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Oranienburg camp
FilmThe Storm Troopers (SA) established the Oranienburg camp near Berlin in March 1933. The first prisoners were German political prisoners, primarily Communists and Social Democrats. Oranienburg became known for the maltreatment of inmates. Here, the Nazis attempt to undermine the charges of brutality by showing the "normal" prisoner routine. Oranienburg was gradually deactivated, closing by 1935. Most of the other early camps were also closed, to be replaced with larger camps run by the SS.
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Jewish Brigade
FilmSoldiers of the Jewish Brigade, British Eighth Army, in the Faenza area of Italy. The Jewish Brigade took part in the final stages of the Allied offensive in Italy.
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Training for emigration
FilmMembers of a German Zionist youth group learn farming techniques in preparation for their new lives in Palestine. Many Jewish youths in Nazi Germany participated in similar programs, hoping to escape persecution by leaving the country.
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Liberation of Dora-Mittelbau
FilmUS forces liberated the Dora-Mittelbau (Nordhausen) concentration camp in April 1945. Here, medics and soldiers of the US 3rd Armored Division evacuate sick and dying survivors of the camp.
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German air campaign in the Low Countries
FilmThe Junkers (Ju) 87, known as the "Stuka," spearheaded the Blitzkrieg ("lightning war") attacks that were decisive in the western campaign in 1940. Stuka dive-bombers closely supported German ground forces. They destroyed enemy strong points, aircraft, and airfields, and spread panic in rear areas. Although slow and easily shot down by Allied fighters, the Stukas proved devastatingly effective in the German invasions of Poland and western Europe, where Germany enjoyed superiority in the air. Stukas caused…
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"St. Louis" arrives in Antwerp
FilmThe German ship SS "St. Louis" departed from Hamburg for Cuba with almost 1,000 Jewish refugees on board on May 13, 1939. Most of the passengers had Cuban landing certificates. However, the Cuban government invalidated the certificates. When the "St. Louis" reached Havana on May 27, most of its passengers were denied entry. After the United States also refused to accept the refugees, the ship returned to Europe, docking at Antwerp. Britain, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands then agreed to accept the…
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Prewar Romani (Gypsy) life
FilmRoma (Gypsies) celebrate with music, dancing, and singing in the mountains near Zagreb, Yugoslavia. During World War II, Roma in Yugoslavia were exterminated by Croatian nationalists and by the Germans.
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Refugees from the "Exodus 1947"
FilmIn July 1947, 4,500 Jewish refugees left displaced persons camps in Germany and boarded the "Exodus 1947" in France. They attempted to sail to Palestine although they did not have permission from British authorities to land. The British intercepted the ship and forcibly returned the Jewish refugees to Germany. Here, Jews from the "Exodus 1947" are confined in Poppendorf, Germany. The plight of the "Exodus" passengers became a symbol of the struggle for open Jewish emigration to Palestine.
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British soldiers deport "Exodus 1947" passengers
FilmIn July 1947 in France, 4,500 Jewish refugees from displaced persons camps in Germany boarded the "Exodus 1947" and attempted to sail (without permission to land) to Palestine, which was under British mandate. The British intercepted the ship off the coast and forced it to anchor in Haifa, where British soldiers removed the Jewish refugees. After British authorities failed to force France to accept the refugees, the refugees were returned to DP camps in Germany. The plight of the "Exodus" passengers became…
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Protest in Bergen-Belsen displaced persons camp over return of "Exodus 1947" passengers
FilmIn July 1947, 4,500 Jewish refugees left displaced persons camps in Germany and boarded the "Exodus 1947" in France. They attempted to sail to Palestine without, however, having British permission to land. The British intercepted the ship and forcibly returned the refugees to Germany. This footage shows a protest in the Bergen-Belsen displaced persons camp in the British occupation zone of Germany. The protesters denounced British treatment of the "Exodus 1947" passengers. The plight of the "Exodus"…
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German military court trial of French resistance members
FilmFrance signed an armistice with Germany on June 22, 1940, recognizing the right of German authorities to oversee the French administration. Further, German military authorities held jurisdiction over matters of internal security. In this footage, a German military court in Paris tries French citizens charged with resisting measures of the military occupation. Despite harsh military justice, the Germans could not quell opposition in France, and resistance activities would reach a peak during the Allied…
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Destruction of Lidice
FilmCzech resistance fighters attacked Reinhard Heydrich, acting governor of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, in an ambush near Prague in May 1942. Heydrich died of his wounds on June 4, 1942. In retaliation for the attack, the Germans destroyed the village of Lidice on June 10, 1942. The Germans shot all the men in the village and deported most of the women and children to camps in Germany. This footage shows destroyed homes and German officials inspecting the remains of the village.
