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World War II
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Battle for Britain
An air campaign started by the Germans against the United Kingodm was primarily to defeat the Royal Air Force. The failure of Germany was considered to be the first defeat of the Germans ihn the war. -
Vichy France Begins
After the German's defeated France they divided their country into two sectors. The sectors were controlled by German forces and were used to aid the German's in the war. This forced many of the French to other territories in Africa in which they occupied. -
Japan Joins Axis
Japan joined the Axis for support as they planned to associate with the same govt. types as that of Italy and Germany. Therefore on this date they aligned themsevles with those countries, joining the Axis Powers. -
Hitler Breaks Non-Aggression Agreement with Stalin
Operation Barbarossa was set into effect and German troops began to invade the Soviet Union. Within weeks the Soviets had lost millions, while the Germans took another million Prisoneers. This allowed for theGermans to gain supplies they would of otherwise run out of. (Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact) -
Pearl Harbor Attacked
The sneak attack from the Japanese on the Hawaii naval base on the morning of December 7th took America by surprise. The attack was from submarines and planes of the Japanese. The USS Arizona and Oklahoma were total losses, while many other ships were severley damaged. This event officially drew the USA into the War. -
Japanese Ambassadors Arrive in D.C.
Upon arrival of the Japanese Ambassador, the United States had already recieved news of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The Ambassador was instructed to destroy all official documents and deliver a 14-page paper to the Sec. of State Cordell Hull. -
FDR Approves "Shoot on Sight"
After the USS Greer was involved with a German Ship, FDR ordered a "Soot on Sight" law that all Germans seen should be shot at, no questions asked. This declared undeclared war in the Pacific, months before the US truly got involved in World War 2. -
Germany and Italy Declare War on the US
Four days after the attack on Pearl Harbor Germany and Italy declared war on the United States. This was done in Germany as Hitler addressed the Reichstag and declaring war. -
MacArthur Promises to Return
The famous quote of MacArthur was " I came out of Bataan and I shall return" was made in South Australia. This went to all of those in the Phillipines to which he promised to return when the Army was strong enough to defeat the Japanese. October 20th, 1944 he returned to accept the formal surrendering of the Japanese. -
Bataan Death March
After surrendering to the Japanese due to lack of food and fatigue, The United States men on the tip of Bataan, Mariveles, were marched 70 miles to a Camp O'Donnell. Along this march men were beaten, starved, , shot, and had their throats slit. All of this just to be placed in a POW Camp. -
Battle of Coral Sea
Tension began on May 4th when planes from the U.S. Fleet Carrie Yorktown sunk several Japanese ships in the olomon islands in the Coral Sea. After damage to both fleets the disengaged and retreated. It was a victory for both as the Japanese destroyed important ships and for the first time the Japanese had been stopped from expanding. -
Battle of Midway
Fought near the Central Pacific island of Midway, it is regarded to be the most decisive battle in the Pacific during WW2. The Japanese wanted to take Midway to build a base and surprise the U.S. Pacific Fleet. However, the fleet surprised the Japanese and destroyed four carriers, those which attacked Pearl Harbor. -
Guadalcanal
The Battle of Guadalcanal took place near the Solomon Islands. Marines went onto land against the Japanese where at the time battle was stagnant. It took six months for the Marines to take over, but it seemed to be the turning point for the Allies. -
U-Boats Sink Merchant Vessels (Battle of St. Lawrence)
The battle of St. Lawrence occured when the German U-Boats attacked for of the Allie ships carrying ore at Bell Island, New Foundland. SS Saganaga and SS Lord Strahcona were sunk by the U-Boat U-513. Another attack happened on Nov. 2nd, killing 69. -
General Eisenhower + Forces land in North Africa
Nicknamed Operation Torch, Eisenhower and his men chose to land in North Africa to help the Red Army fighting in the Soviet Union. Stalin wanted help in Europe, but Roosevelt and Churchill chose to help in North Africa. -
End of Battle of Stalingrad
The battle between Germany and the Soviet Union was for the city of Stalingrad in Southwestern Russia.The Germans became encircled from th north and south by the Soviets. The blame for the loss of 850,000 men was placed on the Gen., not Adolf Hitler. -
Sicily Falls
Allies came through France to take Sicily in about a month. The idea of Eisenhower was to take away an Axis base and to open up shipping in the Mediterranean. This was an opportunity for Eisenhower to also defeat the govt. that Mussolini had established. This operation was known as Operation Husky. -
Rome Falls
The first of the Axis Powers was defeated as Allied Troops rolled into the city of Rome on June 4th, 1944. The Allies were greeted by the people screaming for joy as their city had been liberated. -
D-Day
D-day was the invasion of the Normandy Beaches in France on the morning of June 6, 1944. With more than 50 miles of beach the Allied Forces came along 160,000 strong defeating German troops and establishing territory. This allowed the troops to continue their march into Europe in search of Hitler. Gen. Eisenhower said, "We will accept nothing less than full Victory". D-Day -
MacArthur Returns
After being removed from the Phillipines in 1942, he fulfilled his promise of "I shall Return". He returned to restore the Phillipines and force the enemies out. -
Kamikaze Attacks Begin
With the war out of reach for the Japanese they tried any tactic to get a victory. They begin using Kamikazes or suicide bombers in air planes to attack Allied Forces. The first was at the Battle of Leyte Gulf in the Phillipine Sea, the largest naval battle of WW2. -
Battle of the Bulge
German offensive established by the fuhrer in the Ardennes Region of Allied Forces territory. The idea was to reach the Meuse River, but Germany made it nowhere close. The Germans lost 100,000 men and the Allies 80,000. This sealed the defeat of Germany. -
US Flag Raised on Mt. Suribachi
The raising of the American Flag on Iwa Jima symbolized all but the end of the battle of Iwa Jima as many Japanese men retreated to underground tunnels. Colonel Chandler Johnson gave the small flag to troops to fly on the summit of the mtn. The photograph was take by Joe Rosenthal -
Harry S Truman becomes President
Harry S. Truma became the 33rd President of the United States after the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt on the same day. -
Hitler Commits suicide
After a farwell lunch with head officials of the Nazi Party Hitler and his wife returned to the private quarters and Hitler shot himself, while his wife used a cyanide capsule on herself. -
V-E Day
Victory in Europe marks the day in which the Allies formally accepted the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany and the Third Reich. This surrendering marked the end of World War Two. -
Okinawa Taken
Known as Operation Iceberg, the Battle ofOkinawa was fought on the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa. The objective was to capture the large islands only 350 miles from mainland Japan. This battle led to more than 50,000 Allied casualties and more than 100,000 Japanese. -
Hiroshima
After an executive order from Truman the United States dropped the "Little Boy" an atomic bomb on the City of Hiroshima. This was the first atomic bomb ever used in warfare. This devistated the City of Hiroshima killing 100,000's plus. -
Nagasaki
Americans dropped the "Fat Man" an atomic bomb on the Japanese city following no compliance with the Potsdam Declaration given by the United States. This was the second Atomic Bomb dropped in Japan, the second and last in the history of warfare. -
V-J Day
This was theday in which the Allies announced the surrender of Japan. The formal surrender took place on the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay on Sept. 2nd. -
Formal Surrender of Japan
Two weeks after conditonally surrendering to the Allie Forces Japan formally surrendered on the USS Missouri on September 2nd, 1945 in Tokyo Bay
