-
Kristallnacht
November Kristallnacht
Not a battle but the Nazi’s punishing the Jews by burning businesses synagogues, and homes this is generally considered to be the beginning of the Holocaust -
Invasion of Poland
This is what officially starts WWII in the European theater. Hitler and Stalin have an agreement not to invade one another, called the Non-Aggression Pact. But they do decide to invade and attack Poland, dividing the land between Germany and Russia, since Poland was created out of the land from the Treat of Brest Litovsk -
Attack on Pearl Harbor
To punish the United States for freezing Japanese assets in the US, Japan bombs American Territories in the Pacific, specifically the naval base at Pearl Harbor on Sunday morning, December 7, 1941. This is what brought America into WWII. -
Battle of Midway
This is an American battle that allows for American control (and therefor allied control) of the Midway Atoll in the South Pacific. -
Guadalcanal
This is an allied victory in the South Pacific. The Japanese abandoned the airbase they had been establishing there. This meant that Americans had another station in the South Pacific and prevented the Japanese from spreading their control -
Battle of Stalingrade
THis battle was a major turning point in the European theater. Though a million soviet troops were killed in this battle alone, they were able to drive the Germans out of the USSR and begin the process of driving them back to Germany. Now with El-Alamein driving the Germans back from the south, and the battle of Stalingrad driving them back from the east, the allies began to plan a way to attack from the north and the west. -
El-Alamein
This is the battle for which Winston Churchill said it, "Is not the end. It i not even the beginning of the end. But it is perhaps, the end of the beginning." The Battle of El-Alamein was a major turning point in the European/North African Theater. The Germans had wanted to gain control of the Suez canal to make it easier to transport troops and resources to the Japanese in the South Pacific. The allies were able to defeat the Germans and begin the process of driving them back into Europe. -
Tehran Conference
This is the first time the "Big Three": Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met in person. The goal was to coordinate their battles and to open up a new battle front. It is at this conference they begin to plan the D-Day invasion. -
D-Day
This is the allied invasion of German territory from the North and the west. It is the biggest amphibious and air battle in history. This opened up the western battle front in Germany. It was planned at the Tehran conference. If you've seen Saving Private Ryan, it's THAT scene. -
Battle of the Bulge
This was the true beginning of the end for the Germans. The allied fought long and hard to win this battle, and they almost didn't due to freezing weather and low supplies. But in the end the Germans surrendered this battle. There was still quite a way to go, though. -
Yalta Conference
This conference divides Germany between the Big Three. Stalin also promises free elections in former German territories that the Soviets free. The United States and England promise help Stalin focus on Japan once Hitler is defeated. -
Iwo Jima
This was an American Marine victory. It was a very violent land battle to control the island. It also produced one of the most famous images of the war. -
Fall of Berlin
This day was a long time in coming. Though there is an official day that Berlin fell, it wouldn't have happened without all of the battles and events and planning that preceded it. -
Victory in Europe
The Germans officially surrender and the war is over. This means now that the allies can focus their resources on the Pacific. -
Potsdam Conference
Big 3- this time with Truman in place of FDR
Truman reveals he has a new and powerful weapon (only tells Churchill what it is.) Russia agrees to join war against Japan immediately. It deals with the terms of the surrender. Russia gets no land in Japan. -
Bombing of HIroshima
Japanese soldiers were notorious for refusing to surrender. The Americans had a new weapon that they were planning to use on the Japanese if they refused to surrender- the atomic bomb. The Americans dropped the bomb, "Little Boy" on Hiroshima. The blast was equally to 12,000 tons of TNT and destroyed a 5 square mile area of the city. -
Bombing of Nagaski
When the bombing of Hiroshima failed to cause the Japanese government to surrender, the United States dropped the bomb named "Fat Man" on the city of Nagasaki. It produced a 22-kiloton blast, but destroyed only 2.6 square miles due to the geography of the city.