History 12 World War 2 Cindy Cullen 2014 European Front
Slide 2
Some of the main battles or actions on the Pacific Front
Slide 3
Although most sources consider Hitlers invasion of Poland in
1939 to be the start of World War 2, some historians contend that
the war actually started two years earlier with Japans invasion of
mainland China (a follow-up to their 1931 invasion of Manchuria).
Japanese troops brutalized Chinese coastal cities, and carried out
a horrific massacre of the citizens of Nanking, an event that
became known as the Rape of Nanking. The invasion of China
increased tensions between the American and Japanese governments
and prompted the American refusal to sell oil to Japan. Japanese
Invasion and Occupation of Mainland China 1937 The pink region
shows Japanese occupied land prior to 1937 and the red shows
Japanese actions in 1937. Nanking is in the bottom red semi-
circle.
Slide 4
German Invasion of Poland Sept 1, 1939 On September 1 st, 1939,
one week after Hitler signed his non-aggression pact with Stalin,
German troops attacked Poland, using the new blitzkrieg strategy.
Two days later, Britain and France declared war on Germany but they
did not send troops. The Polish army fought hard but was no match
for the Germans, and Poland surrendered within 3 weeks of the
initial invasion. The Poles even tried a cavalry charge against the
German tanks
Slide 5
The German blitzkrieg tactic was a concentrated all-out
offensive along a weak link to try to overwhelm the opposition into
a quick surrender. The Luftwaffe would launch an aerial attack and
drop paratroopers behind enemy lines to cut communication links and
secure key bridges or airports. Well-organized tanks and trucks
with troops would advance quickly as artillery pounded the
defending positions. Speed and precision were key elements to the
success of blitzkrieg (lightning war).
Slide 6
The map shows how Germany invaded Poland from several different
locations, while the Soviet Union moved in to occupy the eastern
part of the country.
Slide 7
The Phoney War Sept 1939-April 1940 Although Allied nations
such as Britain, France and Canada declared war on Germany in
September, 1940, they did not launch military action against
Germany, and Germany did not attack western Europe. This time
period became known as the Phoney War or sitzkrieg (a pun on the
German blitzkrieg). Germany continued to develop its military power
and the Allied countries also increased production of military
supplies. British children were instructed how to put on gas masks
to prepare against possible future German attacks with chemical
weapons
Slide 8
Fall of Norway April 1940 After 9 months of inactivity (the
Phoney War), Germany attacked Denmark and Norway in April, 1940.
The Germans heavily bombed the Norwegian coastline, dropped
paratroopers to capture key strategic points, and sent in troops to
occupy the country. Germany now had coastal bases to launch their U
boats and gained control of the port of Narvik, which meant they
could continue to access iron ore from Sweden. British PM Neville
Chamberlain resigned after the German conquest of Norway and was
replaced by Winston Churchill. Note the protected harbor at Narvik
and its proximity to the Swedish border.
Slide 9
Narvik Harbour in Norway
Slide 10
Dunkirk Evacuation May-June 1940 On May 10 th, Germany invaded
France, Holland and Belgium, and made quick progress. By May 27 th,
340,00 British and French troops had been pushed back to the
coastal town of Dunkirk. Hitler decided to halt the tank advance,
allegedly because of the unsuitable terrain, and opted for
Luftwaffe air bombings. Churchill enacted Operation Dynamo, whereby
200,000 British and 140,000 French soldiers were rescued from the
beaches by small boats that ferried them to larger naval ships that
transported the men back to England. The saving of the British army
was a major triumph, but huge amounts of military equipment was
left behind to be used by the Germans, which meant the British
would need more time to build up their arsenal.
Slide 11
Note the location of Dunkirk in Northern France, close to the
Belgian border.
Slide 12
Small ships transporting British soldiers to the larger naval
vessels
Slide 13
Abandoned British equipment left behind on the beach of
Dunkirk. Many Germans considered Dunkirk a strategic victory
despite the escape of the British army because of the vast
quantities of military vehicles, weapons and ammunition they were
able to acquire.
