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Invasion of Manchuria
Pacific. 9 September 1931, when the Kwantung Army of the Empire of Japan invaded Manchuria immediately following the Mukden Incident. After the war, the Japanese established the puppet state of Manchukuo. This was important because it lead to japanese occupation of china during World War II. -
Battle of Midway
Pacific. Before the Battle of the Coral Sea on June 4, 1942 - June 7, 1942, the Imperial Navy of Japan had swept aside all of its enemies from the Pacific and Indian oceans. The Japanese had planned to ambush naval forces in the Midway atoll, but American cryptographers had intercepted communications and planned a decisive counterattack. This was important because it was the turning point in the Pacific War and inflicted devastating losses on the Japanese. -
Blitzkrieg into Poland
Europe. Britain and France, standing by their guarantee of Poland's border, had declared war on Germany on September 3, 1939. The Soviet Union invaded eastern Poland on September 17, 1939. Was the first time Germany used Blitzkrieg and was their first time being successful and marked the start of the World War II. -
Battle of the Atlantic
Europe. September 3, 1939 - May 8, 1945. A long series of naval battles in the Atlantic which involved German U-boats fighting against Allied supply and combat naval vessels. The Allies learned how to cope with U-boat concealment and struck severe blows against German naval forces. The Allies eventually won superiority and blockaded Germany. -
German invasion of France
Europe. The defeat of the powerful French army in a mere six weeks in 1940 stands as one of the most remarkable military campaigns in history. This was important because it marked an end to traditional European warfare and required the Allies to re-think war strategies according to the surprising and overwhelming tactics used by the Germans. France was forced to surrender in June of 1940. May 10, 1940 - June 25, 1940. -
Dunkirk
Europe. The Battle of Dunkirk was the defence and evacuation to Britain of British and other Allied forces in Europe from 26 May to 4 June 1940. After the Phoney War, the Battle of France began in earnest on 10 May 1940. This was important because it allowed a lot of people to evacuate. Naval vessels and hundreds of civilian boats were used in the evacuation, which began on May 26. -
Battle of Britain / The Blitz
Europe. 7 September 1940, German bombers raided the east London docks area in two waves of devastating attacks. The date has always been taken as the start of the so-called ‘Blitz’ (from the German ‘Blitzkrieg’ or lightning war). This was important because it disrupted trade, transport, and services in England and the German side hoped to create panic in the capital and hamper the government's efforts to fight against the invasion. -
Germany takes Greece
Europe. 28 October 1940 - 1 June 1941. Italy had been trying to take the Greek mainland for some time. However, German forces landed and quickly tore through Allied defense lines. The Germans took a decisive victory, gained strategic territory, and occupied Greece. -
Operation Barbarossa
Europe. Code name for the German invasion of the Soviet Union, which was launched on June 22, 1941. The failure of German troops to defeat Soviet forces in the campaign signaled a crucial turning point in the war. This was important because it forced Nazi Germany to fight a two front war against a coalition possessing immensely superior resources. -
Pearl Harbor
Pacific. It became the site of a naval base after the United States annexed Hawaii in 1898. On Sunday, December 7, 1941, Japanese planes attacked the base, and the United States entered World War II the following day. It was important because it caused thousands of casualties and destroyed most of the American Pacific Fleet this also brought the United States back into World War II. -
Philippines 1942
Pacific. December 8, 1941 - May 8, 1942. Capture of the Philippine Islands was crucial to Japan's effort to control the Southwest Pacific, seize the resource-rich Dutch East Indies, and protect its Southeast Asia flank. This was important because the strategy called for roughly simultaneous attacks on Malaya, Thailand, American-held Guam and Wake, Hong Kong, Singapore, the Philippines, and Hawaii. -
Bataan (battle and march)
Pacific. April 9, 1942, After the U.S. surrender of the Bataan Peninsula on the main Philippine island of Luzon to the Japanese during World War II (1939-45), the approximately 75,000 Filipino and American troops on Bataan were forced to make an arduous 65-mile march to prison camps. This was important because the marchers made the trek in intense heat and were subjected to harsh treatment by Japanese guards. A lot of people perished. -
Doolittle Raid
Pacific. April 18, 1942. Planned as a retaliatory strike in January 1942 in the wake of the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, the “joint Army-Navy bombing project” was to bomb Japanese industrial centers, to inflict both “material and psychological” damage upon the enemy. American bombers struck at Tokyo and proved, despite little damage, that Tokyo was vulnerable to attack. This was important because the United States heavily demoralized the Japanese homeland. -
Coral Sea
Pacific. fought from 4 to 8 May 1942, was a major naval battle between the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and naval and air forces from the United States and Australia, taking place in the Pacific Theatre of World War II. This was important because It was the first pure carrier-versus-carrier battle in history as neither surface fleet sighted the other. Though a draw, it was an important turning point in the war in the Pacific because, for the first time, the Allies had stopped the Japanese. -
Guadalcanal
