Mopping-Up Operation by the U.S. 6th Marine Division in Okinawa (1945)

In the final phase of the Battle of Okinawa in June 1945, the U.S. 6th Marine Division undertook a series of intensive mopping-up operations to eliminate the last pockets of Japanese resistance scattered across the island’s southern terrain. Following the collapse of the main Japanese defensive line around Shuri and the death of General Mitsuru Ushijima, the remaining defenders—many entrenched in caves and ravines—continued to resist with desperate ferocity. Color film footage shot by U.S. combat cameramen vividly captured these final operations: Marines advancing cautiously through the devastated hills, using flamethrowers, demolition charges, and grenades to clear fortified cave positions, while medical teams tended to the wounded amid the smoke and debris. The scenes reveal the grim reality of the battle’s aftermath—burned-out vehicles, shattered villages, and the somber burial of fallen comrades. By late June, the 6th Marine Division had secured the island’s northern and southern sectors, marking the end of organized resistance and the completion of one of the Pacific War’s bloodiest campaigns.

Source :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDT16kJgH1M

Hitler and Mussolini Visited the Eastern Front (1941)

In August 1941, as German forces surged deep into Soviet territory during Operation Barbarossa, Adolf Hitler invited Benito Mussolini to witness the triumph firsthand. Between August 25 and 28, the two dictators embarked on a high-profile visit to the Eastern Front—an event immortalized in vivid Agfacolor footage by Hitler’s personal pilot and filmmaker, Hans Baur. The visit was both a diplomatic gesture to reinforce Axis unity and a calculated propaganda display at a time when the Wehrmacht appeared unstoppable.

Hitler and Mussolini flew aboard a Focke-Wulf Fw 200 “Condor”, escorted by Luftwaffe fighters, landing first at Uman, Ukraine—then headquarters of Army Group South under Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt. Hans Baur’s color film captures their arrival: the Condor descending on a dusty airstrip, Hitler descending first in his trademark field-grey uniform, followed by Mussolini in his black Fascist tunic and high boots. They were greeted by Rundstedt, General Walther von Reichenau (6th Army), and Sepp Dietrich, commander of the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler (LSSAH). The Italian entourage included General Alfredo Guzzoni and Count Galeazzo Ciano, Mussolini’s son-in-law and foreign minister, who recorded his impressions of the visit in his diary.

The itinerary took them to several forward areas where Wehrmacht and LSSAH units were stationed. At one encampment near Berdychiv, Hitler showed Mussolini captured Soviet tanks and artillery, while LSSAH troops demonstrated new German equipment. Baur’s color footage shows the two leaders walking through lines of soldiers, Hitler speaking animatedly, and Mussolini—clearly impressed—saluting the men with his characteristic Roman gesture. The mood was one of triumph and confidence; maps displayed on field tables showed German pincers closing around the Dnieper bend, signaling what seemed an imminent Soviet collapse.

A particularly striking sequence filmed by Baur shows the leaders observing a Luftwaffe reconnaissance flight, with General Wolfram von Richthofen briefing them on air operations. Later, at an improvised mess tent, Hitler and Mussolini dined with their generals, toasting the victories and the “brotherhood in arms” of the German and Italian peoples. Mussolini expressed admiration for the discipline and efficiency of the German campaign, reportedly telling Hitler that “the Bolshevik colossus is already crumbling.”

Baur’s color film—bright, almost surreal amid the dust and wreckage—captures a fleeting moment of Axis euphoria. The footage later appeared in Die Deutsche Wochenschau No. 573 and Italian newsreels, portraying an image of unity and invincibility. Yet history would soon mock the scene. Within months, the Wehrmacht’s advance stalled before Moscow, and Mussolini’s armies in the East would face disaster. What Baur preserved on film was the last great meeting of Hitler and Mussolini at the height of their power—two dictators standing together on conquered soil, unaware that the road ahead led not to victory, but to ruin.

Source :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50KRsWppOYA

Battle of Naha, Okinawa (May 1945)

The color footage of the Battle of Okinawa filmed in May 1945 by Marine Corps combat cameraman Norman T. Spangler captures the brutal final stages of the Pacific War with striking realism, particularly around the ruined city of Naha. His vivid Kodachrome reels reveal the devastated urban landscape, shattered by relentless bombardment, as U.S. Marines and Army troops push through mud, rubble, and smoke under torrential rain and fierce Japanese resistance. The rare color imagery provides a haunting visual record of the campaign’s ferocity — from tanks advancing past smoldering wreckage to exhausted soldiers sheltering in foxholes — transforming what might otherwise seem like distant history into a vivid and deeply human document of war’s cost at the doorstep of Japan.

