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Camp Lejeune, N.C. (June 30, 2022). Combat Engineers are called “Sappers”, a name derived from the French word “sappe” (spadework or trench) and became connected with military engineering during the 17th century when attackers dug covered trenches to approach the walls of a besieged fort.
In today’s land warfare, combat engineers have two primary missions, clear the way for our forces to advance or emplace obstacles to kill or slow the enemy.
Read more: BUILDING BRIDGES, CLEARING MINEFIELDS ANOTHER DAY IN THE LIFE OF COMBAT ENGINEERS
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In this photo by Markus Rauchenberger, Army Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Samms, commander of the 10th Brigade Engineer Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division leads his soldiers in recovering an M69A2 Line Charge during a training exercise at the 7th Army Command’s Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany. Unlike their Revolutionary War comrades, these soldiers have sophisticated explosive devices like these to slow an enemy’s advance.
Ft. Leonard Wood, MO. (July 1, 2022). America’s Combat Engineers trace their history to Valley Forge and the terrible winter of 1778 under the command of General George Washington. Drawn from the ranks of artillery units, these soldier’s use of explosives often turned the tide of battle. In those days, engineers dug tunnels deep under enemy fortifications, setting off massive explosions that could then be exploited by the infantry. Today’s combat engineers perform much more sophisticated tasks using instruments the Revolutionary War soldier could scarcely imagine.
U.S. Army Combat Engineers must pass a rigorous 19-week course at Ft. Leonard Wood, Missouri while the Marines operate their own slightly shorter version at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Students learn basic demolitions, defusing explosive hazards, constructing obstacles, building bridges, and reconstructing ports and airfields.
Read more: FROM VALLEY FORGE TO AFGHANISTAN, COMBAT ENGINEERS LEAD THE WAY
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Guest Article / Commentary / Editorial
From SupportOurTroops.Org
By Jim Spearing, (SSG, Ret.), Media Relations
"These are the times that try men's souls; the summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country…” ~~ Thomas Paine, Founding Father & American Patriot
As we gather to celebrate our independence, we should remember the words of Founding Father Thomas Paine who warned America to beware the “Summer Soldier”, the half-hearted sort who rejoices in the sunlight of freedom but shrinks when the dark clouds of war appear.
Remarkable fact: less than one percent of Americans currently serve in our active-duty military.
You read that right. Less than one percent.
Critics of our military bemoan public dollars spent on these brave Americans yet cheer other expenditures.
So, just who are these brave few who volunteer to defend our way of life?
According to Life As A Private, a study by the Rand Corporation, commissioned by the U.S. Army (Todd C. Helmus, et.al.), the most frequent reason given by new recruits as to why they joined was “Family”, followed by a call to duty, a perception of honor to serve in uniform, and finally a sense of adventure. The last reason given was pay.
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Washington D.C. (June 20, 2022). In America’s War for Independence, one major factor that helped defeat the British was disunity. Sentiment in the British Empire was decidedly mixed about the war with many feeling that fighting the colonists was like battling their own brothers and sisters. This was not a problem for the colonists.
While the English soldier swam in a sea of local patriots, hostile to his presence, Continental soldiers enjoyed the support of the people who were united in their disdain for the English and a desire to rule themselves. This cohesion proved crucial to maintaining morale during the dark days of the war and it was flagging motivation that eventually sank the British invaders.
But, America paid a heavy price.
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Guest Article / Commentary / Editorial
From SupportOurTroops.Org
By Martin Boire, CEO
It’s the 4th of July weekend! Let’s all go out and celebrate our liberty, and while we do let’s each take note that it’s the troops who gained it for us in the American Revolution and protect it for us today.
So let’s celebrate the 4th of July by honoring the troops.
In fact, many say the red in our flag stands for the blood it takes to have our freedom, to rebuff the dark forces always trying to take it from us.
The Russian butchery in Ukraine, and the Chinese chaff attacks on unarmed allied patrol planes in the South China Sea, show a storm is coming and make clear the never-ending price of being free.
Over 90% of we Americans have never served in the uniformed military. As CEO of SupportOurTroops.Org, I am one of them, representative of the rest. And on behalf of all of us whom the troops protect, I thank them.
Just like George Washington and the Continental Army, our neighbors even today enlist, deploy, and leave their families at home to go around the world to many different places to look out for our liberties, livelihoods, and businesses.
To my fellow civilians I posit the following question: Your neighbor leaves his family to go off and protect your family; morally what should you do for his family? For her family?
Do we leave them to it alone? Of course not. We’re Americans. And so no matter where the troops are ordered to go, good Americans always stick up for the folks who stick up for them.
What, then, should we do for him, for her? Why, we step up for them the way they have stepped up for all of us of course. That’s what Americans do. We show them what we are made of. We show them we’re with them. That we’re worth protecting. That we are willing to stand with them who stand for us. Isn’t it time to show them how much we all care?
As CEO of Support Our Troops® I see daily the needs of the troops and their stalwart families. And I daily witness the outpouring wonder of American individuals and groups who have such affection and appreciation for their troops.
We should all work to make the troops as proud of us as we are of them. Individual citizens are doing remarkable things for them all across this country. Major companies should do a great deal more, since they prosper within the domestic tranquility secured by the troops. Each of us can answer this call to excellence in the way we best can.
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Naval Station Norfolk, VA. (June 15, 2022). At the start of the Revolutionary War, America had just 27 ships to confront a modern British Navy with over 270 ships and thousands of sailors with combat experience.
Talk about David taking on Goliath!
The colonists did have one advantage; they had a large maritime population with many merchant seamen willing to convert to combat sailors when their nation needed them. One such sailor was Scottish-born John Paul Jones who, as captain of the Ranger, terrorized the east coast of Britain and the Irish Sea, capturing numerous enemy vessels before arriving in France a hero. Unsatisfied, in 1779 Jones took command of the Bonhomme Richard and accompanied by four ships, took part in one of the most famous sea battles in history. Jones and his tiny fleet came upon the British warships Serapis and Countess of Scarborough, engaging the better armed vessels in a three-hour gun battle. Early in the encounter, Jones answered an enemy demand for surrender with the memorable words, “I have not yet begun to fight”.
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