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Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain was a struggle between the German Luftwaffe and the British Royal Air force (RAF), which raged over Britain between July and October 1940. The bombings that happened during the day in the late summer of 1940 attempted to destroy Britain's air defenses by attacking RAF airfields. The Battle of Britain was a significant British victory. The British victory marked the first failure of Hitler's war machine. -
Pearl Harbor
Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii without warning. Before the the attack, America was not yet in World War II. Since Pear Harbor was not expecting an attack, it was not ready to defend itself. The biggest effect of the attack on Pearl Harbor was that America was now thrust into the war. -
Bataan Death March
On April 9, 1942, American and Filipino prisoners were forced to march 60 miles from their point of capture to prison camps. They were treated inhumanly along their trip. Most of the prisoners were beat, refused food and water, stabbed and sometimes shot. At the end of their march, the prisoners were put in a camp and most of them died. -
Battle of Midway
Japan launched 108 planes to attack Midway Island, as well as seven scout planes to locate the American fleet. America fought back by divebombing the Japanese fleet. Though the US didn't defeat them, they hit them enough to make it vulnerable. The defeat at Midway broke the back of the Japanese carrier fleet and resulted in the loss of invaluable air crews. It also marked the end of major Japanese offensive operations as the initiative passed to the Americans. -
D-Day
D-Day is the name given to the landing of 160,000 Allied troops in Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944. When the troops first landed on the shores of the beaches, they were met with gunfire. There were many casualties, however, by the end of the day the Allied troops had successfully stormed Normandy’s beaches. With the beaches secured, the Allied troops were able to make their way across Normandy. The Normandy invasion began to turn the tide against the Nazis; the Allied forces began to win. -
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was fought during the coldest months of the year; December 1944 through January 1945. Germany started their offensive in the Ardennes Forest to back away the Allied forces. This battle was the coldest battle of the war. During the Battle of the Bulge, 20,876 Allied soldiers were killed and 15,653 German soldiers were killed. With the German's defeat, the Allied forces pulled ahead in the war -
VE-Day
This day was the day that the Allied forces celebrated their victory over Europe. Germany finally surrendered to the Allied forces and laid down their arms. Hitler was defeated and the war in Europe was now over. -
Dropping of the Atomic Bomb
The atomic bomb was made so that Japan would surrender; ending the war. On August 6th, the first bomb was dropped on the city of Hiroshima. Japan still didn't surrender so the United States dropped a second bomb, on August 9th, on Nagasaki. Many people died, about 200,000, due to the vast amounts of radiation. Most of the children of the survivors have been born with defects, again due to the radiation. -
VJ-Day
Japan signed the agreement that they were surrendering. America celebrated their win everywhere. This day marked the end of the war against Japan.
