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Japanese Invasion of China
The war was the result of a decades-long Japanese imperialist policy aiming to dominate China politically and militarily to secure its vast raw material reserves and other resources. At the same time, the rising tide of Chinese nationalism and notions of self determination stoked the coals of war. The Marco Polo Bridge Incident of 1937, marked the official beginning of full scale war between the two countries. The invasion was condemned and declared illegal by the League of Nations. -
Rape of Nanking
over a period of six weeks, Imperial Japanese Army forces brutally murdered hundreds of thousands of people–including both soldiers and civilians–in the Chinese city of Nanking (or Nanjing). The horrific events are known as the Nanking Massacre or the Rape of Nanking, as between 20,000 and 80,000 women were sexually assaulted. Nanking, then the capital of Nationalist China, was left in ruins, and it would take decades for the city and its citizens to recover from the savage attacks. -
Germany's Invasion of Poland
At 4:45 a.m., some 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 the Baltic Sea. Nazi leader 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, initiating World War II. -
German Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg is a German term for lightning war, it's 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 out the blitzkrieg in Poland in 1939 before successfully employing the tactic with invasions of Belgium, the Netherlands and France in 1940. -
Operation Barbarossa
Adolf Hitler launched his armies eastward in a massive invasion of the Soviet Union: three great army groups with over 3 million German soldiers, 150 divisions, and 3 thousand tanks smashed across the frontier into Soviet territory. The invasion covered a distance of two thousand miles. It was a crucial turning point of World War 2 because its failure forced Nazi Germany to fight a two-front war against a coalition possessing immensely superior resources. -
Pearl Harbor
Hundreds of Japanese fighter planes attacked the American naval base at Pearl Harbor near Honolulu, Hawaii. The barrage lasted just two hours, but it was devastating: The Japanese managed to destroy nearly 20 American naval vessels, including eight enormous battleships, and more than 300 airplanes. More than 2,000 Americans soldiers and sailors died in the attack, and another 1,000 were wounded. The day after the attack, the United States declared war on Japan, then soon after Germany and Italy. -
Wannsee Conference
15 high-ranking Nazi Party and German government officials gathered at a villa in the Berlin suburb of Wannsee to discuss and coordinate the implementation of what they called the "Final Solution of the Jewish Question." The "Final Solution" was the code name for the annihilation of the European Jews. Reinhard Heydrich, chief of the Security Service indicated that approximately 11,000,000 Jews in Europe would fall under the provisions of the "Final Solution." -
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was the successful Soviet defense of the city of Stalingrad in the USSR during WW2. Most historians consider it one of the greatest battle of the entire conflict and to be the greatest battle of the Great Patriotic War. The battle stopped the German forces from coming into the Soviet Union and it is also marking the turning point of the war for the Allied forces. Stalingrad was one of the bloodiest civilian and war battles of all time with nearly 2 million deaths. -
Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
The Warsaw ghetto uprising began after German troops and police entered the ghetto to deport its surviving inhabitants. By May 16, 1943, the Germans had crushed the uprising and left the ghetto area in ruins. Surviving ghetto residents were deported to concentration camps or killing centers. -
Operation Gomorrah
British bombers raid Hamburg, Germany, by night in Operation Gomorrah, while Americans bomb it by day in its own “Blitz Week.” Britain turned the tables on Germany after Germany dropped bombs on Britain in July. British aircrafts dropped 2,300 tons of incendiary bombs on Hamburg in just a few hours. The explosive power was the equivalent of what German bombers had dropped on London in their five most destructive raids. More than 1,500 German people were killed in the first British raid. -
D-Day (Invasion of Normandy)
The landing included over 5,000 ships, 11,000 airplanes, and over 150,000 service men.After years of meticulous planning and seemingly endless training, for the Allied Forces, it all came down to this: The boat ramp goes down, then jump, swim, run, and crawl to the cliffs. Many of the first young men (most not yet 20 years old) entered the surf carrying eighty pounds of equipment. When it was over, the Allied Forces had suffered nearly 10,000 casualties; more than 4,000 were dead. -
Battle of the Bulge
Adolph Hitler attempted to split the Allied armies in northwest Europe by means of a surprise blitzkrieg thrust through the Ardennes. American units were caught off gaurd and fought desperate battles to the stem of Germany. As the Germans drove deeper into the Ardennes in an attempt to secure vital bridgeheads, the Allied line took on the appearance of a large bulge, giving rise to the battle’s name. leading to the neutralization of the German counteroffensive despite heavy casualties. -
Liberation of Concentration Camps
As Allied troops moved across Europe in a series of offensives against Nazi Germany, they began to encounter tens of thousands of concentration camp prisoners. Many of the prisoners survived harsh treatment like forced slave labor, very little food, and forced marches into the interior of Germany. All the prisoners were suffering from diseases and starvation. The Soviets were the first to liberate a major Nazi camp. To hide evidence, the Nazis burned the remains of the dead bodies. -
Operation Thunderclap
During the final months of the war, Allied forces bombed the historic city of Dresden, Germany. The bombing was controversial because Dresden was neither important to German wartime production nor a major industrial center. Before the massive raid Germany had not suffered from a major Ally attack. After the raid the city was smoldering ruin and an unknown number of civilians were dead, the estimated number is between 35,000 and 135,000. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The American invasion of Iwo Jima stemmed from need for a base near the Japanese coast. Following the bombardment of naval ships and air raids, three marine divisions from the US landed on the island. Iwo Jima was being defended by 23,000 Japanse army and navy troops who fought from caves, dugout tunnels and underground installations. The marines ended up wiping out the defending forces despite the difficulty of conditions after just a month of fighting. -
Battle of Okinawa
This battle was the last and biggest Pacific Island battle of World War 2. This battle involved 287,000 US troops against 130,000 Japanese troops. If the US were to lose an invasion by Japan would be at stake. By the 82nd day at battle Japan had 77,000 casualties while the US and supporting allies had 65,000 casualties including 14,000 dead soldiers. During this battle also the commanding Generals of both sides died in battle. Eventually Japan finally surrendered to the allies. -
VE Day
VE Day is the day that the United States and Great Britain claimed victory in Europe. On this day, cities in both nations put out their countries flags and banners and waved them proud and rejoiced as they finally claimed victory and the war against Nazi Germany was over. Germany surrendered to the hands of the Soviet Union who lost almost 8,000 men while Germany had over 8,000 casualties. -
Dropping of the Atomic Bombs
The dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were the retaliation of the bombing that Japan did on Pearl Harbor. The United States became the first and only nation to use atomic weaponry during wartime. The atomic bombs being dropped were nicknamed Little Boy which was dropped on Hiroshima and Fat Man that was dropped on Nagasaki. Little Boy was the first atomic to ever be dropped and when it was dropped it killed 80,000 people, injured 35,000, and in a year after killed 60,000. -
VJ Day
VJ Day is the day that Japan announced its surrender from the war. VJ stands for Victoryover Japan. They surrendered shortly after the United States dropped two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The signing of Japans official surrender took place aboard the USS Missouri while anchored on Tokyo Bay. -
The Nuremberg Trials of Nazis
After WW2, Some of the Nazi men who were responsible for the Holocaust were brought to trial in Nuremberg, Germany. The only judges allowed were ones from the Allied powers like Great Britain, France, United States, and the Soviet Union. These judges presided over the hearings of the 22 accused Nazi criminals. 12 of the 22 Nazi criminals were sentenced to death. Most admitted to the crimes they committed. The other ones that used it as forced labor received short prison sentence or none at all.
