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Germany's Invasion of Poland
Hitler realized that his total control of Europe invovled neutralizing Poland, therefore gaining a non-aggression assurance from the Soivet Union. This prepared Germany for battle with Britain and France in the West. After heavy shelling and bombing, Poland surrendered to the Germans and it remained under German occupation until January 1945. -
German Blitzkrieg
German term for "lightning war," Blitzkrieg is a military tactic designed to create disorganization in enemy forces through the use of mobile forces. Its successful execution results in short military campaigns, which preserves human lives. German forces tried out the Blitzkrieg in Poland in 1939 before successfully employing the tactic with the invasion of Belgium, the Netherlands, and France in 1940. -
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was launched to begin the East front - the German invasion of the Soviet Union. The invasion plans were optimistic - a massive land and air campaign was launched and involved tanks, trucks, cars, aircraft, artillary, supply power and some 600,000+ horses. Germany made tremendous gains. The operation lasted from June to December of 1941. Soviet troops ended up escaping Hitler's movements on the battlefield. -
Pearl Harbor
Japan wanted to incorporate some part of the Pacific sphere sometime in the future. They set off on a large Japanese fleet toward Hawaii. The Americans were sure that the attack was imminent. Though detected on radars, the Japanese aerial formation was disregarded. The calm morning of December 7th was ruined by the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. -
Bataan Death March
Surrendered Filipino and American were rounded up by Japanese and were forced to march 65 miles. It is believed that thousands of troops died because of the brutality of their captors, who starved and beat the marchers, and bayoneted those too weak to walk. Survivors were taken by rail from San Fernando to prisoner-of-war camps, where thousands more died from disease, mistreatment and starvation. -
D-Day (Normandy Invasion)
American and Britis forces invaded Framce. They set up naval fleets along the north shores of France. The night before the proper invasion, Allied forces unleashed their well-trained paratroop forces which were made up abput of approximately 20,000 to 24,000 men. At 6:30 AM, the first of many Allied landings began in Northern France, formally initializing D-Day. This, in fact, was the amphibious assault in recorded history. -
Battle of the Bulge
While Hitler was constructing the Ardennes Offensive, his main goal was to reach the post city of Antwerp and disrupt the Allied front. The hope was to split Canadian, British and American forces, therefore providing Germany with the element of surprise. The surprise was unveiled on December 16th, 1944 when the German army opened one of their largest displays of artillary bombardment. The Battle of the Bulge was stopped by mid-February 1945 and all gains by the German army were undone. -
Battle of Okinawa
The island of Okinawa was the last stop for American forces until the mainland (Japan). The Japanese began to defend their island and involved 85,000 people. The largest and most powerful battleship ever built was the IJN Yamato and was spotted by US Aircraft on April 7th. Kamikazes were launched toward US Navy vessels.The battle was officially over with a victory from the Allies. -
Liberation of Concentration Camps
On the day of liberation, an underground prisoner resistance organization seized control of Buchenwald to prevent atrocities by the retreating camp guards. American forces liberated more than 20,000 prisoners at Buchenwald. The liberated Jews experienced traumatic torture. -
VE Day
Also known as "Victory in Europe Day," on 30 April, Adolf Hitler, the Nazi leader, committed suicide during the Battle of Berlin. Germany's surrender, therefore, was authorized by his successor, Reichspräsident Karl Dönitz. The administration headed by Dönitz was known as the Flensburg Government. The act of military surrender was signed on 7 May in Reims, France and on 8 May in Berlin, Germany. -
Dropping of the Atomic Bombs
A medium-sized reactor built at Oak Ridge produced uranium-235 and plutonium, both of which would be used as vital components in the atomic bomb. The Oak Ridge facility produced the majority of uranium used to build the “Little Boy” bomb that would be dropped over the Japanese city of Hiroshima in August 1945. -
VJ Day
On August 14, 1945, it was announced that Japan had surrendered unconditionally to the Allies, effectively ending World War II. Since then, both August 14 and August 15 have been known as “Victoryover Japan Day,” or simply “V-J Day.” The term has also been used for September 2, 1945, when Japan’s formal surrender took place aboard the U.S.S. Missouri, anchored in Tokyo Bay.
