# data[].attributes.body
To Hell and Back (1955) - Turner Classic Movies - TCM

https://www.tcm.com › tcmdb › title › to-hell-and-back

To hell and back is a movie based off of Audie Murphy himself detailing the events that led him to receive the Medal of Honor and also to become one of the most decorated foot-soldiers of the war.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Abstract

Among the consequences of war, the impact on the mental health of the civilian population is one of the most significant. Studies of the general population show a definite increase in the incidence and prevalence of mental disorders. Women are more affected than men. Other vulnerable groups are children, the elderly and the disabled. Prevalence rates are associated with the degree of trauma, and the availability of physical and emotional support. The use of cultural and religious coping strategies is frequent in developing countries.

Keywords: War, mental health, vulnerable groups, coping strategies

The year 2005 is significant in understanding the relationship between war and mental health. This is the 30th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam war and of the start of the war in Lebanon. Every day the media bring the horrors of the ongoing "war" situation in Iraq. Some recent quotations from the media depict the impact of war on mental health: "We are living in a state of constant fear" (in Iraq); "War takes a toll on Iraqi mental health"; "War trauma leaves physical mark"; "War is hell... it has an impact on the people who take part that never heals"; "War is terrible and beyond the understanding and experience of most people"; "A generation has grown up knowing only war".

Wars have had an important part in psychiatric history in a number of ways. It was the psychological impact of the world wars in the form of shell shock that supported the effectiveness of psychological interventions during the first half of the 20th century. It was the recognition of a proportion of the population not suitable for army recruitment during the Second World War that spurred the setting up of the National Institute of Mental Health in USA. The differences in the presentation of the psychological symptoms among the officers and the soldiers opened up new ways of understanding the psychiatric reactions to stress.

During the last year, a large number of books and documents have addressed the effects of war on mental health. They include the WPA book "Disasters and mental health" ( 1); the World Bank report "Mental health and conflicts - Conceptual framework and approaches" ( 2); the United Nations (UN) book "Trauma interventions in war and peace: prevention, practice and policy" ( 3); the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) document "The state of the world's children - Childhood under threat" ( 4); the book "Trauma and the role of mental health in postconflict recovery" ( 5) and a chapter on "War and mental health in Africa" in the WPA book "Essentials of clinical psychiatry for sub-Saharan Africa" ( 6).

Though there have not been any world wars since the Second World War, there have been wars and conflicts throughout the last 60 years. For example, in the 22 countries of the Eastern Mediterranean region of the World Health Organization (WHO), over 80% of the population either is in a conflict situation or has experienced such a situation in the last quarter of century ( 7).

War has a catastrophic effect on the health and well being of nations. Studies have shown that conflict situations cause more mortality and disability than any major disease. War destroys communities and families and often disrupts the development of the social and economic fabric of nations. The effects of war include long-term physical and psychological harm to children and adults, as well as reduction in material and human capital. Death as a result of wars is simply the "tip of the iceberg". Other consequences, besides death, are not well documented. They include endemic poverty, malnutrition, disability, economic/ social decline and psychosocial illness, to mention only a few. Only through a greater understanding of conflicts and the myriad of mental health problems that arise from them, coherent and effective strategies for dealing with such problems can be developed.

The importance that the WHO attributes to dealing with the psychological traumas of war was highlighted by the resolution of the World Health Assembly in May 2005, which urged member states "to strengthen action to protect children from and in armed conflict" and the resolution of the WHO Executive Board in January 2005, which urged "support for implementation of programmes to repair the psychological damage of war, conflict and natural disasters" ( 8).

The WHO estimated that, in the situations of armed conflicts throughout the world, "10% of the people who experience traumatic events will have serious mental health problems and another 10% will develop behavior that will hinder their ability to function effectively. The most common conditions are depression, anxiety and psychosomatic problems such as insomnia, or back and stomach aches" ( 9).

This paper briefly reviews the evidence from published literature about the impact of war on the mental health of the general population, the refugees, the soldiers and specific vulnerable groups. For the purpose of this paper, the term "war" is used to include both wars waged between countries (e.g., the Iraq-Kuwait war) and conflicts within countries (e.g., Sri Lanka). The review presents data concerning some major wars/conflicts (the countries involved are considered in alphabetic order) and then briefly outlines the risk factors emerging from the literature.

IMPACT OF WAR ON MENTAL HEALTH

Afghanistan

More than two decades of conflict have led to widespread human suffering and population displacement in Afghanistan. Two studies from this country are significant in terms of both their scope and their findings.

The first study ( 10) used a national multistage, cluster, population based survey including 799 adult household members aged 15 years and above. Sixty-two percent of respondents reported experiencing at least four trauma events during the previous ten years. Symptoms of depression were found in 67.7% of respondents, symptoms of anxiety in 72.2%, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in 42%. The disabled and women had a poorer mental health status, and there was a significant relationship between the mental health status and traumatic events. Coping strategies included religious and spiritual practices.

The second study ( 11), using a crosssectional multicluster sample, was conducted in the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan, to estimate the prevalence of psychiatric symptoms, identify resources used for emotional support and risk factors, and assess the present coverage of basic needs. About 1011 respondents aged 15 years and above formed the sample. Nearly half of the population had experienced traumatic events. Symptoms of depression were observed in 38.5% of respondents, symptoms of anxiety in 51.8% and PTSD in 20.4%. High rates of symptoms were associated with higher numbers of traumatic events experienced. Women had higher rates than men. The main sources of emotional support were religion and family.

The Balkans

The conflict in the Balkans is probably one of the most widely studied ( 12- 14) in recent years. Mental health of survivors of both sides was examined ( 15).

An initial study ( 16) among Bosnian refugees demonstrated an association between psychiatric disorders (depression and PTSD) and disability. A threeyear follow-up study on the same group concluded that former Bosnian refugees who remained living in the region continued to exhibit psychiatric disorders and disability after initial assessment ( 17).

A cross-sectional cluster sample survey among Kosovar Albanians aged 15 years or older found that 17.1% (95% CI 13.2%-21.0%) reported symptoms of PTSD ( 18). There was a significant linear decrease in mental health status and social functioning with increasing amount of traumatic events in those aged 65 years or older, and with previous psychiatric illnesses or chronic health conditions. Internally displaced people were at increased risk of psychiatric morbidity. Men (89%) and women (90%) expressed strong feelings of hatred towards the Serbs, with 44% of men and 33% of women stating that they would act on these feelings.

