Battledetective

the online file-cabinet of World War Two historian Tom! Battledetective.com presents case files with the findings of numerous Combat Scene Investigations and fact checking of battlefield myths and military history publications.

Battledetective.com conducts thorough and meticulous researches on historical battlefields as if the results were intended to be presented as evidence in a criminal court.

Battledetective.com offers visitors online access to:

Case Files with forensic discoveries on controversial incidents during combat;
Battle Studies of historical events, mostly of a local and individual nature;
Battle Relics, describing historical artifacts with their stories;
Now & Then Photo's, comparing historical images with the current locations;
Historical Documents, such as Unit After Action Reports, records and photographs;
Miscellaneous links and stories, focusing on keeping the memory of battle alive, related websites and personal accounts.

The Battle of Arnhem is headline news in Clarksville, Tennessee
on September 22, 1944

American paratroopers
colorized (l.) and reenacted (r.)

Some examples of what you'll find on Battledetective.com:

Royal Netherlands Army reservists shortly before the 1940 Nazi invasion of Holland

Commemoration

Links

Detectives

Battledetective.com is specialized in the battles of the Allied Expeditionary Forces in the December 7th, 1941 (Attack on Pearl Harbor) to May 8th, 1945 (Victory in Europe) timeframe in general, with a focus on the battles in the European Theater of Operations of the units making up the First Allied Airborne Army.

With its office based near the Area of Operations of the First Allied Airborne Army during Operation "Market Garden" in September 1944, Battledetective.com gives special attention to incidents related to that specific unit and combat operations in this particular region.

Policy
Battledetective.com strives for finding the truth in the investigations it carries out. In the event visitors have conflicting ideas about discoveries presented here, we encourage them to contact us and compare notes.

Images
Most images used on this site were acquired through the public domain.
Photos marked "(c) Battledetective.com" were taken by Battle Detective staff photographers unless otherwise noted.

Literally uncovering history (top r.).
Today, only the tops of 6 ft. concrete inverted half arcs can be seen on the edge of the beach in the Normandy
town of Bernières-sur-Mer (top l.). These arcs were built by the French well before the war but "adorned"
with barbed wire by the Germans as part of their anti-invasion measures of
the Atlantik Wall (below l.) but it didn't stop the Canadians in the early morning of June 6th 1944 (below r.).

A striking resemblance, although not when comparing the Now & Then locations,
but of Dutch civilians meeting the paratroopers on the Drop Zone.
Left: 501st veteran Bill Priest looks up at miller Mark Dwarswaard, shortly after the jump of the
WWII Airborne Demonstration Team near Eerde, September 17th 2004.
Right: Johan, Wim and Anneke van Nostrum greet Airborne soldiers on the edge of the Drop
Zone of Son, September 17th 1944.

Another striking resemblance, on (almost) the same location, in Son, Holland.
Left: Battle Detective Tom stands in for the Tommy gun toting trooper giving candy to Anneke van Nostrum,
who, in turn, was played by one of the youngest members of the Yank Reenactment group.
Right: The original and completely developed US Army Signal Corps Photo.
For more recreated period photographs, visit this Now&Then-page.

Unlike the investigator in the illustration pictured above, battledectives maintain

a professional attitude, reflecting this website's commitment to uncovering the truth

and respecting those who lost their lives on the battlefield.

(Effective January 1st, 2008 Battledetective.com conducts its investigations and prepares its reports of case files

in accordance with Chapter 14 of War Department FM 19-20, dated April 1945)