Close Menu
    Germany

    Bicycle – Can You Put a Gun on It? – WW2 Special



    “Bicycling to victory! Soldiers were moved by trucks and trains to the front, transported on the backs of tanks and armoured vehicles into combat. But sometimes they also went by using the good old bicycle. Pedaling over the paved roads of Western Europe and East Asia, specialised bicycle-companies surprised through mobility and independence. Bikes were comparatively cheap to mass produce and did not need fuel nor fodder. So they proved a real alternative to those nations, that had to budget their oil resources.”

    Join us on Patreon: https://bit.ly/SPECIAL_085_DE
    Or join the TimeGhost Army directly at: https://timeghost.tv/signup/

    Check out our TimeGhost History YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/timeghost
    Between 2 Wars: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrG5J-K5AYAU1R-HeWSfY2D1jy_sEssNG

    Follow WW2 Day by Day on Instagram: @ww2_day_by_day
    Follow TimeGhost History on Instagram: @timeghosthistory
    Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TimeGhostHistory/

    Hosted by: Indy Neidell
    Director: Astrid Deinhard
    Producers: Astrid Deinhard and Spartacus Olsson
    Executive Producers: Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
    Creative Producer: Marek Kamiński
    Community Management: Ian Sowden
    Written by: Indy Neidell
    Research by: Indy Neidell
    Map animations by: Daniel Weiss
    Map research by: Sietse Kenter
    Edited by: Lucas Aimo
    Artwork and color grading by: Mikołaj Uchman
    Sound design by: Marek Kamiński

    Source literature list: http://bit.ly/WW2sources

    Archive footage: Screenocean/Reuters – https://www.screenocean.com

    Image sources:
    Finnish wartime Photograph Archive
    Library and Archives Canada
    Imperial War Museum
    NHK

    Soundtracks from Epidemic Sound:
    Question – Million Eyes
    Disciples of Sun Tzu – Christian Andersen
    Weapon of Choice – Fabien Tell
    Trapped in a Maze – Philip Ayers
    Beware of Traps – The Fly Guy Five
    Not Safe Yet – Gunnar Johnsen
    Chasing Snakes – Martin Landstrom

    A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.

    Share.
    View 33 Comments

    33 Comments

    1. @WorldWarTwo on

      Join the TimeGhost Army: https://bit.ly/SPECIAL_085_PI

      When many people think about World War Two, they think about trucks, tanks, and aircraft. In reality, the conflict includes much more horses and bicycles. This is a fascinating and crucial aspect of The Second World War, and one that does not receive anywhere near enough attention. Thank you to everyone in the TimeGhost Army that allow us fully cover every aspect of this war.

      Read our community guidelines before commenting: https://community.timeghost.tv/t/rules-of-conduct/4518

    5. @DosJof5118 on

      I like the tie. I'm retired U.S. Air Force and served as a Loadmaster on the venerable C-130 Hercules. I am also an avid cyclist and would take a bike in my cargo compartment so as to explore wherever we were when in crew rest. Life is good for the old retired Air Force guy.

    6. @dirtcop11 on

      With gas prices going up we may see more people riding bicycles. During WWII bicycles were used by a lot of people in the US. It was common for people to deliver telegrams by bicycle.

    9. @glypnir on

      Maybe the famous Swiss bicycle infantry helped keep them out of those pesky wars. Could be trouble in the future – they apparently disbanded in 2001.

    17. @Meleeman011 on

      after riding my bicycle close to 40 miles from my hometown to a major city, i began to wonder if someone could use a bicycle for a military purpose since it was so quiet and able to go on less traveled roads while also extending the range of a human being significantly without much fatigue, and able to carry a lot more stuff. when getting troops to a front line, relatively quickly and quietly a bicycle makes a lot of sense, as long as you can stay hidden

    21. @ursulcx299 on

      An interesting fact about bike and smuggling papers for the resistance, Gino Bartali, one of the Italian champions of the 30ies (Winning the Tour de France in 1938 among other things) and used by Mussolini's Italy as a symbol of the strong Italian men would train up in the mountain and avoid control using his fame and giving out autographs to German and Italian troops. He'd go up to a monastery and deliver false paper to help Jew flee to Switzerland something that wasnt seen as suspicious as he had a reputation for being a devout Catholic (Rumours had him use holy water instead of regular water during race and he had a personal confessor following him to races)

    24. @skyden24195 on

      Makes you wonder about what may have been different had there been the equivalent of a modern "mountain-bike," i.e., relatively light-weight but extremely strong and sturdy, extreme-terrain traversing-capable, built-to-go-anywhere-and-endure-the-harshest-of-punishments bicycles.

    25. @bobmetcalfe9640 on

      People were so much more used to bicycles in those days. In the 1930s my father used to cycle 50 miles across the countryside to visit a friend of his and play sports. And then of course he had to bike 50 miles back home. He didn't think anything of it at all. One day on his way back home late at night he actually fell asleep on his bike and was almost killed by a car.

    26. @deeznoots6241 on

      Bicycle infantry, surprisingly effective almost every time they’re used, but its seen as a bit weird so militaries don’t really do much with it

    28. @mawi4112 on

      the last german unit to pass through my town was a bicycle unit in retreat, followed by a giant american convoy on their way to take Kassel

    Leave A Reply