-
Annexation of Sudetenland
Sudetenland was an area of land that was a major source of contention between Czechoslovakia and Germany. It was later taken over by Germany and part of it was annexed. article: https://www.theholocaustexplained.org/life-in-nazi-occupied-europe/foreign-policy-and-the-road-to-war/occupation-of-the-sudetenland/ video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMLGRYiF_ZQ -
Pearl Harbor
Japan surprise attacked the US Naval Base Pearl Harbor to try and demoralize the US and take out the pacific fleet.
article: https://www.britannica.com/event/Pearl-Harbor-attack video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo2YDnVyui4 -
Island Hopping
Island hopping was the US strategy to select key items and take over them one by one till they push back Japan to their main land.
article: https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/pacific-strategy-1941-1944 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBgxW3H_tsI -
Japanese Internment Camps
The US government took all of the people of Japanese descent and put them in camps to be watched by the US troops. They wanted to make sure that there were no spies helping Japan. (repealed on 02-19-1976)
article: https://www.britannica.com/event/Japanese-American-internment video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hI4NoVWq87M -
Battle of Midway
The US was able to launch a surprise attack against the larger Japanese fleet in the naval area. This was a major turning point in the war and afterward Japanese and US naval powers were equalized. (end 06-07-1942)
articles: https://www.nationalgeographic.org/thisday/jun4/battle-midway-begins/ video: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/true-story-battle-midway-180973516/ -
Stalingrad
It was a battle between Germany and the Soviet Union. Soviets took the victory in the city of Stalingrad and it stopped the German advance and was a major turning point in the war for the allies. (ended on February 2nd 1943)
Article: https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Stalingrad Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZeerCg_-mw -
Guadalcanal
This battle was the first major offensive victory for the allies in the Pacific theater against Japan. The US launched a surprise attack and took control of an air base in the Soloman Islands. (ended Feb 9th 1943).
article: https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-guadalcanal video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7l9kk3ztpyM -
The philippines
The Philippines was taken over by Japan in December of 1943 right after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In 1944, the Allies liberated the Philippines through a naval invasion and during the battle there were several camps where they held many american soldiers hostage. (The japanese attack on the Philippines ended May 8th 1942).
article: http://countrystudies.us/philippines/21.htm video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lm2HSWRYVVQ -
D-Day
D-Day (aka operation overload) the allied powers invaded normandy beaches trying to push Germany out of France.
article: https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/d-day video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-pQ1i52h6A -
Meeting at Yalta
A meeting of the US, UK, and the Soviet Union discussing what was going to happen with the reorganization of Germany and Europe. They decided it would be divided into 4 post war occupation zones controlled by Allied Forces. (end 02-11-1945)
Article: https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/yalta-conference#:~:text=At%20Yalta%2C%20the%20Big%20Three,divided%20into%20similar%20occupation%20zones. video: https://study.com/academy/lesson/yalta-conference-definition-significance-results.html -
Fall of Berlin
Fall of Berlin was the last major battle in Europe during WWII and at the end of it Germany ended up surrendering and ended Hitlers rule. (ended on May 2nd 1945).
article: https://www.ducksters.com/history/world_war_ii/battle_of_berlin.php#:~:text=The%20Battle%20of%20Berlin%20was,lasted%20until%20May%202%2C%201945. video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-h6Pck2fxJE -
Death of Hitler
When the Soviet Union troops invaded the heart of berlin, Adolf Hitler commited suicide in his underground bunker. Even though his body was never found, many believe that Hitler shot himself.
article: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/adolf-hitler-commits-suicide-in-his-underground-bunker video: https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/death-of-hitler-video -
Los Alamos
The worlds first atomic bomb was detonated 200 miles south of los alamos new mexico. This gave reassurance to the scientists that successfully created the bomb. It was later used on Japan.
article: https://www.lanl.gov/about/history-innovation/ video: https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/hans-courant-los-alamos -
Meeting at Potsdam
Was another conference between Stalin, Churchill, and Truman to decide the final terms for the end of WW2. (end 08-02-1945)
article: https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/potsdam-conf#:~:text=The%20Big%20Three%E2%80%94Soviet%20leader,end%20of%20World%20War%20II. video: https://www.historyextra.com/period/second-world-war/guide-yalta-potsdam-facts-when-date-why-what-happened-churchill-stalin-roosevelt/ -
Hiroshima
The US warned the Japanese Emperor that if they do not surrender we would drop a bomb that would cause mass destruction to their cities but they did not surrender. Therefore, the US dropped the atomic bomb Little Boy and it killed approximately 80,000 people instantly and thousands more due to radiation.
article: https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/bombing-of-hiroshima-and-nagasaki video: https://www.britannica.com/video/219022/infographic-explained-atomic-bombing-Hiroshima