1. Major Battles and their effects
Battles of WWII
Major Battles and their effects

2. Review: Invasion of France
France moral and country taken by Hitler/ Mussolini
Vichy was the capital for the French “puppet government” set up to aid the Axis powers

3. Battle of Britain August- September 1940 London, England
Only fought in the air
Germans failed to take control of England
Hitler postpone land invasion
First defeat and failure of the Blitz
Force Hitler to focus on knocking out Soviet Union first.

5. Operation Barbarossa September- June 1940-1941 Russia
Hitler wants to knock out Russia
Initial German success
Stalled at Leningrad
Soviets suffered, but stopped German advance
Germans stopped before Moscow, never take eastern front
Turning point

6. Pearl Harbor December 7 1941 Hawaii Japan attack US naval base
Makes it a true world war
Unites US and ends isolationism
US declares war
Axis and Allies clearly defined

8. Operation Torch November-May 1942-1943 North Africa
Allies attack North Africa (French Occupied)
Stalled the European Front
Ease way into major fighting
Make a deal with Vichy
US defeats and Fascists surrender- Mussolini ended

10. El Alamein Egypt/North Africa 1942
British stop German advancement into Africa

11. Battle of Midway/Iwo Jima
June 1942
Midway Island in Pacific
Japan wanted the island to prevent US attack
US victory and use it to move closer to Japan
Decisive battle in Pacific
Begin Ally strategy of “island hoping”
Success at Iwo Jima

13. Bataan Death March 1942 Philippines
Transfer of POW’s (American and Philippino)
Horrendous conditions/ Japanese brutality
Thousands die
Brutality and death released to the public

15. Battle of Stalingrad August 1942- February 1943 Soviet Union
Hitler wanted to end fighting before US fully entered the war
Hitler captured 90% before Soviets stopped him
Hitler defeated, never captured Soviet Union

16. D-Day/ Operation Overlord
1944
Normandy
US and British forces attack Normandy in order to force Germany out of France
Arrive on beaches and immediately fell under enemy fire
Massive casualties- Omaha Beach
Largest amphibious landing ever, 130,000
Create beachheads and then consolidate
MAJOR German defeat

18. Battle Video Pearl Harbor Dday
German footage
Pearl Harbor
Dday

19. Battle of the Bulge 1944-1945 December
Ardennes Forest bw France and Germany
Axis v. Allied
Hitler's final attempt to defeat Allies
Allies push German forces back
Huge causalities, 100,000 on both sides
Allied forces knock out Germany, severely weakened beyond repair

20. Battle of Berlin April, 1945 Hitler realize defeat
Commits suicide in bunker (Mussolini captured and killed days earlier)
German surrender comes shortly after in May, 1945

21. VE Day May 9, 1945 Victory in Europe day
Ally forces officially accept surrender of Germany across Europe
Allies able to focus on Japanese aggression in Pacific
Germany divided bw Soviets and US

22. Nagasaki/Hiroshima August 9, 1945 Japan
Allied forces recognize “island hoping” is not working
Want to end WWII, with the surrender of Japan
Potsdam Ultimatum
Necessity or show of superiority?
“Little boy” dropped on Hiroshima Aug. 6
Japan did not surrender, “Fat Man” dropped Aug. 9 on Nagasaki

23. Japanese Surrender August 15, 1945
The bombs killed as many as 140,000 people in Hiroshima and 80,000 in Nagasaki by the end of 1945, roughly half on the days of the bombings. Since then, thousands more have died from injuries or illness attributed to exposure to radiation released by the bombs. In both cities, the overwhelming majority of the dead were civilians
WWII ended.
*Only time in the history of warfare nuclear weapons used*