World War II in real time

lordroel
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World War II in real time Sept 26, 2018 15:52:12 GMT stevep and Zyobot like this

Post by lordroel on Sept 26, 2018 15:52:12 GMT

World War II in real time

This thread is about World War II in real time either using YouTube, Wikipedia ore other sources, several listed below.

The Youtube clips come from this YouTube channel (World War Two)

Navy Department Communiques 301-600 and Pacific Fleet Communiques

Onwar.com (Chronology of World War II)

Battle of Normandy day after day

World War II Realtime Instagram Account

This day in the war in the Pacific 65 years ago

This day in the war in Europe 65 years ago

WORLD WAR II DAY-BY-DAY

United States Army World War, 1939 to 1945

U.S. Army Air Forces in World War II Combat Chronology

The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II

Day 1 of World War II, September 1st 1939

YouTube (The Polish-German War)

Invasion of Poland

At 0445 hours German forces invade Poland without a declaration of war. The operation is code named Fall Weiss (Plan White). The Germans allot 52 divisions for the invasion (some 1.5 million men), including the 6 armored divisions and all their motorized units. Of the divisions left to defend against an Anglo-French front, only about 10 are regarded by the Germans as being fit for any kind of action. General Brauchitsch, the Commander-in-Chief of the German Army, is in command of the campaign. Bock leads Army Group North, consisting of the 4th Army (Kuchler) and 3rd Army (Kluge); Rundstedt leads Army Group South, consisting of 8th Army (Balskowitz), 10th Army (Reichenau) and 14th Army (List). Air support comes from two Air Fleets, commanded by Kesselring and Lohr, which have around 1,600 aircraft. Army Group South, advancing from Silesia, is to provide the main German attacks. The 8th Army on the left is to move toward Poznan, the principal thrust is to be delivered by 10th Army which is to advance in the center to the Vistula River between Warsaw and Sandomierz, while 14th Army on the right moves toward Krakow and the Carpathian flank. The 4th Army from East Prussia is to move south toward Warsaw and the line to the Bug River to the east; 3rd Army is to cross the Polish Corridor and join 4th Army in moving south. The Poles have 23 regular infantry divisions prepared with 7 more assembling, 1 weak armored division and an inadequate supply of artillery. They also have a considerable force of cavalry. The reserve units were only called up on August 30th and are not ready for combat. In the air, almost all the 500 Polish planes are obsolete and prove unable to blunt the impact of the German attack. During the day, the Luftwaffe launches air strikes on Warsaw, Lodz and Krakow. The Polish Commander in Chief, Marshal Rydz-Smigly, has deployed the stronger parts of his army in the northwestern half of the country, including large forces in the Poznan area and the Polish Corridor. He hopes to hold the Germans to only gradual gains. All along the front the superior training, equipment and strength of the Germans quickly brings them the advantage in the first battles. Many Polish units are overrun before their reinforcements from the reserve mobilization can arrive. At sea, as in the air, Polish technical inferiority leads to crushing early defeats. Three of the four Polish destroyers manage to leave for Britain before hostilities begin and later one submarine also escapes. On the first day the old pre-Dreadnought battleship, Schleswig-Holstein, bombards the Polish naval base at Westerplatte.

Germany

Officials claim that Polish army regulars started firing on Germans along the frontier and that the fire was returned beginning at 0445 hours. Hitler addresses the Reichstag during the day, declaring "I am determined to eliminate from the German frontiers the element of insecurity, the atmosphere which permanently resembles that of civil war."

Poland

The Polish government appeals for British and French intervention under the terms of the Mutual Assistance Treaties.

United Kingdom

The British government demands a German withdrawal from Poland.

Because of the fear of air attacks, the evacuation of young children from London and other supposedly vulnerable areas is begun. General mobilization is proclaimed. (The Royal Navy was mobilized on August 31st.) Air Raid Precautions (ARP) are introduced and a "blackout" enforced from sunset. British railways are taken under government control.

