These heart-pounding photos of love during wartime prove true love never dies, it only grows stronger with time. And as they say, distance truly does make the heart grow fonder. It’s based upon the same psychological premise as “you don't know what you've got until it's gone.”
Being separated from your partner during war is a treacherous endeavor, but it’s a sacrifice many people make for their country. These loving photos show couples being reunited and separated due to war. Those separating have no idea if they will ever see each other again, and sadly, some are pictured saying their last goodbyes.
This is an incredible collection of feelings represents the love, innocence, despair, loss, and undying perseverance within all of us. Some of these wartime photos are very moving and we truly hope you enjoy!
1. Korean War Goodbye Kiss, Los Angeles, Sept. 6, 1950
2. American Soldiers Getting Last Kiss On Ship Before Deployment To Egypt, 1963
3. A Sailor Kissing A Nurse In New York’s Times Square. This Iconic Photo Symbolizes The End Of World War II, 1945
4. A Young Woman Lifts Her Feet While Embracing And Kissing A Uniformed Us Soldier At The Train Station, Connecticut, 1945
5. Farewell To Departing Troops At New York’s Penn Station, April 1943
6. A Woman Leans Over The Railing To Kiss A British Soldier Returning From World War II, London, 1940
7. Jean Moore Kneels And Kisses Her Fiancé, Wheelchair-Bound World War II Veteran Ralph Neppel, 1945
8. Saying Goodbye At The Train Station Before Departing To WWII
9. A Soldier Comes Home From War, 1940s
10. American Soldier Kissing His English Girlfriend On Lawn In Hyde Park, 1945
11. Soldiers Departing For Egypt Lean Out Of Their Windows To Kiss Their Loved Ones Goodbye, 1935
12. Farewell To Departing Troops At New York’s Penn Station, April 1943
13. Coffee Served On Porch Of Ante-Bellum Mansion, At Party For Cadets From Local Army Flying School, Mississippi, US, 1943
14. English Soldiers Saying Goodbye To Their Wives, Getting Ready To Go To Egypt, 1937
15. An English ATS And Eighth Air Force Sergeant Enjoy A Blissful Kiss, 1945
16. A Sailor Leans Over A Picket Fence And Lifts His Girlfriend Up For A Kiss, 1945
17. A British Soldier Whispers Into The Ear Of A Loved One As He Leaves For The Front, 1939
18. Saying Farewell To Departing Troops At New York’s Penn Station, April 1943
19. US Soldier Tenderly Kissing His Girlfriend Goodbye Before Departing By Train, 1922
20. A Young Woman On Roller Skates And Her Soldier Honey, 1940s
21. US Soldier Giving Japanese Girl A Bicycle Ride, With Handlebar Riding Forbidden, 1946, Japan
22. A GI And His Girl Walk Arm-In-Arm Among The Sheep In Kensington Gardens, London, 1945
23. A Girl Climbs To Say Her Goodbye To A Soldier Going Off To Fight In World War II, 1940
24. A British Soldier Kisses His Wife On His Return From Serving With The Armed Forces, 1945
25. Couple In Penn Station Sharing Farewell Kiss Before He Ships Off To War, 1943
26. Servicemen And Downtown Workers Embrace And Kiss In The Street As Word Of Surrender Flashed Through The Nation, 1945
27. A Kiss In Times Square Displays The Mood Of The World On V-E Day, New York, May 8, 1945
28. A Member Of The 1st Battalion Of The Manchester Regiment During A Quayside Reunion At Southampt Before The Unit Moves Onto Egypt
29. Young Couple Chalking Hearts Onto A Tree, Valentine’s Day, 1944
30. Us Soldier And Local Girl Sharing A Chocolate Bar And Cigarettes, 1940s
31. A Soldier Saying Goodbye To His Wife In Seattle, Leaving For World War I, 1917
32. A Present For His Girlfriend, California, 1943
33. An American GI And His French Girlfriend Holding One Another While On A Date, 1940s
34. An American Soldier And A Frenchwoman Kissing In A Picture That Raised Eyebrows After Appearing In Life Magazine, 1944
35. Soldier Is Welcomed Home At Long Beach Airport, 1945
36. Saying Farewell To Departing Troops At New York’s Penn Station, April 1943
37. Soldier Kissing A Red Cross Nurse, 1945
38. D. Brown Kissing Her Fiance Terry Under The Mistletoe, On Board The HMS Wakeful At Portsmout, 1955
39. Evacuated French Troops Relax On An English Beach
40. Actress Martha O’driscoll Kisses A Soldier Goodbye In Los Angeles, 1941
41. Kissing Their Lovers Goodbye, Toronto, 1914
42. Comrades Heckle Soldier Kissing His Girlfriend Goodbye Before Leaving Waterloo Station, London, 1939
43. A British Tommie Bestows A Last Kiss Upon His Rhineland Sweetheart As His Detachment Leaves For England As They Evacuate Germany. Konigstein, Germany, September 1929
44. Husbands Kiss Their Wives After Coming Back From War, 1940s
45. Soldier Is Greeted With A Kiss From His Ecstatic Wife As He Comes Home From France On Christmas