-
Japanese invasion of China
Start 1931, September 18th. Lasted from 1937-1945 the first phase of the Chinese occupation happened when Japan invaded Manchuria in 1931. The second phase happened in 1937 when the imperial Japanese invaded China. -
Fall of Paris
The Battle of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World War. German forces occupied Paris unopposed on June 14th 1933 after a chaotic period of flight of the French government that led to a collapse of the French army. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/fall_france_01.shtml) -
Rape of Nanking
From mid December 1937 until the beginning of February 1938, no matter how old you were or if you were male or female you could get shot whenever for any reason at all by any japanese soldier. The streets of Nanking were said to have blood running down them. People who were not killed on spot were forced to go and dig their own graves before being killed -
German Blitzkrieg
The German Blitzkrieg is also known as “lightning war”, it was a military tactic meant to give enemies disorganization, This tactic used locally concentrated firepower, this results in short military campaigns, preserving many lives. “The transmission process was facilitated by the British theorists J. F. C. Fuller and Basil Liddell Hart, who insisted that their concepts of mobile war were fundamental to the German victories of 1939-1941.” (http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/blitzkrieg) -
Germany's invasion of Poland
On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland. The Polish army was defeated within weeks of the invasion. From East Prussia and Germany in the north and Silesia and Slovakia in the south, German units, with more than 2,000 tanks and over 1,000 planes, broke through Polish defenses along the border (https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005070) -
Pearl Harbor
“Pearl Harbor is a U.S. naval base near Honolulu, Hawaii, and was the scene of a devastating surprise attack by Japanese forces on December 7, 1941.” (http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/pearl-harbor) Early on that Sunday morning, hundreds of japenese fighter planes attacked the Pearl Harbor. More than 2,400 Americans were killed and over 1,000 were injured. -
Wannsee Conference
“On January 20, 1942, 15 high-ranking Nazi Party and German government officials gathered at a villa in the Berlin suburb of Wannsee to discuss and coordinate the implementation of what they called the "Final Solution of the Jewish Question." (https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005477) -
Bataan Death March
“march in the Philippines of some 66 miles that 76,000 prisoners of war, were forced by the Japanese military to endure in April 1942, during the early stages of World War II.
Mainly starting in Mariveles, on the southern tip of the Bataan Peninsula, on April 9, 1942, the prisoners were force-marched north to San Fernando and then taken by rail in cramped and unsanitary boxcars farther north to Capas. -
Battle of Midway
June 3–6, 1942. World War II battle, fought almost entirely with aircraft, the United States destroyed Japan’s first carrier strength and most of its best trained naval pilots. Together with the Battle of Guadalcanal, the Battle of Midway ended the threat of further Japanese invasion in the Pacific. The Japanese had continued with plans to seize Midway Island. (https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Midway) -
Warsaw Ghetto uprising
April 19th-May 16th 1943, armed revolt against deportations to extermination camps. The Warsaw Ghetto uprising inspired other revolts. -
Allied invasion of Italy
“The British 8th Army under Field Marshal Bernard L. Montgomery begins the Allied invasion of the Italian peninsula, crossing the Strait of Messina from Sicily and landing at Calabria–the “toe” of Italy. On the day of the landing, the Italian government secretly agreed to the Allies’ terms for surrender, but no public announcement was made until September 8 1943” (https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/allies-invade-italian-mainland) -
D-Day (Normandy Invasion)
Lasted from June to August 1944, the battle began on June 6th 156,000 Americans, British and Canadian forces landed on 5 different beaches along a 50 mile stretch. The invasion was one of the biggest military assaults in history and required extensive planning. -
Liberation of concentration camps
Soviets started approaching a major nazi camp near Poland in July 1944, Germans attempted to hide the mass murders when the Soviets started to come around more. The nazis attempted to set fire to the crematorium, but in the flustering situation they forgot to set fire to the gas chambers. The soviets attempted to get rid of all nazi camps, eventually all camps were destroyed and the camp survivors began their road to recovery -
Battle of Leyte Gulf
- “This World War II clash followed the Allied landing at the Philippine island of Leyte in October 1944. The Japanese sought to converge three naval forces on Leyte Gulf, and successfully diverted the U.S. Third Fleet with a decoy. At the Suriago Strait, the U.S. Seventh Fleet destroyed one of the Japanese forces and forced a second one to withdraw.” (https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-leyte-gulf)
-
Battle of the Bulge
December 1944, Adolph Hitler attempted to split the Allied armies in northwest Europe by means of a surprise blitzkrieg. American units fought battles to stem the German advance. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
“The American amphibious invasion of Iwo Jima during World War II stemmed from the need for a base near the Japanese coast. Following elaborate preparatory air and naval bombardment, three U.S. marine divisions landed on the island in February 1945.” -
Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Marine and Army forces against the Imperial Japanese Army. Apr 1, 1945 – June 22, 1945 -
VE Day
Victory in Europe Day, May 8th 1945. This was a holiday to mark acceptance by the Allies of World War II. The significance of this holiday is to mark the end of World War II. -
Dropping of the atomic bombs
August 6th 1945, President Harry S. Truman, was warned by his advisers that any attempt to invade Japan would result in American casualties, ordered that the new weapon be used to bring the war to a end. An American bomber dropped a five ton bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima. (http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/atomic-bomb-dropped-on-hiroshima) -
VJ Day
Victory over Japan Day, August 14th 1945. Japan had surrendered to the Allies, many months after the surrender of Nazi Germany Japan’s capitulation brought six years of hostilities to a final close. (http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/v-j-day)
