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German Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg was a plan of attack that relied on surprise, speed, and concentration of force. Germany used this when they invaded Poland in 1939, as their army was far superior in weapons, tanks, and aircrafts. They wanted to surprise enemy forces by changing up the warfare strategies that the people were expecting from WW1. This was a successful strategy for the Germans, as they were able to take over Poland. This is what signalled the beginning of World War Two. -
Fall of Paris
Paris had prepared for war with Germany after they invaded Poland, but were unprepared for their Blitzkrieg tactic. The Germans focused two thirds of their army on the Ardennes region of Belgium, which the French army did not reinforce because they thought the Germans would not be able to get through the heavily forested area. France surrendered, Germany invaded the city, and the British armies went home. At this point, Germany had control over the entire Western Coast of Europe. -
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the largest military invasion in all of history. Hitler was looking to invade the Soviet Union, because he believed Germany needed to be saved from their communist government. The attack wasn't just about territory, it was about racial and political extermination. In the end, Stalin forbid the 2.9 million troops from backing down from the German attacks. Millions of Soviet soldiers were captured prisoner in the first months of the war. -
Pearl Harbor
Japan and The United States had been in an arms race for 20 years, and while Europe was in war the U.S. and Japan decided to expand their territory into Asia. Japan took over Indochina, and as retaliation the U.S. cut off their trade in areas such as steel and oil which were very important to the Japanese war effort. This is when Japan bombed the American Pacific Fleet based at Pearl Harbor. This is when America joined the war to take down Hitler, and to deal with Japan in the future. -
Battle of Midway
The Japanese were planning a secret attack on the U.S. while they were busy with the war in Europe, but they didn't know the Americans had cracked their military code. This means, the Americans knew the Japanese were coming and were able to plan a trap for them. 4 Japanese aircraft carriers were destroyed in the battle, as well as 248 aircraft. This was the first major victory for the Allies, and Midway Island is still considered U.S. territory. -
Wannsee Conference
15 Nazis held this meeting where they decided to exterminate all the Jew's. The outcome of this was concentration camps, where they initially sent Jews to work to death but decided that was taking too long. Built gas chambers instead, which were made to look like showers so they could trick Jews into thinking they were just showering. 40% of the Jewish population were executed to do this. -
Allied Invasion of Italy
The allies wanted to get rid of Italy in the fight for World War 2, so they decided to use their military power to invade. They also wanted Germany to have to split some of their army away from the Soviet Union. Italians killed their leader, Benito Mussolini, and surrendered. Just because Italy had reached an agreement doesn't mean the battle was over, and they ended up continuing their fighting in Italy. The outcome of this was Germany having to split up their army. -
D-Day (Normandy Invasion)
This is the day the Allies finally started the two-front war against Germany. Around 156 000 Allied forces landed on the 5 beaches of the Normandy area, and it was on of the largest military invasions in history. German army was pushed back out of France. After this, Germany's army was split in 3, and they were also losing to the Soviet Union. The outcome of this was the victory over Germany. -
Battle of the Bulge
This was the last German attempt at pushing the allies away from the Western front, and split them up. By January, Hitler had failed his attempt of making the Allies surrender and his soldiers were out of supplies. It was also winter time, which slowed down the German troops and the Allies were able to win the battle. The outcome of this battle was basically the ruining of the German army, and the end of the war with Germany. -
Liberation of Concentration Camps
After Germany surrendered and Hitler died, Germany was split up between the 4 allies, Great Britain, America, France, and The Soviet Union. When they were taking the land over, they discovered the Concentration Camps within Germany full of deathly prisoners. The camps killed thousands of Jewish and Nazis were put on trial for the horrifying things the Allies discovered once they were in Germany. -
Battle of the Iwo Jima
The battle of Iwo Jima was between the U.S. Marines and Imperial Army of Japan. They were fighting on the small island of Iwo Jima, and it was the first battle on Japanese territory. U.S. wanted the island as a place for planes and bombers to land when attacking Japan. The battle lasted over a month, and it was quite a bloody battle. The impact of this battle was a great loss in American troops, though they did end of winning the battle and taking the land for themselves. -
Battle of Okinawa
This was the last big battle of World War 2. At this point, the war in Europe was getting close to its end. Japan had about 130 000 men defending the island of Okinawa, but when American troops got to the island the masses of soldiers they expected to see were not there. This is when the Code of Bushido really came into play, and it ended with Japanese throwing themselves off cliffs instead of surrendering. This is what lead to the dropping of the atomic bombs. -
VE Day
Victory in Europe day is used to celebrate the day Germany finally surrendered. The war wasn't quite over, with the fighting in Japan still going on, but defeating Hitler finally was a huge success for the allies. Hitler had control over basically all of Western Europe, and to finally win it back was huge. VE day celebrates the end of much suffering, and was a huge relief for many European countries. It was the end of Nazi Germany. -
Dropping of the Atomic Bombs
There was attempts to get Japan to surrender, but they followed the Code of Bushido. This made the Japanese believe that it was shameful to surrender, and that going down in battle was a more honorable option. America had been creating the bomb for years, under the guise of the Manhattan Project, and decided that this was the way to get Japan to surrender. They dropped the first bomb on Hiroshima, and a second on Negasaki 3 days later. Japan surrendered, and this lead to the end of WW2. -
VJ Day
Victory in Japan is the day Japan finally surrendered, and the war finally ended. After an exhausting 6 years of war, it was finally over. It was ended with the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Britain, U.S., and the other countries fighting along with them had finally secured victory in Japan. -
Sources
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/blitzkrieg
https://dailyhistory.org/Why_was_France_defeated_in_1940%3F
https://www.britannica.com/event/Operation-Barbarossa/Later-actions
https://www.ducksters.com/history/world_war_ii/battle_of_midway.php nohttps://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/d-daytes:
Operation Barbarossa-The Plan, Control of the Pacific: Japan VS United States, Pearl Harbor, The Attack Upon The Soviet Union, The Wannsee Conference, The Final Count, War in The West -
Source 2.0
https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/battle-of-the-bulge?series=13
https://www.historynet.com/battle-of-the-bulge
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history/rise-to-world-power/us-wwii/a/the-manhattan-project-and-the-atomic-bomb
nohttps://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/d-daytes:
https://www.ducksters.com/history/world_war_ii/battle_of_iwo_jima.php#:~:text=It%20was%20the%20first%20major,take%20off%20when%20attacking%20Japan.
notes:
Overall Allied Strategy Against Japan, -
Source 3.0
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/victory-in-europe
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/33945717#:~:text=Victory%20over%20Japan%20Day%20%2D%20or,together%20%2D%20marked%20victory%20over%20Japan.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/italian-campaign
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-okinawa
