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Blitzkrieg (Lightning war) is a military strategy used by the Germans as their main offensive by rushing and encircling the enemy. After the first world war Germany started replacing trench strategies with military maneuvers as it is much more effective. This military tactic allowed Germany to easily take Poland and the whole west coast of Europe in about a year.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/blitzkrieg -
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As a result of the German Blitzkrieg, hundreds of thousands of allied forces were forced into the ocean. England is 21 miles across the English Channel from Dunkirk. It began on May 27, 1940 to June 4, 1940, about 198,000 British and 140,000 French troops were evacuated, with 90,000 left behind. This was a turning point for the allies, proving they needed a new plan to stop the rapid growth of the Reich.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/dunkirk -
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Paris fell on June 14, 1940 about a month after the German invasion began. France and Germany never got along in history and the fall of France was justice to hitler for what France did in World War I. The germans split France into German occupation and vichy france and went on to occupy it for 4 years, Weakening the allies.
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/paris-liberated)
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/france-to-surrender -
On June 22, 1941, 3 million Axis and German troops invaded the Soviet Union, this was the biggest German invasion of the war. Hitler believed the nation was a sworn enemy of Germany, and he wanted the resources hidden under its borders. This invasion opened up another front and if he never broke the non-aggression pact, the soviet union may have never looked towards the allies for an alliance.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/operation-barbarossa -
On December 7, 1941, The empire of japan launched an attack on Pearl Harbor, a naval base in Hawaii. It was a devastating attack, destroying or damaging 20 naval vessels, 8 battleships, and 300 airplanes. 2,400 Americans were killed and 1,000 injured. The attack was Japan's effort to cripple the United States's pacific fleet. The day after, the United States declared on Japan bringing them into the global conflict.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/pearl-harbor -
Nazi officials met to consider the details of the “Final Solution of the Jewish question” they discussed how to annihilate the jewish population in Europe as soon as possible. Later going on to choosing gas as their “solution” to their problem. This was crucial evidence later during the Nuremberg Trials.
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-wannsee-conference
https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/wannsee-conference-and-the-final-solution -
The Germans launched an offensive to occupy the city of Stalingrad on August 23, 1942 and became one of the wars longest battle. Stalingrad was a target because it was the industrial center in Russia, producing military equipment. Not only that, Hitler saw its propaganda value because of it being named after the leader, Stalin. The German loss of the battle boosted the confidence of the red army on the Eastern front.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-stalingrad -
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The war was going in favour of the allies and they needed a plan to liberate France and stop Hitler. D-Day was an invasion of Normandy, France on June 6, 1944. Troops from the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom launched an amphibious assault that landed about 156,000 allied forces that set the grounds for a massive scale attack. The allies were victorious, liberating France from the occupation of Nazi Germany.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/d-day -
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The Battle of the Bulge was a last ditch effort for the Germans where 30 German divisions drove into the Ardennes to battle in harsh winter conditions in over 85 miles of densely packed forest. The battle was given the name because the allied line formed a bulge shape. The goal was to separate the allies in their approach toward Germany. Germany's failure in this battle led up to victory for the allies.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-the-bulge -
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In 1945 as the allies push towards the heart of Germany, they uncover concentration camps hidden under the devastation of Nazi Germany. In a effort the Germans try to hide what they did by evacuating prisoners from camps and do death marches. Many concentration camps in Poland and all over Europe were liberated, showing the world the horrific crimes Hitler and Germany did.
https://www.history.com/news/auschwitz-liberation-soviets-holocaust -
The Battle of Iwo Jima was a military operation between U.S. marines and the Imperial army of Japan in 1945. This ended up a very bloody battle killing 200 Japanese forces and 7,000 marines. The island was seen as a strategic point with three airfields that could potentially be used to plan an invasion of Japan's mainland. Iwo Jima falls into America's hands ending the mission.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-iwo-jima -
The red army began the invasion on the city in May 1945. The allies were racing to take Berlin because it was seen as the ultimate price for, post war invitation. The fall of Berlin further weakened the reich helping conclude the fall of the regime.
https://www.history.com/news/end-wwii-race-to-berlin-1945-atomic-scientists -
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On May 8, 1945, all western Europe and allied cities pulled out flags celebrating the defeat of Nazi Germany after a long and victorious war. On that day surrender papers were signed in eastern Germany and in the capital, Berlin, ending Germany's last ditch defensives. This effectively eliminated Germany from the war leaving Japan as the last country to defeat.
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/victory-in-europe -
After the success of the Manhattan Project, an American B-29 bomber dropped the world's first atomic bomb over Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. The blast instantly killed 80,000 civilians with thousands more dying from radiation. Three days later, another American B-29 dropped the second atomic bomb on Nagasaki. On August 15, Japan’s Emperor Hirohito declares the nation's unconditional surrender ending World War II.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/bombing-of-hiroshima-and-nagasaki -
Japan’s unconditional surrender was announced on August 15, 1945, later getting recognized as VJ or “Victory over Japan '' day. The formal surrender later took place on the U.S.S Missouri in the bay of Tokyo. The surrender of Japan brought the war to a close bringing victory to the allies after a six year war.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/v-j-day