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Japan invades China
Kwantung Army of the Empire of Japan invaded Manchuria immediately following the Mukden Incident. The Japanese established a puppet state, called Manchukuo, and their occupation lasted until the end of World War II. The Japanese invaded Manchuria in China, and defeated the Chinese. -
The Holocaust
The holocaust was a genocide in which six million Jews were killed by the Nazi's, while under the command of Adolf Hitler. Jews were sent to concentration camps where they would live under poor conditions, and most likely be killed. -
Munich Conference
The purpose of the conference was to discuss the future of the Sudetenland in the face of ethnic demands made by Adolf Hitler. The Munich Agreement was signed by Germany, France, United Kingdom, as well as Italy. -
Non-Aggression Pact
Germany and the Soviet Union signed a Non-Agression Pact that said that they wouldn't attack each other for 10 years. Adolf Hitler used the pact as a way to invade Poland unopposed. The pact also contained a secret agreement in which the Soviets and Germans agreed how they would later divide up Eastern Europe. -
Germany Invades Poland
Was an invasion of Poland by Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small Slovak contingent that marked the beginning of World War II in Europe. Poland was divided between Germany and the Soviet Union -
Battle of Britain
Second World War air campaign started by the German Air Force was against the United Kingdom, the battle was fought only in the air with planes. The German's wanted to beat the Royal Air Force and gain air superiority over them. Hitler began using bombing strategies such as terror bombing, which was an attack on areas of political significance. -
Blitzkreig
German warfare method where they would attack with armoured or motorized unit formations, with heavily backed up air support to breakthrough the enemy's lines. The German word Blitzkreig meant, Lightning War. -
Lend-Lease Act
The Lend-Lease Act was used to further promote the defence of the United States. It was a program under which the United States supplied Great Britain, France, China and later on Russia with materiel between 1941 and 1945. It was signed into a law in March 1941 before World War 2 occured in Europe. -
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was a code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War 2. In the operation over 4 million axis soldiers invaded the Russian front. The operation was led by Hitler, but the plan failed when the Soviet Union defeated the Germans. -
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a suprise military strike planned by the Japanese Navy, attacking the US naval base located in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. It was this attack that got the US involved in World War II. This attack destroyed many US ships with the use of airplanes that had bombs. -
Wannsee Conference
Was a meeting of senior officials of Nazi Germany, held in the Berlin suburb of Wannsee on 20 January 1942. The purpose of this conference was to ensure the cooperation of various government departments in the implementation of the final solution to the Jewish question, whereby most of the Jews of German occupied Europe would be deported to Poland and murdered. -
Bataan Death March
The Bataan Death March was the forcible transfer by the Japanese Army of 60,000–80,000 Filipino and American prisoners of war after the three month Battle of Bataan in the Philippines during World War II. -
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was one of the most important naval battles of World War 2. The Japanese sought to eliminate the United States as a strategic power in the Pacific. The Battle of Midway mostly took place in Midway Atoll in the Pacific Ocean. -
Battle of Stalingrad
Was a major battle of World War 2 in which Germany and its allies fought the Soviet Union to gain control of Stalingrad in South-Western Soviet Union. The Battle of Stalingrad is regarded as one of the bloodiest battles in the history of warfare. Eventually the Red Army launched Operation Uranus, an attack that went for the weaker Romanian and Hungarian forces of the German 6th Army. The Soviet Army was victorious in the Battle of Stalingrad. -
D-Day
The best known D-Day is on June 6th, 1944. This day was the day of the Normandy Landings where the Western Allied effort to liberate mainland Europe from Nazi occupation during World War II. -
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was a German offensive campaign that was launched through the forested areas of Belgium, France, and Luxembourg. It was planned by Adolf Hitler with the goal of recapturing the harbour of Antwerp. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
Major battle in which the United States Armed Forces fought for and captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Japanese Empire. The American's had the goal of capturing the entire island, including its three airfields to make it easier to attack main Japanese islands in the future. -
Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa was fought on the Ryuku Islands of Okinawa and was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific War of World War II. The battle resulted in the highest number of casualties in the Pacific Theater during World War II, with the Allies defeating the Japanese. -
V-E Day
Ended the war on the Western Front. This day marked the end of World War 2 in Europe. On April 30th, Adolf Hitler, the Nazi leader, committed suicide during the Battle of Berlin. The act of military surrender was signed on 7 May in Reims, France and on 8 May in Berlin, Germany. -
The Bombing of Hiroshima/Nagasaki
As the Second World War entered its sixth and final year, the Allies had begun to prepare for, what was anticipated to be, a very costly invasion of the Japanese mainland. This was preceded by an immensely destructive firebombing campaign that obliterated many Japanese cities. The US dropped two bombs onto Japan's cities, effectively killing over one hundred thousand people in total. On August 15th Japan surrendered and later signed a instrument of surrender. -
V-J Day
Name for the day that the Japanese surrendered, in effecting ending World War 2. Shortly after the US dropped two atomic bombs onto Japan's vital cities, they surrendered and signed an agreement to end the war. -
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact was a collective defense treaty among eight communist states of Central and Eastern Europe in existence during the Cold War. Primarily motivated by Soviet desires to maintain control over military forces in Central and Eastern Europe.
