Our Mission
The Institute for the Study of War and Democracy is a community of scholars forming a national center for research, higher education, publications, and public programming, dedicated to promoting the history of World War II, the relationship between the war and America’s democratic system, and the war’s continued relevance for the world.
Values
Excellence: The Institute works to meet the highest standards of accuracy and quality in all of our programs and services.
Accessibility: The Institute brings together the academy, other WWII authorities, enthusiasts, and public audiences.
Relevance: The Institute educates, informs, and encourages those who want to understand the price of freedom and preserve our democratic heritage.
Vision
The Institute for the Study of War and Democracy explores the war’s history and enduring legacies, and seeks to inspire civic engagement by:
- Becoming the preferred resource for audiences seeking fresh scholarship, public history, public programming, and commentary on World War II.
- Extending the reach of the Museum’s public programs and publications to larger national and international audiences.
- Sustaining a network of the world’s preeminent scholars and cultural leaders to promote and broaden the history, memories, and legacies of the war.
- Attracting new generations of Americans to study, research, and write about the American experience in World War II through fellowships, collections, Museum tours, lifelong learning, and additional outreach efforts.

Letter from the Institute Director
The Institute for the Study of War and Democracy serves as the research core and the higher education center of The National WWII Museum. Our team consists of experienced professional historians who share a passion for World War II.
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Institute Staff
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Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
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Research A Veteran
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Distance Learning
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Historian Speakers Bureau
The Jenny Craig Institute for the Study of War and Democracy
More from Topic-
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The Women Prosecutors at the Nuremberg Trials
Women lawyers at the Nuremberg Trials were more than assistants. They played important roles in shaping international criminal law. Their contributions add nuance to the Nuremberg narrative and shed light on the early presence of women in international justice.
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American Sailor Killed Days after D-Day Finally Accounted For
Twenty-five-year-old US Navy Carpenter’s Mate Second Class William R. Burns of Raleigh, North Carolina, has been accounted for more than 80 years after his death.
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US Intelligence Failures at Pearl Harbor
Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor was a shock to the Americans, but it was preceded by serious intelligence failures
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Defiance in the Face of Death: Janusz Korczak and the Warsaw Ghetto
In 1942, when the Nazis rounded up the children in his Warsaw Ghetto orphanage and sent them to the death camp at Treblinka, Janusz Korczak refused to leave their side. He was murdered alongside his pupils shortly after arriving at Treblinka.
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The Blitz of 1940
While the RAF fought in the skies overhead, British civilians in towns of southern England endured regular visits from German bombers in what came to be known as “the Blitz."
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The London Agreement & Charter
The London Agreement and Charter not only shaped the prosecution of Nazi leaders after World War II but also marked a revolutionary moment in the development of international criminal law, setting precedent for holding individuals, not just states, accountable for war crimes.
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What (and When) Is V-J Day?
Victory over Japan Day was and is celebrated on different dates around the world. Why?
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'Jaws,' the USS Indianapolis, and America in the Summer of 1975
By making the USS Indianapolis story a central plot point in Jaws, director Steven Spielberg introduced the story of the ship and its survivors to a wide audience, and with that larger audience came close scrutiny of how filmmakers told the story.