A German Zeppelin airship during World War 1. It has the word "Schwaben" written on it. (Presumably from Schwaben, Germany). It is seen taking off from the ground in Germany, soaring above a German city and out over the sea. Narration indicates it is on a London bombing run, scheduled to arrive over London around midnight. Next scene shows the Zeppelin in flames and crashing into the North Sea the next day.
People celebrate as war ends in Europe. Huge crowd gathered on street for Victory in Europe day (or V-E Day). People enter an American Church. Clergy leading worship service inside a church. American citizens in pews participate in prayer and worship. United States President Harry Truman speaks, announcing that the forces of Germany have surrendered to the United Nations. View of U.S. Army and Soviet Army forces meeting at River Elbe near end of World War 2. German Army representative signs surrender document at the Allied Mediterranean Headquarters in Italy. U.S. Army General W.D. Morgan signs on behalf of General Alexander for the Allies. The American flag hoisted in front of a large Nazi Swastika symbol on top of the Nazi Party rally grounds in Nuremberg Germany (Zeppelinfeld). A dead German soldier seen on the ground nearby just before the flag is shown being raised. American forces than detonate an explosion to destroy the Nazi swastika emblem.
Japanese troops parade for Emperor Hirohito, mounted upon a white horse. Italian troops goosestep and German troops goosestep on parade. View of an Austrian town with snow-covered Alps mountains in background as German troops enter Austria on March 13, 1938 during the Anschluss. Local citizens welcome them, displaying swastika flags and giving Nazi straight arm salutes. Troops, military vehicles, tanks, motorcycles, and horse-drawn artillery comprise the German invading force. Shifts to Spain, where war torn buildings reflect effects of German and Italian intervention during the Spanish Civil War. A donkey standing near field artillery piece. Artillery being fired from an urban park in Spain. Artilleryman using a range finder. German gun crew with heavy artillery piece. Soldiers wearing Adrian steel helmets, firing a two-wheeled water-cooled machine gun. Spanish carrying wounded on stretcher. Spanish civilians inadvertently slain during civil war conflict. Starving dog walking in street. Huge poster of Francisco Franco and view of him on reviewing stand saluting marching Nationalist troops. Repeat of Hirohito reviewing troops and Italian and German troops goosestep. Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini stand together in open car heading to Fuhrerbau in Munich, Germany, for signing of Agreement between Germany, Italy, Britain, and France in 1938. Neville Chamberlain, and Edouard Daladier riding in car to Fuhrerbau. Views of the principals signing the accords. First is Adolf Hitler, followed by Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, Benito Mussolini, and Edouard Daladier. After the signing, the principals, plus Hermann Goering, mingle and converse. Change of scene to nighttime in Rome, Italy, where Benito Mussolini addresses a huge throng gathered near the Victor Emmanuel Memorial to cheer him after his return from Munich. Next, German troops are seen entering Sudetenland (Czechoslovakia) greeted by joyous ethnic German inhabitants. Banners are stretched across a street. One gives thanks to the Fuhrer. Several scenes of cheering population. A woman strews flowers in a roadway. Hitler arrives, standing in an open car, and is met with cheers of adulation. A military brass band plays from the open beds of two moving army trucks. Signpost points to Prag (Prague), Eger (Cheb), Joachimstal (Jáchymov), and Komotau (Chomutov) after German annexation. Scene shifts to Prague, where German troops are seen occupying the city. High ranking German officers in a car are seen coming through the gateway from the Court d´honneur of the Prague Castle into the Hradčany Square. The next sequence shows an Italian Freccia-Class destroyer in the Albanian Port of Durrës. An Italian L3/35 Tankette is driven off a large cargo ship. Italian troops on bicycles ride in a city street. A German 88mm antiaircraft (flak) gun is shown, mounted at a fort overlooking a river and city. Final scene shows Adolf Hitler addressing a meeting of the Bundestag in the Kroll Opera House (alternate meeting place after burning of the Reichstag). He reads, contemptuously from an April 14, 1939 letter sent to him by U.S. President Roosevelt, asking him to give "assurance that your armed forces will not attack or invade the territory or possessions of the following independent nations: Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, The Netherlands, Belgium, Great Britain and Ireland, France, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Poland, Hungary, Rumania, Yugoslavia, Russia, Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey, Iraq, the Arabias, Syria, Palestine, Egypt and Iran." As Hitler reads through the litany of nations, the Bundestag erupts in laughter.
Battle of Monte Casino between Germany and Allied troops in Monte Cassino, Italy. German troops are supported by heavy artillery and rockets. The troops fire artillery and rockets. Explosions and smoke rises over targets. A battle with mortars and small arms. Allied prisoners (both British and American) are taken by German forces. Allied POWs marched on road under German guard. Cannons are fired. A soldier watches a plane through binoculars. Rockets are fired. Planes in flight. Ruins of Cassino. A German antiaircraft downs an enemy bomber. Explosions and smoke rises. A flag of Nazi Germany in the ruins. (World War II period).
Americans celebrate the news of victory over Germany and prepare for continued war against Japan in World War II. Spirited Boeing employees celebrate news of victory over Germany in Seattle, Washington. They wheel out a giant B-29 bomber from an aircraft production hangar with a "On To Tokyo" sign on its side. The Boeing workers stand in a group and wave and cheer. The shining dome of the nation's capitol commands the most attention in Washington DC. All the lights ate turned on in Times Square in New York City and it blazes glory. People of the whole world get crazy with dancing, singing and parties in the streets and celebration drinks on V-E day (Victory in Europe). A man with a pretend Hitler mustache is hoisted in the air. The torch of the Statue of Liberty is lighted in New York.
French and United States Army 3rd Army troops liberate Strasbourg, France during World War II. Tanks of the French 1st Army moves from the Swiss border. Sign reads “Mülhausen Elsaß” (“Mulhouse, Alsace”). Troops find the body of a dead German soldier along the road. They advance in the Metz area. The 9th army advances through villages in bordering Germany. Soldiers walk on the battlefield. German prisoners of war (POWs) walk along with the soldiers. Civilians holding the French flag return to their homes after the battle. Strasbourg sign in German reads “Straßburg Schiltigheim”. Bell tower of the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Strasbourg, France. Damaged buildings near the Cathedral. The street is littered with pile of handheld, small Nazi flags with swastika emblem. Men gather outside buildings discussing amongst themselves. U.S. Third Army soldiers walk in the mud. Winter weather overshoes are distributed to troops. Soldiers put on the all-weather boots. More German soldiers and officers are captured in Metz. United States Ninth Army troops enter the town of Weisweiler, Germany. Soldiers moving through backyards, chicken houses and engage in house-to-house fighting. A mortar crew fire mortars behind trench made of sandbags. A wounded U.S. Army soldier crawls to reach the outstretched arm of a fellow soldier. Injured U.S. soldier receiving treatment in aid station. Medical aid stations at various places on the battlefield. Medics treat a wounded soldier. A dying soldier lies down on the street. Soldiers carry a patient to top of a tank. They march forward on the battlefield as officers in Jeep watch.
CRITICALPAST.COM: About Us | Contact Us | FAQs - How to Order | License Agreement | My Account | My Lightboxes | Shopping Cart | Advanced Search | Featured Collections | Website Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy ©2026 CriticalPast LLC.
License Agreement |
Terms & Conditions |
Privacy Policy
©2026 CriticalPast LLC.