World War II hit almost every corner of the planet and became the largest and most devastating conflict in human history. It was fought on a scale unimaginable until then, so it is no wonder that its stories never cease to fascinate us. How did it all begin in 1939? This is the story told in a complete set of four gold half-ounce coins from the Czech Mint's free series entitled War Year.

• The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia - The Protectorate was established a few months before the outbreak of war. At that time, the Nazi dictatorship was established in the truncated remains of Czechoslovakia and our sole purpose became to serve the Third Reich and the greedy demands of its leader. He needed our rich industrial potential for his war effort.
• The Battle of Westerplatte - The Battle of the Polish Peninsula was the first engagement of the Second World War. The defenders of Westerplatte are still seen today as a symbol of valour - the poorly armed Polish garrison of less than two hundred men defied three thousand German soldiers for a week, attacking from sea, land and air.
• Winter War - The conflict between Finland and the Soviet Union was another manifestation of the hostile passions that were to engulf the world in the following years. Skis and sniper rifles, rather than tanks, proved more effective in the unequal David vs. Goliath contest. The Finns, though outnumbered three to one, were able to make much better use of the terrain and withstand the cold. 
• Battle of the Rio de La Plata - the Third Reich and Great Britain clashed in the first naval battle of World War II. Three British cruisers pursued the German battleship Admiral Graf Spee, the bane of the merchant marine, and caught up with it off the coast of South America. Although the Royal Navy was outnumbered, the forces on both sides were evenly matched.
  
  

The four coins, which are the work of expert medal maker Mgr. Art. Miroslav Hric, Art.D., present a variety of war scenes - Nazis overturning a Czechoslovak border column; Polish soldiers repelling German attacks from the sea and air; Finnish soldiers on skis accompanied by draught reindeer; a German battleship shelling a British cruiser. The obverse side, which is common to all four coins, bears the name and portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, the nominal value of 25 DOLLARS (NZD) and the year of issue 2021 - or the necessary attributes of the island of Niue, which provides the Czech Mint with a licence to issue commemorative coins.

The schedule of issuance has only 99 complete sets. An integral part of each set is a tin etui bearing a numbered certificate of authenticity. The box and the certificate commemorate the struggle for Poland.