APUSH 2018 WWII Timeline

The Invasion of Manchuria

• September 18, 1931 – Japan launched an attack on Manchuria, a region in the Northeastern part of China, where they took control of many strategic points within the southern part of the region in a matter of days.

• September 22, 1931 – The U.S. Minister to China informs Secretary of State Henry L. Stimson of the Invasion of Manchuria through a telegram, and Stimson is disgusted by Japan's disregard for the Kellogg-Briand Pact of August 27, 1928.

• October 5, 1931 – Stimson pressures the League of Nations to assert themselves into the issue in order to show authority towards China and Japan and to follow the obligations of the Kellogg-Briand Pact as well as the Nine-Power Treaty.

• October 20, 1931 – The U.S. Government pressures China and Japan to find a peaceful way to solve the Manchuria conflict.

• March 27, 1933 – After much back and forth between the two nations, Japan refused to give up Manchuria and so the nation announced its intentions to leave the League of Nations.

• This event is extremely significant as it causes Japan to leave the League of Nations which will eventually lead to them forming a pact with Germany, Italy, and Russia and creating the Axis Powers of WW2.

THE MUNICH CONFERENCE-9/29/1938

• IN GERMAN CHANCELLOR ADOLF HITLER'S ATTEMPTS TO CREATE A GERMAN ANSCHLUSS, HE

SOUGHT TO ANNEX ALL GERMAN-SPEAKING LANDS, INCLUDING AUSTRIA IN MARCH 1938,

AND NEXT, COVETED THE "SUDETENLAND" OF CZECHOSLOVAKIA, WHICH CONTAINED

GERMAN SPEAKERS AS WELL.

• THE POWERS OF EUROPE SOON DISCOVERED NAZI GERMANY'S PLANS TO OCCUPY

SUDETENLAND BY FORCE, AND CZECHOSLOVAKIA RELIED ON THE ASSISTANCE OF BRITAIN

AND FRANCE TO DEFEND IT IF AN INVASION OCCURRED.

• WAR SEEMED IMMINENT, BUT BOTH BRITAIN AND FRANCE WERE WILLING TO TAKE ANY

MEASURE POSSIBLE TO AVOID THE OUTBREAK OF WAR AND MAINTAIN PEACE, EVEN

THROUGH APPEASEMENT (OFFERING CONCESSIONS TO GERMANY IN ORDER TO PRESERVE

PEACE).

• ON SEPT. 29, 1938, IN AN EFFORT TO AVOID WAR, A CONFERENCE IN MUNICH, WHICH

INCLUDED CHAMBERLAIN OF BRITAIN, DALADIER OF FRANCE, MUSSOLINI OF ITALY, AND

HITLER OF GERMANY, WAS HELD, IN WHICH THE PARTICIPATING COUNTRIES CAME TO THE

CONSENSUS THAT GERMANY WAS ALLOWED TO ANNEX SUDETENLAND BY OCT. 10 IN

EXCHANGE FOR HITLER PROMISING TO END BOTH THE ANNEXATION OF LAND AND GERMAN

HOSTILITIES.

• THE ALLIES BELIEVED IN THEIR HUBRIS THAT THEY HAD ACHIEVED A GREAT VICTORY AND

AVERTED WAR, BUT HITLER OBVIOUSLY DID NOT KEEP HIS WORD, HENCE THE START OF

WWII IN 1939.

• SIGNIFICANCE: THE ALLIES FAILED IN THEIR ATTEMPTS TO SUBDUE GERMANY AND AVERT

WAR.

Kristallnacht Took place on the night of November 9th and lasted

until November 10th 1938.

Was a result of the assassination of Ernst vom Rath, a German minister in Paris, the assassin being a Polish Jew.

Nazis in Germany torched synagogues, vandalized Jewish homes, schools and businesses and killed close to 100 Jews.

In addition to this many Jewish men were arrested and then sent to the established concentration camps.

Named Kristallnacht, which means night of the broken glass, due to the shattered glass found all through the German streets.

Significant in the fact that it was the beginning of the final phase of Hitler's plan and following this event there was I increase in violent acts against the Jews.

Invasion of Poland (1939)Dates:

September 1, 1939: official German invasion

September 17, 1939: Russia invades Poland

■ Hitler hoped to colonize Poland without the interference of other

major powers.

