Watch President Roosevelt outline his Four Freedoms and learn how Britain defeated Germany's Luftwaffe
Watch President Roosevelt outline his Four Freedoms and learn how Britain defeated Germany's Luftwaffe
The Royal Air Force fending off German bombers during the Battle of Britain in the summer of 1940.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.The Royal Air Force fending off German bombers during the Battle of Britain in the summer of 1940.
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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Still with the hope of not directly engaging in the war, the United States provided defense materials and other support systems for the Allied forces at the dawn of the 1940s.
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Jewish Partisan Education Foundation (A Britannica Publishing Partner)An overview of Jewish partisan activities during World War II.
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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.In the Battle of Stalingrad (1942–43), the advancing Germans were finally stopped by the Red Army in desperate house-to-house fighting. From The Second World War: Allied Victory (1963), a documentary by Encyclopædia Britannica Educational Corporation.
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Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz; Thumbnail Lieut. Michael M. Dean/Canada. Dept. of National Defence Library and Archives Canada/PA-140126In the aftermath of World War II, many Europeans lacked adequate food, shelter, and resources.
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Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz; Thumbnail © Romannerud/Dreamstime.comOverview of Adolf Hitler's rise to power.
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Public DomainWinston Churchill addressing Parliament in his first speech as prime minister, May 13, 1940.
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Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz; Thumbnail Bundesarchiv, Bild 146-1972-025-10 (CC BY-SA 3.0)Learn about the July Plot of 1944, in which Claus, Count Schenk von Stauffenberg, and others tried to assassinate Hitler and overthrow the Nazi regime.
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Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, MainzOverview of the Hitler Youth.
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Transcript
NARRATOR: In a speech to Congress in January, 1941, Roosevelt issued a ringing declaration of hope to the conquered peoples of the world. In this he named the "four essential human freedoms."
[Music in]
. . . freedom of speech and expression; freedom of every person to worship God in his own way; freedom from want; and freedom from fear. But in that summer of 1940, freedom from fear was only a goal.
[Music out]
Germany's powerful air forces were pounding against the British Isles.
CHURCHILL: We shall prove ourselves once again able to defend our island home, ride out the storm of war, and to outlive the menace of tyranny. If necessary for years, if necessary alone.
NARRATOR: This war of bombs and aircraft has come to be called the Battle of Britain. It was the greatest aerial conflict in history. The Royal Air Force of Great Britain turned back the German attacks and with the help of the new miracle of radar, made them too costly to the Luftwaffe.
Without air superiority, Hitler may have felt that he dared not risk an attack across the Channel.
[Music in]
. . . freedom of speech and expression; freedom of every person to worship God in his own way; freedom from want; and freedom from fear. But in that summer of 1940, freedom from fear was only a goal.
[Music out]
Germany's powerful air forces were pounding against the British Isles.
CHURCHILL: We shall prove ourselves once again able to defend our island home, ride out the storm of war, and to outlive the menace of tyranny. If necessary for years, if necessary alone.
NARRATOR: This war of bombs and aircraft has come to be called the Battle of Britain. It was the greatest aerial conflict in history. The Royal Air Force of Great Britain turned back the German attacks and with the help of the new miracle of radar, made them too costly to the Luftwaffe.
Without air superiority, Hitler may have felt that he dared not risk an attack across the Channel.
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