Captivity, Flight, and Survival in World War II

Captivity, Flight, and Survival in World War II PDF Author: Alan Levine
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0313001413
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 270

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Book Description
A collection of prisoner of war and concentration camp survivor stories from some of the toughest World War II camps in Europe and the Pacific, this book details the daring escapes and highlights the fundamental aspects of human nature that made such heroic efforts possible. Levine takes a comprehensive approach, including evasion efforts by those fleeing before the enemy who never reached formal prisoner of war camps, as well as escapes from ghettoes and labor camps. Levine pays particular attention to dramatic escapes by small boat. Many are not widely known, although some were made over vast distances or in fantastically difficult conditions from enemy-occupied areas. Accounts include attempts at freedom from both German and Japanese prisoner of war camps, stories that reveal much about the conditions prisoners endured. Some of these escapes are far more amazing than the famed Great Escape from Stalag Luft III. German and Austrian prisoners also recount their amazing flights from India to Tibet and Burma. This study challenges some ideas about behavior in extreme situations and casts interesting light on human nature.

Captivity, Flight, and Survival in World War II

Captivity, Flight, and Survival in World War II PDF Author: Alan Levine
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0313001413
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 270

Get Book Here

Book Description
A collection of prisoner of war and concentration camp survivor stories from some of the toughest World War II camps in Europe and the Pacific, this book details the daring escapes and highlights the fundamental aspects of human nature that made such heroic efforts possible. Levine takes a comprehensive approach, including evasion efforts by those fleeing before the enemy who never reached formal prisoner of war camps, as well as escapes from ghettoes and labor camps. Levine pays particular attention to dramatic escapes by small boat. Many are not widely known, although some were made over vast distances or in fantastically difficult conditions from enemy-occupied areas. Accounts include attempts at freedom from both German and Japanese prisoner of war camps, stories that reveal much about the conditions prisoners endured. Some of these escapes are far more amazing than the famed Great Escape from Stalag Luft III. German and Austrian prisoners also recount their amazing flights from India to Tibet and Burma. This study challenges some ideas about behavior in extreme situations and casts interesting light on human nature.

Captivity, Flight, and Survival in World War II

Captivity, Flight, and Survival in World War II PDF Author: Alan J. Levine
Publisher:
ISBN: 9789798400629
Category : Escapes
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description


Confronting Captivity

Confronting Captivity PDF Author: Arieh J. Kochavi
Publisher: Univ of North Carolina Press
ISBN: 0807876402
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 393

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Book Description
How was it possible that almost all of the nearly 300,000 British and American troops who fell into German hands during World War II survived captivity in German POW camps and returned home almost as soon as the war ended? In Confronting Captivity, Arieh J. Kochavi offers a behind-the-scenes look at the living conditions in Nazi camps and traces the actions the British and American governments took--and didn't take--to ensure the safety of their captured soldiers. Concern in London and Washington about the safety of these POWs was mitigated by the recognition that the Nazi leadership tended to adhere to the Geneva Convention when it came to British and U.S. prisoners. Following the invasion of Normandy, however, Allied apprehension over the safety of POWs turned into anxiety for their very lives. Yet Britain and the United States took the calculated risk of counting on a swift conclusion to the war as the Soviets approached Germany from the east. Ultimately, Kochavi argues, it was more likely that the lives of British and American POWs were spared because of their race rather than any actions their governments took on their behalf.

Wartime Captivity in the 20th Century

Wartime Captivity in the 20th Century PDF Author: Anne-Marie Pathé
Publisher: Berghahn Books
ISBN: 1785332597
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 344

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Book Description
Long a topic of historical interest, wartime captivity has over the past decade taken on new urgency as an object of study. Transnational by its very nature, captivity’s historical significance extends far beyond the front lines, ultimately inextricable from the histories of mobilization, nationalism, colonialism, law, and a host of other related subjects. This wide-ranging volume brings together an international selection of scholars to trace the contours of this evolving research agenda, offering fascinating new perspectives on historical moments that range from the early days of the Great War to the arrival of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay.

Unbroken

Unbroken PDF Author: Laura Hillenbrand
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks
ISBN: 0812974492
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 530

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Book Description
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The incredible true story of survival and salvation that is the basis for two major motion pictures: Unbroken and Unbroken: Path to Redemption. “Extraordinarily moving . . . a powerfully drawn survival epic.”—The Wall Street Journal Hailed as the top nonfiction book of the year by Time magazine • Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for biography On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood. Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared. It was that of a young lieutenant, the plane’s bombardier, who was struggling to a life raft and pulling himself aboard. So began one of the most extraordinary odysseys of the Second World War. The lieutenant’s name was Louis Zamperini. In boyhood, he’d been a cunning and incorrigible delinquent, breaking into houses, brawling, and fleeing his home to ride the rails. As a teenager, he had channeled his defiance into running, discovering a prodigious talent that had carried him to the Berlin Olympics and within sight of the four-minute mile. But when war had come, the athlete had become an airman, embarking on a journey that led to his doomed flight, a tiny raft, and a drift into the unknown. Ahead of Zamperini lay thousands of miles of open ocean, leaping sharks, a foundering raft, thirst and starvation, enemy aircraft, and, beyond, a trial even greater. Driven to the limits of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope, resolve, and humor; brutality with rebellion. His fate, whether triumph or tragedy, would be suspended on the fraying wire of his will. Laura Hillenbrand writes with the same rich and vivid narrative voice she displayed in Seabiscuit. Telling an unforgettable story of a man’s journey into extremity, Unbroken is a testament to the resilience of the human mind, body, and spirit.

