Major European Theater Battles

Battle of France/ Miracle of Dunkirk

May 27, 1940

In 1940, British and its allies evacuated the seaport of Dunkirk and went to England. At the end of this evacuation, tens of thousands of British and Belgian troops had been saved. The evacuation ended on June 4.

1. 140,000 troops had been saved.
2. Many civilian ships had been used in this evacuation
3. Hitler's failure to capture Dunkirk was a major turning point in the war.
4. Some units were ordered to fight to the last man
5. Around 40,000 British troops became PoWs

Battle of Britain

Jul 10, 1940

Air war in the summer of 1940 when Hitler decided to invade Britain. The battle lasted 3 months and resulted in a German forfeit. The battle ended on October 31, 1940.

1. Hitler wanted to invade Britain
2. There were several phases in this battle
3. Not all of the British pilots were British
4. The British developed a really good Air Force
5. The British won this war

Battle of Leningrad

Sep 8, 1941

Also called the Siege of Leningrad, this prolonged siege lasted 872 days. This very long battle happened when German and Finnish forces tried to take control of Leningrad. Finally on January 27, 1944, the Soviets took the win.

1. This battle is called the 900 day siege because it lasted almost 900 days.
2. The death toll was over 1,000,000!
3. The penalty for stealing food was death, which led to cannibalism
4. Valuable books and art were burned for warmth
5. Hitler wanted the city to starve

Battle of Stalingrad

Jul 17, 1942

Largest confrontation in WWII where Germany tried to take control of Stalingrad in Southern Russia. The battle lasted from July 1942 to February 2, 1943.

1. The town was bombed so much that the air became hot and smelled of corpses
2. Soviet women did just as much as Soviet men
3. New soldiers had a life expectancy of 1 day and high ranking officials were 3 days
4. People started to eat rats, dead horses and dead people
5. Eventually the Germans starved and ran out of ammunition

Operation Torch

Nov 8, 1942

Western Allies did not want Stalin to open a second front so they invaded northern Africa. This plan was created by the Americans and the British. The invasion started on November 8, 1942 and ended two days later.

1. The casualties were very light compared to most WWII battles.
2. The invasion happened in Algeria and Morocco
3. The purpose of this invasion was to control the Mediterranean Sea
4. It was also known as Operation Gymnast
5. The Allied forces were fighting the French

D-Day

Jun 6, 1944

France, Canada, Britain and the United States fought for the German controlled beaches in Normandy. The last day of this battle was the same day it started.

1. America sent dummies from the skies to fool the Germans.
2. Britain's beaches were called Gold and Sword
3. The United States' beaches were called Omaha and Utah
4. Canada's beach was called Juno
5. The D in "D-day" means day, meaning it would be called "Day Day"

Battle of the Bulge

Dec 16, 1944

last major battle fought in the Western Front and happened towards the end of WWII. This battle ended on January 25, 1945.

1. One of the most lethal battles, killing almost 200 Americans.
2. A bad phone connection led to catastrophe of an American division
3. Hitler and the Nazis advised against the attack
4. Weather patterns played a major role in the battle's outcome.
5. Fuel shortages doomed the German offensive

Battle of Berlin

Apr 16, 1945

This was a major battle where German and Soviet forces collided and fought in Berlin, Germany. This battle was a success for the Soviets and it ended on May 2, 1945.

1. Stalin wanted to reach Berlin before Britain and America
2. One of the heaviest bombings took place on Adolf Hitler's birthday.
3. The plans were to completely surround Berlin
4. This battle led to Hitler's suicide
5. Every May 2, Poland commemorated its lost soldiers in this battle.