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1940: The Battle of Britain
The battle of Britain, as the RAF defense of the country was called, was one of the most important battles in the history of the world. Never after October 1940 did Hitler seriously consider invading Britain. -
1941:The Pearl Harbor Attack
The Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Sunday, December 7, 1941. The attack came without warning very early in the morning. Japanese officially declared war on the United States
The United States Congress declared that a state of war had existed since December 7, 1941. -
1942:Preview of Things to Come for the Japanese.
May 1942 the British had withdrawn from Burma and focused on the defense of India. The Japanese had achieved their objective of cutting off supplies to the Chinese. -
1943:Battle of Kursk
The Soviet counterattack against the Germans gained full power by January 1943. The Soviets forced the Axis armies from Stalingrad, Kharkiv, and Smolensk.
The Battle of Kursk (July 5–August 23) was the largest tank battle of the war. By the end of the year the Soviets had reached the Polish border of 1939. -
1944:Bombing of the Japanese
A Japanese attack toward Changsha, begun on May 27, won control not only of a stretch of the Beijing-Hankou railroad but also of several of the airfields from which the Americans had been bombing the Japanese. -
1945:The End of Hitler!/V-G Day
Despite the utter hopelessness of the German cause Hitler remained defiant in his underground Berlin bunker. The Soviets attacked Berlin on April 21. To escape capture by the Soviets Hitler committed suicide the night of April 30.
On May 4 British General Bernard Montgomery received the surrender of the Germans in Denmark, the Netherlands, and northwestern Germany. General Alfred Jodl signed a surrender at Reims on May 7.
