-
Nuremberg Laws
Hitler's hatred for the Jews were highlighted with these laws. Before these laws were offical, he had already segregated Jews at every level of society. He discouraged people from using their businesses and denied them jobs. The Nuremberg Laws denied Jews citizenship, banned marriage between them and non-Jews, and segregated them in every possible way. These laws blantantly stated Hitler's opposition to the Jews. The laws foreshadowed what was to come. -
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain was an air war, in which Germany's Luftwaffe attacked the Royal Air Force. Hitler had hoped to gain control of the Royal Air Force; however, he was unsuccessful. The United Kingdom used radar to detect where the Germans planned to attack. This prevented the UK from falling to Germany. In total, the Royal Air Force lost 1,000 planes and the Luftwaffe lost 1,700. The Germans came out defeated. -
Bombing of Pearl Harbor
On December 7, Japan attacked the United States's main Pacific military base, Pearl Harbor, in Hawaii. Japan hoped this would scare the US from intervening on their war effort in Southeast Asia. Japan attacked in two waves; the first wave was the main attack and the second wave was proposed to finsih off the rest. Luckily, the US had their main ships out on patrol. However, this bombing killed and wounded many people. It caused the US to declare war on Japan. -
Wannsee Conferance
The Wannsee Conferance was a meeting among Nazi German leaders involved in the Final Solution. Reinhard Heydrich was in charge of this plan to kill Jews. At this Conference, Heydrich announces his plan to kill 11,000,000 Jews at Polish Death Camps. Hitler approved this plan, and Heydrich moved on to implement his death sentences. Most Jews were sent to concentration camps where the majority lost their lives. -
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was the Japanese's plan to attack Midway, an American naval base in the Central Pacific. This base was vital to the war and protecting Hawaii. If the Japanese were to succeed, the Americans would be forced to retreat to the California coast. Luckily, Admiral Chester Nimitz knew the Japanese plans to attack Midway and placed his troops there. The US won easily. This was the most important naval battle of the war and it was the turning point of the war in the Pacific. -
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad occured after Germany and its allies attacked the Soviet Union for control of Stalingrad. This was an extremely violent and bloody battle with many deaths. Despite a frightening high death toll among his soldiers and harsh winter, Hitler refused to let his armies surrender. Eventually, 91,000 Germans surrendered in January. This was a major turning point in the war. -
Tehran Conference
This was a conferance among the Allies's leaders. It was the first face-to-face meeting for the Alllies's leaders. FDR, Churchill, and Stalin met to discuss stategy and the possibiility of opening a second front in France. Churchill was hesitant; however, FDR and Stalin were firm in their decision. They eventually all agreed and Operation Overload was created. -
D-Day
D-Day was the day that the Allies attacked the Germans on the beaches of Normady. The US sent planes ahead of the troops in hopes of messing up communication among the Nazis. They attacked at four beaches- Omaha, Juno, Gold, and Sword. At Omaha, the soldiers were suprised to find a heavily mined beach with heavy weaponry. This battle resulted in many deaths among the Allies; however, they were able to come out victorious. -
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle fo the Bulge was Hitler's counterattack to D-Day. The Germans caught the Alllies, who were spread out, by surprise. This allowed the Germans to capture a few key cities. However, the Allies were able to come together and push the Germans back out of France. The Germans had hoped to mess up communication between the British and Americans; however, with the help of bombers, Hitler's troops were forced to retreat. -
Battle of Okinawa
This battle occured on the island of Okinawa, off the coast of Japan. The US decided to attack this island, because it was an extremely important airbase. It was so vital, because it was necessary for their planned attack in Japan. This battle killed over 50,000 American troops; however, it helped the US to bomb the key Japanese islands and eventually Tokyo. This battle was crucial for the Allies.
