Photos Colour and Colourised Photos of WW2 & earlier conflicts

[Conhoon]

13 September 1944
The crew of an up-ended (M4A1) Sherman tank of the 7th Armoured Brigade enjoy a ‘brew’ beside their vehicle while waiting for a recovery team, on the 'Gothic Line' in Italy.
Their tank overturned after slipping off a narrow road in the dark.
(Nb. Behind the Sherman (M4A1) there is a Daimler Dingo scout car.)

(Source - IWM NA 18551 - Dawson (Sgt), No 2 Army Film & Photographic Unit)
(Colourised by Royston Leonard)

 

[Conhoon]

10th February 1939 - The Polish Navy submarine ORP Orzeł in Gdynia

 

[BravoZulu]

A U.S. Navy Vought OS2U Kingfisher taxis towards the recovery sled for recovery by USS South Dakota (BB-57), 29 April 1943. South Dakota was operating in the North Atlantic at the time. Colourised by Alex Wolf

 

[BravoZulu]

Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, CINC, Pacific, and Pacific Ocean Areas arrives at Tokyo Bay in a PB2Y Coronado seaplane, 29 August 1945. USS Missouri (BB-63), Third Fleet flagship, is in the centre background. Colourised

 

[Conhoon]

14 September 1917
Men of the 124th Siege Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery manhandling a 9.2 inch howitzer over muddy ground at Pilkem near Ypres.
(Photo source © IWM Q 3252)

Brooks, Ernest (Lieutenant) (Photographer)
Colourised by Royston Leonard

 

[Conhoon]

William L. Sherman, Jr., 3rd son of Staff Sgt, and Mrs. William Sherman is saluting American troops from Fort Sam, going off to war as they march through Alamo Plaza. On the way they're passing Joske's Department Store in Downtown San Antonio, Texas on July 1st, 1942.

Colourised PIECE of JAKE

 

[Conhoon]

A little Dutch boy brought his goat cart, with probably his siblings seated in it, out into the streets, on the corner Stratumseind, Geldropseweg to the amusement of the passing British soldiers (possibly the 2nd Welsh Guards) in a Bedford QLT truck. Later this day, this street and the surrounding area were severly bombed by the Luftwaffe. Eindhoven, The Netherlands, September 19th, 1944.

On September 19th, 1944, Eindhoven was still partying. The city had been liberated the previous day, and people lined the streets to welcome their liberators. But in the course of the afternoon, the mood changed. There were rumours the Germans were advancing from the Nuenen and Helmond direction.
In the evening, things turned even worse. German Luftwaffe planes appeared over the city and bombed the city center. They targeted the transit routes of the British Army Corps: Aalsterweg, Stratumsedijk, Stratumseind, Rechtestraat, Wal, Emmasingel, Hertogstraat and the surrounding area. The British vehicles had nowhere to go. Loaded with ammunition and fuel, many caught fire and exploded.
There were fires everywhere. The number of casualties among civilians was high. 41 people died on the Biesterweg, when the shelter they were in took a direct hit. In total, 227 people died on that day.
Colourised PIECE of JAKE
Photo: IWM, Malindine, E G (Capt) (Photographer)
No. 2 Army Film and Photo Section, Army Film and Photographic Unit

 

[Conhoon]

Free French Sherman M4A4 "Nantes" of the 3e Esqadron of the 2e RC (Cuirassiers Regiment) of the 1st army, in front of the City Hall in Dijon, France during the Liberation Parade. 11 September 1944.

After taking Lyon on September 3rd 1944, the advance of the Allied armies east of Paris continued. The Army B (future 1st Army) under General de Lattre de Tassigny was entrusted by General Patch, head of the 7th US Army, with the task of liberating the towns of Chalon-sur-Saone, Autun, and Dijon.
Sherman M4A4 "Nantes" was destroyed in Wittenheim, Alsace on 30 January 1945.
(Photo source, SCA - ECPAD)
Color by Jecinci

 

[Conhoon]

British soldiers posing for a photograph with a captured German gun during the Battle of Arras, April 1917.

 

[Conhoon]

Troops of the Dorsetshire Regiment resting and cleaning rifles in the ruins of a farm near Langemarcke, 17 October 1917.

(Photo source- © IWM Q 6095)
Colourised by Doug

 

[Conhoon]

Battle of Britain Day 2021
Pilots of the legendary Polish Squadron 303.

