-
Germany Invades Poland
Who: Germany, Poland.
What: Germany invades Poland.
Where: Western Poland, Warsaw, specifically.
Why: Hitler wanted more land.
Interesting Fact: Germany defeated Poland in only 10 days
Impact on War: Caused Britain and France to declare war on Germany, formally starting WWII -
Period: to
WWII
-
Britain and France Declare War
Who: Britain, France, Germany
What: Britain and France declare war on Germany
Where: No physical location
Why: In response to German invasion of Poland
Interesting Fact: Britain and France declared war this day but did not actually take any action until later.
Impact on War: Officialy started war.
Impact on War: Started the war. -
Hitler Invades France
Who: Germany and France
What: Germany invaded France
Where: France
Why: To control France
Interesting Fact: The battle onlyconsisted of two main operations
Impact on War: Took Britain's only ally at the time out of the war. -
Miracle at Dunkirk
Who: Allies
What: Allied troops trapped at Dunkirk were rescued and brought to Britain.
Where: Dunkirk, France
Why: Hitler thought it was too easy to trap Allies in Dunkirk and thought it was a trap. This allowed Allied troops to get rescued
Interesting Fact:Any boat, including civilian boats, rescued troops.
Impact on War: Troops trapped at Dunkirk were able to fight again later. -
Battle of Britain
Who: Germany, Britain
What: German Luftwaffe struggle against British RAF
Where: Britain
Why: Hitler wanted to take control of the Island.
Interesting Fact: Was the first major campaign fought entirely in the air.
Impact on War: Was the Nazis first big defeat, Also, it was the start of targeting civilians for military actions. -
Pearl Harbour
Who: Japan, USA
What: Japanese Kamikaze bombers attack Pearl Harbour, USA
Where: Pearl Harbour, USA
Why: USA set an oil embargo on Japan
Interesting Fact: Japanese bombers sank or damaged 18 US ships.
Impact on War: Was the reason USA entered the war. -
USA Enters WWII
Who: USA, Britain
What: USA and Britain declared war on Japan
Why: Fight back after Pearl Harbor
Interesting Fact: President Franklin Roosevelt exiled Japanese and Japanese-Americans to relocation centers.
Impact on War: The rapidly expanded USA was a powerful ally, providing huge quantities of troops and supplies. -
Battle of Midway
Who: Japan, USA
What: Japan bombed US island.
Where: Midway, USA
Why: Midway was an important strategic objective for Japan
Interesting Fact: US advancements in decoding radio messages played major role in Japan's defeat
Impact on War: Crushed a big part of Janpanese Navy. Allowed Allies to enter an offensive position -
Battle of Stalingrad
Who: Germany, Russia
What: Germany invaded city of Stalingrad
Where: Stalingrad, Russia
Why: Stalingrad was a major communications center for Russia. Hitler wanted to gain control of the oil fields in Caucasus and, to help with this, wanted to take Stalingrad.
Interesting Fact: About 7,700 people died a day in this battle.
Impact on War: An entire German Army group was lost in this battle, This loss of manpower made Germany too weak to cope with following Russian advance to Germany. -
Raid on Dieppe
Who: Allies, Germany
What: Allies raid Germany's defenses on coast of France
Where: Dieppe, France
Why: 'Reconnaissance by force'. A test of Hitler's defenses.
Interesting Fact: More Soldiers where taken prisoner in the 9 hour raid than in the armies 11 month campaign in Europe
Impact on War: Huge loss for Canada made them battle-hardened and better prepared for future battles. -
D-Day
Who: Allies, Germans
What: Allied Air Forces and amphibious vehicles attacked German troops.
Where: Beaches of Normandy
Why: Allied plan to end Nazis control over Europe
Interesting Fact: The term 'D-day' is actually a general term for any day on which an operation, battle, or combat attack takes place.
Impact on War: Was the beginning of the end for the Nazis. It opened up the Western front, leaving the Nazis more vulnerable on that side. -
End of WWII in Europe
Who: Allies, Germany
What: Germany surrenders and the war in Europe ends
Where: Europe
Why: Germany realized the had no hope left in winning the war and surrendered.
Interesting Fact: By the time Germany surrendered, they were completely devided, Allies controlling the west, U.S.S.R. controlling the east.
Impact on War: Ended fighting in Europe. -
Hiroshima
Who: USA, Japan
What: USA dropped a-bomb on Hiroshima, Japan.
Where: Hiroshima, Japan
Why: To get Japan to surrender. Also show emense power to the world.
Interesting Fact: First use of nuclear weaponry in history.
Impact on War: Killed about 70,000 people. started Japan's surrender. -
Nagasaki
Who: USA, Japan
What: USA drops second a-bomb on Japan, this time in Nagasaki.
Where: Nagasaki, Japan
Why: Japan didn't surrender after the first bomb.
Interesting Fact: Nagasaki was one of Japan's most important ports.
Impact on War: Made Japan surrender, ending WWII. -
End of WWII
Who: Japan, USA
What: Japan surrenders, ending war.
Where: Europe
Why: Japan surrendered in response to nuclear bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Interesting Fact: Japan and Soviet Union never signed a treaty to legally end WWII.
Impact on War: Ended WWII
