S8E16 Seize Wismar, Stop the Soviets!
While the official start of the Cold War is still debated by historians, many agree that it began at some point in the late 1940s. Yet, it was clear by 1945 that the final battle lines drawn when the war in Europe ended would play a significant role in determining the future of the post-war world. One of the earliest examples of this tension playing out was over the German coastal town of Wismar. In early May 1945 a British airborne division, spearheaded by 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion, rushed northwards from the Elbe River to capture this town. While certainly part of the intention was to force the surrender of German forces in the area, the other objective was to cut off the Soviet advance from the east and prevent them from further designs on Denmark. The collision of these two Allied forces at Wismar became a harbinger of the tension to come in the post-war world. Book recommendation: Tip of the Spear: An Intimate Account of 1 Canadian Parachute Battalion by Col. Bernd Horn and Michel Wyczynski published by Dundurn Press in 2002 https://www.dundurn.com/books_/t22117/a9781550023886-tip-of-the-spear Twitter – https://twitter.com/DocBorys Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/curiouscanadianhistory
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