Most Obese, Tallest and Shortest Soldiers in War

foreign the giant German Soldier World War II Jacob Naughton was born in 1906 in Dusseldorf Germany it was not surprising that he grew up to be incredibly tall as both his mother and father were over six feet tall in fact tallness seemed to run in the family the Jacob's younger sister and brother both grew up to be over six feet and his older brother was a massive six foot seven inches the Jacob crew to be the true giant of the family growing to a colossal seven foot three inches though some newspapers would claim his true height was nearer to seven foot eight when Jacob was a teenager there was mass unemployment in post-world war one Germany after World War One Germany was forced to pay for the material losses which threw the country into a violent economic crisis so young Jakob took advantage of his unique appearance to find a job in the show business and leave the country traveling with a German traveling circus around Europe at first he was known by the stage name of Uranus after the Greek god of the sky but then he was more and more billed as the Giant from the Rhineland and would spend nearly the next 20 years traveling all over Europe often headlining as Germany's tallest man he married a five foot eight inch tall girl from Belgium and seemed to be content with his minor celebrity status as a comical curiosity attraction in a circus show he was often dressed as a cowboy or gentleman in a top hat and tails for the crowd's amusement in his shows and he was accompanied by a child dressed as an adult in order to exaggerate his height even further knocking would have to wear size 17 boots as an adult and would constantly get bruises on his head from hitting the tops of doorways but in 1939 Jacob cut short his visit to the New York Trade Fair a year-long event showcasing the finest in business Innovation and returned home to join the army with Germany prepared to go to war like many Germans at the time he returned from abroad out of patriotism rather than ideology there's no proof that Jacob was ever a Nazi or agreed with their radical views once he joined the German Army he officially became their tallest Soldier by this time he was 34 years old which was considered to be too old at the start of the war for Frontline service in the Infantry so he was assigned to an anti-tank crew who spent the war doing Garrison Duty far away from the action he never saw a Frontline service during those years so his biggest challenge was to find a pair of trousers that fit him but in the summer of 1944 he found himself stationed on the defensive line surrounding the strategically important French Port of Calais the reason this port was so important was that it was only around 21 miles from the English Coastline and therefore the most obvious point for any Allied invasion of Europe when D-Day began on June 6th along the shoreline of Normandy several hundred miles away Hitler first thought it was a trick and that the real Invasion would still happen at Cala in fact the Allies encouraged Hitler into believing this through a series of deceptions and operation bodyguard so Jacob remained in the heavily fortified bunkers waiting for an attack that never happened a month later he and his anti-tank crew found themselves along with the rest of the Calais Garrison cut off and surrounded by the Allied Forces Jacob's units surrendered without a fight to an advancing Canadian Brigade ironically he was pictured surrendering to a Corporal named Eldon Bob Roberts who was just five foot three inches tall this made headline news in both American and British newspapers and newsreels at the time is Jacob towered over the Canadian soldier who was a full two feet smaller than him it was only in 2010 that the giant man on the photograph was identified as being Jacob nagam Jacob was subsequently sent to Britain as a prisoner of war where he remained for over a year after being found to have no involvement in any war crimes and with the war being over he was released he returned to his hometown of Dusseldorf in Germany but not to the family home as it had been destroyed in an Allied bombing raid during the war thankfully none of his family had been killed he spent the next four years doing various jobs including work as a receptionist in the local British Officers Club but in 1949 he and his wife decided to leave Germany and immigrated to America where most of his family had gone to live he was sponsored by his father's employer there a local car dealership and at first lived with his sister in New Jersey would move there just after the war he was Keen to get back into circus life and got himself a job with an American traveling circus when he was wrongly billed as the tallest man in the world but now Jacob was in his mid-40s and was disillusioned with circus life complaining about the long hours and being away for extended periods from his wife who had stayed behind in their apartment in New York so he left the circus after just one season and started a new job as a novelty Santa Claus now he was advertised as being the tallest Santa in the world Jacob then went on to appear on several television shows and made a living under the stage name of Germany's long Jake for the next 10 years his last engagement was starring in the Broadway version of Ripley's Believe It or Not then he chose to retire from show business at the age of 53. though he did still occasionally make public appearances for instance in 1961 Jacob dressed in the white uniform and head of a chef helping a department store celebrate its anniversary sale by serving free food to customers Jacob later returned to Germany and lived to the ripe old age of 81 dying in 1987. this may have been surprising because of his height though yaka was incredibly tall he was not by far the tallest man this title officially belonged to an American called Robert Wadlow from Missouri he was as tall as Jacob by the time he was 13. [Music] obese soldiers in the military combat is physically strenuous and to make sure that their armed forces are operating at their fullest potential militaries Around the World require precise standards for the health and fitness of their service men and women sometimes however the healthiest and fittest individuals are not always available