Today in Military History 16 February

 1512 Battle at Valeggio: French troops beat Venetianen OTD

1646 Battle of Great Torrington, Devon - the last major battle of the first English Civil War OTD

1760 Native American hostages killed in Fort Prince George, South Carolina OTD

1804 US Navy Lt Stephen Decatur raids Tripoli Harbor & burns Navy frigate "Philadelphia"  OTD

1846 Battle of Sobraon ends 1st Sikh War in India OTD

1862  American Civil War: General Ulysses S. Grant captures Fort Donelson, Tennessee. W

1864 Battle of Mobile, Alabama  OTD

1894 British troops occupy Ilorin, Gold Coast OTD

1916 Russian troops conquer the Ottoman Empire city of Erzurum during WWI OTD

1934 Austrian Civil War ends with the defeat of the Social Democrats and the Republican Schutzbund OTD

1940 British search plane finds German supply ship Altmark OTD

1942 – World War II: In Athens, the Greek People's Liberation Army is established 

   Audio from BBC of action

1942 William Thomas Gould was 27 years old, and a petty officer in the Royal Navy during the Second World War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC

When after dark the submarine surfaced, two unexploded bombs were discovered in the gun-casing. Petty Officer Gould and Lieutenant Peter Scawen Watkinson Roberts volunteered to remove the bombs, which were of a type unknown to them. They removed the first one without too much difficulty, but the second bomb had penetrated the side plating of the gun emplacement, and then the deck casing above the pressure hull.

Roberts and Gould entered the confined space (which was no more than 2 feet (61 cm) high in places), and lying flat, wormed past deck supports, battery ventilators, and drop bollards. The petty officer then lay on his back with the 150 lb bomb in his arms while the lieutenant dragged him along by the shoulders. "It was then a matter of the two of us, lying horizontally, pushing and pulling the bomb back through the casing. It was pitch black and the bomb was making this horrible ticking noise while the submarine was being buffeted by the waves". They pushed and dragged the bomb for a distance of some 20 feet (6.1 m) until it could be lowered over the side. Every time the bomb was moved there was a loud twanging noise as of a broken spring which added nothing to their peace of mind. Thrasher was surfaced, stationary, and close inshore to enemy waters. If the submarine was forced to crash dive while they were in the casing, they must have been drowned. It was 50^] minutes before they got the bomb clear, wrapped it in sacking, and dropped it over the side. W

On 16 February 1942 north of Crete, in the Mediterranean, HM Submarine Thrasher, after attacking and sinking a supply ship, was itself attacked. Thrasher was subjected to a three-hour depth charge attack and aerial bombing.

Later, after surfacing, two unexploded bombs were discovered in the gun-casing. Lieutenant Roberts and a petty officer (Thomas William Gould) removed the first one without too much difficulty, but the second bomb had penetrated the side plating of the gun emplacement, and then the deck casing above the pressure hull. Roberts and Gould entered the confined space (which was no more than 2 ft high in places), and lying flat, wormed past deck supports, battery ventilators, and drop bollards. The petty officer then lay on his back with the 100 lb bomb in his arms while the lieutenant dragged him along by the shoulders. Meanwhile, Thrasher was surfaced, stationary, and close inshore to enemy waters. If the submarine was forced to crash dive, both men would drown. It was 40 minutes before they got the bomb clear, wrapped it in sacking, and dropped it over the side

1943 Withdrawing Afrika Korps reaches Mareth-line in North Africa OTD

1943 World War II: The USSR retakes Kharkov OTD

1944 Major Charles Ferguson Hoey was awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions this day

    "In BURMA, on the 16th February, 1944, Major Hoey's company formed part of a force which was ordered to capture a position at all costs. After a night march through enemy-held territory, the force was met at the foot of the position by machine gun fire. Major Hoey personally led his company under heavy machine gun and rifle fire up to the objective. Although wounded at least twice in the leg and head, he seized a Bren gun from one of his men and, firing from the hip, led his company into the objective. In spite of his wounds the company had difficulty in keeping up with him, and Major Hoey reached the enemy strong post first, where he killed all the occupants before being mortally wounded. Major Hoey's outstanding gallantry and leadership, his total disregard of personal safety and his grim determination to reach the objective resulted in the capture of this vital position." LG

1945 16/17 February at Kanlan Ywathit, Burma (now Myanmar), Jemadar Prakash Singh Chib was commanding a platoon which took the main weight of fierce enemy attacks. He was wounded in both ankles and relieved of his command, but when his second-in-command was also wounded, he crawled back and took command of his unit again, directing operations and encouraging his men. He was wounded in both legs a second time but he continued to direct the defense, dragging himself from place to place by his hands. When wounded a third time and final time, he lay shouting the Dogra war-cry, "Jawala Mata Ki Jai! [Victory to Goddess Jawala!]" as he succumbed to his wounds, inspiring his company that finally drove off the enemy W

1945 US forces land on Corregidor OTD

1945 Venezuela declares war on Nazi Germany OTD

1986 French air force bombs Ouadi Doum airport in Chad OTD

2006 The last Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) is decommissioned by the United States Army OTD