Cauldron - A Military History Podcast

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The Mighty Krait - Operation Jaywick September 26 1943 Jan 31, 2020

Show notes

The world was on fire. Evil had spread across the lands and seas like a virus, infecting everything with death and hatred. The monstrous Empires of Europe and the East seemed unbeatable and destined to victory. To win the Allies would need to try every trick in the book, use every method of war known to them. And at times even invent new methods. The more daring the more dangerous. But in a fight that could mean the end of everything, there can be no reserves, no plans too risky. Better to leave no stone unturned. Better to lose, if lose you must, having exhausted every possible or even impossible chance. The Allies in WWII knew this and in the Pacific theatre they tried every imaginable gambit.

Let’s go back to beautiful Bali and the perilous Lombok Strait. Let’s go back to the hundreds of empty featureless miles of the Java Sea. To the craggy bushland and winding river training grounds of Camp X on the Hawkesbury River. Let’s go back to the crowded shipping lanes and jam-packed wharves of the Jewel of the East, Singapore itself. Let’s go back to a time when everything was on the line, freedom hung in the balance, and a few fearless men had the courage to gamble their lives in the hopes of striking the enemy a blow. Men that recognized the truth in Faulkner’s line "You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore." Let’s go back to September of 1943 and Operation Jaywick.

“The General Who Wept” - Battle of Passchendaele - Jul 31, 1917 – Nov 10, 1917 Dec 27, 2019

Show notes

The General That Wept - Battle of Passchendaele - Jul 31, 1917 – Nov 10, 1917

“Harry Devers leaned up against the bonnet of his muddy, dinged up and dented Vauxhall D-type. The large, boxy staff car had a certain beauty and grace to it, and Harry had been in enough close-run situations while driving her that he'd grown to trust her. Of course, that hadn't always been the case…”

This is the tale of the "General that Wept," a famous story that comes from the First World War. First reported by B.H.Lidell Hart and the corroborated in David Lloyd George's memoirs, the story tells of a decision making officer that was driven to the front lines at the end of Passchendaele. The man was a respected paper pusher and more a soldier of theory than of mud. So far removed from the realities of the war he was directing was this man that upon seeing the front, he uttered the famous question, "We sent men to fight in that?" The story goes that his driver, a veteran of the battle, responded laconically, "It gets worse farther up."

The people involved and even the veracity of the story has been debated since first reported. Regardless of the truth, the tale has stuck in our collective memory of the war. The idea of "lions led by donkeys" was solidified by this apparent evidence and has been a considerable narrative of the Great War ever since. Whether or not it occurred, at this stage, doesn't matter. What matters is that for decades, the idea that the men in charge of making the decisions on the Western Front seemed oblivious to the horrors they ordered.

Harry Devers is a fictional soldier. Through him, I thought it would be interesting to reimagine this famous tale from the muddy front itself. Any errors are mine and unintentional.

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This weeks sources - Passchendaele by Nick Lloyd, Passchendaele by Steele and Hart, The First World War by John Keegan

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I Died In Hell (Part 2) - Battle of Passchendaele - Jul 31, 1917 – Nov 10, 1917 Nov 30, 2019

Show notes

Hello again, and thank you for listening to Cauldron. I'm your host, Cullen, and we have another doozy for you today but first some quick housekeeping. I want to thank all of you that have given the show a 5-star rating. Seventy-three people have taken the time to support the show on iTunes, and it means a lot to me. I especially want to thank Archernova, nap_sack, and EMT_Hank for writing the most recent excellent reviews. You guys rock! If you haven't already - rate review subscribe, it helps the show grow, and I love to get your feedback. Go to facebook, twitter, or Instagram for cool images, videos, and the weekly Livestream. We are a couple of episodes into the new Netflix docuseries, the greatest events of WWII in color, so watch and join us for the discussion. Also, starting December 8 only on Instagram, I'll be setting up polls to pick the battles we cover each month in 2020, so check that out if you want to have a say in what we cover next year! Alright, that is enough of that; let's get stuck in!

