BBC - History - World War Two

The causes, events and people of the most destructive war in history.World War Two: Summary Outline of Key Events by Bruce Robinson

Inside World War Two

Gathering Storm
Blitzkrieg
Britain Alone
Allies in Retreat
The Tide Turns
Axis in Retreat
In-depth: D-Day and Overlord
End Game
Reconstruction and Retribution
Special Section: The Secret War

Gathering Storm

Churchill: The Gathering Storm Had Britain's wartime leader truly stood alone in his opposition to appeasement, or did he rewrite history to portray himself in a better light? By Professor John Charmley.

The Ending of World War One How did the peace brokered at the end of the Great War lead the world into a second, yet more destructive conflict? By Martin Kitchen

The Rise of Adolf Hitler - From aimless drifter to brutal dictator, by Jeremy Noakes
Hitler's Leadership Style - Inside the 'Führerprinzip', by Dr Geoffrey Megargee
Nazi Propaganda - Selling Hitler's vision, by Professor David Welch
Japan's Quest for Empire 1931 - 1945 - Motives behind the expansion, by Dr Susan Townsend
Countdown to World War Two: Monday 28 August 1939 - How the press viewed events, by Mark Fielder

Gathering Storm Fact Files

Blitzkrieg

Blitzkrieg How did this new doctrine of speed, flexibility and surprise deliver a string of stunning victories for Hitler's armies? By Robert T Foley

Voices of Dunkirk Defeated by the Wehrmacht, starving and exhausted - listen to the men who survived the evacuation from Dunkirk.

Invasion of Poland - The gamble that led to war, by Bradley Lightbody
The Norway Campaign in World War Two - Britain's expensive failure, by Dr Eric Grove
Spinning Dunkirk - Miracle or propaganda? By Professor Duncan Anderson
Animated Map: The Fall of France (Dunkirk) - A step-by-step guide to the battle
WW2 Movies: Dunkirk - An interactive animation of the evacuation
France, 1940: 1 Squadron - Inside a fighting scout unit, by Christopher Shores
The Fall of France - A shattering defeat, by Dr Gary Sheffield

Blitzkrieg Fact Files

Britain Alone

Winston Churchill: Defender of Democracy The rows were explosive, the challenges enormous, but he led Britain through the war with unique assurance. By Dr Geoffrey Best.

Audio: Churchill and World War Two Listen to the speeches that carried Britain through the darkest days of the war to ultimate victory.

The German Threat to Britain in World War Two - Was an invasion likely? By Dan Cruickshank
The Battle of Britain - The victory of 'the Few', by Dr Chris Bellamy
Battlefield Academy: WW2 Mission - Defend Britain from air attack by the Luftwaffe
WW2 Movies: The Bombers and the Bombed - An interactive animation looking at the air war
The Battle of the Atlantic - Britain's fight for survival, by Dr Gary Sheffield
The Battle of the Atlantic Game - Defeat the U-boats and guide your convoy to safety
Aerial Reconnaissance in World War Two Gallery - Allied intelligence photos, by Allan Williams

Britain Alone Fact Files

Allies in Retreat

Hitler and 'Lebensraum' in the East Why did Hitler believe that the East should provide lebensraum (living space) for the German people? By Jeremy Noakes.

Pearl Harbor: A Rude Awakening How did American intelligence fail to give warning of the devastating Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor? By Bruce Robinson.

Hitler's Invasion of Russia in World War Two - The rationale, by Laurence Rees
The Dieppe Raid - A disastrous blunder, by Julian Thompson
The Burma Campaign 1941 - 1945 - The 'forgotten war', by Michael Hickey
Animated Map: The Burma Campaign - A step-by-step guide to the campaign
Colonies, Colonials and World War Two - Their surprising contribution, by Marika Sherwood
The Siege of Malta in World War Two - The tiny island's vital role, by Dr Eric Grove
Aerial Reconnaissance in World War Two Gallery - Allied intelligence photos, by Allan Williams
Rommel in the Desert - The mercurial German general, by Dr Niall Barr

Allies in Retreat Fact Files

The Tide Turns

World War Two: The Battle of El Alamein Churchill said that there was never a victory before it and never a defeat after it. How important was this epic victory? By Professor Richard Holmes.

Animated Map: The Battle of El Alamein Follow the battle that signified 'the end of the beginning' of World War Two. An interactive overview of the Desert Rats' greatest victory.

Animated Map: The North African Campaign - A step-by-step guide to the campaign
The Battle of Midway - From ambush to victory in the Pacific, by Andrew Lambert
Aerial Reconnaissance in World War Two Gallery - Intelligence from above, by Allan Williams
Battle of the Atlantic - Overcoming the U-boat threat, by Dr Gary Sheffield
Partisans: War in the Balkans 1941 - 1945 - A brutal war of resistance, by Dr Stephen A Hart
The Soviet-German War 1941 - 1945 by Professor Richard Overy

The Tide Turns Fact Files

Axis in Retreat

The 'D-Day Dodgers'Has an obsession with the Allied landings in Normandy given a distorted view of the achievements of the Italian campaign? By Professor Richard Holmes.

