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German Blitzkrieg
Germany and USSR take Poland by surprise and split it up between them. This happened because Germany was afraid of fighting a two-front war with France and Russia. It caused the war to officially begin in Europe.
Source: Class notes -
German Takes France
Germany imposes Blitzkrieg to take over France. They go through Belgium in May and had complete control by June. Germany takes France to better ensure a win against their enemies, one of the main ones being France. This put Germany ahead and made them feel cocky enough to go after Britain.
Source: Class Notes -
Germany Bombs Britain
Germany continuously bombed Britain for 11 months. They attacked the RAF to hinder Britain's chance at fighting back. Britain ended up victorious. This attack began because Britain remained as Germany's last major enemy after they took over France. The German loss was the first setback for the Axis Powers. It gave Allies the upper hand.
Source: http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-britain -
Lend Lease
The US lent arms and other supplies to Allies to assist them against Germany. This angered Germany to where they sent U-Boats to prevent the shipments.
Source: Class Notes -
War is Declared
Germany declared war on the US, and the US declared war on Germany and Japan.War was declared because of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The US being against the Axis powers put them with the Allies, giving them a new chance to fight.
Source: Class Notes -
Operation Barbarossa
Nazis bombed the Soviet city of Stalingrad in their attempt at taking over the USSR. The operation started a very bloody battle between Germany and Soviets, the Battle of Stalingrad.
Source: http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/operation-barbarossa -
Japan Bombed Pearl Harbor
The Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor by dropping bombs. They were upseet that the US stopped trading supplies with them, especially oil, and they also wanted to gain more land to grow as an empire. This caused the US to officially enter WWII and bomb Japan.
Source: Class Notes -
Bataan Death March
The US surrendered the Bataan Peninsula to Japan. The 75000 Filipino and American troops there were forced to march through horrible conditions to prison camps. -
US Victory Over Japan
Through code-breaking, the US was able to attack before Japan could, inflicting severe damage to Japan's Navy. They attacked because they received the plans Japan had to completely wipe out the US Navy. This was a major turning point in the war. It put the Allies in an offensive position.
Source: http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-midway -
Battle of Stalingrad
Germany invaded and attacked the Soviet Union. The USSR held them off and ended up victorious. Germany's plan was to gain control of as much of Europe as possible. The victory for the Allies marked the official turning of the war.
Source: http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-stalingrad -
Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
Residents of the Jewish ghetto in Poland staged a revolt against deportation to concentration camps. They knew that people weren't making it back alive. This revolt inspired others through other Nazi-occupied territories.
Source: http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/warsaw-ghetto-uprising -
D-Day
The Allied Powers crossed the English Channel, landing in Normandy to begin liberating Western Europe. They wanted to free France and other countries from Nazi rule. This was another major win for the Allied Powers.
Source: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/d-day -
Battle of the Bulge
Hitler launched a surprise attack against the Allies through the Ardennes to Antwerp, in an attempt to split the Allied troops there. The Allies were able to neutralize the German offense.
Source: http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-the-bulge -
Liberation of Concentration Camps
As Allies made progress against the Nazis, they found many concentration camps all across Europe. Some had been destroyed before they got there, but the Allies freed many people. This was the bringing about of an end to the war
Source: https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005131 -
Battle of Iowa Jima
America's first strike at Japanese home islands. Goal was to secure a base near the Japanese coast. The US marked the victory with a photograph of an American flag being raised.
Source: http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-iwo-jima -
US Bombs Japan
The US used the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Three days later, a second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. These were important cities in Japan, severely damaging Japan's ability to fight. This caused Japan to surrender, ending WWII.
Source: http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/bombing-of-hiroshima-and-nagasaki
