Discover obscure history, hidden heroes, and rare stories from World War II
Father Francis L. Sampson, a Catholic chaplain with the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, landed behind Utah Beach on D-Day and spent the next 36 hours behind enemy lines tending to wounded of both s Read more...
View Full StoryPierre Seel, a French homosexual, was arrested by the Gestapo in 1941 and deported to Schirmeck-Vorbruck concentration camp. After his release, he joined the French Resistance, using his knowledge of Read more...
View Full StoryIva Toguri d"Aquino, an American citizen visiting Japan when war broke out, was forced to host a radio propaganda show called "Zero Hour." Despite the "Tokyo Rose" moniker, she secretly sabotaged broa Read more...
View Full StoryIn February 1945, 350 American POWs identified as Jewish or "undesirable" were separated from other prisoners at Stalag IX-B and sent to Berga an der Elster, a subcamp of Buchenwald. There they were f Read more...
View Full StoryDuring the Dieppe Raid of 1942, a lifeboat from the RMS Lancastria, crewed by six Scottish fishermen in full kilts, rowed through intense fire to rescue wounded commandos from the beaches. Despite bei Read more...
View Full StoryIn retaliation for Resistance activities, the German SS Das Reich division hanged 99 men from balconies and lampposts in the French town of Tulle on June 9, 1944. The bodies were left hanging for days Read more...
View Full StoryOver 3,000 homing pigeons were carried by Allied troops on D-Day to transmit messages when radio silence was required. One pigeon named "Beachcomber" delivered the first news of the successful landing Read more...
View Full StoryA mysterious WWII incident where French collaborationist Admiral François Darlan was assassinated in Algiers by 20-year-old monarchist Bonnier de La Chapelle. While officially a lone act, evidence su Read more...
View Full StoryA French fighter squadron that fought on the Eastern Front alongside the Soviet Air Force. Despite being from Vichy France initially, they chose to continue fighting the Nazis after the Allied landing Read more...
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