History hides many interesting things.
About the Second world war tell in high school history lessons. We all know about the tyranny of Hitler, the Holocaust, the attack on pearl Harbor. But there are some facts about the war known only to those who are seriously engaged in the study of the history of this period.
1. The German army greatly inferior in numbers, the armies of France
Many believe that the German army in 1940 was significantly superior in numbers and armament of the enemy. Although, it would seem that the German armed forces were very modern and mechanized, the number of German army outnumbered the army of France.
When the Germans attacked France on 10 may 1940, they had mechanized transport only in 16 of 135 units. The rest used horses, carts and even on foot. France also had 117 divisions, and they were all ready for modern warfare. Also France had more artillery pieces (more than 10 700 to 7, 378 from Germany). And that’s not to mention a larger number of tanks from the French.
2. In the UK there was almost no infantry
The UK armed forces were mostly concentrated in air and naval units. But after the fall of France was that the British have more infantry. However, until the spring of 1944 a large part of the British armed forces were still concentrated in the Navy and aviation. Despite the fact that the UK never had more than 750 Marines, the country has built as many as 132 500 aircraft.
3. The loss of allied ships made up about one percent
The number of ships of the allies in the Second world war amounted to approximately 323 090 ships. Of them were sunk about 4 ships 786, 2 562 of which were British. Thus, the loss of allies between the North Atlantic, Arctic and inland waters amounted to 1.48% of the fleet. This number seems all the more surprising given the number of losses on other fronts.
4. In England there was famine
After the outbreak of war in England and France, there was rationing of food, unlike Germany. Germany constantly faced with hunger throughout the war, not only civilians, but also armed forces. Therefore, when the Germans defeated France in June 1940, they began to take food from the occupied territories, which led to famine and rationing of food in many regions of France. In 1940, rationing began in the UK, but the British never really starving, like people in other countries.
5. The Japanese were missiles with suicide bombers
Not only do some Germans were missiles. The Japanese also had their own rocket, which was driven by people. It was called the Ohka, which translates as “cherry blossom”. The Japanese armed forces was less advanced technologies than the United States or Britain, so they used suicide bombers. Although such missiles managed to sink several allied ships, this was all.
6. Forgotten British Marshal
Field Marshal Alexander {fhjkml was one of the main figures in the war, often personally leading the troops. He was a combat commander during the First world war, commanded troops in Nowshera in 1930, in France in 1940 and even in Burma in 1942. Today it almost did not remember, but his success was simply stunning.
7. In the Luftwaffe were high demands on the pilots
Allied and German aces fighter a very different number of downed aircraft. The German Luftwaffe was much higher demands on pilots. The German pilots were much more plaque. In this regard, the German aces were much more likely to achieve higher results than their counterparts. While leading aces of the Luftwaffe shot down more than 350 opponents, the best allied fighter ACE shot down 38 planes.
8. The Luftwaffe had the best aircraft
The Luftwaffe was the most modern designs for aircraft, but they were not put into service. A major aircraft manufacturing firms were the Messerschmidt Bf109 fighter, the Heinkel rival company had their own version of the fighter – metal monoplane He112. Both aircraft were fast and had a top speed of 560 km/h miles per hour, and their rate of climb was excellent. However, He112 could rise to a height of 6 km within 10 minutes and had an unprecedented range of flight up to 1150 km.
However, because the Heinkel allegedly had connections with the Jews, the Heinkel fighter was not displayed in mass production.
9. The famous Parsons jacket
The most widely known jacket tunic Parsons, which was used by the field army of the United States, has become the standard clothing for the army. It gained its popular for its combination of comfort and durability, unlike other kinds of forms offered at the time. Simple short jacket is perfect for all seasons.
10. Germany had very little equipment
German propaganda constantly praised their advanced technology, but the Germans were, in fact, one of the least “car” societies during the war. In Germany, there was only one car for every 47 people in the beginning of the war. It doesn’t compare with the UK (14 cars for 1 person), France (8:1) and the USA (4:1).
