30 Kickass and Interesting Facts About World War 2-Part 1

War is hell. World War II’s direct impact and its repercussions still lay imprinted on the face of earth. Countries still fear to go on war for fear of triggering another World War. Here are 30 Kickass and Interesting Facts About World War 2. Also for part 2 click here.

1-5 Interesting Facts About WW2

1. The Holocaust Memorial in Berlin is coated with an anti-graffiti chemical. It was manufactured by the very same company that made the Zyklon B gas that was used in concentration camp gas chambers during WW2. – Source

2. Nine American crewmen survived when their war plane crashed during World War 2. Eight of them were captured by the Japanese and eaten. Only one survived because he was picked up by a passing submarine. That survivor is George H.W. Bush. – Source

3. Roza Shanina was a female Soviet sniper who fought in WW2 and achieved 54 confirmed hits. Allied newspapers called her, “the unseen terror of East Prussia.”

4. During WW2, penicillin was recycled and extracted from the urine of soldiers already on the antibiotics. – Source

5. Russian and Japan still haven’t signed any peace treaty to end WW2. – Source

6-10 Interesting Facts About WW2

6. During WW2, Pilots would intercept V-1 flying bombs (also known as the Buzz Bomb or Doodlebug-Pictured above) and tip them over with their wingtips causing them to crash. (Pictured above)

7. A Korean soldier during WW2 was enrolled into the Japanese Imperial Army. Eventually he was captured and forced to fight for the Red Army. Later he was captured again and forced to fight for the Wehrmacht (Germany). Making him a veteran of three armies. – Source

8. The German city of Konstanz was not bombed by the Allied Forces during World War II, because the city left all its lights on at night, thus fooling the allied bombers into thinking it was actually a city of Switzerland. – Source

9. Adrian Carton de Wiart, a British officer fought in the Boer War, WWI & II, was shot in the face, head, stomach, ankle, leg, hip and ear, survived a plane crash, tunneled out of a POW camp, and bit off his own fingers when a doctor wouldn’t amputate them. He later stated, “frankly I had enjoyed the war.” – Source

10. During World War II, Japanese Army officers hosted a party for the Japanese Navy officers, and when they ran out of meat they served the liver of a recently deceased American soldier.

11-15 Interesting Facts About WW2

11. Coconut juice – or water inside – not only is sterile, but has the same electrolytic balance as human blood, which enabled medics in the Pacific Theater in World War II to use it as an emergency substitute for plasma. – Source

12. An Imperial Japanese Army intelligence officer, who fought in World War II, Hiroo Onoda never surrendered in 1945. Until 1974, for almost 30 years, he held his position in Philippines. His former commander traveled from Japan to personally issue orders relieving him from duty in 1974. – Source

13. During World War II, Russia forced battalions of convicts to run through minefields, search and clear them ahead of the advancing troops. – Source

14. During World War II, the very first bomb dropped on Berlin by the Allies killed the only elephant of the Berlin Zoo. – Source

15. There were American soldiers during World War II, who used fake tanks and pre-recorded sounds to deceive the Nazis into thinking their army was bigger than it actually was. They were called the ‘Ghost Army’. – Source

16-20 Interesting Facts About WW2

16. The notion of gremlins was first conceptualized during WW2, when mechanical failures in aircraft were jokingly blamed on the small monsters. – Source

17. During World War II, A women slipped and fell at the top of the stairs of Bethnal Green tube station in London. It was being used as a bomb shelter. The resulting domino effect killed 176 people. – Source

18. SS Wien of Austria was sunk in 1918 during World War I. It was raised again, salvaged, refitted and returned to service as SS Po. It was sunk again in 1941 during World War II. – Source

19. During World War II, British officer, James Hill captured two Italian tanks using only his revolver, but was wounded while attempting to capture his third tank. – Source

20. Pooli, the American cat was a World War II veteran, who earned three service ribbons and four battle stars. – Source

21-25 Interesting Facts About WW2

21. Nutella was invented during WWII because chocolate was in short supply due to World War II rationing. – Source

22. During World War II, there was a double agent named Juan Pujol Garcia, who started a spy network consisting of 27 sub-agents of his own, all of them nonexistent. He submitted expense reports for them and had the Nazis giving him money to pay their salaries. He later received the Iron Cross, approved by Hitler himself. – Source

23. After World War II, Denmark declined an offer of $100,000,000 from the United States to buy Greenland. – Source

24. During WW2, German scientists researched the possibility of putting a mirror into space to scorch cities. They figured it would take about 50 to 100 years to complete this “Sun Gun”.

25. During WW2, a Russian pilot, Alexey Maresyev was shot down over Nazi Germany. He dragged himself 18 days to Soviet territory and had to have his legs amputated. Later, he mastered the use of prosthetic devices and returned to flying combat missions. – Source

26-30 Interesting Facts About WW2

26. The US playing card company ‘Bicycle’ had manufactured a playing card in WW2. When the card was soaked, it revealed an escape route for Prisoners of War. These cards were Christmas presents for all POWs in Germany. – Source

27. During WW2, American pilot, Alan Magee fell 20,000 feet without a parachute before smashing through the glass roof of a train station. He survived and lived to 82. – Source

28. Netherland sends Canada 10,000 tulips each year as a thank you gesture for sheltering their Dutch princess during WW2. – Source

29. German pilots used to intentionally rupture their eardrums during WW2 to prevent air pressure issues. Similarly, Bajau people of the Pacific rupture their eardrums to help them in diving and hunting at sea. – Source

30. Marius A. Langbein, a German spy was sent to Canada during WW2. He decided to use his funds to move to Ottawa and then surrendered to Canadian authorities. During trial, Jury let him go because he didn’t do any damage or even spying – Source

30 World War 2 Facts – Part 2