In a study of the mental health and nutritional status among the Serbian ethnic minority in Kosovo, the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ)-28 scores in the subcategories of social dysfunction and severe depression were high, with women and those living alone or in small family units being more prone to psychiatric morbidity ( 19). In a community sample of 2,796 children aged between 9 and 14 years, high levels of post-traumatic symptoms and grief symptoms were reported ( 20). This was related to the amount and type of exposure. Girls reported more distress than boys.

Cambodia

Cambodia has had a long history of violence, highlighted by the civil war in the 1960s, culminating with the "Khmer Rouge" rule that destroyed the social fabric of the society. Studies have found that refugees had high levels of psychiatric symptomatology after 10 years ( 21).

A household survey of 993 adults from Site 2, the largest Cambodian displaced- persons camp on the Thailand- Cambodia border, found that more than 80% felt depressed and had a number of somatic complaints despite good access to medical services ( 22). Approximately 55% and 15% had symptom scores that correlated with Western criteria for depression and PTSD, respectively. However, despite high reported levels of trauma and symptoms, social and work functioning were well preserved in the majority of respondents. Cumulative trauma continued to affect psychiatric symptom levels a decade after the original trauma events ( 23). This study also reported that there was support for the diagnostic validity of PTSD criteria, with the notable exception of avoidance. The inclusion of dissociative symptoms increased the cultural sensitivity of PTSD. Psychiatric history and current physical illness were found to be risk factors for PTSD ( 24).

Changes in the structure of the society have led to a breakdown of the existing protective networks such as the village chief and the elders in the village, especially for women ( 25). Traditional healers (monks, mediums, traditional birth attendants), who played an important role in maintaining the mental health of communities in the past, have lost their designated positions in the community following the conflict ( 26).

Twenty-seven Cambodian young people, who were severely traumatized at ages 8 to 12, were followed up 3 years after a baseline evaluation. A structured interview and self-rating scales showed that PTSD was still highly prevalent (48%) and that depression was present in 41% ( 27).

Chechnya

The human rights abuses in the Chechen population have been well documented ( 28). A report on a small number of Chechen asylum seekers in the UK adds to the evidence on the abuses and related psychological fallouts ( 29). Psychosocial issues were explored in a survey conducted in settlements housing displaced people (n=256) ( 30, 31). Two thirds of respondents agreed with the statement that the conflict has triggered mental disturbance or feelings of being upset. Nearly all respondents indicated that they had family members having difficulty in coping with their disturbance or upset feelings. Coping strategies used were praying, talking, keeping busy, and seeking the support of family members.

Iraq

Iraq has been at war at numerous times in history: a series of coups in the 1960s, the Iran-Iraq war (1980-1988), the anti-Kurdish Al-Anfal campaign within the country (1986-1989), the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait resulting in the Gulf war (1991), and the conflict starting in 2003. The UN-imposed economic sanctions following the Gulf war have had a profound impact on the health of Iraqis. The human rights abuses have also been recorded ( 32).

There are few studies on the impact of these conflicts on mental health. A study on 45 Kurdish families in two camps reported that PTSD was present in 87% of children and 60% of their caregivers ( 33). A study on 84 Iraqi male refugees found that poor social support was a stronger predictor of depressive morbidity than trauma factors ( 34). During the last three years of occupation by foreign forces, there have been many news reports about the mental health of the population, but no systematic study.

Israel

Israel has been in a situation of conflict for over four decades. A large number of systematic studies have been undertaken in different population groups. A recent study ( 35) found that 76.7% of subjects exposed to war-related trauma had at least one traumatic stress-related symptom, while 9.4% met the criteria for acute stress disorder. The most common coping mechanisms were active information search about loved ones and social support. Another study ( 36) reported that, twenty years after the war with Lebanon, an initial combat stress reaction, PTSD-related chronic diseases and physical symptoms were associated with a greater engagement in risk behaviours.

Lebanon

Lebanon has been ravaged by a civil war (1975-1990) and by an Israeli invasion in 1978 and 1982. The mental health impact of these conflicts has been studied extensively.

A random sample of 658 people aged between 18 and 65 years was randomly selected from four Lebanese communities exposed to war ( 37). The lifetime prevalence of DSM-III-R major depression varied across the communities from 16.3% to 41.9%. Exposure to war and a prior history of major depression were the main predictors for current depression.

The correlation between mother's distress and child's mental health was explored in a study in Beirut ( 38). The level of perceived negative impact of war-related events was found to be strongly associated with higher levels of depressive symptomatology among mothers. The level of depressive symptomatology in the mother was found to be the best predictor of her child's reported morbidity. In a study carried out in 224 Lebanese children (10-16 years), the number of traumatic experiences related to war was positively correlated to PTSD symptoms, with various types of war traumas being differentially related to the symptoms ( 39).

A cross-sectional study conducted among 118 Lebanese hostages of war ( 40) found that psychological distress was present in 42.1% of the sample compared to 27.8% among the control group. Significant predictors for distress were years of education and increase in religiosity after release.

Palestine

During the last decade a large number of studies have reported high levels of psychosocial problems among children and adolescents, women, refugees and prisoners in Palestine.

A study conducted by the Gaza Community Mental Health Programme among children aged 10-19 years ( 41) revealed that 32.7% suffered from PTSD symptoms requiring psychological intervention, 49.2% from moderate PTSD symptoms, 15.6% from mild PTSD symptoms, and only 2.5% had no symptoms. Boys had higher rates (58%) than girls (42%), and children living in camps suffered more than children living in towns (84.1% and 15.8% respectively).

A study on Palestinian perceptions of their living conditions during the Second Intifada ( 42) found that 46% of parents reported aggressive behaviour among their children, 38% noted bad school results, 27% reported bed wetting, while 39% stated that their children suffered from nightmares. The study also revealed that more refugee (53%) than non-refugee (41%) children behaved aggressively. Thirty-eight percent of the respondents said that shooting was the main influence, 34% stated that it was violence on TV, 7% cited confinement at home and 11% reported that it was the arrest and beating of relatives and neighbours. Seventy percent of refugees and non-refugees stated that they had not received any psychological support for the problems of their children.

