I watched this amazing documentary on the Discovery Channel about the various wars that the United States fought in the mid 20th century to protect the Alaskan borders from Japanese and Russian invasions.
The Japanese had taken over the Aleutian Islands of Attu and Kiska, in the Bering Sea. The climatic and geographical conditions on these remote islands were so harsh that Colonel Lawrence Castner appointed a small group of locals (Castner’s cutthroats) for helping out the American troops fight the Japanese intruders.
These Alaskan Scouts could survive under any conditions in these remote regions provided they were given a knife to hunt and a rifle to protect themselves. They would usually always travel ahead of the American troops and help them acclimatize to the hostile environment. They would teach the American troops on how to hunt for food, protect themselves from the harsh climate and move efficiently across the cold and wild Alaskan terrain.
Castner’s cutthroats played a very important role in winning back the Attu and Kiska islands that the Japanese had invaded. The documentary showed the actual historical events that took place in Alaska and how the scouts always came on top of the situation. They even helped the American army build a runway for their Bombers by drying a local waterbody which cut the flying distance for these bombers by half.
I must say I was really impressed by this documentary and by the deeds of Castner’s cutthroats.
You can read more about them here.
Hi,
RE: Incorrect time period noted on your web page.
I want to clarify your introductory statement about “Castner’s Cutthroats”;
they were in the mid 20th century (1940′s), not the mid 19th century
— that would be the 1800′s. I just saw an extensively detailed story on
them on the History Channel. Their story was part of a two-hour show
titled “Alaska: Dangerous Territory”.
Thanks for your interest in profiling this amazing group.
Best regards,
Todd Ruffaner
Thanks for pointing that out Todd I made the correction.
Castner also recommended that the Army not send troops trained in desert climes and recommended troops trained in the cold climates be sent. But, the army decided to send the warm climate troops instead which, as you know, hindered the battle against the Japanese.
Great documentary which proved the importance of our indigionous peoples
of our great nation and the faithful allies which we still have today.
I Thought it Ironic that our present Alaska N.G. troops are being sent to Iraq. It just seems to me our Troops seem to almost always prevail, But The military leaders seem to continue to make assinine decisions. Why would we want to remove these climte trained troops from where they seem to be best suited and best needed in protecting our most extreme vulnerable area. Its no secret that our 21st century enemies wont hesitate to go after our vast N. resources. they already have proven what they are capable of on 9/11.
“Why would we want to remove these climte trained troops from where they seem to be best suited and best needed in protecting our most extreme vulnerable area.”
Because the U.S. military is stretched so thin that it HAS to. Obviously cold-weather acclimatized troops would not be the first choice for desert warfare. But they have no other choices.
“they already have proven what they are capable of on 9/11. ”
Yes, the C.I.A. is very dangerous, certainly the world’s most lavishly-funded and coldblooded terrorist organization. Not just anybody could kill 3,000 of their own citizens in a single morning and use it as an excuse to invade Afghanistan to remove the Taliban and get a pro-U.S. puppet government in place that agrees to the American terms for building the natural gas pipelines. And of course by insinuating that Iraq had something to do with it they scared most of the American public into thinking the world would end if they didn’t launch a war of aggression against very-oil-rich Iraq…
is there a book about that can be purchased?