70 WW2 Quotes About the Deadliest War in History
History buffs will enjoy these WW2 quotes that show what a world-altering event this war was.
World War II is often abbreviated as WW2 or WWII and is a war that included the majority of the world’s countries from 1939 until 1945.
This war consisted of two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis.
The most well-known countries that were part of the Allies were The United States, Great Britain, France, the Soviet Union, and, to a lesser extent, China.
Germany, Japan, and Italy were the most well-known countries that were part of the Axis alliance.
The war began after Germany invaded Poland, but other factors contributed to the war, including:
- Tensions from World War I
- Fascism rising in Europe
- Border conflicts
Take a look at these WW2 quotes to learn more about the historic war.
WW2 Quotes About The Second World War
Look at some WW2 quotes about the war.
1. “I was a lieutenant in World War II.” — John Eisenhower
2. “We learned the value of research in World War II.” — Amar Bose
3. “I had the first integrated Army band in World War II.” — Dave Brubeck
4. “During World War II, the pilot losses were staggering.” — Simon Sinek
5. “The world must know what happened, and never forget.” — Dwight D. Eisenhower
6. “Our World War II generation met the challenges of their time.” — Gary Herbert
7. “With external help, even the countries ravaged by World War II recovered.” — Michael Spence
8. “World War II had a very important impact on the development of technology, as a whole.” — Barry Commoner
9. “I was in World War II; I cried when they took me in the Navy. That’s the last time I cried.” — Don Rickles
10. “World War II ended the Great Depression with one of the great public-private industrial collaborations in the history of man.” — Jon Meacham
WW2 Quotes About People Who Served In The War
Check out these WW2 quotes about people who served.
11. “I was a lieutenant in World War II.” — John Eisenhower
12. “My father was a veteran. He fought in World War II.” — John Edgar Wideman
13. “I spent two and a half years in the Philippines in World War II.” — Don Rickles
14. “When I was a kid, my dad went to World War II. I didn’t know him.” — Nick Nolte
15. “My dad served in World War II and died on active duty after the war.” — Tommy Tuberville
16. “I lost a great uncle in World War II who was with the Royal Canadian Air Force.” — Jake Trapper
17. “It was 1943. The U.S. had already entered World War II, so I decided to join the army.” — Lloyd Alexander
18. “I did frequently refer to my war record in World War II, but not in any flamboyant way.” — George McGovern
19. “Both of my grandfathers served in World War II, both in the Pacific. One wouldn’t talk about it, and one would.” — Nancy Duboc
20. “In 1949, I saw a World War II veteran named Lou Brissie, who had nearly lost a lower leg in combat, pitch in the All-Star Game in Brooklyn.” — George Vecsey
WW2 Quotes From War
Here are some World War II quotes from the war.
21. “This war is a new kind of war.” — Franklin D. Roosevelt
22. “Your task will not be an easy one.” — Dwight D. Eisenhower
23. “If everyone is thinking alike, someone isn’t thinking.” — General George Patton
24. “We are now in this war. We are all in it, all the way.” — Franklin D. Roosevelt
25. “The fruits of victory are tumbling into our mouths too quickly.” — Emperor Hirohito
26. “The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you.” — Dwight D. Eisenhower
27. “The enemy win their battles from the air! They knock out my panzers with American armor-piercing shells.” — Erwin Rommel
28. “We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory. Wars are not won by evacuations.” — Winston Churchill
29. “I would say to the House, as I said to those who have joined this government: I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat.” — Winston Churchill
30. “…We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender…” — Winston Churchill
Informative WW2 Quotes
Informative WW2 quotes will help you learn more about WW2.
31. “And of course, there is so much of World War II that is documented that we never have seen.” — Oliver North
32. “World War II was a trauma that paralyzed writers. It was something metaphysical, diabolical.” — A.B. Yehoshua
33. “World War II was a decisive time in our history, and June 6, 1944, marked the decisive moment of the war.” — Lane Evans
34. “After World War II, the winds of nationalism and anti-colonialism blew through the developing world.” — Stephen Kinzer
35. “World War I broke out largely because of an arms race, and World War II because of the lack of an arms race.” — Herman Kahn
36. “Since the end of World War II, U.S. presidents of both parties have recognized that foreign and domestic policy do not have to be pursued at the expense of each other.” — Bret Stephens
37. “World War II had been such a tremendous success story for this country that the political and military leadership began to assume that they would prevail simply because of who they were.” — Neil Sheehan
38. “World War II affected the male population in a very detrimental way. They were happy to be home, happy to be alive, happy they won, but they could not express to anybody the horror they had been through.” — Nick Nolte
39. “The United Nations was founded in the aftermath of World War II, just as the world was beginning to learn the full horrors of history’s worst genocide, the Holocaust that consumed 6 million Jews and 3 million others in Europe.” — Linda Chavez
40. “I think the reaction to a World War II situation would be the same today as it was in 1942. Initially, people would question, but once patriotism got stirred up, the whole thing would gather momentum and we’d all pull together.” — Parker Stevenson
More WW2 Quotes
Take a look at more WW2 quotes.
