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Executive Order 9066
This order called for the relocation of Japanese Americans on the west coast. As many as 110,000 Japanese Americans were relocated to an internment camp, with 2/3 of these being American citizens. These people were still able to live somewhat normal lives, with jobs and houses to live in. A military force was even made from only Japanese Americans, and they served in Europe during the war. The decision to treat the Japanese this way is still very controversial. -
Bataan Death March
70,000 American and Filipino troops were marched for 5 days and nights straight, with little food or water. Those who dropped out of line where beaten, shot, bayoneted,or even beheaded by Japanese officers. If you fell down you were simply left for dead. This resulted in anywhere from 7,000-10,000 deaths. Even more died from conditions when the marchers reached the POW camps. -
D-Day
It was known as Operation Overlord, and was a planned attack by the Allies to invade France. Although there were 9,000 Allies killed or wounded, more than 100,000 were now in France, ready to advance through Europe into Germany. The attacks came by sea and air, with troops storming the beach and others behind parachuted behind enemy lines. As bloody as this was, it was a huge success for the Allied troops, and the beginning of the end for Hitler. -
Auschwitz Liberation
The Soviets were making ground in Germany when they came upon an abandoned looking camp. It turned out that this was Auschwitz, a very large concentration camp used by the Nazis. When the Soviets reached the camp more than 7,000 prisoners were freed. The German Gestapo had tried but failed to get rid of all evidence before the Soviet troops reached the camp. -
Raising the Flag on Mount Suribachi
American forces were on the island of Iwo Jima, a key strategic point in the defeat of Japan. They decided to first take the volcanic mountain Mount Suribachi, the center of the Japanese defense. When the mountain was taken, a flag was put on top of it. Later, a second, larger flag was risen by four soldiers, and a picture was taken while this was happening. This picture represented to the war to Americans back home. -
Bombing of Hiroshima
With all the effort and time put in by the Manhattan Project, an atomic bomb was finally created. With the U.S. deciding on whether to invade Japan or drop the bomb, it was decided to drop the bomb. Directly invading Japan would cost a lot of money and the lives of many American soldiers. Little Boy was dropped on Hiroshima at 8:16 a.m., killing 80,000 people instantly, with thousands more in the months following due to radiation. Japan didn't surrender though until Nagasaki was bombed too.