Slide 14
Italy Attacks Egypt: September 1940 Italy had not officially
entered the war initially when Germany attacked Poland, Nor when
the Germans continued their assault on western Europe in the spring
of 1940. After the fall of France, Mussolini decided the time was
right for the Italian army to attack the British colony of Egypt.
They experienced some initial success but were soon pushed back by
the British and in February 1941, Hitler ordered some German troops
to North Africa to assist the Italians. Some historians suggest
that this delayed the launch of Operation Barbarossa and drew men
and resources away from the eastern front.
Slide 15
Battle of Britain After Frances surrender in June, 1940, Hitler
turned his attention to Britain, the last European country still
left fighting. The first stage of Operation Sea Lion, the invasion
of Britain, was to defeat the RAF (Royal Air Force) to pave the way
for the transport of troops across the English Channel. The
Luftwaffe sent bombers to target ports, radar stations, air bases,
and aircraft factories and later included cities such as London.
The British defended with Spitfire and Hurricane planes. The
British and Allied pilots were able to hold off the German attacks
(although both sides lost many planes and pilots) and Hitler
decided to indefinitely postpone the invasion plans.
Slide 16
The new British radar stations helped to detect incoming
Luftwaffe planes and were a significant factor in the failure of
Operation Sea Lion.
Slide 17
RAF planes fly in formation.
Slide 18
Operation Barbarossa In June, 1941, Hitler launched Operation
Barbarossa and a huge invasion force utilized the blitzkrieg tactic
to surprise the Soviets. Hitler hoped to gain natural resources and
further living space from the USSR, as well as to gain more slave
labourers. The offensive was intended as a three pronged attack:
Army Group North would take the Baltic ports along the northern
coastline and move on to Leningrad, Army Group Central would
advance to Moscow, and Army Group South would take the Ukraine and
the Caucasus oil fields. Later the plan was amended to divert part
of AMS to Stalingrad.
Slide 19
Pearl Harbour Dec. 7, 1941 Japanese planes attacked the
American naval base at Pearl Harbour in Honolulu, Hawaii. Their
goal was to destroy the Pacific naval fleet to allow Japan free
access to invade Asian countries without interference. They were
also angry that the Americans had organized an embargo on oil
exports to Japan in response to the Japanese actions in China. The
Japanese were successful in causing major damage, but did not
destroy several American aircraft carriers that were out of the
harbour. USA immediately declared war on both Japan and
Germany.
Slide 20
Battle of El Alamein: November, 1942 The Battle of El Alamein
was fought in Egypt and the British troops under Montgomerys
command defeated Rommel and his German troops. This was a
significant victory that prevented the Germans from seizing the
Suez Canal and gaining access to oil from the Middle East. Soon
after, the Americans launched Operation Torch, the invasion of
North Africa, and by June of 1943, the Italian-German army had
surrendered and the African campaign was over.
Slide 21
Japanese Conquests Dec. 1941-May 1942 After Pearl Harbour, the
Japanese continued to strike at Asian targets along the Pacific
coast and took a number of nations or territory including Hong
Kong, French Indochina (Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos),Malaya, Burma,
Singapore, the Philippines, and the Dutch East Indies.
Slide 22
After the fall of the British naval base at Singapore in
February 1942, the Americans took control of the Pacific campaign
and introduced the strategy of leap-frogging or island hopping,
whereby they would target less heavily defended Japanese islands
and then try to cut off supply routes to the more heavily fortified
ones. This was intended both to reduce American casualties and
lower Japanese morale.
Slide 23
Doolittle Raid April 1942 US General Doolittle was instructed
to launch a bombing attack on Tokyo as payback for Pearl Harbour
and American planes dropped a number of bombs on the capital,
killing approximately 50 Japanese citizens and causing minor
damage. The Japanese leaders were outraged and carried out brutal
reprisals against hundreds of thousands of Chinese civilians. They
decided to try to seize the US military base on the island of
Midway to intercept any future American air attacks as well as to
try to find and sink the American aircraft carriers. The Japanese
discussed these plans in coded radio messages which were
intercepted and deciphered by American intelligence officers.
American plane takes off from the USS Hornet as part of the
Doolittle raid.
