My great grandfather WW1 trenches in France, Both my grandfather's in WW2 one in the Pacific and another in Europe...my father in Vietnam....I never forget about what they did and have done for me and for the country.
@@L_Train you didn’t get what I said. They sacrificed their life for the betterment for future generation. But our generation is not somehow not being generous to them.
Your work is breathtaking… Well known places & landmarks aside, I find it incredible that you’re able to track down some of these places that one would think had been completely lost in obscurity and/or to time. Fascinating & compelling work. Thank you for doing this.
Im always amazed how the buildings and landscape remained mainly intact. God bless the greatest generation. Thank you again, History Explorer, for keeping these memories slive and well for future generations.
I’m so glad I found this channel. It’s become my favorite channel on RUclips. The photographs are amazing and I find that the will to survive and rebuild is incredibly strong in all of Europe. My dad was in the 8th Army Air Corps, and later in Patton’s 3rd Army Division when they asked for volunteers to fill in the ranks of the 3rd, he was a Warrant Officer and put in for the transfer.
You take such care presenting these photos to us that you would think you’re a professional film maker. I view these pictures from my daddy’s eyes and I understand more now. Thank you! ♥️
These pictures are both amazing and sad. To think that in a very few years all those service men and women, along with all those who built the ships, tanks, rifles, etc. will be gone forever. Such a monumental event such as World War Two and no one left to describe their sacrifices, bravery and the horrors that they witnessed and participated in.
So, I went and did the research on the M-3 Halftrack @03:33 this morning because I am one of those military history people that dissects old military photos looking for all the other little tidbits of information that can be gleaned from them that do not stand out to the average person. The halftrack is built on an M-3 chassis and because this model has the air-cooled browning 50-cals on it, that makes this version as the M15A1 CGMC (Combination Gun Motor Carriage). The original M15 version had water cooled MG's which could not be mistaken. This used a crew of 7 men and 4 of them are in this pic (3 onboard + cameraman whose helmet is sitting on the engine hood. Alongside next to the tracks are 4 ammo boxes with the larger one on the right being for the 37mm shells which came in 6-rnd stripper clips which were fed onto a feed tray and the other 3 are for 50-cal mg in 500-rnd box magazines. Also notice how personal gear is stowed by hanging it on the outside of the gun tub as the majority of stowage space was used for ammunition. Also note they have a supply of camouflage with them in the form of evergreen branches on both the cab roof and drivers side running board. The gun tub is actually in the reverse position in the photo and had 2 drop-down panels on either side of the guns so that they could be fired in a flatter trajectory at either ground targets or very low aircraft, the center gun barrel section was only partially protected 1/2 way up with a stationary 12mm armor plate. 1,552 were used by the U.S. Army built between 1943 & 1944. Starting in l944 the M15 was supplemented by the M16 which used the 4 50-cal air-cooled browning mg configuration.
Wow! I’m not really a equipment nut at all as I much prefer the stories of individuals, what they went through, where they came from etc However that was really fascinating
Rob, iam absolutely amazed at your work on these videos. The amount of time you must put in....WOW! Keep these coming, i for one can watch them all day. Thank You for what you do. Keeping the memories and sacrifices of the worlds greatest generation alive. Hope your Christmas was beautiful and wishing you all the best for the year to come. As ALWAYS..... Safe Travels Brother! ✌️😎
I am amazed that you are able to find some the very obscure locations that are just based on a stone wall etc... @03:33 That is a very rare version of the M-3 Halftrack with the 37mm gun mounted to the side and then the twin 50-cal machine guns. The standard set up was with the 37mm in the center flanked by the 50-cals. Also, the gun tub looks to be ad hoc. This could be a field modification version and would be a great project for any military modeler to replicate in the 1/35 or 1/48 scale. Loved the new longer format. 👍👍💯❤
First 2 photo are in Cherbourg (Napoleon statue near the sea side, german figther killer in the south side at the exit of the town). The following are surely in the Cotentin Normandy.
