No Title 2737
Supplement to �Honoring Our Freedom Keepers�
Test your military history IQ answers
Get in touch with Kentucky military history
Test your military history IQ answers
1. What act of American Colonial rebellion in 1773 forced the British Parliament to take action that led directly to the formation of the First Continental Congress and thus to the beginning of the Revolutionary War?
Answer: The Boston Tea Party. In response to a British-imposed tax on tea, colonists in Boston raided several British ships, throwing cargoes of tea into the harbor. As punishment, Parliament passed five Intolerable Acts, which effectively closed the harbor and placed the city under occupation. Rallying to the aid of Massachusetts, the American Colonies formed committees to discuss the situation; from these the First Continental Congress emerged.
2. Where and when did the opening battle of the Civil War take place?
Answer: The Battle of Fort Sumter, April 12-14, 1861, when 500 Confederate troops under the command of Brigadier General P.G.T. Beauregard fired on Union Major Robert Anderson and 85 troops ensconced in Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. The fort remained in Confederate hands until February of 1865, when General William T. Sherman�s Union troops captured Charleston.
3. What countries were major allies during both World War I and II?
Answer: France, United Kingdom, Russia (Soviet Union), U.S.A. During WWI, Italy was also a major ally, and during WWII, China became one. There were also at least a dozen minor allies during both wars.
4. What countries constituted the Axis powers during WWII?
Answer: Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Japan. German and Italian troops eventually fell to Allied forces, while the use of the atomic bomb caused Japan to surrender.
5. During the Vietnam War, what 1968 battle that began with the breaking of a cease-fire and, though it resulted in a victory for the U.S. and South Vietnam, ultimately caused President Lyndon B. Johnson to withdraw as a candidate for re-election?
Answer: The Tet Offensive, which began January 30, 1968, when the Viet Cong broke the traditional Tet (Lunar New Year) cease-fire by launching major attacks against most South Vietnamese cities. Soon afterward, the American public began to question the handling of the conflict, causing Johnson�s popularity to plummet.
Seeing military personnel in uniform has become fairly common these days, as have scenes of combat from Iraq and Afghanistan. But few civilians are aware of a soldier�s life beyond those visuals or what troops on the home front do to support their overseas comrades.
�You hear clich�s about fighting soldiers as heroes, but there�s so much more than that,� explains Capt. Stuart Jones, who is on active duty with the U.S. Army as a Rear Detachment Commander with the Third Brigade Combat Team, First Infantry at Fort Knox. �Military service is totally volunteer. Service people don�t have to serve; they choose to serve. Not much is reported about the role we play as ambassadors. Our Army is a reflection of the country it defends and supports, and we try to be as much of a positive presence in another country as we can under the circumstances.�
As did many men and women, Jones signed up right after the September 11 terrorist attacks. He was 24 years old and working a job that �didn�t mean a lot.� After separate deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, Jones, now 34, works with the Army Family Readiness Group, an organization that helps soldiers� families adjust to military life, which allows the service member to concentrate on his or her job.
If a soldier is deployed, for instance, and the family�s home water heater springs a leak, the soldier may not be able to call a plumber. But the FRG, in its role as an information conduit, can assist the spouse in finding quality help to take care of the problem. This is just one of many services that the Family Readiness Group provides. It also lets a spouse know when and how the service person will be able to communicate from wherever he or she is deployed.
�My job allows me to lead and teach younger soldiers and to help out as a problem-solver,� he says. �I�m proud of what I do.�
To learn more about the Army Family Readiness Group, go online to www.armyfrg.org. The Army FRG Web site is only for soldiers/Department of the Army civilians, and their family members, providing information and resources�documents, photos, videos, forums�24 hours a day, regardless of their geographic location.
Get in touch with Kentucky military history
If you want to learn more about the state�s combat heroes and their experiences at home and abroad, or if you would like to relate your own personal military involvement, the following will get you started.
General George Patton Museum
4554 Fayette Avenue, Fort Knox
www.generalpatton.org
(502) 624-3812
For research, offers the onsite Davis Memorial Library and online searchable archives, including one specifically for Patton Archives, with a database and online viewing of photos, letters, and other scannable memorabilia from General Patton’s life.
Kentucky Historical Society
100 West Broadway
Frankfort, KY 40601
(502) 564-1792
www.history.ky.gov
Hours: Open Wed 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Thu 10 a.m.-8 p.m.; Fri-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Closed Sunday-Tuesday.
Located in downtown Frankfort, the Kentucky Historical Society history campus includes the Kentucky Military History Museum, the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History, and the Old State Capitol.
Kentucky Military History Museum
Located at the State Arsenal
125 E. Main Street, Frankfort
www.history.ky.gov (click on link under �Visit Our History Campus�)
(502) 564-1792
Closed for renovations, it re-opens with a slew of special events on November 11. Features a vast collection of exhibits, memorabilia, and photos, and tours of the historic 1850 building.
Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History
100 West Broadway, Frankfort
www.history.ky.gov (click on link under �Visit Our History Campus�)
(502) 564-1792
The Kentucky Journey exhibit, divided in eight main sections, chronicles state history from prehistoric times to present day, presents the effect of wars on the Commonwealth, and features more than 3,000 historical artifacts, sights, and sounds with 14 interactive displays.
Kentucky Oral History Commission
Administered by the Kentucky Historical Society, the Kentucky Oral History Commission is housed in the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History. KOHC often partners with the Library of Congress American Folklife Center�s Veterans History Project (VHP), which collects interviews and memorabilia from vets. Veterans or family members of veterans can participate on the VHP project by visiting their Web site featuring collected personal histories and downloading the �field kit.�
The Kentucky Oral History Commission, http://history.ky.gov/sub.php?pageid=78§ionid=16, also provides workshops on oral-history related topics periodically and by request.
Kentucky Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Coffee Tree Road, Frankfort
www.kyvietnammemorial.net
A giant sundial honors the state�s 1,100 soldiers killed in Vietnam and the 22 missing-in-action soldiers.
Library of Congress American Folklife Center�s Veterans History Project
www.loc.gov/vets
Oral history project collects veteran stories through personal narratives (audio, video, written), correspondence, and visual materials (photos, drawings, scrapbooks). You can also read and hear veteran stories here. The site offers a �field kit� providing guidelines, forms, and suggestions for interviews.
To read the Kentucky Living November 2011 feature that goes along with this supplement, go to Honoring Our Freedom Keepers.