In a series of studies during the last 10 years from the Gaza Community Mental Health Centre ( 43), the most prevalent types of trauma exposure for children were witnessing funerals (95%), witness to shooting (83%), seeing injured or dead strangers (67%) and family member injured or killed (62%). Among children living in the area of bombardments, 54% suffered from severe, 33.5% from moderate and 11% from mild or doubtful levels of PTSD. Girls were more vulnerable.

Rwanda

The physical and mental health problems of the survivors of the genocide in Rwanda have been well documented ( 44). In a recent community based study examining 2091 subjects ( 45), 24.8% met symptom criteria for PTSD, with the adjusted odds ratio of meeting PTSD symptom criteria for each additional traumatic event being 1.43. Respondents who met PTSD criteria were less likely to have positive attitudes towards the Rwandan national trials, suggesting that the effects of trauma need to be considered if reconciliation has to be successful. There have been reports on the state of health among the large numbers of refugees (500,000-800,000 in five days) who fled to Goma, Zaire following the capture of the capital Kigali, but none of them has considered the mental health dimension.

Sri Lanka

The conflict between the majority Sinhala and minority Tamil population in Sri Lanka has been ongoing for nearly 30 years. One of the first studies that looked into the psychological effects of the conflict on the civilian population was an epidemiological survey ( 46), which reported that only 6% of the study population had not experienced any war stresses. Psychosocial sequelae were seen in 64% of the population, including somatization (41%), PTSD (27%), anxiety disorder (26%), major depression (25%), alcohol and drug misuse (15%), and functional disability (18%). The breakdown of the Tamil society led to women taking on more responsibilities, which in turn made them more vulnerable to stress ( 47). Children and adolescents had higher mental health morbidity ( 48).

Somalia

A study carried out in ex-combatants in Somalia found high psychiatric morbidity and use of khat ( 49). A UNICEF study found evidence of psychological effects of the prolonged conflict situation in a high proportion of a sample of 10,000 children ( 50). There is near total disruption of the mental health services in the country.

Uganda

Sudanese refugees fled into northern Uganda in two major waves in 1988 and 1994. Symptoms of PTSD and depression were found to be highly prevalent among Sudanese children living in the refugee camps ( 51). Refugees had higher rates of individual psychopathology than the general population, and it was observed that the cumulative stress grew as the years in exile progressed. The consequences of long-term exile were still present 5-15 years later, with an increase in the rates of suicide and alcohol use.

RISK FACTORS

From the large amount of studies reviewed, some broad risk factors and associations can be drawn.

Women have an increased vulnerability to the psychological consequences of war. There is evidence of a high correlation between mothers' and children's distress in a war situation. It is now known that maternal depression in the prenatal and postnatal period predicts poorer growth in a communitybased sample of infants. Social support and traditional birth attendants have a major role in promoting maternal psychosocial well being in war-affected regions. The association between gender- based violence and common mental disorders is well known. Despite their vulnerability, women's resilience under stress and its role in sustaining their families has been recognized.

There is consistent evidence of higher rates of trauma-related psychological problems in children. The most impressive reports are those from Palestine. Of the different age groups, the most vulnerable are the adolescents.

The direct correlation between the degree of trauma and the amount of the psychological problems is consistent across a number of studies. The greater the exposure to trauma - both physical and psychological - the more pronounced are the symptoms.

Subsequent life events and their association with the occurrence of psychiatric problems have important implications for fast and complete rehabilitation as a way of minimizing the ill effects of the conflict situations.

Studies are consistent in showing the value of both physical support and psychological support in minimizing the effects of war-related traumas, as well as the role of religion and cultural practices as ways of coping with the conflict situations.

CONCLUSIONS

The occurrence of a wide variety of psychological symptoms and syndromes in the populations in conflict situations is widely documented by available research. However, research also provides evidence about the resilience of more than half of the population in the face of the worst trauma in war situations. There is no doubt that the populations in war and conflict situations should receive mental health care as part of the total relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction processes. As happened in the first half of the 20th century, when war gave a big push to the developing concepts of mental health, the study of the psychological consequences of the wars of the current century could add new understandings and solutions to mental health problems of general populations.

A number of issues have emerged from the extensive literature on the prevalence and pattern of mental health effects of war and conflict situations. Are the psychological effects and their manifestation universal? What should be the definition of a case requiring intervention? How should psychological effects be measured? What is the long-term course of stress-related symptoms and syndromes? ( 52). All these issues need to be addressed by future studies.

It is important to report that the WHO and some other UN-related bodies have recently created a task force to develop "mental health and psychosocial support in emergency settings" ( 53- 55), which is expected to complete its activity in one year.

References

43. Qouta S. Trauma, violence and mental health: the Palestinian experience. Doctoral dissertation; 2003; Amsterdam: Vrije Universiteit; [ Google Scholar]

53. Van Ommeren M. Saxena S. Saraceno B. Mental and social health during and after acute emergencies: emerging consensus? WHO Bull. 2005;83:71-76. [[ PMC free article] [ PubMed] Google Scholar]

Articles from World Psychiatry are provided here courtesy of The World Psychiatric Association

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Mental health consequences of war: a brief review of research findings

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Among the consequences of war, the impact on the mental health of the civilian population is one of the most significant. Studies of the general population show a definite increase in the incidence and prevalence of mental disorders. Women are more affected ...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Thutmose III’s Battle of Megiddo Inscription

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Battle of Megiddo (c. 1457 BCE) is one of the most famous military engagements in history in which Thutmose III (1458-1425 BCE) of Egypt defeated the coalition of subject regions led in rebellion...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Evolution of Warfare | How War Has Changed Over Time

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Two great enterprises, one great location. The Museum, over 39+ Unique Exhibits the entire family will enjoy. Auto Sales, choose from over 300 of the best collector cars.

# data[].attributes.headline
Women were a part of the industrial workforce before the First World War. 

# data[].attributes.subject
Women were a part of the industrial workforce before the First World War. 

# data[].attributes.body
Also some other fun facts about women during the First World War.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Interviewer: "What was a nice little girl?"