I’m truly in awe of the work you do on this channel. 🤩 You take something as simple as a photograph and transform it into a profound lesson about humanity, resilience, and progress. 🌟 Your respect for history and the people in these images is evident in every video. Watching your content has taught me to see the past not as something distant, but as an essential part of who we are today. 🕊 You’ve inspired me to value the stories that often go untold, and for that, I am deeply grateful. 🙏💬
@@thehistoryexplorer You could of course just replay the whole title over and over again - I for one would love to hear it, regardless how often played. Thanks for your hard work and have a happy and succesful new year 2025. Wishing you and all your family all the best, from an expat Englishman living in Hamburg, Germany.❤
Probably no surprise but a channel “echoes of history” appears to be ripping off your videos (and hard work) including the theme music. Just thought you should know. BTW thanks for your excellent channel.
It’s shocking but I’ve had 20 channels since Christmas who have just taken content and uploaded it as their own. Nothing I can do if they alter it slightly. If you see it can you comment on it saying so please.
Many of these show a hard fought victory. But others are sad and terrifying. The pic of the Nazi soldier grabbing that young lady. You can see he had a grip on her. She must have been terrified. I’m not sure, but was one an entrance to a castle that would have been a POW prison? Was the pic of a religious statue looking down on pure destruction from Dresden? Of course those 2 soldiers walking by the windmill were 🇨🇦 and I’m proud of us! Was the beach where the houses stood from Juno Beach? There is a famous filming of 🇨🇦 soldiers about to hit that beach. Then the door drops from the Higgins boat and you see a house that is still standing. Just wondering about some of those places and people. Thanks for a great year end video.
The Spirit's of the past never far away broken buildings repaired Photos still look the same Dresden a smashed city changed completely new beginnings war isn't kind family members who served from all of our families lost in fighting for freedom those who came back some broken others never mentioned the war until they passed away R.I.P to all of the fallen lest we forget 📯 the price of victory ✌️ and freedom to bring us from darkness to the light 🕯️ today the world 🌎 on the brink again let's pray for hope 🙏and peace ✌️🕊️ for calmer time's to come lessons of world war 2 some how haven't been learned but I pray 🙏 for hope and peace 🕊️ that man kind might live as ONE and free from war respect 🙏🤝🫶 and thank you for this video 🫶
The general shown at 0:50 looks like Theodore Roosevelt Jr., the son of FDR, who died of a heart attack in France, just a month after D-day. He was the first US general who landed on Normandy beach, if I remember it correctly.
Thank you God you have made the great generation in their time,so we could get freedom and the sacrifice to whom didn’t make it after the war! Bless their family and their descendants ,teach us to count the blessings how lucky we are!Thank you, you were hero to all of us.Gbu
@thehistoryexplorer Yes I am familiar with them, but I do not tire of seeing the precise "now and then" images that to my mind are nothing short of profound. Not trying to blow smoke. Your work just leaves my brain and spirit in silent reverence. And somehow, a wish that I could have been there at that time.
Thank you the pics of Jersey, CI, UK. They endured the Nazi occupation for almost 6 years 6/40 to 5/45. My friends family still lives, although now just the four post war sisters remain. Three in St. Helier and one in the US. Narragansett Bay
I explored and made my own St. Marcuof pics in 1983. Most older people then remembered 1944. It was so exciting to find the spot by the church and explore the German fortifications. No internet to help back then either. Had a real Gypsy kid help me out some. They even had the curved top wagon and were drying their freshly washed clothes on roadside bushes.
Very interesting video seeing changes between now and then. Would not call them the saddest images of WW2. Many more that fit the bill, with the exception of your first image of the dead German in the gateway, observed by an American. That image I've always found to be a strong one ...
If i remember correctly, that dead German in the first photo, had mown down 3 or 4 american engineers, then took up the position he was found dead in, to lure soldier's into the path of a sniper who was in a church, just up the same road he was killed on. He was lobbing grenades from his position, till he was killed by returned grenades and rifle fire.
