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This is Lee Habib, and this is Our American Stories,

the show where America is the star and the American people. And to search for The Our American Stories, the show where America is the star and the American people. And to search for

the Our American Stories podcast, go to the Iheart Radio app to Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your

podcasts. 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 state 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, be a perfect location for air and naval bases to either protect

or to interdict trade between Europe and the United States. At the outbreak of the Second World War,

Britain imposed export controls on Icelandic exports to Germany as part of its blockade,

...