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Germany invaded Poland using their blitzkrieg strategy, which basically meant they attacked super fast with tanks and planes. Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later, officially starting World War II. Poland couldn’t really defend itself against Germany’s modern military and fell in about a month. -
Germany launched a massive attack on France through the Ardennes Forest, which the French thought was impossible to get through. The Germans completely outmaneuvered the French and British forces, pushing them back to the coast. France surrendered on June 22, 1940, which was a huge shock since everyone thought France had one of the best armies in Europe. -
British and French troops got trapped on the beaches of Dunkirk, France, with the German army closing in on them. The British military organized a massive evacuation using everything from navy ships to civilian fishing boats and yachts. They managed to rescue over 330,000 soldiers, which was way more than anyone expected and kept Britain in the war. -
Hitler ordered the German air force to bomb London and other British cities almost every night to try to force Britain to surrender. Thousands of civilians died and huge parts of the cities were destroyed, but the British refused to give up. The RAF (Royal Air Force) fought back hard, and eventually Germany gave up on invading Britain. -
The Battle of Stalingrad was one of the bloodiest battles in history, with Germany trying to capture this important Soviet city. The fighting was insane, with soldiers battling house-to-house in the freezing winter. The Soviets eventually surrounded and destroyed an entire German army, which was a major turning point that showed Germany could actually be beaten. -
The Allies invaded Italy starting in Sicily to try to knock one of the Axis powers out of the war and open up a new front against Germany. The fighting was really brutal because Italy has tons of mountains and rivers that made it easy for the Germans to defend. Italy surrendered pretty quickly, but German forces kept fighting there until almost the end of the war. -
The Allies launched the largest amphibious invasion in history, landing over 150,000 troops on the beaches of Normandy, France. It was super risky and tons of soldiers died, especially on Omaha Beach, but they managed to establish a foothold in France. This invasion opened up the Western Front and started the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control. -
The Allies tried this ambitious plan to drop paratroopers behind German lines in the Netherlands and capture key bridges to end the war quickly. The operation was supposed to be over in a few days, but things went wrong when they ran into more German resistance than expected. It ended up being a failure, especially at the Bridge at Arnhem, and the war dragged on for several more months. -
Germany launched a surprise counterattack through the Ardennes Forest in Belgium, trying to split the Allied forces and capture their supply port. The attack created a huge “bulge” in the Allied lines and caused a lot of chaos, especially since it happened during a brutal winter. The Americans held their ground though, and after about a month, Germany’s last major offensive was crushed. -
Germany officially surrendered after Hitler killed himself and Soviet forces captured Berlin. May 8th was declared V-E Day (Victory in Europe), and people all over Europe and America celebrated in the streets. The war in Europe was finally over, though fighting continued in the Pacific against Japan until August.