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Starting of WWII
Germany attacks Poland and that starts World War 2 in Europe. Germany invades Poland from all directions. There was a total of 59,000 casualities. -
Period: to
Beginning to End of WWII
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Tripartite Pact
Tripartite Pact - Axis Alliance On September 27, 1940, Germany, Japan and Italy signed the Tripartite Pact. The three became allies and they formed the Axis Powers. The Pact provided mutual support so that if any of the the three countries suffered attack by any nation that wasn't in the war. This alliance was aimed directly at the US and it was designed to force the United States to think twice before entering the war on the Allies. -
Suprise Attack at Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
On the 7th of December 1941, Japan attacks the U.S Navy Base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The attack only lasted two hours but in that time Japan destroyed nearly 20 American naval vessels, including eight battleships, and almost 200 airplanes. More than 2,000 Americans soldiers and sailors died in the attack, and 1,000 were wounded. -
US Enters the War
After being attacked at Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Rosevelt decides to have the US enter the war. President Rosevelt asks Congress to join the war and Congress accepts his decision. Most of the Congress agreed with only one dissenting vote. -
Germany Declare War on US
At first, Adolf Hitler was unsure how the war would go when Germany would go against the US at war. When Adolf Hitler decides to declare war on US, he already despised Roosevelt for his verbal attacks against his Nazi ideas. He also believed that Japan was much stronger and that once it they defeated the United States, Japan would turn and help Germany defeat Russia. -
Surrender at Stalingrad
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad began in the summer of 1942 when Germany invaded the city of Stalingrad in the south-western part of the Soviet Union. Hitler did not want to surrender during this part of the battle, but the Soviets started to encircle the Germans and the Germans only hope to survive was to surrender. -
D-Day
On June 6, British and US troops successfully land on the beaches of Normandy, France. The attack gives a “Second Front” against the Germans. There were over 156,000 American, British and Canadian forces that landed on the beaches. There were about 12,000 casualities for the US, Canada, and Britain and about 4,000 to 9,000 German casualities. As a result, the Allies won the invasion. -
US Bombs Hiroshima
Atomic Bomb Hits Hiroshima
The US used an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. The bombing was in the final stages of WWII. Although the war in Europe ended when Germany surrendered on May 8, 1945, but the Pacific War continued. The atomic bomb that was used was a 20 kiloton bomb called 'Little Boy' and the bomb kills 80,000 people. -
US Bombs Nagasaki
Atomic bombing of Nagasaki
The US drops the second atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan. The bomb was dropped at 11:02 a.m., and 1,650 feet above the city. The explosion of the bomb unleashed the equivalent force of 22,000 tons of TNT. The atomic bomb that was used was named 'Fat Man' and the bomb killed about 70,000 people. -
Japan Surrenders
World War II: How Did It End?
After Japan got bombed, their navy and air force were destroyed, and their economy was destroyed. On September 2, 1945, Japan formally surrenders to the Allies. The surrender ceremony was held on the United States Navy battleship, USS Missouri. After Japan surrenders, WWII is finally over.
