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Hitler rise to power
At the end of WW1, Hitler had been a jobless soldier drifting around Germany. In 1919, he joined a struggling Nazi party. Hitler was such powerful public speaker and organizer that he quickly became the party's leader. The great depression helped the Nazis come to power. Because of the war debts and dependence on American bans and investments Germany's economy was hit hard. Many men who were out of work joined Hitler's private army, the storm troopers. -
Italy invades Ethiopia
The Italian invasions of Ethiopia was initiated in the month of October 1935. it was a brief colonial war. Altho the Italian military was successful in occupying Ethiopia, the Abyssinian did not capitulate or surrender to Italian forces. -
Rape of Nanking
In December of 1937, the Japanese imperial army marched into china's capital city of Nanking. Estimated loss of life was 300,000. half of the cities population. The actual military invasion of Nanking was preceded by a touch battle at shanghai that began in the summer of 1937. Chinese forces there put up surprisingly stiff resistance against the Japanese army which had expected an easy victory in china. The Japanese had even bragged they would conquer all of china in just three months. -
Germany annexs Sudetenland
In April 1938, now that Austria had fallen to German control, the Sudetenland Germans formally demanded their independence. Mean while, the Czech gov. conceded some of the Sudetenland Germans demands; yet, the Germans held extensive military maneuvers and stationed thirty divisions on the Czech border Germany was later allowed to annex the Sudetenland after the Munich conference. -
Germany Invades Portland
One of Adolf Hitler's first major foreign policy initiatives after coming to power was to sign a nonaggression pact with Poland in January 1934. Hither sought the pact in order to neutralize the threat of a french/polish military alliance against Germany before Germany had a chance to rearm. On September 1, 1939, the Germany invaded Poland the polish army was defeated within weeks of the invasion -
North Africa Campaign
-included campaigns fought in the Libyan, Egyptian deserts, Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia
-The Italian declaration of war on 10 June 1940 started fighting in North Africa
-On 14 June, the British Army's 11th Hussars crossed the border from Egypt into Libya and captured the Italian Fort Capuzzo -see-saw series of battles for control of Libya and parts of Egypt -
Germany conquers France
After taking over Lithuania Latvia, Ethiopia, Poland, the Czech Republic, and Denmark. Germany turned its attention to Great Britain and France. Instead of attacking France through the Maginot line as the french expected, the Germans went north and enters France along its northern border. The Germans had taken France by surprise. -
Italian Campaign
-Happen between September 1943 and April 1945
-60,000 Allied and 50,000 German soldiers died in Italy
-Overall Allied casualties about 320,000
-Overall Axis casualties about 336,650
-No campaign in Western Europe cost more than the Italian campaign in terms of lives lost and wounds suffered by infantry forces -
D-Day
-a total of 156,000 allies forces of U.S., GB, Canada, free France, and Norway invades Frances.
-5,000 ships and landing crafts were used
-50,000 vehicles and 11,000 were used
-Deaths: Germany-320,000
U.S.-135,000
BG-11,000
Canada-5,000
-five main landing areas "Utah", "Omaha", "Gold", "Juno" and "Sword" -
Philippines
- U.S. Sixth Army landed on the eastern shore of Leyte, north of Mindanao.
- U.S. Fifth Air Force able to devastate the Japanese attempts to resupply -7 December U.S. Army units landed at Ormoc Bay and cut off the Japanese ability to reinforce and supply Leyte -15 December 1944 landing the southern beaches of the island of Mindoro, a key location in order to support of major landings scheduled on Luzon -Invasion land in Palawan Island on February 28
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Iwo Jima
-major battle, fought for and the captured the island of Iwo Jima
-goal to capture the entire island, including its three airfields
-month-long battle included some of the fiercest and bloodiest fighting in WWII
-Japanese heavily fortified
-Army were aided by extensive naval artillery and the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps
-American seapower and airpower were capable of delivering vast amounts of fire onto the Japanese troops
- first American attack against the Japanese -
Okinawa
-Need Okinawa for airbases so 3000 B-29 bombers and 240 squadrons of B-17 bombers can be used for intense bombing
-Also need for preparation for a full-scale invasion of Japan
-U.S. lost totaled 38 ships of all types sunk and 368 damaged with 4,900 sailors by Kamikaze attacks -
Battle of the Bulge
-All out gamble
-Only major German counterattack
-Surprise blitzkrieg thrust through Ardennes to Antwerp
-intended to split British and US forces in northern France.
-fighting in small groups in sub-zero cold and snow -
Strategies of each theater
Europe:
-Strategic warfare
-strategic bombing
- hold Germany from expanding
-Troops used to occupy French colonies to prevent Axis expanding into them Pacific:
-island hopping (where the U.S. get closer to Japan by attacking and capturing a island conquered by the Japanese at a time)
-US would seek islands with an air field for heavy bombers to bomb Japan
