______________________________________________________________________
The history and storylines in March that changed our world

   U.S. Soldiers at Bougainville - March 1945
______________________________________________________________________
P A C I F I C   T H E A T R E   O F   O P E R A T I O N S 

2^ndBismarck Sea; SW Pacific area; 2 March 1943:  Battle of the Bismarck Sea » The Japanese commanders had decided to move over 100k troops from China and Japan in to the New Guinea area. The Japanese convoy of eight destroyers, eight troop tarnsports and 100 fighter aircraft moving the 51st Infantry Division were intercepted by the USAAF and RAAF on the 1st and 2nd of March.

8^th Burma, Southeast Asia; 8 March 1944: Merrill's Marauders » Merrill's Marauders, fought in Burma against the Japanese forces and were the Army's first Ranger unit. Led by Major General Frank Merrill, the unit was made up of experienced jungle fighters exclusively. In March and subsequent months of 1944 while vastly outnumbered, the unit advanced 750 miles through some of the harshest jungle terrain in the world.

11^thPhilippines, Pacific Ocean; 11 March 1942:  General MacArthur ordered to leave The Philippines »  On this date President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered General MacArthur to leave his command post in the Philippines due to the potential and impending loss by U.S. forces to the Japanese. Prior to his departure to Austrailia by PT boat and aircraft, he makes his famous declaration,"I shall return".

15^thBougainville, Solomon Islands; 15 March 1944:   The Bougainville Campaign continues » The Allied forces consisted of major units from all US branches as well as forces from New Zealand, Fiji and Australia. The 93rd Infantry Division would later reinforce and become the first African-American infantry unit to see action in WWII.

20^th  Iwo Jima, Japan; 20 March 1945:  Correspondent Robert Sherrod on Iwo Jima » Robert Sherrod was best known for his years of writing and editing for TIME and LIFE magazines during WWII. He accompanied the US Marines at Okinawa, Iwo Jima, Saipan, Tarawa and Attu. Sherrod said of Iwo Jima, "at the end of a fortnight's bloody fighting there is no longer any doubt that Iwo is the most difficult amphibious operation in U.S. history."

26^th  Washington DC; 26 March 1943:  2nd Lt. Elsie Ott, USAAF » US Army Air Force nurse 2Lt. Elsie Ott becomes the first woman to receive the US Air Medal for care she provided five casualties during a ten-thousand mile flight from India to Washington D.C. - her first ever airplane flight. No doubt the five evacuees aboard the aircraft would have concurred on her being awarded the Air Medal.

26^thIwo Jima, Japan; 26 March 1945:  The fighting on Iwo Jima ends » The 35-day battle finally came to an end on this day. The Battle of Iwo Jima, or Operation Detachment as it was known by the U.S. forces, saw some of the most brutal combat of the Pacific War. The strategic importance of victory on Iwo was for its two airfields, which would prove vital for B-29 landings and ultimate delivery of the atomic bombs.
______________________________________________________________________
E A S T E R N   T H E A T R E   O F   O P E R A T I O N S 

1^stNarva, Estonia; 1 March 1944:  The Battle of Narva continues » Like many smaller countries during WWII, Estonia was caught in the middle between Germany and the Soviet Union. Stalin wanted Estonia for air bases as well as its bordering the Gulf of Finland for seaborne initiatives. The battle of Narva would rage on from February to August of 1944.

7^th The Ludendorf Bridge, Germany; 7 March 1945:  The Bridge at Remagen »The Ludendorf Bridge was known as the Bridge at Remagen during WWII. It was named after German General Erich Ludendorf during WWI, who was a proponent of the bridge's creation in 1916. Its capture by the Allies was strategic as it was the only remaining bridge over the Rhine River into Germany.

11^th   Washington DC; 11 March 1941:  Lend-Lease is enacted » $50 billion dollars ($759 billion in today's dollars) in supplies were given to Britain, China, the Soviet Union and France towards their war efforts. FDR and the people of the United States were hoping to maintain a stance of non-interventionism. A hope that would change on 7 December of this same year.

13^th Berlin and Smolensk; 13 March 1943:   Operation Spark; The plots to Kill Hitler » General Henning von Tresckow coined the "Spark" codename, believing that after such a spark, Hitler's death, would other collaborators agree to join the coup to end the war. von Tressckow was reassigned to command a battalion on the eastern front in October of 1943, after the failed attempts.

15^th   Cassino, Italy; 15 March 1944: The third battle of Monte Cassino begins » The Third Battle of Monte Cassino began on this date. The four battles involved the U.S., U.K., Canada, Poland, New Zealand and others against the German Army and air forces. The ancient abbey at Monte Cassino was destroyed from Allied bombing, of which its necessity is still debated. More controversy surrounded the competition between British and American commanders to be the first to liberate Rome after the Battle of Anzio.

20^th   Kursk, Soviet Union; 20 March 1943: The Battle of Kursk continues » The Battle for Kursk had the costliest single day of aerial warfare to date as well as the largest armoured battle in the war on the eastern front. It was also the last strategic offensive Germany would be able to mount in the war on the eastern front. The Battle of Kursk was as vital and strategic in victory for the Soviet Union as its efforts at Leningrad and Stalingrad.
______________________________________________________________________
M A R C H   T O D A Y

2^nd  Penguin Group, USA - 2 March 2010:  Hugh Ambrose releases 'The Pacific' »  "Hey Dad, I was lucky to be your son and proud to be your partner", writes Hugh Ambrose, about his father Stephen Ambrose. We are provided with Hugh's dedication to his father at the very beginning of the book, an emotional prelude which promises to be an emotional book. This new release is being marketed as "The Official Companion Book to the HBO^® Miniseries". Banking on the enormous success of 'Band of Brothers', the brand created by Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks and HBO^® looks to surpass and over-deliver once again.- Scott Lyons
______________________________________________________________________
Live information feed of World War II articles from around the world.

The best from 1940s Hollywood and Broadway

'Casablanca' opens 1942 »  The runaway hit from 1942 starred Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart and was set during World War II. Warner Brothers rushed release of the film to take advantage of the Allied invasion of North Africa. The film won three Academy Awards and tops the lists of "greatest films of all times". "Here's looking at you kid" is one of the Top 100 movie quotes of all time.

'Oklahoma!' opens 1943 »   Along with "Casablanca", "Citizen Kane" and "Meet Me in St. Louis", "Oklahoma!" would define the entertainment industry in the 1940s. The Rodgers and Hammerstein production would see a Broadway run of 2,212 performances. The "Oklahoma!" play would also spawn the 1955 hit movie adaptation starring Gordon McRae and Shirley Jones.

'Meet Me in St. Louis' premieres 1944 »  Judy Garland debuted her hit, "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and "The Trolley Song" in this Vincente Minnelli and Arthur Freed hit movie from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was also the second highest grossing film of 1944. Actress Judy Garland and director Vincente Minnelli would later marry after meeting on the movie set.

'Going My Way' opens in 1944 » Bing Crosby was the biggest movie star of the 1940s, and movie makers banked on his likeability factor and singing to bring war-weary movie goers to their local theatres. Bing would reprise his role as Father O'Malley in the 1945 hit "The Bells of St. Marys'. "Going My Way" was the highest grossing film of 1944. Crosby was also the biggest box office draw of 1944.