Animated map shows extent of German controlled areas in Europe following their conquest of the Balkans in World War 2. Norway is under their control and German forces threaten Leningrad and Moscow. A soviet defense line is shown on the map. The German attack is shown to come from 5 directions on June 22, 1941, with the launch of German Operation Barbarossa. A sky filled with German Heinkel He 111 bombers is shown. German Panzer III tanks with 75 mm guns. Army trucks carry German troops into battle. German soldiers on motor cycles and infantry advance under fire. Animated map shows principal German targets as Leningrad, Moscow, and Kiev. It then shows beginning a drive from the North to encircle Leningrad. Arrows show where German Marshal Fedor von Bock's forces drove 480 miles into Soviet territory. Slates identify cities being overrun by German invaders, including: Pskov, Novgorod, Brest-litovsk, Minsk,Mogilev, and Vitebsk. On July 17, 1941, a German tank is seen entering Smolensk, past the Dnieper River threatening Moscow, itself. To the south, German forces, under Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt, cut deep into the Ukraine. Newspapers world-wide consider the Soviet forces close to defeat. Slate shows communique from the German High Command stating: "The issue in the East is already settled. Smolensk is the last halt on the road to Moscow." German infantry marching. Scene shifts to heavy artillery being fired by Soviet forces in a snowy scene clearly later in the year. Animated map shows German forces very close to Moscow on October 15, 1941, forcing the Soviet Government and all foreign missions to move to Kuibyshev, 700 miles to the east. Adolf Hitler, in a speech on October 3, 1941, states that the enemy is broken and will never rise again. Animated map shows 500 thousand square miles of Soviet territory occupied by German forces. Views of fires burning in Russia. Damaged and abandoned Soviet industrial plants. A German guard atop a hill looks down on thousands of Soviet people in the occupied areas of Russia. Damaged and abandoned Soviet T-26 tanks. Glimpse of damaged Soviet aircraft and field artillery. Headline in New York World Telegram newspaper reads: "Berlin Admits Russ War May Last Winter." Another headline reads: "Red Army Holds Push On Moscow." Weary German soldiers traveling in horse-drawn wagons, pulling field artillery. Soviet and German war planners are seen at work. Slate quotes Adolf Hitler saying: "A single blow must destroy the enemy, without regard for losses... A gigantic all-destroying blow." German armor moving along a road. Animated map shows this technique in the German invasions of Poland, France, the Balkans, and Yugoslavia. In contrast, the Soviet planners are seen, as map illustrates how they intend to take advantage of the vast area of their land by holding lines of defense an falling back as necessary to keep engaging the invaders across interior of the Soviet Union. Soviet infantry are seen marching along a road. German troops riding atop their tanks. Soviet troops forcing German invaders into close combat in her cities. Soviet soldiers running in a city and firing heavy machine guns. Bomb damage and rubble inhibit German armor mobility in cities. Cities where this kind of Soviet resistance prevailed were: Rostov, Kharkov, Kiev, Kursk, Smolensk. German troops leaving a city with heavy black smoke rising in the background. More views of cities where Soviet troops are engaged German forces in House-to-house battles, including: Odessa, where the Old Opera Theater building is shown sandbagged and relatively undamaged. The Odessa NI tank, created from an STZ-3 agricultural tractor.
Pictures taken by military and news cameramen during World War II. Operation Claymore, March 1941: British Commandos raid Lofoten Islands in assault boats. They destroy a fish oil refinery off the coast of Norway. Soldiers and civilians on the docks. Burning refineries and buildings. Clouds of black smoke. 1941: British and Canadian troops on Spitsbergen Island. They destroy Soviet coal mines to prevent the Germans from occupying them. Black smoke clouds due to the explosions. Operation Archery on Vaagso Island, 1941: British Commandos raid the Island. Soldiers walk in the snow. Nazi prisoners surrender and marched by British soldiers. Battle ensues on the Island. Soldiers walk past a fence. Burning buildings in the background.
Crash of a Grumman F4F-3 aircraft from U.S. Navy Squadron VF-42, on the carrier, USS Wasp, early in 1941. In a slow motion sequence, a U.S. Navy F4F-3, with F-42-17 painted on its side (BuNo 2537) is seen rounded out too high for landing, above all arresting cables, and drifting into the carrier's island, where it impacts, losing its right wing, and flipping over to crash inverted on the flight deck. Sailors stand in the background. After the aircraft settles, a sailor runs across the deck to render aid. (Note: Navy Squadrons VF-42 and VF-71, assigned to the USS Wasp, received their F4F-3 Wildcats in January and February of 1941 under Bureau of Aeronautics contract C-68219, order number 48-020. These aircraft were painted overall aluminum with VF-42 having willow green tails and VF-71 having black tails. Later in 1941 the aircraft were repainted overall light gray.)
