POSTWAR: A Global History of the Second World War's Legacy

In July and August of 1943, General George S. Patton slapped two soldiers in Sicilian military hospitals after accusing them of cowardice. Although Patton later apologized, this incident exposed many military leaders’ belief that psychiatric casualties were not legitimate. Until … Continue reading →

It is no doubt to anyone that soldiers leave part of themselves behind during combat. Whether it be mentally or physically, every soldier who sees the horrors of combat loses a part of themselves that they may never be able to recover. First officially studied after World War One shellshock, later to be known as …

Continue reading “Those That Returned”

Viewing the treatment of PTSD in WW2 veterans through modern attitudes is disheartening. There was an overwhelming sense of blame and personal weakness put on the veterans. The early assumption was that men who came back from war affected had “underdeveloped egos” (100). This assumption plagued the decades following the war. It was twisted and …

Continue reading “Mental Health in a Post War Society”

“Мы из Берлина!” – “We are from Berlin!” This is a photograph of Soviet soldiers in Belarus in 1945 on their trip home from Germany.  It being 1945, the year World War II ended, it at first seems unsuspicious that Soviet soldiers would be on their way back to the Soviet Union.  However, as professor …

Continue reading “Veterans Return Home, but to a Different Home than they Left”

After WWII ended, millions of soldiers’ time with their countries armed forces would come to an end and they would, hopefully, return home to their loved ones and try to resume normal lives. In an ideal world, this process would be supported by the government and society at each stop, making the reintegration of all …

Continue reading “Returning Home: Harsh Realities for Soldiers after the War.”

The soldiers returning home was a call for great celebration. They had accomplished a great deal in dismantling the regimes that threatened the order of the world. The fascists were gone, and so was Imperial Japan. The destruction provided the … Continue reading →

  Disabled, broken, and continued racism were just a few ways in which Henry Williams describes his journey back from the War. The process on reentering society was a challenge, mentally and physically. These veterans witnessed some of the worst human brutalities, it would be a long way home for many. Specifically notable were the …

Continue reading “A Long Way Home”

World War II and its aftermath had a profound effect on the population of Europe. Millions were killed as the result of combat, occupation, and genocide. As the proverbial dust of the Second World War began to settle, millions more Europeans found themselves uprooted and scattered across a war-ravaged continent. The administering of these Displaced …

Continue reading ““The DP Story””

After enduring and suffering a devastating war that saw the most casualties of any war to date, Europe was for the most part, reduced to rubble. Therefore, this postwar era in Europe is incredibly significant in the structure of today’s society, and life as we know it. One aspect of the rebuilding process in thisContinue reading “Displaced Persons”

The relocation of displaced persons, especially children, after World War II, was a major issue.  Tara Zahra said, “Children were at the symbolic heart of efforts to reconstruct Europe in the aftermath of the Second World War” (p. 332). With … Continue reading →