From a film titled 'Tank Mission World War II'. Eiffel tower in Paris and scenes on quiet streets of Paris during German occupation. German troops in Paris in 1941. United States tanks maneuver during planning phases and drills for invasion of Europe. Tank fires flamethrower. Various U.S. tanks fitted with different attachment for bulldozing practice demolishing beach blockades and erecting landing areas. Infantry troops practice maneuvering behind tanks. German bunkers and fortifications on the French coast. United States infantry and tank units land at Normandy on D-Day and the days following. U.S. troops fire. Smoke rises due to explosion. Many hedges in the way. Tanks fitted with hedgerow cutters (the idea of a Sergeant) for cutting through the hedges. Tank fitted with hedge row cutter cuts through a hedge.
Camera shows close up of two certificates of affidavit signed by Lieutenant Colonel George Stevens and Lieutenant Kellogg. The first affidavit by U.S. Army Signal Corps Colonel Stevens cites Stevens' work from 1 March 1945 to 8 May 1945 photographing concentration camps and prison camps liberated by Allied forces. It is read aloud by George Stevens (or by a narrator reading the text of the affadavit). The second affidavit, signed by U.S. Navy Lieutenant E.R. Kellogg, and witnessed by Captain John Ford, is also read aloud. It cites Kellogg's expertise in motion picture and photographic techniques through his employment with Twentieth Century Fox Studios in California from 1929 to 1941. He attests that he has thoroughly examined the concentration camp liberation films of the Army Signal Corps and found them to be unaltered, genuine, and true copies of the originals in the U.S. Army Signal Corps vaults. A map shows the location of concentration camps in Germany and other parts of occupied Europe under Nazi control. (World War II period).
African American Preacher speaking from church pulpit to his congregation about threats to Liberty, during World War 2. Closeups of parishioners listening intently. Suddenly, in contrast, the statue of a German Eagle atop a wreathed swastika is seen followed by views of Adolf Hitler looking over maps with his war planners. Next, a Japanese Rising Sun Naval Ensign flag is seen followed by views of Japanese Naval war planners aboard ship, and Japanese war planners at an Army headquarters. Glimpse of Hitler and staff amused by something at Christmas holidays. (A decorated Christmas tree stands in the background.) An entire huge apartment house collapses from German bombing in Europe. An aerial view from a bomber with smoke rising from bomb strikes below, displays labels reading: "Thirteen Countries Conquered," and "150,000,000 People Enslaved." A German officer stands beside a group of hanged persons at a public execution. Scene shifts completely to formation of Japanese Mitsubishi G4M bombers (Mitsubishi Navy Type 1 attack bombers) releasing bombs in flight. Bombs exploding at various sites on the ground. Chinese civilians fleeing from Japanese bombing during the 2nd Sino-Japanese war. Bombs bursting and destruction. Chinese rescuing wounded and collecting the dead. Japanese bombs striking U.S. battleships, at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941. American sailors running to battle stations and firing antiaircraft guns from a ship. Formations of Japanese warplanes diving from overhead. Several U.S. Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bombers with cockpits open (possibly representing Japanese dive bombers in a movie ) drop bombs. Explosions and fires from bombing. American sailor furiously turns controls to raise elevation of antiaircraft gun. Japanese airplane streaming black smoke passes overhead. U.S. sailors scrambling to battle stations on a ship. Japanese fighter plane firing its machine guns on a strafing run passes over a ship. An African American sailor lying on a deck, fires a M1917 Browning machine gun and falls back. Another sailor takes his place.