41. “When we went into World War II, I was a tractor driver then. I drove tractors on the plantation.” — B.B. King
42. “My father-in-law was a pilot. During World War II, he was shot down in a B-17 over Belgium.” — Bobbie Ann Mason
43. “Writing a novel about World War II and the French Resistance was a challenge both sobering and thrilling.” — Bobbie Ann Mason
44. “Western Europe has been redefining the nation-state since 1945 when it formed the European Union following World War II.” — Pete Hoekstra
45. “World War II really fascinated me because it’s the only time that everybody in this country sat down at the same table because eating on rations was your patriotic duty.” — Ruth Reichl
46. “Obviously, the World War II guys, that’s where we, we learned everything from those guys. And then we hopefully, what we learned, we pass down to the newer generation.” — Marcus Luttrell
47. “I hope my journals relating to World War II will help clarify issues of the past and thereby contribute to understanding the issues and conditions of the present and future.” — Charles Lindbergh
48. “We have known the bitterness of defeat and the exultation of triumph, and from both we have learned there can be no turning back. We must go forward to preserve in peace what we won in war.” — Douglas MacArthur
49. “I was born in Allied-controlled Pola. At the end of World War II, the victorious wartime Allied powers negotiated the details of peace treaties and borders with Italy, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Finland.” — Lidia Bastianich
50. “In so many ways, World War II was one of the lowest lows imaginable, yet some of my most treasured memories come from that time. Communities came together, people displayed a wonderful generosity of spirit, and I saw the bravery of our boys on the front line as they fought for our freedom.” — Vera Lynn
WW2 Quotes That Illuminate the Past
51. “I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” ― Albert Einstein
52. “We leave it up to books and movies to talk about WWII on our behalf.” ― Chris Cleave
53. “I have to admit that WWII France was not at all on my radar for Kristin Hannah.” ― Megan Chance
54. “I did a film called ‘Fort McCoy,’ based on a true story of one of the few internment camps during WWII that was actually in the United States.” ― Eric Stoltz
55. “As far as I’m concerned, if you want to find out about the last day of WWII or the roots of the Indian Mutiny, get thee to a books catalogue.” ― Zadie Smith
56. “Even post-WWII, nobody talked about the Holocaust. It wasn’t until the ’50s that people started talking about it.” ― Eli Roth
57. “The continued rapid cooling of the earth since WWII is in accord with the increase in global air pollution associated with industrialisation, mechanisation, urbanisation and exploding population.” ― Reid Bryson
58. “Britain didn’t win WWII by panicking. Let´s be bold, determined and stick to the best of values.” ― Hans Rosling
59. “I was a soldier in WWII. The last couple of months of the war I was actually in combat.” ― Mel Brooks
60. “WWII was, without exaggeration, the biggest event in all of human history, and it is still within living memory.” ― Chris Cleave
Inspirational WWII Quotes from a Time of Turmoil
61. “Everyone carries the weight of WWII with them in their recent family history, and yet it is rarely spoken about within families, because veterans and survivors don’t tend to talk.” ― Chris Cleave
62. “There’s an army story in me, and I think there’s a WWII Brooks film somewhere.” ― Mel Brooks
63. “An era that I specifically like is sort of late 50’s, early 60’s. I guess mid 50’s too. I like these types of films that deal with post WWII America and this more complex leading man that kind of emerges from that.” ― Alden Ehrenreich
64. “I learned in grade-school that after WWII European politicians considered sending Jews to Madagascar instead of Palestine. At the time I thought: Madagascar would’ve been so great.” ― Jill Soloway
65. “We don’t know our hearts until life puts us to the test, and WWII fascinates because it was the last time everyone was simultaneously pushed to their limit.” ― Chris Cleave
66. “I think the recent cluster of WWII novels is so good because we have reached an optimal distance from the war. Just as a lens has its focal length, the novel also has its best distance from the action.” ― Chris Cleave
67. “We owe our World War II veterans – and all our veterans – a debt we can never fully repay.” ― Doc Hastings
68. “And of course there is so much of World War II that is documented that we never have seen.” ― Oliver North
69. “I had wanted to make a film about World War II for some time, but I didn’t really want to do something that was set in the trenches, so to speak.” ~ Michael Apted
70. “I think this conflict [against terrorism] is going to require a suspension of freedom and rights unlike anything we have ever seen, at least since World War II.” ~ Marlin Fitzwater
What Happened During World War II?
The battle was the bloodiest conflict in history, and between 70 and 85 million people died.
As the Allies and Axis clashed, the countries threw all of their resources into winning the war.
In 1945 after the suicide of Hitler and the killing of Mussolini, the strongest country left was Japan, but they surrendered on August 15, 1945, and the war was finally over.
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