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Nazis take the Sudetenland
• On Sept. 30, 1938, Hitler and the leaders of Great Britain, France and Italy signed a deal that gave the Sudetenland to Germany after Hitler threatened to use force.
• Germany was upset about their unfair treatment and how the treaty of Versailles broke apart their country. England and France wanted to prevent war so they gave what Hitler wanted.
•Germany gained more land and confidence in their power.
• http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/30/sept-30-1938-hitler-granted-the-sudentenland- -
Ribbentrop/ Molotav Pact
• On August 23, 1939, Russia and Germany made a pact where they would not attack each other and Russia was awarded some land.
• Germany did this so that they would not have to fight a two front, which is a big factor of their loss in WWI.
• Russia did not do anything when the war first started and let Germany take Poland. Hitler only had to fight a one front war.
• http://history1900s.about.com/od/worldwarii/a/nonaggression.htm -
Germany's invasion of Poland
• On Sept, 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland. Germany conquered the Polish army within a few weeks of the invasion. Germany annexed the former German lands that were Poland back into Germany
• Germany invaded Poland to get the land it had before their loss of lots of land because of WWI. It also used it to attack Russia in 1941.
• Germany gained back some land. It also was the beginning of WWII. Britain and France declared war on Germany.
• http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005070 -
German Blitzkrieg
• The German Blitzkrieg was a “lightning war”. The Germans wanted to defeat its enemies by quick campaigns. They used tanks, airplanes and artillery. They would break through enemy lines and cause confusion.
• This was the Germans strategy on conquering land very quickly and it worked at first. It was how Germany was going to fight lots of countries.
• The blitzkrieg was responsible for the invasion of many countries and was very successful and taking land.
• http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article. -
Battle of Britian
• On June 17, 1940 France surrendered and Britain stood alone in the fight against Germany. Germany and Britain then had the longest bombing battle in history. Germany bombed air bases and radar stations, while Britain bombed Berlin. Germany began to lose too many forces because of Britain’s superior air defense.
• Germany wanted to crush Britain’s morale with bombings.
• Germany’s morale dropped and Britain. Germany had suffered its first loss.
• http://www.history.com/topics/battle-of-britain -
Nazi Invasion of the Soviet Union
• On June 22, 1941, Germany launched a massive assault on Russia. Russia was disorganized, but their army was bigger than Germany expected. Germany was able to push 300 miles into Russia before they finally had to retreat.
• Germany thought Russia had a secret deal with Britain and wanted to keep its oil safe.
• Germany lost a lot of troops and now had to fight a two front war, which is why they last WWI.
• http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/germany-launches-operation-barbarossa--the-in -
Pearl Harbor
• On December 7, 1941 Japan surprise attacked the U.S. at Pearl Harbor with its fighters. The U.S. lost a lot of its navy and its fighters there. Japan sent two waves of fighters to wipe out all of the military on the island.
• The U.S. would not give Japan the rubber and oil it needed to fight a war with China.
• U.S. entered the war and the public became unified to defeat the Japanese and Germany.
• http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/wwii-pac/pearlhbr/pearlhbr.htm -
Wansee Conference
• On January 20, 1942 important political members met to discuss what to do with all of the Jewish people. They decided to exterminate all of them. They would put all of the healthy ones to work until they died and they would kill the other ones.
• Hitler hated Jewish people and he wanted all of them gone, so he decided to exterminate them.
• They decided what the final solution would be and killed 6 million Jewish people.
• http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005477 -
Battle of Stalingrad
• Germany attacked Russia at Stalingrad. Germany effectively bombed the city until it was rubble. Russia fought savagely to keep the city, while they were preparing a counter attack. The counter attack devastated the Germans and they were forced to surrender.
• Germany wanted oil from souther Russia
• This was the turning point in the war for the allies, there were lots of casualties on both sides.
• http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/worldwarii/p/World-War-Ii-Battle-Of-Stalingrad.htm -
Allied Invasion of Africa
• The allies launched an invasion into northern Africa using three task forces. Their main resistance was Vichy French soldiers, allies of the Germans. The invasion was swift and only halted once the Germans arrived.
• The allies wanted to contain German movements in Europe and block shipping lanes.
• The Germans lost airfields, strategic routes and vital shipping lanes after the attack.
• http://www.secondworldwarhistory.com/operation-torch-the-allied-invasion-of-north-africa.asp -
Operation Gomorrah
• Britain and U.S. bombers dropped incendiary bombs on Hamburg. The Germans lost 1,500 troops on the first bombing run. Not a lot of bombers were shot down because of a new radar jamming device called “Window”
• It was revenge for German bombing runs in London and destroyed a whole city.
• The German morale drooped drastically. 28,000 buildings were destroyed and 30,000 people were dead.
• http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/operation-gomorrah-is-launched -
D-Day
• Allied forces first began summoning troops and preparing them to invade German held Normandy. Allied bombardments were very successful and destroyed bridges, train tracks and airfields. Then they deployed ship to land boats to deploy troops. After heavy fighting in the center, the Allies had a grasp on Hitler’s “fortress”.
• The Allies wanted to begin to take Europe.
• Allies had a foothold in Europe and American troops were finally in the war.
• http://www.worldwar2history.info/D-Day/ -
Battle of the Bulge
• The Germans launched a counter-offensive after D-Day to try and cut through the allied forces. But the Allied sent reinforcements to help the surrounded soldiers. The Allies began to fend off attacks and restored the front.
• Hitler wanted to turn the war in his favor with an offensive that would cut the armies in half.
• The Allies fought off against the Germans and the failed offensive meant the war was almost over.
• http://www.army.mil/botb/overview.html -
Liberartion of Concentration Camps
• On April 11, 1945, U.S. forces liberated a concentration camp called Buchenwald. The Nazis had attempted to evacuate, but a resistance group fought for the camp and won, so 20,000 people stayed for the Americans. The Nazis tried to destroy them, but some parts were left standing.
• They came across them by chance when they were advancing to Berlin and liberated them.
• Prisoners were set free and the world began to realize what the Nazis were doing.
• http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php? -
VE Day
• It officially announced the end of the war. People gathered in town squares as the Allies had beaten the Germans. There was lots of celebrating as the long, tiring war was over for many people. The Japanese had not surrendered yet.
• The Germans had lost all of their territory and the Allies were at Berlin.
• The fighting stopped and people celebrated for mainly two days.
• http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/ve_day.htm