People come and go. What’s left behind are buildings and rubble. Give it enough time and there will be nothing left. Nothing to remember the people and the events that changed the world.
@thehistoryexplorer I was commenting because I enjoyed many of your videos with history vs now ww2 pictures, and yes, they bring a kind of melancholy with them. But you never labeled them as such. Keep on the great work!!
🤔🤔🤔TAMBÉM SERIA INTERESANTE, TRABALHAR PARA QUE EM CADA LOCAL, FOSSE COLOCADO UM MEMORIAL COM A FOTO E UM BREVE RELATO SOBRE OS PERSONAGENS OU SOBRE A HISTÓRIA DA ÉPOCA. 😍😍 IT WOULD ALSO BE INTERESTING TO WORK SO THAT IN EACH LOCATION A MEMORIAL WOULD BE PLACED WITH THE PHOTO AND A BRIEF REPORT ABOUT THE CHARACTERS OR THE HISTORY OF THE TIME.
As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone, and the place thereof shall know it no more. The Book of Psalms, chapter 103, verses, 15, & 16!
** If you enjoyed this video I have more super edits coming up where I combine the shorts videos. Be sure to like, comment and subscribe 👍 **
Phenomenal project. I can’t imagine how much time and effort these take. The “stuck poop” at the end was disgusting, however.
They all sacrificed their life just to see this generation fall down in morality and manners. We forgot their contribution very quickly.
My great grandfather WW1 trenches in France, Both my grandfather's in WW2 one in the Pacific and another in Europe...my father in Vietnam....I never forget about what they did and have done for me and for the country.
@49erbrian6 just go forward buddy. Try to mix your life with reality and surroundings. Be humble and spread love.
Nobody was fighting for "manners"
@@L_Train you didn’t get what I said. They sacrificed their life for the betterment for future generation. But our generation is not somehow not being generous to them.
@RafatunAzra I agree which just happened from the troll challenging you
Like opening a time capsule to the past, nothing better than a history lesson in photos. Bravo to all the great work you put into your content.
Thank you my friend
The work involved in this is mind-boggling!! Thanks for posting!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Your work is breathtaking… Well known places & landmarks aside, I find it incredible that you’re able to track down some of these places that one would think had been completely lost in obscurity and/or to time. Fascinating & compelling work. Thank you for doing this.
Thank you very much! It is genuinely my pleasure. I love making these videos and visiting these locations
Im always amazed how the buildings and landscape remained mainly intact. God bless the greatest generation. Thank you again, History Explorer, for keeping these memories slive and well for future generations.
I’m so glad I found this channel. It’s become my favorite channel on RUclips. The photographs are amazing and I find that the will to survive and rebuild is incredibly strong in all of Europe. My dad was in the 8th Army Air Corps, and later in Patton’s 3rd Army Division when they asked for volunteers to fill in the ranks of the 3rd, he was a Warrant Officer and put in for the transfer.
Thank you so much for your kind feedback. I’m very proud you’ve found this channel and you enjoy the content. Makes it all worth while
The photos are so fascinating. The effort to make these matches is brilliant. Very well done. Thank you for sharing.
You take such care presenting these photos to us that you would think you’re a professional film maker. I view these pictures from my daddy’s eyes and I understand more now. Thank you! ♥️
Wow, thank you!
“Those who are the most ardent proponents of war are usually those who have never had to experience it…”
Absolutely amazing work. Thank you for sharing this.
Truly beautiful.' As time goes by'. Thank you so much for your effort in doing this.
My pleasure!
This collection is truly a gem! Some photos remind me of ones I discovered recently that reveal hidden stories. History fans, you’ll love it!
These pictures are both amazing and sad. To think that in a very few years all those service men and women, along with all those who built the ships, tanks, rifles, etc. will be gone forever. Such a monumental event such as World War Two and no one left to describe their sacrifices, bravery and the horrors that they witnessed and participated in.
