{"id":2215,"date":"2015-05-07T09:23:16","date_gmt":"2015-05-07T13:23:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/?p=2215"},"modified":"2024-06-25T15:46:12","modified_gmt":"2024-06-25T19:46:12","slug":"american-flags-graduation-first-victim-wwii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/american-flags-graduation-first-victim-wwii\/","title":{"rendered":"Flags at graduation and for first victim of WWII"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Robert<\/a>
Robert Losey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Over the four years of the Second World War, hundreds of thousands of U.S. servicemen were killed. Their bodies and coffins were covered with American flags<\/a>, and Old Glory waved over cemeteries from New Guinea to France.<\/p>\n

But the first casualty, who was killed by a Nazi bomb, occurred nearly two years before Pearl Harbor was attacked and America entered the war.<\/p>\n

The story of Robert Losey begins with his graduation from West Point in 1929. The class of 229 members ended its time in college with much ceremony, including a regimental parade, American flags and the Academy\u2019s crest, created in 1898. The crest appears on banners and flags.<\/p>\n

\"Captain<\/a>
Captain Losey in the cockpit<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Losey transferred to the Air Corps and, based in Washington, D.C., became an expert in aeronautics and meteorology. In January 1940, he was appointed assistant military attach\u00e9 in Helsinki, Finland, where he reported on Russia\u2019s invasion there.<\/p>\n

He soon found himself trapped in a war. Germany had invaded Poland in September 1939 and attacked other nations in 1940, including Sweden and Norway. President Franklin Roosevelt asserted that the incursion was \u201can unlawful exercise of force\u201d and added that \u201cif civilization is to survive, the rights of smaller nations\u2026must be respected.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Losey<\/a>
Losey with U.S. ambassador Florence Harriman and car with flag on top<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Next, Losey was ordered to protect American officials in Scandinavia and guide them to safety. To make sure enemy airplanes knew who they were, he placed an American flag on the roof of his staff car. Nonetheless, he and his charges got caught in a German air attack on Norway. On April 21, 1940, as they ran for protection, a metal shard from one of the bombs pierced his heart, killing him instantly.<\/p>\n

Thus, he became, as newspapers reported, \u201cthe first American casualty of the war,\u201d a conflict the U.S. wouldn\u2019t officially enter for 20 months. In Stockholm, a funeral service, attended by diplomats, was held for Losey, 31. \u201cThe coffin was covered with an American flag,\u201d the United Press reported.<\/p>\n

Germany\u2019s air minister, Hermann Goering, offered regrets to the U.S. government, saying his pilots didn\u2019t know Americans were within range of their bombing, despite the flag-draped auto.<\/p>\n

When Losey\u2019s wife, Kay, was informed of his death, she bravely said, \u201cIt\u2019s war. I guess you must expect almost anything.\u201d Then she collapsed.<\/p>\n

A month later, her husband\u2019s remains were returned to the U.S. He was buried in the cemetery at West Point after a flag-bedecked service in the Academy chapel.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Over the four years of the Second World War, hundreds of thousands of U.S. servicemen were killed. Their bodies and coffins were covered with American flags, and Old Glory waved over cemeteries from New Guinea to France. But the first casualty, who was killed by a Nazi bomb, occurred nearly two years before Pearl Harbor… continue<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":2217,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[28,288,112],"class_list":["post-2215","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-history-lessons","tag-american-flags","tag-robert-losey","tag-world-war-ii"],"yoast_head":"\nAmerican Flags at graduation and for first victim of WWII<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Over the four years of the Second World War, hundreds of thousands of U.S. servicemen were killed. 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