■ A couple days before the invasion, The Soviet Union and Germany

signed the Non-Aggression Pact which states that they won't take

military action against each other for 10 years.

■ Hitler used the "blitzkrieg" strategy: excessive bombing and

massive land invasion with lots of troops, tanks, and artillery.

■ Due to the blitzkrieg strategy, the Polish army was quickly defeated.

■ After hearing word of the invasion, the Soviet Union army joins and

invades Poland from the East.

Significance:

It triggered Britain and France to declare war on Germany, which

officially started World War II.

Fall of France May 10, 1940- Invasion begins

June 12, 1940- Maginot Line failure

June 22, 1940- Armistice

Dunkirk British Expeditionary Force (BEF)

Operation Dynamo

Started on May 27th and lasted a week

800 vessels

300,000 men

Battle of Britain August- September 1940

On June 17, 1940 France exited the World War leaving Britain alone against Germany

Germany (the Luftwaffe) decided to try and invade Britain (the RAF) by air, despite Britain’s advanced air defense system

Germany launched several attacks but none were effective. However, due to poor German communication, they did not know they were losing

Germany soon started to attack London. Their first attack was successful, but the second greatly failed

On September 15, British fighters crushed the German planes which led to the full retreat of German forces

The Battle of Britain was significant because it was the first major battle to be fought entirely by air and it marked the first defeat of Hitler’s forces

Bataan Death March (April 9, 1942)

• The Japanese captured Manila, the capital of the Philippines, and the American and Filipino defenders of Luzon (the island on which Manila is located) were forced to retreat to the Bataan Peninsula

• For the next three months, the combined U.S.-Filipino army held out despite a lack of naval and air support. Finally, on April 9, U.S. General Edward King Jr. surrendered his 75,000 troops at Bataan

• The surrendered Filipinos and Americans were rounded up by the Japanese and forced to march 65 miles from Mariveles, on the southern end of the Bataan Peninsula, to San Fernando

• Thousands of troops died because of the brutality of their captors and survivors were taken by rail from San Fernando to prisoner-of-war camps

• America avenged its defeat in the Philippines with the invasion of the island of Leyte in October 1944 and In February 1945, when the U.S.-Filipino forces recaptured the Bataan Peninsula, and Manila was liberated in early March

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Doolittle’s Raid

Doolittle’s Raid took place on Saturday, April 18, 1942. It was an

air raid by America on Japan’s capital, Tokyo, and other areas of

the Honshu Island. The raid was carried out by 80 male

volunteers, led by James H. Doolittle. The American troops

landed in China for fuel, rest and food, causing poor relations

between China and Japan. Over 100,000 people died, about

300 of them being the American volunteers.

Battle of Coral Sea – May 4-8, 1942By: Alex Dvorak

Was a major naval battle between the Imperial Japanese Navy and naval and air forces of the US and Australia

Fought in the Pacific Theatre of WWII

The US learned of the Japanese plan through signals intelligence, or the intercepting of signals

Beginning on May 7, the carrier forces from the 2 sides engaged in airstrikes over 2 consecutive days

Was a tactical victory for the Japanese and a strategic victory for the allies, US and Australia

Significance:

It was the first action in which aircraft carriers engaged each other, as well as the first in which neither side’s ships sighted or fired directly upon the other.

Allies Attack North Africa:Nov 1942

■ Also known as the Operation Torch.

■ Operation Torch was an invasion strategy by Allied

forces into North Africa that took place November

1942, during World War II.

■ On November 8th, 1942, the allies land in Morocco

starting the battle, Operation Torch ended two days

after (November 10th, 1942).

■ A significance of Operation Torch was it was the first

time the British and Americans had jointly worked on

an invasion plan together.

Casablanca Conference

When: January 14, 1943 – January 24, 1943

Where: City of Casablanca, Morocco

Meeting between FDR and Winston Churchill

Strategies: Draw the Germans away from the eastern front

Increase supply shipments to the Soviet Union

Invasion of Sicily and the Italian mainland

Strengthen bombing against Germany

Remove the Japanese from Papa New Guinea

Establish supply lines to China through Burma

Significance: Coordination of allied powers against the axis powers

BATTLE OF STALINGRAD

By: Colin Hans

Overall Summary

• Beginning in September 1942, The German 6th army

and 4th Panzer Army, began to invade the city of

Stalingrad.

