Second World War

‘Jock’ Lewes: SAS mastermind

As the co-founder of the Special Air Service (SAS), Lieutenant ‘Jock’ Lewes played a vital role in establishing the unit’s ethos and high standards of training and discipline.

David Stirling: The Phantom Major

Colonel David Stirling was a pioneer of British Special Forces. In 1941, he founded the Special Air Service (SAS) in Egypt to undertake small-scale raids behind enemy lines.

Gun disguised as a pen for use by SOE agents, 1945

Special Operations Executive

Formed in 1940, the SOE was an underground army that waged a secret war in enemy-occupied Europe and Asia. Its agents demonstrated incredible courage and resourcefulness.

Sergeant Herbert Chambers with fellow Special Boat Service soldiers in Athens, 1944

During the Second World War, Britain created a range of special units who undertook a variety of daring operations against the Axis Powers. The bravery and commitment of these forces has become the stuff of legend.

Bagnold sun compass used by the LRDG, c1942

Desert innovator: Bagnold's sun-compass

The Long Range Desert Group were masters of navigation. They owed much of their success to the scientific talents of Major Ralph Bagnold, whose sun-compass invention revolutionised desert travel.

Propaganda poster depicting a commando raid on a German-held port in Norway, 1940

The Commandos

In 1940, the British established a new raiding and reconnaissance force. Well-trained and highly mobile, they were to carry on the war against the Axis after the evacuation from Dunkirk.

Lieutenant-General Sir Archibald Wavell, 1938

Archibald Wavell: Britain's first wartime victor

Field Marshal Sir Archibald Wavell led an imaginative and flexible campaign against the Italians in North Africa. His triumph over their vastly superior forces was Britain’s first success of the war and paved the way for later victories.

Model of a London and North Eastern Railway engine, c1943

A prisoner’s model masterpiece

A British prisoner of war’s model train, painstakingly made from scraps of rubbish, sheds light on the experiences of soldiers incarcerated in Germany during the Second World War.

Antony Mallaby's dressing gown with formation badges sewn on it, c1943

Dressing gowns that earned their stripes

A child’s dressing gowns, decorated with patchworks of military badges, reveal a moving story of growing up in Britain during the Second World War and the loss of a beloved parent.

William Slim: The soldiers’ soldier

Field Marshal William Slim led the Fourteenth Army in Burma during the Second World War. Despite inheriting a disastrous situation, he restored his men's morale and led them to victory against the Japanese.

Dropping parachutists and supplies, Arnhem, September 1944

Operation Market Garden

In September 1944, the Allies launched a daring airborne operation to cross the Rhine and advance into northern Germany. Market Garden remains one of the Second World War’s most famous battles.

Second Battle of El Alamein

Fought in October-November 1942, this was the climax and turning point of the North African campaign of the Second World War. The armies of Italy and Germany suffered a decisive defeat by the British Eighth Army.

Explore Second World War events

London in the Second World War: The Blitz

Primary

1 Jun 2024 - 18 Jul 2025 FREE

London in the Second World War: The Blitz

Explore historic artefacts to discover more about the Blitz and the people who worked to keep civilians safe.

A clergyman and Civil Defence workers helping to clear the debris of a London school, 1940

Primary

1 Jun 2024 - 18 Jul 2025 FREE

London in the Second World War: The Blitz (virtual)

Explore historic artefacts to discover more about the London Blitz and the people who worked to keep civilians safe.

School students getting to grips with the handling collection

Secondary

1 Jun 2024 - 18 Jul 2025 FREE

World at War: Soldiers of Empire

Discover more about the contributions of soldiers from the British Empire in the First and Second World Wars.

Talk

4 Apr 2025 FREE

Point of Failure: British Army Brigadiers in France and Norway 1940

Join Dr Phil McCarty as he draws upon his new book to explore the careers of British Army brigadiers who served in France and Norway in 1940.

Talk

2 May 2025 FREE

Is Remembrance Still Working?

To mark VE Day, two grandchildren of high-ranking army officers from opposite sides of the Second World War come together to discuss questions of Remembrance.

People dressed in 1940s style dancing at the National Army Museum

Dance

10 May 2025 £25.00

VE Day Dance

Celebrate the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe and jive the night away at our 1940s dance.

Talk

15 May 2025 £14.00

Mission Europe: The Secret History of the Women of SOE

Launching Dr Kate Vigurs’s latest book, 'Mission Europe', this talk brings to life the stories of women recruited by the British for covert missions in occupied Europe.

Talk

30 May 2025 FREE

Bletchley Park, Hitler and the BBC: The Story of Rena Stewart

Author Victoria Walsh introduces the fascinating story of Rena Stewart (1923-2023), from Bletchley Park to translator of Hitler’s will and then BBC pioneer.