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Rape of Nanking
On this day in history, the Chinese capital of Nanking fell to Japanese forces. The results were extremely brutal. Around 150,000 male citizens and soldiers were butchered and mutilated while another 50,000 were killed. More than 20,000 women and girls were raped during this process as well. The general who was in charge of this was General Matsui Iwane, and he was later found guilty of many war crimes and was executed as punishment. -
Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise attack by Japan against the US. Japan dropped many bombs and destroyed naval vessels and airplanes. Because of this attack, over 2,400 Americans were killed and at least 1,000 were injured. The day after Pearl Harbor, the US declared war on Japan. -
Bataan Death March
After the American troops surrendered to the Japanese on this day, they were forced to make a 65 mile trek to many prison camps. The Japanese generals made them march in excruciating heat and conditions. At least 1,000 soldiers died on this day. -
D-Day (Normandy Invasion)
This was an attack on Normandy by the US. It took many weeks to plan and prepare for. Hundreds of thousands of American soldiers invaded and attacked the troops in Normandy. The Allies came to victory at Normandy. Over 209,000 Allied casualties occurred. -
Battle of the Bulge
During the Battle of the Bulge, the Germans attacked the United States by essentially forming a bulge around troops to push through America's front lines. This battle was the largest that was fought on the Western front. The result was that the US ended up retreating. There were around 60,000 casualties and about 20,000 soldiers were captured. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The United States attacked Iwo JIma because it was a major island in the Bonin chain. The US used its marine, naval, and air forces to attack the island. It is most well known for the picture of some American soldiers rasing the flag over Mount Suribachi. There were over 23,000 casualties, including death and injuries. In the end, most of Iwo Jima was wiped out and they surrendered. -
VE Day
On this date, German troops in Europe finally surrendered. Before and after this, Russians took about 2 million prisoners. Surrender documents were signed in Berlin and in eastern Germany. -
Atomic Bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
On this date in history, an American bomber dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima in Japan. Over 80,000 were killed right away, but more later were to die due to radiation levels. A few days later, the second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, where around 40,000 were killed. On August 15, Japan surrendered. -
VJ Day
This day is known as Victory Over Japan day. This day is when Japan's surrender was announced. Everyone in the US and around the world celebrated "the day fascism died", according to Harriet S. Truman. Modern celebrations for this day are not common as they are viewed as disrespectful towards Japan, and Japan and the US are now allies. -
Liberation of Concentration Camps
Many people had been kept in awful conditions at concentration camps because they were Jewish, homosexual, Jehovah's Witnesses, and Gypies. American troops came into the camp and there were about 30,000 people inside the Dachau camp. There were around six train cars full of decomposing bodies from people who had previously been living at the camp. At the Dachau camp, the people inside were being used for labor.
