Civilian 'little ships' saved Dunkirk: over 700 civilian boats joined the evacuation

D-Day, history's largest amphibious invasion, turned the war's tide

On D‑Day, over 156,000 American, British, and Canadian troops assaulted five heavily defended beaches along a 50‑mile stretch of northern France. Supported by nearly 3 million men, 1,200 warships, and 13,000 aircraft, the successful landings paved the way for the liberation of Western Europe and decisively shifted momentum against Nazi Germany.

After the World Trade Center attacks, all bridges and tunnels were closed, and civilian ships helped evacuate roughly half a million people from Manhattan.

When German submarines lurked in US coastal waters

During World War II, German submarines (also known as U-boats) prowled the Southern coast of the US in 1942 and 1943, sinking more than 60 ships and killing 600 Allied soldiers. The campaign is less well-known, since the major battles in Stalingrad and Midway happened at the time. Several of these submarines and the ships they sank are now popular diving spots.

Penicillin supplies were ready for every wounded soldier on D-Day

By June 1944, Allied stockpiles included 2.3 million doses of penicillin—enough to ensure that every soldier wounded during the pivotal Normandy landings could receive treatment.

Deadliest maritime disaster

In the final months of World War II, 75 years ago, German citizens and soldiers fleeing the Soviet army died when the “Wilhelm Gustloff” sank

Explore an interactive map of WWII shipwrecks.

Watch how engineers salvaged almost every sunken ship at Pearl Harbor

This four-part video series explains the massive effort to raise, repair, and refloat the Pacific Fleet—detailing the engineering challenges, diving operations, and months of around-the-clock work that restored all but three damaged ships to active service.

Recovering the USS Oklahoma was the largest naval salvage operation ever attempted

In 1943, engineers spent three months using 21 giant winches and an intricate cable system to right the capsized USS Oklahoma. It was the largest naval salvage effort ever attempted at the time and remains one of the most complex in history.

Radar saved the British Royal Air Force from Nazi air assaults

Radar technology—particularly the Chain Home early-warning system—enabled the RAF to detect incoming Luftwaffe raids up to 80 miles out, coordinate fighter deployments through the Dowding System, and achieve interception rates over 90%. This technological edge was pivotal in winning the Battle of Britain and halting Germany's air campaign.

The USS Nevada was refloated within three months—and later fought at Normandy

Badly damaged at Pearl Harbor, the USS Nevada was raised by February 1942 after extensive salvage work. Repaired and modernized, it returned to action and bombarded German defenses during the D-Day landings.

Champagne played a role in resisting the Nazis

When France surrendered to the Nazis in 1940, the invaders occupied the north. This was home to wine regions like Champagne and Bordeaux, which the Nazis were eager to loot. Winemakers took a stand by sheltering dissidents in their cellars, passing intelligence across borders, and even giving their lives to the cause.

The 1915 sinking of the Lusitania precipitated World War I

In 1915, the British RMS Lusitania sank after being torpedoed by a German submarine. The Germans claimed the ocean liner was transporting munitions. Almost 1,200 civilians were killed in the disaster, which became a symbol of German aggression in the lead-up to World War I.

British Prime Minister Churchill’s speeches rallied the nation

Winston Churchill’s impassioned wartime oratory united Britain’s resolve, transforming fear into defiance and forging a path to continued resistance against Nazi aggression.

2 months after Pearl Harbor, American libraries launched a drive to collect 10 million books for soldiers

The 1942 Victory Book Campaign—sponsored by the American Library Association, the Red Cross, and the USO—asked the public to donate books to both train and entertain troops. The national campaign exceeded its goal, collecting more than 10.2 million books.

Germany’s surprise offensive in December 1944 failed to break Allied lines

In a bold counterattack from December 16, 1944, to January 28, 1945, Hitler committed over 400,000 troops in a surprise “Bulge” through the Ardennes forest in France. Although initially successful in creating a 50‑mile incursion, Allied defense halted the advance. German forces suffered irrecoverable losses (~100,000), while Allied casualties totaled ~75,000, marking the offensive as the last major German gamble and a decisive step toward Nazi defeat.

Disney chipped away at its debt by creating propaganda during World War II

Disney began producing training videos for the Navy and propaganda films for US involvement in World War II, including the shorts "Der Fuehrer's Face," "The Spirit of '43," and "Donald Gets Drafted." The effort provided a much-needed cash injection, allowing Disney to continue producing films.

A map of WWII refugees and their stories

Trace the paths of different people and families on this interactive map as they made their escape from the Nazi regime. Primary and secondary sources like letters, documents, memoirs and diaries, photos, interviews, and news clippings showed how many found a path to freedom, from the Kindertransport to individual stories.

