World War 2 | War History

An Unexpected Threat to the Success of D-Day: The Clues to a Crossword Puzzle

To end WWII in Europe, the Allies planned a massive assault on Normandy, France, in 1944. Over 5,000 ships, 1,200 planes, and almost 160,000 men…

By Sacrificing Himself Coastguard Douglas Munro Saved 500 Marines From Being Slaughtered

The United States Coast Guard was founded on a tradition of taking small boats into dangerous conditions to save lives. This skill made Coast Guard…

Half Blind Japanese Pilot Flies His Damaged Zero For 5 Hours, Then Refused Medical Attention Before Making His Report

During WWII, Sub-Lieutenant Saburō Sakai served as a naval aviator with the Imperial Japanese Navy. He claimed 64 victories, one of which was made after…

Edward A. Carter, Jr. Received the Medal of Honor for Killing Six Soldiers and Using the Surviving Two as a Bodyshield

Edward Allen Carter Junior was born on May 26th, 1916 in Los Angeles, California. Carter had a unique upbringing. His father was an African-American missionary,…

U-Boat 96, and the film Das Boot

In 1981, a film was released which is still cited as one of Germany’s greatest cinematic triumphs. It followed the exploits of U-96, a German…

Remembering the Reporter Who Dared Confront Emperor Hirohito

Ian Harvey

Koji Nakamura is the reporter who deserves a place in history simply for asking Emperor Hirohito one question. Instead, he has been all but forgotten.…

Mighty WW2 Warships – KMS Admiral Graf Spee in the Battle of the River Plate

On September 1, 1939, while German troops were rolling across the border into Poland, their Navy was sent to raid Allied shipping lanes, much as…

Thaman Gurung, V.C. – grabbing a Bren gun, and as much ammunition as he could carry, he charged up the hill alone

Since their first interactions with the British East India Company in 1814, the Gurkhas are renowned for their bravery and skill in combat. These Nepalese…

John D. Bulkeley’s Daring Evacuation of General Douglas MacArthur on a 77′ PT Boat

The US Navy is best known for its Admirals and battleships. Both are often the most prominent assets in the fleet, but in the Philippines,…

After The Normandy Invasions Came The Long And Bloody Fight For France

The landings in Normandy were a major shock for the Allies even though Operation Overlord, which was the code name for the invasion, was thoroughly…

A Bridge Too Far: The Americans, And The True Story Of The 101st And 82nd In Operation Market Garden

A Bridge Too Far, the film adaptation of Cornelius Ryan’s book of the same name, tells the epic tale of the men who fought through…

Wacko: When An American Submarine Took Out a Japanese Troop Train & Much More in the Pacific in WW2

On the 22nd of January, 1945, 30 Japanese merchant ships sat in Namkwan Harbor, in Southern China. They felt safe in their well-defended home, surrounded…