-
Japanese invasion of China (1937)
The Japanese invasion of China, also called The Second Sino-Japanese War, started in 1937 and ended in 1945. The war started because of Japan imperialists believed they should take over China for resources. After Japan surrendered, China got all the land lost back from Japan, but China was still in ruins. (New World Encyclopedia) -
Rape of Nanking
In December of 1937 Japan troops marched into the China city of Nanking. They killed half of the population in a couple of weeks. Over 300,000 people killed total. This was one of the worst acts in WWII. This showed the Japan was ruthless and made the US want to defeat them. (historyplace.com) -
Period: to
World War Two
-
German Invasion of Poland
Germany sent 1.5 million troops into Poland in 1937. This angered Britain and France, and they declared war on Germany. -
German Blitzkrieg
Blitzkrieg, or 'lightning war', are shorts attacks that require heavy attack from all military aspects. Germany first used this war technique on Poland on September of 1939, but used it many times later for many other countries. Germany wanted to avoid a long war so they used the Blitzkrieg and were very successful. (Holocaust Encyclopedia) -
Fall of Paris
Many others countries wanted France to fight back hoping that America would join the war, but on June 14, 1940 Paris fell. This was a big blow to the Allies that France was taken over. Many people in Paris fled, but many stayed and got interrogated and arrested. -
Operation Barbarossa
Germany sent over 3 million soldiers into the Soviet Union. The operation was considered a failure, as the German's were forced to retreat in the spring of 1942. -
Pearl Harbor
The US was angered by Japan's plan to take over China. Japan wanted to stand its ground, so they fought back bombing Pearl Harbor in December of 1941. They destroyed 300 planes and 20 ships. This pushed the US to fight back against Japan leading to war. (History.com) -
Wansee Conference
15 Nazi leaders conferred in Berlin. The leaders made a plan to exterminate the entire Jewish population of 11 million people. -
Bataan Death March
The Japanese captured the Philippines, and 75,000 American and Filipino troops were forced to walk 65 miles in the intense heat to a Prison camp. -
Battle of Midway
This was one of the largest Naval battles of World War 2. The U.S beat Japan in this battle. The key to the United States success was the cracking of the Japanese code. -
Operation Gomorrah
761 British bombers flew by during many nights to raid Hamburg, Germany. Britain had suffered many deaths due to German bombing and wanted to retaliate. They devastated most of Hamburg and killed many Germans. (History.com) -
D-Day
156,00 troops, 5,000 ships and 11,000 aircraft's invaded a 50 mile stretch of beach. A week later the whole beach was secured. -
Operation Thunderclap
Operation Thunderclap was a allied operation to bomb the German city of Dresden. 45,000 were killed in the bombing. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The US wanted a base on the island if Iwo Jima. They landed on the island in February of 1945. The island was defended by 23,000 Japanese, but the US took over the island about a month later. This helped the US continue attacking the Japan by being closer to them with the base. (History.com) -
Battle of Okinawa
This was a battle of the allies against Japan. It was the bloodiest battle of the Pacific war, with 77,000 Japanese casualties and 65,000 allied casualties. The battle lasted for 82 days. -
VE Day
VE day, or Victory in Europe Day, is celebrated on May 8th. In 1945 all over Europe, German soldiers surrendered. This signaled the end of the war for all countries. (History.com) -
Potsdam Declaration
This was the Japanese terms of surrender. Their entire Japanese army would be disarmed, and unable to reform. -
Dropping of the Atomic Bombs
The U.S dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In total, there was about 120,000 deaths.The dropping of these bombs may have ended WWII, but many people believe it was the beginning of the cold war. -
VJ Day
VJ Day, or Victory over Japan Day, was declared on September 2, 1945; this is when the officially surrendered. The war ended in August, but in September is when Japan signed the documents to surrender. This was the end of WWII. (History.com) -
Battle of the Bugle
After D-Day, Germany wanted to break though Allied forces to turn the war in their favor. In December of 1944, Germany launched an attack on the Allied forces. After about a month the attack failed. The allied troops were happy they won and that this showed they could beat Germany. (arm.mil)