Mairi Chisholm: "Oh a nice little girl was a very feminine little girl. You see it was a man's world totally and completely. Women were not supposed to have much in their brains, and of course we were not brought up to careers at all. The one and only career was a good marriage."

At the start of the 20th century Britain was one of the greatest powers on earth. Yet despite its wealth as a nation, many British people's lives were marked with poverty and inequality. Women had few opportunities and few rights. The First World War is often represented as having a wholly positive impact on women's lives: women stepped into men's jobs for the first time ever, thousands of women served abroad along the front lines, women's football even became a hugely popular sport, and the war is thought to have strengthened their case for the right to vote. But the reality is more complicated. Not all of the opportunities for women were positive, lots of the changes were reversed as soon as the war was over, and cultural attitudes towards women were not that easily changed. So did the First World War really transform women's lives at all?

Ellen Parton: "Before the war, women's employment was highly stratified by class, working-class women were broadly accustomed to working long as the hours of dirty sometimes heavy work in areas such as domestic service and unequal pay was the norm. There was little to no legal protection for women against domestic violence and very little protection for young working-class girls from sexual abuse or being forced into prostitution. Across the board women were expected to get married and look after the home."

Britain entered the war in August 1914 and over the next four years some 4.9 million men had signed up or been conscripted to join the army. Millions of women were already working prior to the outbreak of the First World war but now women took on more active roles, more highly paid roles and more dangerous roles.

Ellen Parton: "They were encouraged to ensure that the men in their families signed up, women were encouraged in the press and through colourful impactful poster campaigns. With the men drawn away to the armed forces, opportunities opened up for women. 117,000 women were employed in transport compared to just 18,000 women previously.

The First World War also saw women enter heavy industry for the first time. In response to the shell shortage of 1915, huge factories were set up. Women were known as canaries in the factories as they had to handle the TNT used as the explosive agent in munitions which caused their skin to turn yellow."

Caroline Rennles: "Of course, we all had bright yellow faces you see because we had no gas masks in those times. The conductors used to say in the trams, you'll die in two years, cock. We used to say well we don't mind dying for our country. As I say, we were so young we didn't realise, but they used to call us canaries, we were bright yellow and all this front hair was all ginger you see."

In total around 900,000 women worked in the munitions industry, and it was particularly hazardous work. There were several large factory explosions during the war including at Chilwell in July 1918 where 134 workers were killed and more than 250 were injured. Due to the dangerous nature of this work it was considered to be relatively well paid compared to other jobs open to women and yet across the board women still earned as little as half the wages of men.

Caroline Rennles: "It come right down to nothing almost about a pound I think, as far as I can remember. It was very, very low I know."

Interviewer: "Your wages?"

Caroline Rennles: "Yes, very low."

For working women with children, childcare could be a problem. The pressing need for women to work in munitions did prompt the government to provide some funds towards day nurseries and by 1917 there were more than a hundred day nurseries across the country. However, there was no provision for women working in any other form of employment and most had to rely on friends and family for childcare.

Ellen Parton: "This was still the overriding attitude, that these changes were necessary temporary measures to support the war effort and should not lead to legal or cultural change."

Pressure from women for their own uniformed service began as early as August 1914 but it was not until the middle of the war that the government began planning for the women's auxiliary services. More men were needed for fighting which meant training women to replace them in non-combatant roles. In December 1916 the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps known as the WAAC was established, the Women's Royal Naval Service was formed in November 1917 and the Women's Royal Air Force was set up on the 1st of April 1918. In total over a hundred thousand women joined Britain's armed forces during the First World War.

Mairi Chisholm: "No I had nothing in my mind except that I got the chance to go to London and I had the chance to do a worthwhile job. It was the lure of adventure of course, you see, and I think it was just, here as an opportunity."

Florence Parrott: "When I got in that Blitz that made my mind up for me. I got hit, I got hit in this arm and they took us to St Bartholomew's Hospital, and I said to the girl laying next to me I said, when I get out of here, I said, I'm going to join up. Because I said if I'm going to get knocked about, I'll go where I expect it. And I did."

One of the major ways that women served during the war was nursing. This was also a key role that brought women abroad near the front lines.

Ellen Parton: "Nursing in the First World War was exhausting, harrowing dangerous work. Although it had long been an occupation associated with women, nursing as a profession by its very necessity mushroomed during the First World War. Trained nurses were licensed professionals, they'd spent years training and they were paid whereas voluntary nurses better known as Voluntary Aid Detachments or VADs comprise mainly young middle- and upper-class women in its ranks. By 1918 there were over 90,000 Voluntary Aid Detachment nurses in the red cross."

Mairi Chisholm: "I used to take that ambulance out and drive the length behind the trenches sometimes to get some, some people out. You had to drive in the pitch dark. No lights whatsoever from the trenches and if you can imagine yourself, heavy roads with deep mud, troops coming up, guns coming up and then the most appalling slither as the ambulance slid off the pave into the mud."

Interviewer: "Were you shocked by the kinds of injuries you saw?"

Daisy Spickett: "One would have been shocked if one could afford to be. I mean, that was what was our salvation, we were thrown head first into the work but we had to do something about it. I remember one occasion I shall never forget; a patient came in with his head bandaged up and only his eyes showing and as I took bandage after bandage after bandage, I thought to myself there's going to be no face left here at all, and then I realised that he was gazing intently at me, and I thought, he's waiting to see my reaction. Then of course it was absolutely different, I chatted to him and teased him a little and tried to make him smile."

Ellen Parton: "By 1918 more than 17,000 nurses had served close to the trenches working in field hospitals all along the Western Front."

On the home front, working together in large numbers opened up new leisure opportunities for women. Sport was encouraged among female workers as it was thought to be good for their health and moral well-being and many munitions factories developed their own ladies football teams.

Ellen Parton: "Women's football was established before the First World War but it really took off during this period. Ultimately this was to ensure the mental and health and physical well-being, which in turn kept the factories productive. However, they were really successful with the Dick Kerr Ladies in Preston for example drawing large crowds at matches. Fronted by Captain Lily Parr; she was openly gay, over six foot tall and she scored over a thousand goals during her time on the team. Sadly, all this came to an end at the end of the war. In 1921, the FA ruled that women should be banned from playing in football league games. Reasons given were spurious suggestions that the game was too physical and may hamper a woman's ability to have a child for example, whereas the real reason was probably quite simply that it was becoming too popular and a potential challenge to men's games. It was a decision which was only overturned in 1969 when the ban was eventually lifted."