when the armed services are forced to recruit those who are not at their Peak physically although rare overweight Warriors have been fighting for Millennia in ancient Rome gladiators were fed high amounts of barley gruel specifically to put on the pounds the extra mass acting as a built-in body armor to protect them from the swords of their opponents in the arena centuries later after getting badly injured in a jousting accident the once bit an athletic King Henry VIII of England became immobile and began piling on the pounds until he weighed in at about 400 pounds together with a 52-inch waist and had to have specially crafted armor made to accommodate his mighty frame and even a custom-built wooden platform to enable them to mount his War Horse overall the majority of those engaged in combat endured lives of hard physical labor and a limited caloric intake in the major Wars of the 20th century one of the main issues with recruitment during these times was under weight soldiers during both world wars thousands of conscripts and volunteers were rejected for being under nourished the fear being that these men would not have the strength stamina or sheer physical capabilities needed to perform the arduous duties of a soldier when recruits did arrive for basic training those who were overweight quickly shed the pounds during the second world war it was recognized that an average man of military age would require about 2 400 calories a day without engaging in any activity the energy requirements then spiking due to the physical necessities of military service countless miles of marching hauling upwards of 60 pounds of equipment around running shooting and the Myriad of other metabolically taxing situations soldiers may find themselves in though the exact makeup and nutritional value required varied from country to country most militaries tried to issue their soldiers between 3 500 and 4 700 calories a day even with these seemingly High caloric rations it was not uncommon for those carrying the extra pounds to lose the excess weight while in service if a potential recruit was severely obese he would almost certainly be rejected from service on medical grounds as someone who was that unfit was going to be more of a liability than an asset there were some exceptions to this though during both World Wars the industrial scale of the conflicts forced entire nations to mobilize citizens from all walks of life were sent off to fight for their Homeland and the majorly overweight were no exception in Britain for example former service members aged 41 to 55 were organized into the Home Guard many of these men were Veterans of the Great War and were familiar with the rigors of army life but with two decades between service their most Physically Active days were behind them these middle-aged men were eager to put on a uniform again but many of them were more rotund than the last time they had worn one these men were not expected to fight The Only Exception being if the island was invaded they were not subject to the same PT requirements of their younger peers who would see Frontline service instead they busy themselves with anti-aircraft duties guarding airfields and other installations and manned Beach defenses none of these tasks required significant caloric expenditure likewise across the English Channel the German military was also forced to utilize the overweight after suffering Titanic losses especially on the Eastern Front the Germans called up those who were less physically fit to fill the ranks that were rapidly being depleted it's difficult to get exact figures but pictorial evidence shows overweight soldiers in Vermont uniforms almost certainly on Garrison Duty where they did not have to face the high energy expenditure of their front-line comrades like their British counterparts these duties included Manning anti-aircraft guns Garrison Duty especially in occupied territories and monitoring beaches along the Atlantic Wall by putting these out-of-shaped men in these locations Physically Active soldiers were freed up to fight on the front lines elsewhere While most overweight soldiers were sent to rear Echelon duties there were some exceptions to this rule during the Vietnam war the American Military deliberately placed at risk those that would normally be considered unfit for service officially known as project 100 000 and more cynically referred to as McNamara's morons this was a deliberate attempt to place less than capable individuals in combat roles the majority of the unwinning participants in this program were men of a lower IQ and with limited mental faculties but also consisted of a number of men who were both underweight and overweight by military standards for those who were overweight they could be up to 20 percent heavier than the normal standards would allow in order for the experiment to run properly these men would be treated to the exact same physical standards as their more fit comrades while no doubt some of the men did lose weight under the rigors of military life they would often be assigned additional training called the medically remedial enlistment program in order to correct their physical condition including carrying the extra pounds otherwise performance standards of these recruits were not lowered in any way or the experiment that was Project 100 000 would be invalidated although there is no information about overweight soldiers and their direct combat performance what is known is that McNamara's morons as a whole suffered casualty rates in excess of twice that of their peers fighting the flap continues to this day and in recent decades many Western countries have experienced a sharp increase in their obesity rate as a result the pool of recruits and Nation could draw upon is increasingly consisting of the overweight and the obese in a recent survey the U.S military has found that 20 percent of male recruits and 40 percent of female recruits are heavier than normal requiring them to lose the pounds before being able to serve their country in spite of this a reported 20 percent of active duty American military personnel are still overweight in Great Britain while not quite as severe approximately one in 10 British Personnel are considered to be exceeding the standards for a healthy BMI or body mass