Today in the Second World War

Welcome to the June 10th edition of the Hidden History Newsletter, your everyday gateway to the stories, strategies, and human experiences of WWII. Whether you're a scholar, an enthusiast, or someone personally connected to the era, our mission is to illuminate the past, honoring the resilience, bravery, and sacrifices made, and deriving lessons that continue to echo in our present and future. So, come with us as we journey back into a time of heroes and history.

“The battle is going very heavily against us. We’re being crushed by the enemy weight. We are facing very difficult days, perhaps the most difficult that a man can undergo.” - Field Marshal Erwin Rommel

Daring Escape

At Auschwitz Concentration Camp, about 50 Polish prisoners in the penal company attempted to escape while working at a drainage ditch in Birkenau; it was the first mass escape in the history of the camp. 9 were able to escape successfully. In response, the SS guards executed 20 prisoners by firing squad and sent 300 prisoners from the penal company in the gas chamber.

Bombing Campaign Ramps Up

USAAF and RAF began a coordinated air offensive with the RAF over Europe, conducting area bombing at night and the USAAF flying precision bombing raids by day. The British Assistant Chief of the Air Staff noted that the primary objective of bombing campaign was "the destruction of German air-frame, engine and component factories and the ball-bearing industry on which the strength of the German fighter force depend" and the secondary objective was "the general disorganization of those industrial areas associated with the above industries"

Village Erased

On the morning of June 10, 1944, four days after the D-Day landings in Normandy, the 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich arrived in Oradour-sur-Glane. The division had been stationed in southern France and was on its way to Normandy to counter the Allied invasion. It had a reputation for brutality and had been responsible for numerous atrocities on the Eastern Front.

On that fateful day, the troops surrounded the town and ordered all the inhabitants to gather in the village square, ostensibly to have their identity papers examined. The population was then separated; the women and children were locked in the church, while the men were led to barns and garages where machine guns had been set up.

In the late afternoon, the men were shot in the legs so that they would die slowly. The Nazis then set fire to the barns. Only six men managed to escape. One of them was later found and shot dead.

Meanwhile, a device was detonated in the church. When the women and children tried to escape from the church, they were met with machine gun fire. Only one woman, Marguerite Rouffanche, managed to escape through a window, although she was shot and wounded in the process.

The troops then looted the village and set it on fire. After the massacre, the SS unit continued northward to engage the advancing Allied forces. Of the original population, 642 were murdered and the village was destroyed.

After the war, a new village of Oradour-sur-Glane was built nearby, but French president Charles de Gaulle ordered that the ruins of the old village be maintained as a permanent memorial and museum. The museum displays artifacts from the massacre and serves as a poignant reminder of the brutality of war and the atrocities committed during World War II.

Lucky Strike

In the East China Sea about 40 miles northwest of Okinawa, Japan at 0815 hours, a Japanese D3A dive bomber dropped out of the clouds above destroyer USS William D. Porter. Making a sharp turn, the destroyer avoided impact and the plane hit the sea close by. Somehow the dive bomber ended up under Porter's keel and exploded, lifting the ship out of the water. She lost all power and the steam lines fractured. A number of fires broke out and after three hours it was realised that the ship could not be saved. The abandon ship order was given and the destroyer rolled over and sank. Fortune was with the ship though as no fatalities were recorded.

Photo of the Day

Lidice, Czechoslovakia 10 Jun 1942. Members of the SS police stand in the courtyard of the wrecked Horák family farm before the structures were totally destroyed.

As we conclude this June 10th edition of the Hidden History Newsletter, we hope the narratives and insights shared have given you a deeper understanding of the trials, tribulations, and triumphs experienced during WWII. Remember, the echo of history is not merely a series of events, but a testament to human courage, ingenuity, and resilience. May the stories from the past continue to inspire us, guide us, and remind us of the enduring spirit of humanity.

We invite you to join us again tomorrow, as we delve into another day in the life of a world at war. Until then, let's continue to reflect, learn, and never forget the lessons of our past.

If you ever have any recommendations feel free to reach out to us at [email protected]

Have a great weekend :)

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