France

The French government demands a German withdrawal from Poland.

General mobilization and a "state of siege" (martial law) are proclaimed.

Italy

The Italian government announces that it will not take any military initiative.

Soviet Union

In the Soviet Union... The armed forces are mobilized and the draft age is lowered from 21 to 19.

United States

President Roosevelt calls for a ban on indiscriminate bombing of civilians and undefended towns.

Norway

In Oslo... The Norwegian government declares its neutrality.

Day 8 of World War II, September 8th 1939

YouTube (World War Two begins)

Day 15 of World War II, September 15th 1939

YouTube (Poland on Her Own)

Day 22 of World War II, September 22nd 1939

YouTube (The Russians are Coming! - The Soviet Invasion of Poland)

Last Edit: Sept 4, 2024 14:00:35 GMT by lordroel

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lordroel Administrator Posts: 67,964 Likes: 49,369	World War II in real time Sept 30, 2018 19:19:14 GMT Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Member Give Gift Back to Top Post by lordroel on Sept 30, 2018 19:19:14 GMT September 29th 1939
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lordroel Administrator Posts: 67,964 Likes: 49,369	World War II in real time Oct 6, 2018 17:54:00 GMT Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Member Give Gift Back to Top Post by lordroel on Oct 6, 2018 17:54:00 GMT October 6th 1939
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Dan
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World War II in real time Oct 10, 2018 12:33:35 GMT

Post by Dan on Oct 10, 2018 12:33:35 GMT

The series on WWII on Youtube is excellent. It doesn't quite have the same level of support that The Great War Channel has which is a shame. Maybe if they'd started next year instead they could have capitalised on the Great War Channel ending it's run of updates.

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lordroel
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World War II in real time Oct 10, 2018 14:46:21 GMT Dan likes this

Post by lordroel on Oct 10, 2018 14:46:21 GMT

Oct 10, 2018 12:33:35 GMT Dan said:

The series on WWII on Youtube is excellent. It doesn't quite have the same level of support that The Great War Channel has which is a shame. Maybe if they'd started next year instead they could have capitalised on the Great War Channel ending it's run of updates.

Well there is also this Twitter account that is good.

WW2 Tweets from 1940 (@realtimewwii) · Twitter

If i know where the 1939 days are i might add them here.

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lordroel Administrator Posts: 67,964 Likes: 49,369	World War II in real time Oct 14, 2018 11:33:24 GMT Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Member Give Gift Back to Top Post by lordroel on Oct 14, 2018 11:33:24 GMT October 13rd 1939
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lordroel Administrator Posts: 67,964 Likes: 49,369	World War II in real time Oct 20, 2018 20:22:48 GMT Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Member Give Gift Back to Top Post by lordroel on Oct 20, 2018 20:22:48 GMT October 20th 1939
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lordroel
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World War II in real time Oct 24, 2018 15:42:47 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 24, 2018 15:42:47 GMT

October 23rd 1939

On 23 October 1939, a poll was held in the United States to survey US citizens’ feelings about the fighting parties in World War Two. A number of questions were asked, one among which was ‘Which side do you want to see win the war?’. 84% of the respondents wanted to see the Allied side win, while only 2% were in favour of German victory.

Still, there was a big debate in America on the course of action the nation should take in the conflict. In the same poll, 95% of the respondents said they were against American military intervention in the conflict, while 62% thought that America should do everything it could to support the Allies, except for going to war. Similarly, 60% were in favour of changing the Neutrality Laws in favour of trade with the Allied nations in Europe.

Several movements were established to represent the varying viewpoints. For example, there was the ‘America First’ movement, in favour of American Isolationism – we have already made two posts about their spokesman Charles Lindbergh. There were also movements that actively expressed their preference for a faction in the European conflict. This photo shows the German American Bund during a parade, waving swastikas in the streets of New York to promote the Nazi cause and support for Germany.

