"Myth: a traditional story of ostensibly historical events that serves to unfold part of the world view of a people or explain a practice, belief, or natural phenomenon." - Merriam-Webster
A cataclysm unfolded across the globe towards the end of the 1930s creating the largest swath of destruction mankind has ever seen and touching the lives of virtually every human on the face of the Earth. History records this event as the Second World War...
"the strangest myth-making surrounding WWII is the concept of Nazis becoming supernatural creatures, or weaponizing the supernatural"
Twenty-one years before, another nightmare came to an end, known as the Great War, or WWI, which had lasted from 1914 to 1918 and continued on into 1920 in parts of Russia as the Allies fought the War's final chapter against the Communists who had overthrown the Russian king, causing the Russian Revolution, a direct result of Russia's participation in the War itself. This "First World War" was the greatest bloodletting humanity had witnessed since the Thirty Years' War of the 17th-century, but WWII and its aftermath completely overshadowed and overtook that which had come before. Every nationality and culture worldwide identified at some level with the massive historical event between 1939 and 1945, knowing full well they were part of history in the making. Later generations studied, wrote, and created entertainment surrounding this last world war, and whether you were a serious researcher or a kid playing "WW2" it was an almost magical event that drew your interest in, a good war to overshadow later embarrassments in South East Asia, lionizing "greatest generation" and in some respects, displacing another canonized era of History, the Wild West.
As the War itself raged across Europe and the Pacific, myth was being created through entertainment and propaganda. Perhaps the greatest purveyor was Nazi Germany, perpetrating myth before the War even started. The tragedy of the Holocaust was perpetuated and normalized through propaganda films like The Eternal Jew (1940) and Jude Suss (1940), along with literature portraying "undesirables" as sub-human, monstrous, disfigured...objectifying human beings into something conveniently hated and to be disposed of. Germans were captivated and allured, becoming accomplices to one of History's largest mass-murders. It all happened based on myth, insidious and un-true.
In the United States films were also rife with myth. Even before war was declared in December of 1941, Japanese were portrayed as half-blind wearing "coke-bottle" glasses, sporting buck teeth, and using cheap equipment and weaponry, in essence a "clown", inferior to the American fighting man. Germans received little better being viewed as fat, sausage-eating buffoons, perpetuating evil on the World for a second time in the 20th-century, myth being necessary to demonize the enemy so young Americans could stomach killing German and Japanese soldiers who in reality were little different from themselves.
Until the 1970s, WWII was viewed in a very factual manner. Films such as The Longest Day and television programs like Combat! and The Rat Patrol showed the subject in a very "good vs. evil" context. Germans were the soulless drones of the Axis, whereas the Allies fought a good fight against the Empire. In some respects, this could be seen as myth as well, but not to an extent where reality was grossly perverted. This changed with films such as Kelly's Heroes (1970) and television shows like Hogan's Heroes. Nazis portrayed in these film were more humanistic, perhaps even loveable to some extent, and the myth shifted a bit making the American soldiers of the 1940s more modern in their appearance and mannerisms. War in Vietnam changed American perceptions, military characters in film and television adopting current social trends which were highly unrealistic but entertaining. A perfect example would be the character Oddball and his merry band of Sherman tank wielding hippies in Kelly's Heroes. There were no such type of individuals in the mid-1940's, but in 1970, it was common. To some extent, this can be applied to films that dealt with other wars, M.A.S.H. (1970) being a good example set in the Korean War of the early 1950's but more of a commentary on the war in Vietnam.
"Myth surrounding WWII is not just relegated to fiction. Revisionist history generally "comes to light" decades after and purports to tell a story that's been covered up, often with "conspiracy theory" overtones implied or outright stated."
Perhaps the strangest myth-making is the concept of Nazis becoming supernatural creatures or weaponizing the supernatural to win the War. Nazi zombies, Nazi werewolves, Nazi vampires and the Nazi occult fill volumes of books, some touted as "non-fiction", along with video game franchises and movies, from the 1940's and into present day. Some of the material is entertaining although in some cases High School kids with an iPhone could probably do a better job. Nevertheless, there are a few really good gems among rocks with some of the concepts being highly creative.
