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Battle of the Atlantic
German U-Boats and warships - and later Italian submarines - fought Allied forces in groups known as Wolf Packs. By "Black May" of 1943 the loss of U-Boats was too much and the Allied powers took the victory. More than 100 convoy battles took place during the war. The battle cost the Merchant Navy more than 30,000 men and around 3,000 ships. The Germans lost 783 U-Boats and around 28,000 sailors. -
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain was a fight between the German Luftwaffe and the British Royal Air Force which was fought over Britain between July and October of 1940. This battle was the first major military campaign to be fought entirely in the air. The British defense was enough for the German forces and they took the victory. Hitler was advised to stop the invasion because it was to be believed they would lose. 1,733 German aircraft had been destroyed compared to the 915 of the British. -
Battle of Stalingrad
On September 3rd, 1942 the German Sixth Army reached the outskirts of Stalingrad, expecting to take the city with ease. February 2, 1943, General Paulus surrendered of what remaind of his army which was around 91,000 men. The German's lost around 150,000 soldiers. The Batlle of Stalingrad was a great victory for the Soviet Union and a complete humiliation for Hitler. -
Batlle of El Alamein, Egypt
British Commander Bernard Law Montgomery launched an infanty attack at El Alamein on October 23, 1942. German, Erwin Rommel returned to battle from an illness and tried to halt the tide. The British artillery was too overwhelming. The Allies took the victory but paid a very high toll. The Allied powers lost 13,500 men, and the Allies lost nearly 500 tanks, 100 aircraft, and 100 artillery pieces. -
Operation Torch
Operation Torch was used to divide Hitler's attentions. It was decided that Americans would invade North African countries of Morocco and Algeria at the start of November 1942. After the fall of the French, Vichy French leaders were still in control of these contries, but upon the Americans arrival, they were met with little resistance and the French sided with the Americans. The Allies took the vitory and suffered nearly 20,000 Americans. Allied leaders looked to knock the Italians out of war -
Invasion of Sicily
The first attack was in July of 1943 and upon the attack Roosevelt and Chuchill asked Italians "whether that want to die for Mussolini and Hiter or live for Italy and civilization." The Italians chose life and removed the former dictator Mussolini from power. The Allies then took Sicily a few weeks later. -
Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord was devised for the invasion of France. Operation Overlord was based on numbers and speed and was set on the beaches of Normandy, France. Early June 3.5 million soldiers were ready for action. D-Day arrived on June 6th, 1944 when Allied forces began parachuting behind German lines to secure key sites. Ships on the offshore rained shells on the coastline. The Allied forces had the victory but suffered 10,000 casualties. -
Battle of Bulge
and the Allies again set their sights on Germany and the defeat of Hitler. The victory at the Battle of Bulge showed the Allies that victory was close. -
Battle of Bulge
On December 16th of 1944, the German forces launched an offensive attack of their own. For several days during the battle, German forces threatened to win back vital ground from the Allies. At Bastogne. George S Patton led troops on December 26th surrounded by German's and in below-zero temperatures and low on supplies, the Americans survived and the victory blunted the German offensive. By the end of January 1945, the bulge created by the German offensive had been rolled back -
Hitler Commits Suicide
In the final weeks of April the German army destruction continued and one by one units from the Soviet Union met up with other Allied forces. On April 30th Hitler realizes that his German Army will soon fall and all hope is lost. His reign of terror ended in his Berlin Bunker on April 30th 1945. -
VE Day
On April 2nd Berlin announced their surrender, the scattered German armies gave up the fight, and the new German leader, Karl Donitz, announced their surrender on May 7th. All of these events led up to VE Day on May 8th.
