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1942 BCE
The Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was one of the most decisive battles in the Second World War. It was a major battle on the Eastern Front where Nazi Germany and its allies unsuccessfully fought the Soviet Union, over control of the city of Stalingrad. This conflict significantly weakened Germany's military forces. -
The Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain was a military campaign of World War II. The battle was an air raid in an attempt to "soften" Britain for invasion and was the first serious setback experienced by the Germans during the second World War. -
The Bombing of Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise attack launched by the Japanese military on the United States Naval Base at Pearl Harbor. The attack killed 2,403 people, including 68 civilians. This event was the entrance of the United States into World War II. -
The Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a key battle that secured dominance in the Pacific in World War II. The battle was a naval battle, fought almost entirely with aircraft. The U.S. victory stopped the growth of Japan. -
Operation Torch
Operation Torch was an invasion of French-held North Africa by British America during World War II. As a result of this, Hitler ordered Operation Anton. -
Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives Program
The Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives Program was a program established by the Allies in 1943 to help protect property in war areas during and following World War II. The group (typically consisting of about 400 service members and civilians) worked with military forces to protect historic and cultural monuments from war damage. After the war, this program, along with the Roberts Commission, helped return artwork that had been stolen by Nazis, to its owners. -
The Battle of Kursk
The Battle of Kursk was a major World War II Eastern Front battle between German forces and the Soviet Union. It became the largest tank battle in history and resulted in a Soviet victory. It was a critical turning point on World War II's Eastern Front. -
D-Day (June 6th, 1944)
D-Day (June 6th, 1944) brought together the land, air, and sea forces of the Allied armies which would become the largest water invasions in military history. It delivered five naval assault divisions to the beaches of Normandy, France.
D-Day put allied forces on a path to victory. -
The Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was Hitler's last major offense on the Western Front in World War II. The losses of the Germans prevented them from resisting advances from allied forces and less than four months later, surrendered. -
The Battle of Iwo Jima
The Battle of Iwo Jima was a military campaign between U.S. Marines and the Imperial Army of Japan, where U.S. Marines invaded Iwo Jima. After the battle, Iwo Jima served as an emergency landing site for more than 2,000 bombers, saving 24,000 U.S. airmen, and paved the way for the last and largest battle in the pacific. -
The Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa was the last major battle of World War II. A fleet of 1,300 U.S. ships and 50 British ships invaded the island. The battle put allied forces within striking distance of Japan, and an estimated 110,000 Japanese troops were killed. -
The Death of FDR
Franklin D. Roosevelt died of a cerebral hemorrhage. Following FDR's death, Harry Truman's presidency was a substantial shift in the style of leadership; this marked a departure from Roosevelt's New Deal Programs. -
The Death of Adolf Hitler
After hiding in a bunker under his headquarters, Adolf Hitler committed suicide in April of 1945 after being hunted by Soviet troops that were storming Berlin. A week and a half after Hitler's death, the Germans surrendered to Allied forces. -
Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima
The Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima was the first military target of a nuclear weapon in history. In the last days of World War II, The United States dropped an atomic bomb; burning around 70% of all buildings, causing an estimated 140,000 casualties, and increasing rates of cancer and chronic illness amongst the survivors. -
Atomic Bombing of Nagasaki
This bombing was one of the first instances of atomic bombs used against humans. It killed 74,000 people. The casualties of Nagasaki are similar to those of Hiroshima. About half of Nagasaki was destroyed immediately and about 39,000 people were killed and 25,000 injured. By the end of 1945 about 100,000 more had died from injuries following the bombing and radiation poisoning.