Pacific. August 7, 1942 - February 9, 1943. A campaign in which US and Allied Forces landed at islands in the Pacific to protect Allied supply routes and communication channels from Japan. Although Japan attempted to take the islands, the Allies drove them back and began offensive operations to defeat Japan. -
Stalingrad
Europe. (August 23, 1942 - February 2, 1943). Axis forces fought against the USSR for control of the city of Stalingrad in a region that is now part of Russia. The largest and bloodiest battle ever recorded in the history of mankind with an estimated 2 million casualties. The German campaign to take Stalingrad was costly, failed, and used up a lot of German resources, which largely halted Hitler’s plans to advance within USSR territory. -
El Alamein
Europe. (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian railway halt of El Alamein. ... The battle revived the morale of the Allies, being the first big success against the Axis since Operation Crusader in late 1941. This was important because it marked the culmination of the North African campaign between the forces of the British Empire and the German Italian army commanded in the field. -
Operation Torch
Europe. (8–16 November 1942) was an Anglo–American invasion of French North Africa, during the North African Campaign of the Second World War. It was aimed at reducing pressure on Allied forces in Egypt, and enabling an invasion of Southern Europe. This was important because it was the first time the British and Americans had jointly worked on an invitation plan together. -
Battle of Kursk
Europe. (July 5 - August 23, 1943). A battle that took place in the USSR after the Soviets had driven out a salient, or an extension of their battle lines and pushed German forces back. The Germans attempted to cut off the salient by launching simultaneous attacks from the North and South, but stalled due to Russian foreknowledge of the plans and strategic measures. This battle marked a telling blow to the already-slowing German offensive. -
Battle of Anzio
Europe. January 22 - June 5, 1944. A battle in which Allied forces landed at Anzio in Italy and drove inland to capture Rome. The campaign was intended to be a surprise attack, but American military commander John P. Lucas delayed the attack which allowed German troops to withdraw without taking too many losses. -
D-Day
Europe. June 6, 1944. A massive sea-based invasion that took place off of German-controlled beaches of Normandy, France. After British intelligence led Germany through a series of misdirections, Allied forces landed thousands of troops on less fortified beaches. The Allies drove inland and began their plan for victory on the Western Front. -
Philippines 1944-45
Pacific. October 20, 1944 - September 2, 1945. Allied and Philippines forces drove out Japanese occupiers until Tokyo’s official surrender following the dropping of the second atomic bomb. -
Battle of Leyte Gulf
Pacific. October 23-26, 1944. US and Australian naval forces struck out to cut Japanese forces off from one another on occupied islands. The Allied forces dealt massive casualties to the Japanese navies and cut off critical Japanese supply lines which effectively ended the Japanese ability to fight in naval battles. -
Battle of the Bulge
Europe. December 16, 1944 - January 25, 1945. The final German offensive campaign of World War II. German forces sought to cut off Allied forces and destroy them, striking hard at American troops. American forces sustained heavy casualties but held lines long enough for reinforcements to arrive. Allied air superiority allowed the Allies to push Germany back and inflicted heavy casualties on the German forces. -
Yalta Conference
Europe. February 4-11, 1945 brought together the Big Three Allied leaders. During this conference, Stalin, Churchill, and Roosevelt discussed Europe's postwar reorganization. The main purpose of Yalta was the re-establishment of the nations conquered and destroyed by Germany. This was important because it was the second wartime meeting of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin and US President Roosevelt. -
Iwo Jima
Pacific. February 19, 1945 - March 26, 1945. A bloody battle in which US forces took over the island of Iwo Jima as a means of setting up a staging area to attack the Japanese mainland. Japanese forces resisted heavily and inflicted significant casualties on US forces; however, the US crushed Japanese resistance and eventually took the island. -
Okinawa
Pacific. April 1 – June 22, 1945. A major battle in which Allied forces took the island of Okinawa. Japanese forces drafted Okinawan civilians into combat and nearly half were killed or went missing during the battle. The Allied forces then used the islands of Okinawa to launch attacks on the Japanese mainland. -
Hitler’s Suicide & the German Surrender
Europe. April 30, 1945. Adolf Hitler commits suicide by swallowing a cyanide capsule and shooting himself in the head. Soon after, Germany unconditionally surrendered to the Allied forces, ending Hitler’s dreams of a “1,000-year” Reich. This was important because Hitler’s death brought an end to Nazi Germany and the Third Reich. -
Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Pacific. On August 6, 1945 and August 9, 1945, the US Air Force dropped two atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. They caused hundreds of thousands of civilian casualties and were shortly followed by the surrender of Japan and the end of World War 2. It was the first and only time that atomic bombs have been used in a war. This was important because the bombs were intended to make Japan surrender to the Allied forces and to bring about the end of WWII. -
Japanese Surrender
Pacific. September 2, 1945, the defeat of Japan was a foregone conclusion. The Japanese navy and air force were destroyed. The Allied naval blockade of Japan and intensive bombing of Japanese cities had left the country and its economy devastated. This was important because Japan formally surrenders to the Allies, bringing an end to World War II.
