World War II saw plenty of ambitious raids, in which relatively small attacking forces sought to inflict disproportionately great losses on more numerous foes. Take the frogmen who rode manned torpedoes to wreck battleships. Or the Commandos who tried to surprise and kill Erwin Rommel in his headquarters. Sometimes they succeeded, other times they did not. In almost all instances, the raiders displayed extraordinary courage against great odds. Below are nineteen fascinating facts about some of WWII’s most dramatic raids.
19. A Supposedly Impregnable Fortress
Fort Eben-Emael on the Belgian-Dutch border was constructed in the 1930s, and was designed to defend Belgium against a German attack. It was positioned in a strategic location across the likeliest German invasion route, with artillery that dominated vital bridges and roads that led into Belgium. Eben-Emael was the world’s largest fortress, reputed to be impregnable and the toughest military stronghold on earth. As seen below, 80 German paratroopers captured it and its 1200 defenders in 24 hours, in a daring assault on May 10-11, 1940.