MISSING

MISSING PDF Author: Kenneth D. Evans
Publisher: Starhaven Publishing, LLC
ISBN: 1732370206
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 513

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Book Description
Don was an all-American boy who went to war for his country… …but he never expected to end up in a Nazi POW camp. Student-body president with all-state sports honors, Don was destined for a bright future. His plans included college and marrying the love of his life, Laura Jeanne. Then fate stepped in. Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and America entered World War II. At age 19, Don joined the United States Army Air Force and flew in the 368th Fighter Group of the Ninth Air Force. That is, until he was shot down behind enemy lines in the Battle of the Bulge. Lost, cold, and hungry, Don spent Christmas Eve wondering if he’d ever see his family again. Don’s story gives an extraordinary account of WWII, detailing capture by Nazi SS Troops, a 200-mile forced march, near starvation, and internment in a German POW camp. Using excerpts from his parent’s personal letters, journals, and actual images from their experiences, Kenneth D. Evan creates a heartfelt narrative founded on historical accuracy. You’ll love MISSING for the story of survival, true love, and an American hero overcoming insurmountable odds.

Parameters

Parameters PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Military art and science
Languages : en
Pages : 172

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Book Description


War and Resistance in the Philippines, 1942-1944

War and Resistance in the Philippines, 1942-1944 PDF Author: James K Morningstar
Publisher: Naval Institute Press
ISBN: 1682476294
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 346

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Book Description
War and Resistance in the Philippines, 1942-1944 repairs the fragmentary and incomplete history of events in the Philippine Islands between the surrender of Allied forces in May 1942 and MacArthur's return in October 1944. No book has comprehensively examined the Filipino resistance during this crucial period. Here, James Kelly Morningstar provides for the first time a comprehensive history of the protracted fighting by 260,000 guerrillas in 277 units across the archipelago. Beginning with the Japanese occupation, the collapse of the United States Forces, Far East (USAFFE), and the simultaneous rise of the complex, diverse Philippine guerrilla movements, Morningstar exposes the inadequacy of MacArthur's conventional plans while revealing his inchoate preparation for guerrilla resistance. Morningstar then recounts in detail the impromptu resistance led by refugee American and Filipino soldiers, local politicians, and social revolutionaries left to battle the Japanese--and each other--with emphasis on how Japanese, American, and Filipino actions influenced and proscribed each other. From a distance, MacArthur contacted select guerrillas and organized agents to deliver supplies and radios to them by submarine. In this way he empowered some to gain power as part of a united framework under his leadership. This not only kept alive the resistance that denied the Japanese exploitation of the Philippines while setting the conditions for MacArthur's return, it also ensured that no one guerrilla leader could challenge America's supremacy. MacArthur's selective support to guerrilla groups that encouraged continued Filipino dependence on the United States would prove fatal for the incipient Maoist social revolution on Luzon. Even so, the Filipinos' shared sacrifice in their act of resistance fueled a national consciousness that created a sense of deserved nationhood. War and Resistance in the Philippines, 1942-1944 concludes with a brief discussion of legacies of the guerrilla resistance. MacArthur's return reestablished the power of American and Filipino political elites. Guerrillas and other citizens who had experienced exceptional hardship now had to fight for recognition. However, the war had resulted in a more united Philippine national identity along with new political institutions to repair the divisions between the formerly exiled government, the collaborationists, and the members of resistance. These momentous years of struggle in the Philippines changed the tide of history and challenge our understanding of war and resistance.

Rite of Passage

Rite of Passage PDF Author: Ray T. Matheny
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780981848914
Category : Flight engineers
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Drawing on a vast array of original source material that has survived for decades and previously classified information, this thrilling narrative history documents a young soldier’s miraculous survival in war-torn Europe during World War II. Soon after joining the U.S. Army Corps, a wiry, baby-faced 17-year-old found himself a seasoned warrior desperately battling head-to-head against the Luftwaffe’s best fighter pilots over Nazi Germany. Having amazingly escaped the fiery wreckage of his B-17, he relied on his ingenuity and determination to get him through two bitter winters in confinement as a POW in the infamous Stalag 17. Along with other American prisoners, he was coerced to flee the rapidly advancing Red Army as the European war came to a close and endure a brutal 18-day march where he witnessed firsthand the horrors of the Mauthausen concentration camp. Weighing an emaciated 110 pounds, he was finally rescued by Patton’s Third Army just days before Germany surrendered.

Never Will We Forget

Never Will We Forget PDF Author: Marilyn Mayer Culpepper
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0313344795
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 332

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Book Description
Never Will We Forget deals with the most enduring and moving side of World War II, the personal side. These are the stories of some 400 men and women, who, though they experienced the war in wildly different ways, were all profoundly affected by it. Gleaned from interviews and oral histories, the book reflects the experiences of male and female veterans, civilians on the home front, conscientious objectors, survivors of the torpedoing of the USS Indianapolis and of typhoons, participants in the Normandy Invasion, the Battle of the Bulge, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. Some stories tug at the heart, some foster the shock of surprise, still others reflect the long-held pride in the American war effort at home and abroad. From the first dark stirrings of war through its dusty aftermath, Never Will We Forget captures how Americans lived, felt, and believed during the twentieth century's most brutal conflict.