WarCommons Deep Dives are long-form investigations into the events, mechanisms, and human stories that defined the Second World War. Going beyond the familiar narrative, each Deep Dive traces causes, examines consequences, and surfaces the history that standard accounts leave out. Built on source-driven research and written for the reader who wants more than a summary, WarCommons Deep Dives are the place where the full complexity of World War II gets the space it deserves.
How Ordinary People Became an Extraordinary Resistance Resistance movements were present throughout Europe during World War II. In some countries, these movements were more widespread than in others. In Germany, for example, there was virtually no widespread resistance movement, apart…
From Secret Shadow Force to the Spine of the Blitzkrieg Unlike the terms Kriegsmarine and Wehrmacht, which disappeared after World War II, the German Air Force is still known as the Luftwaffe. After World War II, Germany was once again…
From Hidden Rearmament to Open Defiance, 1919–1938 The Treaty of Versailles, a thorn in Germany’s side after the end of World War I and in the years that followed. The treaty was also a symbol of defeat, shame, and oppression…
The Big Red One wasn’t the only unit during Operation Overlord and D-Day whose regiment was overshadowed by the so-called Band of Brothers. Easy Company, the Screaming Eagles, cast a long shadow over Operation Overlord. The 526th Armored Infantry Battalion…
The Second World War was the main stage for (military) espionage and deception. This is often forgotten, simply because so much happened during that period. But what is never forgotten is the ingenious Operation Mincemeat. A textbook example of how…
When historians write about the road to World War II, the same factors often come up. Social and economic discontent and the Reichstag fire are frequently central to these factors. But just as important were the small diplomatic successes Hitler…
When it comes to Adolf Hitler, his rise to absolute power, and Nazi Germany, most discussions focus on the well-documented instances of propaganda that took place from 1933 through 1945. Countless articles have been written on this subject.People fail to…
Throughout its brief history, the Weimar Republic was often plagued by instability. But among these periods of instability, the hyperinflation of 1923 stands out as the most significant. And especially what resulted from that hyperinflation. A culmination of this was…
