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Japanese Invasion of China
Japanese Invasion of China In this event that kickstarted World War II, China started to resist the Japanese expansion into Chinese territory. This was caused by the Japanese, who were attempting get rid of the nationalist government of Chiang Kai-Shek, and started invading China, claiming that the Chinese fired on them first. This caused tensions between the USA and Japan. -
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World War II
This is a timeline of 20 major events in World War II. -
Rape of Nanking
The Rape of Nanking was the event during which the capital of China was invaded by the Japanese. The Japanese troops were given permission to burn and pillage the city essentially. They killled 200,000 male citizens and raped at least 20,000 females, killing them in the process. This happened because the Japanese wanted to break China's spirit. This allowed the USA to be much more sympathetic to the Chinese. -
Ribbentrop/Molotov Pact
The Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact was an agreement that Germany would exchange manufactored items for Soviet raw materials. This was also a non agression pact between Germany and the Soviet Union. It was this pact that allowed Germany to attack Poland. This had a major effect on the war, as it provided the starting point for World War II -
Germany's Invasion of Poland
The German invasion of Poland happened because Hitler made an agreement with Stalin that Stalin would not stop him. Also, so there would not be an anti German alliance. This was Germany's invasion of Poland. This officially kickstarted World War II. -
German Blitzkrieg
The German Blitzkrieg was a war tactic employed by Germany to defeat their enemies in a series of small campaigns. This was employed against Poland, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Yugoslavia, and Greece. This was extremely effective, however, it did not work against Great Britain, which ended up stopping their advancement. -
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was an operation ordered by Hitler that was supposed to invade Russia. Germany lost this battle, due to inclement weather and unhelpful advice from Hitler's generals. This happened because Hitler wanted to take Moscow. When this failed, the Soviet Union's rebuttal was inevitable, and was a huge setback for Germany. -
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor was the biggest victory the Japanese had over the Americans in World War II. Essentially, hundreds of planes attacked the Naval base in Hawaii, destroying 20 naval vessels, 200 airplaines, and causing 2,000 casualties. This was the beginning of the war between the Japanese and the USA. This had a major impact on USA, however, they recovered and retaliated. -
Wannsee Conference
The Wannsee Conference was the meeting during which 15 German government officials discussed the infamous Final Solution to the Jewish Question. This was happening because they were running into problems with killing so many Jews, they had to think of something easier. This meeting did not have a large impact on the war, as Hitler was now trying to spread communism, which was much more pressing to the USA. -
The Bataan Death March
The Bataan Death March was a forced march of 65 miles of Americans and Filipinos after their surrender to the Japanese. These men were beaten, starved, and bayoneted if they were not able to walk. This did not have a large effect on the war, it just made people mad and eventually the island was recaptured. -
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the war against the Japanese. This event happened because the Japanese were planning to bomb a few of America's naval forces, however, the Americans broke the Japanese's code, and was able to set up a defense, which then caused the Japanese to lose ships and aircraft, with the Americans just losing 143 aircrafts. This was a major setback for the Japanese in the war. -
The Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was a major turning point in the world, as it was an extremely desirable position to take, for the germans to launch attacks from and as a resource point. The Soviet Union held it valiantly, and this was when the Allies started winning the war. -
Operation Gomorrah
Operation Gomorrah was a highly successful bombing run by the USA and Britain on Hamburg, Germany. There were 30,000 casulties, as well as 280,000 building destroyed.This destroyed German morale. Britain had sustained casulties due to German bombing raids, and this was revenge for them. This had a profound psychological on Hitler and his officers. -
Normandy Invasion
D-Day was one of the bloodiest invasions of America's history. This was an invasion of Normandy, France. The purpose of this mission was to free the french from german rule. There were five different beaches targeted. This had a large impact on the war, because this signifies Germany's shrinking territory. -
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was a skirmish between the Americans and the Germans, where the Germans attempted to push through the Ardennes in NW Europe in an unexpected blitzkrieg. The objective for this was to split the Allied forces. However, General Patton responded quickly, and moved the forces into what looked like a bulge from a strategic viewpoint. Germany was unable to split the forces, which was positive for the A -
Operation Thunderclap
Operation Thunderclap was the bombing raid that was ordered on Germany's eastern cities, meant to disrupt the supplies to their front lines. This had a large effect on the war, because it helped confirm what was already happening: Germany was being defeated. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
Battle of Iwo Jima The battle of Iwo Jima was an amphibious invasion of a japanese island that was a crucial strategic base. This affected the war in a major way, because it allowed the USA to ultimately defeat the Japanese. -
Battle of Okinawa
Battle of Okinawa This was the final pacific island battle of World War II. This battle was important because it was provided the launching point for deeper invasion into Japanese territory. This battle had severe casulties on both sides, even the generals on each side were killed. Kamikaze pilots were introduced in this battle. -
VE Day
Victory in Europe was official on this day. The Germans surrendered. This was important because it marks the end of the war against Germany, who started this in the first place. -
Dropping of the Atomic Bombs
The atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This was the world's first introduction to atomic bombs. It convinced the Japanese to finally surrender. This stopped the war with the Japanese. -
VJ Day
VJ Day was the day the Japanese surrendered. This had a large impact on the war, because it was officially ended the war. This happened because the Japanese were scared by the atomic bomb, and we had invaded their territory and were slowly but surely making our way to their island.
