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Japanese invasion of China
The war between the Republic and the empire of china and the Empire of Japan was the result of a decade-long Japanese imperialist policy that had tried to dominate China both politically and militarily. China did not have many materials but what they did have Japan wanted. A wave of nationalism and self-determination flood through China giving them the extra boost they needed to keep fighting back.
http://www.history.co.uk/study-topics/history-of-ww2/sino-japanese-war -
Rape of Nanking
In late 1937 over a period of six; The Nanking Massacre or the Rape of Nanking, occurred between 20,000 and 80,000 women were sexually assaulted. Nanking, then the capital of Nationalist China, was left in ruins, and it would take decades for the city and its citizens to recover from the savage attacks.
http://www.history.com/topics/nanjing-massacre -
Germany's invasion of Poland
Poland had received some of Germany's land due to the treaty of Versailles which angered many of the Germans. Hitler then talked to the nonaggression pact in 1939 with the soviets called the German-soviet Pact. This pact stated that Poland was to be partitioned between the two powers. This enabled Germany to attack Poland without having to worry about the Soviets interfering.
https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005070 -
German Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg was a new military tactic also known as lightning war. this required offensive weapons such as tanks, planes, artillery along a narrow front. It would allow a break in the enemy's lines which would allow the tanks and soldiers to be able to get around the defenses line. the first time they used this was in September 1939 against Poland. They also used this new tactic in many other invasions.
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/blitzkrieg -
Fall of Paris
June 19, 1940, Parisians awaken to the sound of a German-accented voice announcing via loudspeakers that a curfew was being imposed for 8 p.m. that evening-as German troops enter and occupy Paris.
http://www.history.com/topics/nanjing-massacre -
Operation Barbarossa
Hitler launched an invasion in the east against the soviet union. The Germans had more than 3 million soldiers in the soviet union. They were the most power full army around. Barbarossa was the crucial turning point for the war.
http://www.history.co.uk/study-topics/history-of-ww2/barbarossa -
Pearl Harbor
Hundreds of Japanese fighter planes attacked the American naval base at Pearl Harbor near Honolulu, Hawaii. The barrage lasted just two hours, but it was devastating.More than 2,000 Americans soldiers and sailors died in the attack, and another 1,000 were wounded. The day after the assault, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/pearl-harbor -
Wannsee Confrence
This was the start to the end of the Jews. This was when they started the selection of the Jews at the villa in Berlin suburb of Wannsee. This was known as the "Final Selection". Many people knew they started these mass killings already.
http://www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/holocaust/h-wannsee.htm -
Bataan Death March
U.S. surrender of the Bataan Peninsula on the main Philippine island of Luzon to the Japanese during World War II (1939-45), the approximately 75,000 Filipino and American troops on Bataan were forced to make an arduous 65-mile march to prison camps. The marchers made the trek in intense heat and were subjected to harsh treatment by Japanese guards. Thousands perished in what became known as the Bataan Death March.
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/bataan-death-march -
Battle of Midway
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the US defeated Japan in one of the most decisive naval battles of World War II. Thanks in part to major advances in code breaking, the US was able to preempt and counter Japan’s planned ambush of its few remaining aircraft carriers, inflicting permanent damage on the their Navy. A big turning point in the Pacific campaign, the victory allowed the US and its allies to move into an offensive position. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-midway -
Battle of Stalingrad
This battle was the successful Soviet defense of the city of Stalingrad in the U.S.S.R. during WW II. 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. It was one of the bloodiest battles in history, with military and civilian casualties of close to 2 million.
