The estimates of World War 2 deaths are still unsure today; some statistics are revealed, though.
WWII, or Second World War, was a global battle from 1939 to 1945 and affected almost every country in the world. The Axis powers including, Germany, Italy, and Japan, and the Allies including, France, Great Britain, the United States, the Soviet Union, and to a lesser degree, China, were the main combatants during World War II.
It was in many ways an extension of conflicts left unresolved by World War I after 20 years of silence. With approximately 40,000,000 – 50,000,000 World War 2 deaths, it was the deadliest and most protracted war in history.
According to World War II casualty figures, the numbers aren’t accurate. There are just two countries where official military deaths, injury, imprisonment, or disappearance data are more confident: The United States and the UK.
Which country has the most deaths in WWII?
There is no reliable data for most other countries. In both Allied and Axis countries, statistical accounting broke down when whole forces retreated or scattered. Guerrilla warfare, changes in international borders, and mass population shifts made it impossible to accurately estimate the total number of people killed during the war.
There are no credible numbers for the Soviet Union and China, the two nations that suffered the most fatalities.
Continue with Zhinmag to know more about World War 2 deaths.
What Are World War 2 Deaths by Country?
The largest World War 2 deaths happened in Eastern Europe when Poland lost probably 20 percent of its prewar population. Germany’s losses, which were primarily concentrated in Eastern Europe, were only somewhat less severe.
Millions of Chinese died in East Asia because of Hunger and diseases, and the other millions of both troops and civilization died in war and bombing.
Keep on reading to know more about World War 2 deaths.
COUNTRY | NUMBER OF DEATHS |
The Soviet Union | 26.6 million |
China | More than 14 million |
France | 1.4 million |
Poland | 5 million |
United States | 298,000 |
Germany | 4.2 million |
1. The Soviet Union | World War 2 Deaths
The Soviet Union suffered more deaths than any other nation during the most horrific conflict in human history, yet the actual number of fatalities remains debated.
Their World War II losses, including civilian and military, were more than 20,000,000; however, these estimates vary.
The Soviet Union regarded information on wartime fatalities as top-secret; nevertheless, Glasnost declared that the information on Soviet World War 2 deaths was more public.
As of 1993, the Russian Academy of Sciences put the overall Soviet population losses at 26.6 million, including 8.7 million military deaths. Outside of Russia, experts acknowledged these statistics.
2. China (Allied Power)
The West tends to overlook China’s role in the war, which was the longest and deadliest.
China was the first nation to join the Second World War, and it remained an ally of the United States and the British Empire until the surrender of Japan in 1945.
Numerous Chinese citizens have begun to feel betrayed by the West, which has failed to recognize China’s vital role in the final Allied triumph.
More than 14 million Chinese died, and more than a hundred people fled their homes during the eight years of the war from 1937 to 1945.
3. France (Allied Power)
France entered the war on September 3, 1939. When Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, both France and the United Kingdom declared war on Germany.
The country of France suffered tremendously towards the conclusion of World War I, with 1.4 million people killed and vast acres of land in ruins.
When France surrendered to the Germans, the Germans captured 2 million French prisoners of war and transferred them to German camps. However, they freed one-third of the prisoners under varied conditions.
Germans held remaining officers and noncommissioned officers in separate camps. Also, they made the privates work hard in Germany’s agricultural sector, accessing food supplies. Germans sent some French officers to factories or mines where work conditions were harsher.
4. Poland (Allies)
On September 1, 1939, Germany bombarded Wielun, Poland, a town with little military importance. A primary goal was to instill fear in the general public. Unfortunately, German bombs killed Hundreds, destroyed many buildings, and the rest of the population left the area.
After that, the British and French declared war on Germany only two days after their invasion. Russia attacked Poland from the east in just two weeks.
According to various estimates, up to 17 percent of Poland’s population and five million Polish citizens died. The Nazis during the Second World War, including up to three million Polish Jews who perished in the Holocaust.
5. United States (Allies) | World War 2 Deaths
298,000 Americans died in World War 2. Roosevelt held a special session of Congress to amend the Neutrality Act so that warring parties (in practice just Great Britain and France, both on the Allied side) could buy ammunition on a cash-and-carry basis when Germany invaded Poland in 1939.
The loss of France to the Nazis in June 1940 necessitated Roosevelt’s backing for the British, and he did it with considerable public support. Also, he authorized the military and naval branches to resupply the British forces.
Between 1941 and 1945, the federal government spent around $321,000,000,000 on the war (10 times as much as World War I). Taxes accounted for 41% of the total cost.
Related: The Real Biggest Myths About World War II, According to a Military Historian
6. Germany (Axis Power)
4,200,000 Germans died in World War 2. “Hitler’s war” is a fitting name for World War II. As a result of Germany’s early triumph, Hitler came dangerously near to establishing German dominance over Europe.
The Allied land invasion of Germany began in February 1945. By the time the nation surrendered on May 8, Soviet troops had captured a large portion of the country but, Hitler had already committed himself in his Berlin bunker on April 30.
Conclusion
World War 2 deaths were sadly massive, and the war itself was the most dreadful battle in human history, and many civilizations became victims of this horrible act.