The ban on women's football at the end of the war was not the only instance in which opportunities that had opened in wartime or once again closed. On the 11th of November 1918, the Armistice was signed. Tens of thousands of men were demobilised and returned to Britain, to the lives and jobs they had held before the war. Men seeking jobs after 1918 were almost always prioritised over women and women were forced back into low-paid roles or domestic service. For many women, their experiences during the war had been temporary and short-lived but there were some inevitable long-term consequences.

Over seven hundred thousand British men had died during the First World War. That's nine percent of all British men under the age of 45 and more women than ever were now single.

Ellen Parton: "It's certainly true that some of these women chose to remain unmarried. Professions such as teaching, or medicine were opening up to women, but only if they remained unmarried."

In 1918 women over 30 were given the vote. Some have argued that the modern emancipation of women would not have been possible without the contribution of women who served and worked during the First World War.

Ruby Ord: "We were in this hotel and a raid started; we'd got two officers there suffering from shell shock and the men with them were in a panic and Staccard went over to the piano and she played for two hours while the raid last and we all sang, and these men didn't know it was a raid on the, the shell shock officers. And afterwards they were so overwhelmed, the men were, and they said well if anybody ever says a bad word about the WAACs, they have to answer to us for it after this. Because of course people were very ready to criticise us, we were the women who followed them in France of course. But there were several incidents like that where the girls showed outstanding courage and they really had it. So, I don't know, I really learned to admire women, I admired them tremendously."

But the steps that had been made during this time were soon masked by other matters. Britain was steeped in unemployment and poverty and soon began to prepare for another war.

Ellen Parton: "The war had not shifted attitudes fundamentally enough to mean that women's contribution to the world of work wasn't anything more than for the duration, to be wound up as soon as the war was over."

What is certain is that the war had changed the world and Britain in immeasurable ways. Not all changes brought about by the war stayed in place, but it is possible that it laid the groundwork for greater change to come. When war was declared again in 1939, this time women were readily factored into the war effort.

Thanks for watching this episode, don't forget to like and subscribe for more videos from IWM.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
12 Things You Didn't Know About Women In The First World War

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The First World War brought many changes in the lives of British women. It is often represented as having had a wholly positive impact, opening up new opportunities in the world of work and strengthening their case for the right to vote. The reality is more complex.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
During the 1920s and 1930s, the United States military Joint Army and Navy Board developed a number of color-coded war plans that outlined potential U.S. strategies for a variety of hypothetical war scenarios. The plans, developed by the Joint Planning Committee (which later became the Joint Chiefs of Staff), were officially withdrawn in 1939 at the outbreak of World War II in favor of five Rainbow Plans developed to meet the threat of a two-ocean war against multiple enemies.

The use of colors for U.S. war planning originated from the desire for the Army and Navy to use the same symbols for their plans. At the end of 1904, the Joint Board adopted a system of colors, symbols, and abbreviated names to represent countries. Many war plans became known by the color of the country to which they were related, a convention that lasted through World War II. As the convention of using colors took root, some were eventually reused, such as Grey, which originally referred to Italy but eventually became a plan for the capture and occupation of Portugal's Azores.

In all the plans the U.S. referred to itself as "Blue".

The plan that received the most consideration was War Plan Orange, a series of contingency plans for fighting a war with Japan alone, outlined unofficially in 1919 and officially in 1924. Orange formed some of the basis for the actual campaign against Japan in World War II and included the huge economic blockade from mainland China and the plans for interning the Japanese-American population.

War Plan Red was a plan for war against the British Empire. British territories had war plans of different shades of red-the UK was "Red", Canada "Crimson", India "Ruby", Australia "Scarlet" and New Zealand "Garnet". Ireland, at the time a free state within the British Empire, was named "Emerald".

War Plan Black was a plan for war with Germany. The best-known version of Black was conceived as a contingency plan during World War I in case France fell and the Germans attempted to seize French possessions in the Caribbean or launch an attack on the eastern seaboard.

Many of the war plans were extremely unlikely given the state of international relations in the 1920s, and were entirely in keeping with the military planning of other nation-states. Often, junior military officers were given the task of updating each plan to keep them trained and busy (especially in the case of War Plan Crimson, the invasion of Canada). Some of the war plan colors were revised over time, possibly resulting in confusion.

Although the US had fought its most recent war against Germany and would fight another within twenty years, intense domestic pressure emerged for the Army to halt when it became known that the Army was constructing a plan for a war with Germany; isolationists opposed any consideration of involvement in a future European conflict. This may have encouraged the Army to focus on more speculative scenarios for planning exercises.

During the 1910s, relations between Mexico and the United States were often volatile. In 1912, U.S. President William Howard Taft considered sending an expeditionary force to protect foreign-owned property from damage during the Mexican Revolution. Thus War Plan Green was developed. In 1916, U.S. troops under General John Pershing invaded Mexico in search of Pancho Villa, whose army had attacked Columbus, New Mexico; earlier, American naval forces had bombarded and seized the Mexican port of Veracruz, and forced Victoriano Huerta to resign the presidency. In 1917, British intelligence intercepted a telegram from the German foreign ministry to its embassy in Mexico City offering an alliance against the United States and assistance in the Mexican reconquest of the Southwest. Released to American newspapers, the Zimmermann Telegram helped turn American opinion against Germany and further poisoned the atmosphere between the US and Mexico. Relations with Mexico remained tense into the 1920s and 1930s.

Additionally, between the American Civil War and World War I, the American military intervened in the affairs of Latin American countries, including Colombia/ Panama, Haiti, Cuba, and Nicaragua. In doing so, parts of "Gray" and "Purple", plans were considered although never officially activated.

Some plans were expanded to include war against a coalition of hostile powers.

