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Japanese Agression in Asia
It all started when Emperor Hirohito ascended to the throne in 1926. Japan was going through some tough times like an economic collapse and the Great Depression. In July 1937 Japan decided to invade China when they heard bombs go off on their side. This struck out into an incredible war called the "Rape of Nanking" which estimated 300,000 civilians slaughtered. -
Rise of Fascist Dictators in Europe
The fascists rose to power in Italy under the leadership of Benito Mussolini. Benito became the prime minister in 1922. He built a strong staff around him, banned criticism of the government, and used violence against opponents in the parliament. And in 1930, Adolf Hitler came to power and led one of the greatest armies this world has ever seen. -
Nazi Genocide
This began when Hitler came to power in 1933. The Nazi's exterminated a lot of different kinds of peope like Gypsies and homosexuals. After Germany conquered Poland in 1939, these deaths reached terrifying new levels. Death camps or also known as concentration camps came to be in 1941 where the Jews were put into these camps to die. -
Annexation of Austria
Austria was Hitler's birth country and that was the first place Hitler annexed during World War II. By the 1930s most Austrians were happy with the arrangement of having their own independent nation. By Jul 1934, the Nazi Party was so influential that the Chancellor of Austria banned all political parties except for the ruling Christian Social Party. -
Munich Conference
This was a settlement permitting Nazi Germany's annexation of Czechoslovakia's areas along the country's borders. This agreement was negotiated somewhere in Munich in 1938. The agreement was signed by Germany, France, the United Kingdom, and Italy. -
Nazi-Soviet Pact
Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union met and signed the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact in 1939. This made sure that Germany and the Soviet Union would not fight each other. Germany had protected itself from having to fight a two-front war in the soon-to-begin World War II by signing this. The Soviet Union was awarded land, including parts of Poland and the Baltic States. This pact was broken by Germany who attacked them in 1941. -
Phony War
A phase early in World War II that was marked by a lack of major military operations by the Western Allies. The phase was in the months following Britain and France's declaration of war on Germany. Another event during the Phony War was the Winter War against the Soviet Union and Finland. -
Fall of France
It all started when German started an armoured attack which would pass through the Maginot Line and cirle France. Germany quickly overcame Dutch forces. The bombing forced the Netherlands to surrender on May 15. Germany quickly passed into France and started beating them which required a general to order a retreat. -
Miracle at Dunkirk
This war was an important war between the Allies and Germany. This war was the defence and evacuation of British and allied forces in Europe. Hitler told his troops to back off of the Allies for three days so they could reorganize. This gave the Allies enough time to retreat which saved over than 300,000 troops. -
Battle of Britain
This was given the name due to the air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom. The whole objective of this battle was to gain air superiority over the Royal Air Force. This was the largest and most sustained aerial bombing campaign to this date. The failure of Germany to get Britain to surrender during this battle was a huge turning point during World War 2. -
Operation Barbarossa
This was the code name for Germany's attack on the Soviet Union. This was the largest invasion in history. In addition to the 4 million soldiers that Germany used, they also used over 600,000 motor vehicles and 750,000 horses. Hitler's plan failed against the USSR along with other plans in the future. Operation Barbarossa opened up the Eastern Front which was very important. -
Attack on Pearl Harbor
This was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor. The base was attacked by 354 Japanese fighters, bombers and torpedo planes. All eight U.S. Navy battleships were damaged, with four being sunk. 188 U.S. aircraft were destroyed. 2,402 Americans were killed and 1,282 wounded. -
Battle of El Alamein
This battle was fought in the northern parts of Africa. El Alamein was a last stand for the Allies in North Africa. Montgomery and Rommel were the two commanders that this battle was fought between. Rommel eventually had to retreat even though Hitler ordered him to keep fighting. -
Battle of Midway
The United States Navy decisively defeated an Imperial Japanese Navy six months after Pearl Harbor. The Japanese wanted to lure the United States Navy into a trap so they could be dominant against the U.S. This plan did not go well because of bad judgement of U.S. reactions by the Japanese. -
Battle of Stalingrad
This is where Nazi Germany and its allies fought the Soviet Union for a town called Stalingrad. Constant close-quarters combat and lack of regard for military and civilian casualties. Combined casualties reaching higher than 2 million. This battle lasted 5 months and ended with the failure of Germany. -
Invasion of Italy
This was an Allied landing on mainland Italy in 1943. The main invasion took place somewhere on the western coast of Italy in a place called Salerno. Two supporting operations took place in Calabria and Taranto. -
D-Day
This is when the Allied assault upon Hitler’s empire began. As more than 1,000 British bombers began to destroy Normandy, Rommel was in France celebrating his wife's birthday. When British and Canadian troops landed in Normandy, German troops were holding them off for a while and then troops started moving inland up to six kilometers. -
Battle of Berlin
The Red Army broke the German front and headed in land up to 40 kilometers a day. The battle of Berlin lasted 12 days. German troops got smashed when two fleets of infantry attacked them from the north and south. Before the battle was over, Adolf Hitler and a couple others committed suicide. This lead to a Soviet win. -
Battle of the Atlantic
This was the longest continuous military campaign in World War 2. The Battle of the Atlantic put U-boats and warships of the German Navy and aircrafts of the German Air Force against the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. The German blockade failed and the Allies won. -
Nazis defeated
Nazi Germany did not exist anymore after the Allied Forces defeated Wehrmacht. When the Allied Forces defeated Wehrmacht, this ended World War 2. Germany was overrun in 1945 by Soviets from the east and Allies from the West. This was a huge success in World War 2. -
Battle of Okinawa
This battle took place in the mountains of Okinawa. This battle was the longest amphibious battle which lasted 82 days. Japan lost over 100,000 soldiers and the Soviets lost over 65,000 soldiers. This lead to a Soviet success. -
Use of Atomic Weapons
An atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima instantly killing 80,000 civilians. Three days later, a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki which instantly killed 40,000 civilians. Since this time, over 100,000 scientists have been studying this bomb and how to make it bigger and better. -
Surrender of Japan
This brought the hostilities of World War 2 to and end. By the end of July in 1945, the imperial japanese navy was unable to attack anymore against allied forces. The Japanese were forced to surrender after the United States dropped atomic bombs on two cities (Hiroshima and Nagasaki). -
United Nations
The United Nations was found in 1945 after World War 2. The United Nations works on promoting and facilitating cooperation in law, security, economic development, social progress, human rights, civil rights, civil liberties, political freedoms, democracy, and the achievement of lasting world peace.