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The second Sino japanese war began as a result of the Japanese imperialistic policies; they took land and raw resources. in 1937, Japan took Shanghai and Nanking along with sevral other cities, but the war reached a stalemate in 1939. Eventually, the Chinese, backed by the US, beat the Japanese in 1945.
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It was believed that Germany and Russia were enemies, but they secretly agreed to invade Poland and split the benefits. Germany attack from the west while Russia attcked from the east.
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Germany wanted their Luftwaffe to be superior to England's RAF. In order to acheive this, they launched several air raids and bombings. Their attempts, however, proved to be uneffective.
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The Tripartite Pact was an agreement between Germany, Italy, and Japan to create a military coalition. After Japan waged war on the US, these countries, along with many others, also waged war on the US.
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The Lend Lease act allowed the US to send arms, defense materials, and money to other countries. This allowed the US to pitch in without being part of the war.
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The Blitzkrieg was a German military technique in which several waves of armored vehicles, infantry, and air support were sent out. "Blitzkrieg" is German for lightning war. This technique may have pushed the soviets to moscow, but they were defeated in Stalingrad.
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This was an attempt by the Geramns to cut off all roads leading to Leningrad. The Soviets eventually fought off all opposing forces and regained control of their roads.
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Japanese aerial forces initiated a suprise attack on Pearl Harbor. This ultimately lead to US's intervention in WWII.
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The Wannsee Conference wwas called to order so that the Germans could find a punishment for the Jewish Population; they decided on opening camps for jews.
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In the Battle of Midway, The Japanese sought to elimate the US, the opponent in the pacific. This, along with Soviet victory in Leningrad, marked the turning point for Allied victory in WWII.
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D-Day was when American and British forces stormed the coast of Normandy, France. This offensive eventually usurped German control in France.
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In this conference the US, Britain, and Russia united to discuss the punishments that should be placed on Germany.
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The Us fought hard to gain control of these pacific islands. Okinawa is revered as the bloodiest battle of the pacific.
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Both Hitler and his wife, Eva Braun, ingested cyanide and shot themselves in Hitler's bunker. When their bodies were found, they were cremated. (Hilter had been married less than two days when he killed himself.)
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Also known as Victory in Europe day, Europe and the US celebrated Germany's surrender.
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This confernce was held to decide how peace would be maintained within Europe. Harry S. Truman, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin decided to create the Allied Control Council to watch Germany and a Foreign Ministers Council.
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The United States decided to drop two atomic bombs, little boy and fat man, on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in order to save mnay American lives and end the war immediately.
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V-J Day, or victory in Japan day, is the celebration of Japan's withdrawal from WWII after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
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The UN was a revamped verion of the League of Nations, enforcing national peace and encouraging countries to cooperate.
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Created to assist other counties that were being pressured by authoritatrian governments.
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The US provided financial aid for European countries after WWII.
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The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was established to counteract the Warsaw pact. NATO was for the allied powers.
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Mao Zedong created the Communist People's Republic of China, which caused China to become even more separated from the US.
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North korea and South Korea, aided by by others with similar governments, were involved in a war that remained stagnant and divided Korea-even today.
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Stalin died of a cerebral hemorrhage. Khrushchev forced took advantage of sevral people and forced his way to the top.
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The USSR and several other communist Eastern Europe countries fomed a group similar to NATO. They agreed to defend against the Allies.
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The Vietnam war began as a civil conflict between North Vietnam/Viet Cong and South Vietnam. North Vietnam fought along the side of other communist countries as they tried to unite Vietnam as a single communist state. The south, however, was backed by the US an other anti-communists. The war ended April 30, 1975, with the North leaving victorious..
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This was the first artificial satellite launched into space. This began the space race between the US and Russia.
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The Bay of Pigs invasion began as a plan to overthrow Fidel Castro and the communist government of Cuba. This invasion was a failure, lasting only threee days.
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The wall dividing East and West Berlin fell. This time East Berlin spent in isolation made it fall behind thirty years. It fell on November 9, 1989.
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The Cuban Missile Crisis was the USSR's response to the Bay of Pigs Invasion and US missiles in Turkey and Italy, within miles of Moscow. The USSR sent missile to Cuba, who was within 90 miles of the US. Fortunately, the crisis was brief and lasted only 13 days. The conflict nearly started a full on nuclear war between the US and teh USSR.
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Last head of state for the USSR. He enforced the glasnost policies and won a Nobel Peace prize for improving the relationship between Russia and the world.
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After several parts of the USSR left, the union quickly fell apart.
