World War 2

Primary sources:   These are the first-hand account of events. Historians dealing with events of long ago must rely on written primary sources: codes of law, parish registers, letters and sometimes journal or diaries. World War II is much more recent and there are many people alive today who lived through the period. So historians can use a much wider range of primary sources to get at the truth of this story. Tape recordings, on-line interviews and film footage of events add to the wealth of written material about this terrible war. Here some examples of primary sources in World War II:   {draw:frame} Evidence from World War II Prisoners of War   John Hart, Jr., M.D., Timothy Kimbrell, M.D., Peter Fauver, M.A., Barbara J. Cherry, Ph.D., Jeffery Pitcock, M.A., Leroy Q. Booe, M.D., Gail Tillman, Ph.D. and Thomas W. Freeman, M.D.   General Rommel’s Journal _Blitzkrieg!   He led Germany’s 7th Panzer Division as it crashed through the Belgian defenses into Frances, after German forceshad broken through the Maginot Line further south. In an excerpt from his journal, he describes the action on 16 May 1940.   Hubert Banner’s account _The Battle of Britain   He describes how he and his wife, living in Kent during the Battle of Britain, saw their first German airman.   Colin Perry’s diary _The Blitz   He was 18, and lived in Wandsworth, London during the Blitz. He kept his diary from March to November 1940. It tells us about the suffering caused to ordinary people and shows the determination people had to withstand the Blitz. This entry is dated 25 September 1940.   *George Phraner’s* experience _Pearl Harbor   He was a sailor on board the USS Arizona, one of the battleships destroyed on 7 December 1941. He described the first terrifying moments of the attack, which began just after he had finished breakfast.   Joseph Romero’s memories _Fighting in the Philippines   He was a young Filipino boy living in Manila when the war started. Here he recalls the shock people felt when Bataan fell....