index there are theories as to why this is happening one factor may be the sedentary nature of military service today many tasks are now computerized meaning that the soldier spends a lot of time sitting in front of a computer screen rather than hauling 60 or more pounds of gear through difficult conditions for hours if not days on end exacerbate this issue is the food served on military bases fast food chains often set up shop in or near military bases and they're Often frequented by soldiers stationed nearby their calorie dense menus contributing to this growing problem even combat zones are not safe from the scourge of fast food in 2003 shortly after the invasion of Iraq two popular fast food franchises set up stations at a coalition military base located near Basra and were soon joined by others fast food locations soon sprang up at other American and British bases throughout the country in both Iraq and Afghanistan Coalition soldiers were able to sample their favorite takeaway menus with a myriad of fast food restaurants all ready to serve those in uniform the rationale for having such unhealthy food is that it provides a morale boost for those in the field giving them a taste of home while deployed overseas while the rank and file should ideally be kept in shape the commanders are a different matter entirely during the second world war the commander of Germany's luftwaffe Air Force was reich's Marshall Hermann Brewing who was well known for his flamboyant lifestyle as well as his impressive girth a slim and dashing fighter pilot during the first world war he developed a morphine addiction after recovering from injuries sustained during Adolf Hitler's failed beer hall push in 1923 which contributed to his erratic behavior and mood swings which may have led to his over-indulgence for food and alcohol by the time of the second world war he had ballooned to around 300 pounds though his weight did fluctuate as he would occasionally go on Crash diets to lose the extra pounds something the Allied propaganda program was eager to capitalize on numerous depictions of him and propaganda images show guring as a rotund individual covered in metals a flamboyant character to be made fun of after his capture American guards during the Nuremberg trials referred to him as the fat one even in the modern day there are some commanders who take to the field while obviously totally out of shape in the current war in Ukraine there have been speculative reports of a certain General pubble a retired army officer who Vladimir Putin has recalled to active service in light of the Russian losses and the conflict General Pavel is believed to be a 69-year-old former officer who spent his retirement enjoying the Finer Things in life eating the reported five whole meals a day washing it all down with a liter of vodka I mean it has been reported by certain media Outlets that even the largest size body armor is too small to fit his massive frame requiring two vests spliced together to provide adequate protection it turns out however that reports of General Pavel are grossly exaggerated fact Checkers looked into the Absurd story and it was revealed that Pavel is in fact a 58 year old border patrol officer named Yvonne torchen further research has provided no evidence that he has been sent to Ukraine or has any other involvement in that conflict while General Pavel is a fabrication of the media what is true is the use of obese individuals for propaganda purposes much like Herman guring in the second world war this is a case where an overweight man was lampooned to highlight the absurdity of the opposing side recently many people have expressed concerns about the current obesity epidemic plaguing many societies and the lack of physically fit recruits is seen as a national security issue whether this is true or not history provides many examples of heavyset Warriors whether these individuals serve due to desperation as an experiment in combat Effectiveness or simply the nature of their line of work what is clear is that Warriors can come in all shapes and sizes Richard Flaherty the smallest man to serve in the U.S army in the modern history of the United States armed forces Captain Richard J Flaherty was remembered not only for his Undisputed bravery and determination but also for his distinctive stature the Giant Killer as his comrades and arms called him was the smallest man to serve the military of the United States with a height of only four feet nine inches and weighing just 97 pounds he wasn't even supposed to enter the force the Army was his life's dream though and he was determined to make it happen in contrary to other people's opinions Flaherty's short stature marked his entire life starting from Early Childhood he was lucky to be born at all his mother's blood problems caused a hormonal disbalance and it almost cost Richard his life as a baby this problem ultimately resulted in his stunted growth when Flaherty became a teenager the issue became an enormous burden for him he had to put up with constant staring in school and was often mistaken as a freshman when he was a senior Flaherty was aware of his height and did everything in his power to overcome it by becoming stronger engaged in practicing martial arts he would often spend time breaking wooden boards or hitting bricks with his bare hands it was as if even at that point in his life he knew his Destiny was to be a fearsome Warrior Upon finishing High School the opportunity came for his wish to come true to join the US Army he desperately wanted to do his patriotic Duty and serve in the Vietnam war that was raging in Asia at the time the problem was that the Army's minimum height requirement was five feet Flaherty was three inches short but big on confidence and determination to get in after reaching out to his congressman who passed his wish onto an unknown three-star General Flaherty was allowed to enter the initial entry training at Fort Jackson North Carolina problems regarding his stature followed Flaherty in the Army as well upon showing up on the first day of his course on the inspection line he was welcomed by the drill sergeant with the words what the heck is this Flaherty already knew he would have to work twice as hard as anyone else to break everyone's prejudices it was to the