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Operation Barbarossa
On June 22, 1941, Hitler launched his armies eastward in a huge invasion of the Soviet Union: 3 army groups with over 3 million German soldiers, 150 divisions, & 3,000 tanks smashed across the frontier into Soviet area. Hitler invaded the USSR, for he wanted to defeat communism happening in USSR, & to take over land in USSR & use the Soviet people for slave labor. It took pressure off the UK; only European power fought the Nazi & bought the Soviet Union in WWII. -
Japanese invasion of china
The Japanese invaded China proper, launching the second Japanese War in July 1937. The Japanese Army turned a small event into a major war. Chinese forces were unable to resist Japanese due to them being brutal and being armed also organized. Japan’s invasion of China was due to Japan's desire to be an imperial power. The Impact of the war on Chinese society and the many factors explain the Japanese failure in china and the triumph of Mao Zedong in 1949, from which the power of china has grown -
Ribbentrop/Molotov pact
The Soviet Union concluded before the beginning of World War II. The purpose of this pact was to divide Eastern Europe into German and Soviet spheres of influence. The two countries also agreed not to attack each other. The public German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact caused consternation in the capitals of Britain and France. -
Germany’s invasion of Poland
Germany invaded Poland on Sep, 1, 1937. The Polish army was defeated within weeks of the invasion, From East Prussia & Germany in the north, Silesia & Slovakia in the south. Germany units with more than 2,000 tanks and over 1,000 planes broke through Polish defenses along the border Germany declared war on Poland, to start WWII. To Hitler, the conquest of Poland would bring “living space,” for the Germans. They took over Poland and confirmed the German armed forces also Blitzkrieg tactics. -
German blitzkrieg
Germany's Blitzkrieg tactics overwhelmed Poland in Sep, 1939, then crushed Denmark, Norway & the Low Countries in April-May 1940, and France in June. The Great Britain war continued; At first, the German Blitzkrieg seemed to succeed, but the soviet forces were driven back to the gates of Moscow, with staggering losses. It was a military success; the Blitzkrieg tactics pushed the army forward to Poland, and other countries. -
Pearl Harbor
On dec, 7, 1941, at 7:55am, the first 2 waves of Japanese aircraft began their deadly attack on the US Pacific Fleet, moored at Pearl Harbor on the Pacific island of Oahu. The Japanese wanted to destroy the Pacific Fleet & give them space to invade South East Asia. The Japanese attack caused about 2400 dead, almost 200 planes destroyed and 8 battleships or damaged. Also, it brought the US in the war that they were avoiding for so long. -
Battle of Midway
A four-day sea-and-air battle, where the US succeeded in destroying four Japanese aircraft carriers while losing only one of its own. This battle was a result of Japan being offensive, triumphing in lands and numerous island groups. The US was a threat, and Japanese sought to destroy the U.S. Pacific Fleet before it was large enough. The success made this battle a turning point for the US. -
Battle of Stalingrad
The Germans invaded Stalingrad since they believed it was essential to their campaign in southern Russia. However, the Soviet was successful in defending. Russians consider it to be the greatest battle of their Great Patriotic War. It stopped the German advance into the Soviet Union, and marked the turning of the tide of war in favor of the Allies -
Operation Gomorrah
It was a bombing battle against the German port city of Hamburg. The war was the first operation to feature order bombing between the Royal Air Force & the US too. It occurred for many in Hitler’s Germany still believed that they will win the battle, and form the propaganda they were fed .The attack during the last week of July in 1943, created one of the largest firestorms raised by the RAF & USAAF in WWII, killing at least 42,600 civilians up to 125,000 dead. -
Allied invasion of Italy
When Montgomery’s 8th Army began its invasion of the Italian mainland, the Italian government agreed to surrender to the Allies. By the terms of the agreement, the Italians would be treated with leniency if they aided the Allies in expelling the Germans from Italy. However, the allied advance up through Italy proved to be a slow and costly affair, and eventually all of Germany surrendered. -
D-Day
June 6, 1944 the Allied powers crossed the English Channel & landed on the beaches of Normandy, France, & started the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control during WWII. D-day happened at the end of WWII & also the Nazi domination of Europe. D-day forced the Germans to fight a two front war again just as they had in WWI. Yet, the Germans could not handle war on both sides of them. By the end of June 1944, about a million allied troops have reached France. -
The Battle of the bulge
