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Rape of Nanking (1937)
This date represents the death of many Chinese citizens and soldiers. Due to an ongoing war in China, between Japanese and Chinese, 50,000 Japanese troops marched into China's capital, Nanking, and killed 300,000 of 600,000 soldiers and civilians. This period of fighting would be known as the Rape of Nanking, the single worst atrocity of the World War 2 era. -
German Blitzkrieg (1930-1941)
Blitzkrieg was a military tactic used by Hitler during the second world war. This tactic is also known as "Lightning war" or all out attacks, full force, on your enemies. In order to take over areas like Poland, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, and many others, Hitler used the Blitzkrieg tactic, which left devastating effects. The areas attacked with the Blitzkrieg tactic were completely destoryed, leaving them conquered by the German forces. This lasted until April, 1941 -
Germany's invasion of Poland (1939)
Germany's leader, Adolf Hitler, desired entire world control, as his final solution in his posistion. In order to achive this, Hitler attacked Poland. The German airforce, or Luftwaffe bombed Polish cities and air bases, while German warships and U-boats attacked naval forces. Hitler claimed it was all self defense; however, that was not convincing enough for Britain and France. This initiated the delcare of war. -
Operation Barbosa (1941)
Operation Barbossa was the codename of sending German troops East, in order to attack the Soviet Union. In order to turn the Soviet Union over to the Germans side, Hitler send 150 army divisions, consisting of four million soldiers, three thousand army tanks, hundred thousands of other motor vehicles, and many horses. This invasion covered one front, stretching 2,900 kilometers from the North Cape to the Black Sea. As a result, Germany had many victories. -
Pearl Habor (1941)
This is the day that shall live in infamy. On December 7, 1941, 180 Japanese fighter planes left on a mission to destory US soil. Pearl Harbor, located in Hawaii, contained many US warships and new recruits. Japanese fighter planes attacked at 6 in the morning, leaving troops defenseless, and unprepared for battle. This sudden attack on US soil, while we were neutral, led FDR to declare war on the Axis powers, Japan, Germany, and Italy. This is what caused us to enter the war. -
Battle of Midway (1942)
Only 6 months after Japans attack on Pearl Harbor, they attacked U.S. ships near the Midway islands. Japanese forces needed to eradicate U.S. Naval forces, in order to push forward in the war. The Japanese planned to take over the Midway islands, in order to expand their defenses. The U.S. dealt a heavy blow on Japanese troops, causing them their first naval loss since the 19th century. -
D-Day (Normandy Invasion - 1944)
June 6, 1944 the day the US soldiers invaded Omaha beach, which was currently German territory. The germans had already expected the US to invade at this location, due to German's strategists. 14 gun boxes were stationed above the cliffs over looking Omaha beach. Several bullwarks were placed on the beach, making it harder for troops to attack. A majority of the allies attempts to take the Germans out failed, leaving many soldiers to die. -
Battle of the Bulge (1945)
In a final attempt to split allied forces in Northwest Europe, Hitler once again used the Blitzkrieg tactic, which was used many times during this war. The german's were up against untrained U.S. recruits, which were nearly annihilated. The U.S. recruits fought gallantly, and slowed down German progression. In the end, German forces ran out of fuel, which was a major problem, causing them to loose the battle. This battle left more U.S. casualities than any war prior. -
Battle of Iwo Jima (1945)
The U.S. forces needed land closer to Japan, so they looked to Iwo Jima, and Island located near the Japanese coast. This island was guarded by 23,000 Japanese soldiers, which fought from elaborate networks of caves, dugouts, and tunnels underground. Although the amound of Japanese troops were miniscule compared to the U.S. troops, the Japanese fought hard, which caused the battle to carry on for a month. The photo of American soldiers raising the flag together came out of this. -
VE Day (1945)
VE Day, also known as Victory in Europe Day, is a public holiday, celebrating the surrender of German armed forces from the war. This marked the end of the Second World war in Europe. Due to German's surrender, on April 30, 1945, Adolf Hitler, the German leader, committed suicide. -
Dropping the atomic bombs (1945)
Japanese invasions on U.S. soil made military figures and government officials angry, causing them to give Japan a warning. This warning stated that we would not cause major harm to them, if they stopped invading us. However, Japan did not heed our warnings, and 2 atomic bombs were dropped on Japanese cities: Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The first city attacked war Hiroshima. More than 100,000 Japanese citizens died from these attacks. Japan stopped attacking after this incident. -
VJ Day (1945)
VJ Day, also known as Victory over Japan Day, is a name given to Japan's surrender, effectively marking the end of WW2. Ceremonies are held to commemorate this event. This was celebrated in the U.S. and Japan.
