N1104 In September 1943, Italy signed an armistice with the Allies who had landed in Sicily weeks earlier. Germany responded by pouring troops into central and northern Italy, occupying cities, disarming Italian soldiers, and restoring control by force. As the fascist government collapsed, resistance grew. Italian partisans, many of them former soldiers, communists, and ordinary civilians, … Read more
“Perché dovevi essere tu la prima? ” La voce di mia madre riecheggiò nel salotto silenzioso, gelida, mentre il suo sguardo si fissava sul mio ventre. Mi chiamo Marion, ho venticinque anni e sono una casalinga. Mia sorella Tara ha tre anni più di me ed è sempre stata la preferita di nostra madre. Punto. … Read more
When Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands on May 10, 1940, the attack came months after the start of the Second World War. German bombers struck military airfields and barracks around The Hague as part of the assault. Adolf Hitler justified the attack with the false claim that Britain and France were planning to invade Germany … Read more
When Adolf Hitler was appointed German chancellor on January 30, 1933, the Nazi regime moved quickly to strip civil and human rights from Jews and others deemed enemies of the state. The first concentration camp, Dachau, opened near Munich. Among those arrested were not only Jews and political prisoners but also thousands of homosexual men, … Read more
Le carillon de la serrure biométrique de ma porte d’entrée a émis un petit son mélodieux, traversant l’obscurité de la maison. Il était 23h45, un jeudi. Je venais de passer six jours dans un centre de congrès sans fenêtre à La Défense, à auditer la télématique du fret commercial et à renégocier les journaux de … Read more
On August 1, 1944, the Polish capital of Warsaw rose against Nazi occupation. Barricades appeared in the streets, red and white flags flew above ruined buildings, and young men and women of the Polish Home Army took up arms. For a brief moment, hope returned to the city. The German response was swift and merciless. … Read more
In March 1940, Nazi Germany approved the creation of a special combat unit made up exclusively of people serving prison sentences for poaching and related crimes. Adolf Hitler gave his approval after consulting with SS leader Heinrich Himmler. The unit was recruited to fight partisans in mountainous areas. Before long, murderers, psychopaths, sexual deviants, and … Read more
Wilhelm Ruppert was born on February 2, 1905, in Frankental, then part of the German Empire. He was married, had one child, and worked as an electrical engineer. His path to becoming a perpetrator of Nazi atrocities began amid the economic collapse of the Great Depression, which started in 1929. Widespread unemployment, poverty, and rising … Read more
Sei settimane dopo aver gettato la terra sulla bara di mio marito, l’ho visto dall’altro lato di una piscina in Florida, con la bocca piena di vita e una risata che conoscevo bene, mentre mia suocera gli riempiva il bicchiere di vino e la sua ex moglie gli teneva una mano sul ginocchio come se … Read more
Margarete Himmler was the wife of Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS and one of the most feared men in Nazi Germany. While her husband oversaw the concentration camps, controlled the police, and answered only to Adolf Hitler, Margarete remained a bitter and largely forgotten figure at his side. She shared her husband's hatred … Read more