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Germany Invades Poland
German forces invaded Poland on land and in air. Hitler wanted to regain lost territory and to eventually take full control over Poland. Poland overestimated their military force, leading to their defeat at the hands of the Germans. This is the start of World War II. -
Pearl Harbor
Right before 8 a.m., hundreds of Japanese fighter planes attacked the American naval base at Pearl Harbor near Honolulu, Hawaii. The attack went on for only two hours, but it was devastating. Destroyed nearly 20 American vessels, 200 airplanes, killed over 2,000 troops, and wounded another 1,000. -
The United States Enters WW2
After Pearl Harbor, the people of the United States were united in their decision on the war. They wanted revenge on the Japanese for bombing them. So the United States declared war on Japan, bringing us into the war. -
Battle of Coral Sea
A four day skirmish, which was the first air-sea battle in history. Japan wanted to control the Coral Sea by invading Port Moresby in southeast New Guinea. Well their plan was intercepted by Allied forces. When Japan landed, they were attacked by American forces. The battle left the Japanese without enough planes to cover their ground forces at the Port. This resulted in a strategic Allied victory. -
Battle of Midway
6 months after Pearl Harbor, American aircrafts attacked and destroyed four Japanese carriers. The Americans came out on top in the end. This victory established their naval superiority in the Pacific. -
The Battle of Stalingrad
This battle was a successful defense of the Russian city of Stalingrad from the Germans. It is considered one of the most important battles of the war by the Russians. It stopped the Germans from advancing into the Soviet Union. It marked a turning point of the war, in favor of the Allies. This battle was one of the bloodiest in history, death totals reaching nearly 2 million. -
D-Day
General Eisenhower led Allied troops in an invasion at the beaches of Normandy. About 156,000 Allied forces invaded on five different beaches. It was one of the biggest amphibious military invasions in history. -
Hitler's Suicide
Hitler, the dictator of Germany, hid in an underground bunker in Berlin. With him were his newly wed and his dog. He consumed a cyanide pill and then shot himself, his wife, and his dog. -
V-E Day
On this day, some of the Allies celebrate their victory in Europe. This was the day that Germany finally surrendered to the Allies. It took the Soviets a little while longer to celibrate their victory. The Germans didn't want to lose their territory to the Soviets, so they continued to fight the Soviets. But when they saw they were losing too many troops, they finally surrendered to Russia. -
Bombing of Hiroshima
An American bomber dropped the first deployed atomic bomb on Hiroshima. The explosion destroyed 90% of the city and killed 80,000 people immediately. And later killing tens of thousands more from radiation exposure. -
Bombing of Nagasaki
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncq_Wye43TM
3 days after the bombing of Hiroshima, a second American bomber dropped another atomic bomb on Nagasaki. Killing around 40,000 people. -
V-J Day
It was said that Japan had surrendered to the Allies without any conditions. They surrendered in fear that the United States would drop a third atomic bomb on Tokyo. Some of the Japanese leaders refused to surrender. And when they were forced to, they committed the Japanese form of ritual suicide, seppuku.
