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Germany's invasion of Poland
German forces pushed into Poland along the border and advanced into warsaw. Germany invaded Poland to regain lost territory and rule that land. This invasion of Poland sparked the start of the war. Britain and France declared war on Germany because of this invasion. They didn't want Germany to dominate at all, so they came to the aid of Poland.
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/germany-invades-poland -
German Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg was a german word that meant lighting war. The Germans wanted to use this quick fighting style to attack their enemies and end the war quickly. This style of attack needed lots of offensive weapons to be successful. This style also didn't allow enemy forces to rebuild anything or strengthen their army at all.
https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/blitzkrieg-lightning-war -
Battle of Britain
The battle of Britain was a battle between Germany and Britain in which Germany had planned numerous air raids. The plan was to expose most of Britain so the ground troops could expand further into Britain. However, the Royal Air Force helped to stop this attack which kept Britain from further being attacked by Germany.
https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Britain-European-history-1940 -
Pearl Harbor
The pearl harbor attack was an attack on a US Naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. Hundreds of Japanese fighter planes attacked the harbor and destroyed close to 20 naval ships, eight battleships, and close to 300 planes. This attack was a surprise attack however the US and Japan had been getting close to war prior to this attack. Japan was not cooperating well with its neighbors and wanted to control the markets around china and the US did not agree with that at all.
https://www.history.com -
Battle of the Coral Sea
The Battle of the Coral Sea was a battle between the US and Japan. Japan first succeeds in occupying Tulagi of the Solomon Islands. The US army had intercepted a war code that there was going to be an invasion. This was the first air-naval battle in history. Japan would end up occupying the Solomon islands, however, they lost many experienced pilots and aircraft carriers so they had to cancel their expedition to Port Moresby.
www.history.com -
Battle of Midway
The battle of Midway was a battle between the US navy and the Japanese Navy. Japan wanted to neutralize the US's naval power by defeating the base at Midway. However Japan was unsuccessful and the US took victory which not only kept the US as a strong Naval power, it also kept Japan on their side and limited their ability to try and take over the pacific side. This win boosted the US's morale and drained Japans.
www.history.com -
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was a military campaign between Russia, Nazi Germany, and the Axis powers. This battle was known as one of the largest, longest, and bloodiest fights in modern warfare. There were lots of close-quarters fighting and nearly two million people died in the war. The Allied powers had won this battle and it was one of the first losses for Hitler. Many believed this was a turning point in the war and the start of many more victories for the allied powers
www.history.com -
Warsaw Ghetto uprising
The warsaw Ghetto uprising was an uprising in the Jewish ghetto in Nazi-occupied Warsaw. The Jews started an armed revolt to prevent deportations to Nazi-run extermination camps. This uprising also helped to inspire other uprisings against camps and ghettos all around German-occupied areas. The uprisers fought the germans for around a month however, many Jews were killed or captured and many synagogues were destroyed.
www.history.com -
D-Day
This battle was an attack on Nazi-occupied France in an attempt to neutralize the Nazis. There were around 156,000 troops that landed on the beaches of Normandy. The plan was to push the German troops from behind and from in front through paratroopers and also boats carrying troops from the beaches. However, this plan did not work too well and left mainly the men on the beaches to fight alone. The allies took the victory and believed that this was the start of the end of the war. www.history.com -
Battle of the Bulge
This battle was one of Hitler's last offensive battles in the war. His aim was the divide the allies and prevent them from further pushing into Germany. This battle was one of the costliest battles of the war for Americans with around 100,000 casualties. The battle took this name because of the way the allied line took shape, making it look like a large bulge. Germany failed in this war and was a big win for the allies helping to further advance victory.
www.history.com -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The battle of Iwo Jima was a battle between Japan's army and the US Marines. The island of Iwo Jima had three airfields that could help be a staging facility for an invasion of Japan. The battle lasted for around 5 weeks, in which only around 200 Japanese troops were left out of 21,000. There was also around 7,000 US marine casualties. The US won the battle however it was never used as a staging front to invade Japan. However, parts were rebuilt for emergency landings.
www.history.com -
Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa was one of the last major battles in WWII. U.S. Army and Marine Corps troops were pushed into the pacific island of Okinawa as a final push into Japan. They planned to invade and occupy the Ryukyu Islands, including Okinawa. There were lots of deaths in this final push due to kamikaze fighters, rainy weather, and fierce fighting on land, sea, and air. It ended as an Allied victory which was a good final victory to help further the end of the war
www.history.com -
VE day
VE day was a celebration of victory from Great Britain and the US. Cities in both of those countries as well as other European cities put up flags and banners which celebrated the defeat of Nazi Germany. This day was when German troops finally put down their arms.
www.history.com -
Dropping of the atomic bombs
The US had created atomic bombs which were available to use against Japan. There was a decision on whether to invade japan as an army or to drop the atomic bombs on them. Stalin had offered the US to help invade Japan knowing that the US had the atomic bomb and thought that if he helped he could gain some things that he wanted. The US decided to drop the bombs instead of invading to prevent the loss of hundreds of thousands of troops in Japan.
My notes -
VJ Day
On august 14, 1945, Japan had finally surrendered to the allies, which ended WWII. VJ day is known as victory over Japan day. People were very happy that Japan finally surrendered and it was a day of celebration especially considering the battles between the US and Japan. Truman said "This is the day when Fascism finally dies, as we always knew it would."
www.history.com