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Japanese Invasion of China
Due to Japan wanting to expand its influence, China and Japan fought, with the Chinese refusing to surrender even after losing their capital. Both won battles, and the fighting eventually resulted in a stalemate. After the U.S. joined the war, China was aided by airlift material. China held out and fought until Japan surrendered to the Allied forces. The effect today, with Japan expelled from the Korean Peninsula. -
German invasion of Poland
Hitler believed that the German people needed space to live so he gave orders for an invasion of Poland. The invasion was delayed due to Britain signing a new treaty with Poland. Hitler turned to misinformation and propaganda to keep Britain from intervening. France declared war on Germany after the invasion officially began but that didn't stop Germany from destroying Poland's air forces with a blitzkrieg.
By June 1941, Germany siezed all of Poland while imprisoning all Polish jews, -
German Blitzkrieg
German term for "lighting war" blitzkrieg results in discord among enemy forces. It was first tried in the invasion of Poland, before it was perfected for use for the invasion of Belgium, Netherlands, and France. -
Fall of Paris
German tanks entered Paris, suprised to see that over 2 million of its citizens had fled. German Gestapo immediately turned to arresting, interrogating, and flying a swastika over the city. -
Pearl Harbor
Due to high tensions between Japan and the U.S., hundreds of Japanese fighter planes attacked a U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor near Honolulu, Hawaii. This resulted in the destruction of 20 American vessels, mroe than 300 airplanes, 2,000 American sailors and soldiers dead, and 1,000 wounded. This led to the U.S. declaring war on Japan and eventually entering the war. -
Bataan Death March
After the surrender of the Bataan Peninsula, 75,000 Filipino and American soldiers were forced to march 65 miles to prison camps. This occured in the intense heat and those who became too weak were killed on the spot. -
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was the successful defense of Stalingrad by the Soviets. Many historians consider it the greatest battle of WW2 and it marked the turning point in favor of the Allies. Military and civilian casualties added up to about 2 million. -
Allied Invasion of Italy
On the day of the landing at Calabria the Italian government secretly agreed to the Allies' terms of surrender. After 38 days of fighting, the U.S. and Great Britain drove German and Italian troops from Sicily. -
D-Day
Codenamed Operation Overlord, 156,000 American, British, and Canadian forces land along a 50 mile stretch of beach which was heavily fortified. The fortifications resulted in 200,000 German casualties. D-Day was one of the largest amphibious attacks in history and was a key step in defeating the Germans. -
The Battle of Iwo Jima
The U.S. needed a naval base next to the Japanese coast. After bomarding Iwo Jima both navally and aerially 70,000 U.S. Marines and 18,000 Japanese soldiers engaged in combat. The island was declared secured on March 19, 1945. Iwo Jima was used as an emergency landing site for bombers which saved 24,000 U.S. airmen. -
The Battle of Okinawa
287,000 troops of the U.S. Tenth Army faced off against 130,000 Japanese soldiers. This was an important battle because it was a point where the Japanese would be defeated and their lands would be invaded, The landings were easy, but it was becauase the Japanese had dug in defenses to fight on their own terms. It took place over the span of 80 days and resulted in 50,000 Allied casualties and 100,000 Japanese casualties. -
VE Day
Short for Victory in Europe Day, VE Day is the celebration of the day when German soldiers laid down their arms. Even though the war had officially ended the Soviets lost 600 more soldiers. German soldiers tried to elude Soviet capture in Czechoslovakia when fighting ended but resulted in 2 million Russian prisoners. -
Dropping of Atomic Bombs
The world's first atomic bomb was dropped on the city of Hiroshima, wiping out 90 percent of the city and killing 80,000 people instantly. This failed to make the Japanese surrender, which prompted another bomb to be dropped. A second bomb was dropped above Nagasaki which destroying 2.6 square miles and convinced the Japanese to surrender. -
VJ Day
Known as Victory over Japan Day, this day marks when Japan surrendered unconditionally to the Allied forces. V-J Day celebrations died out over the years with Japan becoming a close ally to America.