Slide 24
Battle of Coral Sea May 1942 Encouraged by their overwhelming
early success in the Pacific, Japanese leaders made plans to invade
northern Australia. The Japanese fleet was defeated by the American
navy in a fierce battle in the Coral Sea and the Japanese called
off their invasion of Australia.
Slide 25
Battle of Midway June 1942 The Battle of Midway is considered
by many people to be the turning point of the Pacific campaign.
American planes spotted Japanese aircraft carriers and sank four of
the massive ships, while the Americans only lost one of their own
carriers, the Yorktown. The Japanese no longer had the naval
strength to maintain their offensive supremacy in the Pacific,
although they continued to fight for several more years.
Slide 26
Battle of Stalingrad Sept 1942- Jan 1943 The Battle of
Stalingrad was a brutal 4 month battle in southern USSR and was the
first major defeat of the Germans in WW2. The Germans carpet bombed
the city which created conditions ideal for urban warfare, which
the Russians used to their advantage. Although the Germans held the
early advantage, the cold winter conditions, combined with lack of
food and supplies, contributed to their downfall and eventually the
Red Army prevailed. The Germans lost over 300,000 soldiers during
this battle. The oil fields of the Caucasus Mountains were the
original target of German Army Group South during Operation
Barbarossa but Hitler changed his mind and ordered half of AGS to
take Stalingrad.
Slide 27
German bombing destroyed most of the buildings but created
ideal conditions for urban warfare, which favored the
defenders.
Slide 28
Russian snipers at Stalingrad in their warm, camouflaged
uniforms.
Slide 29
Scorched Earth Policy Another factor in the failure of
Operation Barbarossa was Stalins scorched earth policy, whereby he
ordered villagers to destroy items of potential use to the
advancing German troops. Civilians took whatever food, clothing,
and animals they could manage in their evacuation to the east, and
then burned homes and crops, killed livestock, and even
contaminated their wells before they left. The Germans used the
same strategy during their retreat back towards Germany. Although
this policy can be considered a military success, it created
suffering and death for many Russian civilians.
Slide 30
Invasion of Sicily July 1943 Allied troops invaded Sicily as
the soft underbelly of Europe and quickly advanced to the Italian
mainland. Italy officially surrendered in September, 1943 and King
Victor Emmanuel ordered Mussolinis arrest and removal from power.
Italy even changed sides and declared war on Germany in October of
that same year. However, Hitler deployed hundreds of thousands more
German troops to defend the territory, and fighting continued for
the rest of the war.
Slide 31
British soldiers coming ashore on a beach of Sicily. The men
with shovels are helping to build rough roads to transport the
troops and equipment.
Slide 32
Mussolini was freed from prison by German commandos in 1943 and
brought back to Germany. Hitler hoped to arrest King Victor
Emmanuel and restore Mussolini to power, but this never occurred
and Mussolini established a puppet fascist government in northern
Italy for the rest of the war. In 1945, Mussolini was captured by
Italian communists in northern Italy while trying to escape to
Switzerland on route to Spain. He and his mistress were shot and
suspended upside-down by their ankles on public display.
Slide 33
Battle of Kursk 1943 The Battle of Kursk was the largest tank
battle of WW2 and took place in southern Russia in the summer of
1943. The Germans launched the major attack but were eventually
overcome by the Soviets and lost 2000 tanks and 70,000 men. This
defeat signified the failure of Operation Barbarossa and was the
last large German offensive along the Eastern Front.
Slide 34
The Allied Bomber Command pounded German cities in a series of
attacks that caused great damage, as well as civilian suffering. In
July, 1943, 9000 tons of firebombs (containing napalm and
phosphorus) devastated Hamburg and killed approximately 40,000
civilians. Firebombing of Hamburg, July 1943
Slide 35
D Day Invasion: June 6 th 1944 D Day, or Operation Overlord,
was the largest Allied invasion of World War 2 and involved over
600, 000 British, American and Canadian troops. The ships took off
from Portsmouth and targeted one of five main beaches: Omaha and
Utah by the Americans, Sword and Torch by the British, and Juno by
the Canadians. The naval assault was supported by artillery attacks
from the air and sea, and paratroopers who landed behind German
lines to disrupt communication and transportation links. There were
high casualties and brutal fighting on both sides, but the Allies
successfully established themselves on French soil and began to
gradually fight their way eastward.
