World War II affected a vast portion of the world, but not all regions within participating countries experienced direct conflict. In Europe, large areas, especially in the east and west, were heavily involved in combat, while some neutral countries like Switzerland and Sweden remained relatively untouched. In Asia, eastern China and Southeast Asia saw significant fighting, whereas parts of western China were less affected. North Africa was a key theater of war, but much of Sub-Saharan Africa saw little direct combat, though many African colonies contributed resources. In North America, the United States and Canada were major contributors to the war effort, but direct combat was minimal on their mainland. Australia, New Zealand, and many Pacific Islands were involved in the Pacific Theater, though some interior regions of Australia were spared from direct conflict.
Geographically, about 25-30% of the world’s land area was directly involved in military actions, with major portions of Europe, Asia, the Pacific, and North Africa affected. This aligns intriguingly with the imagery of the fourth horseman of the apocalypse, who is given power over a quarter of the earth to bring death by war, famine, and pestilence. The global devastation of World War II, in terms of its reach and the toll it took through warfare, disease, and suffering, mirrors this apocalyptic vision, as it swept across roughly a quarter of the world’s landmass, unleashing destruction on an unprecedented scale.
— ChatGPT, 2024
