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Rape of Nanking
The Japanese butchered an estimated 150,000 male "war captives," massacred another 50,000 male civilians, and raped at least 20,000 women and girls of all ages, many of whom were mutilated or killed in the process. Japanese General Matsui Iwane ordered the destruction of Nanking in order to shatter the spirit of Chinese resistance. Matsui was found guilty of war crimes and executed by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East shortly after World War II ended. -
Japanese invasion of China
The Second Japanese War was largely fought between China and the Imperial Japanese Empire. Japan's heavy industry required an increasing amount of raw resources. Japan's Empire had run out of raw materials and sought to acquire more by conquering more of Asia. The Chinese people suffered enormous losses during the eight-year Japanese invasion. China's civilian and military casualties were estimated to be 20 million dead and 15 million wounded, according to official Chinese data. -
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German Blitzkrieg
The German Blitzkrieg was a military tactic used in 1939 to cause psychological shock and disarray in opposing forces by using surprise, speed, and superiority in materiel or artillery. In the early phase of World Conflict II in Europe, Germany's aim was to prevent a long war. Germany's aim was to beat its adversaries in a series of brief battles. As a result, this new military tactic of "Blitzkrieg," Germany soon overran much of Europe and remained triumphant for more than two years. -
Fall of Paris
One month after the German Wehrmacht surged into France, Nazi Germany captured Paris. France signed an armistice with the Germans eight days later, and a puppet French state was established with Vichy as its capital. The goal was to lure the main Allied forces into northern France and Belgium, then surround them in a massive manoeuvre. German triumph in Holland, Belgium, and France resulted in a four-year deal and a desperate British evacuation from Dunkirk, leaving the UK vulnerable. -
Pearl Harbor
Japanese planes attacked the US Naval Base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Territory.The USS Arizona was destroyed, while the USS Oklahoma was capsized. The strike was intended as a deterrent to the US Pacific Fleet from interfering with Japan's planned military efforts in Southeast Asia against British, Dutch, and US foreign territories. Nearly 20 American ships and over 300 planes were disabled or destroyed. 2,403 sailors, soldiers, and civilians were killed, with a further 1,000 injured. -
Wannsee Conference
The Wannsee Conference was a high-level gathering of German authorities to debate and put into action "Final Solution to the Jewish Question". The conference happened to eliminate all Jews within Europe. The impact was that they were able to liquidate 80,000 Jews by using monoxide gas. Jews were also killed using gas chambers. In total 40 percent of the world's Jewish population was exterminated. -
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a six-month battle between the United States Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy that took place six months after the Pearl Harbor attack. Japan wanted to beat the US Pacific Fleet and assault Pearl Harbor from Midway, consolidating regional dominance and imposing a negotiated settlement. The Battle of Midway was a watershed moment in the war. The naval powers of Japan and the United States were roughly equalised. Three years later, the war came to an end. -
D-Day
On D-Day, Allied forces attacked Nazi-occupied France with a combined naval, air, and ground assault. Airborne forces from the Allies dropped into drop zones around northern France. Ground forces landed on Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword beaches, among others. The invasion army was supposed to cross the English Channel at its narrowest point, according to Hitler. As a result the Germans were forced to surrender in just less than one year. -
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle was Germany's final military effort in Europe. The Battle was fought to prevent the Allies from using Antwerp, a Belgian port, and to split Allied lines, allowing the Germans to encircle and destroy four Allied armies. Despite their surprise attack on Allied forces, the Allies won the Battle of the Bulge, resulting in substantially heavier deaths on the German side. German troops lost 120,000 people and military equipment, allied forces suffered only 75,000 fatalities. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The Clash of Iwo Jima was a significant fight where the US Marine Corps and Naval force arrived and in the end captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Magnificent Japanese Armed force during The Second Great War. It happened because the US needed to utilize the island as an airbase from which to assault Japan's home islands. It resulted in an American victory. -
VE Day
The German armed forces declared an unconditional surrender on VE Day. It happened to stop Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Germany army. This brought the Second World War in Europe to a close. -
Dropping of the atomic bombs
The Enola Gay, an American bomber, dropped a five-ton bomb over Hiroshima, Japan. President Harry S. Truman, after being cautioned by some of his advisers that any attempt to invade Japan would result in horrible American losses, ordered the use of the new weapon to bring the war to an end as quickly as possible. This caused Japan to surrender. -
VJ Day
On the day that formal surrender documents were signed aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, (V-J Day) would be formally observed in the United States. It happened because Japanese Gen Tomoyuki Yamashita, Japan's military governor in the Philippines, surrendered on that day. It was the final day of World War II. The Allies - Britain, the United States, and other countries fighting together - declared victory over Japan on August 15, 1945, as the name suggests. -
Liberation of concentration camps
The Red Army liberated Auschwitz, a Nazi concentration camp where more than a million people were slaughtered. Although the majority of the inmates were forced to march to their deaths, roughly 7,000 were left behind. The camps were constructed to get rid of the majority of Germans. Disease remained a constant threat, and several of the camps had to be burned down to prevent epidemics from spreading. The survivors of the camps had a long and tough recovery ahead of them. -
Battle of Okinawa
It was a major Pacific War battle conducted on the island of Okinawa by US Army and US Marine Corps forces against Imperial Japanese Army forces. The goal was to seize the island, removing the last line of defense between American forces and Imperial Japan. The Americans suffered almost 49,000 casualties, with 12,520 of them dead. On June 18, two days before the campaign concluded, General Buckner was killed. Japanese casualties were an estimated 110,000 Japanese soldiers killed.