Years of artillery fire in both directions had cratered the Ypres salient into a lunar landscape. And remember these craters rapidly filled with water from below and rain from above. The rain at Passchendaele went on and off for the entirety of the offensive. August historically a dry month, in 1917, full of rain and damp, moist weather. Everything and everyone was wet all the time; even on rain-free days, the men couldn't dry-out because they were sitting in muddy holes. Robert Sherriff of the East Surrey Reg wrote, "The living conditions in our camp were sordid beyond belief. The cookhouse was flooded, and most of the food was uneatable. There was nothing but sodden biscuits and cold stew. The cooks tried to supply bacon for breakfast, but the men complained that it smelled like dead men...At dawn, on the morning of the attack, the battalion assembled in the mud outside the huts. I lined up my platoon and went through the necessary inspection. Some of the men looked terribly ill: grey, worn faces in the dawn, unshaved and dirty because there was no clean water. I saw the characteristic shrugging of their shoulders that I knew so well. They hadn't had their clothes off for weeks, and their shirts were full of lice."

Music - We_Lucky_Few by Hainbach

This weeks sources - Passchendaele by Nick Lloyd, Passchendaele by Steele and Hart, The First World War by John Keegan

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I Died In Hell (Part 1) - Battle of Passchendaele - Jul 31, 1917 – Nov 10, 1917 Nov 30, 2019

Show notes

The English Poet Siegfried Sassoon famously wrote: “I died in hell (They called it Passchendaele).” The First World War was an incubator for man-made hellscapes and mechanized death. Each passing season brought some new horrid way for mankind to inflict suffering on itself. Like Dante’s Inferno, each fresh hell had a name; the Marne, Mons, Verdun, the Somme, Tannenberg, Gallipoli, Izonso, the Kaisershlacht. But of these now infamous names, no battle of the Great War was quite like the human experience at Passchendaele. The Third Battle of Ypres played out like a fever dream, full of ghastly visions, insane scenery, and the theater of the macabre. Most of our mental picture of the war - bodies or parts of bodies lying still in rolls of barbed wire, bloated horse bellies half-submerged in the inky water of shell craters, men ordered by fools to be cut down for nothing but a few measly yards- most of this comes from Passchendaele. It’s odd then that this titanic slugfest, the ultimate test of man vs. man vs. nature, has gone somewhat forgotten. The memory of Passchendaele has been replaced in France with the blood and rubble of Verdun, in Great Britain with the sadly romantic Somme, in the U.S. by the bravery of Belleau Wood, in Germany by those murderous final offensives. For those that lived in the mud, though, the memory of that place was seared into the minds forever. It’s for those men, on both sides, now likely all past, that we remember that there was once a place on earth that men called hell. And there they went to die.

This is episode one of two on Passchendaele.

Music - We_Lucky_Few by Hainbach

This weeks sources - Passchendaele by Nick Lloyd, Passchendaele by Steele and Hart, The First World War by John Keegan

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Young Derfel - Battle of Stamford Bridge 1066 Nov 08, 2019

Show notes

Derfel the Clever - Battle of Stamford Bridge 1066

Young Derfel is not much of a fighter but he is a problem solver. This comes in handy as Derfel finds himself in the front rows of men being pushed towards certain death. In front of Derfel stands a great Viking warrior and this Norseman is killing all who attempt to cross the bridge at Stamford. King Harold Godwinson needs to move quickly though and crossing the bridge to destroy the Norwegian invaders is essential to the king’s defense of the realm. Can Derrfel find the warrior’s spirit within himself? How can the last and fiercest of the Norsemen be beaten? Will Young Derfel survive the encounter? Find out in this week’s episode!

This is the second of 6 special episodes. Each episode represents the exclusive content available to Patreon supporters. These particular episodes are fictional accounts of the battles covered in the main podcast. I wrote each one, and I’m no Bernard Cornwell, but they are a blast to write and perform! Patreon supporters also get book review episodes, interviews, and access to other bonus content. Thank you for your support, and I hope you enjoy it!

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Attack of the Dead Men, "Angel's Glow", and More! The Halloween Special Oct 30, 2019

Show notes

himself. A mysterious green glow on the wounded at the battle of Shiloh. A listener has a tale that involves the Yom Kippur War and an uncanny coincidence. Alright, let's get stuck in!

