Timeline: WWII Timeline Project

Jul 7, 1939

Japanese invasion of China

A collision between Japanese and Chinese troops in China, to dismount the government of Chiang Kai-shek. Japanese forces were transferred to Southeast Asia opposing the Western Powers and their allies. In 1945 Japan ended its occupation of China because of their defeat by the Allies. Economically, they needed more resources and militaristically, they wanted to prove that they were strong and could conquer other countries.http://www.britannica.com/event/Sino-Japanese-War-1937-1945

Sep 1, 1939

German Blitzkrieg

Germany invaded much of Europe by a military tactic named the Blitzkrieg (lightning war) to build its empire. The tactic required weapons like tanks and planes. These forces causes shock and disorganization among the enemy defences. German air power stopped the enemy from resupplying and by that means from sending support to seal branches in the front. German forces could surround opposing troops and force surrender. https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005437

Sep 1, 1939

Germany’s invasion of Poland

In 1939 Poland have been Invaded by the Germans. Adolf Hitler took this action on the 1st of September 1939 at 4:45 am and Adolf has requested to make this move in order to defend the Germans who lived in Poland and were persecuted. Britain and France were not impressed at all from that action, in a matter of fact, it is known that this event led to world war II. http://www.johndclare.net/RoadtoWWII3_HitlerInvadesPoland.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/invasion_poland_01.shtml

May 10, 1940

Fall of Paris

German forces invaded France and the low countries in 1940 pushing the British and French forces back to the sea in Operation Dynamo. It happened at the beginning of WWII, because of Hitler's imperial ambitions. He wanted room for the German Empire, and more resources, in order to make Germany the dominant power in the world. A truce was signed between Germany and France, this action made France give in 2 million soldiers, held prisoners to Hitler. http://totallyhistory.com/the-battle-of-france/

Jun 22, 1941

Operation Barbarossa

Operation Barbarossa is known as one of the biggest military attacks of World War Two and was to have terrible consequences for the Russian people. Germany’s main targets were to gain more land for Germany and to control the oil fields of Azerbaijan to make them more strong and to gain more power. This war took pressure of the UK and brought the Soviet Union into World War II. Also, It enabled the Soviet Union to control East Europe.
http://www.sparknotes.com/history/european/ww2/section5.rhtml

Dec 7, 1941

Pearl Harbor

Japanese planes attacked the American naval base located in Pearl Harbor at Honolulu, Hawaii. It was a strategy embraced by the Japanese government to put a hold on the unneeded intrusion of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the internal affairs of Japan. The bombardment lasted just 2 hours and demolished 20 American naval vessels, 8 battleships, and more than 300 airplanes. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan. Link text

Jun 4, 1942

Battle of Midway

The Battle of Midway was one of the greatest battles of WWII and it happened near the Midway Island in the Pacific Ocean. It was the turning point of the war in the Pacific between the United States and Japan. This fight happened as a reaction from the united states after Japan have bombed Pearl Harbor 6 months earlier. This battle destroyed Japan’s marine strength, and killed a lot of people. effectivelyhttp://totallyhistory.com/battle-of-midway/

Jul 17, 1942

Battle of Stalingrad

The battle of Stalingrad is between Germany, its allies and the Soviet Union, it's considered to be the turning point in WWII. One of the main reasons that pushed the Germans to attack Stalingrad was because Stalingrad was a major industrial city on the Volga River and was considered as a vital transport route between Caspian Sea and Northern Russia. This battle ended very badly for the German’s and has destroyed their 6th Army.http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-stalingrad

Aug 13, 1942

Manhattan project

The Manhattan Project was a secret military project built in 1942 to create the first US nuclear weapon in the world and the main purpose of creating such atomic Bomb is to end WWII and show the US strength against the Germans. The creation of this Nuclear bomb has led to wipe two main cities in Japan “Hiroshima” and “Nagasaki”.
http://www.britannica.com/event/Manhattan-Project

Apr 19, 1943

Warsaw Ghetto Uprising

Jewish resistance fighters fought against the German army during the Warsaw ghetto uprising, it began after German troops arrived to the ghetto to deport its surviving residents and had destroyed the uprising. Jewish survivors were deported to concentration camps or killing centers. Warsaw Ghetto held many people before Germany attacked them. The rest had died of hunger, disease, and others were taken away to slave labor and death camps.

