Gladiators of World War II

Originally created as Hitler's personal household troops, the Waffen-SS grew into a formidable fighting force during World War 2. It gained a reputation second to none for its tena...

In the dark days of summer 1940 Winston Churchill set up the Special Operations Executive to "set Europe ablaze". Its task was to nurture and support the resistance movements sprin...

The brainchild of a junior British officer, the Special Air Service first saw action in North Africa, making daring raids against Axis airfields. Thereafter it continued to special...

The men of the British Armoured Division gained the nickname Desert Rats during their epic campaign against the Axis forces under Erwin Rommel in the deserts of Egypt and Libya. Th...

The German overrunning of their country in 1939 did not crush the Polish spirit. Many escaped to the West to carry on the fight. Polish fighter pilots played a major role in the Ba...

It was the Few of RAF Fighter Command who saved Britain from almost certain defeat in summer 1940. The unique spirit generated by its fighter pilots enabled the Command to overcome...

Winston Churchill created the Commandos in summer 1940 as a means of striking at the coasts of Nazi Occupied Europe. Beginning as a mere raiding force, they became the spearhead of...

Norway was strategically important to Hitler and endured five years of Nazi occupation, but it developed one of the most effective resistance movements in the whole of Occupied Eur...

In autumn 1944, with ultimate defeat beginning to stare them in the face, the Japanese introduced a new and terrible weapon - suicide attack aircraft. The young pilots who voluntee...

Never before nor since has the Royal Navy been so challenged as it was during 1939-45. In the Atlantic it fought the longest campaign of the war against the German U-boats and surf...

Born of one man's vision at a time when the Japanese seemed to be sweeping all before them, the Chindits proved an inspiration to the Allied forces in Burma. They showed that it wa...

In June 1940, with France about to collapse, General Charles de Gaulle unfurled his Free French banner in London. His followers were initially few and were regarded as traitors by...

The Australian and New Zealand forces built on the reputation they had earned during World War 1 for being among the finest fighting troops in the world. Australian troops earned t...