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Yugoslav partisans prepare to fight
FilmAt his hidden headquarters in the mountains of Yugoslavia, Marshal Tito (Josip Broz), head of the Yugoslav Communist partisan movement, prepares his forces for battle. Women gather silk parachutes, used to drop supplies by Allied forces, for use as bandages. Partisans train, preparing to fight the Germans. At the height of the partisan war in Yugoslavia in 1943, Tito's partisans engaged some 35 Axis divisions, which otherwise might have been in service on the Italian or eastern fronts.
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Fall of Rotterdam
FilmGermany invaded the Netherlands on May 10, 1940. Four days later, German planes bombed Rotterdam. The Germans tried to halt the raid on the city because Dutch authorities had agreed to negotiate the surrender of their country. However, a communications failure delayed the order halting the attack. The bombing destroyed much of the city center, leaving almost 80,000 people homeless. The Netherlands surrendered just a few hours later. On May 15, in retaliation for the bombing of Rotterdam, the British air…
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Air war in Flanders: Western Campaign
FilmThe Junkers (Ju) 87, known as the "Stuka," spearheaded the Blitzkrieg ("lightning war") attacks that were decisive in the western campaign in 1940. Stuka dive-bombers closely supported German forces on the ground. They destroyed enemy strong points, aircraft, and airfields, and spread panic in rear areas. Although slow and easily shot down by Allied fighters, the Stukas proved devastatingly effective in the German invasions of Poland and western Europe, where Germany enjoyed air superiority. Stuka…
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Battle for Danzig
FilmThe Treaty of Versailles, imposed on defeated Germany following World War I, declared Danzig to be a free city jointly administered by Poland and the League of Nations. Germany bitterly resented the loss of this largely German city, which was also an important port on the Baltic Sea. The return of Danzig became a central feature of Adolf Hitler's foreign policy. This footage shows pro-German forces besieging a Polish garrison in Danzig's main post office. Germany annexed Danzig after the defeat of Poland…
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Annexation of Austria
FilmGerman troops entered Austria on March 12, 1938. The annexation of Austria to Germany was proclaimed on March 13, 1938. In this German newsreel footage, Austrians express overwhelming enthusiasm for the Nazi takeover of their country.
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Agreement Reached at Munich Conference
Film[This video is silent] An agreement signed at the Munich conference of September 1938 ceded the German-speaking Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia to Germany. The agreement was reached between Germany, Italy, Britain, and France. Czechoslovakia was not permitted to attend the conference. In March 1939, six months after signing the Munich agreement, Hitler violated the agreement and destroyed the Czech state.
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Annexation of Austria: The Anschluss
FilmIn an attempt to prevent the German annexation of Austria, Austrian chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg called a plebiscite (referendum) on Austrian independence. On March 11, 1938, the Germans pressured Schuschnigg to cancel the plebiscite and resign. This German newsreel footage from March and April 1938 served as propaganda for the Nazi annexation of Austria. It begins with images of pro-Nazi residents in Graz expressing their opposition to Schuschnigg's plebiscite. It also includes footage after…
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Liberation of Ebensee camp
FilmUS forces under the command of General Omar Bradley reached the Ebensee forced-labor camp in Austria in early May 1945. The Germans had built Ebensee at the foot of the Austrian Alps as part of the Mauthausen system of camps. The Nazis employed Ebensee prisoners as forced laborers during the construction of an underground rocket factory. Thousands died from the harsh conditions and back-breaking labor.
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Liberation of Mauthausen
FilmThe Mauthausen concentration camp was established shortly after the German annexation of Austria (1938). Prisoners in the camp were forced to perform crushing labor in a nearby stone quarry and, later, to construct subterranean tunnels for rocket assembly factories. US forces liberated the camp in May 1945. In this footage, starving survivors of the Mauthausen concentration camp eat soup and scramble for potatoes.
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Estonian policemen stand trial for war crimes
FilmEstonian auxiliary forces assisted the German Einsatzgruppen (mobile killing units) in the mass killing of Jews and others during World War II. Ralf Gerrets and Jaan Viik were both members of the Estonian security police during the German occupation. This footage shows them during their trial, on charges of war crimes, in the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic. The Estonian Supreme Court found both guilty and sentenced them to death in 1961.
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Deportation of Jews from Bulgarian-occupied Thrace
FilmJews were deported from Kavala, Seres, and Drama in Bulgarian-occupied Thrace. Some 3,000 Jews were taken to Drama and herded onto trains without food or water for transport to a camp in Gorna Dzumaya. The Jews were probably then taken to the Bulgarian port of Lom on the Danube River, where they boarded ships for Vienna. From there, the Nazis deported them to the Treblinka killing center.
