Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

World War II

Defendants in the dock at Nuremberg. Hermann Göring, his head propped on his fist, sits at far left. 

At Nuremberg, World War II’s Battle Turned to the Courtroom, and an Eloquent Lawyer Helped Lead the Allies to Victory

Robert H. Jackson, an American Supreme Court justice who thought of himself as “anything but a warrior,” was drafted by FDR to prosecute leading Nazis

What made the U.S. Post Office Department decide to start its airmail service so early, before air travel was even common?

Why Did the U.S. Post Office Start Airmail So Early? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts

A still from the 2005 film adaptation of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, featuring (left to right) Anna Popplewell, William Moseley and Georgie Henley as Susan, Peter and Lucy Pevensie

How World War II Influenced ‘The Chronicles of Narnia,’ C.S. Lewis’ Beloved Fantasy Novels

Published 75 years ago, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” tells the story of four children who are evacuated from London during the Blitz

The stone is dedicated to soldier Sextus Congenius Verus.

Cool Finds

The Mystery of the Ancient Roman Gravestone Discovered in a Family’s Backyard Has Been Solved

The couple hadn’t known how the artifact made its way to their property in New Orleans. But after their story went viral, a former owner of the home came forward with new information about the object

A guillotine donated by French lawyer Robert Badinter, who fought for the abolition of the death penalty, is on display at Marseille’s Museum of the Civilizations of Europe and the Mediterranean through April 2026.

A Guillotine Goes on Display in Marseille, Where the Execution Device Was Last Used 48 Years Ago

A museum in the city is honoring the legacy of Minister of Justice Robert Badinter, who fought to repeal the death penalty in France once and for all

Surviving members of the Sobibor Uprising in 1944. Leon Feldhendler, a leader of the revolt, is standing in the back row at far right.

These Jewish Prisoners Revolted Against the Nazis, Killing Their Guards and Escaping From a World War II Death Camp

During the lesser-known 1943 Sobibor Uprising, several hundred Jews fled into the forests of Poland, where many were tracked down and shot. Fifty-eight Sobibor inmates survived the war

Only a fraction of the nearly 12,000 proposed amendments to the Constitution have been ratified into law.

Twelve Failed Constitutional Amendments That Could Have Reshaped American History

These proposals sought to change the United States’ name, abolish the presidency and the vice presidency, and set a limit on personal fortunes, among other measures

Bust of a Woman in a Flowery Hat (Dora Maar), Pablo Picasso, 1943

This Forgotten Picasso Painting Just Emerged From the Shadows for the First Time Since 1944

“Bust of a Woman in a Flowery Hat (Dora Maar),” a poignant portrait of the Spanish artist’s lover and muse, had been in private hands for eight decades

The paintings are pictured in a directory of property looted in France between 1939 and 1945.

These Long-Lost 17th-Century Paintings Were Looted by the Nazis. They Just Surfaced at an Ohio Auction House

The still lifes were part of the Schloss collection, which was seized in 1943. Auction house officials halted the sale when they learned of the artworks’ suspected provenance

Argentine officials host a press conference in front of Portrait of a Lady, which had been stolen by the Nazis during World War II.

Journalists Stumble Across Real Estate Listing With a Photo of a Nazi-Looted Painting Hanging Above the Couch

The family of a Nazi official has turned in “Portrait of a Lady,” an 18th-century artwork by the Italian painter Giuseppe Ghislandi. The painting had been stolen from a Jewish art dealer during World War II

Left to right, American models Joanna McCormick, Janet Randy, Betsy Pickering and Gretchen Harris pose for Charm amid traffic on Park Avenue. 

The First Magazines Written for Career Women Reveal a Portrait of Immense Creativity and Hope

Publications including “Mademoiselle,” “Glamour” and the long-forgotten “Charm” first emerged in the 1930s to satisfy an emergent force in the workplace

People line up for rations of beans and water in Japan following the country's defeat in World War II, in September 1945.

A Batch of Undelivered WWII Letters Intended for Japanese Soldiers Ended Up in an Oregon Museum Decades Later. Now, Experts Are Returning the Lost Correspondence to Their Families

An organization devoted to returning artifacts as a way to heal the emotional wounds left by the war is helping the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum send these deeply personal items to the writers’ descendants

Every page is stamped with the words "Pearl Harbor" at the top.

Cool Finds

She Found a Tattered Logbook in the Trash. It Turned Out to Be a Rare Record From the 1941 Pearl Harbor Attack

The National Archives has recovered the volume, which includes more than 500 pages of data from March 1941 to June 1942. It had been tucked away in storage for half a century

Donald McPherson flew during the United States' Okinawa campaign in Japan.

Last Known Surviving American Ace Pilot From World War II Dies at 103

Donald McPherson shot down five planes in the Pacific theater in the final years of the war, earning him the title of “ace”

A home rule protest held in front of the White House in April 1965

History of Now

How the 1973 D.C. Home Rule Act Enabled the Nation’s Capital to Govern Itself—With Congressional Oversight

Far from being a new debate brought on by current events, the discussion over extending home rule to Washingtonians has been around as long as the District of Columbia itself

Jewish refugees lined up outside of the Japanese Consulate in Kaunas, Lithuania, waiting to receive transit visas from Chiune Sugihara in July 1940

This Heroic Japanese Diplomat Defied His Government to Save Thousands of Jewish Refugees From the Holocaust

Stationed in Lithuania, Chiune Sugihara granted transit visas that allowed holders to escape Europe and travel through Japan as they sought safety abroad

Artist Franck Duval, known as FKDL, works on a mural Josephine Baker in Paris.

Women Who Shaped History

A Vibrant Mural Celebrating Josephine Baker’s ‘Two Loves’—‘My Country and Paris’—Has Been Unveiled in France

The colorful street art, which features a quote from one of her songs, honors the iconic singer, dancer and civil rights activist’s enduring legacy

The destroyer was commissioned in 1942 and used in the Guadalcanal campaign.

Underwater Archaeologists Capture Photos of Japanese Warship That Hasn’t Been Seen Since It Sank During World War II

The “Teruzuki” was a Japanese Navy destroyer that sank near the Solomon Islands on December 12, 1942. Eight decades later, researchers have identified the wreckage in the Pacific

The ancient artwork is now on display at Pompeii.

Ancient Erotic Mosaic Stolen From Pompeii During World War II Finally Returns Home

A Nazi captain gave artwork, which depicts an intimate Roman romance, to a civilian. When he died, his heirs decided to return the piece to Italy

Photos of the violin taken before it was stolen

Have Eagle-Eyed Experts Found This 316-Year-Old Stradivarius Violin That Was Looted During World War II?

Eight decades after the 1709 violin known as the “Small Mendelssohn” disappeared, experts think they’ve located it in Japan

Page 4 of 50