File type:mp4
"Mussolini, his removal from power, Hitler's rescue, his cruel death" by Robin Smith
Zoomlecture given from Howick,KZN on 14 December 2023 hosted by Johannesburg Branch.
Covers Mussolini's rise to power with the help of the Black Shirts, his ambitions to expand
the Italian Empire, his take over of the government and his forming a pact with Hitler. His unsuccessful
invasion of Greece, and his loss of popularity and his removal from power via the King and his imprisonment.
The lecture covers the negotiations with the Allies about the surrender of Italy and the failure at the last
minute which resulted in the Germans taking over the northern sections of Italy. It covers his
rescue by German troopers from his prison and his reinstatement in a northern province of Italy,
until the war was about to end with his fleeing to the north, being captured by the partisans
and shot. Long after the war his body was entombed in a memorial in his home town. An excellent
talk putting together the big picture.
Link to video file:Mussolini Pt1
File size:59 MBytes (31 minutes)
File type:mp4
Link to video file:Mussolini Pt2
File size:57 MBytes (30 minutes)
File type:mp4
"The Wolfpacks off South Africa's coast" by Dylan Fourie
Zoomlecture given from Port Elizabeth on 11 December 2023 hosted by SAMHSEC Branch.
Operation Eisbar: German submarine offensive off the South African coast in 1942
By 1942, Allied anti-submarine operations in the North Atlantic limited the
employment of German submarines in that theatre. Because of the amount of
shipping which rounded the Cape of Good Hope, Operation Eisbar was aimed at
disrupting shipping off the South African coast. By December 1942, an
estimated 310 000 tons of shipping had been sunk through Operation Eisbar.
The lecture covered the organisation from the military parties as well as stories from some of the survivors
of the 82 ships sunk.
Link to video file:U-boats Pt1
File size:30 MBytes (20 minutes)
File type:mp4
Link to video file:U-boats Pt2
File size:30 MBytes (20 minutes)
File type:mp4
"Robey Leibbrandt and Operation Weissdorn - The plot against Jan Smuts" by Andriza Liebenberg
Zoomlecture given from Johannesburg on 16 November 2023 hosted by Johannesburg Branch.
Operation Weissdorn was a plot by the German Abwehr to assassinate Jan Smuts and to be implemented by Robey Leibbrandt,
a South African Olympic boxer who was recruited and trained while participating in the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin.
The lecture covered the movements of Robey and his eventual formation of the National Socialist Rebels in opposition to the Ossewabrandwag.
Link to video file:Robey Leibbrandt Pt1
File size:47 MBytes (28 minutes)
File type:mp4
Link to video file:Robey Leibbrandt Pt2
File size:27 MBytes (17 minutes)
File type:mp4
"Feeding an Army: South Africa 1914-1918" by Dr Anne Samson
Zoomlecture given from UK on 19 October 2023 hosted by Johannesburg Branch.
A Comparison of Logistics across the various SA Theatres: German South West Africa (GSWA), German East Africa (GEA), Egypt, Palestine and the Western Front.
The lecture covered the ration requirements specified for the different armies
and the challenges in getting those supplies to the forces taking into account logistic challenges caused
by the lack of infrastructure and wartime conditions. Different forces from different regions required
different diets and this led to the withdrawl of some groups as their dietary requirements could not be met and they were
getting ill because of the incompatibility with the available foods. Getting water to the units or men and horses was a major challenge in the desert areas. The lecture also covered the adminstrative organisation that had to be created to supply the armies.
Link to video file:Feeding an Army
File size:89 MBytes (38 minutes)
File type:mp4
"South African Air Force, Warsaw Airlift, 13 August - 16 October 1944" by Martin and Jean Urry
Zoomlecture given from Johannesburg on 15 September 2023 hosted by Johannesburg Branch.
On 3 August 1944, the Polish partisans in Warsaw called for urgent help from the Allies.
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill decided to send assistance.
He ordered 205 Group, commanded by a South African officer, Brigadier J T (Jimmy) Durrant,
to start with extensive flights to Warsaw, despite the extremely difficult circumstances
that would seriously hamper these supply flights. This operation became known as the
Warsaw Airlift. It involved 85 aircraft dropping some 485 containers (72 tons) of supplies.
The lecture covers the history of the airlift and the fate of many of the crews that crashed in the venture.
Every year there are commemorative services in South Africa and Poland to honour those involved.
The lecture included details of some of these services and the close bond between the South African
and Polish communities.
Link to video file:Warsaw Airlift Pt1
File size:49 MBytes (31 minutes)
File type:mp4
Link to video file:Warsaw Airlift Pt2
File size:41 MBytes (25 minutes)
File type:mp4
"Electronic Warfare(EW):the South African experience" by Dr Brian Austin
Zoomlecture given from UK on 17 August 2023 hosted by Johannesburg Branch.
Dominating and controlling communications via radio is an important part of winning a war. Dr Austin reviewed the systems
that were developed in South Africa to monitor and disrupt the insurgents communications. He described the various elements
needed in Electronic Warfare and how these were implimented by the SADF in its border war.
Much of the information was drawn from a recent book written by two former Directors of Signals in the SADF
who had first hand involvement in setting up the system.
His explanations were clear and structured and persons wanting to get an undestanding of electronic warfare
would find this lecture enlightening.
Link to video file:Electronic warfare in Africa Pt1
File size:40 MBytes (30 minutes)
The South African