Key Events Spring2012

The European Theater

Germany's Aggressions:

The war in Europe on September 1939, Germany, under Chancellor Adolf Hitler, invaded Poland. Britain and France responds by declaring war on Germany but took little action over the following months. In 1940, Germany launched its next initiative by attacking Denmark and Norway, followed shortly thereafter by attacks on Belgium, the Netherlands, and France. All of these nations were conquered one by one.

The Attack on the USSR

1941, Germany invades the Soviet Union. The country was too big, and although Russia’s initial resistance was weak, the nation’s strength and determination, combined with its harsh winters, was more than the German army could take. In 1943, after the battles of Stalingrad and Kursk, Germany was forced into a full-scale retreat due to the lack of familiarity with Soviet Union territory. During the course of 1944, the Germans were slowly forced out of Soviet territory, after which the Russians pursued them across eastern Europe and into Germany itself in 1945.

The Invasion of Normandy

June 1944, British & American forces launch the B-Day invasion landing in Germany -occupied France Via the coast of Normandy. By 1945, the Allied forces closed in on Germany on the East & West. The Soviets reach the German capital of Berlin & Germany surrenders.

Pearl Harbor

On December 7, 1941 over one hundred fighter planes from japan attack Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor was a naval base near Honolulu, Hawaii. They destroyed 20 navel vessels, almost 200 planes and 8 battleships. About 2,000 soldiers were killed and 1,000 were wounded.