Slide 36
Dummy inflatable Sherman tank Dummy troop truck American
General Patton The Allies went to elaborate lengths to trick the
Germans about the planned location of the invasion and set up a
decoy army at Dover, across from Calais, the shortest route to
France. They even stationed top American general George Patton (in
disgrace at the time for slapping a soldier) at Dover to further
convince Hitler that the main invasion force was situated there.
Allied Deception for D Day
Slide 37
Allied troops got close to the beach in small landing craft and
then waded ashore to the beaches. Many soldiers were shot or
drowned before reaching land.
Slide 38
The Allies used floating harbours known as mulberries to make
up for the lack of natural ports along the beaches of Normandy.
These could be towed across the English Channel, snapped together
at the desired location, and used to transport vehicles such as
trucks and tanks ashore. Scuttled ships were used to provide
support, but they still were not designed to withstand major storms
and were intended only as a temporary apparatus. Mulberries
Slide 39
Battle of Leyte Gulf October 1944 Leyte Gulf was the greatest
naval battle in history where the Japanese navy lost 27 major
warships and the Americans lost 6. This was also the first time
that Japanese kamikaze (suicide) pilots crashed their planes into
American ships. This battle cut off Japan from its important supply
of oil from the Dutch East Indies.
Slide 40
Battle of the Bulge: Dec. 1944 The Battle of the Bulge was the
final major German offensive of World War 2. German tanks and
troops advanced through the Ardennes to attack the Americans who
were caught by surprise. The Germans had initial success but the
Americans held the strategic city of Bastogne and by January 1945,
the offensive was over. This battle used up the last reserves of
German planes and tanks and meant they would no longer be able to
significantly challenge the Allies. However, the offensive did slow
down the American advance and allowed the Russian Red Army to reach
Berlin first.
Slide 41
Battle of Iwo Jima Feb-Mar. 1945 Pulitzer Prize winning photo
from Iwo Jima American forces landed on the island of Iwo Jima in
February 1945 and were met with tremendous resistance from the
Japanese defenders, who had created bunkers in the cliffs. only 216
of the 50,000 defenders were taken alive: every other person either
died fighting or committed suicide rather than be captured,
including some civilians who jumped off cliffs. 60,000 Americans
died in the brutal conflict.
Slide 42
Battle of Okinawa April-June 1945 Okinawa was another site of
brutal island fighting where the Japanese defenders fought
fanatically and refused to surrender. The Americans successfully
captured the island but 100,000 Japanese soldiers and 12,000 US
marines died in battle. The occupation of Okinawa meant that the
Americans now had a base close enough to launch an invasion of
Japan. The battle also showed how determined the Japanese were to
defend their territory and made President Truman realize how
difficult it would be conquer Japan by traditional fighting methods
and how many lives would be lost.
Slide 43
In July, 1945, Dresden was firebombed by the Allies, killing
approximately 40,000 civilians and devastating the historical and
cultural city that had remained remarkably untouched during the
war. Some people consider this event controversial as Dresden Was
not considered a major industrial centre and the city contained
many refugees who had fled the Red Army approaching from the
east.
Slide 44
Hiroshima and Nagasaki Aug 6 th, Aug 9 th 1945 The Americans
and certain other allies had been developing a new secret nuclear
weapon through the Manhattan Project. President Harry Truman
authorized the dropping of an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of
Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 and three days later a second nuclear
bomb to be released on Nagasaki. These bombs killed close to
200,000 civilians and were the most significant factor in the
Japanese leaders agreeing to surrender.
Slide 45
The Japanese agreed to surrender once President Truman granted
the concession that Emperor Hirohito could remain on the throne.
Japanese officials signed the surrender papers September 2, 1945,
aboard the American naval ship the USS Missouri.
Slide 46
Radway, N. D. (1997). Twentieth Century: A World Transformed.
London, Englan: Hodder and Stoughton. Tuffs, E. A. (Edmonton,
Alberta). Global Forces of the Twentieth Century. 1997: Readmore
Books. Waugh, S. (2001). Essential Modern World Hisotry.
Cheltonhan, UK: Midas Printing International Ltd. Bibliography