battles of ww2

invation

invasion of russia

gemrany broke non aggression pact - invaded russia,

end of the war over 3 million germans fough on eastern front

•Blitzkrieg style attack failed because of the resistance of the Russian people, long supply lines, and bad weather

•Fiercest combat was in the battle of Stalingrad

•Soviets gained the advantage and started a push towards Berlin for revenge

hong kong 1941

•Canadians first engagement in WWII was defending Hong Kong from a Japanese attack

•Many Canadians were killed or taken prisoner

Attack on pearl harbour

December 6, 1941 - •The U.S.A. was a neutral country as of December 1941

•Without declaring war, Japan surprise attacked the American naval base in Pearl Harbour Hawaii, destroying half the fleet

•Americans were outraged and declared war on Japan

•Germany and Italy then declared war on the U.S.A.

•Known as a ‘Day that will live in infamy’

dieppe

aug 1942 - •Canadian troops conducted a raid to gather information about the German defences and to relieve pressure on the Russians

•5000 Canadian soldiers raided the French port of Dieppe

Why it was significant for Canadians:

First major Canadian army engagement in Europe: The raid involved nearly 5,000 Canadian soldiers, making it one of the first large-scale battles for Canada during WWII.

Testing for future invasions: Dieppe was intended to test German defenses and gather intelligence, as well as to gauge the feasibility of future amphibious assaults (like D-Day).

Lessons for D-Day: The disastrous raid provided critical lessons on amphibious warfare, such as the need for better planning, more air and naval support, and surprise—lessons that were successfully applied during the Normandy invasion in 1944.

Why it was a failure:

Lack of surprise: German forces were aware of the raid in advance, making the element of surprise impossible.

Poor planning: The raid was rushed and poorly coordinated, with limited intelligence about German defenses.

Insufficient air and naval support: The operation lacked the air and naval bombardment needed to suppress German positions, leaving Canadian troops vulnerable on the beaches.

Terrain challenges: The steep cliffs, shingle beaches, and fortified German positions created a near-impossible environment for the Canadian soldiers to succeed.

High casualties: Of the 6,100 troops who participated, 3,367 were killed, wounded, or captured—more than half were Canadian. Only about 2,200 soldiers managed to return to England.

The Italian campaign

1943-1945 - •Canadians landed on the island of Sicily, moved into the Italian mainland and pushed northwards

•Faced a fierce battle in the town of Ortona (house to house combat)

•Italian leader Mussolini was killed and a new government signed an armistice with the Allies

•Germany rushed troops to defend Italy

d-day

june 6 1944 - •A huge Allied seaborne invasion of German held Europe

•Landings occurred along the 80km stretch of Normandy Beach in France

•Canadians landed on Juno Beach, there will utah, omaha, gold, and sword too beaches

•Gave the Allies a foothold in Europe and began the long campaign to push back the German armies

battle for berlin

april may 8 1945 - •The Russian Red Army closed in on Berlin and the Nazi’s made their last stand

•Germany children and elderly were given weapons and instructed to defend the Fatherland

•Hitler spent his final days in an underground bunker, committed suicide when the Russians were closing in on the bunker

•Germany surrendered and the Third Reich was over (known as ‘Victory in Europe Day’ or ‘V-E Day’)

hiroshima

aug 6 1945 - •Americans were left with the task of finishing off Japan to end WWII

•They had a choice- invade by land (estimated 1 000,000 American soldiers would be killed) or use the newly created nuclear bomb

•An American B-29 bomber named the ‘Enola Gay’ dropped the first nuclear bomb (nicknamed ‘Little Boy’) used in combat on the Japanese city of Hiroshima

•The explosion destroyed most of the city and immediately killed approximately 80 000 people (tens of thousands would die later from radiation exposure)

nagaski aug 9 1945

•When Japan did not surrender after the first atomic bomb was dropped, another (nicknamed ‘Fat Man’) was dropped 3 days later on the city of Nagasaki

•An estimated 40 000 were killed instantly (and more later from radiation exposure)

•Japan’s Emperor Hirohito announced his country’s unconditional surrender by radio address on August 15th, citing the power of a “new and most cruel bomb”

