It is possible that around 62 million people died in the war ; estimates vary greatly . About 60 % of all casualties were civilians , who died as a result of disease , starvation , genocide ( in particular , the Holocaust ) , and aerial bombing . The former Soviet Union and China suffered the most casualties . Estimates place deaths in the Soviet Union at around 23 million , while China suffered about 10 million . No country lost a greater portion of its population than Poland : approximately 5.6 million , or 16 % , of its pre-war population of 34.8 million died . The Holocaust ( which roughly means " burnt whole " ) was the deliberate and systematic murder of millions of Jews and other " unwanted " during World War II by the Nazi regime in Germany . Several differing views exist regarding whether it was intended to occur from the war 's beginning , or if the plans for it came about later . Regardless , persecution of Jews extended well before the war even started , such as in the '' Kristallnacht '' ( Night of Broken Glass ) . The Nazis used propaganda to great effect to stir up anti-Semitic feelings within ordinary Germans
Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht
Modern history