World War II is arguably the most studied and talked about war in our history. It captures our imaginations, when war was between the good and bad guys, the lack of grey. Now we look at wars as question marks. Vietnam was a war where we were the good guys that had to step in, correct? That is a point of heated debate.
This war was a dark time for our world. Fear, savagery, hate and death surrounded the world. But there was also a human element. There were people working together towards a common cause. Enemies that didn’t stay enemies as soon as the war was over. There was humor, fun, relief. We will try to keep this article on the lighter side, but, as it is about one of the most horrific moments in the worlds history, some stories won’t leave you speechless because of the wonder they bring, but because of the darkness that surrounds them. Keep in mind, this was the last time there were good and bad guys in a war, at least clearly so, and it depends on which side you fought that you viewed those individuals. These are stories of a time when people honestly fought for what they felt was right but respected the individuals. This was a time we should learn from.
As an aside, I am not saying Hitler was doing right by his people, but the individuals that fought were simply doing what they felt was right. Our view is in hindsight and that makes it much more clear as to who was in the wrong. There are stories that show the German soldiers, Nazis, seeing what they were fighting for, for the first time and breaking down in tears. Try not to hate those that fought against your ideals, but understand that they were fighting for something they believed was right: misinformation, brainwashing, whatever it was be damned.
Regardless, we look at World War II with some romanticism and seem to think we know everything there is to know about it, but it seems that with some regularity we learn something new, something shocking, something that leaves us speechless. Read on to find out about some of the lesser known and shocking facts including a man that continued the war until the 70’s, a monster or the Norwegian countryside and a question of whether WWII actually ever happened.