The most detailed was War Plan Red-Orange, which detailed a two-front war against Britain and Japan. This was the contingency which most worried U.S. war planners, since it entailed a two-ocean war against major naval powers. Although the 1902 Anglo-Japanese Alliance was terminated by the 1921 Four-Power Treaty, American generals did not rule out the possibility of Britain wanting to seek an alliance with Japan again if war ever broke out. Theories developed in War Plan Red-Orange were useful during World War II, when the United States engaged the Axis powers in both the Atlantic and Pacific simultaneously.

Japan had used the opportunity afforded by World War I to establish itself as a major power and a strategic rival in the Pacific Ocean. After the war, most American officials and planners considered a war with Japan to be highly likely. The fear lessened when the civilian government of Japan temporarily halted its program of military expansion, which was not to resume until 1931. War Plan Orange was the longest and most-detailed of the colored plans.

However, following the events in Europe and Asia in 1937 and 1940 (the second Sino-Japanese war) (the Anschluss, the Munich Agreement, the German occupation of Czechoslovakia, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact) and the (German invasion of Poland and Western Europe), American war planners realized that the United States faced the possibility of war on multiple fronts against a coalition of enemies. Therefore, the Joint Planning Board developed a new series of war plans, the "Rainbow" plans-the term being a play on the multiple "color" plans that had been drawn up previously.

Rainbow 1 was a plan for a defensive war to protect the United States and the Western Hemisphere north of ten degrees [south] latitude. In such a war, the United States was assumed to be without major allies.

Rainbow 2 was identical to Rainbow 1, except for assuming that the United States would be allied with France and the United Kingdom.

Rainbow 3 was a repetition of the Orange plan, with the provision that the hemisphere defense would first be secured, as provided in Rainbow 1.

Rainbow 4 was based on the same assumptions as Rainbow 1, but extended the American mission to include defense of the entire Western hemisphere.

Rainbow 5, destined to be the basis for American strategy in World War II, assumed that the United States was allied with Britain and France and provided for offensive operations by American forces in Europe, Africa, or both.

The assumptions and plans for Rainbow 5 were discussed extensively in the Plan Dog memo, which concluded ultimately that the United States would adhere to a Europe first strategy in World War II.

On December 4, 1941, three days before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the Chicago Tribune, with the headline "F.D.R.'s War Plans!," along with the Washington, D.C. The Times Herald published the Rainbow Five plan. The articles, both by the Tribune' s Washington correspondent, Chesly Manly, revealed plans to build a 10 million man Army with a 5 million man expeditionary force to be sent to Europe in 1943 in order to defeat Nazi Germany.

The publication ignited a storm of controversy in the U.S., with isolationist politicians claiming Roosevelt was violating his pledge to keep the country out of the European war, while Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson accused the newspapers of un-patriotic behavior and suggested it would be a dereliction of duty for the War Department not to plan for every contingency. Germany publicly ridiculed the plan the next day, doubting "whether the entire world shipping would be sufficient to transport 5,000,000 troops to Europe, much less supply them there."

Privately, the German general staff saw the publication of the plans as extremely valuable intelligence and used its threat of a 5 million man U.S. force in 1943 to argue for temporarily stalling the faltering invasion of Russia, and concentrating German forces in the west. Hitler vehemently rejected that idea, but had he not, historian Thomas Fleming suggests Germany might have prevailed against the U.K before any U.S. invasion was possible. The source of the leak has never been determined, with speculation listing several possibilities, including disgruntled or isolationist military officers and even FDR himself.

According to the public intelligence site, Global Security, the following plans are known to have existed:

A plan for war with Germany. The best-known version of Black was conceived as a contingency plan during World War I in case France fell, and the Germans attempted to seize the French West Indies in the Caribbean Sea, or launch an attack on the eastern seaboard.

There were two War Plans named Gray. The first dealt with Central America and the Caribbean, and the second dealt with invading the Portuguese Azores.

Dealt with an uprising in the Philippines.

Intervention in Cuba.

Plan for the United Kingdom, with subvariants for British dominions: Crimson (Canada), Ruby (India), Scarlet (Australia), Garnet (New Zealand), Emerald (Ireland).

Plan for Japan.

Considered a two-front war with the United States (Blue) opposing Japan (Orange) and the British Empire (Red) simultaneously. This analysis led to the understanding that the United States didn't have the resources to fight a two-front war. As a result of this, it was decided that one front should be prioritized for offense while the other was to be defensive, for war against British territories in North America and the Atlantic and against Britain and Japan in the Pacific respectively. This decision resulted in the Plan Dog memo during World War II, replacing Britain with Germany and Italy instead.

Dealt with war in China-specifically, anticipating a repeat of the Boxer Uprising (1899-1901). War Plan Yellow would deploy the US Army in coalition with other imperial forces to suppress indigenous discontent in the Shanghai International Settlement and Beijing Legation Quarter, with chemical weapons if necessary.

Involved war with France, and/or France's Caribbean colonies.

Involved war with Mexico or what was known as "Mexican Domestic Intervention" in order to defeat rebel forces and establish a pro-American government. War Plan Green was officially canceled in 1946.

Involved an occupation of Iceland. In 1941, while Denmark was under German occupation, the US actually did occupy Iceland, relieving British units during the Battle of the Atlantic.

Dealt with invading a South American republic.

Covered Latin America.

Dealt with a domestic uprising in the US, and later evolved to Operation Garden Plot, the general US military plan for civil disturbances and peaceful protests. Parts of War Plan White were used to deal with the Bonus Expeditionary Force in 1932. Communist insurgents were considered the most likely threat by the authors of War Plan White.

Covered defensive plans and preparations that the United States should take in times of peace.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
United States color-coded war plans - Wikipedia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
During the 1920s and 1930s, the United States military Joint Army and Navy Board developed a number of color-coded war plans that outlined potential U.S. strategies for a variety of hypothetical war scenarios.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Learn about the most notable Army fighting vehicles, including the M1 Abrams tank, the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, and the Stryker.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
75 stories, one for every year we have lived in freedom. Together they give a good impression of the impact the Second World War had on the people of Brabant. These stories form the starting point for a programme throughout Brabant and an(inter)national campaign called Brabant Remembers.

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/06/books/chapters/what-every-person-should-know-about-war.html

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
First Chapter

What is a war?

War is defined as an active conflict that has claimed more than 1,000 lives.

Has the world ever been at peace?