• Stalingrad was an industrial powerhouse for the

Russians.

• Regarded as the bloodiest battle of the war

• Ended in February 1943

• Significance: Turning point of the European Theater,

destruction of an entire army, Army Group B,

weakened their military might, and broke the Germans’

invincible façade.

• 91,000 Germans taken prisoner, roughly 800,000 dead

• 480,000 Soviet soldiers dead, over 500,000 wounded

Allies Invade Sicily 1943• September 3-17, 1943

• The British Army under Marshal Bernard L. Montgomery began the allied invasion of the Italian peninsula, landing at Calabria, Italy.

• The day of the landing, the Italian government agreed to the Allies terms for surrender, but wasn’t made public until September 8.

• On July 10, 1943 The allies began their invasion of Europe with landings on the island of Sicily, in 3 days there were 150,000 allied troops ashore.

• On September 3, Montgomery’s 8th army began its invasion of the Italian mainland and the Italian government agreed to surrender.

• By the terms of agreement the Italians would be treated with leniency if they aided the allies in expelling the Germans from Italy.

• Significance: Allies got closer to Germany, the allies wanted to bomb Germany by controlling Italy allies were able to begin in bombing Germany. Planes can fly to and from Italy to bomb southern Germany without the need to refuel.

TARAWA BATTLE: NOV 20,1943-NOV 23, 1943

• U.S. desired control over many islands in the Central Pacific before taking on Japan

• U.S. looked towards Betio, which is the largest island in the Tarawa atoll (an island made of coral in ring-like shape)

• Heavy sea turbulence slowed transfer of U.S. Marines to landing crafts

• Low tide caused many of the landing crafts to crash into the jagged coral

• Valuable gear became useless because of water exposure

• Numerous Marines had to wade through the water, where they were shot at

• By day 2 of battle, tide finally began to rise, and U.S. won Betio

• Important because heavy casualties and unpredictable conditions taught U.S. to survey area

more carefully, have precise landing of crafts, and encouraged the production of better

waterproof radios

Tehran Conference(November 28th to December 1st, 1943)

Meeting between Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin in Tehran, Iran

The three discussed how to defeat Germany and its allies and what would happen after the war

An invasion of Normandy, France was agreed upon (known as Operation Overlord)

Stalin agreed to declare war on Japan

This conference improved the relationship between the U.S.S.R. and the U.S.. Roosevelt held the conference in Tehran to please Stalin and Stalin declared war on Japan to help Roosevelt. This conference was also where the idea for the United Nations was created.

Anmar Quafisheh

D-DayDate:

• June 6, 1944

Description:

• More than 160,000 Allied troops landed along the coast of France to fight the Germans in Normandy

• Along with troops on land there were over 5,000 ships and 13,000 aircrafts.

• The result of the fighting was the Allies gaining a secure position in Europe to then go on and defeat Hitler's troops.

Significance

• Largest military operation by sea in history and it was vital that the Allies take a full part in the defeat of the Nazis

Oct 23, 1944 – Oct 26, 1944

Leyte Gulf, Philippines

SIGNIFICANCE Leyte Gulf destroyed much of the remaining Japanese

surface fleet while ending Japan’s ability to move resources

from Southeast Asia to the home islands. It permitted U.S.

invasion of the Philippines, and reinforced the Allies’ control

of the Pacific.

WHAT HAPPENED• On October 20th U.S. troops landed on Leyte island and pushed closer to Japan

• Japanese used their entire fleet against the allied invaders in three major encounters

• At the Surigao Strait, battleships and cruisers from the U.S. destroyed Japans force

• However, Japans other fleet passed through the unguarded San Bernardino Strait and inflicted heavy damage on

the U.S. carriers off Samar but withdrew unexpectedly just as they seemed ready to attack the landing operations

• And finally, in the north, the U.S. fleet sank Japanese carriers

• It’s the largest naval engagement in history

The USS Princeton engulfed in

flames after being bombed by the

Japanese Navy on the Sibuyan

Sea, at Luzon, Phil., Oct. 24, 1944

U.S. troops landing

on Leyte island

BATTLE OF THE BULGE

Dates: December 16, 1944 to January 25, 1945

Description:

The Germans lead a desperate surprise attack on the allies in the Ardennes forest to push the Allies back.

