History Net: Where History Comes Alive - World & US History Online » World War II War Letters

A Young Pilot's Surprising Political Leanings

bclark — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 18:17:08 +0000

Branded a left-wing peacenik during his 1972 presidential campaign against incumbent Richard M. Nixon, Senator George S. McGovern lost that race in a landslide, winning only Massa-chusetts and Washington, D.C. A major reason for his defeat was his opposition to …

Mystery Date: Pacific War Edition

aburchyski — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 16:19:05 +0000

Norma Clinton was an attractive young honors student living in rural Georgia. Harry Kipp was a Marine captain from Minnesota who had survived the attack on Pearl Harbor before shipping off to the Pacific. At the request of her aunt, …

An American Missionary Describes 'Beastly' Atrocities in Nanking

aburchyski — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 20:22:56 +0000

A letter by Reverend James McCallum, written during the brutal beginning of Japanese occupation.

A U-Boat Commander Shares Memories of His Captor—and Friend

aburchyski — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 14:49:18 +0000

On March 19, 1944, Allied warplanes blew up a German U-boat off the coast of the Cape Verde Islands, killing 47 of its 55 crewmen. Among the survivors was the submarine's Austrian commander, Gunter Leopold, who was picked up by …

A Deserter Begs Eisenhower to Spare His Life

aburchyski — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 13:50:21 +0000

By Eddie Slovik, the first and only American soldier to be officially executed for desertion since the Civil War

A USS Arizona Crewman Longs to be Home for the Holidays

aburchyski — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 12:33:03 +0000

His last letter home before the attack on Pearl Harbor.

A Forward Artillery Observer Records His Darkest Experiences—So Far

aburchyski — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 14:52:40 +0000

By September 1944, 23-year-old lieutenant Erwin Blonder had seen enough of war to want to chronicle what he had witnessed—while keeping the news from his wife, Shirlee, and his mother and mother-in-law. In the letter that follows, he describes his …

A German Jew in the U.S. Army Confronts Dachau

aburchyski — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 20:06:37 +0000

Fritz Schnaittacher came face to face with the horror he escaped from.

Canadian Troops Sound Off About the Brits

aburchyski — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 15:32:50 +0000

Soldiers found their hosts across the pond difficult to share close quarters with.

A Dresden Survivor Offers Bitter Condolences

aburchyski — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 14:09:14 +0000

After the war, a man who lost everything wrote to his neighbors' daughter to describe the fate of her parents.