The first films date from 1941 and 1943. King of the Zombies and the sequel Revenge of the Zombies bring in a bit of a Nazi threat to be current and in line with the war effort. It's not until the 1960's and 1970's that we witness German soldiers actually turning into zombie killing machines. The the genre really took off in the 1990's and early 2000's, becoming a mainstream concept..."jack-booted and swastika wearing" figures of the un-dead usually menacing a small group of unwary humans who have fresh brains ripe for the taking. Zombie Lake (1981) is an early example of how Nazi zombies were first portrayed on film, slow and stiff, throwbacks to zombies in films of the 1940's and 1950's. Conversely, we see how the concept has evolved with Dead Snow (2009), Overlord (2018) and Outpost, three modern Nazi zombie films that show fast moving, extremely violent Nazi zombies usually promoting a supernatural myth storyline of WWII German experimentation gone awry. Creative board games, such as Axis & Allies & Zombies as well as video games like Call of Duty, have a focus that portrays the war in a historical perspective with zombie infection (no pun intended) taking over to the point where Axis forces are predominately made of the un-dead.
The first films date from 1941 and 1943. King of the Zombies and the sequel Revenge of the Zombies bring in a bit of a Nazi threat to be current and in line with the war effort. It's not until the 1960's and 1970's that we witness German soldiers actually turning into zombie killing machines. The the genre really took off in the 1990's and early 2000's, becoming a mainstream concept..."jack-booted and swastika wearing" figures of the un-dead usually menacing a small group of unwary humans who have fresh brains ripe for the taking. Zombie Lake (1981) is an early example of how Nazi zombies were first portrayed on film, slow and stiff, throwbacks to zombies in films of the 1940's and 1950's. Conversely, we see how the concept has evolved with Dead Snow (2009), Overlord (2018) and Outpost, three modern Nazi zombie films that show fast moving, extremely violent Nazi zombies usually promoting a supernatural myth storyline of WWII German experimentation gone awry. Creative board games, such as Axis & Allies & Zombies as well as video games like Call of Duty, have a focus that portrays the war in a historical perspective with zombie infection (no pun intended) taking over to the point where Axis forces are predominately made of the un-dead.
This has led to a whole host of other supernatural elements being brought in, like vampires and demons from the depths of Hell. Blood Vessel (2019) would be a prime example. It's a low budget and awful movie, but the concept of the Nazis capturing and shipping a group of vampires to gain a military advantage, only lose control to these denizens of the undead. Despite being a very bad "B-movie", it does mesh very well with the WWII myth-making concept. Death Ship (1980) is another, but differs in that a long dead Nazi crew haunts a WWII German ship found decades after the War by survivors of a contemporary shipwreck. It seems almost every supernatural being lacks immunity from the Third Reich's clutches. Even possessed puppets play into this mythical sphere, Puppet Master III (1991) being yet another film that stretches imagination and capitalizes on the Nazi-Supernatural connection. The Hellboy series, both in comic book form and film, is another good example. Raised up from the supernatural world by the Nazis in an occult ceremony, the demon was but a small child when he was captured by the Americans. Subsequently recruited by the U.S. Government, he grew up and works for American interests, along with other "creatures" in the U.S. Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense. While not exactly a WWII story throughout, the plot does begin in a Nazi operation to create, or summon a supernatural creature and turn the tide of war in their favor, and elements from the War pop up in the adventures that follow in the intervening years.
Perhaps the trend in creating supernatural or mythical elements around the Second World War is the documented historical fact that top Nazi leadership was fascinated with the occult. It permeated Nazi ideology from inception all the way up to its demise in 1945. Nazi expeditions were sent across the globe to gain occult knowledge for Nazi Germany's gain. Heinrich Himmler, the head and leader of the SS sent a Nazi expedition to Tibet just for that purpose. The Nazis sent an expedition to Antarctica as well. There is even some scant evidence that Germany sent an expedition to South America...looking for something...
"Injecting supernatural elements, while very fun and entertaining, can take focus away from what we should know from the real horrors of the WWII era...millions of human beings, deliberately exterminated by an advanced, highly literate and highly cultured society, for nothing more than the crime of existing."
