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World War II Facts

World War II Facts
World War II broke out in 1939, and lasted until 1945. Like World War I, it was a global war, involving most of the world's nations. Two alliances formed; the Allies and the Axis. The Holocaust, the use of nuclear weapons, and advances in weaponry contributed to the fact that World War II is considered to be the deadliest conflict in human history with between 50 and 75 million deaths. The war ended in Europe when Germany was invaded by the Soviet Union and the Western Allies and Berlin was captured. The U.S dropped nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August of 1945, ending the war when Japan surrendered on September 2nd, 1945.
Interesting World War II Facts:
The Holocaust began before the beginning of WWII and continued until the war ended, resulting in the murder of millions of Jews. Approximately 1.1 million were children.
WWII was the most expensive war in history, in property and in lives.
Russia lost more than 21 million people during this war, the highest death toll of any country. Of the males born in 1923 in Russia, 80% did not survive the war.
The Allies dropped approximately 3.4 million tons of bombs during WWII.
The Battle of the Atlantic lasted from 1939 to 1945 and is the longest battle during WWII.
The Nazi Party in Germany was the National Socialist Party. Nazi is derived from a Bavarian word that means ‘simple minded'.
The Nazi symbol—the swastika—was originally an ancient religious symbol. It was a symbol of fertility and good fortune.
The Nazis are responsible for at least 12 million murders, half of which were Jewish.
40,000 men served on U-boats. Only 10,000 of these men returned from the war.
The United States lost more than 80,000 troops during the Battle of the Bulge. It was the deadliest battle in WWII for the U.S.
During the war, Japan sent 9,000 ‘wind ship weapons' into the air. Made of paper and rubberized-silk, these balloon weapons reached as far as Michigan. Six Americans were killed.
Anne Frank (known for the book, The Diary of Anne Frank) died one month before the camp she was held in was freed.
When Pearl Harbor was attacked, 18 of the 96 ships anchored there were either seriously damaged or sunk. More than 2,400 Americans were killed.
There were more than 650,000 Jeeps built during World War II. There were also 3 million machine guns, 300,000 aircraft and 89,000 tanks built.
The first jet-fighters in the war were used by the Germans.
Some people believe that WWII is just an extension of WWI; some believe it began when Germany invaded Poland, while others believe it began when Japan invaded Manchuria. Most historians believe it was the invasion of Poland on September 1st, 1939 that started the war.
In the U.S., during WWII, hamburgers were called Liberty Steaks. They did not want to call them hamburgers because of its German-like name.
Henry Ford kept a photo of Adolf Hitler on his desk and vice versa.
The camouflage print for U.S. military uniforms in WWII was designed by the garden editor of Better Homes and Gardens, Norvell Gillespie.


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