The immense scope of conflict witnessed in World War II surpassed all previous wars in history. Although the Great War, occurring just over two decades earlier, started global warfare among major powers, World War II unfolded on an unparalleled magnitude. This was apparent not just in the many nations directly engaged in the conflict but also in the overwhelming loss of life it resulted in.
A Luftwaffe pilot who was captured after being shot down by anti-aircraft fire near Weisweiler, Germany during the Battle of Hürtgen Forest in 1944. While his name and fate are unknown, considering the circumstances of his capture in that time and place, he probably survived the war.
Czesława Kwoka
Photo Credit: Wilhelm Brasse / Poeticbent / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
During her internment at Auschwitz , Czesława Kwoka, a 14-year-old Polish Catholic girl, endured unimaginable suffering.
Throughout the Second World War , approximately 230,000 children, the majority of whom were Jewish, tragically perished at the concentration camp.
German battleship Tirpitz
Photo Credit: C. Peter Chen / US Navy / Naval History and Heritage Command / World War II Database / Public Domain
A sailor building a model of Tirpitz while aboard the German battleship.
Tirpitz , the second of two Bismarck -class vessels commissioned for the Kriegsmarine , met her demise when Royal Air Force (RAF) bombers sank her during Operation Catechism on November 12, 1944.
Weeping Parisian
Photo Credit: Office of Emergency Management / Office of War Information / Overseas Operations Branch / New York Office / News and Features Bureau / Life Magazine / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
Life magazine's March 3, 1941 edition depicted a Parisian man shedding tears of patriotism as flags symbolizing his country's lost regiments were sent into exile in Africa.
US Marine after two days of fighting
Photo Credit: US Department of Defense / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
The face of a United States Marine following forty-eight hours of unyielding warfare during the Battle of Eniwetok, a key engagement in the Pacific Theater of World War II in February 1944. Historical documentation indicates his death approximately one month after these harrowing events.
The Crying Boy
Photo Credit: ullstein bild / Getty Images
The face of 16-year-old Hans-Georg Henke, who served as an anti-aircraft soldier during World War II. Part of the Luftwaffe 's anti-air squad, he operated 88 mm guns at a German battery, driven by the need to support his family following the loss of his parents.
Henke asserted that this photo was captured as the Red Army advanced upon his unit. However, an American photographer later contended that it was taken in Hessen, suggesting that the emotion depicted on Henke's face stemmed from the shock of combat induced by the approaching American forces.
Actions have consequences
Photo Credit: Unknown Author / US National Archives / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
German Gen. Anton Dostler being tied to a stake before his execution by firing squad on December 1, 1945. He was convicted of war crimes and sentenced to death by an American military tribunal at the Nuremberg Trials .
Taking a coffee break
Photo Credit: Unknown Author / National Archives and Records Administration / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
Private First Class Faris M. Tuohy savors a mug of coffee aboard a vessel near the Marshall Islands amidst the Battle of Eniwetok in February 1944. After a grueling week of combat, the American troops achieved a decisive triumph against Japan.
Japanese-American veteran being detained
Photo Credit: Clem Albers / U.S. National Archives and Records Administration / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
A US Navy veteran from the First World War is brought to the Temporary Detention Camp for Japanese-Americans in April 1942, a few months after the attack on Pearl Harbor . A total of 97,785 Japanese-Americans were held at internment camps throughout the Second World War.
Elated American pilot
Photo Credit: US Navy / Naval History and Heritage Command / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
Lt. Junior Grade Alexander Vraciu, an aviator with the US Navy, using his fingers to show how many aircraft he downed during the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot in the Battle of the Philippine Sea . This photo was taken aboard the USS Lexington (CV-16).
Women in the cockpit
Photo Credit: US Department of the Air Force / Wikimedia Commons / Unrestricted Use
Elizabeth L. Remba Gardner served as a member of the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) during the Second World War, tasked with ferrying military aircraft. The photograph captures her moments before she began taxiing down the runway at Harlingen Army Airfield, Texas.
Saying 'thank you'
Photo Credit: Tec-5 L. G. Crabtree, U.S. Signal Corps / 3rd Armored Division Public Affairs / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
Tec-4 Elvin Harley from the 3rd Armored Division gets a friendly kiss on the cheek from a French girl while enjoying music played by the 9th Armored Division Band near Aboncourt, France, on February 14, 1945.
Taking a moment
Photo Credit: Unknown Author / National Archives and Records Administration / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
STM2-c James Lee Frazer taking a moment to read a few chapters of the Bible. This photo was taken the day before a raid on Manila Bay in January 1945.
Warsaw Uprising
Photo Credit: Jerzy Tomaszewski / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
Polish Boy Scouts serving with the Radosław Regiment during the Warsaw Uprising , September 1944. Look at the determination on their faces as they fight for Poland's liberation. All three survived the war.
Māori Battalion putting on a ceremonial performance
Photo Credit: Unidentified New Zealand Photographer / Restored by Adam Cuerden / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
Māori Battalion performing a haka in Helwan, Egypt for the King of Greece, July 1941.
Taking a break
Photo Credit: US Army Signal Corps / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
Private Lloyd Culuck from Company A, 1st Battalion, 172nd Infantry Regiment pauses for a meal from a can of Ration B while stationed on New Georgia Island in the Southwest Pacific amidst the New Georgia Campaign. Since his arrival on July 2, 1943, he had not had the opportunity to change his clothes for 12 days, a consequence of the intense combat between American forces and Japan.
Marching through the Ardennes
Photo Credit: German Military Photo / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
German machine gunner marching through the Ardennes during the Battle of the Bulge , December 1944.
Italian wine
Photo Credit: Daventry B J H (Fg Off), Royal Air Force Official Photographer / Imperial War Museums / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
Wing Commander G.H. Westlake, the commanding officer of No. 1 Mobile Operations Room Unit, with a cask of Sicilian wine. While a fighter pilot with No. 80 and 213 Squadrons RAF, he shot down nine enemy aircraft and shared in the downing of two more. He also led No. 213 Squadron in North Africa between August and October 1942.
Westlake worked as a controller for No. 211 and 212 Groups in Tunisia, before becoming 1 MORU during the invasions of Sicily and Italy . He later returned to operations, commanding a unit of the Italian Co-Belligerent Air Force, before leading the No. 239 Wing RAF in Italy.
He was responsible for the success of Operation Bowler , leading an attack against a harbor in Venice in March 1945.
The Japanese surrender brought about an emotional response
Photo Credit: C. Peter Chen / National Museum of the United State Navy / World War II Database / Public Domain
The face of a Japanese prisoner of war (POW) listening to Emperor Hirohito's surrender , which signaled the end of World War II.
'V' for victory
Photo Credit: No 1 Army Film & Photographic Unit, Chetwyn L (Sgt) / Imperial War Museums / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
British soldier holding up the "insult" version of the famous "V" for Victory sign toward German POWs that were captured at El Alamein, October 1942.
Intense fighting on Guam
Photo Credit: C. Peter Chen / Paul Dorsey / US Marine Corps / World War II Database / Public Domain
US Marine Gill A. Gideon Jr. aiming his M1 Carbine during fighting on the first day of the Battle of Guam. The engagement resulted in an American victory.
Look at this gun!
Photo Credit: Unknown Author / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
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