The signing of the European Axis Pact (called, by Mussolini, the Pact of Steel) in Germany on 22th May, 1939. Italian Foreign Minister, Count Galeazzo Ciano arrives in Berlin by train and is met by his German counterpart, Joachim von Ribbentrop. Ciano reviews honor guards as a band plays. Then he and von Ribbentrop drive in a car through throngs of cheering Berliners. Later, when the principals and German and Italian officials are assembled for the signing, Adolf Hitler enters the hall and walks over to greet Ciano and Goering and several German and Italian officials present. He then sits down at the table and is flanked by the two foreign ministers who sign the pact. Hitler says farewell to Ciano and leaves the hall. Von Ribbentrop publicly explains the pact.
African American people line up to volunteer for helping King Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia in case of an Italian invasion (Italo-Ethiopian War). People register themselves as Ethiopian volunteers in New York City. A young African American woman registers herself for service as a nurse in Africa.
Benito Mussolini arrives in a German Junkers Ju-52 aircraft, at an airport serving Adolf Hitler's Eastern Front headquarters (Wolf's Lair) near Rastenburg, Poland, a month after being rescued by German commandos from imprisonment in the Campo Imperatore Hotel, high in the Italian Apennine Mountains, during World War 2. He is warmly greeted by Adolf Hitler (who personally ordered the rescue mission). Mussolini's son, Vittorio, also greets him. Hitler escorts Mussolini to a staff car bearing both the Italian and German (Swastika) flags. The car arrives at the Wolf's Lair, and German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop greets Mussolini as he steps from the car. Hitler escorts Mussolini into the building. Next, Reichmarshal Hermann Goering is seen pointing out something to Mussolini. Change of scene shows Mussolini in hat and overcoat being escorted by Hitler, out to their waiting staff car. Back at the airport, Mussolini says his goodbyes to German officers and Hitler. He boards the Junkers Ju-52 trimotor aircraft which taxis out as Hitler waves goodbye.
Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini standing together in an open car during a motorcade in Munich, in 1938. Civilian spectators render Nazi salutes as they pass. Next, British Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, arriving for the Munich treaty conference, steps from a British Airways Lockheed Model 14 passenger plane. An honor guard of helmeted and white-gloved German soldiers stands at attention during his welcome. Adolf Hitler climbs stairs of Berghof together with Chamberlain and Hitler's interpretor, Paul Otto Schmidt, on September 15, 1938 for their conference. Crowds of Germans give Nazi salute and cheer as Hitler and Mussolini appear on a balcony. Prime Minister Chamberlain back from the conference, speaks to the crowd at Heston Aerodrome on 30 September 1938, saying, among other thing, "We regard the agreement signed last night, and the Anglo-German naval agreement as symbolic of the desires of our two peoples never to go to war with one another again." Damaged buildings and ruins of city. Mussolini giving an impassioned speech. Italian cavalry carrying out a charge in Ethiopia. Italian troops employing machine guns in the Second Italo-Ethiopian War circa 1936. Italian infantry charging across sand dunes. Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie at the League of Nations podium. Nazi Swastika eagle statue. A formation of German troops, during the Anschluss (German annexation of Austria,in 1938). Hitler at a podium. People rendering Nazi salute in annexed city. At this point, the film transitions to 1950 as North Korean troops cross the 39th parallel and start the Korean War. A nighttime artillery barrage. North Korean troops firing a Browning M1917 machine gun and rifles. The feet of American soldiers are jumping out of foxholes as U.S.M26 Pershing tanks fire their guns from tilted positions below hills. A Pershing tank crosses a bridge back into South Korea, where a sign reads:"You are now crossing the 38th parallel, Co.B 728 MP." Scene shifts again, to President Lyndon B. Johnson delivers speech about Vietnam at a news conference on July 28, 1965, in which he states,among other things, "Three times in my lifetime...Americans have gone to far lands to fight for freedom..." as he explains U.S. involvement in Vietnam and the Vietnam War.
Allied Invasion of Sicily in the European Theater during World War II. United States Army Air Force(USAAF) B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bomber aircraft taxis on the airfield. American and two British officers walk past a parked B-17. American officers talks to two British officers. General of the United States Army, Dwight D Eisenhower talks to British officers. General Eisenhower waves to British officers and steps into a staff car. General Eisenhower and British officers inspect British troops. General Eisenhower talks to a British officers. United States Army Air Force B-25 Mitchell (NA-62) medium bomber aircraft fly in formation
The Balkan War . Troops marching. Tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria called the 'Fox of the Balkans'. Generals look at a map. Prisoners standing in a group. Men walk in lines on a path in the Balkans. Soldiers in coats with rifles. Montenegro: King Nicholas I surrounded by military and other officials. A man helps the King put on his coat. Italy: The King and Queen with dignitaries at a ceremony to launch battleships. Spain: The young King Alfonso XIII surrounded by military officials. Germany: German troops march on the streets. Soldiers on horses during a parade. Kaiser Wilhelm II inspects troops. The crown Prince is greeted by the people of Germany.
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