I hope you enjoyed it!
So, I went and did the research on the M-3 Halftrack @03:33 this morning because I am one of those military history people that dissects old military photos looking for all the other little tidbits of information that can be gleaned from them that do not stand out to the average person. The halftrack is built on an M-3 chassis and because this model has the air-cooled browning 50-cals on it, that makes this version as the M15A1 CGMC (Combination Gun Motor Carriage). The original M15 version had water cooled MG's which could not be mistaken. This used a crew of 7 men and 4 of them are in this pic (3 onboard + cameraman whose helmet is sitting on the engine hood. Alongside next to the tracks are 4 ammo boxes with the larger one on the right being for the 37mm shells which came in 6-rnd stripper clips which were fed onto a feed tray and the other 3 are for 50-cal mg in 500-rnd box magazines. Also notice how personal gear is stowed by hanging it on the outside of the gun tub as the majority of stowage space was used for ammunition. Also note they have a supply of camouflage with them in the form of evergreen branches on both the cab roof and drivers side running board. The gun tub is actually in the reverse position in the photo and had 2 drop-down panels on either side of the guns so that they could be fired in a flatter trajectory at either ground targets or very low aircraft, the center gun barrel section was only partially protected 1/2 way up with a stationary 12mm armor plate. 1,552 were used by the U.S. Army built between 1943 & 1944. Starting in l944 the M15 was supplemented by the M16 which used the 4 50-cal air-cooled browning mg configuration.
Wow! I’m not really a equipment nut at all as I much prefer the stories of individuals, what they went through, where they came from etc
However that was really fascinating
Rob, iam absolutely amazed at your work on these videos. The amount of time you must put in....WOW! Keep these coming, i for one can watch them all day. Thank You for what you do.
Keeping the memories and sacrifices of the worlds greatest generation alive.
Hope your Christmas was beautiful and wishing you all the best for the year to come.
As ALWAYS.....
Safe Travels Brother!
✌️😎
Thank you my friend! Very much appreciated and I hope you’ve had a wonderful Christmas
I am amazed that you are able to find some the very obscure locations that are just based on a stone wall etc...
@03:33 That is a very rare version of the M-3 Halftrack with the 37mm gun mounted to the side and then the twin 50-cal machine guns. The standard set up was with the 37mm in the center flanked by the 50-cals. Also, the gun tub looks to be ad hoc. This could be a field modification version and would be a great project for any military modeler to replicate in the 1/35 or 1/48 scale. Loved the new longer format. 👍👍💯❤
Thank you!
Such an epic video. Great job!
Best channel on youtube,thank you 👏👏❤️❤️ R.I.P to every one of these heroes 💔💔
Thanks!
First picture is a dead german, ripped his trouser on the knee, then lost his right arm and bled to death in a place where he felt safe
Terrible isn’t it
The terrible face of total war 1939 45 never again
@@thehistoryexplorer😢
i watch this stuff allot and everytime its a heart warming thing RIP solders Ty for your service
I hope you enjoyed it 👍
Amazing as always my friend. Should make them bigger for old buggers like me to see!
Love your films.
Thank you! Appreciate it
First 2 photo are in Cherbourg (Napoleon statue near the sea side, german figther killer in the south side at the exit of the town). The following are surely in the Cotentin Normandy.
Thank you very much, 🫡🇺🇲🪖
Again mate very good, well done
Ok, I can watch these wonderful videos forever.
Glad you like them!
I’m truly in awe of the work you do on this channel. 🤩 You take something as simple as a photograph and transform it into a profound lesson about humanity, resilience, and progress. 🌟 Your respect for history and the people in these images is evident in every video. Watching your content has taught me to see the past not as something distant, but as an essential part of who we are today. 🕊 You’ve inspired me to value the stories that often go untold, and for that, I am deeply grateful. 🙏💬
Thank you so much! I really appreciate that 👍
Bring back the old music from The Pacific.