From the left: officers Mirosław Ferić, Bogdan Grzeszczak, Jan Zumbach and Zdzisław Henneberg, and lieutenant John Kent.
′′ We do not beg for freedom, we fight for freedom. That's what I had on the plane. In the battle of England we had a record of 126 kill's, with the smallest losses of our own."
Author: Witold Urbanowicz, Commander of Squadron 303.
Colour by Mikołaj Kaczmarek - Kolor Historii

 

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The Polish Navy destroyer ORP Błyskawica, 1944.

 

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The Polish Navy destroyer ORP Grom leaving for patrol work in Rombaken, 1940

 

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Sergeant Joan E Mortimer, Flight Officer Elspeth C Henderson and Sergeant Helen E Turner, recipients of the Military Medal for gallantry, standing outside damaged buildings at Biggin Hill, Kent.
1 September 1940

In November 1940, three women of the Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) were awarded 50% of all the Military Medals (MM) received by members of that service during the Second World War. They were stationed at RAF Biggin Hill in Kent, which suffered some of the worst air raids during the Battle of Britain. In a devastating attack on 30 August, 39 people were killed. The next morning, those who had survived reported for duty as usual, at the start of a day that would see further air raids.
Sergeant Joan Mortimer, Flight Officer Elspeth Henderson and Sergeant Helen Turner (pictured here) were all WAAF teleprinter operators who stayed at their posts during the heavy Luftwaffe (German Air Force) attacks on 1 September. Elspeth Henderson continued her work keeping in contact with Fighter Command Headquarters, Uxbridge while the raid was on. She carried on even after she was knocked to the ground as the operations room where she was working took a direct hit. Helen Turner was the switchboard operator and also kept working as the building was hit and bombs fell nearby. It was only when a fire broke out and they were ordered to leave that the two women finally abandoned their posts.
Sergeant Joan Mortimer was in the armoury when the air raid started. Although surrounded by several tons of high explosive, she remained at her telephone switchboard relaying messages to the defence posts around the airfield. Mortimer then picked up a bundle of red flags and hurried out to mark the numerous unexploded bombs scattered around the area. Even when one went off close by, she carried on. For the bravery all three WAAFs displayed in their determination to carry out their duties during such danger, each was awarded a Military Medal in November 1940.
Joan Elizabeth Mortimer 1912 - 1997
Elspeth Candlish Henderson 1913 - 2006
Helen E. Turner (not known) - 1947
(Photo source - © IWM CH 1550)
Colour by Doug

 

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Opération Market garden.
Photo taken in Veghel in September 1944 In front of St Lambertus Church

Michel de Trez private collection dday publishing

 

[Conhoon]

American engineers marching though the village of Nonsard-Lamarche during the battle of St. Mihiel.
This photo is undated but the battle of St. Mihiel was September 12-19th, 1918.

(Photo source - NARA - 20942)
Colourised by Royston Leonard

 

[Conhoon]

A crewman of PzKpfw III Ausf. D ‘242’ from Pz.Rgt. 1, 1. Panzer-Division sits atop his knocked-out tank. Poland, September 1939

With only 14,5 mm* of armor, the PzKpfw III Ausf. D was vulnerable to all Polish anti-tank guns, including the 7TP tank and TK-S tankette’s 20 mm gun and the Karabin przeciwpancerny wz.35’s 7,92 mm shell.
In this photo, the holes made by Polish anti-tank guns and rifles can be clearly seen, 3 of them grouped close to the frontal cross. Judging by the position of some of the hits, it is quite possible that the radio operator and the loader were either killed or seriously injured.
At least 6 hits of a larger caliber (I’m inclined to 20 mm) with several other small caliber ones, possibly wz.35’s 7,92 mm can be seen. What seems to be a 7th hole situated below the driver’s vision port might just be damage to the photo and not an actual hit. I couldn’t reach a decision so I left it as is.
51 PzKpfw III took part in the Polish Campaign, 20 of them on Pz.Rgt.1. Of the 51, 24 were lost either to enemy action or technical breakdowns.
*Some sources refer to 30 mm on the Ausf D but this might be a confusion with the Command version that had 30 mm.
Original's source: unknown

 

[Conhoon]

Soviet sappers with dogs search for mines on the streets of Kiev following the liberation of the city in November 1943.

Credit: Angelina Karpunina

 

[Conhoon]

Cavalry in reserve halted in the Authie River to water the horses, Auxi-le-Chateau, 17th September 1918.

(Photo source - © IWM Q 9316/7)
Colourised by Doug

 

[Conhoon]

Warszaw Insurgents at Napoleon Square (now Powstańców Warszawy Square). The Prudential skyscraper is visible in the background. It had a height of 16 floors (66 m), which made it at that time the highest in Poland and the second in Europe.
It still stands today.

Author of the photo: Sylwester "Kris" Braun
Date: August / September 1944