Battles of World War II

Blitzkrieg (1939) German “lightening war” Called this because it was meant to be extremely fast but backed by extreme force with tanks, artillery, infantry and airmen. Used in the invasion of Poland.

Battle of Britain (summer 1940) Germany (Luftwaffe) outnumbers Britain (RAF) 4 to 1 in military planes. British losing until Hitler changes plans to attack cities. Airfields + RAF rebuild. End Result: RAF loses 792 planes; Germany 1389.

Pearl Harbor(Dec. 7, 1941) Surprise attack by Japanese planes in the morning on Hawaii. 353 Japanese fighter pilots Sunk 4 American battleships End Result: 2, 402 Americans were killed, next day U.S. declares war on Japan

Midway (June 1942) Most important naval battle of the Pacific Campaign. Occurred six month after Pearl Harbor. Japan wanted to finish off U.S. involvement in Pacific but plan backfired.

El Alamein (Oct.-Nov Allied Victory and was a major turning point in the German North African Campaign. Erwin Rommel (desert fox) is defeated and will move up to Normandy.

Battle of Stalingrad (Aug Feb. 1943) Fought between USSR and Germany for control of Russian City. Considered to be the turning point on the eastern front of the war. Considered to be the bloodiest of modern day warfare.

D-Day (June 6, 1944) Storming the beaches of Normandy. First major offensive of the U.S. during WWII. Led by General Eisenhower and was the largest amphibious attack ever used. More than 5,000 Ships and 13,000 aircraft were used during Operation Overlord. Gained stronghold on Normandy.

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Battle of the Bulge (Dec Jan. 1945) An attempt to divide Britain and the United States to force a peace treaty. Was a decisive victory for the allies and would be a leading factor in Germany’s final retreat. Bloodiest battle the American’s fought in.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki (August 6 and 9, 1945) Hiroshima was bombed first and then three days later Nagasaki would be bombed. Was a demonstration to gain the respect of the bomb from all other countries.

Winston Churchill British Prime Minister during WW II; responsible for British resistance against German air assaults.

Dwight D. Eisenhower Supreme Commander of Allied forces in Europe during WW II. Planned & Commanded D-Day invasion

Franklin D. Roosevelt - U.S. President during most of WW II - worked with Churchill & Stalin leading Allies against Germany & Japan

Douglas MacArthur - Allied Commander in Pacific Theatre during WW II - defeated Japanese in S. Pacific/Philippines - Accepted Japanese surrender

Harry S. Truman - U.S. President authorized use of atomic bomb against Japanese -Truman Doctrine = support any country resisting communist aggression. - developed policy of “Containment” against Russia/Communism

Erwin Rommel “The Desert Fox” - One of Germany’s most respected military leaders of WW II - Successfully commanded N. African campaign until El Alamein - Commanded D-Day defenses

Kamikaze Aerial Japanese suicide bomber. Aim= destroy U.S. warships

Marshall Plan considered one of the most successful foreign policy initiatives in U.S. history. - contributed to the containment of the spread of communism. - provided 13.3 billion dollars to participating Western European countries and was based on George Marshall’s conviction that economic recovery and stability were vital to the rebuilding of a democratic Europe.

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Yalta Conference The Big Three Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin Feb Meeting of Big Three Goals: -Post-war Europe -Partition of Germany -Borders of Poland -Russian help w/Japan for lands given to Russia -Framework for U.N. and NATO

Iron Curtain military, political, and ideological barrier established between the Soviet bloc and western Europe from 1945 to 1990