@@707x-y6s it’s not long enough, people asked for a long edit 🤷♂️
@@thehistoryexplorer
You could of course just replay the whole title over and over again - I for one would love to hear it, regardless how often played. Thanks for your hard work and have a happy and succesful new year 2025. Wishing you and all your family all the best, from an expat Englishman living in Hamburg, Germany.❤
@thehistoryexplorer Didn't mean to take away from the great job you are doing.
Buildings, walls and trees may not be able to speak but we can learn what they have seen through history.
Probably no surprise but a channel “echoes of history” appears to be ripping off your videos (and hard work) including the theme music. Just thought you should know. BTW thanks for your excellent channel.
It’s shocking but I’ve had 20 channels since Christmas who have just taken content and uploaded it as their own. Nothing I can do if they alter it slightly.
If you see it can you comment on it saying so please.
These videos are amazing! I would love to see some of the 99th infantry if you would have any of those
Glad you like them!
Impressive, and mind blowing. WAR IS HELL.
War is hell
Many of these show a hard fought victory. But others are sad and terrifying. The pic of the Nazi soldier grabbing that young lady. You can see he had a grip on her. She must have been terrified. I’m not sure, but was one an entrance to a castle that would have been a POW prison? Was the pic of a religious statue looking down on pure destruction from Dresden? Of course those 2 soldiers walking by the windmill were 🇨🇦 and I’m proud of us! Was the beach where the houses stood from Juno Beach? There is a famous filming of 🇨🇦 soldiers about to hit that beach. Then the door drops from the Higgins boat and you see a house that is still standing. Just wondering about some of those places and people. Thanks for a great year end video.
The scenery is still there long after we're gone.
The Spirit's of the past never far away broken buildings repaired Photos still look the same Dresden a smashed city changed completely new beginnings war isn't kind family members who served from all of our families lost in fighting for freedom those who came back some broken others never mentioned the war until they passed away R.I.P to all of the fallen lest we forget 📯 the price of victory ✌️ and freedom to bring us from darkness to the light 🕯️ today the world 🌎 on the brink again let's pray for hope 🙏and peace ✌️🕊️ for calmer time's to come lessons of world war 2 some how haven't been learned but I pray 🙏 for hope and peace 🕊️ that man kind might live as ONE and free from war respect 🙏🤝🫶 and thank you for this video 🫶
The general shown at 0:50 looks like Theodore Roosevelt Jr., the son of FDR, who died of a heart attack in France, just a month after D-day. He was the first US general who landed on Normandy beach, if I remember it correctly.
Very very interesting! They were the greatest generation
@@MarkDeschesne I think so!
🎖️⭐🙏🏆❤️🩹🛐
Thank you for sharing this
You are so welcome!
Life goes on….despite the horror, death and destruction of war. Humanity can be anything but humane at times, but we sure are resilient.
Amazing
It’s so sad after what these hero’s done for us and to see what Europe has become 😢
What a generation God help us if the same thing happened today
Thank you God you have made the great generation in their time,so we could get freedom and the sacrifice to whom didn’t make it after the war! Bless their family and their descendants ,teach us to count the blessings how lucky we are!Thank you, you were hero to all of us.Gbu
Gone. All gone. The people and their values with them. It's sad in 2025.
Sadly those who wish for war inevitably will get there wish at the cost to those who seek peace and so the circle continues
صور مأثرة من الماضي تبين كم الحياة قصيرة جدا 😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢
🫡 to your work.
Thank you buddy but you would have seen all these before, this is just a longer edit! 😊
@thehistoryexplorer Yes I am familiar with them, but I do not tire of seeing the precise "now and then" images that to my mind are nothing short of profound. Not trying to blow smoke. Your work just leaves my brain and spirit in silent reverence. And somehow, a wish that I could have been there at that time.
