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Up next, the story comes to us from a man who's simply known as the History Guy.

His videos are watched by hundreds of thousands of people of all ages on YouTube.

The History Guy is also a regular contributor for us here at our American Stories.

Iceland's strategic location made it difficult to remain neutral during the events of World

War II. Here's the history guy with the story.

Iceland is an island in the North Atlantic of approximately 103,000 square

kilometers. Its population of about 350,000 people today makes it the most sparsely populated nation

in Europe. And in 1940, its population was just one-third that number.

Iceland had gained independence from Denmark in 1918 through the Danish-Islandic

Act of Union. In the act, the two states had formed a personal union, meaning that

Iceland recognized the King of Denmark, but Iceland gained full control of state affairs.

Iceland controlled its internal business and declared neutrality, but shared defense in foreign

affairs as well as the monarch.

Most of the nation's population was engaged in farming or fishing, and they had a small

coast guard, no standing army.

Its position was, however, strategic, sitting in the North Atlantic, would be a perfect

location for air and naval bases to either protect or to interdict trade between Europe

...