10 items that could have saved your life in the trenches

Soldiers settled into trenches to defend themselves against shrapnel and bullets, but weapons such as mustard gas crawled along the ground and settled in these low-lying areas. Here are 10 items that could have helped you survive the trenches, according to this article.

Can you save Britain from the Nazis by carefully sharing secrets with America?

Find out in this 20-minute interactive graphic novel based on true events from World War II.

Riveting artwork from the battlefields during World War I

During World War I, the United States government commissioned eight artists to accompany American Expeditionary Forces to Europe to sketch and document what they saw. Drawing tanks, soldiers, shattered villages, and even German prisoners of war, the artists preserved much of the war as a matter of historical record and to rally support back home.

More than 500,000 people worked to contain Chernobyl's fallout, many with very little radiation protection.

See what it was like to live in the United States during World War II

In America, life was transformed by total war: sixteen million service members left civilian life, while massive industrial production demanded labor. Women, minorities, and teens filled factories, fueling boomtown growth and breaking social barriers. Simultaneously, rationing, recycling drives, Victory Gardens, ration stamps, blackout drills, and war bond campaigns permeated daily routines.

Spielberg improvised most of the iconic D-Day scene from 'Saving Private Ryan'

Although action sequences are often tightly choreographed, one of cinema's most famous war scenes was mostly shot on the fly. Spielberg wrote seven pages (or approximately seven minutes of screen time) for the scene, though the final cut of the sequence was 25 minutes long.

What happened to Americans who were in Japan during Pearl Harbor?

When Japan bombed Pearl Harbor in December 1941, roughly 10,000 American civilians were stranded in Japanese-occupied territory. Tense diplomatic negotiations eventually secured two prisoner exchanges conducted via ship across 20,000 nautical miles to return nearly 3,000 Allied civilians, while Japanese Americans in North and South America were sent in the opposite direction, many to a country they had never called home.

World War II's Battle of Savo Island was the worst wartime naval defeat in US history

On Aug. 9, 1942, a larger, radar-equipped Allied fleet lost four heavy cruisers off Guadalcanal in the Pacific theater without sinking a single Japanese ship. The Navy kept the humiliating rout secret from the public for years. Experts argued failure resulted from fractured command, not inferior arms or ships.

An eyewitness account of the sinking of the Titanic

One of the most famous modern disasters, the Titanic sank in April, 1912, after colliding with an iceberg, killing an estimated 1,500 passengers and crew. One survivor, Washington Dodge, recorded his events just days after returning to land, offering one of the most immediate first-hand accounts of the ship's sinking.

The floating homes of Holland

Floating communities like Schoonschip in Amsterdam are offering a novel approach to combat climate change-induced flooding. With sea levels rising and storms becoming more intense, these floating neighborhoods are providing a sustainable flood defense solution. Learn how they work here.

Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor caused heavy losses but failed to cripple the US navy

Japan’s air assault sank or damaged 18 warships (including eight battleships) and destroyed 188 aircraft, killing 2,403 Americans, yet all three Pacific Fleet aircraft carriers were absent and survived, and vital infrastructure like oil depots and repair yards remained intact—preserving core US naval power and enabling a rapid recovery. Watch original reporting here.

The “Phoney War” was an eight‑month build-up to war

From September 1939 to May 1940, following their war declaration on Germany, Britain and France entered a phase of military inaction—even as civil defence measures, naval blockades, and rationing intensified at home. Skirmishes were limited, but the decisive fighting didn't begin until Germany invaded Norway and France in April–May 1940, abruptly ending the uneasy stalemate.

Comic books were a major part of American propaganda efforts during WWII

See how US comic books, alongside international counterparts, served as powerful wartime propaganda tools from 1941 to 1945—boosting morale, promoting war bonds, and demonizing Axis powers through the use of iconic heroes and patriotic messaging.

Welcome to Gander, a tiny town of around 10,000 people in Newfoundland, which took in nearly 7,000 passengers for days after the 9/11 attacks grounded all air travel in the US.

A database of people who saved Jewish lives during the Nazi regime

Searchable by name and location, this database includes articles and photographs of people who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust. In 1963, Yad Vashem launched a worldwide project to pay tribute to these "Righteous Among the Nations." According to this database, more than 16,000 people, ranging in profession from farmers to governesses, worked to preserve the lives of Jews in Nazi-occupied areas.

The WWII passport forgers who saved thousands of Jewish lives

Amid the chaos of Hitler's authoritarian Europe in World War II, Polish diplomats based in Switzerland used the classic toolkit of thieves to help free thousands of Jews: they perfected the art of forgery, faking passports secretly donated by sympathetic Latin American countries. Read the incredible tale of heroism here.

