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September 1, 1939
Nazi Germany invades Poland. It was the act that had started WWII. -
Battle of Britain.
The Battle of Britain is one of the most famous battles yet of World War II. The Germans needed to control the English Channel to launch her invasion of Britain. They needed this control of the Channel so that the British Navy would not be able to attack. At the start of the war, Germany had 4,000 aircraft compared to Britain's front-line strength of 1,660. -
Battle of Moscow
The Germans code named this battle as, " Operation Typhoon". The gaining of Moscow, Russias captial, was seen as vital as the success of "Operation Barbarossa". Hitler believed that once he got the heart of Russia, the whole nation would then collapse. -
Pearl Harbor
Japanese fighter planes launched a suprise air attack on Pearl Harbors Naval Base. Killing 2,400 Americans. -
Battle of Coral Sea
The Battle of Coral Sea took place in May. If the Japanese had succeeded at Coral Sea, the way would have been open for the Japanese to have captured New Guinea and leave Australia isolated from Allied help and more open to a Japanese attack. The Battle of Coral Sea was fought entirely by planes – no ship on either side made any visual contact with any enemy ship. -
Battle of Gazala
The Battle of Gazala came after there had been a lull in the war in North Africa from February to mid-May 1942. Erwin Rommel was keen to continue his campaign in the region while Churchill wanted his military commanders there to show a more offensive approach. The loss of Tobruk was a huge blow to the morale of the Allies and seemed to typify the different strategies shown in North Africa – Rommel’s willingness to go on the offensive and improvise his plans, compared to the conservative strategy -
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway, is considered one of the most decisive battles of World War Two. The Battle of Midway effectively destroyed Japan’s naval strength when the Americans destroyed four of its aircraft carriers. Japan’s navy never recovered from its mauling at Midway and it was on the defensive after this battle. -
Battle of the Philippine Sea
Took place between June 19th and June 20th, 1944. This battle was said to be the last great carrier battle of World War Two. The Battle of Midway in 1942 had done a great deal to damage Japan’s carrier force, but even into 1944, Japan statistically had a larger carrier force than America. Despite America’s huge military capability, the Japanese Navy still represented a threat to her – especially in America’s desire to advance to the Marianas. -
Battle of El Alamein
Battle of El Alamein was fought in the deserts of North Africa, is seen as one of the decisive victories of World War Two. The Battle of El Alamein was primarily fought between two of the outstanding commanders of World War Two, Montgomery, who succeeded the dismissed Auchinleck, and Rommel. The Allied victory at El Alamein lead to the retreat of the Afrika Korps and the German surrender in North Africa in May 1943.Although, there were two battles named with this name. -
Battle of Guadalcanal
The Battle of Guadalcanal took place in 1942 when the US Marines landed on August 7th. The landing at Guadalcanal was unopposed - but it took the Americans six months to defeat the Japanese in what was to turn into a classic battle of attrition. It lasted from August 7th- Feburary 9th, 1943. -
Battle of Stalingrad
People consider this battle as the turning point in World War II in Europe. Hitler orded an attack on Stalingrad because after the war with Russia it bled them dry and they needed to retreat and try again. People believed he also orded the attack on Stalingrad just because the name of the city and his hatred on Joesph Stalingrad. This war was fought during the winter and ended on Feburary 2, 1943. -
Battle of Kursk
This battle was from July 5 to August 23 1943. It involved the largest tank battle in the second World War. This resulted in a severe crisis for Nazi Germanys war machine in Russia. After the defeat at Stalingrad, the German army on the Eastern Front had been in retreat. -
Invasion of Normandy
160,000 Allied troops landed on a 50-mile stretch of heavily-fortified French coastline to fight Nazi Germany on the beaches of Normandy, France -
Battle of Arnhem
This was an airborne landing at Arnhem. It was known as Operation Market Garden. This battle was a plan to end World War Two early. The idea for an airborne landing on Arnhem came from Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery. Montgomery believed that the most obvious crisis the Allies would face attacking into Germany was crossing the Rhine. Intelligence reports had already come in stating that the nearer the Allies got to the River Rhine, the more fierce the Germans defence was getting. -
Battle of the Bulge
This battle was the last major Nazi offense against the Allies in World War Two. The battle was a last ditch attempt by Hitler to split the Allies in two in their drive towards Germany and destroy their ability to supply themselves. Hitler had convinced himself that the alliance between Britain, France and America in the western sector of Europe was not strong and that a major attack and defeat would break up the alliance. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The capture of Iwo Jima was part of a three-point plan the Americans had for winning the war in the Far East. By 1944, America and her allies in the Pacific War had the ascendancy. In the west, the Japanese were being turned back in Burma and island hopping had isolated Japanese forces in the eastern sector. -
Battle of Okinawa
The capture of Okinawa was part of a three-point plan the Americans had for winning the war in the Far East. Okinawa was to prove a bloody battle even by the standards of the war in the Far East but it was to be one of the major battles of World War Two. Alongside, the territorial re-conquest of land in the Far East, the Americans wished to destroy what was left of Japan’s merchant fleet and use airstrips in the region to launch bombing raids on Japan’s industrial heartland. Okinawa is the large -
Battle of Berlin
The Battle for Berlin all but marked the end of World War Two in Europe. The Battle for Berlin, along with the Battle of Britain, the Battle of the Atlantic and D-Day, was of vital importance in the European sector. It was fought between April and May 1945, and the Russian victory saw the end of Hitler's Third Reich and the occupation of the city by the Red Army before it was divided into four as a result of the wartime meetings between the Allies. -
European War Ends
European war ends. Great Britain and the United States celebrate Victory in Europe Day. They defeated the Nazi war machine. Putting out flags and banners in such pride of what they had done. -
September 2, 1945
Japan finally surrenders. Their navy and air force had been destroyed. After the bombing of Hiroshima, Japan finally realized it was time to surrender because everything had been destroyed.
