World War II History - PDF

1. Dunkirk -In April 1940, the German army invaded France, catching the allies by surprise. -The army was so quick that the British army was pushed to the coast. -The troops were trapped, and the only escape was the sea. -There were no reports, so we have to write off what the government says and th...

1. Dunkirk -In April 1940, the German army invaded France, catching the allies by surprise. -The army was so quick that the British army was pushed to the coast. -The troops were trapped, and the only escape was the sea. -There were no reports, so we have to write off what the government says and the experiences of the soldiers. -All sorts of craft during Operation Dynamo, including Royal Navy Ships, pleasure steamers and fishing boats came to rescue the soldiers. Most of them were saved. -The government used this event to attempt to boost morale by pretending this was an amazing success for the British, which kept morale high for a while. - 2. Battle of Britain -By early June 1940, Germany had control of most of north-west Europe, and only the UK remained at war with Germany. -Reasons for Germany’s loss include; Britain’s new radar technology British RAF planes outperformed German planes British pilots pushed themselves hard to win the battle British tactics and industry Worldwide support with pilots from all over the world 3. USSR -Operation Barbarossa was when Germany invaded the USSR, they did this for supplies and oil and land. Hitler wanted control over all of Europe, and to destroy communism. -Hitler had not anticipated how cold it would be, and was very unprepared and had to back off. -Major turning point in the war as the bulk of the German forces were now exhausted and the USSR had joined the allies. -The battle of Stalingrad was a turning point in the war because it was the first German defeat so far. -The USSR also started pushing Germany back themselves. 4. D-Day -Allies land on the beaches of Normany after tricking Germany into thinking they were landing in Calais. -Beginning of the end of WWII. -America got involved in the war, and helped the British with American weapons and supplies, leading to their victory.  5. Alan Turing and the Battle of the Atlantic -Alan Turing worked on The Bombe, which deciphered the German Enigma Code, being sent from and to U-Boats. -This was very useful as these boats were deadly and were destroying supply ships from and to allies. -This was during the Battle of the Atlantic. 6. Japan and Pearl Harbour/USA and Hiroshima -Japan bombed Pearl Harbour, where lots of US soldiers were. They successfully sank many boats and killed many soldiers. -They did this because Japan wanted its own empire and America was seen as a threat. Also, Japan needed to invade other countries for materials. -Roosevelt might have known of an incoming attack and done nothing about it. -The US soon declared war on Japan. -The US slowly moved towards Japan, whilst the allies secured victory in Europe. -At 8:15am on 6th August 1945, an American plane dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. 90% of the city was destroyed. -August 9th, America dropped another bomb on Nagasaki. -August 14th, Japan surrendered.