Hitler's Mistress 
During all the years Eva Braun lived with Adolf Hitler as his mistress and, briefly, his wife she was one of Germany's best kept secrets. Indeed, until after the war many Germans were almost completely unaware of her existence.

Origami Warfare 
Japan has long been known for beautiful handmade paper and art objects made of paper, a technique known as Origami. However, in 1944 a new use of paper was brought to the attention of the world, huge paper balloons filled with hydrogen were used to carry antipersonnel and incendiary bombs from Japan to the USA, Canada and Mexico.

Tokyo Rose 
The woman who was finally identified as "Tokyo Rose" by the American press (civilian and military) was Iva Toguri D'Aquino, an American born to Japanese immigrant parents. She was trapped in Japan, when war broke out, unable to speak or read the language.

War On The Home Front 
When war broke out and the merchant navy began falling prey to U-boats British civilians were as embattled as British troops. The mechanisms of rationing had been prepared beforehand and when war was declared rationing was only a few days behind.

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo 
In the spring of 1942, Americans needed a victory -- no matter how slight. Nothing but continued losses were anticipated for the immediate future and thus emerged the daring plan to bomb Tokyo. Hollywood would immortalize this raid, the "Doolittle Raid," on film.

The Razor 
Hideki Tojo led Japan into the Second World War and was ultimately responsible for its conduct of the Pacific war until mid-1944. He remains almost completely unknown in the West. In contrast, an enormous quantity of information is available regarding Emperor Hirohito. It is as if historians had chosen to focus on King George of England and disregard Winston Churchill's role in the war.

Il Duce 
Benito Mussolini, the man who made the Italian trains run on time, created his own unique brand of politics: Facism. He was heralded worldwide as a statesman of genius.

F.D.R. 
After the outbreak of World War I Roosevelt became a strong supporter of preparedness for war, a direct contrast to his country's isolationist policies. By 1940 overt defense preparations and "all aid short of war" to the European Allies were underway.

Uncle Joe 
His birth name was Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashivili. His party name was "Koba"-- the name of a Georgian folk-hero rather like Robin Hood. The world remembers him as Stalin -- derived from the Russian word for steel.

Winnie the Warmonger 
Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill has been described as the second most influential person in the World War II, eclipsed only by Adolf Hitler. But his influence did not arise in a vacuum. His political and military career spanned nearly four decades prior to the war.

D-Day 1944 
On the morning of June 6th an Allied armada arrived off the coast of Normandy and launched the largest amphibious assault in history. A coup de grâce had been delivered to the Third Reich. An Allied victory in Europe was now certain but that was not the case when the invasion was ordered.

Molotov in Berlin 1940
Molotov, the Soviet Union's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, was in Berlin in mid-November 1940 to discuss a broad range of political and economic issues between the Third Reich and the USSR. During his interview with Hitler, the Soviet Union was invited to join the Tripartite Pact and share in the spoils of the British Empire. Molotov did not dismiss the idea outright.