Category Archives: World War II

Nazi concentration camp Nordhausen-Dora liberated 80 years ago this hour (Apr 11 1945)

1940s, The Holocaust, World War II


Video: 'Mittelbau-Dora/Nordhausen - The camp where the Nazis built their V2-rockets'

(Wednesday, April 11, 1945 approximately 6:30 p.m. Central European Summer Time; part of The Holocaust during World War II) — The Nazi concentration camp Mittelbau-Dora (also Dora-Mittelbau and Nordhausen-Dora) near Nordhausen in Thuringia, Germany, which supplied labor for extending the nearby tunnels in the Kohnstein and for manufacturing the V-2 rocket and the V-1 flying bomb, was liberated today by U.S. troops. Continue reading Nazi concentration camp Nordhausen-Dora liberated 80 years ago this hour (Apr 11 1945) →

Nazi concentration camp Buchenwald liberated 80 years ago this hour (Apr 11 1945)

1940s, The Holocaust, World War II


Video: 'WWII Triumph and Despair' (Buchenwald at 18:53)

(Wednesday, April 11, 1945, 3:30 p.m. Central European Summer Time; part of The Holocaust during World War II) — The Nazi concentration camp Buchenwald near Weimar, Germany, where prisoners from all over Europe and the Soviet Union worked primarily as forced labor in local armaments factories, was liberated today by U.S. troops. Continue reading Nazi concentration camp Buchenwald liberated 80 years ago this hour (Apr 11 1945) →

German pastor, theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer executed by Nazis 80 years ago this hour (Apr 9 1945)

1940s, World War II


Video: 'Defying Hitler: The Story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer'

(Monday, April 9, 1945, at dawn, Central European Summer Time; part of The Holocaust during World War II) — German pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, 39, was executed by hanging today by the Nazis at the Flossenburg concentration camp for allegedly being associated with the plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler.

Eleanor Roosevelt writes to FDR, ‘I am so glad you are gaining’ 80 years ago today (Apr 8 1945)

1940s, U.S. Presidents, World War II


Video: 'American Experience FDR Parts 3 and 4' (Apr. 8, 1945, at 2:10:20)

(Sunday, April 8, 1945; during World War II) — First lady Eleanor Roosevelt, in Hyde Park, New York, today wrote a letter to her husband, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was recuperating from exhaustion in Warm Springs, Georgia: “I am so glad you are gaining. You sounded cheerful for the first time last night, and I hope you weigh 170 pounds when you return. Devotedly, E.R.”

Admiral Kantaro Suzuki becomes Japanese prime minister 80 years ago today (Apr 7 1945)

1940s, World War II


Video: 'The World At War: The Bomb 2/5' (Apr. 7, 1945, at 2:36)

(Saturday, April 7, 1945; during World War II) — Seven days into the Battle of Okinawa, the growing peace party of Japan secured the appointment of a new cabinet today led by Admiral Kantaro Suzuki following the resignation of Prime Minister Kuniaki Koiso.

Japanese battleship Yamato sunk by Allied forces 80 years ago this hour (Apr 7 1945)

1940s, World War II

Video: 'The Lost Evidence Of WWII Episode 17 Okinawa' (Apr. 7, 1945, at 16:24)

(Saturday, April 7, 1945, 12:41-2:23 p.m. JST; during the Battle of Okinawa, part of the Pacific Theatre of World War II) — American planes today intercepted and effectively destroyed a Japanese fleet, which included the battleship Yamato, that was headed to Okinawa on a suicide mission. Continue reading Japanese battleship Yamato sunk by Allied forces 80 years ago this hour (Apr 7 1945) →

Japanese launch kamikaze attacks on Americans off Okinawa 80 years ago this hour (Apr 6 1945)

1940s, World War II

Video: 'The Lost Evidence Of WWII Episode 17 Okinawa' (Apr. 6, 1945, at 12:38)

(Friday, April 6, 1945, 3:00 p.m. Japan Standard Time; during the Battle of Okinawa, part of the Pacific Theatre of World War II) — Starting today (through the end of the battle on June 22, 1945), the Japanese flew 1,465 kamikaze aircraft in large-scale attacks from Kyushu, 185 individual kamikaze sorties from Kyushu, and 250 individual kamikaze sorties from Formosa. Continue reading Japanese launch kamikaze attacks on Americans off Okinawa 80 years ago this hour (Apr 6 1945) →

U.S. Army liberates Nazi concentration camp for first time 80 years ago today (Apr 4 1945)

1940s, The Holocaust, World War II


Video: 'Corpses found at the liberation of the Ohrdruf concentration camp'

(Wednesday, April 4, 1945; part of The Holocaust during World War II) — The Ohrdruf concentration camp, a Nazi forced labor and concentration camp located near Ohrdruf, south of Gotha, in Thuringia, Germany (part of the Buchenwald concentration camp network), was liberated today by the 4th Armored Division and the 89th Infantry Division. Continue reading U.S. Army liberates Nazi concentration camp for first time 80 years ago today (Apr 4 1945) →

President Franklin D. Roosevelt attends Easter services in Warm Springs 80 years ago today (Apr 1 1945)

1940s, U.S. Presidents, World War II


Video: 'American Experience - SO7E02 - FDR Parts 3 and 4 (October 12, 1994)' (Apr. 1, 1945, at 2:09:21)

(Easter Sunday, April 1, 1945; during World War II) — U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt attended Easter services today in Warm Springs, Georgia, with a noticeable tremor in his movements. Continue reading President Franklin D. Roosevelt attends Easter services in Warm Springs 80 years ago today (Apr 1 1945) →