10 Mind-Blowing Facts You Never Knew About World War II

1. American Soldiers Unwittingly Brought Home Radioactive Memorabilia From Hiroshima's Ruins

In late 1945, the United States was just as desperate to end the war as Japan was to find a way to keep fighting it. With Germany defeated and still no end in sight for the Pacific campaign it became clear the only way to force the Japanese military to surrender might be to present the possibility of the entire annihilation of their people. So a very secret, very large bomb was transported across the Pacific for the purpose of hitting the Japanese stronghold of Hiroshima. No one knew exactly what the bomb would do; the only reason it had been developed was because intelligence showed Hitler to be making one as well. The Americans just knew their weapon was powerful enough to make a point. As the mushroom cloud rose over destruction never before witnessed by man the bomb, which would only be dropped twice, had made its point all too well. The days of fighting large ground wars were over. We had now entered the nuclear age, the age of fear, and the fear was so great atomic weapons have not been used since. Thirty minutes after the bomb exploded a heavy, black, radioactive rain began to fall spreading the toxic nuclear radiation for miles. Soon United States military personnel were sent to Hiroshima to help with the relief. Among the rubble many soldiers found what they deemed to be keepsakes of the war, which they pocketed for the return trip home. All these years in the comfort of their own homes these pieces of radioactive memorabilia sat gathering dust on shelves or hung on walls. Many of the soldiers who claimed them from Hiroshima's ruins would eventually die of cancer.