world war 2

D-Day. Pearl Harbor. Hiroshima. The Rape of Nanking. So essential is World War 2 history to our understanding of the modern world that we can practically recount that history in a series of words and phrases that we all know instantly.

But while the most important stories from World War 2 history are almost universally known, at least in part, there’s always more to learn about the modern world’s deadliest cataclysm.

Consider the lesser-known story of Simo Häyhä, the Finnish sharpshooter who earned the nickname “The White Death” on his way to becoming the deadliest sniper in history. Or discover the story of Nicholas Winton, the British Schindler who saved 669 children from the Holocaust and was reunited with some of them on live television four decades later. Then learn about Hacksaw Ridge hero Desmond Doss, the American medic who saved 75 lives at Okinawa all while refusing to even carry a weapon on account of his religious beliefs.

And though there are enough relatively obscure World War 2 facts to satisfy any history buff until the end of time, even the most well-worn topics have more to offer. Think you know everything there is to know about the Nazis? Sure you’re an expert on Churchill and Stalin? Well then peruse All That’s Interesting’s vast collection of World War 2 photos and stories and uncover everything you never learned in your history textbook.