Wolfgang Willrich - Porträt Hertha Mignon, BDM-Obergauführerin von Tirol und Vorarlberg, 1939

This is an attempt to see World War 2 through the eyes of people who lived or fought on the territories controlled by the Axis powers, originally the Rome–Berlin Axis. Axis' principal members in Europe were Nazi Germany, the Kingdom of Italy, Hungary, and Spain. During World War II, Nazi Germany and Axis powers occupied or controlled a number of countries in Europe and beyond. At its zenith in 1942, the Axis presided over large parts of Europe, North Africa, and East Asia, either through occupation, annexation, or puppet states. The collection is made with an image recognition aid, so a small percentage of images may be wrongly attributed as European & 1939-1945. Here is a list of some of the countries that were occupied or allied with Nazi Germany during the war: Austria: Nazi Germany annexed Austria in 1938, after the Anschluss, which was the union of Austria and Germany. Czechoslovakia: Nazi Germany occupied the western and southern regions of Czechoslovakia in 1938, after the Munich Agreement. The rest of the country was occupied in 1939, after the invasion of Poland. Denmark: Nazi Germany occupied Denmark in 1940, after the invasion of Norway. France: Nazi Germany occupied France in 1940, after the fall of Paris. The French government set up a collaborationist regime in the unoccupied zone of Vichy. Greece: Nazi Germany invaded and occupied Greece in 1941, after the fall of Crete. Italy: Italy was an ally of Nazi Germany during World War II, but was also occupied by German forces after the fall of Mussolini in 1943. Netherlands: Nazi Germany occupied the Netherlands in 1940, after the invasion of Belgium. Norway: Nazi Germany invaded and occupied Norway in 1940. Poland: Nazi Germany invaded and occupied Poland in 1939, at the start of World War II. Belgium: Nazi Germany occupied Belgium in 1940, after the invasion of the Netherlands. Luxembourg: Nazi Germany occupied Luxembourg in 1940, after the invasion of Belgium. Ukraine: Nazi Germany occupied parts of Ukraine during World War II, after the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. Belarus: Nazi Germany occupied Belarus during World War II, after the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. Russia: Nazi Germany invaded and occupied parts of the Soviet Union during World War II, after the invasion in 1941. Yugoslavia: Nazi Germany occupied parts of Yugoslavia during World War II, after the invasion in 1941. Albania: Nazi Germany occupied Albania in 1943, after the fall of Mussolini. Hungary: Hungary was an ally of Nazi Germany during World War II, but was also occupied by German forces after the fall of the Hungarian government in 1944. Romania: Romania was an ally of Nazi Germany during World War II, but was also occupied by German forces after the fall of the Romanian government in 1944. Bulgaria: Bulgaria was an ally of Nazi Germany during World War II, but was also occupied by German forces after the fall of the Bulgarian government in 1944. Finland: Finland was an ally of Nazi Germany during World War II, but was not occupied by German forces.

Artist and art writer; organized Nazi "Degenerate Art" exhibition 1937. Willrich's father, Hugo Willrich (1867-1950), was a professor of Hellenistic studies at the gymnasium in Göttingen. Willrich himself studied studio art in Berlin at the Kunsthochschule between 1915-16. Already strongly conservative because of his father's traditional Prussian views, the younger Willrich resisted the new art styles being taught there. The first World Ward cut short his art training. Willrich served in the 251st infantry regiment in 1916 seeing action at the eastern front. He was captured and interned in a Orleans prisoner-of-war camp. In 1920 Willrich resumed his art studies, this time at the Academy in Dresden under Richard Mueller, Georg Luehring and the anatomist Hermann Dittrich. He studied at Dresden until 1924, when he made a tour of northern art cities. He moved to Berlin where the newly empowered Nazi government gave him a position in the Ministry of Culture. However, a former association with General Ludendorf cast dispersions on him and he was forced to leave the post. A chance encounter with the head of the state agricultural farms, R. Walther Daré gained him a commission portraying German peasants of Nordic physiognomy. He ironically he gained disfavor with local Nazi Party leaders over his conception of "Nordic".