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Kristallnacht
Known as “The Night of Broken Glass” because of the broken windows of Jewish shops that were destroyed in Germany and Austria. Nearly every synagogue was destroyed. Jews were arrested and sent to concentration camps. The remaining Jews fled however possible. -
Wannsee Conference
A conference held outside of Berlin, Germany by the Nazi officials to figure out an “appropriate” way to eliminate all European Jews and other undesirable races. -
Start of the Battle of Stalingrad
The Germans began a campaign of bombing against the Red Army at Stalingrad, Soviet Union. The Red Army took a stand in Stalingrad and fought in house-to-house combat against the Germans. -
Battle of Stalingrad concludes
The cold winter came and the Soviet Union launched a desperate counterattack against the Germans. Because Hitler refused to allow a retreat, the German soldiers were surrounded, starving, and freezing. -
Casablanca Conference
A conference held in Casablanca, Morocco between Winston Churchill and President Franklin D. Roosevelt during which they announced that the war could only end with the "unconditional surrender from Germany, Italy, and Japan." -
End of the Battle of Stalingrad
More than 90,000 German soldiers surrendered to the Soviet Union. There were very high casualties and deaths on both sides. This was turning point of the war in Eastern Europe. -
Italy declares war on Germany
The Italian government declares war on Germany. The German army in Italy resisted destroying bridges and blocking roads as it retreated northward through Italy. -
Anzio Invasion
A surprise landing by the Allies on the beach of Anzio behind the German lines. Because the American commander took too long in organizing his forces, the Germans trapped them. Before the Americans finally broke through the German forces in May 1944, tens of thousands of Allied soldiers had been killed or wounded. -
Operation Overlord
The code name for Allies' invasion at Normandy, France known as the Battle of Normandy. -
Liberation of Paris
A French division of the U.S. First Amy officially liberated Paris. The same day, General Charles de Gaulle arrived in the city, prepared to take over the French government. -
Battle of the Bulge starts
Germans launched a counter-attack in Luxembourg and Belgium and they pushed the United States First Army back forming a bulge in the Allied Line. General Patton moved some U.S. troupes to help stop the German advance and refill the line. -
Battle of the Bulge ends
The Third and First Armies knocked the Germans back and restarted the allied push into Germany. About 600,000 United States soldiers fought in this battle and about 80,000 of them were killed, injured or taken as prisoners. The Germans lost about 100,000 soldiers. After the battle, most Nazi leaders recognized that the war was lost. -
Yalta Conference
A meeting between Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin where they gathered to plan the final defeat of Germany and to decide the postwar world. They agreed to split Germany into four zones, under the control of the Allies, including France. Stalin promised to allow free elections in the Eastern Europe nations and to join the war against Japan within 3 months. Stalin did not keep his promises. -
V-E Day
Germany surrendered and American soldiers rejoiced and civilians on the home front celebrated V-E Day (Victory in Europe Day). -
Nuermberg Trials
A series of trials conducted by an International Military Tribunal in which former Nazi leaders were charged with crimes against peace, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.
