-
Period: to
Battle of France
This was the end of the Phoney War, the period of time time when neither side committed to serious military action. The Germans destroyed the French troops and took the entire country soon after. 469,000 casualties. -
Period: to
Battle of Moscow
Germany tried to capture the Soviet Union's capital but failed. This was a major turning point in the war. The Germans thought that if they took the capital, the spirit of the Red Army war machine would be crushed. 1,000,000 casualties. -
Period: to
Second Battle of Kharkov
Fought between the Soviets and the Germans. The goal was for the Soviets to take Kharkov from Germany. 300,000 casualties. -
Period: to
Battle of Stalingrad
This was Hitler's major push for dominance on the Eastern Front. Once their Romanian and Italian allies had been eliminated, the Germans found themselves surrounded in Stalingrad, vulnerable and starving in the rubble to which the Luftwaffe had reduced the city. This one of the bloodiest battles of all time. Between 1,250,000 and 1,798,619 casualties. -
Period: to
Battle of Kursk
The largest series of armored tanks and the costliest day of aerial conflict in history. Fought between the Germans and Soviets. Between 257,125 and 388,000 casualties. -
Period: to
Battle of Monte Cassino
Fought between the US, Germany, and Italy. The goal was for the US to capture Rome. 185,000 casualties. -
Period: to
Battle of Narva
The Soviets fought the Germans for the valuable territory of Narva, Estonia. It was one of the most intense battles of the entire war. 550,000 casualties. -
Period: to
Battle of the Bulge
The German's last major offensive against the Allies. The goal was to split the Allied troops in two, capture Antwerp, and destroy the remaining Allied forces. 186,369 casualties. -
Period: to
Battle of Luzon
Luzon, the largest island in the Philippines, was seen as being of great strategic importance to the United States. Despite General MacArthur’s belief in value of the island, American troops would have to wait until 1945 to launch an attack on Luzon, which was taken by the Japanese in 1942. Between 332,330 and 345,330 casualties. -
Period: to
Battle of Berlin
This battle was the fall of the German army, Hitler's suicide, and the beginning of the end of World War 2. They took the Reichstag on April 30, 1945. 1,298,745 casualties.