His comrades called him “Killer.” Of the elite paratroopers who served in the venerated “Band of Brothers” during the Second World War, none were more enigmatic than Ronald Speirs. Rumored to have gunned down enemy prisoners and even one of his own disobedient sergeants, Speirs became a foxhole legend among his troops. But who was the real Lieutenant Speirs?
In Fierce Valor, historians Jared Frederick and Erik Dorr unveil the fuller story of Easy Company’s longest-serving commander. Tested by trials of extreme training, military rivalry, and lost love, Speirs’s international odyssey begins as an immigrant child in Prohibition-era Boston and continues through the bloody campaigns of France, Holland, and Germany. But 1945 did not mark an end to Speirs’s military adventures. Uncovered by sharp scholarship, his lesser-known exploits in Korea, the Cold War, and embattled Laos also come to light for the first time.
Packed with groundbreaking research, Fierce Valor unveils a compelling portrait of an officer defined by boldness on the battlefield and the inherent costs of war. His story serves as a telling reminder that few soldiers escape the power of their own pasts.
HOST: Rob Mellon
FEATURED BREW: Paratrooper Porter, Veterans United Craft Brewery, Jacksonville, Florida
BOOK: Fierce Valor: The True Story of Ronald Speirs and his Band of Brothers
https://www.amazon.com/Fierce-Valor-Ronald-Speirs-Brothers/dp/1684511992/ref=sr_1_1?crid=DOBN07CXN24B&keywords=jared+frederick&qid=1660187675&sprefix=jared+freder%2Caps%2C449&sr=8-1
MUSIC: https://bonesfork.com/