WORLD WAR II MAJOR BATTLES

EUROPEAN THEATRE: 1939-1945

Battle of Britain Battle of the Bulge D-Day / Normandy Invasion Battle of Stalingrad Victory in Europe Day
1940-1942 Dec. 1944 – Jan. 1945 June 6, 1944 / NW France July 1942 – February 1943 May 7-8, 1945
-Air and bombing raids over -Also known as the Ardennes -The day on which the Invasion of -The results of these operations are -When the World War II Allies formally
Offensive on the Western Front of Normandy began thus commencing often cited as one of the turning accepted the unconditional surrender
Britain by the German points of the war in the European of the armed forces of Nazi Germany
World War II. the Western Allied effort to liberate
Luftwaffe (Air Force) begin in -Germany’s planned goal for these mainland Europe from Nazi Theater and was one of the bloodiest and the end of Adolf Hitler's Third
1940 operations was to split the British occupation during World War II. battles in human history, with Reich. On April 30, Hitler committed
-British Prime Minister Neville and American Allied line in half, -Part of OPERATION OVERLORD combined casualties estimated to be suicide during the Battle for Berlin,
above 1.5 million. and so the surrender of Germany was
Chamberlain is STILL NOT capturing Antwerp, Belgium, and -Over 1,000,000 personnel were
The battle was marked by brutality authorized by his replacement,
actively attacking Germany then proceeding to encircle and involved, including 195,700 Allied
and disregard for military and civilian President of Germany Karl Dönitz
-Winston Churchill becomes destroy four Allied armies, forcing naval and merchant navy casualties by both sides. The German -By May 8, most of Germany had
the Western Allies to negotiate a personnel. offensive to take Stalingrad was the already been taken by Allied forces.
Prime Minister and begins to peace treaty in the Axis Powers’ -Along the Normandy coast 5 second large-scale defeat of World Hence V-E day was not such a drastic
fight back with vengeance favor. invasion beaches were assaulted: War II. change for most German civilians.
against Germany -Allied powers pushed forward Gold, Juno, Omaha, Sword and -The Soviet victory helped push back -Shortly before midnight on May 8, a
The Battle of Britain is a long, despite setbacks and were Utah. the Germans and significantly aided second unconditional surrender was
continuous fight against victorious when Hitler agreed to -Opening assault was conducted in the Allies in the Eastern (Soviet) Front signed in the outskirts of Berlin,
remove troops from Belgium in 2 phases, an air assault landing of -The battle of Stalingrad was one of Germany. The signing ceremony took
German air bombings on the largest battles in human history. It place in a villa in an eastern suburb of
1945. American and British (including a
Britain -German losses in the battle were Canadian airborne battalion) raged for 199 days. Its initial phases, Berlin called Karlshorst.
-Demonstrates that Britain will critical in several respects: the last airborne divisions shortly after the Germans inflicted heavy Representatives of the USSR, Great
FIGHT BACK; Germany of the German reserves were now midnight, and an amphibious casualties on Soviet formations; but Britain, France, and the United States
gone; the German Air Force landing of Allied infantry and the Soviet encirclement by punching and the German command
begins to see it will have to through the German flank, mainly representatives were invited into the
fight hard to win World War II (Luftwaffe) had been broken; and armored divisions on the coast of
the German Army in the West was France. held by Romanian troops, effectively room, where they signed the final
besieged the remainder of German German Instrument of Surrender
being pushed back. -TURNS TIDE OF WAR IN FAVOR
Sixth Army
OF THE ALLIED FORCES.
PACIFIC THEATRE: 1941-1945
Japanese attack Pearl Harbor Battle of the Coral Sea Battle of Midway Hiroshima = August 6, 1945
December 7, 1941 May 4-8, 1942 June 4-7, 1942 Nagasaki = August 9, 1945
-Japanese attack on the U.S. Naval port at Pearl Major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of Major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of -The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and
Harbor, Hawaii World War II between the Imperial Japanese World War II between the Imperial Japanese Nagasaki were nuclear attacks during World
-Brought on after a U.S. embargo against Japan Navy and the United States and Australia. It Navy and the United States and Australia. It War II against the Empire of Japan by the
following Japan’s invasion of Manchuria was the first fleet action in which aircraft was the first fleet action in which aircraft United States at the order of U.S. President
-Japan hoped to destroy the remaining U.S. carriers engaged each other. It was also the carriers engaged each other. It was also the Harry S. Truman.
Naval fleet in Hawaii (the majority of U.S. forces first naval battle in history in which neither first naval battle in history in which neither -These are to date the only attacks with
had been loaned to Allied European nations) side's ships sighted or fired directly upon the side's ships sighted or fired directly upon the nuclear weapons in the history of warfare.
-Combination of aerial and submarine attack at -The bombs killed as many as 140,000 people
other. It is considered a tactical victory for other. It is considered a tactical victory for
the harbor. in Hiroshima and 80,000 in Nagasaki by the end
-The attack is the MAJOR CAUSE for the U.S.
Japan since the United States lost fleet Japan since the United States lost fleet of 1945,[2] roughly half on the days of the
entrance into World War II carrier USS Lexington, Japan only the light carrier USS Lexington, Japan only the light bombings. Since then, thousands more have
-Once a declaration of war was made by a carrier Shōhō. At the same time, the battle carrier Shōhō. At the same time, the battle died from injuries or illness attributed to
(almost) unanimous vote in Congress against was a strategic victory for the Allies because was a strategic victory for the Allies because exposure to radiation released by the bombs.[1]
Japan, the remaining Axis powers (Germany & the Japanese abandoned their attempt to the Japanese abandoned their attempt to In both cities, the overwhelming majority of the
Italy) declared war on the U.S., thus creating the land troops to take Port Moresby, New land troops to take Port Moresby, New dead were civilians.
true GLOBAL NATURE of World War II Guinea. The engagement ended with no Guinea. The engagement ended with no -Six days after the detonation over Nagasaki, on
-U.S. experienced a series of defeats in the clear victor, but the damage suffered and clear victor, but the damage suffered and August 15, Japan announced its surrender to
Pacific, but demonstrated its resolve to fight experience gained by both sides set the experience gained by both sides set the the Allied Powers, signing the Instrument of
back with the U.S. Doolittle Raid over Tokyo on stage for the Battle of Midway one month stage for the Battle of Midway one month Surrender on September 2, 1945 - thus officially
April 18, 1942. later. later. ending the Pacific War and therefore World
War II.