Conditions were harsh and the soldiers were not properly equipped for the cold weather (snowstorms and rain).

Called the “Battle of the Bulge” because of the bulge or wedge the Germans drove into the Allied line.

One of the most deadliest battles in the war.

Significance: End of the war came sooner, last major offensive attack.

PHOTOS

Yalta Conference■ February 4-11, 1945

■ Meeting of the three chief Allied leaders

o Winston Churchill

o Franklin D. Roosevelt

o Joseph Stalin

■ Agreed to demand Germany's unconditional surrender

■ Decided that Germany would be divided into occupied zones administered by US, British, French, and Soviet forces

■ Stalin agreed to permit free elections in Eastern Europe and to enter the Asian war against Japan

o Stalin broke his promise of free elections in Eastern Europe and installed governments dominated by the Soviet Union

■ The Yalta Conference lead to the Cold War because the Soviet Union was becoming too powerful

BATTLE OF IWO JIMA –FEB19-MARCH 1945

• On February 19, 1945, three U.S marine divisions landed on the bombed out island of Iwo Jima

• US had desire for a place where damaged B-29 bombers in Japan could land w/out returning to the Marianas, and for a base where escort fighters would assist in the bombing campaign

• The amphibious invasion was defended by roughly 23,000 Japanese army and navy troops, who entrenched themselves in a complicated network of caves, tunnels, pillboxes, and spider holes – new fighting style for Japan

• The marines wiped out the defending forces after a month of gruesome fighting; nearly 7,000 Marines and some 21,000 Japanese troops died

• Iwo Jima went on to save countless American lives as an emergency landing strip for Air Force bombers in the Pacific

The Battle of

Okinawa“The Typhoon of Steel”: April 1st to June 22nd

Part of Operation Iceberg: the last major battle of the Pacific War, as well as most deadly

Estimated 12,520 American and 110,000 Japanese soldiers killed; 40,000 to 150,000 Japanese civilian casualties

Japan’s last hope of defending mainland; set up the Shuri Defense Line as a trap for the invading American soldiers

After prolonged conflict, Japanese Generals Ushijima and Cho committed ritual suicide, as well as many soldiers, ending the battle

Effectively ended the Pacific War and allowed for the atomic bombs to be dropped, despite the proximity for a land invasion for fear of heavy American losses American troops set

up a beachhead after

April 1st invasion

Potsdam 1945 (July 17th-August 2nd)

• Potsdam = suburb of Berlin where Allied leaders met

• Potsdam Conference: discussed postwar peace settlements

• Truman (US), Stalin (Soviet Union), Churchill (GB) = key participants w/ self-interest

• Discussed defeated Germany, new boundaries, reparations, war w/ Japan, Soviet’s role in Europe

• Decided to divide Germany into zones to peacefully reconstruct w/ reparations

• Significance: last Allied conference b/c of tensions w/ Soviet Union, war ended Aug 14th

by Audrey Yu

The Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki• Atomic bombs deployed in Japan as an effort to make Japan surrenderHiroshima:• August 6th , 1945, 8:15am• Nicknamed as the “Little Boy”• Weighed 9,000 pounds, 12-15 kilotons of force• Wiped out 90% of the city and immediately killed 80,000 people, an estimate of 237,000 people in total died from the

bomb and the effects of the bomb such as radiation sickness, burns, and cancerNagasaki:• August 9th , 1945, 11:02am• Nicknamed as the “Fat Man”• Stronger than the “Little Boy”, about 10,000 pounds and was suppose to produce a 21-22-kiloton blast• The “Fat Man” was originally going to be dropped onto Kokura, the city containing one of Japan’s largest munition

plants, but visual of Kokura was obscure from the clouds produced from previous firebombing raids nearby. Nagasaki, a ship building city, was the secondary target.

• Previous bombing raids prompted residents to evacuate and Nagasaki’s location limited destruction radius because it was nestled between mountains and valleys, so there were less lives lost

• 40,000 died immediately, plus 60,000 were injured. Total deaths by the end of 1945 were around 80,000

• Both bombs not only killed many immediately, but also brought deaths through radiation and burns: decades later many die from cancers from exposure to radiation.

V-J Day (Victory over Japan)

• August 15, 1945

• Celebration in Times Square (right)

• Jewel Voice Broadcast

• Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War