World War II

World War II (abbreviated as WWII or WW2) was a global conflict that lasted from 1939-1945. Abraham Simpson and Charles Montgomery Burns both fought in the war.

History

The war was originally between Nazi Germany and the French and British soldiers, although America later played a major role in the war, as did Russia and also, on the side of the Nazis, Japan. A unit of the American army was the Flying Hellfish, in which Abraham Simpson was the Sergeant and Montgomery Burns was a Private.^[1]

Abraham Simpson's Stories

Abraham Simpson has told many stories about the war. He was briefly stationed in England where he met a girl named Edwina and had a child by her, but didn't know about the child until many years later when he returned to England and looked up Edwina.^[2] Abe also claimed to have served on a ship that sank, but survived (along with many of his fellow sailors) by riding on sharks until help arrived.^[3]

In addition, Abe said he served in the European Theatre where he worked as a land mine detector. In the scene that Abe recalled, he found a mine in the road and gestured for a truck following him to leave the road and drive on the grass. The truck then drove over a land mine in the grass and was blown up. Chagrined, Abe gestured for the next truck following to drive off the other side of the road, where it went over a cliff. Back in the present, Abe said that was how he earned the Iron Cross (a German military decoration).^[4]

Montgomery Burns in WWII

Conflicting information exists regarding Montgomery Burns's involvement in the war. On the one hand, Abe Simpson tells of Burns being a member of the Flying Hellfish, a U.S. Army unit.^[1] On the other hand, Burns also once said that he owned a factory during the war and, like Oskar Schindler, made shells for the Nazis. The difference between them, according to Burns, was that "Mine worked, dammit!"^[5]