Of the past 3,400 years, humans have been entirely at peace for 268 of them, or just 8 percent of recorded history.

How many people have died in war?

At least 108 million people were killed in wars in the twentieth century. Estimates for the total number killed in wars throughout all of human history range from 150 million to 1 billion. War has several other effects on population, including decreasing the birthrate by taking men away from their wives. The reduced birthrate during World War II is estimated to have caused a population deficit of more than 20 million people.

How many people around the world serve in the military?

The combined armed forces of the world have 21.3 million people. China has the world's largest, with 2.4 million. America is second with 1.4 million. India has 1.3 million, North Korea 1 million, and Russia 900,000. Of the world's 20 largest militaries, 14 are in developing nations?

How many wars are taking place right now?

At the beginning of 2003 there were 30 wars going on around the world. These included conflicts in Afghanistan, Algeria, Burundi, China, Colombia, the Congo, India, Indonesia, Israel, Iraq, Liberia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Somalia, Sudan, and Uganda.

Is there a genetic reason why we fight?

There is no single "war gene." Combinations of genes can predispose a person to violence. However, aggression is a product of biology and environment. In America, sources of aggressive dispositions include domestic violence, the portrayal of violence in the media, threats from enemies, and combat training.

Is war essentially male?

Worldwide, 97 percent of today's military personnel are male. This is thought to be a reflection of culture and biology. Fifteen percent (204,000) of American military personnel are female.

Can women fight as effectively as men do?

Yes. While fewer women are "natural killers," and women are on average smaller than men, there are many women who have the psychological makeup and the physical ability to fight. There are many men without either. Women have shown valor in combat. Dr. Mary Walker won the Medal of Honor during the Civil War.

Why are civilians so attracted to war?

War is often regarded by observers as honorable and noble. It can be viewed as a contest between nations, a chance to compete and be declared the victor.

Does the American public support war?

Between 65 and 85 percent of the American public will support a military action when it begins. Vietnam had 64 percent support in 1965. As American casualties mount, support often decreases. The Korean and Vietnam Wars ended with support levels near 30 percent. World War II support levels never fell below 77 percent, despite the prolonged and damaging nature of the conflict. The Gulf War enjoyed similar levels of support.

How large is the American military?

The active peacetime force of the U.S. armed services includes 1.4 million people, with the Army making up almost 500,000 of that number. The Navy has approximately 380,000 men and women on active duty. The Air Force has approximately 365,000, and the Marines have approximately 175,000. Approximately 1.3 million Americans serve in Reserve and National Guard branches that can be activated in time of war.

How many Americans have died in wars?

More than 650,000 Americans have been killed in combat. Another 243,000 have died while wars were being fought, due to training accidents, injury, and disease. In the twentieth century, approximately 53,000 Americans were killed in combat in World War I, 291,000 in World War II, 33,000 in the Korean War, 47,000 in Vietnam, and 148 in the Gulf War. Including deaths from disease, accidents, and other factors, each war's total was much higher: approximately 116,000 died in World War I, 400,000 in World War II, 53,000 in the Korean War, 90,000 in Vietnam, and almost 400 in the Gulf War.

How deadly is the American military?

It is difficult to measure how many enemy deaths American armed forces have inflicted. Americans and their allies typically cause 10 to 20 times more combat casualties than American forces suffer. Estimates of Iraqi soldiers killed in the Gulf War range from 1,500 to 100,000. The lowest figure would still be 10 times the number of Americans killed in the war. Approximately 850,000 Vietcong died in the Vietnam War, 18 times the 47,000 U.S. dead. More than 600,000 North Korean and 1 million Chinese fighters died in the Korean War, almost 50 times the 33,000 American dead. In World War II, 3,250,000 German and 1,507,000 Japanese soldiers, sailors, and pilots were killed, 16 times the 291,000 American servicemen who were killed.

How much does it cost the United States to maintain its armed forces?

Since 1975, America has spent between 3 and 6 percent of its gross domestic product on national defense, or approximately 15 to 30 percent of each year's federal budget. In the first years of the twenty-first century, this meant spending roughly $350 billion per year. In comparison, annual spending for other programs included roughly $15 billion on state and international assistance and $60 billion on education. From 1940 to 1996 (a period that includes several cycles of war and peace, including the arms race of the cold war), America spent $16.23 trillion on the military ($5.82 trillion of that on nuclear weapons), versus $1.70 trillion on health care and $1.24 trillion on international affairs.

How much does war cost?

The cost of the Gulf War was approximately $76 billion. Vietnam cost $500 billion; the Korean War, $336 billion; and World War II, almost $3 trillion. Put another way, the Gulf War cost each person in the United States $306; Vietnam, $2,204 per person; Korea, $2,266 per person; and World War II, $20,388 per person. At its outset, estimates for the cost of the Iraqi War were $50 to $140 billion, and an additional $75 to $500 billion for occupation and peacekeeping, or from $444 to $2,274 per person.

How big is the military industry in the United States?

Besides the 1.4 million active duty personnel, the military employs 627,000 civilians. The defense industry employs another 3 million. In total, the military and its supporting manufacturing base employs 3.5 percent of the U.S. labor force. In 2002, the Department of Defense spent $170.8 billion with military contractors such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin.

How has the size of the industry changed over time?

The 2003 level of 3.5 percent of the labor force is historically low. In 1987, toward the end of the cold war, defense (including the military) made up 5.7 percent of the U.S. labor market; in 1968, during Vietnam, 9.8 percent; in 1943, during World War II, 39 percent. After World War II, defense employment dropped to 4.5 percent, but jumped back to 11 percent in 1951 with the Korean War and the start of the cold war.

Does the military industry help make defense spending decisions?

Yes. In 2000, defense lobbying groups spent approximately $60 million. Defense political action committees also contribute roughly $14 million per congressional election cycle. Defense aerospace, defense electronics, and miscellaneous defense are the 31st-, 44th-, and 46th-ranking industries, respectively.

How many weapons does the U.S. military industry export each year?

In 2001, U.S. arms manufacturers exported $9.7 billion in weapons worldwide. The United Kingdom was second in international exports with $4 billion. In addition, the United States made new sales of $12.1 billion. Russia was second with $5.8 billion. The United States is the world's largest arms manufacturer, supplying almost half of all the arms sold on the world market.

