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Japanese invasion of China
The Japanese invasion of china was a conflict that broke out when China began a full-scale resistance to the expansion of Japanese influence in its territory. The war remained undeclared until December 9th, 1941. What happened was first there was a period of rapid Japanese advance until the end of 1938, then a period of virtual stalemate until 1944, and then the final period when allied counter attacks brought about Japan's surrender. https://www.britannica.com/event/Second-Sino-Japanese-War -
Rape of Nanking
During the Sino-Japanese War, Nanking, the capital of China, falls to Japanese forces, and the Chinese government flees to Hankow, further island along the Yangtze River. To break the spirit of Chinese resistance, Japanese General Matsui Iwane ordered that the city of Nanking be destroyed. Because of this, much of the city was burned and Japanese troops launched a campaign of atrocities against civilians. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-rape-of-nanking -
German Blitzkrieg
The blitzkrieg is a military tactic designed to create disorganization among enemy forces through the use of mobile forces and locally concentrated firepower. Its successful execution results in short military campaigns, which preserves human lives and limits the expenditure of artillery. German forces tried this out in Poland in 1939 before successfully employing the tactic with invasions of Belgium, the Netherlands, and France in 1940. https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/blitzkrieg -
Germany's invasion of Poland
At 4:45 A.M., 1.5 million German troops invade Poland all along its 1,750 mile border with German-controlled territory. Simultaneously, the German Luftwaffe bombed Polish airfields, and German warships and U-boats attacked Polish naval forces in Baltic Sea. Adolf Hitler claimed the massive invasion was a defensive action, but Britain and France were not convinced. On september 3, they declared war on Germany. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/germans-invade-poland -
Fall of Paris
On this day in 1940, Parisians awaken to the sound of a German-accented voice announcing via loudspeakers that a curfew was being imposed for 8 p.m. that evening-as German troops enter and occupy Paris. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill had tried for days to convince the French government to hang on, not to sue for peace, that America would enter the war and come to its aid. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/germans-enter-paris -
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is a U.S. naval base near Honolulu, Hawaii. Just before 8 a.m. on December 7, 1941, hundreds of Japanese fighter planes descended on the base, where they destroyed or damaged nearly 20 American naval vessels, including eight battleships, and over 300 airplanes. More than 2,400 Americans died in the attack, and another 1,00 were wounded. The attack was a surprise but the U.S. and Japan had been edging toward war for decades. https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/pearl-harbor -
Bataan Death March
After the April 9, 1942 U.S. surrender of the Bataan Peninsula on the main Philippine Island of Luzon to the Japanese during World War II, the approximately 75,000 Filipino and American troops on Bataan were forced to make an arduous 65-mile march to prison camps. The marchers made the trek in intense heat and were subjected to harsh treatment by Japanese guards. Thousands perished in what became known as the Bataan Death March. https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/bataan-death-march -
Battle of Midway
Six months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States defeated Japan in one of the most decisive naval battles of World War II. Thanks in part to major advances in code breaking, the United States was able to preempt and counter Japan’s planned ambush of its few remaining aircraft carriers, inflicting permanent damage on the Japanese Navy. https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-midway -
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was a brutal military campaign between Russian forces and those of Nazi Germany and the Axis powers during World War II. The battle is infamous as one of the largest, longest and bloodiest engagements in modern warfare: From August 1942 through February 1943, more than two million troops fought in close quarters – and nearly two million people were killed or injured in the fighting. https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-stalingrad -
Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
The Warsaw ghetto uprising was a violent revolt that occurred from april 19 to May 16, 1943, during World War II. Residents of the Jewish ghetto in Nazi-occupied Warsaw, Poland, staged the armed revolt to prevent deportations to Nazi-run extermination camps. The warsaw uprising inspired other revolts in extermination camps and ghettos throughout German-occupied Eastern Europe. https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/warsaw-ghetto-uprising -
Allied invasion of Italy
The British 8th Army under Field Marshal Bernard L. Montgomery begins the Allied invasion of the Italian peninsula, crossing the Strait of Messina from Sicily and landing at Calabria–the “toe” of Italy. On the day of the landing, the Italian government secretly agreed to the Allies’ terms for surrender, but no public announcement was made until September 8. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/allies-invade-italian-mainland -
D-Day
Codenamed Operation Overlord, the battle began on June 6, 1944, also known as D-Day, when some 156,000 American, British and Canadian forces landed on five beaches along a 50-mile stretch of the heavily fortified coast of France's Normandy region. The invasion was one of the largest amphibious military assaults in history and required extensive planning. By 1944, all of northern France had been liberated, and by spring allies defeated Germans. https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/d-day -
Battle of the Bulge
Three German armies launched the deadliest and most desperate battle of the war in the west in the poorly roaded, rugged, heavily forested Ardennes. As the German armies drove deeper into the Ardennes in an attempt to secure vital bridgeheads west of the River Meuse quickly, the line defining the Allied front took on the appearance of a large bulge, the name the battle would be known as. https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-the-bulge -
Liberation of concentration camps
The first camp to be liberated was Majdanek near Lublin, Poland in July 1944. Surprised by the rapid Soviet advance from the east, the Germans attempted to hide the evidence of mass murder by demolishing much of the camp, but parts including gas chambers were left standing. In January 1945, Auschwitz was overrun by Russian soldiers. It was the largest extermination and concentration camp. https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/liberation-of-the-concentration-camps -
Potsdam Declaration
Potsdam Declaration, ultimatum issued by the United States, Great Britain, and China on July 26, 1945, calling for the unconditional surrender of Japan. The declaration was made at the Potsdam Conference near the end of World War II. Two months after Germany surrendered, Allied leaders gathered in Potsdam, Germany, to discuss peace settlements, among other issues. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Potsdam-Declaration -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The Battle of Iwo Jima was an epic military campaign between U.S. Marines and the Imperial Army of Japan in early 1945. Located 750 miles off the coast of Japan, the island of Iwo Jima had three airfields that could serve as a staging facility for a potential invasion of mainland Japan. American forces invaded the island on February 19, 1945, and the ensuing battle of Iwo Jima lasted for five weeks. https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-iwo-jima -
Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa was the last major battle of World War II, and one of the bloodiest. On April 1, 1945 - Easter Sunday -, the Navy's Fifth Fleet and more than 180,000 U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps troops descended on the Pacific island of Okinawa for a final push towards Japan. The invasion was part of Operation Iceberg, a complex plan to invade and occupy the Ryukyu Islands, including Okinawa. https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-okinawa -
VE Day
On this day both Great Britain and the United States celebrate victory in Europe day. The eighth of May spelled the day when German troops throughout Europe finally laid down their arms. The german surrender was realized as a final cease-fire. More surrender documents were signed in Berlin and eastern Germany. Cities in both nations, as well as formally occupied cities in Western Europe, put out flags and banners. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/victory-in-europe -
Dropping of the atomic bombs
The United States becomes the first and only nation to use atomic weaponry during wartime when it drops an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Though the dropping of the atomic bomb on Japan marked the end of World War II, many historians argue that it also ignited the Cold War. Since 1940, the United States had been working on developing an atomic weapon. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/atomic-bomb-dropped-on-hiroshima -
VJ Day
On August 14, 1945, it was announced that Japan had surrendered unconditionally to the Allies, effectively ending World War II. Since then, both August 14 and 15 have been known as "Victoryover Japan Day," or simply "V-J Day." The term has also been used for September 2, 1945, when Japan's formal surrender took place aboard the U.S.S. Missouri, anchored in Tokyo Bay. Japan's capitulation in the Pacific brought six years of hostilities.https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/v-j-day