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-stalingrad -
Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
On April 19, 1943, the Warsaw ghetto uprising began after German troops and police entered the ghetto to deport its surviving inhabitants. The ghetto fighters were able to hold out for nearly a month, but on May 16, 1943, the revolt ended. The Germans had slowly crushed the resistance. Of the more than 56,000 Jews captured, about 7,000 were shot, and the remainder were deported to camps.
www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/warsaw-ghetto-uprisinghttps -
Operation Gomorrah
Operation Gomorrah destroyed a significant percentage of the city of Hamburg, leaving over 1 million residents homeless and killing 40,000-50,000 civilians. In the immediate wake of the raids, over two-thirds of Hamburg's population fled the city. The raids severely shook the Nazi leadership, leading Hitler to be concerned that similar raids on other cities could force Germany out of the war.
www.history.com/this-day-in-history/operation-gomorrah-is-launched -
Allied Invasion of Italy
The allies were hoping an invasion would remove that fascist regime from the war, secure the central Mediterranean and divert German divisions from the NW coast of France where the Allies planned to attack in the near future. The Allies’ Italian Campaign began with the invasion of Sicily in July 1943. After 38 days of fighting, the U.S. and G.B. drove German and Italian troops from Sicily and prepared to assault the mainland.
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/invasion-of-sicily -
D-Day Normandy Invasion
Battle of Normandy, which lasted from June 1944 to August 1944, resulted in the Allied liberation of Western Europe from Nazi Germany’s control. Codenamed Operation Overlord, the battle began on June 6, 1944 it ended when Allied forces crossed the River Seine. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/d-day -
The Battle Of The Bulge
In December 1944, Adolph Hitler attempted to split the Allied armies in northwest Europe by means of a surprise blitzkrieg thrust through the Ardennes to Antwerp. Caught off-guard, American units fought desperate battles to stem the German advance in areas. As the Germans drove deeper into the Ardennes in an attempt to secure vital bridgeheads, the Allied line took on the appearance of a large bulge, giving rise to the battle’s name. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-the-bulge -
Liberation of Concentration Camps
Soviet soldiers were the first to liberate concentration camp prisoners in the final stages of the war. On July 23, 1944, they entered the Majdanek camp in Poland, and later overran several other killing centers. On January 27, 1945, they entered Auschwitz and found hundreds of sick and exhausted prisoners. They had been forced to leave them behind when they left before. Freedom began this day, some lived but many died.
https://www.ushmm.org/outreach/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007724 -
Operation Thunderclap
Operation Thunderclap was the code for a cancelled operation planned in August 1944 but shelved and never implemented. It entailed a massive attack on Berlin, killing thousands and shattering German morale.
ww2today.com/13-february-1945-operation-thunderclap-raf-start-firestorm-in-dresden -
Battle of Iwo Jima
After elaborate preparatory air and naval bombardment, three U.S. marine divisions landed on the island in Feb. 1945. Iwo Jima was defended by roughly 23,000 Japanese troops, who fought from caves, dugouts, tunnels and underground installations. The marines wiped out the defending forces after a month of fighting, the battle earned a place in American lore with the publication of a photo showing the U.S. flag raised in victory. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-iwo-jima -
Battle of Okinawa
The last and biggest of the Pacific island battles of World War II, the Okinawa campaign (April—June 1945) involved the 287,000 troops of the U.S. Tenth Army against 130,000 soldiers of the Japanese Thirty-second Army. At stake were air bases vital to the projected invasion of Japan. By the end of the 82-day campaign, Japan had lost more than 77,000 soldiers and the Allies had suffered more than 65,000 casualties—including 14,000 dead.
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-okinawa -
VE Day (Victory In Europe Day)
VE Day or simply V Day was the public holiday celebrated on 8 May 1945 to mark the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces.
www.historynet.com/v-e-day-1945-the-celebration-heard-round-the-world -
Postdam Declaration
This declaration defined terms for Japanese Surrender; it was a lengthly statement that called for the surrender of all Japanese armed forces during World War II. www.ndl.go.jp/constitution/e/etc/c06.html -
Dropping of the Atomic Bombs on Hiroshima
An American B-29 bomber, the Enola Gay, drops the world’s first atom bomb, over the city of Hiroshima. Approximately 80,000 people are killed as a direct result of the blast, and another 35,000 are injured. At least another 60,000 would be dead by the end of the year from the effects of the fallout.
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/atomic-bomb-is-dropped-on-hiroshima -
V-Day (Victory Over Japan Day)
On September 2, 1945, a formal surrender ceremony was held in Tokyo Bay aboard the USS Missouri. At the time, President Truman declared September 2 to be VJ Day.
www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/v-j-day