United States Government film entitled "The World At War" dealing with World War 2. Film opens showing Japanese warplanes in formation above a Japanese military installation. Slate reads: "Pearl Harbor December 7, 1941. An airfield is seen filled with parked U.S. Army Air Forces B-17 bombers. Two Boeing XB-17 (Model 299) bombers are parked next to each other on the ramp. Derricks and ships are shown at the Pearl Harbor naval base. A formation of Japanese Mitsubishi G3M bombers is seen in flight. They are seen overhead as bombs explode on the U.S. Navy Air Station at Ford Island destroying hangars and aircraft. Next, is shown the famous image of the USS Arizona burning, listing, and sinking, after being bombed. Film continues, panning over post-air raid views of destruction. On December 8, 1941, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, addresses the Congress, delivering his declaration of war message. He calls December 7, 1941 "a date which will live in infamy." Roosevelt recounts that the United States was at peace with japan and in conversation with its government and Emperor, in the interest of maintaining peace.in the Pacific. even at the time of the attack. Japanese ambassador and his colleagues seen visiting State Department offices to meet with U.S. Secretary of State prior and even during the initial attack operations by Japan.Roosevelt recounts that the United States was still in conversation with Japan even at the time of the attack. Japanese ambassador and his colleagues seen visiting State Department offices to meet with U.S. Secretary of State prior and even during the initial attack operations by Japan. Photographers take pictures of the visiting Japanese delegation. President Roosevelt asks Congress to affirm that a state of War exists between the United States and the Japanese Empire.
This film is a scattering montage of World War 2 scenes from 1939 through 1945. Part of an agreement between Nazi Germany and Yugoslavia is shown in English. It is dated June 1, 1939 and ostensibly signed by Adolf Hitler. Next, German Ju 87, Stuka dive bomber aircraft are shown peeling off from formation, on April 6, 1941, to attack Yugoslavia. Bombs bursting on the ground. Closeup of a Stuka airplane in a dive, making its characteristic whine, and dropping bombs. Bombs exploding just outside some concrete walls. German infantry running along railroad tracks and entering backyard of house in a village. German soldiers observing from overlooking hill; climbing over rubble; and marching along a road toward a village. Animated map showing German invasion areas early in World War II, extending through most of Europe and into Norway, by 1941. Animated map shows further invasions into France, Belgium, low countries, the Balkans, and Eastern front towards the Soviet Union. Map highlights Tokyo, Rome, and Berlin. Delegations walking in hall of Reich Chancellery in Berlin, to sign Tripartite pact, on September 27, 1940. The group is led by by Count Galeazzo Ciano (Italian Foreign Minister, and Mussolini's son-in-law); Joachim von Ribbentrop, Germany's Foreign Minister and Japan’s Ambassador Saburō Kurusu. The diplomats are seen, next, standing near a table as Adolf Hitler enters rendering Nazi salute. He shakes hands with Count Ciano and Ambassador Kurusu. Hitler is seated to watch the proceedings. Von Ribbontrop is seen signing for Germany. Next scenes show German armored units heading East in Operation Barbarossa (June of 1941). A sign identifies the town of Eydtkau (Eydtkuhnen) on the German-Lithuanian border. German armor and artillery moving eastward. German troops destroying international crossing barriers. German troops firing siege guns. Montage with glimpses of German battle scenes showing tanks, guns, rockets in action with attendant explosions, fires, and destruction. Formations of German warplanes in flight, including Junkers Ju-52s that carry troops, including paratroops. View from above of Junkers Ju-87 Stuka dive bombers in formation. Battle of Britain scenes, with view of St. Paul's Cathedral in London, England (which miraculously survived the Blitz). The Tower Bridge in London, seen through a haze following blitzkrieg. German Junkers 87 Stuka dive bombers peeling off from formation to attack. British anti-aircraft searchlights shining beams skyward. Diving bombers illuminated by the lights. Anti-aircraft guns firing. Nighttime scenes showing gunfire flashes, explosions, tracer bullets and fires in London. British fire brigades fighting fires in London buildings as some collapse from the German bombing during the so-called "Blitz." Scene shifts to Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941, as a Japanese bomb explodes on a U.S. Navy warship. The USS Arizona billowing smoke and listing as it succumbs to Japanese bombing. Another view of the Arizona sinking. Smoke rising from Battleship Row, at Pearl Harbor. Glimpse of postwar Nuremberg trial.
Film opens showing forward port section of the British Battleship HMS Prince of Wales in Placentia Bay, Argentia, Newfoundland. Next, Winston Churchill is seen greeting President Franklin D. Roosevelt as he arrives to meet with him during their Atlantic Conference in 1941. The President is assisted by his son, Army Captain James Roosevelt. The entire ship's company is seen assembled on deck for a church service. Closeup of President Roosevelt, Prime Minister Churchill and their principal advisors. all singing "Onward Christian Soldiers" during the service. Scene shifts to December 7, 1941, showing the American battleship USS Arizona and other battleships being bombed by Japanese aircraft. View shifts to the White House in Washington, DC. on July 19, 1940, President Roosevelt is broadcasting his speech to the Democratic National Convention, accepting nomination for an unprescedented 4th term as President. Views of ordinary Americans in various settings. Legislators congratulating the new Vice President, Harry S. Truman, after inauguration in January 1941. Truman seated and surrounded by staff and well-wishers. View of Truman, his wife, Bess and daughter Margaret, walking across the lawn at their home in Independence, Missouri. View of the three of them, inside their home, opening and sharing congratulatory messages received by the new Vice President. Immediately following FDR's death, now, President Truman is seen assuring the public that he will continue the course set by his predecessor. Glimpses of President Roosevelt seated in front of the White House and at his desk. In Yalta for the Big Three Conference, Roosevelt rides in a jeep as Prime Minister Churchill walks beside. Closeup of Roosevelt and Churchill. Participants gathering for the Yalta conference. Closeup of Roosevelt and Stalin. Churchill arriving and taking his seat. Closeup of the Big Three, Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Joseph Stalin. (World War II period).