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Rape of Nanjing
-During the Sino-Japanese War, the Japanese captured Nanjing, the capital of China. To break the spirit of a possible resistance, Japanese General Matsui ordered the city to be destroyed. This resulted in the murder of at most 300,000 people and the raping of at least 20,000.
-This genocide displayed the power and aggression of the Japanese military and the means in which to get their demands. The attribute they showed here certainly comes into play during the Pearl Harbor attack. -
Appeasement
-Name given to German policy to allow Hitler to expand German territory. British and France would give Germany these powers.
-This would give Hitler more and more power and confidence to do the things he was able to do. He was able to build the German military more powerful until it was strong enough to fight a major war. -
Munich Conference
-Agreement between Britain and Germany giving Germany the power to extend its territory into Czechoslovakia, where many German speaking people lived.
-This kept peace between the top powers of Europe by giving Adolf Hitler the power to annex Sudetenland with no conflict. -
German Annexation of Sudetenland
-Hitler claimed that the Czechoslovakian government were slaughtering the Sudeten Germans and that the Third Reich needed the land. At the Munich Conference with Britain, France, Italy, and Germany, the Sudetenland was ceded to Nazi Germany.
-The policy of appeasement shows that the Allies were willing to give Germany what they wanted in order to maintain peace. The event is also another step in Hitler’s aggression and the building of his empire before the invasion of Poland. -
Blitzkrieg
-First tested in the invasion of Poland, the “lightning war” intended to create disorganization for the enemy. They used the Luftwaffe (airforce), U-Boats, troops, and warships so the enemy could not focus on one specific front.
-This method proved successful in the invasions of Poland, France, Denmark, Belgium, etc and brought swift victory for the Germans (how they were seemingly unstoppable first with the speed in which they conquered the enemy). -
Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact
-Neutrality pact signed between Hitler and Stalin in which they agreed to take no military action against each other for the next 10 years.
-This shocked the world as Europe was on the brink of another war. The signing gave time for Stalin to build up his army without fear of a German invasion. Later in the war, Hitler went against his word and ordered for Operation Barbarossa. -
Invasion of Poland
-1.5 million German troops invaded the territory, Luftwaffe bombed airfields, U-Boats and warships attacked naval forces in Baltic Sea. 2 days later, Britain and France declared war on Germany
-The German invasion of a neutral Poland showed the world the might of blitzkrieg and that Germany wanted war. It is generally accepted that this event was the start of WWII. -
Battle of Britain
-German air raids (Luftwaffe) plagued Britain after the fall of France. However, the British air force held Axis powers off, preventing a further ground invasion near the English Channel. The battle was won by the Royal Air Force, Great Britain’s air defense.
-This important victory blocked the possibility of German invasion, but also created the conditions for Great Britain’s survival and the eventual defeat of the Nazi army. -
Desert War
-Mussolini (Italy) invaded Libya, and British troops rushed to North Africa’s aid. Erwin Rommel, a German general, helped with the invasion of Egypt and the eventual attacks on Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. US forces alongside Great Britain defeated the Axis powers and Italian Libya fell. Nearly 400,000 troops died in this campaign.
-The campaign in North Africa to capture Allied strongholds provided no positive result and only lead to thousands of lives lost on both sides. -
Operation Barbarossa
-This was the code-name for the German Invasion of the Soviet Union, becoming the biggest battleground of World War ll.
-This attack on the Soviet Union would become a failure for Germany and a turning point in the war. This marked a significant setback for the German military. -
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor: December 7th, 1941
-Japanese Navy attacked the United States base at Pearl Harbor. The Japanese intention was to destroy and damage as much of the US Pacific Fleet as possible.
-This attack fully brought the United States into World War ll and it became their battle. Still a big part in the United States today. -
Invasion of Italy
-After the invasion and victory by the allies in Sicily, General Patton and his army invaded the mainland and the Italian government chose to surrender. In the agreement, Italy would be treated better if they helped in expelling the Germany army from their homeland.
-The swift defeat in Sicily and the arrest of Mussolini lead to new orders in the Italian government, now against its Germany ally. The surrender of Italy to the Allies. -
D-Day
-Also called Operation Overlord, 156,000 British, American, and Canadian troops invaded the beaches of France’s Normandy, which was under the control of Germany. Prior to D-Day, the Allies carried out a deception operation intended to make Germany think the main target was Pas-de-Calais
-This marked the “beginning of the end of the war”. By the spring of 1945, France had been liberated and the Nazis had been defeated. -
Crossing of Rhine River (Operation Plunder)
-This was the advancement of Allied troops across the Rhine River.
-It would be the last major natural obstacle to the Allied advancement into Germany. German powers tried to resist this, but it would not last long. The Nazi's power at the top were coming to an end. -
Hiroshima & Nagasaki
-President Truman ordered that an American B-29 bomber drop the world’s first deployed atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima, wiping out 90 percent of the population and 80,000 people. Three days later, the B-29 dropped another on Nagasaki, killing 40,000 people.
-The decision to drop the bomb came from the rationale that it would end the deadly war quicker than sending troops into Japan. The Japanese showed no signs of slowing down before then.
