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Germany Invades Poland
German forces bombard Poland on land and from the air, as Adolf Hitler seeks to regain lost territory and ultimately rule Poland. Simultaneously, the German Luftwaffe bombed Polish airfields, and German warships and U-boats attacked Polish naval forces in the Baltic Sea. Hitler claimed the massive invasion was a defensive action, but Britain and France were not convinced. They declared war on Germany, initiating World War II. [http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/germans-invade-poland] -
Germany Invades France
On this day, 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, German troops enter and occupy Paris. German tanks rolled into Paris and 2 million Parisians had already fled. In short order, the German Gestapo went to work: arrests, interrogations, and spying were the order of the day, as a gigantic swastika flew beneath the Arc de Triomphe. [http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/germans-enter-paris] -
Germany Bombs London
The Luftwaffe unleashed a merciless bombing campaign against London and Britain's major cities. Almost 1,000 German aircraft - over 300 bombers escorted by 600 fighters - crossed the Channel. It was the largest collection of aircraft ever seen. Fighter Command had not expected raids on London, but attempted to intercept the waves of bombers. A huge dogfight developed over London and the Thames Estuary. This began the Battle of Britain.
[http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/events/germany_bombs_london] -
Lend-Lease Act Passed
The Lend-Lease Act authorized the president to transfer arms or any other defense materials for any country whose defense the President deems vital to the defense of the United States.” The act permitted the United States to support its war interests without being overextended in battle. The United States gave Britain war supplies and old naval warships in return for military bases in Bermuda and the Caribbean.
[http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/lend-lease-act] -
Operation Barbarossa
Hitler launched his armies eastward in a massive invasion of the Soviet Union: 3 great army groups with over 3 million German soldiers, 150 divisions, and 3,000 tanks smashed across the frontier into Soviet territory .The Germans' army had serious deficiencies. Barbarossa was the crucial turning point in World War II, for its failure forced Germany to fight a 2-front war against a coalition possessing immensely superior resources. [http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/operation-barbarossa] -
Japan Bombs Pearl Harbor
Just before 8 a.m. on the morning of December 7th, hundreds of Japanese fighter planes descended on the base. They managed to destroy or damage nearly 20 American naval vessels, including 8 enormous battleships, and over 300 airplanes. More than 2,400 Americans died in the attack, including civilians, and another 1,000 people were wounded. The day after the assault, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan. [http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/pearl-harbor] -
Germany Declares War on United States
4 days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and America's declaration of war against the Japanese Empire, Germany declared war against the United States, in response to what was claimed to be a series of provocations by the US gov. when the US was still officially neutral during WWII. The decision to declare war was made by Hitler, almost without consultation. Later that day, the US declared war on Germany. [www.history.com/this-day-in-history/germany-declares-war-on-the-united-states] -
Bataan Death March
The U.S. surrender of the Bataan Peninsula on the main Philippine island of Luzon to the Japanese during World War II (1939-45), 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. [http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/bataan-death-march] -
Battle of Midway
6 months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the US defeated Japan in one of the most decisive naval battles of WWII. Because of major advances in code breaking, the US was able to preempt & counter Japan’s planned ambush of its few remaining aircraft carriers, inflicting permanent damage on the Japanese Navy. An important turning point in the Pacific campaign, the victory allowed the US & its allies to move into an offensive position. [http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-midway] -
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was the successful Soviet defense of the city of Stalingrad in the U.S.S.R. during WWII. Russians consider it to be the greatest battle of their Great Patriotic War. It stopped the German advance into the Soviet Union and marked the turning of the tide of war in favor of the Allies. This battle was one of the bloodiest battles in history, with combined military and civilian casualties of nearly 2 million. {http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-stalingrad] -
Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
During World War II (1939-45), residents of the Jewish ghetto in Nazi-occupied Warsaw, Poland, staged an armed revolt against deportations to extermination camps. An estimated 7,000 Jews perished during the uprising, while nearly 50,000 others who survived were sent to extermination or labor camps.The Warsaw ghetto uprising inspired other revolts in extermination camps and ghettos throughout German-occupied Eastern Europe. [http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/warsaw-ghetto-uprising] -
D-Day
The Battle of Normandy resulted in the Allied liberation of Western Europe from Nazi Germany’s control. Codenamed Operation Overlord, (D-Day) when 156,000 American, British & Canadian forces landed along a 50-mile stretch of the heavily fortified coast of the Normandy region. The invasion was one of the largest amphibious military assaults in history. By late August 1944, all of northern France had been liberated. [http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/d-day] -
Battle of the Bulge
Hitler attempted to split the Allied armies in northwest Europe by means of a surprise blitzkrieg thrust through the Ardennes to Antwerp. American units fought desperate battles to stem the German advance. As the Germans drove deeper into the Ardennes, the Allied line took on the appearance of a large bulge, giving rise to the battle’s name. It led to the neutralization of the German counteroffensive despite heavy casualties.[http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-the-bulge] -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The American amphibious invasion of Iwo Jima during WWII stemmed from the need for a base near the Japanese coast. Iwo Jima was defended by about 23,000 Japanese army and navy troops, who fought from an elaborate network of caves, dugouts, tunnels and underground installations. Despite the difficulty of the conditions, the marines wiped out the defending forces after a month of fighting, & the battle earned a place in American lore. [http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-iwo-jima] -
Liberation of Concentration Camps
The Americans were responsible for liberating Buchenwald and Dachau, while British forces entered Bergen-Belsen. Although the Germans had attempted to empty the camps of surviving prisoners and hide all evidence of their crimes, the Allied soldiers came upon thousands of dead bodies "stacked up like cordwood," according to one American soldier. The prisoners who were still alive were living skeletons. [https://www.ushmm.org/outreach/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007724] -
Atomic Bomb Drops on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The US bomber Enola Gay dropped a 5-ton bomb over the city of Hiroshima. A blast equivalent to the power of 15,000 tons of TNT reduced 4 square miles of the city to ruins & immediately killed 80,000 people. Thousands more died later from wounds & radiation poisoning. 3 days later, another bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, killing nearly 40,000 more people. A few days later, Japan announced its surrender, ending WWII. [http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/atomic-bomb-dropped-on-hiroshima]
