World War II Key Events and Turning Points

A set of flashcards covering the key military campaigns, battles, and turning points of World War II from 1939 to 1945.

Invasion of Poland

The September 1939 event where Germany and the USSR invaded a neighboring country, officially starting World War II.

Battle of the Atlantic

The longest continuous military campaign of World War II, lasting from September 1939 all the way until May 1945.

Blitzkrieg (May–June 1940)

A successful German military strategy that defeated France, Belgium, and the Netherlands.

Battle of Dunkirk

A mid-1940 event involving a massive, miraculous evacuation of Allied soldiers from the beaches of France.

Battle of Britain

A 1940 conflict fought entirely in the air to prevent a German terrestrial invasion of Great Britain.

Operation Barbarossa

The codename for Germany's massive June 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union.

Siege of Leningrad

An engagement beginning in September 1941 that became one of the longest, most destructive city sieges in history.

Battle of Moscow

A winter 1941–1942 battle that marked the first major defensive success for the Soviets, stopping the German advance cold.

Attack on Pearl Harbor

The event on December 7, 1941, that prompted the United States to officially enter World War II.

Battle of the Coral Sea

Fought in May 1942, this was the first major naval battle where aircraft carriers engaged each other, successfully stopping a Japanese advance.

Battle of Midway

A June 1942 naval clash that serves as the critical turning point in the Pacific theater for the United States.

Battle of Stalingrad

Ending in February 1943, this bloody clash is widely considered the ultimate psychological and strategic turning point of the war in Europe.

Guadalcanal Campaign

Launched in August 1942, this campaign marked the very start of the Allied offensive strike against Japan in the Pacific.

Battle of El Alamein

An October 1942 battle resulting in a key Allied victory in North Africa, turning the tide in that theater.

Battle of Kursk

Fought in July 1943, this event holds the record as the largest tank battle in history, cementing the Soviet turning point.

Allied Invasion of Sicily

A July 1943 military action that officially opened up the Italian campaign.

Battle of Monte Cassino

A grueling, months-long battle from Jan–May 1944 fought specifically to break through the German 'Winter Line' in Italy.

Battle of Normandy (D-Day)

An operation executed on June 6, 1944, achieving the Allied invasion of France and opening the Western Front.

Battle of the Philippine Sea

A June 1944 naval clash and decisive victory that severely reduced Japan's operational aircraft carrier capacity.

Operation Bagration

A massive Soviet offensive in the summer of 1944 resulting in the near-total defeat and destruction of Germany's Army Group Center.

Battle of Leyte Gulf

Fought in October 1944, this is recognized as the largest naval battle of the war, where the Japanese navy was decisively crushed.

Battle of the Bulge

Germany's final major winter offensive on the Western Front, lasting from December 1944 to January 1945.

Battle of Iwo Jima

A brutal, early 1945 Pacific island battle fought primarily to capture a strategic airfield close to the Japanese mainland.

Battle of Okinawa

Lasting from April to June 1945, this was the final major amphibious battle of the Pacific, key for planning an invasion of Japan.

Battle of Berlin

The final, massive Soviet offensive in the spring of 1945 leading directly to the collapse of the Nazi regime.

Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Nuclear attacks on August 6 & 9, 1945, which led to the formal surrender of Japan on Sept 2, 1945.

Soviet Manchurian Offensive

A massive offensive launched by the Soviet Union at the tail end of the war that crushed Japanese forces in Manchuria.