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
German designations of foreign artillery in World War II German designations of foreign artillery in World War II During World War II, Germany maintained comprehensive lists of enemy weapons which were given designations in German in a system that matched that of German weapons. When these weapons were captured and put into use with German forces they were referred to by these designations. Before the war began, the German armed forces' "Heereswaffenamt" compiled a list of known foreign equipment and assigned a unique number to each weapon. These weapons were called "Fremdgerät" or "Beutegerät" ("foreign device" or "captured device"), and their technical details were recorded in a six-volume set