Opening of film shows image of famous statue being projected on a screen. The statue depicts a Soviet worker and a collective farm woman, respectively, raising a hammer and sickle high above their heads. The statue is a stainless steel art work created by Vera Mukhinafor the 1937 World's Fair in Paris, France. (It was later moved to Moscow, Russia.) Next a field and forest is shown on the Western front of the Soviet Union (Eastern Front of World War 2, in Europe). Soviet soldiers are preparing for combat during a temporary lull in their defense against German forces in their Operation Barbarossa offensive ,begun in June, 1941. Soviet soldiers place branches and foliage upon a BT tank as camouflage. Others assemble loose ammunition rounds into machine gun belts. Soldiers camouflaging an artillery field piece with foliage. Soviet soldiers refueling a tank. Soldiers moving through wooded area past another camouflaged gun. Several Soviet soldiers at a shelter in the woods, placing ammunition rounds in a clip. A printer producing a daily newspaper for soldiers. A soviet soldier picks one up to read. Closeup of the newspaper. Soviet munitions handlers inserting fuses into noses of artillery shells. A T-34 tank sitting in foliage. Soldiers looking at charts as they sit in the woods. A Soviet soldier running (possibly to deliver a dispatch).
The world mourns Winston Churchill, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Scenes from the life of Winston Churchill. Churchill and his wife greet the Queen of England. People follow Churchill on a street of London during the 1940 Battle of Britain in World War 2, as he tours blitz damaged areas. Churchill crosses the Atlantic and is seen meeting U.S. President Roosevelt in 1941 to create the Atlantic Charter. A navy officer stands nearby. Churchill at the rails of a ship looks out into the sea. Churchill in a barge with other sailors. Winston Churchill on Victory in Europe Day, or "VE-Day" waving to crowds in London, together with King George VI and the royal family. Churchill in conference with U.S. General Eisenhower. Churchill on a stage. Churchill in a motorcade passes through Broadway on the streets of New York City during a parade. Churchill addresses the American Congress. Churchill walks with General Eisenhower on the lawn of the White House. Photographers click pictures. Exterior of 10 Downing Street as people cheer Churchill when he exits the house and appears for the gathered crowd, smoking a cigar and waving.
American Jitterbug dancers seen at a contest in 1938. View of feet in shoes, as wearers tap their feet and beat time to music. View of drummer using wire brush on drum. Stadium of people cheer for a dancing cinematographer who is using a motion picture camera to film the event. In contrast, Nazi troops seen parading by torchlight. Nazi flags everywhere and Nazi party ceremonies, overseen by Adolf Hitler, in Germany. Nazis burning books. "Attention Jews" with skull and crossbones painted on stores and business establishments. Nazi Storm Troopers intimidating Jewish businesses and advocating boycott. Glimpse of Heinrich Himmler, in foreground, and Hermann Goering, in center of group of Nazi officials. Junkers Ju-87 Stuka dive bombers attacking Poland in 1939. German artillerymen firing heavy guns. A German railroad gun firing. German paratroopers jumping from Ju-52 trimotor transport aircraft. In contrast, patrons are seen descending in parachutes on the Parachute Jump ride at Coney Island Steeplechase Park, in Brooklyn, New York. Life Savers company sponsorship sign seen atop the parachute jump tower. People eating hot dogs, and firing guns at the shooting gallery on Coney Island's boardwalk. Germans march Polish prisoners of war. German troops invading Denmark and Norway. German troops passing a road sign for Chemin des Dames in Picardy, Northern France. Bomb exploding at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941. American forces engaged in war against japan in the Pacific and against the Axis powers in Europe. U.S. soldiers throwing hand grenades. American wounded being carried on litters. People cheering liberating Allied forces in a European town. British soldiers on a vehicle displaying cartoon of Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Soviet forces advancing in snow. U.S. steel and war plants in operation. Men and women war production workers in American defense plants and war materiel factories, using drills, lathes, and power tools in the spirit of "Rosie the riveter." C.I.O. Poster to promote voting, during the war. Closeup of Sidney Hillman, President of Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America. Spectators line sidewalks to get glimpse of President Franklin D.Roosevelt (FDR) in a motorcade. Silhouette of two soldiers helping wounded comrade. FDR's funeral cortege. U.S. troops taking a break, in a war zone. American school children run into a field. An atomic bomb explosion.