What kinds of arms does the United States export?

In 2002, U.S. manufacturers planned to export arms including Cobra and Apache attack helicopters, Black Hawk helicopters, KC-135A Stratotanker air-to-air tanker/transport aircraft, Hellfire and Hellfire II air-to-surface antiarmor missiles, Sidewinder air-to-air missiles, TOW 2A and 2B missiles, M-16 rifles, M-60 machine guns, grenade launchers, MK-82 (500 lb.) and MK-83 (1,000 lb.) bombs, Sentinel radar systems, GBU12 Paveway series laser-guided bombs, standard assault amphibious personnel vehicles, assault amphibious command vehicles, and CBU-97 sensor fused weapon antitank cluster bombs.

How many of the weapons U.S. companies export go to developing countries?

Approximately half. From 1994 to 2001, the United States exported $131 billion in arms, with $59 billion going to developing nations. The United States is the leading exporter to developing countries, with Russia and France second and third.

How do American arms exports affect the American people?

Arms exports are an important source of American jobs and help maintain U.S. military manufacturing capacity. They also have some negative consequences. When American weapons are used in a conflict-for example, by Israel against the Palestinians-America is also blamed for the attacks. U.S. forces regularly find themselves up against sophisticated weaponry of American origin, which is harder to defend against.

How dangerous is war for civilians?

Very dangerous. Between 1900 and 1990, 43 million soldiers died in wars. During the same period, 62 million civilians were killed. More than 34 million civilians died in World War II. One million died in North Korea. Hundreds of thousands were killed in South Korea, and 200,000 to 400,000 in Vietnam. In the wars of the 1990s, civilian deaths constituted between 75 and 90 percent of all war deaths.

What is the civilian experience in war?

They are shot, bombed, raped, starved, and driven from their homes. During World War II, 135,000 civilians died in two days in the firebombing of Dresden. A week later, in Pforzheim, Germany, 17,800 people were killed in 22 minutes. In Russia, after the three-year battle of Leningrad, only 600,000 civilians remained in a city that had held a population of 2.5 million. One million were evacuated, 100,000 were conscripted into the Red Army, and 800,000 died. In April 2003, during the Iraqi War, half of the 1.3 million civilians in Basra, Iraq, were trapped for days without food and water in temperatures in excess of 100 degrees.

How many refugees axe there?

In 2001, 40 million people were displaced from their homes because of armed conflict or human rights violations. Refugees have been a concern throughout the twentieth century. Five million Europeans were uprooted from 1919 to 1939. World War II displaced 40 million non-Germans in Europe, and 13 million Germans were expelled from countries in Eastern Europe. Approximately 2.5 million of the 4.4 million people in Bosnia and Herzegovina were driven from their homes during that region's war in the early 1990s. More than 2 million Rwandans left their country in 1994. In 2001, 200,000 people were driven from Afghanistan to Pakistan. In early 2003, 45,000 Liberians were displaced from their homes.

What are the consequences of becoming a refugee?

Refugees have very high mortality rates, due primarily to malnutrition and infectious disease. Rwandan refugees in Zaire in 1994 had a death rate 25 to 50 times higher than prewar Rwandans. Iraqi Kurdish refugees in Turkey in 1991 had a death rate 18 times higher than usual.

How does war affect children?

More than 2 million children were killed in wars during the 1990s. Three times that number were disabled or seriously injured. Twenty million children were displaced from their homes in 2001. Many were forced into prostitution. A large percentage of those will contract AIDS. Children born to mothers who are raped or forced into prostitution often become outcasts.

How many child soldiers are there?

More than 300,000 worldwide. Soldiers are sometimes recruited at age 10 and younger. The youngest carry heavy packs, or sweep roads with brooms and branches to test for landmines. When children are hostile, the opposing army is more likely to consider every civilian a potential enemy.

Why do children join armies?

They are often forced to. Some are given alcohol or drugs, or exposed to atrocities, to desensitize them to violence. Some join to help feed or protect their families. Some are offered up by their parents in exchange for protection. Children can be fearless because they lack a clear concept of death.

How can war affect women?

Women often take on larger economic roles in wartime. They must find ways to compensate for their husband's military deployment or unemployment. Those in war zones must search for food, water, medicine, and fuel despite shortages. Some women in war zones are forced into prostitution to provide for their family. Famine and stress cause increased stillbirth and early infant death. AIDS risk increases for many women in war, from prostitution, husbands who return from military duty with HIV, or rape.

What is genocide?

Genocide is any number of acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group, according to the United Nations. Others include political and social groups in the definition, making genocide more broadly the annihilation of difference. Genocidal campaigns have become more frequent since World War I. Modern industrial weapons have made mass killings easier to commit.

How many genocides have occurred since World War I?

Dozens. The most devastating include those in the Soviet Union, where approximately 20 million were killed during Stalin's Great Terror (1930s); Nazi Germany, where 6 million Jews were killed in concentration camps along with 5 million or more Gypsies, Jehovah's Witnesses, and other "enemies of the German state" (1937-1945); Cambodia, where 1.7 million of the country's 7 million people were killed as a result of the actions of the Khmer Rouge (1975-1979); Iraq, where 50,000 Kurds were killed during the ethnic cleansing of Anfal in 1987; Bosnia, where 310,000 Muslims were killed (1992-1995); and Rwanda, where more than 1 million Tutsis and moderate Hutus were slaughtered over ten weeks in 1994.

Chapter Two

ENLISTMENT

How is the U.S. military organized?

The U.S. military is run by the Department of Defense. It oversees the Departments of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, which are responsible for land, sea, and air fighting respectively.

Continues...

Excerpted from WHAT EVERY PERSON SHOULD KNOW ABOUT WAR by CHRIS HEDGES Copyright © 2003 by Chris Hedges

Excerpted by permission. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
'What Every Person Should Know About War'

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
First Chapter What is a war? War is defined as an active conflict that has claimed more than 1,000 lives. Has the world ever been at peace? Of the past 3,400 years, humans have been entirely at peace for 268 of them, or just 8 percent of recorded history.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
21 rare and weird facts about World War II

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Read about the strange truths from WWII that the history books often wash over.