Brilliant
Thank you the pics of Jersey, CI, UK. They endured the Nazi occupation for almost 6 years 6/40 to 5/45. My friends family still lives, although now just the four post war sisters remain. Three in St. Helier and one in the US. Narragansett Bay
Aure Sur Mere sure did not change much! Visited Saint Marcouf in 2015....
I explored and made my own St. Marcuof pics in 1983. Most older people then remembered 1944. It was so exciting to find the spot by the church and explore the German fortifications. No internet to help back then either. Had a real Gypsy kid help me out some. They even had the curved top wagon and were drying their freshly washed clothes on roadside bushes.
Beautiful area isn’t it
These images provide a tangible link to the real men and women who lived and died in that conflict (on all sides). Thankyou.
Very interesting video seeing changes between now and then. Would not call them the saddest images of WW2. Many more that fit the bill, with the exception of your first image of the dead German in the gateway, observed by an American. That image I've always found to be a strong one ...
If i remember correctly, that dead German in the first photo, had mown down 3 or 4 american engineers, then took up the position he was found dead in, to lure soldier's into the path of a sniper who was in a church, just up the same road he was killed on. He was lobbing grenades from his position, till he was killed by returned grenades and rifle fire.
Did the job he enlisted or was drafted to do. Doesn't make the horrors of war any more legit. Young men brainwashed and used to serve the few ....
اینکه بیشترساختمانها بعدازاینهمه سال هنوز حفظ شده بسیارجالب وشگفت انگیزاست👍🏼👍🏼❤❤❤❤
People come and go.
What’s left behind are buildings and rubble.
Give it enough time and there will be nothing left.
Nothing to remember the people and the events that changed the world.
😯😯😯...
🤔🤔🤔...
😢😢😢...
how sad ???
Great images, I enjoyed them.
(I didn't enjoy the clickbait title)
How is there a click bait title?
Beautifully done, but why label this as saddest images?
These are pretty sad to me, but I understand your point
@thehistoryexplorer I was commenting because I enjoyed many of your videos with history vs now ww2 pictures, and yes, they bring a kind of melancholy with them. But you never labeled them as such. Keep on the great work!!
👍👍👍
🤔🤔🤔TAMBÉM SERIA INTERESANTE, TRABALHAR PARA QUE EM CADA LOCAL, FOSSE COLOCADO UM MEMORIAL COM A FOTO E UM BREVE RELATO SOBRE OS PERSONAGENS OU SOBRE A HISTÓRIA DA ÉPOCA. 😍😍 IT WOULD ALSO BE INTERESTING TO WORK SO THAT IN EACH LOCATION A MEMORIAL WOULD BE PLACED WITH THE PHOTO AND A BRIEF REPORT ABOUT THE CHARACTERS OR THE HISTORY OF THE TIME.
Sadly the images are way too small.
@@markroberts9577 I don’t think so
I don't know why the video creator call these WWII photos : SADDEST IMAGES??? Is it saddest images?
You don’t think it’s sad to see these? I always feel very grateful but also very sad when I make these videos
😢😢😢😢😢😢
As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone, and the place thereof shall know it no more. The Book of Psalms, chapter 103, verses, 15, & 16!
NEVER AGAIN!!!!!!
💖💯👍
Seems there wasn't an Eastern Front then.
Sadly Russia invaded another country preventing me going there to take the pictures in Eastern Europe. Didn’t you know?
@@thehistoryexplorer YOU didn't take the pictures on display here.
@@williamwallace5857 actually I’d say over two thirds of these images are taken by me. Especially those in Normandy.
@@thehistoryexplorer We don't need just YOUR photos to see 'then & now' type pics of the Eastern Front. I've seen many. Why don't you add some.
The saddest part is that the west are trying to start ww3
How?!
You need to caption exactly where these images are, or its pretty useless.
lol can’t you read the captions that come with the pictures? 🤦♂️
@@thehistoryexplorer I don't have a problem with it not like I going to see them, but there isn't any captions