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Germany Invades Poland
Germany used the tactic of Blitzkreig to attack and invade Poland. They took one week to take over all of Poland which they then split it with Russia. This fully initiates the start of WWII. France and Britain both declare war because of this invasion. Class Notes -
Germany Invades France
They finally captured all of France in six weeks. This also includes the fall of Paris. This cripples the allies at the time which are only France and Britain. It also enables Hitler to focus on Great Britain. http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/fall_france_01.shtml -
Battle of Britain Begins
This began after Hitler took over France entirely. This battle was mostly consisted of Britain getting bombed constantly. These bombings could occur anytime of the day and they caused mass panic in Britain from being scared of getting bombed. This happened constantly for 11 months. History Notes -
Lend-Lease
The lend-lease act allowed the U.S. to lend arms to their allies which at the time were Great Britain and France but Great Britain was the only ally standing at the moment. At first they told their allies to come and get the supplies from them and pay the U.S. This later led to them sending the supplies to Great Britain on their own ships for free. This led to more problems by having U.S. ships getting attacked by enemy U-boats. History Notes -
Germany Invades the Soviet Union
This event was nicknamed Operation Barbarossa. This was the largest German military operation of WWII. This invasion of Russia broke the Nazi-Soviet Nonaggression Pact that was signed in 1939. Germany's one objective was to crush the communist state and kill all the Soviet Jews as well. https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005164 -
Operation Barbarossa
Hitler sent three great army groups. Along with those forces he sent three million troops and 150 divisions and three thousand tanks. The invasion covered two thousand miles. This turned the tide of the war which when it failed it caused Germany to fight a two front war. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/operation-barbarossa -
Japan Bombs Pearl Harbor
This was started by a series of events. The event that caused Japan to attack Pearl Harbor started with the U.S. denying to trade oil with Japan. At this time Japan was expanding their empire. They also wanted to knock out the United States' Pacific Fleet so that they can't enter the war for a good amount of time. Class Notes -
Bataan Death March
This occurred after the surrender of the Americans of the island of Luzon. 75,000 Filipino and American troops were forced to march to prison camps. This march was a treacherous 65 miles. They made the trek through intense heat and brutal Japanese soldiers. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/bataan-death-march -
Battle of Midway
Due to major advancements in code breaking the U.S. knew about the Japanese ambush. They destroyed or damaged the few of their remaining aircraft carriers which crippled the Japanese Navy. This was a huge victory in the Pacific for the U.S. This attack let the U.S. get into an offensive position against Japan. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-midway -
Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
This uprising was caused when people inside the ghetto fought back against Nazi troops. The troops were going to deport its surviving inhabitants. In just one month the Germans had crushed the uprising and deported the remaining people out of the ghetto. https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005188 -
D-Day
This was the start of the allied liberation of Europe. Allied troops stormed the beaches of Normandy. This was the start to the liberation of France which would later be called the beginning of the end of the war. On this day 156,000 troops landed on a 50 mile stretch of beaches where the attacks were focused on. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/d-day -
Battle of the Bulge
Hitler ordered his troops to try and split the allied forces. It was a surprise blitzkrieg attack that caught the Americans by surprise. The allied forces held out in many different towns where the Germans tried to push through. This neutralized the German counteroffensive despite heavy casualties. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-the-bulge -
Liberation of Concentration Camps
After the long war and as the allied forces began to push Hitler back they started to liberate concentration camps. Russia was the first to liberate a camp and they found evidence of mass murder and 6,000 prisoners still alive in the camp. As they were liberated the retreating Nazi's sent the prisoners on death marches to other camps. https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005131 -
Battle of Iwo Jima
This was an American amphibious invasion. Three U.S. Marine divisions landed on the island. The Japanese fought from caves, tunnels, and dugouts. The Americans fought for a month and finally were victorious. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-iwo-jima -
Dropping of the Atomic Bombs
On August 6, 1945 the worlds first dropping of the atomic bomb on the town Hiroshima. The bomb destroyed 90 percent of the town and immediately killed 80,000 people. Three days later the second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki killing 40,000 people. This led to the surrender of Japan. http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/bombing-of-hiroshima-and-nagasaki
