking 300lb. mud rivet - not fun. These day-to-day items certainly do bring a sense of the humanity, as in - all they had left to cling on to.
Love this. Terrific job History Squad! lol the momento of France. But that's real. They carried those around. My great GREAT grandpa had a rather (what was considered at the time) risque photo he carried with him in Ypres of his then girlfriend
I remember that uniform material from when I was in the army cadets in the early 70's I swear our uniforms were ex WW1 scratchy and high maintenance polishing the brass, bulling the boots and blankoing the belt and gaters
I myself own a reproduction (What price glory) of the Canadian army SD that I kept from a movie production (I was an extra in Paul Gross's Passchendaele). It's a really warm and comfy uniform, looks really SHARP! I have a couple of framed photos of myself and some other extras that have a chalky black/white filter hung on my wall, they certainly look like authentic photos of soldiers.
Too many of todays youngsters know little to nothing of their countries history, you Sir make history interesting be it recent or way back in time, keep up the good work Kevin, Happy Yuletide to you and yours 🤘🏹
