Tracks of the StoneBear Odyssey ROF = Ring of Fire: Iceland Marines WWII success of a nation

SBTROF .com ROF= Ring of Fire Odyssey

MEF-H = Marine Expeditionary Force- Hargus 

ICLD = Iceland journey  

December 27, 2021  

This post is a combination of 2 posts about the Marines in Iceland during WWII

The 2nd part is the same as post #1A   How Dad wound up in Iceland during WWII as a US MArine.

The 2nd part below the intro is really what this blog post is about. It's about a country, citizens of a sovereign nation, that were guarded from invasion during WWII...

... and the aftermath of that US Marine occupation where the citizens of that land built the country they wanted; The success of what free people did,... and can do if given the chance to stabilize, govern and build their country protecting their cultures, their values, their citizens wants and needs to raise their families and next generations. And for the country to establish itself in the world,... in the league of nations... for their national identity.

My family has had US Marines serve in 5 foreign theaters. Somalia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iceland WWII. 

True; Somalia, Afghanistan, and Iraq, the Marines were sent for a war conflict. Iceland was a guarding occupation to prevent war there. Kosovo was a support duty on the USS Wasp off the coast.

2021 US troops left Afghanistan after 20 years of war. It was way past time to end the US troops being there. Family was there in 2006 for the 1st elections in the county's 10,000 year history.   

A decade+ later, todays Reuters headline was that starvation is overtaking Afghanistan. It has always been a failed state.

What's the difference in Afghanistan,... and Iceland? War tears up a country for sure. Destabilization. It can take decades to overcome destabilization.... like... Viet Nam?

After WWII Iceland worked hard to preserve their national culture and entity while building their nation to what they wanted for their citizens.

On Friday morning October 15, 2021 doing a city tour of the Capitol Reykjavik past Hofoi house- the former French consulate house- where world leaders met and negotiated...

 views of Reykjavik, Iceland,  urban city commute life, transit avenues... morning fog. 

European urban metro   

Drive past the iconic Reagan/ Gorbachav summit house, then down to the Iceland sculpture of the Vikings monument. 

Stop for pix of the Sun Voyager sculpture. It's meaning is in the spirit of the Vikings and all seafaring mariners,...  or an ode to the Sun. The artist intended it to convey the promise of undiscovered territory, a dream of hope, progress and freedom.   

then onto the Iceland center... center for concerts and conference meetings... the central hall for cultural events in Iceland.

There was a meeting going on of the Northern Alliance of nations... / Northern Artic Circle Alliance? One of the issues was addressing climate change.... affect and planning ahead. 

What a magnificent , architectural hall!!! 

We just took pictures... some of the Greenland Iceberg in the courtyard. They shipped in a real iceberg from Greenland. The temperature here ?36*? it's not melting very much.

 Then drive through the Iceland docks... a Danish ship was in port. 

Then by the church of Iceland... Lutheran i thin...

Then by a stop at the Iceland Parliament building... standing in the courtyard 100 feet away... and ... there are no barriers, no fences, no blockades, ... no concertina wire, no guards...  

Only a parliament building where Iceland representatives and senators go into the building and talk about policies that help the Iceland people... address and implement policies that are good for the Iceland citizens... !!! What a concept!!! 
  
On the bus outward passed by the Presidents house of Iceland... his home phone# is in the phone book for any Iceland citizen to call him on an issue. 

There were no security guards - that could be seen- at the Presidents house. ?Is this a great country or what?   

Then to the Reykjavik iconic church Hallgrimskirkja Lutheran church.

  The spire is 244' tall and visible from most everywhere in the city with the iconic statue of Leif Erikson. 

I am so proud of the people of Iceland to have built such a great country. I am so proud of ALL our US Marines that stood guard there during WWII and allowed the citizens of Iceland the opportunity to build their country. I am proud of serving in the same Marine Corps that undertakes and serves for missions ... like then in Iceland,... and still ready to serve when asked today in this world.

Somalia, Afghanistan, Iraq,... I still hope they rise to their destiny for their country. We'll see.

**************

In 1966 while traveling w/ Dad... an itinerant construction worker... Dad began to tell me about his WWII time in The Marines.   

In 1939/ 1941 Britain was already at war w/ Nazi Germany... The battle of Britain. Churchill met w/ Roosevelt... Churchill said that he had a contingent of British soldiers in Iceland... and he was afraid that the Germans would attack and capture Iceland.

Iceland was strategically the observer outpost of the North Atlantic. Nothing could move through the North Atlantic... from the US to Britain/ England/ Europe... through the Russians, Murmansk, Archangel, into the North Sea... from Europe to the USA... without passing by Iceland!!! Iceland was THE observation point of the North Atlantic SLOC... The Sea Lanes of Communication/channels. Iceland Was the THE main point of North sea traffic between the USA and Europe.

Churchill said he was afraid Germany would attack and capture Iceland as they had British troops there. Iceland could be captured in a couple of days,... and lose that vital strategic observation post. 

Roosevelt agreed and said he would replace the British with American troops insuring that Germany would not attack, bringing the USA into WWII. Roosevelt one up-ed Churchill and sent The US Marines to Iceland. My Dad was one of those Marines that guarded Iceland for 2 1/2 years

My Dad formed up, mustered at Quantico, Virginia, then mustered at North Sydney, Nova Scotia into a US Navy convoy of 100 ships, 10 by 10 a mile apart.. and sailed to Iceland, and then on to Europe for the Allied Forces Liberty ships supplies. From my research, pretty sure Dad was in the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment.

The crossing. Dad said the the fleet formed up 10 ships across, 10 ships up, a mile apart... 100 square miles, and the set out into the North /Sea. Merchant vessels/ Liberty Ships loaded w/ supplies going to England/ Europe/ The Allied Forces, the liberty ships of supplies to fight the war in Europe. A Navy Destroyer on each quadrant, North, South, East, and West to guard from the German wolfpack submarines.

A couple of times the wolfpack Nazi submarines would fire torpedoes into the convoy and sink some ships.  Rescue efforts of the sinking ships. 

A couple of times the Navy destroyers would depth charge and wound, damage a German submarine... a couple of times the damaged German submarine would choose to not just sink,.. but surface in the convoy and shoot it out to damage as many of the ships as they could.  Dad saw several of his ship mates gun crews hit by submarine deck gunfire, wounded and killed; it was his birth to combat; he never forgot this. 

... seeing some men killed by gunfire. My Mom said he promised a prayer... if you let me live through this I promise I will never take another drink...Mom said he broke his promise and was forever cursed w/ drinking.

A WWII Marine that drinks too much; Go figure.

Those were the few times Dad opened up to me about his WWII hitch in the Marines. I was lucky to hear that; he never spoke about that after that summer traveling doing construction work w/ him. Now... I think there was so much bottled up in him that he wanted to talk about, to vent... and I hear about other families where the Veteran Grandads hesitatingly spoke about their tales... it disturbed those guys so much... honor them and write down their stories; we owe then no less. 

Iceland Marine -1942 to 1945- Ssgt John E. Whitmire, USMC picture at Quantico, VA March 1945 enroute to the Pacific theater 

All of you Veterans were named "The Greatest Generation" and not by mistake. When the world faced an evil force Y'all raised your right hand and swore an oath to protect our Constitution and defend a nation. ... and other nations too!. Y'all confronted and defeated that darkness. We thank you and are proud of ALL our Veterans!