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Japanese Invade China
Japan Invading ChinaThe Japanese invading China in 1937 was the second expansion force for Japan, after invading Manchuria in 1931. Three years after, in 1940, Japan signed a treaty with Italy and Germany, entering the Axis powers in World War 2. Wanting to stop the Japanese forces and cause withdrawal from Manchuria and China, the US put economic sanctions on Japan. Angry from the cutbacks this caused and wanting to end US' reign as dominant Pacific power, Japan attacked the US and British forces in Asia. -
Rape of Nanking
Rape of NankingOver 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. -
Ribbentrop/Molotov Pact
Ribbentrop/Molotov Pact Hitler and Stalin signed a non-agression pact, called the Molotov-Ribbentrop Treaty. Secret protocols of the treaty said what places Germany and Russia would control after invading Poland. According to the agreement, Russia would have control over Latvia, Estonia, and Finland, while Germany would gain control over Lithuania and Danzig. Poland would be divided into three parts. -
Germany Invades Poland
Germany Invades PolandFirst, Germany got the Soviet Union to agree to be neutral in the war. Once that was secured, Germany invaded Poland on September 1st. Poland was defeated by both German and Soviet forces within a month and divided between the two. Britain and France both declared war on September 3rd in retaliation to this act. -
Fall of Paris
Fall of Paris Germans entered and occupied Paris and imposed an 8 pm curfew. -
German Blitzkrieg
German Blitzkrieg
Contrary to popular belief, blitzkrieg was not a new form of warfare. They used the tank and dive-bomb tactics n this form of fighting. -
Operation Barbarossa
Operation BarbarossaHitler launched his armies eastward in a massive invasion of the Soviet Union. Three thousand tanks smashed across the frontier into Soviet territory. The invasion covered a front from the North Cape to the Black Sea, a distance of two thousand miles. Barbarossa was the crucial turning point in World War II, for its failure forced Nazi Germany to fight a two-front war against a coalition possessing immensely superior resources. -
Pearl Harbor Attack
Pearl HarborThe Japanese surprised the Americans by attacking a Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. This helped the Japanese slow down the Americans in attacking them; but, because of this attack on America, the US declared war on Japan. -
Wannsee Conference
Wannsee ConferenceThe Wannsee Conference was the meeting of 15 high-ranking Nazi officials to discuss the 'Final Solution'. This was code for how they were going to wipe out the Jews. -
Operation Gomorrah
Operation GomorrahR
aid on Hamburg, Germany by British bombers. They dropped 2,300 tons of bombs. -
D-Day
ddayThe Allies establixhed their place on Normandy coast and invaded Northwest Europe. The aLlies used deception tactics to fool Germany, and therefore were able to succeed in a successful attack. -
Battle of the Bulge
Battle of the BulgeHitler attempts to split the Allied armies using the blitzkrieg technique was used in this battle. Allie forces were caught off guard and tried fighting back, the way the line defining the Allied front took on the appearance of a large bulge, giving the battle it's name. A crucial German shortage of fuel and the gallantry of American troops fighting in the forests of the Ardennes killed Hitler’s chance at victory with the Allies in the West. -
Operation Thunderclap
Operation Thunderclap was a plan to bomb the eastern cities of Germany, to stop transports to weaken what was becoming the eastern front. In total 796 Lancasters took part in the two raids on the night of the 13th/14th, only 6 aircraft were lost, one of the lowest rates of loss for any major RAF bombing raid. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
Iwo JimaThis battle was fought on a small island defended by 23,000 japanese soldiersfighitng from underground. Three US marine divisions were deployed and, after a month of fighting, wiped out the opposing forces. This battle is mostly known for a picture of a flag being raised up by American Marines. -
Battle of Okinawa
OkinawaOkinawa was the last and biggest Pacific island battle of World War 2, involving 287,000 US Troops against 130,000 Japanese. At the end of 82 days, Japanese had lost 77,000 soldiers, and America had 65,00 injured- including the 14,000 dead. The Japanese was mostly on the defense in this battle, rarely making attacks. -
VE Day
VE Day VE Day is Victory in Europe Day. The day when German forces throughout Europe stopped fighting. This is a celebratory day for both Great Britain and America. This was the final cease-fire for the Germans. -
Dropping of the Atomic Bombs
BOmbing of HiroshimaAmerican B-29 bomber dropped the world’s first deployed atomic bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The bomb took out 90 percent of the city and killed 80,000 people on the spot; tens of thousands more would later die of radiation exposure. Three days later, a second B-29 dropped another A-bomb on Nagasaki, killing an estimated 40,000 people. Japan’s Emperor Hirohito announced his country’s unconditional surrender in World War II in a radio address on August 15. -
VJ Day
VJ Day Japan surrendered unconditionally to the Allies, effectively ending World War II. Now August 14th and 15th are known as "Victory over Japan Day'
