End of World War II in Europe eventually fled Europe using ratlines such as ODESSA. German forces leave Finland: On 25 April 1945, the last German formations withdrew from Finnish Lapland into occupied Norway. On 27 April 1945, the Raising the Flag on the Three-Country Cairn photograph was taken. Mussolini's death: On 25 April 1945, Italian partisans liberated Milan and Turin. On 27 April 1945, as Allied forces closed in on Milan, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini was captured by Italian partisans. It is disputed whether he was trying to flee from Italy to Switzerland (through the Splügen Pass), and was traveling with a German anti-aircraft battalion. On
To War with Whitaker To War with Whitaker To War with Whitaker: The Wartime Diaries of the Countess of Ranfurly 1939–1945 is a memoir of World War II written, in diary form, by Hermione, Countess of Ranfurly. It was first published by William Heinemann in 1994. The following year, Mandarin Publishing issued it in paperback, describing the memoir as "A love story that knows no bounds": When World War II broke out, Dan Ranfurly was dispatched to the Middle East with his faithful valet, Whitaker. These are the diaries of his young wife, Hermione, who, defying the War Office, raced off in hot pursuit