Animated Map: The Italian Campaign From the invasion of Sicily, through Monte Cassino, to the Alps in the north. Follow the campaign through the 'soft underbelly' of Europe.

World War Two: The Battle of Monte Cassino - Was it worth it? By Professor Richard Holmes
The Burma Campaign 1941 - 1945 - From defeat to victory, by Michael Hickey
Animated Map: The Burma Campaign - A step-by-step guide to the campaign
The Sinking of the 'Scharnhorst' - A blow to German pride, by Norman Fenton
British Bombing Strategy in World War Two - The moral dilemmas of the air war, by Detlef Siebert
The Air War, and British Bomber Crews, in World War Two - The price they paid, by Mark Fielder
Germany's Final Measures in World War Two - Hitler's search for a miracle, by Louise Wilmot
Japan: No Surrender in World War Two - The policy's terrible cost, by David Powers

Axis in Retreat Fact Files

In-depth: D-Day and Overlord

D-Day: Beachhead How meticulous planning, good luck and sheer guts ensured the success of history's largest amphibious invasion. By Duncan Anderson.

Voices of D-Day Listen to the voices of eight people who lived through the momentous day Allied forces gained a foothold in Normandy.

Animated Map: The D-Day Landings - A step-by-step guide to the invasion
D-Day Clockwatch - Watch the events of 'the Longest Day' play out in real-time.
WW2 Movies: D-Day - An interactive animation looking at the landings
From Gallipoli to D-Day - The Allies' steep learning curve, by Peter Hart
The Dieppe Raid - A disaster, but with valuable lessons, by Julian Thompson
Operation Overlord: D-Day to Paris - How the liberation of Western Europe began, by Lloyd Clark
Animated Map: Operation Overlord - A step-by-step guide to the campaign
From D-Day to Berlin Gallery - The bloody slog of the war's last year
The Allies at War - The Allied leaders' uneasy relationships, by Simon Berthon
GI Joe: US Soldiers of World War Two - The American contribution, by Captain Dale Dye

In-depth: D-Day and Overlord Fact Files

End Game

The Battle of Arnhem (Operation Market Garden)How Operation Market Garden could have shortened the war by six months - and why it failed at the last moment. By Mark Fielder.

Animated Map: The Battle of Arnhem Follow the fortunes of this audacious but fatally flawed operation, from the first landings to the final surrender.

The Battle of the Bulge - Hitler's last offensive, by Robin Cross
Liberation of the Concentration Camps - The Allies' horrific discoveries, by Dr Stephen A Hart
Genocide Under the Nazis Timeline - The drip-drip of events that led to genocide
The Battle for Berlin in World War Two - The carnage of the Soviet campaign, by Tilman Remme
Victory in Europe Day - How the news was greeted, by Dr Gary Sheffield
Audio: Churchill and World War Two - His speech on the victory
Nuclear Power: The End of the War Against Japan by Professor Duncan Anderson
World War Two: How the Allies Won by Professor Richard Overy

End Game Fact Files

Reconstruction and Retribution

Why Churchill Lost in 1945 Labour's landslide in the 1945 general election remains one of the greatest shocks in British political history. How did Churchill fail to win? By Dr Paul Addison.

Nuremberg: Nazis On Trial In the aftermath of World War Two how did the top-ranking surviving Nazi leaders seek to account for their actions ?

Making Justice at Nuremberg, 1945 - 1946 by Professor Richard Overy
European Refugee Movements After World War Two by Bernard Wasserstein
President Truman and the Origins of the Cold War by Arnold A Offner
The Legacy of World War Two: Decline, Rise and Recovery by William R Keylor
The League of Nations and the United Nations by Charles Townshend

Reconstruction and Retribution Fact Files

Special Section: The Secret War

Breaking Germany's Enigma Code Germany thought its Enigma encryption was impenetrable, but the codebreakers of Britain's Bletchley Park had other ideas. By Andrew Lycett.

The Special Operations Executive 1940 - 1946 The tremendous courage and spectacular successes of the SOE's guerrilla war against Hitler. This is their amazing story, by Nigel Morris.

Double Cross - MI5 in World War Two - The role of double agents, by Nigel West
WW2 Movies: SOE - An interactive animation looking at the secret war
British Special Operations Executive (SOE): Tools and Gadgets Gallery - The tricks of the secret trade
Training SOE Saboteurs in World War Two by Bernie Ross
SOE Quiz: Destination D-Day
Killing Hitler by Professor Duncan Anderson
The Foxley Report: Plotters against Hitler by Bernie Ross
The Foxley Report: Secret Operations in World War Two by Mark Seaman
The 'Lancastria' - a Secret Sacrifice in World War Two by Raye Dancocks

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