February 2025
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Annick (Germaine Mathilde) van Hardeveld Annick (Germaine Mathilde) van Hardeveld was born in 1923 in Amsterdam. She was the first child of her father, Jan van Hardeveld, and her French mother, Germaine Bertin. A few years later, a baby brother was born: Yann Emile. When the war broke out in May 1940, Annick was sixteen…
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The Santo Tomas Internment Camp, located in Manila, Philippines, was one of the largest civilian internment camps established by the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. It was used to imprison Allied civilians, mostly Americans, British, Australians, and other nationalities, who were residing in the Philippines when the Japanese invaded in 1941. The camp,…
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Andrée Dumon, known by her codename “Nadine,” was a prominent figure in the Belgian Resistance during World War II. Born on September 5, 1922, in Brussels, she became an integral member of the Comet Line, a network dedicated to aiding Allied airmen shot down over occupied Europe. Her courageous efforts and unwavering commitment to the…
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The conditions for the Jewish community in Libya deteriorated significantly following the passage of Italy’s Manifesto of Race in 1938. Discrimination intensified, and the situation worsened further after German intervention in 1941. The Nazis deported many Jews to concentration camps in continental Europe, where survivors remained until the end of World War II. Jewish Communities…
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On February 3, 1959, the world of rock and roll suffered an unimaginable tragedy when a small plane carrying Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson crashed in a snow-covered field in Clear Lake, Iowa. This devastating event, immortalized in Don McLean’s 1971 hit song American Pie, is often referred to as…
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For the last few weeks, I have been playing Wordle, a web-based word game created and developed by Welsh software engineer Josh Wardle. Players have six attempts to guess a five-letter word. Wouldn’t it be interesting to do a World War II blog based on five-letter word subjects? TanksWorld War II tanks played a crucial…
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Karen Reb Rudel, a Jewish American, has called Paris home for over 20 years. She lives with her French husband and young son in a charming suburb just outside the city and is the founder of Sight Seeker’s Delight, a walking tour company. Adapting to changing times, she has expanded her offerings to include Virtual…
History of Sorts 