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Japanese Invasion of China
On this day, The Japanese invaded Manchuria. This invasion officially started the second Sino-Japanese war. The Japanese needed resources that they couldn't get on their own. Therefore they decided to invaded it's very resourceful and plentiful neighbor, Manchuria. By invading China, the Japanese cause a considerable amount of stress on it's own economy, causing discomfort among the lives of it's people. -
Rape of Nanking
Japanese soldiers murdered 300,000 civilians. Of the 90,000 Chinese POW's, all of them were brutally murdered because they were seen to be huge cowards. 20,000 to 80,000 women were brutally and animalistically raped then shot and stabbed with bayonets to eliminate all witnessess. This act was viewed as horrendous and vile amongst the chinese peoples and axis powers alike. -
Germany's Invasion of Poland
After the German-Soviet pact, the Germans felt they were no longer in Russian crosshairs. Therefore they invaded Poland without any fear of being stopped. The German's need econimic support and a strong military force to be pulled out of their reccession. Going to war would do just that. As a result, France and britain declared war on Germany on September 3, 1939 and World War ll had officially begun. -
German Blitzkrieg
The stretegy of the German military. Lightning warfare, or blitzkrieg, was first tested and used to crush Poland's armies in only a few weeks. By September 27. 1939 Poland was in shambles. The German's needed a way to decide how effective this type of warfare was. As a result, Germany single handedly crushed all of Europes nations combined by 1941. This shocked and confused western nations. -
Fall of Paris
The Germans took Paris that night, forcing a curfew of 8 pm. The French contacted the Americans for aid and supplies but the secretary of state, Cordell Hull, would not allow ROosevelt to aide them. He believed that Hitler would misunderstand this as an act of war and declare war on us. -
Operation Barbarossa
Nazi Germany decided they were strong enough to conquer Joseph Stalin's Russia. But they overestimated their abilities. They fought hard and almost took moscow. However when russian weather took over, the German's were too eager and not prepared to widthstand the harsh conditions. Operation Barbarossa had failed, leaving the crippled German's to fight a two sided war that inevitably ends in utter defeat. -
Pear Harbor
The Japanese Airforce severely crippled the United States on this day. They destroyed almost 20 American ships and close to 300 planes. They also killed nearly 2500 U.S. Soldiers and Civilians. The Japanses missed their initial targets however. The aircraft carriers, which were not in port on that day. In response, America Entered World War ll full of anger and wanting revange. -
Wannsee Conference
On this date, 15 german officials met in Wannsee, Berlin. They discussed what they refferred to as the "FInal solution of the Jewish question." The decision made here caused the deaths of millions of innocent prisoners. Although the majority of recorded kills were jewish, the jews were not the only people to be subject to the Nazi's predjudice perspectives. -
Bataan Death March
On this date, Americans surrendered to the Japanese at Bataan and some 75,000 soldiers had to make a 65 mile journey on foot to prison camps whilst being subject to brutal battering from the Japanese soldiers. Many died along the way, thus the journey got it's name. The General Homma Masaharu was captured in the American invasion of Layte, and sentenced to death by firing squad. The Prisoners were liberated and Bataan was re-captured by the Americans. -
Battle of Stalingrad
Lasting until February 2nd of 1943, the battle of stalingrad was the turning point of the war effort. 2 million military and civilian casualties resulted from this battle and it is recognized as the bloodiest and most important battle of the entire war. German's advanced on the Russian city of stalingrad, but the Russians defended the city and won the battle, cutting the Germans off from necessary supplies and wearing down their army. The Germans lost about 150,000 soldiers and surrendered. -
Operation Gomorrah
On July 14, 1943, British planes flew over Hamburg, Germany. By bombing Germany with 2300 tons of explosive paylods, Britain hoped to attain an advantage over Germany. In fact, 1500 civilians were killed on that single bomb raid. Following that raid, came 30,000 deaths and 280,000 destroyed buildings and structures in Germany, all achieved by british and American air raids. -
D-Day - The Normandy Invasion
This battle was the largest amphibious invasion in history. It lasted from June until August of that year. Allied powers freed western Europe as a result of this battle. ALthouhgh America lost many soldiers, they freed many unknown POW's locked in Concentration camps scattered around Europe. -
Battle of the Bulge
German armies advanced on the Ardennes forest hoping to use a swift and critical blitzkrieg against the allied powers but were intercepted by American battallions. The Nazi's pushed hard to break the allied defense because they were exhausting their supplies. They were usuccessful. The allied powers took victory at this battle by using strategic defense maneuvers and out-sourcing their enemy. -
Operation Thunderclap
The RAF bombed Dresden. They estroyed this city because it was the most unbombed and structurally built city in germany. So by destroying it, all of germany's refugees, soldiers, and civilians were deprived of a warm proctected place to rest and gain strength. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima was the nation needed to be conquered in order to truly end World War ll. The Americans needed a base close enough to Japan to nuke it. So this battle birthed from the neccessity of a closer base. By capturing Iwo Jima, the Americans launched 2 atmospheric nuclear bomb raids on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Atomic weapons used for these horrendous attack were nicknamed "Little Boy," and "Fat Man." -
Battle of Okinawa
The last battle of World War ll, the battle for okinawa was the bloodiest battle in the Pacific during the war. 287,000 U.S. troops were deployed in the fight for okinawa, they were faced with 130,000 Japanese soldiers. Allied powers new they had to secure okinawa before they could mandate that Japan surrender. The 82 day battle guaranteed Allied victory of the war, however it took two catastrophic explosions to finally convince Japan that they had no choice but to surrender. -
Liberation of Concentration Camps
On April 11, 1945, Americans liberated Buchenwald. What they found there was unspeakable. The carnage of the Nazi camps included piles of corpses unburied, millions of suits, shoes, and other personal items were found. Amongst the liberation, Allied Soldiers came upon a 14,000 puond stockpile of human hair, used in the production of furniture for the Nazi Germany. The aftermath of the liberations were pure horror reactions from the entire world. The Germans had been defeated. -
VE Day
Britain and America Claim this day as their victory against Europe. In Prague, Copenhagan, Oslo, Latvia, Karlhorst, and in Berlin, the Germans and the Axis powers were signing cease-fire and surrender paperwork. Millions all over Europe hung Flags and celebrated as a result of this. -
Dropping of the atomic bombs
Harry Truman thought the A-bomb to be a speedy way to end the war in Japan. American troops would have been slaughtered by the time we deployed them. The first A-bomb ever weaponized during wartime, Little boy, was dropped on Hiroshima and immediatley killed 80,000 people and leveld four square miles. A few days later "Fat Man" was dropped on Nagasaki, killing another 40,000 people. Japan Surrendered a few days later. -
VJ Day
Japan finally surrendered on this day. After being bombed twice at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, World War ll was officially ended. American Troops came home and celebrated the Allied victory. Most had not seen their wives for a few years, it was a good time for America.
