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Germany's Invasion of Poland
Poland is the first country Germany invaded as part of its lebensraum (living space) plan. Germany made an agreement with Russia to split Poland and become allies once the attack was complete. Poland was taken over by Germany to provide more space for its people, and to unite the German speaking people from Poland with the Germans. The polish resisted but were greatly outnumbered. -
German Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg was German for lightning war. It was a tactic used to quickly defeat an enemy. German troops would arrive on a beach or a front and take over that area, allowing tanks and armored units to get in to the country. The tanks would then flank enemies in order to get them from behind or off guard. The strategy was extremely effective and led to the capture of many European countries. -
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was Hitler's attempt to take over the Soviet Union. He prepared an army of 3 million and 3000 tanks to invade. He made it 2/3 of the way to Moscow when winter hit and his army ran low on supplies. This caused a slow retreat and the eventual defeat of Hitlers's army. Operation Barbarossa caused Germany to have to fight a two front war it couldn't handle. -
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor was an American naval/air base in Hawaii. On December 7th Japanese attacked the base because the United States had several hundred air craft and many destroyer ships relatively unguarded. The Japanese successfully destroyed several ships and aircraft. This led to the U.S. entry in to world war 2. -
Battle of Midway
the battle of Midway was a Japanese offensive against the U.S. Controlled island of Midway. However the U.S. had intelligence that the attack was going to take place and carried out a preemptive strike against the Japanese fleet. This prevented the Japanese from doing as much damage as they could have. -
Allies invade Italy
On September 3, Montgomery’s 8th Army began its invasion of the Italian mainland and the Italian government agreed to surrender to the Allies. By the terms of the agreement, the Italians would be treated with leniency if they aided the Allies in expelling the Germans from Italy. Later that month, Mussolini was rescued from a prison in the Abruzzo Mountains by German commandos and was installed as leader of a Nazi puppet state in northern Italy. -
D-Day Invasion of Normandy
The invasion of Normandy was a British attack on German controlled France. The British setup fake armies and tanks, while also transmitting fake broadcasts to make Germans believe they were going to attack at the narrowest point of the English Channel. However they attacked several beaches along the coast. This attack led to the recapture of France from German control. -
Battle of the Bulge
The battle of the bulge was a counter offensive attack by the Germans using the blitzkrieg strategy of war. The objective of the attack was to hold back the advancing American troops and capture important bridgeheads. The attack wasn't successful however, the Americans suffered 100,000+ casualties. General George Patton redirected his army to intercept the advancing Germans and he defeated them. -
Battle of Okinawa
The battle of Okinawa was a Japanese defense against the United States. The United States was driving towards Japan trying to get them to surrender and Okinawa was an island the Japanese still had control of. The U.S. tried to take the island but Japanese defended it with kamikaze pilots and troops on suicide missions. The Japanese achieved their goal of holding off the United States and causing as many casualties as possible. -
VE Day
VE Day stands for Victiry in Europe day. VE Day was the celebration of the surrender of Germany. The Germans completely surrendered and ended world war 2. -
Dropping of the atomic bombs
Two atomic bombs were dropped, one on Nagasaki and one on Hiroshima. Combined the bombs killed an estimated 200,000 people. The bombs were dropped as an alternative to invading Japan and fighting a long war. The bombs caused a quick surrender by Japan and led to VJ Day. -
VJ Day
VJ day was short for Victory in Japan day. VJ Day was the day Japan surrendered to the United States and ended the war. The surrender was a direct effect of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