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Hitler tours Paris
FilmOne day after France signed an armistice with Germany in June 1940, Adolf Hitler celebrated the German victory over France with a tour of Paris. Here, Hitler's train arrives in Paris. Hitler's tour included the Paris opera, the Champs-Elysees, the Arc de Triomphe, and the Eiffel Tower. After visiting Napoleon's tomb and the Sacre Coeur, Hitler left Paris. In all, Hitler spent about three hours in the city. In July, Hitler returned in triumph to Berlin, Germany.
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French Liberation
FilmJubilation over the liberation of Paris: US troops parade along the Champs-Elysees and French civilians celebrate. General Charles de Gaulle and General Omar Bradley review the troops.
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Victory in Europe!
FilmGermany's formal surrender on May 7 and VE-Day (Victory in Europe Day) on May 8, 1945, were marked by joyous celebrations all over Europe. This footage shows streets in Paris and London filled with people celebrating the unconditional Allied victory over Nazi Germany and the winning of the war in Europe.
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Benito Mussolini
FilmBenito Mussolini, leader of the Italian Fascist movement, was prime minister of Italy from 1922 until he was dismissed in July 1943. After the Italian armistice with the Allies in September 1943, German forces occupied northern Italy and installed Mussolini as head of a new pro-German government. In April 1945, as Allied forces advanced into northern Italy, Mussolini attempted to escape to neutral Switzerland. However, Italian partisans caught and executed him before he could reach the border. This footage…
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Liberation of Rome
FilmAfter Italy's armistice with the Allies in September 1943, the Italian army disintegrated. The country was divided between German forces holding the northern and central regions (including Rome) and Allied forces in the south. After nine months of bitter combat, Allied forces—specifically the US Fifth Army—liberated Rome in June 1944. This footage shows scenes of celebration as troops move through Rome. It ends with a prayer by Pius XII (pope, 1939–1958).
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German forces in Italy surrender to the Allies
FilmAllied forces occupied most of Germany by the end of April 1945. German forces fighting in Italy were the first to surrender unconditionally to the Allies. Representatives of the German command in Italy signed the surrender on April 29, and it became effective on May 2, 1945. Five days later, on May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered unconditionally to the western Allies, ending the war in Europe.
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Jews at forced labor in Belgrade
FilmShortly after the German occupation of Belgrade, Yugoslavia, in April 1941, the Germans forced Jews to clear the rubble caused by the heavy bombardment of the city. This German newsreel footage shows Jews clearing some of the rubble. Most of the city's Jews were later arrested and interned in camps. The German army later shot the Jewish men in retaliation for Serb resistance; the Germans killed the Jewish women and children in gas vans. Only about 2,200 Jews of Belgrade returned to the city after the war.
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Ustasa forces round up villagers
FilmThe Ustase were pro-German Croatian fascists. After the Axis invasion and partition of Yugoslavia in April 1941, the Germans established a dependent Croatian state. Led by Ante Pavelic, the Croatian regime began a genocidal campaign against minority groups and killed hundreds of thousands of Serbs and tens of thousands of Jews in Croatia. This possibly staged Ustase footage shows Ustase paramilitary forces rounding up villagers in rural Croatia. In May 1945, Yugoslav partisans under Marshal Tito--with…
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Jewish refugees arrive in Haifa and are interned
FilmThe ship "Henrietta Szold," carrying more than 500 Jewish illegal immigrants from Greece to Palestine, arrived in Haifa on August 14, 1946. British authorities immediately interned the immigrants and deported them to British internment camps on the island of Cyprus.
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German invasion of Norway and the naval war
FilmGermany invaded Norway on April 9, 1940, simultaneously attacking Norway's coastal cities from Narvik in the far north to Oslo in the south. Despite Allied naval superiority, German naval forces played an important role in the campaign. This footage shows German naval units sailing towards Norway in rough seas. German victory in Norway secured access to the North Atlantic for the German navy, especially the submarine fleet, and safeguarded transports of Swedish iron ore for Germany's war industry.
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German invasion of Norway: Narvik
FilmGermany invaded Norway on April 9, 1940, simultaneously attacking Norway's coastal cities from Narvik in the far north to Oslo in the south. Narvik was the scene of fierce battles between German forces and the Allies, who landed troops by sea in support of the Norwegians. Narvik changed hands several times. However, British, French, and Polish forces were finally withdrawn in June 1940 due to the success of the German campaign in western Europe. German victory in Norway secured access to the North Atlantic…
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Norwegian fascists
FilmThis German newsreel footage shows Vidkun Quisling, leader of the fascist Norwegian Nasjonal Samling party, reviewing his troops. Quisling headed a pro-Nazi puppet regime in Norway during the war.
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US military chiefs visit displaced persons camp
FilmIn this footage, General Dwight Eisenhower, General George Patton, and Major General Lewis Craig inspect conditions at the Feldafing displaced persons camp near Wolfratshausen, Germany. Feldafing was one of the first displaced persons camps to house primarily Jewish refugees. In August 1945, Eisenhower ordered that Feldafing be used as a model for the establishment of other camps for Jewish displaced persons in the US occupation zones of Germany and Austria.
