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Battle of France
The battle began in May of and ended in June of 1940. Germans were victorious.
1. 580,000 French troops died.
2. The Germans used the Blitzkreig attacking strategy.
3. Over 300,000 troops were succesfully evacuated.
4. 27,000 Germans were killed.
5. 1.5 million soldiers were captured.
Importance: The Germans were able to secure a foothold in Western Europe, as opposed to World War 1 when they were faced with a two front war. -
Battle of Britain
The battle began in JUly of 1940, and ended in October of 1940.
1. British air force had to defend Britain from the Luftwaffe
2. The British had a highly effective air defense
3. The main offensive was August 13
4. The British were victorious
5. 2,800 total planes were shot down
Importance: This was the Nazi's first defeat of World War two. Had the assault succeeded, the Allies would have most likely won the war. -
Battle of Leningrad
The battle began in September of 1941, and ended January of 1944.
1. Death toll was over 1,000,000
2. Mass starvation led to cannibalism
3. Valuable books and art were burned for warmth
4. The punishment for stealing food was death
5. The Soviets were successful in fighting off the Nazi and Finnish armed forces.
Importance- Without Russia falling to the Nazis, there were still an East and West front in the war. Hitler couldn't execute his plan if he didn't take over Russia first. -
Battle of Stalingrad
Ended February second, 1942.
1. Largest battle of WWII
2. German 6th army was destroyed
3. City was reduced to rubble by air strikes
4. Over 1 million soldiers were killed or wounded on the Soviet side
5. Germans eventually surrendered
Importance- This defeat of the Germans stopped the German advance into Soviet territory, and turned the tide of the war in the favor of the allies. -
Operation Torch
Operation Torch began in November of 1942 and ended two days later.
1. Landed in North Africa to remove Axis troops
2. First time British and U.S. forces worked together on an invasion
3. Some French resisted ally forces
4. Africa was attacked to create another front and relieve the pressure for Russia
5. Allies were victorious
Importance- With Russia and Britain under heavy assault from Nazi forces, the US entered the war to create another front and relieve the building pressure. -
D-Day
- The largest amphibian invasion, code name Operation Overload
- Eisenhower commanded the operation
- More than 13,000 aircraft and 5,000 ships supported the operation
- Allied casualties on D-Day have been estimated at 10,000 killed, wounded, and missing in action
- Allied forces were victorious Importance- This is another major turning point in the war, as Allied forces were able to take control of a German controlled French area.
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Battle of the Bulge
Ended January of 1945.
1. 250,000 German troops attacked a few tired american divisions
2. Americans fiercly defended, and were successful
3. The Allies missed many early warning signs of an offensive
4. German troops used stolen U.S. Army uniforms to get behind Allied lines
5. It was the first time the U.S. Army desegregated during WWII
Importance- This was very important in winning the war, as the 250,000 Germans could have gotten passed and attacked more allied forces. -
Battle of Berlin
Ended May of 1945.
1. Final major offensive of WWII
2. Soviet forces began advancing 60 kilometers a day through Germany
3. Stalin challenged two of his army Marshalls to race to take Berlin
3. On Hitler's birthday Soviet forces began shelling the Germans
4. Hitler hid in an underground bunker and froced everybody else to fight
5. Hitler committed suicide rather than be captured by allied forces
Importance- As Hitler died during the battle, it was essentially the end of WWII, and a Ally victory.
