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Japan attacked and invaded China in its effort to expand its territory. It was able to conquer China, and from there attempted to expand to the rest of the Pacific. Eventually, they tried to attack the United States, which was one of the costliest mistakes of World War II. -
Beginning with bombing, Hitler used his air-force to destroy Polish supply lines, communication lines, and air-fields. Shortly following the bombing, Hitler sent ground troops, including tanks, to quickly plow through the countries forces. Finally, he then sent infantry to eradicate any remaining resistance. -
The Blitzkrieg was first used in WWII during the German Invasion of Poland. The Germans used an air-ground attack method as well as the Panzer Tank Division in order to annihilate the severely outmatched Polish troops. -
Operation Barbarossa was an all out German invasion of the Soviet Union. The three million German troops, spread across two thousand miles, forged into the USSR's territory. Because of their failure, the Germans became overwhelmed by a war on two fronts against enemies with vastly superior amounts of resources. -
Japanese aircraft flew toward Pearl Harbor in Hawaii and used their new torpedo technology to sink the American battleships that were all gathered in one place. They did this to stop America from interfering with Japanese military affairs. Instead, the United States declared war on Japan. -
The Wannsee Conference was a gathering of Nazi leaders to discuss the Final Solution. They talked about what the best method for Jewish extermination was without ever saying extermination. Eventually, they settled on the gas chambers that were killing upward of 1,000 Jews per day. -
Operation Gomorrah was an Allied plan to start a bombing campaign on Germany. After Germans had bombed and killed British civilians, the British bombed Hamburg, Germany for four months, dropping 9,000 tons of bombs, killing 30,000 people and destroying 280,000 buildings. At the same time, the United States bombed Germany during the day. -
Also called the beginning of the end of war in Europe, D-Day was when 130,000 Allied forces landed on a beach in France and started their campaign to free Western Europe from Germans. Despite taking heavy casualties, Allied troops were victorious in taking back Normandy. -
This was Germany's last major offensive in WWII. They attempted to split up allied troops, but were met with incredible US troops. This battle was the bloodiest battle in the war for the United States. It cost them, 100,000 soldiers. These lives were not lost in vain though, as the Americans were able to claim victory in this battle of attrition. -
Operation Thunderclap, otherwise known as the bombing of Dresden, was to clear a path for the Red Army. Even though the city had nothing to do with German war production, the United States leveled the city to ruins in three days, killing around 25,000 civilians. -
Iwo Jima was a Japanese-controlled island that would need to be taken in order to defeat Japan. After sustaining heavy casualties and out maneuvering Japanese troops, US forces were able to overcome the Japanese and gained control of Iwo Jima. -
The battle of Okinawa was the last major battle of the war because US forces were able to out-gun the Japanese and force them out of Okinawa. While the US did lose approximately 12,000 lives, Japan lost nearly ten times that amount at approximately 110,000, as well as thousands of Okinawan citizens. -
VE Day is the day after the Germans officially surrendered unconditionally. The Germans, who were forced into an area of just thirty square miles, had no other choice but to surrender after Hitler poisoned his wife and killed himself. -
Because Japan was not backing down, the US dropped the first ever Atomic Bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Tens of thousands died in the explosion, and many more from radiation poisoning. Most of the lives lost in the explosion were just civilians. -
Three days after the first Atomic Bomb was dropped, a second, slightly larger one was dropped on Nagasaki, another Japanese city. This bomb killed tens of thousands more, bringing the death toll up to approximately 120,000 civilians. -
Victory over Japan Day is a day that celebrated the surrendering of Japan. The Japanese, after being bombed by the US and invaded by the Soviet Union, surrendered to the US, Britain, and Soviet Union.
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