-
Battle of the Atlantic
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hitler ordered submarines to raid against American ships along the east coast. He did this in order to prevent food and war materials from reaching Great Britain. Seven months into the year German wolf packs destroyed 681 allied ships. Allies organized cargo ships into convoys with sonar that allowed them to detect German submarines. They also had airplanes which used radar to finder U-boats. Allies were able to locate and destroy German U-boats due to this. -
Germany First
Prime Minister Churchill arrived at the White House and spent weeks discussing war plans with President Roosevelt. In the end the decided that Germany posed a greater threat than Japan. This meant that they would strike against Hitler first. Once the allies got the upper hand on Europe, they could put more materials into the Pacific war. -
Stalingrad
The Germans had been fighting with the the Soviet Union since June 1941. In the summer of 1942, the German army approached Stalingrad and took over nine-tenths of the city by the end of September. When winter set in, The Soviet army sent in tanks surrounding the city that prevented the Germans from leaving, and cut of their access to supplies. They continued to fight throughout the winter season until January 31, 1943 when the German commander surrendered. -
Operation Torches
Operation Torch was the name given to the allied invasion of French North Africa. This was the first time the British and American worked together on an invasion plan. -
Operation Overload
The allied invasion was code-named Operation Overload and was originall set to be on June 5, but was postponed to the next day due to bad weather. On June 6th, or D-Day, was the first day of the invasion. The plan was to attack Normandy, France first. Despite the large amount of air and sea attacks, the Germans retaliation was extremely brutal on Omaha Beach. -
Battle of the Bulge
German tanks broke through weak American defense along an 80-mile font. Hitler hope that this would break up the allied supply lines. The tanks drove 60 miles into the allied territory, creating a bulge in the lines. The Germans captured 120 American GI's. The SS troops led the men they captured into a large field where they were moved down with machine guns and pistols. -
Buchenwald
Buchenwal was the first Nazi death camp liberated by American troops. -
President Harry Truman
Vice President Truman becomes the 33rd President when Roosevelt dies on April 12. President Roosevelt did not live to wines V-E Day. While posing for a portrait in Warm Springs, Georgia, Roosevelt had a stroke and died. -
V-E Day
V-E Day stands for victory in Europe day. The war in Europe was finally over.