World War II Realtime Instagram Account

Last Edit: Oct 26, 2018 11:33:51 GMT by lordroel

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World War II in real time Oct 24, 2018 19:09:27 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 24, 2018 19:09:27 GMT

October 24th 1939

On 24 October 1939, Doctor of Jurisprudence, Governor and SS-Gruppenführer Ludwig Fischer took control over Warsaw. He did this on behalf of Hans Frank, who ran the entire General Government of Poland. Under command of dr. Fischer, Warsaw would transform into a lawless place where human lives were disposable and physical and medical experimentations, without any regard for humanity, were made possible.

Historian Norman Davies describes Fischer as ‘more of a compliant bureaucrat than a fanatical monster’ because he tried to ‘use’ Warsaw and it’s inhabitants for taxation and such, rather than destroying it in the early stages of the war. Still, Davies continues to say that Fischer ‘never shrank from the most inhumane aspects of creating the Lebensraum.’ During his rule, Fischer built the Ghetto of Warsaw, was responsible for the killing of countless of Polish and Jewish people and used gruesome tactics to subdue the local populace.

Photo: Ludwig Fischer between 1939 and 1941.

World War II Realtime Instagram Account

Last Edit: Oct 26, 2018 11:35:42 GMT by lordroel

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World War II in real time Oct 25, 2018 20:25:28 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 25, 2018 20:25:28 GMT

October 25th 1939

On 25 October 1939, the first Jewish people were forced to wear a Yellow Star of David on their clothes in the Polish town of Włocławek. A German scholar, Dr Herbert Morgen, made a trip through the ‘New German Eastern Area’ around this time in the war, and wrote about the introduction of the signs. Upon encountering Jewish people wearing visible marks of their position in the Reich, he wrote: ‘As an external sign of belonging to their tribe, the Jews carry (…) a yellow star of David or a yellow triangle or something like it on their breasts and back. The general expression one receives of this human mass is appalling. And one quietly arrives at the conclusion that one is dealing here with a completely degenerate, inferior part of human society.’

What this fragment shows, is that several tactics to frame and humiliate Jewish people were used already early in the war and how propaganda tactics as such affected and formed the German public opinion. The mental distance created between one human and the other, achieved only by a simple piece of cloth, is enormous and shouldn’t be underestimated.

Photo: Jewish persons with a star of David, photo made by the Gettopolizei somewhere in 1940.

World War II Realtime Instagram Account

Last Edit: Oct 26, 2018 11:38:53 GMT by lordroel

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lordroel
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World War II in real time Oct 26, 2018 15:23:44 GMT Max Sinister likes this

Post by lordroel on Oct 26, 2018 15:23:44 GMT

October 26th 1939

The German lawyer and Nazi Hans Frank took control of the General Government of Poland, including all non-annexed German territories. As Governor-General, he turned this land into a ‘police-run mini state, where all existing laws and most institutions were abolished and where regular German administrative and judicial systems were not introduced.’ Historian Norman Davies describes it as the ‘lawless laboratory of Nazi racial ideology’. Under Frank, the General Government became home to the infamous concentration and extermination camp Auschwitz-Birkenau and death camps like Treblinka and Sobibor.

Frank is described by Davies as highly intelligent, but ‘incapable of resisting the temptations of his post’. He would write in his diary: ‘The power and the certainty of being able to use force without any resistance are the sweetest and most noxious poison that can be introduced to any government.’

Photo: Hans Frank in 1939.

World War II Realtime Instagram Account

Last Edit: Oct 27, 2018 10:07:29 GMT by lordroel

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World War II in real time Oct 27, 2018 12:55:30 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 27, 2018 12:55:30 GMT

October 27th 1939

Belgium proclaimed its neutrality once again. The country had already done so, but King Leopold III addressed the issue in a public radio broadcast again on this day. At this point in the war, Belgium feared that they would be used by the Germans to bypass the Maginot line at the French-German border in an attack on France, just like in 1914.