amazement of the drill sergeants and other recruits that Flaherty AKA private Mighty Mouse always ended up in the top five position on all the courses when he was supposed to climb over the wooden wall obstacle he would do it with the help of a sharpened screwdriver with the same swiftness as the other soldiers besides the various obstacles Flaherty also had to fight with the disdain of other recruits who found him unworthy to be a soldier only after he showed his teeth in a fight against a recruit twice as large who always picked on him did he earn the respect he fully deserved from his peers it was only thanks to his powerful will that Flaherty finished the basic and advanced infantry course and earned an offer to enter the officer candidate school at Fort Benning Georgia after graduating from OCS including the jump School Flaherty was sent to Fort Campbell Kentucky home to one of the most legendary units of the U.S army the 101st Airborne Division from there in December 1967 just prior to the Ted offensive Flaherty went to Vietnam deployed at the bianhua air base in Vietnam Flaherty was engaged as a platoon leader on Search and Destroy missions it was a remarkably tough job with days spent in the Deep Jungle setting up ambushes and hunting down the enemy Flaherty and the men from his platoon like the rest of the 101st Airborne were always in the center of the action in accordance with his personality Flaherty was always there to leave at one point he was even wounded from gunfire and grenade shrapnel but recovered and went back into the action fighting like there was no tomorrow like everything else in his life Flaherty even fought a war his own way he did all he could do to overcome his lack of height to drive an old ambulance truck he fitted the pedals with wooden blocks so he could reach them he could barely see over the wheel but that didn't stop him from doing his duty for his gallantry shown in combat Flaherty earned his highest decoration the Silver Star medal on early April 19 1968 second Lieutenant Flaherty third platoon leader along with the officers of company C first Battalion 501st Infantry Regiment was presented with operation Delaware Flaherty's unit was tasked with blocking the enemy's supply routes to the oshaw valley where primary operations were conducted Flaherty had already seen some Fierce combat by this time but this operation was especially intense company C faced a determined enemy the NVA were fighting on mass and Flaherty and his men were pushing them back only thanks to the support of artillery Flaherty was determined not to give in and he encouraged his men to fight it was April 20th the second day of the operation several soldiers from the company were lost Behind Enemy Lines from the previous day it seemed like they were lost for good but not to Flaherty he wanted to show that no man was to be left behind a pure example of leadership he ordered his men to bring over the body of a dead NVA Soldier the smallest one they could find Flaherty stripped the uniform from the dead enemy and put it on along with a helmet to cover his face as a disguise grabbed an AK-47 and crawled over towards the Lost men under the cover of night he passed by enemy NVA and gathered the lost American soldiers for once his height was of great use only thanks to Flaherty being short and brave were five soldiers saved from certain death later that day company C continued attacking the enemy positions the NBA threw everything they had at them at one point the company got pinned down by automatic fire from an enemy bunker any further progress would have been impossible until it was eliminated Flaherty maneuvered his men to outflank the enemy after exposing himself to enemy fire several times he reached a position that gave him a clear view of the emplacement then called for a 90 millimeter recoilless rifle team to his position Flaherty directed The Fire towards the bunker and destroyed it therefore relieving pressure on his unit company C then continued with its attack and accomplished its mission from that point on there was absolutely no doubt that Richard Flaherty was among one of the best the 101st Airborne had he was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant and recommended for the Silver Star medal which he later received Flaherty's wishes were however connected to another unit the Green Berets after he finished his Tour of Duty Flaherty decided to do what seemed to be impossible and attempt to join the U.S elite special forces the Green Berets first he had to get yet another height waiver before being allowed to apply but his determination paid off he got through the punishing selection process with flying colors the following year he was back in Vietnam engaged in Special Operations Behind Enemy Lines this period of his service was shrouded in mystery but what is known is that he received a rank of Captain two bronze medals and two purple hearts for combat wounds in the early 1970s the Armed Forces of the United States were struck by a notorious reduction in force the first to be ousted were the captains and lieutenants and Flaherty was one of them in 1971 he became jobless Richard returned home to New York where he was welcomed by family and friends as a hero it was a moment of Joy but also the beginning of Flaherty's downfall he tried to start a life as a civilian by getting a job and even went to study at the University of Miami this whole new life was however too tough for him it all went downhill in 1975 when his fiancee died Flaherty returned to doing what he knew best but his later life is mainly shrouded in mystery but there are people who witnessed his engagements in Africa working for private contractors and as an agent working for the CIA and DEA somehow in the early 1990s Flaherty ended up in Evan tour a homeless shelter in Florida in the early hours of the morning of May 9 2015 Flaherty was killed in Miami by a hit and run driver Captain Richard Flaherty was a hero cut from the Army to which he gave everything he had and more despite his short height he had left a mark on the military as one of the best the 101st Airborne had he was the Giant Killer foreign

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Id: 9l3fHjMHuhE

Length: 25min 38sec (1538 seconds)

Published: Wed Jul 05 2023