Fighting, in whatever corner of our planet they are, is always a tragedy, and of a much larger scale than it might seem at first glance.
In addition to tens, hundreds or even thousands of lost and mutilated lives, it is also a significant financial loss for the state’s economy and enormous damage to nature.
Unfortunately, in such situations, we can not always imagine how animals feel in war. For this, we simply do not have enough time or emotions.
But in vain ... Indeed, according to experts, in most cases our smaller brothers do not understand what is happening around, and why the previously safe lawn or the forest edge flooded with sunshine suddenly turned into a dangerous minefield. This means that both wild and domestic animals during the war years require special attention and participation. As the saying goes, we are actually responsible for those we tamed.
Although sometimes the situation is such that it is the animals in the war who become valuable scouts, guides, postmen and messengers, thereby helping us humans to survive all the horrors and hardships.
Section 1. Fighting and our smaller brothers
Unfortunately, wars have been waged on earth since the advent of the world. For one reason or another, people have always fought for certain ideals and, most likely, will compete with each other in the future.
But the constant helpers of mankind in the war for thousands of years have been and remain animals. It so happened that at first only wild bees participated in the battles, released from special barrels against the enemy, but with a toughening of tactics of warfare, the list of warring animals was constantly growing.
Many people know about what an invaluable contribution to the Victory animals made in the Great Patriotic War. True, these were mainly dogs that saved several tens of thousands of soldiers' lives. However, over time, cats, bats, and even seals with dolphins learned to “fight”.
Animal heroes of the war is a topic that can be discussed indefinitely. Let's try to give a few examples, thereby tracing the history, starting from the time of ancient conquests.
Section 2. Elephants and Horses - Warriors of the Past
Even in ancient times, during the clashes in India, Persia, and Southeast Asia, the so-called war elephants were used. It is known that initially the famous commander Hannibal crossed with them through the Alps. Subsequently, war elephants truly became deadly weapons. Before the battle, they were fed with aphrodisiacs and wine, after which the animals lost their mind and, from pain and fear, threw themselves at everyone who arose on their way. Shame on those years can be considered the fact that, as soon as the elephant got out of obedience, a special metal stake was hammered into his head, which led to a "quick" death.
From the books and stories of our grandparents, we know that animals that played a leading role during the war are horses. Moreover, they were used not only during the Second World War to transport the wounded and killed, but also in distant antiquity, several millennia ago.
Section 3. Unusual assistant. A baboon named Jackie
Animals in war are very different. So, for example, in 1915, one of the soldiers of Britain asked for permission to take a domestic baboon with him to the war. The monkey named Jackie, thanks to her demeanor, in a short time became the mascot of the infantry regiment and had her own uniform.
Pavian saluted the senior officers, ate with a fork and knife, participated in battles and crawled along trenches, smoked tobacco in a pipe for soldiers and was able to figure out the enemy at a very great distance. And when the owner was wounded (a bullet pierced his shoulder), Jackie licked his wound right before the doctors arrived. Three years later, he was wounded in the right leg (the monkey at that time was building a barrage of stone fragments!), Which had to be amputated.
After recovering, Jackie received the rank of corporal and was awarded a medal for courage. Baboon, as a lawful military man, received a pension.
Section 4. Military Pigeons
In the war, the little carrier named Mary was very distinguished. During the hostilities, she made four flights from France to England and back with military notes. The dove was wounded three times in its missions, and after the attack of the falcon, Mary's wing and chest were damaged. The bird has 22 stitches.
The second dove, Winky, saved the whole crew of the ship, stranded in the North Sea after the bombing. The commander released the dove with the hope that she would inform her of the attack. Winky flew 120 miles and completed the task. After 15 minutes, air forces found the ship.
Section 5. The most devoted animals in the war: dogs
A certain Newfoundland named Simpleton was simply surrendered to the Canadian military. Initially, raising a puppy, they did not even imagine what kind of service he would serve them after some time. The thing is that later this dog participated with them in the defense of Hong Kong. When an enemy soldier threw a grenade into the military trench, the dog grabbed the unfortunate object in the teeth and ran towards the enemy. Unfortunately, saving the lives of children, she exploded with a shell.
Pointer Judy was practically considered an employee of the ship. The dog grew up on the ship, a certain amount of money was allocated for its feeding and treatment almost from its very birth. And, as it later turned out, not in vain. It was she who first noticed the raid of Japanese aviation. After the sinking of the ship, the dog sailed only on the second day to an uninhabited island, where the ship’s crew had landed earlier, and almost immediately opened a spring with fresh water. Later, she and the crew were captured and spent four years there. By the way, not everyone knows that Judy was the only official captive animal.
Animals in the Great Patriotic War also played an important role. So, for example, the Irma Shepherd of the East European breed helped to find the wounded under the rubble. Thanks to her, the lives of 191 soldiers were saved, for which her mistress, a resident of one of the villages of the Kursk region, was awarded an award.
Section 6. Ginger Anti-aircraft gun
The animal heroes of the Great Patriotic War were very different, but all of them, from small pigeons to large and hardy horses, worked for the benefit of the Victory. Of course, the most common and common helpers were dogs. However, it’s definitely not worth attributing all the glory to them.
In Belarus in 1944, the military picked up a red kitten, which the foreman almost immediately called Ryzhik. During the bombing, the cat always disappeared somewhere and appeared only when everything calmed down. A peculiarity was noticed behind Ryzhik: a minute before the enemy raid, the kitten growled muffled to the side, from where the enemy later appeared. In April 1945, when the war was almost over, Ryzhik again began to growl deafly. The military trusted his instinct and brought the equipment into combat alertness. A minute later, a hawk appeared with a train of smoke, and immediately after it an enemy plane. The military immediately shot down the enemy in two stages, and he fell half a kilometer from the place of deployment of the soldiers. After the war ended, Ryzhik was taken home by the foreman-Belarusian.
Of course, this is far from an isolated case. During World War II, cats were often taken aboard submarines. Thanks to their natural instinct and perfect hearing, they almost always succeeded in preventing the attacks of the enemy in time and thereby save many lives.
Section 7. Memorial in London
It is unlikely that there will be someone who will deny an indisputable fact, indicating that the animal heroes of the Great Patriotic War, as, in principle, the Second World War, and all others, played an important role in the events and in the successful completion of hostilities aimed at the liberation of his state from a daring, cynical and bloodthirsty enemy.
That is why not so long ago, in 2004, it was decided to establish a special memorial for such animals. Now he is in London near Hyde Park, and created by an Englishman named D. Backhouse.
The memorial is dedicated to the memory of all animals that served and died in human battles. Now the figures of many animals are visible on the monument, and the images of two mules, a horse, a dog, a camel, an elephant, an ox, a cow, a cat, a dolphin and carrier pigeons are most striking . The inscription that says: "They had no choice."