French General Charles De Gaulle descends from a De Havilland D.H.86 airplane at Fort Lamy in French Equatorial Africa. He is greeted by Colonel Leclerc and town dignitaries. Accompanying the General are General Spears, Lieutenant Colonel Gosset and Captain Decourcel, Aide-de-camp to Charles De Gaulle. General Gaulle meets town personalities on arrival. He inspects troops. General Gaulle and General Spears walk. Troops march. Generals salute marching troops. Natives line up street and troops march away. Colonel Leclerc takes salute. Native troops march away. General Charles De Gaulle and Spears arrives at the House of Colonel Leclerc. Guards of honor lined up.
Arrival of General Larminat and Aide-de-camp Lieutenant Laurelle (real name is Raymond Leroy) on Martin bomber, bearing Free French Cross of Lorraine insignia, at Fort Lamy in French Equatorial Africa, during World War 2. They are received by the Governor of the Chad, Lapie, and Mayor of Fort Lamy. Officials talk. Planes parked at airfield.
Italian warships maneuvering in the Mediterranean during World War 2. Destroyers pass a Corazzata-class Italian battleship. Italian IMAM Ro.43 reconnaissance planes are launched from a battleship. Two Corazzata-class Italian battleships underway. Change of scene shows the island of Malta, viewed from a low flying airplane. A formation of Italian CANT Z.508 seaplane bombers flying overhead to attack Malta. View from ground on Malta of anti-aircraft flak burst clouds in the air above. Smoke rising from bomb bursts. Glimpse of a large British warship slowly easing out of its dock. Single engine aircraft overhead moving through heavy flak clouds. More bomb explosions. Local civilian people and refugees, including many children, seeking safety from bombing. People perusing destroyed buildings. A formation of British Bristol Blenheim light bombers in flight over North Africa. British forces firing artillery in Libya. War materiel abandoned by retreating Italian forces in Eritrea and Somaliland. British troops and a contingent of Ethiopian troops march into Addis Ababa, escorting Emperor Haile Selassie as he is restored to his throne in May, 1942. Next, German armor in North Africa is seen burning. A knocked out German tank viewed through window of a British armored vehicle. More burning German armor. German aircraft destroyed on the ground at an airbase. Bombs lined up on the ground. Huge number of Italian prisoners of war marching across the desert in Libya.
German trucks, German Panzer Pz.III tanks, motorcycles and armored cars advance into Libyan territory, North Africa during World War II. Scenes near Bengazi Libya. German pilots and Italian pilots in conversation near Axis aircraft on an airfield. Italian soldiers carrying rifles ride on motorcycles. Natives on camels watch them. Convoy of Axis military vehicles and many trucks on roads. A post of Soldiers of Army of Italy in desert. Italian air force pilots in collaboration with German forces discuss prior to take off for a mission. Italian biplane aircraft taking off. Barb wired border lines in desert guarded by Italian soldier. Italian troops on the move on motorcyles. Nazi planes bomb British positions in desert. Gun camera footage of German Luftwaffe Messerschmitt Bf 110 (Me 110) aircraft attacking and firing on British targets on the ground in the desert.
Images taken by military and news cameramen during World War II. The North African Campaign, 1940: Convoy of British tanks, trucks, and infantry advance over the Libyan Desert. British soldiers fire artillery. Masses of Italian prisoners marched by British soldiers. Next shown is campaign on the Eastern Front, 1941, as Germany attacks Russia: Nazi tanks advance under Luftwaffe air cover into the Soviet Union. Aerial view of German Junker Ju 87 aircraft in flight. German tanks and armored vehicles rolling. Wide view of many German tanks rolling east. German soldiers leaping down from a hill with smoke all around as they battle in a Russian town. Russian Pe-2 bomber aircraft in flight. Interior view of pilot and crew in Soviet Pe-2 bomber while in flight. Soviet soldiers on tanks during a battle. Burning tanks. Soviet soldiers run toward battle front and pass a dead German soldier on the battlefield.
British Signal Corpsmen climbs on a telephone pole and repairs communication lines. British Signal Corpsmen travel through desert on truck and lay out detonation wires for mines. Mines are detonated by a detonator.