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Japanese Invasion of China
Invasion of China A small skirmish between Japanese and Chinese occured at the Marco Polo bridge. This incident sparked total war between the two countries. Japan used currently occupied Manchuria to launch the invasion of China. Japanese forces found little resistance and quickly conquered all the major cities in china including the capital of Nanking and Shanghai. -
Ribbontrop/Molotov Pact
The Germans and Soviets came to an agreement on August 23 that the two nations would stay out of conflict with eachother for 10 years. This treaty Kept Germany from having to worry about the threat of the Soviet Union in its planned attack on Poland and gave Stalin time to prepare the Soviet military for war. -
Germany's invasion of Poland
The Invasion of Poland started on september 1, 1939. Germany use the german blitzkrieg to easily break through the Polish border forces. Thousands of tanks and aircraft carried out coordinated attacks throught the invation. German forces advanced on the capital city of Warsaw, encircling and bombarding it. After intense shelling, Warsaw surrendered on September 27, 1939. -
German Blitzkrieg
German BlitzkriegThe German blitzkrieg was a tactic first implimented in the invasion of Poland. This tactic utilized german tank divisions, artillery and the german airforce in a combined effort to quickly break through enemy lines, allowing german forces to disrupt enemy troop and supply movements. This tactic quickly and easily threw enemy troops int disarray and allowed the german forces to surround them and force them into surrender. -
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa On June 22, 1941 Germany violated this pact and launched a 4.5 million strong invasion force into the USSR through german occupied Poland, Finland, and Romania. German troops advanced through USSR terrirory to the outskirts of Moscow. The russian winter set in before Germany could acomplish conquering the USSR. This failure was a major turning point in the war. -
Pearl Harbor
In response to US sanctioning of trade to Japan the Japanese launched a suprise attack on Pearl Harbor. The Japanese hoped to severely cripple the US navy, most of which was mored in Pearl Harbor, durring the attack. The Attack managed to cripple or destroy 18 ships, 300 airplanes. The Japanese failed to sink any aircraft carriers, all of which were off base, or desroy many of the bases most important facilities. -
Battle of Wake Island
Wake Island was a small island in the pacific between Midway and Guam. It had key importance as an airfield in the mid-pacific and thus it became a target of the japanese. Only a small force of a few hundred soldiers and 14 plans were stationed on the island, but they held off the japanese sinking 4 warships and damajing a 5th. The US forces eventually surrendered and most became POW's for the duration of the war. -
Wannsee Conference
The Wannsee Conference was held by German officials and was held to discuss "The Final Solution to the Jewish Problem." After the conference, Nazi labor camps change from mass murder by gunfire to the more efficient use of poisoned gas as a means of mass murder. -
Battle of Midway
The Japanes needed to expand their safety net to protect themselves from US air attacks. This need prompted the Japanese to attempt an attack on the island of Midway. The Japanese threw their entire fleet at the island, but before they could get there, the US forces had caught wind of their plans and defended the island. A Battle between carriers ensued and the US repelled the Japanese navy. -
Operation Gomorrah
In coordination with the US Air Force, the RAF rain air raids on the german port city of Hamburg. The first of these raids wascarried out on July 24, 1943. At the end of the conclusion of the operation ten square mile of Hamburg had been reduced to rubble after a firestorm triggered by an RAF air raid. The operation startled Nazi leadership. -
D-Day
The allied invasion of Normandy. The purpose of Operation Overlord was to seize a section of the French coast in an effor to open up a new front in the European theater. The operation was scheduled for July 6 but was postponed due to weather. The operaton succeeded in opening up a new front and is seen as a large turning point in the war. -
Liberation of Paris
The liberation of Paris in 1944 occured when allied forces marched into Paris. General Deitrich von Choltitz only put up a light defence of the city. In the afternoon Choltitz signed a formal surrender and set free french generals held in the city. -
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was a last ditch effort by the germans as a counter defence. Its purpose was to severely weaken allied forces on the western front and force the allies into negotiations for peace. The germans threw the bulk of their forces into a lightly defended section of the allied forces pushing them back in an attempt to secure crucial points. The operation failed and sealed the fate of germany. -
Operation Thunderclap
The bombing of Dresden, otherwise known as Operation Thunderclap, was an allied attempt at crippling the german economy. In theory, bombing out industry in Dresden would be a great blow to the german economy and moral. The last raid in a series of US and RAF bombing raids was caried out by the RAF who released Thousands of tons of high explosive and incindiery bombs onto the city and igniting a firestorm. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The purpose of the battle of Iwo Jima was to secure the island in an effor to assure the safety of american bombers as they descended on Japan. The battle comenced on April 1 1945 after several days of bombing and naval bombardment. The Japanese Dug into the island literally converting it into a fortress. American landing forces eventually conquered the island and its airfields. The capture of Iwo Jima brought VJ day ever closer. -
Battle of Okinawa
Operation Iceburg was an ally attempt on gaining airfields and a staging area for troop close to Japan in preperation for the final assult on the home land. The battle of Okinawa was launch on the April 1 from the Kerama islands. The allies took the island. This gave them a base of operations from which they could launch the final assult on the japanese homeland. -
VE Day
VE Day is the day the germans surrendered. Allied troops occupied the capital of Berlin and surrender papers were signed. Germans all over europe finaly layed down there arms and the war in europe ended. -
Potsdam Declaration
The Potsdam Declaration was the document that spelled out the japanese defeat. It gave the japanese an ultimatum of either unconditional surrender or complete destruction. When the japanese failed to accept the terms in the document, the use of the atomic bomb was aproved. Japan faced defeat. -
Dropping of the Atomic Bombs
The US had a tough decision to make, Invade Japan and chance losing millions of soldiers or unleash the new power of the atomic bomb and save millions of american lives at the costo fo hundreds of thousands of japanese lives. On August 6 the Anola Gay flew over the city of Hiroshima and droped a single bomb which instantly killed 70,000 japanes soldiers and civilians. On August 9 a second bomb was droped over Nagasaki with the same effect. -
VJ Day
THe end of Worl War II is marked by VJ Day, the day the Japanese surrendered to the US. After the droping ot the two atomic bombs President Hirohito of Japan sounded their surrender explaining to his people that if they should continue to fight, it would only mean the total annihilation of the japanese people.
