How did the soliders during WW2 manage to stand and fight during the terror of war?

Question

I mean with respect to prolong battle, wouldn't human succumb and break down?

Answer 1

My father was with the "rainbow" division and was on the :Siegfried line" for 82 days of continuous battle under fire, the division received a battle pin for being under fire this long. They couldn't get supplies, this included food. The Germans stampeded Belgian horses into the lines at night to create havoc among the troops. My dad said many of these horses were killed in mine fields as they came over. The men dug down deep and put timbers over the tops of there foxholes due to the horses coming through every night.
The men would go out and carve huge hunks of meat off the dead animals to eat, until their rations came through. My dad said it was a lot more then 82 days or, seemed like it. He was wounded and had to stay on the line without help.

I was in North 'Nam for eight months mostly out of contact with a ranger group and the Hmong people. We were always under fire, especially at night. The patrols were a nightmare in itself. The jungles were as black as night in the daytime, always dripping water from the condensation.
We fought our way back into the South blowing all the bridges and mining or blowing all the roads or, as many as possible, on the way, always under fire, being chased.
I served two tours and was wounded twice. When Nixon was telling the people we were not in Cambodia, we heard it on radio, in Cambodia, what a joke.

Answer 2

Until the Vietnam War, most soldiers did not experience "prolonged battle." War was usually a "hurry-up and wait" affair, as most big battles collapsed due to supply shortages not long after they started. Soldiers spent most of their time holding a position in a quiet sector, or marching to a new position. The few prolonged enagagements, such as Stalingrad, or the defense of Bastogne, were carried on the shoulders of a relatively small percentage of the fighting men. Even in those, while fighting would be more or less continuous somewhere in the area, one person would like as not only see a small piece of it.

The ones who really suffered the stress were the Bomber crews, who flew towards a high probability of death or capture nearly every day or every other day. Tours were made short for that reason, and even then the psychological toll was devastating.

Vietnam was far more draining on the American soldier, because in his 365 day tour, he would likely be in an active combat or potential combat (patrol) situation more than 200 days. This ratio of actual combat days was unheard of in previous wars.

Answer 3

To think of any war could properly be finished without that going on is stupid/stupid. struggling with out of uniform, like some others have stated, is a particular Forces tactic used to infiltrate worldwide places previously an entire-blown conflict occurs. Desecrating Enemy bodies is properly accomplished plenty greater by ability of the enemies that the US has fought, extremely the terrorists of immediately. Torture is a relative term and there is not at all been a war that somebody wasn't tortured in. Killing prisoners replaced into thrown in there by ability of Tarantino for marvel fee and clearly it worked or you does not be asking those questions. And curiously you missed the section the place it replaced right into a FICTIONAL tale not in keeping with any actual operation or experience in international war 2. additionally, you may desire to evaluate that up until the fulfillment of the Normandy Invasion, the allied powers have been dropping the war and have been keen to take desperate measures to win at any fee whether it meant putting infantrymen in civilian outfits to get in the back of the strains. And as quickly as a weapon which includes an AK47 has been removed from the floor close to a corpse of an insurrection, he's by surprise appeared at as a civilian casualty by ability of the clicking on account that he now lacks a weapon, so possibly your materials could desire to stop the **** now and then attempting to make the troops seem a million circumstances worse than they're. mutually as I trust you that Tarantino is over the right and rather plenty a nut, I strongly disagree along with your assessment of the present concern and that of the sought after media.

Answer 4

I think it's because they simply had to, or they simply wanted it to be over.

Especially with the Germans and Russians, they were actually forced to fight, even if they didn't wish to because they wanted to protect their family. For a fact, I know not all Nazis were bad, and Russian troops were shot if they didn't fight to the finish.

The Allies wanted to fight to defend and protect their country, and end the war. This is probably why they kept going at it and didn't give up.

So as much as everyone was scared or breaking down, everyone pretty much fought UNTIL they broke down.

I agree that the conditions in WW2 were a LOT better than WW1, but more people died in WW2. But because of the better conditions and medical care, people lasted longer in the battlefield.

Answer 5

I have no idea how they did it. To truely know, seek out someone who experienced WW2 or Vietnam (though it is a different war in many ways, you might find that most wars have the same base terror to them).
I can guess how they did though. They might have landed on the mentalitiy of, it's them or me, which leads men and women to do desperate things. They might have done so because to do differently, or to desert, meant being shot by their own people. Some might have gotten through on the thought of their families.
Some may have gone partially insane and just wanted to kill the enemy to make the horror stop.
There are so many reasons why the soldiers managed to do it.
You have to remember, thrown into intense or dire situations, humans are capable of anything and everything. It's how we've survived.

Answer 6

It was even worse during WW1 - extended life in muddy rat-infested trenches, constant bombardment, no movement, a real slaughterhouse. Just look at the 10 month battle of Verdun

1914 and 1939 were different times. People thought differently. Read some books on how society reacted to the horrors of war. Quite different from today perhaps.

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Another thought on this: during WW2, to be male and healthy and NOT in the armed forces was shamed, and not doing your duty for your brothers in arms on the battlefield was the ultimate shame. Again - different times, different attitudes.

Answer 7

Jason, 1890's Gay is as close as I can get.
They had a job to do and they did it. To not do so would have been the ultimate shame.
Certainly, there were some men that, after many months and years of fighting just couldn't take it anymore. Some of them went to hospital, some took a walk about and some blew their brains out.
We can't imagine what they went through. God bless them all.

Answer 8

People do break down from battle fatigue. Some soldiers do learn to fight the effects of the fatigue some don't.

Answer 9

well i'm a big history buff...and i suggest (if you're a reader) to read "Band Of Brothers" i can't remember who it's by but is very very good. anyway, i suppose some of it was addrenalin...and to fight for their country etc. those boys/men in the war were/are very brave, those were some of the worst times in the war. i don't know about you but if i saw one of my buddies get shot i'd want to kill the guy who shot him, but..they did want to finish as fast as they could. the faster they did. the faster they could go back home to mom, dads, wives, girlfriends,children etc. that would definatly make me fight and be strong. adn i suppose some of not breaking down would be to not let their buddies down. cuz if you freeze like some did...you just might be letting your buddy down. to me that would be the worst thing. hope i answered your question, cheers.

Answer 10

Back in the early 1940s Amphetamines were thought of as a possible wonder drug. It was not known how dangerous they were. I don't know who was on speed but it was almost certainly issued to Japanese and German soldiers. If they did enough meth, you couldn't stop those guys until you put a bullet into them.