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During the Japanese invasion of China, the Chinese capital, Nanking fell to the Japanese. The Japanese General Matsui decided to destroy the city the break Chinese spirit. They burned the city, killed about 200,000 males, and raped 20,000 girls killing and mutilating many in the process. After the war General Matsui was executed for war crimes. History.com -
Blitzkrieg means lightning war in German. It was a war tactic used by Nazi Germany. They used this tactic because they wanted to avoid a long, drawn out war. The tactic worked and Germany was able to invade many countries in a short time. In less than two years the Germans successfully used the tactic on nine countries. They had a lot of success in the war with the tactic. History.com, encyclopedia.ushmm.org. -
Germany invaded Paris. The people in Paris woke to the Germans on loudspeakers imposing a curfew. Before Germany got to Paris millions had fled the city. France didn't receive much help from the United States who wanted to stay out of the war. The effect was that many of the people who stayed in Paris were interrogated, arrested, or spied on. Jews and other people were taken to concentration camps. History.com -
This was German invasion of the Soviet Union. The invasion surprised the Soviets because the Germans and Soviets signed a treaty two years earlier agreeing not to take military action against each other. When they attacked, they'd invaded much of Western Europe leaving only Britain. Germany turned its expansion to the East. Hitler predicted it would be a quick victory, but Soviet resistance and a harsh winter stopped them. Fighting a war on two fronts was ultimately their downfall. History.com -
The Japanese mounted a surprise aerial attack on the US naval base. It was unexpected and Pearl Harbor was relatively unguarded. Tensions had been mounting between the US and Japan for about a decade. The US also was trying to stop Japan's global expansion. The Japanese wanted to expand and control the Pacific so they bombed Pearl Harbor to pave the way for this. The effect of this attack was the US joined the war. Eventually bombing Hiroshima and Nagasaki. History.com -
The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle between the the US and Japanese navies. The US won the battle, defending their major base on Midway Island well. The Japanese attacked because they thought they had a numeral advantage over the States and they wanted to continue the success they had at Pearl Harbor. They aimed to crush the United States as a naval power and turn the tide of World War II. After, Japan gave up hopes of expanding into the Pacific and went onto the defensive. History.com -
The Bataan Death March took place after the Japanese took the Bataan Peninsula on the Philippine Island of Luzon from the US. The Japanese had just begun invading the Philippines following the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The Japanese forced 75,000 Filipino and US troops on a 65-mile march to prison camps through tough conditions. Thousands died on the march. They were beaten and starved by the Japanese. The Japanese Lieutenant who ordered the march was later executed for war crimes. History.com -
At the Wannsee Conference Nazi officials met to speak about the Final Solution of the Jewish question. They spoke about the best way to kill all of the Jews. It happened because Hitler instructed them to come up with a general plan of what administrative, material, and financial measures would be needed. They decided that people who survived the work camps would be killed. Another effect was that the conference provided evidence in the Nuremberg war crimes trials. History.com -
On D-Day around 156,000 American, British, and Canadian soldiers landed on five beaches in Normandy, France. The invasion was one of the largest amphibious assaults ever. The Allies extensively planned the assault and deceived the Germans into thinking that they'd attack somewhere else. The effect of the D-Day invasions was the Allies retook northwestern France and Paris. They prepared to enter Germany. The D-Day attack turned the tide of the war. History.com -
The Battle of the Bulge was in Belgium and was Hitlers last major offensive against the Western Front. Hitler was trying to split the Allies on their way to Germany. The battle was the costliest ever for the US Army who suffered 100,000 casualties. The Allies dug in and the line looked like a large bulge which is how the battle got its name. The effect was that after the Allied victory the German army was dealt an irreparable blow and it brought about the end of the war. History.com -
This was a battle over the island of Iwo Jima between the marines and Japan. The US wanted to take over the island because of the strategic value it provided. It was located 750 miles off the Japanese coast and had three airfields that could help the US possibly invade Japan. It lasted five weeks and thousands were killed and injured. The effect of this battle wasn't great. The US couldn't even use Iwo Jima as a staging area so they didn't have much use for the island. History.com -
The Allies liberated Nazi concentration camps. When soldiers got to the camps many were horrified by what they saw and did everything they could to help the sick and starving prisoners of the camps. They evacuated the people out of the camps. The effects was the prisoners were freed and much more was found out about the death camps. encyclopedia.ushmm -
VE Day stands for Victory in Europe Day. This is the day in 1945 that Britain and America celebrated the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II. The Germans surrendered on this day with a cease fire. Russia celebrated this day on May 9 because they lost 600 soldiers before the Germans surrendered. Thousands of prisoners of war were also released on VE Day. As an effect of the German surrender the war in Europe was over. History.com -
The Americans dropped atomic bombs onto Hiroshima and Nagasaki Japan on August 6 and 8. The bombs killed tens of thousands and shortly after the event Japan surrendered. The operation was codenamed the Manhattan Project. The Americans did it because after the surrender of Germany, Japan refused to surrender and vowed to fight to the end. The effect was thousands were killed and Japan surrendered. History.com -
Victory of Japan Day was the day that it was announced that Japan had surrendered to the Allies. Japan's formal surrender happened on September 02, 1945 on the U.S.S. Missouri in Tokyo Bay. The day was celebrated and Times Square (pictured) was filled with people celebrating. Today some people celebrate it as a holiday and there are parades in some parts of the country.