Learn about WWII History

Explore the critical events related to the war and the personal stories of those who lived through that challenging time.

More history

Hubert Pierlot

Hubert Pierlot, born in Cugnon, Belgium, was Prime Minister of the Belgian government in exile in London from September ...

#Biography

Ilse Schier

The German Ilse Schier spent her childhood and youth in East Prussia, the easternmost part of the German Reich. Her rura...

#Biography

Jenny-Wanda Barkmann

In the last year of the Second World War, Jenny-Wanda Barkmann was a young SS-guard in the German concentration camp Stu...

#Biography

Juan Pujol Garcia - Agent Garbo

Juan Pujol Garcia, known by the British codename Garbo, was a double agent during the Second World War. Pujol played a k...

#Biography

Julius Erasmus

The war took his family and his home. In 1945 Julius Erasmus returned to the Hürtgen Forest. On his own initiative he st...

#Biography

Kapitan Franciszek Dąbrowski

Captain Franciszek Dąbrowski was major Sucharski right-hand man during the defence of the Military Depot at Westerplatte...

#Biography

Captain Mieczysław Słaby

During the German assault on the Westerplatte, Mieczysław Słaby was responsible for treating the wounded. In spite of th...

#Biography

Karl-Heinz Kracht

Karl-Heinz Kracht was a 19 year old German corporal, who first saw action during the Battle of Arnhem. He was the loader...

#Biography

Kees Pouwelse

During the battle for the Scheldt the island of Walcheren was bombed heavily by the Allied air force. The aim of these b...

#Biography

Leo Major

Corporal Leo Major landed in Europe on D-day and took part in every major operation of the 3rd Canadian Infantry Divisio...

#Biography

Major Henryk Sucharski

Major Henryk Sucharski, the commander of the small garrison at Westerplatte, was under orders to thwart the German advan...

#Biography

Manfred Steinfeld

The 14-year-old Jew Manfred Steinfeld fled from Nazi Germany to the USA in 1938. Seven years later he returned with the ...

#Biography

Mark Clark

Mark Clark played a leading role in the Italian Campaign (1943-1945). First he was Commander of the U.S. 5th Army, then ...

#Biography

Melvin Biddle

Melvin ‘Bud’ Biddle was a soft-spoken young man who adored pretty Leona, his childhood sweetheart. War tore him away fro...

#Biography

Nikolai Berzarin

Soviet Colonel-General Nikolai Berzarin commanded the 5th Shock Army during the Berlin campaign that lasted from 16 Apri...

#Biography

Parker A. Alford

As an artillery officer for the U.S. 101st Airborne Division, Parker Alford travelled to Normandy, France, as part of th...

#Biography

Petronela Brywczyńska

The story of Petronela Brywczyńska proves that no one was safe during the war. Petronela’s father, a Polish farmer, was...

#Biography

Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque

In the desperate days of June 1940 captain Philippe de Hauteclocque made his way to London and adopted the war-name of "...

#Biography

Prince Charles of Belgium

Charles of Belgium, brother of King Leopold III, was Regent of Belgium from September 1944 to July 1950. Nine government...

#Biography

Ralph Neumann

Ralph Neumann grew up in Berlin as the son of Jewish parents. In early 1943, the then 16 year old Neumann eluded deporta...

#Biography

René Rossey

During the Second World War the Frenchman René Rossey volunteered for a military career, at first in the Free French For...

#Biography

Robert Cahow

On 13 December 1944, Robert Cahow lost his life in the Hürtgen Forest. He had volunteered to save injured comrades but d...

#Biography

Rose Jakobs

During the Second World War 6 million Jews were murdered across Europe by the German occupiers. Rose Jakobs was a Jewish...

#Biography

Rosie the Riveter

Rosie the Riveter is the symbol for all the women that worked in the war industry during the Second World War. As the me...

#Biography