This week’s main source - https://www.rbth.com/history/328908-russian-attack-of-dead, https://allthatsinteresting.com/angels-glow,

Cover Art - Vasily Nesterenko

Music - 12 Emergency Center

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A Viking Swan Song - The Battle of Stamford Bridge September 25th 1066 Oct 23, 2019

Show notes

At the outset of the battle, several mailed horsemen rode up to the Viking lines. Tostig Godwinson moved up to hear what the Anglo Saxon riders had tot say. The leader of the men was his brother, King Harold, and he offered Tostig peace and his life. When Tostig asked what the King offered to his ally, Harald Hardcounsel, the King, responded, "Six feet of English ground, and then some more as he is taller than most men." With this little quip, the second most important battle in English history began. At Stamford Bridge, the fate of the Viking World hinged, and the future of the rest of the world was changed. Enjoy and send me your "What If?" theories!

This week’s main source - 1066 by Peter Marren and Osprey’s Combat Series Viking Warrior Vs. Anglo Saxon Warrior by Garreth Williams

Music - Vol Halla from YouTube

Cover Art -Melhak

Questions or Corrections - https://www.cauldronpodcast.com/sendustheories

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Raolet of Foix - The Battle Of Nicopolis- 25 September 1396 Sep 30, 2019

Show notes

Raolet of Foix - The Battle Of Nicopolis- 25 September 1396

This episode is a little different. I wrote a fictional account of the battle for the Patreon supporters and instead of writing 50k words this week I am going to share this with everyone. This is the first try but I plan on continuing to write fictional pieces for the Patrons with some regularity. I hope you enjoy it and send me any notes you all. Might have! Alright that’s enough of the business, let’s get stuck in with Raolet of Foix!

This week’s main source - Nicopolis - The Last Crusade by David Nicolle

Music - Bus_Da_Blockbuster from YouTube

Cover Art -Melhak

Questions or Corrections - https://www.cauldronpodcast.com/sendustheories

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Starvation Island - Guadalcanal Campaign - 7 August 1942 – 9 February 1943 Sep 11, 2019

Show notes

Hello again and thanks for listening I'm your host, Cullen. Today we are wrapping up our coverage of the battle of Guadalcanal. From the second battle of Bloody Ridge to the Japanese evacuation of Starvation Island we cover it all.

Alright, let's get stuck in!

Let's go back 77 years ago. To the steamy rank jungles of the South Pacific. To a place where the kuni grass grows as tall as a man and cuts like a katana. To an island whose name, few knew but soon all would remember. Where Marines became legends and that the Japanese knew only as Starvation Island. Let’s go back to Guadalcanal.

This week’s main source - the Pacific War by William B. Hopkins

Music -

All This - Scoring Action by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1300001

Artist: http://incompetech.com/

Sid Philips video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0LokYgWQN4

Image - USS Hornet (CV 8) Painting by Gordon Grant, 1942, U.S. Navy Photo

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Heroics At Henderson Field - Guadalcanal Campaign - 7 August 1942 – 9 February 1943 Aug 31, 2019

Show notes

Hello again and thanks for listening I'm your host, Cullen. Today we are covering another massive story so strap in for the long haul, but first some housekeeping. Go to Instagram and Facebook for maps and images and to follow along. Head to iTunes when you get the chance and rate review subscribe! This really does help get the show get heard by more people. As always thanks to melhaks on fivver for the episode artwork! Two quick notes this episode has some Japanese names, I'm going to do my best, but I may butcher them, and for that I'm sorry! Lastly, there are a few quotes from historical figures I use in the episode that have a racist term. I wrestled with whether or not I should include them and ultimately I think it's necessary to give an idea of the people that said them and the emotions of the time. Just a heads up, I don't want anyone to be bowled over!

Alright, let's get stuck in!

Let's go back 77 years ago. To the steamy rank jungles of the South Pacific. To a place where the kuni grass grows as tall as a man and cuts like a katana. To an island whose name, few knew but soon all would remember. Where Marines became legends and the Japanese knew only as Starvation Island. Let’s go back to Guadalcanal.

This week’s main source - the Pacific War by William B. Hopkins

Music -
All This - Scoring Action by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1300001
Artist: http://incompetech.com/

At Launch by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100539
Artist: http://incompetech.com/

Elegy by Wayne Jones

Image by Melhaks@fiver.com

Questions or Corrections - https://www.cauldronpodcast.com/sendustheories
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https://open.spotify.com/episode/4zma1h3SbkReAOBrvE442e?si=fY9cEzpjS1GWZoLlujPs6g

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https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/heroics-at-henderson-field-guadalcanal-campaign-7-august/id1345505888?i=1000448227977