World War 2

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    World War 2

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    Italian-Ethiopian Conflict

    -Showed the weakness of the League of Nations
    -275,000 Ethiopeans were killed
    -Led to Italian occupation of Ethiopia during WW2
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    Spanish Civil War

    -Conflict between Nationalists and Republicans
    -Saw the rise of Francisco Franco
    -Kept Spain mainly out of WW2
  • Germany invades the Rhineland

    -First German invasion
    -No repurcussions
    -Rhineland had been a demilitarized zone between Germany and France.
  • Nanking Massacre

    -Japanese capture the Chinese city of Nanking
    -Hundreds of thousands of Chinese civilians and unarmed solders were murdered by Japanese soldiers.
    -Widespread rape and looting occurred.
  • German Invasion of the Sudetenland

    -Began German's annexation and occupation of Czechoslovakia
    -The area was full of people who called themselves German.
    -The Germans were seen as liberators.
  • German Invasion of Poland

    -Germany conquers Poland in a month
    -Launch of Blitzkreig
    -Germans invaded with 60 divisions, including 2,750 tanks.
  • German-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Demarcation

    -Occured after the Soviet / German joint invasion of Poland
    -A follow up by the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, signed before the invasion.
    -Only a small portion of the treaty was announced. Most remained secret.
  • France Surrenders to Germany

    -Paris Falls
    -Makes a divided France of German Occupied France and Vichy France which cooperated with the Germans.
  • Destroyers for Bases Agreement

    -Agreement between the US and the UK
    -50 destroyers were given to the UK in exchange for land rights for bases on British land possessions.
  • Tripartite Pact

    -Established the Axis Powers of Germany, Japan, and Italy.
    -Signed in Berlin.
    -The Pact would later include unofficial signatories.
  • ABC 1 Conference

    -Established the principles of the Allied military strategy.
    -While not a miltary alliance, it showed that the US would land with the Allies.
    -Declares War in the far east as defensive.
  • Operation Barbarossa

    -The German invasion of the Soviet Union
    -Over four million soldiers invaded at the same time, making it the largest invasion in the history of warfare.
    -It included over 600,000 vehicles and 750,000 horses.
    -It occurred over a 2,000-mile front
  • The Atlantic Charter

    -Based on Wilson's 14 points
    -Becomes the basis of the UN
    -Signed by Churchill and Roosevelt
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    Siege of Leningrad

    -German siege against Leningrad (also called St. Petersburg)
    -Over 130,000 Germans were killed.
    -Over 1,000,000 Soviets were killed.
    -Ended in a German defeat.
  • Attack on Pearl Harbor

    -Japanese attack on the United States Fleet at Pearl Habor.
    -1,247 men were wounded
    -4 battleships were sunk
    -The Japenese lost 29 aircraft
  • Battle of the Coral Sea

    -The first battle in which aircraft carriers engaged each other on both sides.
    -A tactical victory for the Japanese in terms of ships sunk.
    -A strategic victory for the US as it repelled a Japanese invasion.
  • Battle of Midway

    -Decisive victory by the US navy over the Japanese.
    -Japan's first naval defeat since 1863.
    -The Japanese lost 3,057 men.
    -Seen as a turning point in the Pacific Theatre
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    Battle of Stalingrad

    -Germans vs. the Soviet Union for the city of Stalingrad (now called Volgograd).
    -The Germans end up losing and this marks their decadence in the Eastern Front
    -Considered the turning point in the European theatre.
    -850,000 Germans were killed
    -1,120,000 Soviets were killed.
  • Battle of Guadalcanal

    -An air and sea battle over Guadalcanal and Japan's attempts to reinforce the island.
    -The Japanese lost 2 battleships and over 2,000 men.
  • Casablanca Conference

    -Held in the Casablanca hotel in Morocco
    -Planned for the next Allied moves in WW2
    -Stalin did not attend but Roosevelt and Churchill did.
  • Allied Invasion of Sicily

    -Codenamed Operation Husky
    -Launched the Italian Campaign
    -160,000 men were landed over 3 weeks time.
    -Faced 230,000 Axis soldiers, mainly Germans.
  • Cairo Conference

    -Held in Cairo, Egypt
    -Outlined the Allied position against Japan
    -Attended by the Big Three and Chiang Kai-shek of China.
  • Tehran Conference

    -Codenamed Eureka
    -Held in the societ embassy in Tehran
    -The Big Three attended (Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin)
    -Committed to opening a western front on Germany
  • Normandy Invasion (D-Day)

    -Allied invasion of continental Europe through Normany France.
    -Codenamed Operation Neptune
    -Over 150,000 troups landed.
    -At least 10,000 men were killed in the assult on the beaches.
  • Battle of Layte Gulf

    -Possibly the largest naval battle in history.
    -US liberates Leyte island.
    -Decisive victory over the Japanese
    -"Greatest Mismatch in History" as the small task force Taffy 3 destroys the Japanese Central Force.
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    Battle of the Bulge

    -Germans invade throught the Arden forest
    -Tried to split the Allied forces.
    -THe Germans got stopped at Batogne.
    -They ran out of fuel and supplies.
  • Yalta Conference

    -Meeting of the big three: Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin.
    -Discussed Europe's post-war reorganization and rebuilding.
    -Became controlversial with the development of the Cold War
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    Battle for Berlin

    -Final major offensive in the European theatre of war.
    -The Soviets hit Berlin first.
    -81,000 Soviets were killed.
    -100,000 Germans were killed.
  • V-E Day

    -Allied victroy in Europe
    -The formal acceptance by the Allies of Germany's unconditional surrender.
    -Hitler had committed suicide on April 30th.
  • Potsdam Conference

    -Decisions were made on how to punish Germany
    -Tried to establish post-war order
    -Agreed on many ways to reorganize Germany.
  • V-J Day

    -Allied Victory over Japan
    -Announcement of Japan's unconditional surrender.
    -Also celebrated on September 2nd as the day when the Allies signed the formal surrender documents aboard the USS Missouri.