Source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cgl-sfzgff8

German Occupation of Kharkov (1942)

Color Footage of Nazi Germany's occupation of the Soviet City of Kharkov, Ukrainian SSR, in the Summer of 1942. 

The historical film shows scenes of daily life in occupied Ukraine during World War 2. People walking down the streets, cars driving by, Wehrmacht Soldiers being transported throughout the city, people selling food and items. Views of the city's architecture and surroundings. 

Sumber :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cp_Rx-mZYYI

Russian Victory Parade in Moscow (1945)

On 24 June 1945, a scant six weeks following the Fall of Berlin and the end of the Great Patriotic War, residents of the USSR’s capital city were treated to the spoils of victory – a massive military parade.

Organized and undertaken on the direct orders of Stalin himself, the 1945 Victory Parade was (and remains) the largest ever held on Moscow’s Red Square. 40,000 soldiers, sailors, and other service personnel accompanied by 1,850 tanks, artillery pieces, and assorted equipment were mobilized for the occasion. (Alas, overcast skies and steady rain prevented a planned flyover by Red Air Force pilots).

The most memorable moment of the two-hour long procession came as Soviet troops bearing the regimental standards of former Nazi units cast them to the ground in front of Lenin’s Mausoleum – while The Leader and his closest Party comrades gazed down from atop the edifice.

The 1945 Victory Parade was, of course, preserved for posterity. The official version, compressed into less than twenty-minutes, but recorded in color (on film stock seized from German studios) was subsequently distributed throughout the country and, in time, the wider world. A version containing English subtitles accompanied by a terrible voice-over has been available for years on YouTube and across the Interwebs.

Source :
www.youtube.com

Private Color Footage of Fighter Ace Kalau vom Hofe of JG 54 (1941-1944)

Werner Pichon-Kalau vom Hofe (1917-1999) was a German fighter ace of World War II.

He served most of the war with Jagdgeschwader 54, on the Western Front in 1940, the Eastern Front in 1941-1943, then transferred back to defense against Allied bombers in the West in April 1943, before becoming a staff officer in January 1944, and serving the rest of the war in staff positions. He achieved 64 kills, most of them on the Eastern Front, including five in a single day on March 21st, 1942.

But he was not only a fighter pilot, but also very interested in cameras, and took many pictures and footage of planes and men of JG 54. He was, in fact, so interested in cameras, that he bought himself a very expensive 16mm color video camera. This video shows footage that he took of JG54 from 1941 to 1944, including men and planes.

Since this is privately taken footage, these are no propaganda shots, but rather lighthearted scenes for personal memories. 

As cameras back then had no microphones, this video contains no sound or narration.

 


Source :
https://digitaler-lesesaal.bundesarchiv.de/en/video/9408/680704
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCCfJ2ToBMI

Prisoners of War: Wehrmacht Soldiers in U.S.Captivity

During the war, over 400.000 German Prisoners of War were sent to prisoner camps in the United States, mostly in rural areas. Here they were given adequate food, medical care, and humane treatment, often far better than what German soldiers experienced on the Eastern Front or what Allied POWs faced in German captivity. Many were put to work on farms and in factories, receiving small wages and some even developed friendly relationships with American guards and locals. After the war, tens of thousands were held longer to assist with reconstruction efforts in Europe. Some were sent to Britain and France for forced labor before being fully released. The "Rheinwiesenlager" (Rhine Meadow Camps) in Germany, run by U.S. and French forces, had harsh conditions, with some prisoners suffering from malnutrition and disease due to overcrowding and food shortages. By 1948, most German POWs had been released and sent back home.

Source :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlpi8K6WsEA

Indian POWs in Crete 1941

Among the approximately 25,000 Allies prisoners in Crete were Indians, British, New Zealanders, Australians and Greeks. During the Battle of Crete in 1941, many Allied soldiers were captured and taken prisoner by the German forces. Some were held in a transit camp near Galatas before being transported to mainland Greece, while others were taken directly to Germany by rail. Additionally, a significant number of Allied soldiers were stranded on the island after the evacuation and had to rely on the Cretan people for assistance.

U-Boat Ace Joachim Schepke Photo Album

U-boat ace Joachim Schepke

Source :
https://www.facebook.com/diedeutscheubootwaffe/posts/joachim-schepke-u-100/386759410389605/