Roughly 25,000 workers died building the canal

For each mile of canal that was built, 500 workers lost their lives. The threats came from multiple fronts: mudslides, floods, earthquakes and disease-carrying mosquitoes. Workplace accidents became so common that artificial limb manufacturers competed for contracts with the canal builders.

Disney was saved by 'Cinderella,' which brought the company out of debt

Producing war propaganda and training films helped the company towards solvency, but the military content wasn't a cure-all. Disney wasn't in the clear until 1950's "Cinderella," a much-needed hit. The movie's success was largely due to the return of the company's best writers and the work of Mary Blair, a watercolor artist who brought a more whimsical style to the film.

Before Pearl Harbor, the US was a nonbelligerent ally to the Allied powers

Between September 1940 and December 7, 1941, the United States remained officially neutral—yet President Roosevelt incrementally shifted policy from “cash‑and‑carry” to Lend‑Lease, funneling critical military aid to Britain and other allies without entering the war.

Researchers think most of its residents escaped with their lives—but how?

With only a few hundred bodies recovered, evidence suggests most Pompeiians fled. This TED-Ed animation follows the stories of three hypothetical residents—one who stayed inside, one who ran, and one who fled by sea—to illustrate how their survival ultimately depended on the choices they made.

What was the London Beer Flood of 1814?

On this day 209 years ago, a 15-foot-high wave of beer roared through the streets of an impoverished London neighborhood, killing eight people. Read this beer historian's account of the tragedy to learn more. The beer had burst from the nearby...

Advanced forensic science has helped identify killed sailors decades later

When the USS Oklahoma capsized amid the attacks, hundreds of sailors were buried within the ship's hull. Officials have used advances in forensic science to analyze DNA and dental evidence to help identify nearly 400 sailors decades after the fact.

The wild, early history of the tunnel across the English Channel

Britain and France today are connected by the Chunnel—a tunnel bored roughly 120 feet under the seabed of the notoriously choppy English Channel, which opened in 1994. The dream of integrating Britain with the rest of the continent this way began much earlier, with daring, physically impossible plans proposed as early as the 19th century. Check out the earliest plans here.

Explore a database of more than 220,000 shipwrecks, the largest compilation to date.

The Berlin Airlift was the largest in history and a major Cold War victory for the US

In 1948, the USSR blockaded West Berlin to pressure America and its allies. In response, the US and its partners launched the largest airlift in history—delivering supplies daily for nearly a year until Stalin backed down.

'Keep Calm and Carry On' was long-forgotten World War II propaganda

The British Ministry of Information developed the stoic phrase ahead of German attacks at the start of World War II in 1939. It was never officially released on posters and then lay dormant until 2000, when one of the remaining posters was discovered at a bookstore in the UK. It has since been adapted into countless memes.

An archive of some of America's most significant shipwrecks

From The Portland—known as New England's "Titanic"—to the Civil War's USS Monitor, this archive from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration provides overviews of some of the most well-known shipwrecks in US history.

Hollywood helped fund American military activity by boosting bond sales

To help fund its WWI military activity, the US introduced Liberty Bonds—government-issued debt marketed directly to the public. Starting at $50, the campaign targeted working Americans and offered Thrift Stamps to make bond-buying more accessible. Hollywood led the charge, with stars like Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford boosting bond sales.

Teenager Guy Gabaldon captured the most prisoners in US military history

After the vicious battle of Saipan outside Japan in World War II, the Japanese were opting for suicide rather than surrender. Gabaldon, a Marine with a track record for skillfully convincing the enemy to surrender, managed to capture 800 Japanese single-handedly.

Women's role in society expanded during the war

With millions of men at war, women managed farms and businesses, served as nurses, and organized aid efforts—broadening women's participation in public life and laying the groundwork for future suffrage movements.

Rockwell's 'Four Freedoms' raised millions for the US war effort

Rockwell initially pitched the "Four Freedoms" project to the US Ordnance Department, but was rejected. Rockwell's editor at the Saturday Evening Post, however, loved the idea and published the images across four consecutive issues. After they became a sensation, the Saturday Evening Post partnered with the US Department of the Treasury to send the paintings on a 16-date national tour, which raised $133M in war bonds and stamps. Meanwhile, the Office of War Information printed four million sets of the posters with "Buy War Bonds" emblazoned on them.

How Chef Boyardee fed America

Chef Boyardee wasn’t just a grocery store staple—it was once a key supplier for US troops in WWII. Founded by Italian immigrant Hector Boiardi, the company produced thousands of canned pasta rations daily.

Grace Hopper graduated first in her class of 800 officer candidates

As a volunteer in the Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service program, Hopper was able to fulfill roles beyond the nursing and clerical responsibilities normally available to women in the military. However, once World War II concluded and the emergency status was lifted, the Navy declined her request for a regular commission.