King & Country
1st Lieutenant
- Joined
- May 23, 2005
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KING & COUNTRY DISPATCHES
July 2023
July 2023
Hi Guys,
Welcome to this month’s releases which are centred around one of the most famous battles of the Second World War and one of the most widely-used military vehicles of the Vietnam Conflict…
Let’s jump right in…
1. BEING RELEASE IN JULY
A. ‘Hitler’s Last-Ditch Gamble’
The German offensive into Belgium in December 1944 was a final, almost suicidal attempt by Adolf Hitler to catch the Western Allies by surprise, split them apart and perhaps force them to seek a separate peace with the Nazis.
Only the stubborn willingness of some brave American units to stand and die prevented a major enemy breakthrough in what had been a quiet and peaceful stretch of the Allied line.
This mighty struggle, which later became known as ‘The Battle of The Bulge’ ranks as the largest and most important battle ever fought by the U.S. Army in all of WW2 in any theatre of war.
More men, vehicles, supplies, equipment, aircraft and military effort went into this important battle than any other in American history.
It was bigger than Gettysburg… more extensive than the Normandy Landings… and even larger than the 1990 Gulf War.
31 American divisions, fully one third of the entire U.S. Army during WW2, saw action in this battle.
Over two months, from December 16, 1944 until January 25, 1945 nearly 20,000 Americans were killed – almost as many as in all of the 80 days of fighting from the D.Day Invasion until the battles in the Normandy ‘bocage’ ended in August 1944.
‘The Battle of The Bulge’ is the story of men frozen and fighting in the most appalling winter conditions as the snow piled up around their foxholes while enemy artillery splintered the forests above them that provideded shelter.
Their dogged determination in the face of a fanatical foe brought Hitler’s offensive finally to a grinding halt before forcing them back into the crumbling remains of the once vaunted and much-feared Third Reich.
Here are the latest reinforcements to K&C’s U.S. Army ‘Winter Warriors’…
![BBA100-103.jpg BBA100-103.jpg](https://forum.treefrogtreasures.com/data/attachments/237/237331-d3b6b17f38193fb9b0025c6aea8f4a50.jpg)
BBA100 ‘The Four-Man Patrol’
A small, four-man section moves carefully forward from their foxholes… During the night they could hear German voices and vehicles moving along a forest track near their dugout… Now they are going to investigate.
Led by an NCO (non commissioned officer) armed with a ‘Tommy Gun’ , two riflemen, each cradling their M1 Garand rifles, and a B.A.R. man with his Browning Automatic Rifle head out for a ‘look-see’.
![BBA100(L).jpg BBA100(L).jpg](https://forum.treefrogtreasures.com/data/attachments/237/237332-e420ef8b023aca9dd9435d892dbfec20.jpg)
BBA101 ‘Sitting, Smoking & Waiting’
These four GI’s are perfect to position on top of an armoured fighting vehicle such as a ‘Sherman’ tank or the ‘M36 ‘Jackson Tank destroyer featured in our photo.
These four ‘Tank-Riders’ are also armed with a ‘Tommy Gun’, 2 x Garands and a Browning Automatic Rifle.
As all 4 x figures have no bases they can be also placed in and around any ground display or even in a foxhole!
![BBA101(L).jpg BBA101(L).jpg](https://forum.treefrogtreasures.com/data/attachments/237/237333-5f998e19386a05b9a92dea2f5912ee55.jpg)
BBA102 ‘Walking Radioman’
This GI is humping’ the SC-300 / BC1000 man-pack radio usually reserved for infantry platoon headquarters.
This radio set was known as the ‘walkie-talkie’ while the hand-held SCR-536 /BC611 was nicknamed the ‘handie-talkie’.
Radiomen usually carried a lighter weight personal weapon… sometimes a 1911 Colt Automatic .45 pistol or, more commonly, the M1 Carbine as is shown here.
![BBA102(L).jpg BBA102(L).jpg](https://forum.treefrogtreasures.com/data/attachments/237/237334-270e9d036060ef9e2d566c59b5163b77.jpg)
BBA103 ‘Standing Medic’
Wherever any American, GI fought he could be sure a Medic would be close by.
The emphasis placed on rapid battle field medical care and attention as well as the ready availability of modern medicines such as penicillin and sulphonamides, dramatically reduced the rate of death among wounded soldiers to less than 5 per cent … half of the WW1 rate!
Our hard-working Medic, usually nicknamed ‘Doc’, enjoys a well-earned ‘smoke’ before joining the rest of his platoon as they prepare for the next enemy assault. Please note medics were usually unarmed in the European theatre of war.
![BBA103(L).jpg BBA103(L).jpg](https://forum.treefrogtreasures.com/data/attachments/237/237335-ee426e8a2c427d90f43754f179fca78a.jpg)
AVAILABLE: Mid-Late July