WWII

WWII

The End of Nazi Germany

By David H. Lippman

“Who are these men? What do they want?” snapped the imperious Field Marshal Sir Bernard Law Montgomery to the four German officers drawn up in front of his caravan, saluting him under a Union Jack. Read more

Two million joyful people fill Times Square in New York City to celebrate the defeat of Nazi Germany.

WWII

“It’s All Over, Over Here”

By Flint Whitlock

On Tuesday, May 8, 1945, a strange sound was heard across all of Europe—the sound of silence. It was as if someone had suddenly flipped the war switch to “Off.” Read more

Soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division patrol the perimeter of the besieged town of Bastogne, Belgium, during the Battle of the Bulge.

WWII

The Wayward Helmet Liner

By Berry Craig

First Lieutenant William Parks of the 101st Airborne Division left a snow-camouflaged helmet liner behind when the storied Screaming Eagles moved out following the American victory in the Battle of the Bulge in January 1945. Read more

Pegasus Bridge attack

WWII

Pegasus Bridge: D-Day’s Textbook Mission

By Flint Whitlock

Late on the night of June 5, 1944, while American paratroopers were on their way to drop behind Utah Beach, another, smaller air armada carrying 170 British airborne troops was also dashing headlong into battle like an aerial cavalry charge towards the far eastern flank of the Normandy invasion site. Read more

A Marine with a 3.5-inch rocket launcher ("bazooka”) sights a target as his fellow Marines prepare to assault a Japanese position north of Naha, May 1945.

WWII

Iceberg in the Pacific

By Michael E. Haskew

The curious coincidence was obvious to everyone. April 1, 1945, was both Easter Sunday and April Fool’s Day. Read more

Short-barreled Panzer IVs advance through the mountains of northern Tunisia. At Kasserine Pass, German panzer columns blasted American tanks and then encircled isolated U.S. infantry units.

WWII

Panzer Strike at Kasserine Pass

By Mike Phifer

Ignoring the swirling sands stirred up by the fierce winds of the Sahara Desert in the early morning hours of February 14, 1943, Generalleutnant Heinz Ziegler ordered his panzer columns forward to attack the American forces deployed in central Tunisia. Read more