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Annexation of Sudetenland
After annexing Austria, Hitler moved to take over Czechoslovakia which had a strong military and along with its allies, France and Britain. However, the leaders of France, Italy, and Britain did not want to go to war with Germany. So, they held a meeting with Hitler, while the Czechoslovakian leader was in another room, and gave this country to Hitler. -
Pear Harbor, Hawaii, U.S.A.
The Japanese military did a sneak attack by bombing Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The Japanese flew 360 warplanes over the Pearl Harbor navy base killing 2,400, and wounding 1,200, United States military and civilians. Although American remained neutral during the beginning of WWII, this attack led President Roosevelt to enter the war. -
The Philippines
The Philippines Campaign lasted from 1941 to 1942. Right after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the Emperor of Japan invaded the Philippines. The Philippines had an American-Filipino army, but they were overtaken, but continued to battle. However, around 80,000 prisoners of war were captured and dealt with the horrors of being POWs. They were liberated in October of 1944. -
Japanese Interment Camps
After the bombing of Pearl Harbor by the Japanese, President Roosevelt signed an executive order to prevent espionage in America. Americans of Japanese ancestry were sent to these camps in California, Washington, and Oregon which were under military guard. -
Island-Hopping
This was the name of a military strategy used by the United States to gain control of as many small islands in the Pacific as possible, in order to keep Japan's Empire from growing. This strategy was difficult because US soldiers and troops were not good at Guerilla Warfare. However, it was successful in the end. -
Battle of Midway
The Japanese wanted the islands in the Pacific removed from American power and to gain territory in the southwest Pacific islands. There was a U.S. military base on Midway and they were able to break Japanese codes. When the Japanese aircraft attacked Midway, US navy forces at sea and on land were able to defeat the Japanese. This was a big victory for the US and helped them start reducing the Japanese empire through island-hopping invasions. -
Guadalcanal
The Guadalcanal was a part of the Solomon Islands in the Pacific Ocean that was occupied by Japanese military. The Allied forces needed this location to communicate with Australia.The U.S. Marines made a sneak attack by water and then by land and forced withdrawal of the Japanese. -
Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad is considered on of the largest and bloodiest in modern warfare. It took place from August of 1942 until February of 1943 between Russia and the German Nazis in Stalingrad, Russia. The battle ended during a cold Russian winter and Russia won. However, close to two million people were killed. -
Los Alamos
Los Alamos is a small town in New Mexico about 30 miles from Santa Fe. It was a secret atomic bomb making and testing sight. This was the location that the atomic bombs used to drop on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were made. -
D-Day
D-Day, also known as the Battle of Normandy, occurred in on the coast of France and began on June 6, 1944. Around 156,000 troops from America, Canada, and England went into a large amphibious assault on the German army that occupied France using U-boats to storm the shore. The allied forces won in August of 1944 freeing the French. -
Meeting at Yalta
The meeting at Yalta was attended by the allies President Roosevelt from the U.S., Prime Minister Winston Churchill of England, and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin. They discussed how to deal with Germany and the rest of Europe after WWII, and the strategies for how the Soviets would enter into the war in the Pacific against Japan. -
Fall of Berlin
On April 16, 1945, Russia took 20 armies, 6,300 tanks, and 8,500 warplanes to attack Hitler and his army in Berlin, Germany. The Russian army surrounded the city by April 24, 1942 and had defeated the Nazis and Hitler. Hitler committed suicide in his underground bunker in the city center as the Russia troops closed in on him. This battle ended the war with Hitler and Nazi Germany -
Death of Hitler
After the heavy blow by the Russians defeating the Nazis in Berlin, Germany, Hitler retreated to his underground bunker in the Chancellery building 50 feet below ground. He quickly married his secretary, Eva Braunn. Eva killed herself by drinking poison and Hitler shot himself in the head. Their bodies were found and carried up into the streets and burned by two of Hitler's military aides as they saluted their leader's ashes. -
Meeting at Potsdam
The meeting at Potsdam was the last World War II conference between the allied leaders including President Truman of the United States, Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin, and Prime Minister Churchill from England. They discussed ways to punish Germany, how to deal with land boundaries, and Europe in the post war. They also demanded the Emperor of Japan to surrender. -
Hiroshima
An American bomber plane dropped the first ever atomic bomb over the city of Hiroshima, Japan. The bombing killed 80,000 Japanese people immediately and many more thousands would die over time due to radiation poisoning. Three days later, another atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki in order to try to get Emperor Hirohito to surrender. He surrendered and World War 2 was ended.