Jul 24, 1943

Operation Gomorrah

Operation Gomorrah was a bombing military operation that took place in the European Theatre of Operations during World war II. The disposition for Operation Gomorrah were signed on May 27, 1943. The bombing began on the night of July 24, 1943 and continued until August 3. It destroyed a percentage of the city of Hamburg. The raid shook the Nazi's making Hitler concerned that other cities could force Germany out of the war. http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/aerialcampaigns/p/gomorrah.htm

Sep 3, 1943

Allied invasion of Italy

Allied forces started their invasion of Italy beginning with British forces skipping across the Strait of Messina to Calabria.Their plan was to direct a net across the Italian peninsula while the British army chased the Germans into it from the South. Italy was still an ally to Germany. King Victor Emanuel III had his successor take Italy out of the war after the fall of Sicily. To the Axis, this was viewed as a success. Also, Mussolini got overthrown as head of the Italian government.

Jun 6, 1944

D-Day (Normandy Invasion)

The Allied Powers attack the beaches of Normandy, France by crossing the English Channel. It began the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control during World War II. D-Day was the biggest invasion conveyed by sea in history. More than 150,000 Allied troops invaded Western Europe. The operation was proved to be a turning point in World War II. http://edition.cnn.com/2013/06/03/world/europe/d-day-fast-facts/ http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/d-day

Feb 13, 1945

Operation Thunderclap

The bombing of Dresden, eastern Germany, was when the United states and Britain Air Forces bombed the city. Many feel this bombing shouldn't have occurred since the war already ended and Germany was defeated. The city of Dresden had no military importance, it was full of innocent citizens. The main goal was to help the Soviet Union advance by damaging areas of the German east Front. The mission ended up making the Germans lose their confidence and heartbreaking civilian morale.

Feb 19, 1945

Battle of Iwo Jima

The U.S invasion that landed from the sea of Iwo Jima during WWII stemmed from the need for a base near the Japanese coast, 3 U.S marine divisions landed on the island in February 1945. Iwo Jima was protected by 23,000 Japanese troops who fought from a complicated network of caves, tunnels and underground installations. Regardless of the strain of the conditions, the marines wiped out the defending forces after a month of combating. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-iwo-jima

Apr 1, 1945

Battle of Okinawa

Last and biggest of the Pacific island combat of WWII, the Okinawa (April 1—June 22, 1945) associated with 287,000 troops of the U.S. Okinawa was to show a bloody battle even by the standards of the war in the Far East. By the end of the 82-day campaign, Japan had lost more than 77,000 soldiers and the Allies had suffered more than 65,000 casualties, including 14,000 dead. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-okinawa

May 8, 1945

VE Day

Britain and U.S celebrate Victory in Europe Day. Both nations and engaged cities in Western Europe put out flags and banners, cheering in the triumph over the Nazi war machine, this was recognised as the ending of WWII in Europe. Allied and Soviet forces met at the Elbe River, the German Army was destroyed, 5 days later, Hitler killed his dog, wife, then committed suicide. http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/victory-in-europe http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/VE-Day/

Aug 6, 1945

Dropping of the atomic bombs

The U.S was the only nation to use atomic weaponry during wartime, throwing an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, a city in Japan. They used the most powerful weapon created (atomic bombs) to end the war. The dropping of the bombs marked the end of WWII, historians argue that it also ignited the Cold War. The city was directly flattened, 80,000 people were killed and 35,000 were injured.http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/atomic-bomb-dropped-on-hiroshima http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/33733410

Aug 15, 1945

VJ Day

Japan had surrendered to the Allies, ending WWII. Since then, both August 14 and 15 have been known as “Victory over Japan Day". U.S President Truman stated that the Japanese Government had agreed with the Potsdam Declaration demanding the unlimited surrender of Japan.The term has also been used for Sep 2, 1945 when Japan’s surrender in U.S.S. Missouri, anchored in Tokyo Bay. http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/VJ-Day/ http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/v-j-day

Dec 24, 1945

Battle of the Bulge

Hitler divided the Allied armies by his famous tactic, the blitzkrieg, through the Ardennes to Antwerp. U.S military were not ready and so they fought desperately to restricts Germany's winnings. This event happened because the german army established a counterattack to cut through the Allies forces in a way that would return the war for hitler's favour. The battle of the bulge encountered over 100,000 casualties. Germans lost many weapons, mainly tanks.

May 12, 2016