The Germans launched the last war, Operation Mist, known as the Battle of the Bulge. The Battle of the Bulge in WWII happened, for Hitler's plan to launch a counter offensive to push through the allied armies in the Ardennes region. At the end of the Battle, German losses were greater than their army could take. About 30,000 soldiers & 44,000 infantry forces were killed & captured. The Germans also lost an unusual amount of weapons, specifically tanks. -
Liberation of concentration camps
Soviet soldiers were the first to liberate concentration camp prisoners in the final stages of the war. As for Germany, they had to leave behind prisoners that were very sick and exhausted and they returned in hasty. Many belongings were left behind as well. British, Canadian, American, and French troops also freed prisoners from the camps. The Americans were responsible for liberating Buchenwald and Dachau, while British forces entered Bergen-Belsen. -
Operation thunderclap
Operation Thunderclap had been under discussion within the Allied Command for some time, the proposal was to bomb the easternmost cities of Germany. Purpose was to disrupt the transport infrastructure behind what was becoming the Eastern front. Also to show the German population that the air defenses of Germany were now of little substance and that the Nazi regime had failed them. The plan pictured a massive attack on Berlin in the belief that would cause 220,000 casualties with 110,000 killed. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The Battle of Iwo Jima was a major battle in which the U.S. Marines landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. The island of Iwo Jima was a strategic location because the US needed a place for fighter planes and bombers to land and take off when attacking Japan. The U.S. won the war, yet this resulted in a new air base, but the U.S lost many men. -
Battle of Okinawa
The United States Marine & two Army divisions landed abreast on Okinawa on Sun, April 1, 1945. They faced the rate of 155,000 Japanese ground air & naval troops holding a huge island which rated 500,000 citizens lived in cities, towns & villages. The capture of Okinawa was part of a 3 point plan the Americans had for winning the war in the Far East. Okinawa was considered a bloody battle that made America lose 7,373 men & 32,056 wounded. Also, the Japanese lost 107,000 & 7,400 men in prison. -
VE Day
VE day was a memorable day to those who witnessed it. It meant an end to nearly 6 years of a war that had cost the lives of millions; had destroyed homes, families, & cities; and brought huge suffering and poverty to whole countries. Britain &the US celebrate this day, put out flags, banners, rejoicing in the defeat of the Nazi war machine. VE Day wasn’t celebrated until the 9th in Moscow, with a radio broadcast salute from Stalin himself saying your courage has defeated the Nazis, war is over -
Manhattan project
July 16, 1945, Trinity Site near Alamogordo, New Mexico, scientists of the Manhattan Project readied themselves to watch the report of the world's first atomic bomb. The Manhattan project was a secret military project created in 1942 to build the first US nuclear weapon. It Fears that Germany would build and use a nuclear weapon during WWII. It had a positive and negative effect which could give other countries chance to create a more powerful nuclear bomb. -
Dropping of the atomic bombs
On this day, at 8:16AM Japanese time, an American B-29 bomber, the Enola Gay, drops the world first atom bomb, over the city of Hiroshima. President Harry S. Truman, warned by some of his advisers that any attempt to invade Japan would result in horrific American victims, ordered that the new weapon be used to bring the war to a speedy end. There were 90,000 buildings in Hiroshima before the bomb was dropped; only 28,000 remained after the bombing. -
VJ Day
The term VJ Day means “Victory over Japan Day,” and it was used when Japan’s formal surrender took place aboard the U.S.S. Missouri, anchored in Tokyo Bay. Other than that, it was used when Japan had surrendered unconditionally to the Allies, effectively ending World War II as well. As a result of VJ Day which was due to Japan's surrender, it had been stated that it was the day that was awaited since Pearl Harbor. Also, it was the day when Fascism finally died. -
citations #2
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/world-war-two/the-pacific-war-1941-to-1945/the-battle-of-okinawa/
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/victory-in-europe
https://www.ushmm.org/outreach/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007724
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/allies-invade-italian-mainland
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-stalingrad
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/battle-of-midway-begins
http://www.britannica.com/event/German-Soviet-Nonaggression-Pact -
citations #1
https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/operation-barbarossa
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/pearlharbour/
http://www.ushistory.org/us/51f.asp
http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/airforce/p/bomberharris.htm
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/d-day
http://www.history.com/ battle-of-the-bulge
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/victory-in-europe
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/
http://www.history.com/topics/
