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German Invasion of Poland
Without declaring war or warning them, Germany invaded Poland on this date, killing thousands of Polish people. Germanic troops stormed into multiple parts of Poland including bombing raids by German planes and soldiers on foot. Major cities such as the capitol, Warsaw, were attacked. Britain's and France's troops are now mobilized and both nations are prepared to declare war on Germany again. The significance of this deadly event is that it marked the day Britain and France waged war on Germ. -
The Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain was a conflict between the German Luftwaffe and the British Royal Air Force. The battle was the first world conflict ever to be fought entirely in the air. Germany, after taking over most of Western Europe very quickly, went up against Britain who was all alone. After months of fighting by air, Hitler eventually "postponed" the invasion in thought of defeat. This was important because it was the first time for many months that Germany did not succeed greatly. -
Operation Barbarossa
On this date, the Nazis invaded Russia and caused Operation Barbarossa, the largest attack of the entire war. The name was change from Fritz to Barbarossa after the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa. The Nazis wanted to push into Russia's border and create a defensive position, and then invade them with their three army units. But Russia's giant army defied the nazis who were not prepared for the Winter. This day marked the beginning of the end for Hitler and The Third Reich. -
The Battle of Moscow
Hitler believed that once he took over Moscow, the rest of Europe would collapse. On this date, the Nazis invaded Russia, trying to take over the capitol city. At first they were very successful,and at one point nearly all Russian roads were accesible to the Nazis. Soon, they surrounded a number of Russian troops near Vyazma and Bryansk, so the Nazis had to slow down and face them. This gave the Russian Red Army time to "catch its breath", which led to them stopping Germany from reaching Moscow. -
The Battle of Stalingrad
Lasting until February 2nd, 1943, this battle is known as the turning point of WWII in Europe. Hitler ordered an attack on Stalingrad, for its name was after the Russian leader Joseph Stalin. Stalin made all the efforts he could to save the city. Going into the battle, the two armies were very equal. After months of fighting, the Germans were faced to fight through the Winter once again, which they were not prepared for. The Germans were forced to surrender, making it the turning point of WWII. -
The Battle of Kursk
This battle, which lasted until August 23rd of 1943, was the lasrgest tank battle of WWII. The Germans, after their defeat at The Battle of Stalingrad, were ready to fight again in Kursk, Russia on this date. The Red Army was on the offensive, and the German Army (on the defensive) hoped to overcome Russia this time. After some time, over half of the Nazis 1,000,000 men were either dead, wounded, or M.I.A. This miraculous defeat of Germany would lead to D-Day in June of the next year. -
D-Day
Also known as The Battle of Normandy, D-Day was an attack on Germany. The U.S., Britain, and Canada got together to plan an attack on Normandy, Fance, which had been taken over by Germany. Hundreds of thousands of forces stormed the beaches in Normandy in an attempt to defy the Nazis. Before the attack, America, Britain, and Canada produced a deception campaign to mislead Germany. By the Spring of 1945, Germany had been defeated. This was considered the beginning of the end of WWII in Europe. -
The Battle of the Bulge
After their loss on D-Day, Hitler and the Nazis persevered. Taking place in Northwest Europe was a German attack - the first attack in that area of the entire war. Hitler planned a surprise attack on the flat-footed U.S. They were thoroughly out numbered and unprepared, and the odds were greatly against America. America's 106th division was beat, but it lead to victory. This is because the early defeat bought time for another attack on Germany. The battle was the deadliest of the war. -
The Battle of Berlin
The Battle of Berlin was the final chapter for Hitler and The Third Reich. Russia would fight Germany yet again. Going into battle, Germany was outnumbered substantially. Their .5 million soldiers couldn't compare to the 1.5 million Russian soldiers. Despite his slim chances, Hitler kept faith. Over 150,000 German soldiers later, The Soviet Union stood in victory. A Russian soldier raised a Red Flag on top of the Reichstag, signalling victory. Hitler was finally defeated. -
Hiroshima and Nagasaki
On this date, America deployed the first atomic bomb in history on Japan. It was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, instantly killing 80,000 people. Foolishly, Japan did not surrender, so America continued. Three days later, they dropped another bomb on the city of Nagasaki, killing 40,000 Japanese citizens. Finally, Japan's emperor Hirohito surrendered. Ironically, though, those were the only two bombs America had. These bombings marked the day that Japan officially gave in to the U.S.
