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Japanese Invasion of China
Japan seized Manchuria and then withdrew from the League of Nations because of the increased strength of their military and aggressions which breaks their purpose. On July 7th, 1937, Japanese armies overran much of eastern China. Thus, starting the second sino-japanese war. -
Nazi-Soviet Pact
Hitler announced the nonaggression pact between him and Stalin, bounding the two enemies together with peaceful relations. They agreed not to fight if the other went to war and to divide up land between each other. -
Germany Invades Poland
Hitler invaded Poland because it would provide “living space” for the Germans. He also claimed that it was a defensive action. But, nobody in Europe believed him and they proceeded to declare war on the Nazis. -
German Blitzkrieg
When storming into Poland, Germany revealed the enormous power of the blitzkrieg or ‘lightning war’ strategy. This lightning war started the exact day they invaded them. It used improved technology for tanks and airpower to get a huge advantage on the enemy. This kicked off the bombing of airfields, factories, towns, and cities by the German air force along with beleaguering Polish troops with fast-moving tanks. -
Miracle at Dunkirk
German forces invaded France through the Maginot Line where British forces were surrounded between them and the English Channel. The British were able to save 300,000 troops by sending all available naval vessels, merchant ships, and fishing and pleasure boats to the beach of Dunkirk, France. -
Pearl Harbor
On this day, Japan bombed a US Navy base known as Pearl Harbor as a means of declaring war. 1,177 casualties lost their lives. At first, we tried our hardest to stay neutral. But after the attack America decided to unleash its vengeance on Japan, a totalitarian nation that was doing whatever they pleased. When USA joined the allies, it kicked everything up a notch. But it ended up being one of the biggest powerhouses during this time- becoming the #1 helping hand in the allies winning the war. -
Holocaust
This is what the massacre of millions of people by the Nazis is known as. Hitler set up multiple concentration camps and death camps as a means to “cleanse” Europe. He viewed Aryans as superior, and minorities such as Jews and Romas were very inferior; so inferior that he actually believed they were tainting the culture of Germany. In the end, over 6 million Jews died and another 6 million of other races died as well. -
Bataan Death March
By May 1942, the Japanese had taken control over the Philippines. The Bataan Death March was a 16-mile trail of 10,000 Filipinos and hundreds of American captive soldiers being killed by several means whether it be murder or natural causes like starvation. -
Battle at Midway
A naval battle between the United States and Japan in order to gain the upper hand in the Pacific War. The United States were able to determine Japan’s planned attack and was able to prepare ensuring their win, afterwards the U.S started the “island -hopping” campaign- recapturing some Japanese-held islands while bypassing others. -
Stalingrad
Hitler got a new idea. This time he wanted to go for the southern oil fields in the Soviet union's territory. He was determined to capture Stalin's namesake city. The battle officially began when the troops surrounded the city. Winter closed in and capturing city became a huge struggle and made it much easier for the Soviets to take an offensive route. They encircled German troops and drove them out completely, leaving many casualties. -
D-Day
D-Day began when the allies dropped their forces on the beaches of Normandy, using as many troops as possible to storm the area. This led to the Germans suffering significant confusion, and delayed them since they had to find detours and Erwin Rommel wasn’t even there to command. This was an important victory for the allies. -
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle lasted for more than a month between the Allies and Germany with the Allies advancing towards Belgium. The Germans being unable to break through the Allied forces but delaying their advance for about six weeks. While that was happening, the Soviet Union advanced on Berlin from the east. This battle made Germany’s defeat inevitable. -
Yalta Conference
The Yalta Conference was a meeting between 3 main world leaders; Stalin, Roosevelt, and Churchill. They agreed that the Soviet Union would join the war against Japan after the surrender of Germany and in return the Soviets could take Southern Sakhalin Island, the Kuril Islands, and an occupation zone in Korea along with a part of Germany as long as Stalin help free elections in Eastern Europe. -
VE Day
Stands for “Victory in Europe” and signifies the defeat of Germany. The Allies were able to defeat the Axis due to a number of advantages such as location and the fact that Germany had to battle on two fronts, bad military decisions, productive capacity of the United States, and the fact that Hitler underestimated the ability of the Soviet Union. -
Hiroshima
This was the first atomic bomb America dropped on Japan, and it killed over 70,000 people instantly, and destroyed most of the city. Before it was dropped, the USA issued a warning that if they wouldn’t surrender they’d be obliterated. At first, Japan ignored the warning AND the atomic bomb and still stood their ground. It took Nagasaki to eventually convince them to give in. -
Nagasaki
The United States dropped the second atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Nagasaki. This was right after the day the Soviet Union declared war on Japan and recaptured Manchuria. More than 40,000 people were killed, two days after, Japan surrendered and the peace treaty was officially signed on September 2, 1945. -
VJ Day
“Victory over Japan Day” is when Japan surrendered unconditionally to the allies in 1945. This effectively ended WW2, and led to the USA to finally show Japan some mercy and stop dropping atomic bombs on them. This is now celebrated every August 14th in some places. -
United Nations Created
Delegates from 50 nations met up at San Francisco to draft a charter for the UN, in which each of the member nations has one vote in the General Assembly. A smaller body in the UN called the Security Council has the right to veto any council decision but only held 5 permanent members consisting of the United States, the Soviet Union (Russia), Britain, France, and China. -
Nuremberg Trials
The Allies held trials against a handful of top Nazi officials for crimes against humanity between 1945-1949, they were often found guilty and received the death sentence. Held in Nuremberg, Germany where Hitler had staged mass rallies in the 1930’s. -
Cold War Begins
After all the WW2 drama, tension arose between the United States and the Soviet Union due to different ideas for repairing Eastern Europe and views of government. While Stalin wanted to spread communism and accept Soviet influence in Eastern Europe, the U.S rejected his view and making him promise for free elections to which he ignored.
