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During the Holocaust the Nazi German regime killed six million European Jews. It began when Adolf Hitler became leader in Germany. The persecution of the Jews was racially motivated. Germany also excluded the Jews from economic, political, social, and cultural life. They also forced the Jews into labor and concentration camps. The Nazis also had organized killing centers where they would kill the Jews in the gas chamber. -
Germany invaded Poland on September 1st, 1939. Germany started by spreading propaganda so Hitler could campaign against Poland. They falsely accused Poland of plotting to dismember Germany. When Germany invaded they deployed 60 divisions and about 1.5 Million men. Polish casualties numbered 66,000 dead, 130,000 wounded, and 400,000 captured out of 800,000 troops. Britain and France declared war on Germany 2 days later. -
The Battle of Britain was a major air force battle between Germany and Great Britain. There were several phases in this battle lasting for about 4 months. It also ended in a defensive victory for Britain. More than 1,700 German planes were destroyed and Britain lost 1,250 aircrafts. There were 700 fatalities in this battle. -
Germany initiated a surprise attack on the Soviet Union. The invasion took place near Moscow. It one one of the largest and most powerful invasions in history with Germany allotting nearly 150 divisions with 3,000,000 men. The Soviets brought up nearly 300 divisions. Based on Soviet archives: 566,852 killed in action, 235,339 died from non-combat, and 1,336,147 wounded. The aftermath of this invasion began the start of the mass murders of Jews. -
Pearl Harbor is a U.S military base in Hawaii. On December 7th, 1941 Japan had a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. Japanese fighter planes damaged 20 American naval vessels, eight battleships, and 300 airplanes. Over 2,400 Americans were killed while 1000 were injured. This event lead America to enter the world war. Franklin Roosevelt asked congress to enter the war the very next day.