Myth surrounding WWII is not just relegated to fiction. Revisionist history generally "comes to light" decades after and purports to tell a story that's been covered up, often with "conspiracy theory" overtones implied or outright stated. However fun and intriguing it may be to ponder, for these myths of history to be taken seriously there must be documented evidence, otherwise it's anecdotal. That doesn't mean a theory or an allegation is untrue...it is simply unsubstantiated and the reader will have to make up their mind as to whether or not it is factual or mythical. For example, some claim that General Eisenhower starved German prisoners of war to death in the immediate aftermath of WWII. Allegedly, they were put in camps and starved deliberately as a reprisal to the Nazi concentration camps. German prisoners of war did die under these circumstances, but the numbers of deaths have been extremely over-inflated. It might be a myth, and remains controversial given the lack of documentation in regards to whether or not it was intentionally planned and executed as a form of revenge against the Germans. The motive was certainly there, given the horrors witnessed once the camps were liberated...
Another would be President Roosevelt and the Attack on Pearl Harbor. Did Roosevelt know of Japanese plans beforehand, and did he let it happen to finally draw the United States into the conflict? There is some conjecture, and some evidence that points to that conclusion, but not enough to categorically state this as undeniable fact.
The Battle of Los Angeles occurred over the skies of said city in February of 1942, a very real event which has spawned some wartime mythmaking. it's claimed that a UFO was the culprit in causing a massive anti-aircraft response from the U.S. military, believing it was a Japanese air-raid and firing thousands of rounds into California's darkened skies. There's even a grainy picture taken, purporting to show a very strange, "airship like" craft. Myth?...maybe...but the thought of an alien craft descending on war-time Southern California is almost too good not to believe. Another would be the supposed Japanese midget submarine that got into Pearl Harbor right before the air attack, launching two torpedoes into the U.S.S. Oklahoma, causing her to sink in a manner different from other American battleships that day. Again, there is some photographic evidence and historical precedent for this one. It very well may be true, and one picture taken from a Japanese aircraft looks very convincing. Without that, it could very well be chalked up to just another myth of the war and ultimately may, or may not, be true...
As we move closer to the centennial of the Second World War, what other myths will be created and attached to the most significant event of the 20th century? Could it be that Nazi UFO mythology, spawned by American and British pilots flying combat missions over Germany, attributing highly advanced unidentified flying objects to Nazi WWII projects, morph into something more outrageous? Will future generations view the Third Reich as nothing more than a supernatural phenomenon? Myth is fun, creative and thought provoking, but it can also take away and marginalize the truth of a real historical event. The Second World War killed millions. Over one-million Soviet soldiers alone were killed in action to retake Stalingrad...only one battle in a much wider conflict. Injecting supernatural elements, while very fun and entertaining, can take focus away from what we should know from the real horrors of the WWII era...millions of human beings, deliberately exterminated by an advanced, highly literate and highly cultured society, for nothing more than the crime of existing. That is the most amazing and unconceivable event to come out of WWII, so outrageous that one might be excused from thinking this reality was indeed a myth...but myth it is not...unfortunately, that part is true...
As we move closer to the centennial of the Second World War, what other myths will be created and attached to the most significant event of the 20th century? Could it be that Nazi UFO mythology, spawned by American and British pilots flying combat missions over Germany, attributing highly advanced unidentified flying objects to Nazi WWII projects, morph into something more outrageous? Will future generations view the Third Reich as nothing more than a supernatural phenomenon? Myth is fun, creative and thought provoking, but it can also take away and marginalize the truth of a real historical event. The Second World War killed millions. Over one-million Soviet soldiers alone were killed in action to retake Stalingrad...only one battle in a much wider conflict. Injecting supernatural elements, while very fun and entertaining, can take focus away from what we should know from the real horrors of the WWII era...millions of human beings, deliberately exterminated by an advanced, highly literate and highly cultured society, for nothing more than the crime of existing. That is the most amazing and unconceivable event to come out of WWII, so outrageous that one might be excused from thinking this reality was indeed a myth...but myth it is not...unfortunately, that part is true...