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Deportation of Jews from Balti, Bessarabia
FilmThe Romanian government was allied with Nazi Germany, but it generally did not deport Romanian Jews to German-occupied territory. Instead, Romania systematically concentrated and deported the Jews of Bessarabia and northern Bukovina to Romanian-occupied areas of the Ukraine. Here, Jews from the Bessarabian town of Balti are assembled in collection camps during the deportations. By the end of May 1942, Romanian security forces had killed or deported most of the Jews in the area. Only about 200 Jews remained…
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Ion Antonescu meets with Hitler
FilmMarshal Ion Antonescu was ruler of Romania from 1940 to 1944. Following the defeat of German forces at Stalingrad, Hitler suspected that some of the countries allied with Germany intended to negotiate a separate peace. In this German newsreel footage, Antonescu meets with Hitler in Berchtesgaden, Germany, primarily to reassure Hitler that Romania remained committed to the German war effort. In the year following this meeting, King Michael of Romania arrested Antonescu and signed an armistice with the…
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Croatian fascist leader Ante Pavelic
FilmAnte Pavelic was a Croatian fascist leader who headed a pro-German government in Croatia from 1941 until 1945. This captured German newsreel shows Pavelic walking through an adoring crowd and reviewing his units. Under Pavelic's rule, the Croatian government killed hundreds of thousands of Serbs, Jews, and Roma (Gypsies). Pavelic fled to Argentina after the war. He died in 1959 from wounds he received in an assassination attempt two years earlier.
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Trial of Ion Antonescu
FilmIon Antonescu governed Romania from 1940 until 1944. Antonescu aligned Romania with the Axis powers in November 1940, and became one of Nazi Germany's closest allies. Romania joined in the German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. It also implemented harsh anti-Jewish policies against Jews in Romania. While Antonescu ultimately refused to hand Jews over to the Germans, Romanian forces brutally killed hundreds of thousands of Jews, mainly residents of Bessarabia, Bukovina, and the western Ukraine. As the…
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Warsaw Polish uprising
FilmOn August 1, 1944, the Armia Krajowa (Polish Home Army) launched an uprising in Warsaw against the German occupiers. Although the Western allies dropped ammunition and supplies and the Soviet army was within sight of the city, the uprising was crushed. This German newsreel footage shows the German suppression of the uprising.
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Treatment of US POWs
FilmA former US prisoner of war (POW), United States Navy Lieutenant Jack Taylor, testifies to the treatment he and other American POWs received in the Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria.
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Father Charles Coughlin opposes Roosevelt
FilmFather Charles E. Coughlin was a Catholic priest who reached a large audience through mass rallies and radio broadcasts. Coughlin, openly antisemitic, was an outspoken critic of the political establishment. This footage shows him addressing more than 80,000 people, the Illinois members of the National Union for Social Justice, at Riverview Park in Chicago. He criticized President Roosevelt (running for a second term as President of the United States) and attacked the government's fiscal policy in the…
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Olympic Games in Berlin
FilmThe 1936 Summer Olympic Games were held in Berlin. For two weeks, Adolf Hitler camouflaged his antisemitic and expansionist agenda while hosting the games. Hoping to impress the many foreign visitors who were in Germany for the games, Hitler authorized a brief relaxation in anti-Jewish activities (including the removal of signs barring Jews from public places). The games were a resounding propaganda success for the Nazis. They presented foreign spectators with the image of a peaceful and tolerant Germany.…
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UNRRA conference convenes in the United States
FilmThe United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) was established in November 1943 to aid refugees fleeing Axis aggression. After World War II, UNRRA sought to assist millions of refugees displaced by the war and its consequences. In the aftermath of the war, worldwide food shortages threatened millions with starvation and the world looked to the United States for assistance. In this footage, UNRRA's fourth council meeting convenes in Atlantic City. Director-General Herbert H. Lehman…
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Wedding in Munkács
FilmHuge crowds of well wishers gather in the streets on the occasion of the wedding of the Munkács rabbi's 18-year-old daughter, Frime Chaye Rivke. The Grand Rabbi of Munkács (Mukacevo), Chaim Elazar Shapiro, father of the bride, makes a speech in Yiddish exhorting Jews in America to continue to keep Shabbes (to observe the sabbath day). The wedding party then enters the synagogue grounds, and the cantor sings blessings beneath the wedding canopy. The wedding concludes with festive klezmer…
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School lesson in Munkács
FilmChildren from the cheder (traditional religious school) in Munkacs recite their lesson.
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Book peddler in Munkács
FilmExterior of house of study. Book peddler negotiates a sale with a young customer.
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