10 Astounding World War 2 Facts You Didn't Know
6. Iceland Was Invaded By Britain
After Germany invaded Denmark in 1940 the British feared that Germany would be able to take control of the small island nation of Iceland and use it as a staging ground for an invasion of the UK. This was due to the fact that Iceland was not technically a sovereign nation, but rather a free state under the control of the Danish monarchy.
British forces invaded Iceland the day after Germany invaded Denmark. The Icelandic military forces weren't happy with the invasion, but they didn't fight back and begrudgingly submitted to the Allies. The British began using the nation as a staging ground themselves, and at one point had more soldiers in the country than half the citizens of the capital city of Reykjavík.
In July of 1941, before the US officially entered the war, Britain gave them control of Iceland to free up resources while still denying Germany the chance to capture the island. After all, if Germany wanted it now, they'd have to declare war on the US.
Surprisingly enough things turned out pretty good for Iceland since it was allowed to remain neutral and, with US backing, became a sovereign nation, independent of Denmark. It also saw an economic boon from the occupying forces bringing lots of foreign money into the country and employing many Icelanders.