It was September 20, 1911 and RMS Olympic, the largest ocean liner in the world, was on its fifth voyage between the ports of Southampton and New York when she was struck in the side by the Royal Navy protected cruiser HMS Hawke. Surprisingly, not only did neither ship sink, but there was no loss of life. Still, the accident had surprising ramifications that deserve to be remembered.
By September of 1944, the Western Allies had broken out of the Normandy beachehead, and suddenly and quickly moved across northern France . By September 7th, the 90th division was stretched across the northern sector on Patton’s Third Army’s left, advancing slowly northeast. As they did so the German defenders made a risky attack in an effort to spoil the allied advance, cutting through Allied lines in a surprise action at the small town of Mairy-Mannville.