Major European Theater Battles

Battle of France/Miracle of Dunkirk

May 27, 1940

• A call was sent out for as many naval vessels as possible.
• The first day of the evacuation resulted in the rescue of just 8,000 soldiers.
• The total number of vessels involved was 933.
• Around 40,000 British troops never made it back across the Channel.
• Hitler’s failure to capture the British army is one of the great turning points of the war.

The Battle of Dunkirk was the defense and evacuation to Britain of British and other Allied forces in Europe.

Battle of Britain

Jul 10, 1940

• Hitler tried to convince Britain to surrender without a fight.
• Germany's air force was called the Luftwaffe.
• The code name for Hitler's invasion plans was Operation Sea Lion.
• It's estimated that arout 1,000 British planes were shot down, while over 1,800 German planes were destroyed.
• It was the first battle in history waged almost exclusively in the air.

First major campaign to be fought entirely by air forces. The Battle of Britain marked the first defeat of Hitler's military forces

Battle of Leningrad

Sep 8, 1941

• There was around 1,000,000 casualties.
• Aftermath left people starving, thus leading to cannibalism.
• People who tried to steal food were killed. Hitler wanted the city to starve.
• Valuable books and art pieces were burned in order to provide warmth.
• City Leaders Were Arrested and Executed After the Siege

The Germans maintained their siege with a single army. Leningrad, capital of the Russian Empire, was one of the initial targets of the German invasion of June 1941.

Battle of Stalingrad

Aug 23, 1942

• Marked the end of Germany's advances into eastern Europe and Russia.
• The continuous bombing of the city killed thousands.
• It was the first major German loss during World War II
• After the Germans lost in Stalingrad, they did not advance any farther into eastern Europe or Russia.
• Stalingrad was originally known as Tsaritsyn, but was changed by Joseph Stalin.

This battle was the first major German loss in WWII and marked the end of Germany's advances into eastern Europe and Russia.

Operation Torch

Nov 8, 1942

• The first American contact with the Germans in the war.
• Blocked German expansion and cut off axis supplies to the Mediterranean.
• Torch was a code name for the northern part of Africa.
• Operation Torch was initially called Operation Gymnast
• The allies won after a German surrender.

Operation Torch was the first time the British and Americans had jointly worked on an invasion plan together.

D-Day

Jun 6, 1944

• More than 160,000 Allied troops -- about half of them Americans.
• They invaded Western Europe, overwhelming German forces in an operation that proved to be a turning point in World War II.
• The invasion's code name was Operation Overlord.
• More than 13,000 aircraft and 5,000 ships supported the operation.
• Bad weather forced the Allies to postpone a day.

Regarded as the single most important event in WWII and led to its conclusion in Europe. It resulted in the freedom of France.

Battle of the Bulge

Dec 16, 1944

• 250,000 German troops were sent across an 85-mile stretch of the Allied front.
• This was the last offensive Hitler had made.
• Over 100,000 Germans died during the Battle of the Bulge.
• German troops stole U.S. uniforms and killed many soldiers behind allied lines.
• It marked the first time the U.S. Army desegregated during WWII.

Germany's defeat and the end of the war in Europe came sooner, and at a lower cost in Allied lives. The last major Nazi offensive in World War II.

Battle of Berlin

Apr 16, 1945

• Around 150,000 Polish soldiers fought alongside the Soviet Union.
• The soviets began to bomb the city and eventually had it surrounded.
• The war took place over a 4 day period
• The battle left over a million Germans without homes, clean water, or food.
• After Hitler had realized he had lost and admitted defeat, he committed suicide along with his new wife.

It was the last major battle in Europe during WWII. It resulted in the surrender of the German army and an end to Adolf Hitler's rule.