•August 15^th became known as ‘Victory Over Japan Day’ or ‘VJ Day’

naking massacare

dec 1937- jan 1938

•Japan invaded China, perpetrated widespread rape, looting, and murder (Example- Contest to kill 100 with a sword)

•Thousands of Chinese women were forced into sexual slavery (“comfort women”)

•Death toll is debated but estimated to be between 200,000-300,000

•Event remains an issue in China-Japan relations

Non-aggression pact with the soviet union

August 1939 - •To make sure Russia would not interfere with the invasion of Poland, Germany signed a non-aggression agreement with the Soviets (known as the ‘Nazi-Soviet Pact’)

•The two countries agreed not to fight each other and secretly agreed to divide up Poland

Invasion of Poland

September 1939 - •At 4:45 a.m., some 1.5 million German troops invaded Poland all along its border with Germany

•Simultaneously, the German Luftwaffe bombed Polish airfields, and German warships and U-boats attacked Polish naval forces

•Hitler claimed the massive invasion was a defensive action but Britain and France declared war on September 3^rd (2 days after invasion) and Canada declares war on September 10^th after debating in Parliament

blitzkrieg

The new Blitzkrieg (‘lightning war’) tactics overwhelmed opponents in the early stages of the war, allowing Germany to overrun much of Europe.

Blitzkrieg tactics included:

-mobility

-concentrating offensive weapons along a narrow front

-close coordination between the air force, tank divisions, and soldiers

-modern communication technology

-a series of short military campaigns

Lebensraum

•Invasion of Poland would bring ‘Lebensraum’ (living space) for a growing German population

The phoney war

October 1939-April 1940

•Phoney War’ is the name given to the early period of the war after the fall of Poland when seemingly nothing happened

•Germans called this period ‘Sitzkrieg’ (sitting war)

•Both sides spent this time preparing for war and conducting minor military operations

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Invasion of Denmark and Norway

April 1940

•Gaining control of these countries ensured Germany had access to the sea to allow shipping of iron ore which was necessary for the war effort

•Control of this area would provide a staging area for planned future attacks against Britain

•Denmark was easily overrun by the Germans, surrendering in under 6 hours

•Norway resisted for a few weeks but surrendered in June 1940

Invasion of Luxembourg

may 10, 1940 - •Country was situated at a strategic point at the end of the French Maginot Line

•Battle lasted just one day

•Young men were conscripted into the German Wehrmacht (army)

Invasion of Belgium

May 10-28, 1940 - Despite some support by British forces, the Belgians were simply outnumbered and outgunned from the beginning 

After 18 days of ceaseless German bombardment,  King Leopold of Belgium agreed to an unconditional surrender

Invasion of France

may- June 1940 - •

• France defended its border with Germany using the Maginot Line.

• Germany surprised France by invading through the Ardennes Forest, thought to be impassable.

• Germany occupied Northern France.

• Vichy France was established in the unoccupied south.

• The Free French (group of french citizens) continued to resist German forces.

• Controlling France gave Germany a base to attack Britain.

The evacuation of Dunkirk

may-june 1940, •Hundreds of thousands of British troops were sent to help France

•They became trapped along the northern coast of France and were about to be surrounded by German soldiers

•Hitler was going to allow the Luftwaffe (airforce) to finish off the Allied soldiers but this plan was delayed

•The Allies managed to evacuate over 350 000 British and French troops across the English Channel back to Britain (but had to leave their equipment)

•If this evacuation didn’t happen it would have been devastating to Britain and the Allied war effort

Battle of Britain

July-October 1940 - •By the end of 1940 Britain was the only European country left to fight against the Nazis

•Germany planned to attack the island of Britain but needed to gain air superiority first

•Bombed Britain (and especially London) relentlessly to soften the British will to fight (‘The Blitz’)

•Rather than breaking the British will to fight, it made them want to fight even more

•Radar technology helped the British defend their airspace

•Germany eventually called off this attack and turned their attention to Russia

•Britain’s victory prevented a land invasion and possible occupation by German forces