Belgium was referred to as ‘the cockpit of Europe’ because of its geographical location. This time in the war was especially weird for Belgium, since it basically knew that it would be attacked eventually, and that it couldn’t do anything about that, given the size of the country and its military. Furthermore, Belgian neutrality was an advantage for Germany, since there would be no military cooperation between the Belgian and the Allied forces because that would go against the Belgians’ neutrality.

In the 1930s Belgium had seen massive public opposition to military development due to the damage to the country after WWI. Moreover, in 1939 the country had only barely avoided a fascist surge that had destabilized the government. The Belgian leadership had neither the public support, nor the military means to join the Allies at this point, leaving them with little choice other than neutrality in the hope that the Allies would come to their aid when Germany would invade.

Photo: Belgian King Leopold III in 1934.

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lordroel Administrator Posts: 67,964 Likes: 49,369	World War II in real time Oct 27, 2018 12:57:08 GMT Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Member Give Gift Back to Top Post by lordroel on Oct 27, 2018 12:57:08 GMT October 27th 1939
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lordroel
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World War II in real time Oct 28, 2018 15:23:22 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 28, 2018 15:23:22 GMT

October 28th 1939

21 years have passed since Czechoslovakia gained independence in 1918. An indepndence that ended abruptly when Germany occupied the country on March 15 1939. On independence day, Czechoslovakian students took to the streets to celebrate and protest. They sang the Czech and Slovakian national anthems, wore the forbidden red, white and blue tricolor and chanted anti-German slogans. Some students vandalized German properties in the path of the protest marches. When Czech police officers didn’t really intervene, German law enforcers were called in to stop the protest. They randomly fired into the crowd, killing one 22-year old baker and wounding several others. The German occupiers retaliated brutally, shooting randomly into the crowd. Jan Opletal, a medial student and one of the protest’s leaders, was seriously wounded and later died of his injuries.

The events from 28 October 1939 and the weeks after it lead to the creation of the International Students day in 1941, which is still celebrated on 17 November each year.

Photo: Czechoslovakian Student Protest on 28 October 1939 in Prague.

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lordroel
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World War II in real time Oct 29, 2018 16:00:42 GMT stevep likes this

Post by lordroel on Oct 29, 2018 16:00:42 GMT

October 29th 1939

A revised German plan to attack Western Europe, the so-called Fall Gelb (Case Yellow), was revealed. Franz Halder, Chief-of-staff of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW) submitted the first version of this plan on 19 October 1939. The first version was, much like World War One’s von Schlieffen Plan, to cross through Belgium in order to overwhelm Frances defences.

A major difference was that the Germans didn’t necessarily plan to outflank Frances defences on the German-Franco border, but instead make a frontal assault on Frances defences. The plan estimated up to half a million German casualties to only force the Allied forces into a retreat behind the Somme. It was estimated that the Wehrmacht would then need to recover, pushing a full scale attack on France back to 1942.

Hitler didn’t like the 19 October plan too much. He wanted to invade sooner and intended to gain more in less time. He didn’t manage to communicate to his subordinates how this could be done though. In Aufmarschanweisung No 2, Fall Gelb (Deployment Instruction no. 2, Case Yellow), which Halder presented on this day in history, he implemented changes to the plan to reflect Hitlers criticism. Halder included other attacks to the south and added a secondary attack on the Netherlands.

Photo: Franz Halder in 1939.

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Post by lordroel on Sept 26, 2018 15:52:12 GMT

Post by lordroel on Sept 30, 2018 19:19:14 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 6, 2018 17:54:00 GMT

Post by Dan on Oct 10, 2018 12:33:35 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 10, 2018 14:46:21 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 14, 2018 11:33:24 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 20, 2018 20:22:48 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 24, 2018 15:42:47 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 24, 2018 19:09:27 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 25, 2018 20:25:28 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 26, 2018 15:23:44 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 27, 2018 12:55:30 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 27, 2018 12:57:08 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 28, 2018 15:23:22 GMT

Post by lordroel on Oct 29, 2018 16:00:42 GMT