Norwegian infantry ready for streetfighting against the German Gebirgsjäger in Narvik, end of May 1940.

Narvik 1940

On May 15 the German high command announced that it no longer regarded Brussels, historic capital of Belgium as an open city. It stated that air reconnaissance had established beyond doubt that military columns were moving through the city, and that the German Air Force intended, therefore, to attack all military objectives. Even before this, and until the fall of the city on May 17, Brussels was subjected to repeated and destructive German air attacks both with high explosive and incendiary bombs. The worst raid took place on Sunday, May 12, when waves of German bombers destroyed many of the buildings on the outskirts of the city. The picture shows firemen dealing with the effects of a bomb which had exploded and wrecked shops and dwelling houses on one of the main streets.


Brussels bombed

New Zealand troops landing on Vella Lavella, Solomon Islands, circa mid- or late-1943