-
Period: to
World War II
-
Communists Take Over Russia
In 1917, Communists took over Russia with their leader, Vladimir Lenin. This lead to a civil war, and the death of millions of Russians. After Lenin died, Joseph Stalin took over in 1924. He killed any real or suspected traitors resulting in 10 million Russian deaths. Fear and propaganda kept Stalin and the communists in power. -
Hitler becomes Chancelor of Germany
In 1933, Hitler became Chancelor in Germany and opened up his first concentration camp. Even though his economic policies brought Germany out of its depression, he still preached hate. He taught about Anti-Semitism which was simply prejudice towards Jews. He also had a political party called the Nazi's supporting him. Hitler and the Nazi's ended up murdering 11 million total people in the Holocaust. -
Battle of Britain
After France fell in 35 days, the Battle of Britain began. Operation Sealion commenced and Germany's Lutwaffe attacked the Royal Air Force. The UK lost 1,000 planes, but Germany lost 1,700. Germany bombed everything it could. The UK used radar to figure out where they would be attacked. This radar is what saved UK from falling to Germany. -
Pearl Harbor
Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, US Navy's main pacific base, on December 9, 1941. Japan sent six aircraft carriers and 360 airplanes destroying 28 ships in all and several submarines. Japan attacked in two waves; the first wave was the main attack which targeted ships and airfields and the second attack finished off what was left. They attacked aircraft carriers and battleships first. The objective of Japan was to prevent US from influencing Japan's war effort in Southeast Asia. -
Battle of the Coral Sea
On May of 1942, Japan moved to take New Guinea. This sparked the battle and caused US to send two aircraft carries to fight. A couple days later, the battle began. The ships never actually saw each other because the planes were the ones engaging in battle. The battle was technically a draw, but Japan called off their attack so it was a win for the US. -
Battle of Midway
Through May of 1942, the Japanese gained control of the Philippines, Malaya, Dutch East Indies, Hong Kong, Wake Island, Guam, and Burma. Now, Japan wanted Midway which was an American naval base in the Central Pacific. This was vital to the defense of Hawaii. Admiral Chester Nimitz knew the Japanese plans for Midway and concentrated his forces there. The attack began and the US dealt Japan a decisive defeat sinking four aircraft carriers and 250 planes. -
Teheran Conference
At Tehran Conference is where the Big Three planned the defeat of Germany. This group included FDR, Churchill, and Stalin who all had argued over when to start a second front in France. FDR agreed with Stalin, but Churchill was hesitant due to memories of what happened to the British in WWI. When the Big Three finally met face-to-face for the first time in Tehran, Iran, Churchill continued to voice reservations. After years of war, American and British soldiers would finally invade France. -
D-Day
The D-Day invasion of Normandy involed the most experienced Allied officers in Europe called Operation Overlord. This plan called for striking five beaches in Normandy. When the Allies hit the German forces, 11,000 planes prepared the way, attempting to destroy German communication and transportation networks. Nazi soldiers were dug into cliffs, hug dug trenches, and built concrete pillbox structures. By the end of the longest day on Earth, the Allies had a toehold in France. -
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was Hitler's counterattack which almost succeeded. Germans caught the Allies by surprise, created a bulge in the American line, and captured several key towns. The Americans held the line despite the frostbite and brutal German assults in Bustogne. The skies cleared and Allied bombers attacked and steadily pushed the Germans out of France. The Battle of the Bulge was a desperate attempt to drive a wedge between British and American forces. -
Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Hiroshima was bombed on August 6 and Nagasaki on August 9, 1945. This was the first and only time an atomic bomb had been dropped in history. The first bomb on Hiroshima exploded at 9:14 am and within two minutes, 60,000 of the 344,000 residents were killed. Over the next three days, Japan debated whether or not to surrender and the Soviet Union invaded Manchuria. Then the US dropped a second atomic bomb on Nagasaki killing an additional 35,000 residents. Japan surrendered
