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Japanese Invasion of China
The Sino- Japanese War was a major invasion of mainland China by Japan, preceeding and during WWII. It ended with the surrender of Japan in 1945. By 1940, the war was at a stalemate. But western intervention in the form of economic sanctions against Japan changed things. Japan responded to these sanction with the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Http://www.history.co.uk.study-topics/history-of-ww2/sino-japanese-war -
German Invasion of Poland
German forces bombed Poland on land and from the air to try and regain lost territory. They wanted to rule Poland someday. Hitler showed his blitzkrieg fighting strategy. They bombed from the air to destroy railroads, communication and ammo dumps. Then they attacked by land. Hitler then set up SS security forces to terrorize the people. England bombed Germany 3 days later.
http;//www.history.com \ this - day - in -his torylermany - invades - poland -
Germany's Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg means lightening war. It is based on speed and suprise. Targets were picked. theneded bombers were sent in while tanks headed to the site planes left just as the tanks arrived. When the target was taken, the Germans quickly moved to the next target. France and Great Britain still used WW1 tactics. Hitler used Blitzkrieg to try and conquer Europe to give Germany "living space".
http://www.history.com / learning site.couk / world - war - two. -
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbaossa was the code name for the Soviet Union. Before this Germany and Russia were allies. Hitler was very successful in western Europe and wanted to fight on two fronts. Hitler move 2.5 million men to Soviet border. The Soviets did not think Hitler would attack after signing a pact two years earlier. The Germans decided toconcentrate Stalingrad. The Soviets were victorious over the Germans and continued to push west, while the US pushed to the east.
http:/encyclopedia.kids.net.au -
Attack on Pearl Harbor
On a Sunday morning, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. They attacked from the air with deadly force. Many of the US planes were destroyed. There were 2,403 deaths. Battle ships were damaged. It was over in 2 hours. The US aircraft carriers were not in port, which help out navy. President Roosevelt ask Congress to declare war. Japan neeed to pay for their attack. It united the Americans.
http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com -
Wannsee Conference
Nazi officials met in a suburb of Berlin. This conference marked the Nazi policy toward the Jews. The plan was to round up all the Jews in Europe and send them east to labor camps. Labor camps was just a nicer name for concentraction camps where they would be murdered. Within a few months the Nazis had built their first gas chambers. Many thousands of JewsIwould be put to death during WWII. This was the called the Holocaust.
http:/www.britannica.com/event/wannsee-conference -
Operation Gomorrah
British bombers raided Hamburg, Germany in the night, while the US bombed it by day. Britain dropped 2,3000 tons of bombs. Britain only lost 12 aircrafts because of a new radar- jamming device called "window". These bombing proved devasting to Hamburg and the German morale. Hitler refused to vist as it showed nothing but defeat.
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/ -
D-Day Normandy Invasion
The battle of Normandy resulted in the liberation of western Europe from the Nazis. American, British and Canadian forces landed on 5 beached along France's Normandy region. The allies had deceived the Germans about the target area. By August, France had been liberated and the forces were moving onto Germany to meet the Soviets moving in from the east.
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/d-day -
Battle of the Bulge
This was a major battle fought in France. This was a last ditch effort by Hitler during the very cold winter. 250,000 German troops to push into the allied line. The allies regained territory over 100,000 Germans died and 76,000 Americans were killed. It was fought in the forested areas of France. It ruined the German army and brought about the end of WWII.
http://www.american-historama.org/1929-1945 -
Operation Thunderclap
This operation had been discussed by allied command for a long time. It was a proposal to bomb eastern- most cities in Germany. Dresend, Germany had received very little bombing so far. It was decided to bomb Dresden so the enemy would feel what the Bomber Command could do. The RAF did 2 nights of bombing and Dresden was on fire.
http://ww2today/13-February-1945-operation-thunderclap -
Battle of Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima was used as an air base by the Japanese. the US Marines invaded the island and for 36 days fought the Japanese. The island was secured on March 16 after one of the bloodiest battles in Marine history. 7,000 US men died and 20,000 were wounded. The US needed the island as a refueling base. The Japanese fought from tunnels in the island. The battle showed the US what the Japanese would do to defend their country.
http://www.american-historama.org -
Battle of Okinawa
Okinawa is at the southern tip of Japan. This battle was americas final plan for victory in the Pacific.US wanted to capture the airfields and to cut off supplies to the Japanese. The battle was a major defeat for Japan and one of its worst in WWII. 100,000 Japanese troops were killed and 7,000 were prisioners of war. Japan surrendered after the US dropped th atomic bombs.
http://totallyhistory.com -
VE Day - Victory in Europe
VE marked the defeat of Germany by Allied forces in WW II. In the United States, Harry Truman, the president , dedicated the victory and celebrations to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who had died just a month before victory in Eutope was achieved . http://primaryfacts.com/959/ve-day-facts/http://primaryfacts.com/959/ve-day-facts/ -
Dropping of the Atomic Bombs
President Truman made the decision to dropped the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagaski, Japan. The WWII Potsdam Declaration contained an ultimatuim saying, that if Japan did not surrender it would face destruction. The Japanese did not reply. Truman stated that the bombs were dropped to shortern the agony of war and to save the lives of young Americans.
http://www.american-historama.org -
VJ Day
VJ day ( Victory over Japan Day ) was the name selected by the Allies for the day on which Japan surrendered, effectively ending WW2. The nation had been at war for 3 years, 8 months and 7 days. VJ Day marked the beginning of a two -day hoilday celeberating peace. On Sepember 2, 1945, General MacArthur accepted the Japanese surrender in a signed document from General Yoshijiro Umezu aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. http://www.ameicanhistorama.org1929-1945-depression-WW2era/V-J
