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Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht, or the night of broken glass, was the most serious attack on jews in Germany before the holocaust began. Nazi officials ordered attacks on Jews in Germany, Austria and the Sudetenland. Secret police and military units destroyed 1,500 synagogues and 7,500 Jewish owned businesses. Overall, 200 Jews were killed and 600 were injured -
Hitler Blitzkreigs Poland
On September 1, 1939 Hitler attacked Poland with his famous strategy called Blitzkreig. Blitzkreig, or lightning war, was when Germany sent their Air Force in to bomb followed by tanks and ground forces. The Soviets attacked Poland from the East to help Germany. Because of this attack, France and the UK declared war on Germany. Poland had fallen to Germany by the end of September. -
invasion of France
France prepared for the Nazis by constructing a series of forts known as the Maginot Line. However, France did not build any of the Maginot Line through the Ardennes. They believed the forest was too dense for the Nazis to bring an army through. Germany ripped through France and headed to the English Canal. France fell in 35 days -
Pearl Harbor
Japan sent 6 aircraft carriers, 360 planes, and several submarines to attack pearl harbor in hawaii. The attack came in 2 waves, the first wave attacked ships and the airfield, the second wave finished of whatever was left. The attack was meant to keep the U.S. from influencing Japans war efforts in the Pacific. The attack resulted in 2,402 dead, 1282 wounded, and many ships and aircraft were destroyed or damaged. The very next day, U.S. declared war on Japan. -
Manhattan Project
From 1942 to 1946, the Manhattan Project was a top secret program to develop atomic weapons. It cost several billion dollars and employed tens of thousands of people. The two primary leaders were General Leslie Groves and J. Robert Oppenheimer. The program was so secret that vice prsident Truman did not know about it until FDR died. This program led to the successful development of atomic bombs which were then used on Japan to end the war. -
Battle of Midway
Midway was an American naval base in the central Pacific, vital to the defense of Hawaii. Losing Midway would have forced American defences back to the california coasts. Luckily, Admiral Chester Nimitz new of the Japanese plans to attack Midway and concentrated forces their. The U.S. sank 4 Japanese aircraft carriers and 250 Japanese planes. This was the turning point of the war in the Pacific and put the U.S. on the offensive. -
Stalingrad
The battle at Stalingrad was the true turning point of the war in Europe from August, 1942, to February 1943. The winter in russia was brutal with many Germans starving and sick. 91,000 Nazis surrendered in January 1943 and only 5,000 returned to Germany. This battle ended any realistic plans of hitler dominating Europe. After Nazi armies were forced to retreat to Germany, the Soviet Union went on the offensive. -
D-Day
D-day was the start of the invasion of France to take it back from Germany. It involved landing 21 American divisions and 26 British, Polish, and Canadian divisions on a 50 mile stretch of beaches in Normandy, France. Nazi soldiers were dug into cliffs and concrete pillboxes and offered a stiff opposition as the allies hit the beaches of Normandy. The beaches were heavily mined and soldiers stepped out to a rainstorm of bullets, shells and death. This was the start of the road to berlin. -
Battle of the Bulge
As allies began to come closer and closer to Hitler, fear started to set in and Hitler still felt there was possibility for victory. He made one last effort for a counter attack that is known as the Battle of the Bulge. The Germans caught the Allies by surprise creating a bulge in the American line and capturing several key towns. on December 23 allied bombers attacked and steadily pushed the Germans out of France. From then on, the allies steadily pushed their way into Berlin. -
Hitler Dies
By the time allies reached Berlin, Hitler was a physical and emotional wreck. At this point no one was willing to follow his orders and most men had given up. On April 30, 1945, Hitler commited suicide. But he was not the only one to go, he killed himself alongside his wife and their dogs and a few of his closest associates. He then gave specific orders for his men to burn their bodies.
