You’re all familiar with “Saving Private Ryan” or “Band of Brothers”, but here are some facts about World War II you may not have known.
1. Japanese soldiers killed the first German war veteran.
2. Russians killed the first American soldier.
3. Over Europe, more than 100,000 Allied bomber crewmen died.
4. Air Corps killed more US soldiers than the Marine Corps.
5. Stanisawa Leszczyska, a Polish Catholic midwife, delivered 3000 babies at Auschwitz during World War II.
6. British soldiers had three sheets of toiletpaper per day during World War II. Americans got 22.
7. In 1941, the US produced more than 3,000,000 cars. Only 139 additional cars were produced during the whole war.
8. The Eastern Front was the final destination for four out of five German soldiers who were killed during the war.
9. Only 20% survived the war among the Soviet Union’s male heirs.
10. Calvin Graham was 12 years old when he served in World War II. Graham lied to his age when joining the US Navy. After he was injured, he didn’t reveal his true age.
11. Only one-fourth of U-boat sailors survived.
12. The Siege Of Stalingrad led to more Russian deaths (military, civilian) than any other conflict in World War II.
13. In World War II, Americans did not use the German name “hamburger”, but instead called it “Liberty Steak”.
14. William Hitler (the nephew of Adolf Hitler) served in World War II with the US Navy.
15. Adolph Hitler and Henry Ford kept framed photos of each other on their desks.
16. Mexico was home to the largest Japanese spy network during World War II.
17. The Russian camp death rate for POWs was 85%.
18. Berlin Zoo’s elephant, the sole one left after the Allies dropped a bomb on Berlin.
19. Tokyo would have been the next target, if an atom bomb had been needed.
20. Hiroo ONODA, an Imperial Japanese Army intelligence Officer, fought in World War II. His position in Philippines was held by him until 1974. In 1974, he was relieved of duty by his former commander who traveled from Japan.
21. World War II’s total casualties were 50 to 70 millions people. Only four countries contributed 80%, Russia, China or Germany. The majority of civilian casualties, more than half of them being civilians, were women and children.
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