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German Blitzkrieg
It means Lightning war and it was a tactic used by the German army. It allowed the Germans to to quickly take over countries. Other nations were unable to defend against the lightning quick attacks, allowing the Germans to conquer most of Europe in a short amount of time. -
Germany Invades Poland
Germany invades Poland. He wanted to regain lost territory and rule Poland. This causes World War 2. -
Fall of Paris
Germany enters Paris, France and takes over. The French surrendered because of the overwhelming German military force. This caused the United States to stop trading with the Axis powers. -
Pearl Harbor
Japan surprise attacks the USA. They were mad that the USA wouldn’t sell them oil. It brought the USA into World War 2. -
Battle of Midway
The USA was able to catch the Japanese Navy offguard. They were able to do this because they had broken the Japanese secret code and discovered their plans. This was considered by many to be the tipping point of the war, in favor of the Allied powers. -
D-Day
The Allies invade Western Europe in the largest amphibious attack in history. They were trying to take back Europe from Germany. It started the beginning of the end of World War 2 for Germany. -
Battle of the Bulge
Hitler tried to split the Allied armies in Europe. It was a weak area in the Allied defense, and would have allowed Germany to secure vital bridgeheads. The Allies, managed to hold them off, but not without losing over 100,000 USA soldiers. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The USA captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Japanese. It gave them a place to land damaged B-29 bombers. It gave the USA a strategic Air base, and was the sight for the historic flag raising photo. -
Battle of Okinawa
A major battle of the Pacific War that was fought on the island of Okinawa between the United States and Japan. The United States wanted to use the island as a base for air operations when they planned to invade Japan. The battle was an example of how difficult it would be to invade the mainland of Japan, causing the United States to drop the atomic bomb. -
VE Day
It marks the formal acceptance of the of Nazi Germanys unconditional surrender. The Allies had beaten Germany into submission and they had no choice but to surrender. This day ended World War 2. -
Dropping Of the Atomic Bomb
The United States dropped a atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan. They knew invading Japan would cost to many American lives, and they hoped that dropping the bombs would force the Japanese to surrender. It worked, Japan surrendered, but not without over hundreds of thousands of Japanese citizens being killed. -
VJ Day
This was Victory over Japan Day. The United States had beaten Japan into submission and they were forced to surrender. This marked the complete end of World War 2 for the United States.