World War Two In Brief: 1945

FEBRUARY 1945

Yalta Conference

President Roosevelt, Prime Minister Churchill, and Marshall Stalin, met at Yalta in the Southern Soviet Union. The meeting was a continuation of the earlier dialogue between Churchill and Stalin. In that meeting, Churchill and Stalin had discussed spheres of influence in post-war Europe, and Churchill was reported to have written down a list of countries in which he recorded both nations and percentages. Accordingly, he wrote down; Romania-90%, Soviets-10%, Allied Yugoslavia-50% Allies-50%.

The meeting began on February 2nd.

The first order of business was a discussion of at what point the Soviets would enter the war against the Japanese. The Soviets agreed to enter the war within three months of the end of the war with Germany. The Soviets' political demands included the transfer of the Kurile Islands to the Soviets, recognition of the Soviet sovereignty over Outer Mongolia, and other concessions. Finally, the United States and the Soviet Union agreed to a four-power trusteeship over Korea.

At the conference, Roosevelt agreed that the new borders of Poland would be the Curzon line (the boundary which had existed at the end of World War I before the Russo- Polish war). In return, the Poles would receive land from Germany, thus moving the border for Poland Westward.

One of the most significant issues discussed was the ruler of Poland. It was agreed that the Soviet puppet-regime (called the "Lublin Poles") would initially rule. This agreement called for free and democratic elections in Poland.

The three parties agreed to four- party control of Germany.

The major disagreement over the operations of the United Nations was resolved, with the Soviets agreeing to the American proposal regarding the use of the veto in the Security council. The Soviets requested that two of their republics receive separate representation in the U.N. The USA and the United Kingdom agreed.

The Yalta Conference, to this day, is seen by many as an incident of appeasing the Soviets. Others perceive the conference as a reflection of the power of Soviet troops advancing on Germany at the time.

FEBRUARY 14th 1945

Fire–Bombing Of Dresden

The Allied air forces bombed the city of Dresden in repeated waves. The waves resulted in the creation of afire storm that consumed 11 square miles of the center of the city.

FEBRUARY 19th 1945

US Forces Land On Iwo Jima

US forces landed on Iwo Jima, 750 miles south of Tokyo. The landings were heavily opposed by the Japanese, who fought to the death. Nevertheless, the US marines overwhelmed the defenders in a very hard fought battle that lasted for almost 30days. It was one of the most bloody battles of the war.

APRIL 1st 1945

US Forces Land At Okinawa

American forces landed on the island of Okinawa. The Japanese changed their tactics and, instead of opposing US troops at the beaches, put up their defense away inland. At the same time, Japanese aircraft and ships made Kamakasi attacks on the US fleet. The attacks exacted a heavy price: over 7,000 US serviceman and 100,000 Japanese were killed on Okinawa.

APRIL 16th 1945

Battle Of Berlin

The final battle of the Eastern front began on April 16th, as Soviet troops attempted to capture Berlin. German troops fought to the last man, but the Soviet victory was inevitable.

MAY 8th 1945

Germany Surrenders

On May 8th, German forces officially surrendered. Signing for the Germans was Chief of Staff General Jodl. The surrender ceremony took place at Eisenhower's headquarters at Reims.

AUGUST 5th 1945

On August 6th the US Airforce dropped an Atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The city was destroyed and over 70,000 were killed immediately from the effects of the blast. Three days later a second bomb destroyed Nagasaki.

AUGUST 14th 1945

Japan Surrenders

On September 2nd, the Japanese formally surrendered aboard the Battleship Missouri in Tokyo Harbor. Two attacks by atomic bombs finally convinced the Japanese government that further resistance was useless.

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Suggested Reading For Beginners

World War Two In Brief by NORMAN STONE

Daily Mail (London), Book of the Week
“Of all the books about World War II, this must be one of the most unexpected. Norman Stone, a master historian, has elected to tell the whole story in just 200 pages. Reading it is like being taken up in an all-seeing satellite to observe massive movements on the ground, or the woods without any trees to get in the way. It is illuminating, concentrating on what mattered most psychologically, ignoring confusing detail.”

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JANUARY 31st 1943

German Troops Surrender At Stalingrad

The starving German troops at Stalingrad surrendered, after being surrounded since November. Over 90,000 German troops died of starvation or exposure, while close to 100,000 died in battle during the final month. The surrender had been expressly forbidden by Hitler. Field Marshal von Paulus felt he had no choice but to surrender his 100,000 starving troops.

VIDEO: STALINGRAD

APRIL 1943

Warsaw Ghetto Uprising

The remaining Jews in the Warsaw ghetto began an armed uprising against the Nazis. The Jews, numbering just 60,000Ð down from the half a million in the ghetto a year beforeÐ knew that those being taken away were going to Aushwitz to be murdered.

The uprising lasted from April 19th to May 16th. The Nazis were able to overcome the vastly outnumbered and poorly armed Jewish resistance fighters.

VIDEO: WAR SAW GHETTO UPRISING

JULY 13th 1943

Battle Of Kursk

The largest tank battle in history took place at Kursk. The Germans planned a counter-offensive on Soviet positions. Their target was the Kursk salient. Their goal was to cut off the salient and capture the 60 Soviet battalions inside. The Soviets, however, were prepared, and 900 German tanks met 900 Soviet ones. The battle continued throughout the day, and ended in a draw.
The Germans would never be able to amass the number of tanks they had at Kursk, while the Soviets were out-producing them every month.

VIDEO: KURSK

JULY 23rd 1943

Allies Land At Palermo

Allied troops, under the command of General Patton, captured the city of Palermo in Sicily. The victory came less than two weeks after Allied forces first landed on Sicily. This marked the first invasion of part of an Axis homeland.

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FEBRUARY 15th 1942
Singapore Surrenders

The British fortress at Singapore was forced to surrender to the Japanese. The Japanese advanced down through the Malayan pennisula. They crossed onto the island of Singapore on the night of February 7th and forced the more numerous British troops to surrender.

VIDEO: FALL OF SINGAPORE: PART 1




PART 2



PART 3

APRIL 18th 1942

Doolittle's Bomber Attacks Tokyo

An American bomber scored a major psychological victory, when, under the command of General Doolittle, they bombed Japan. Only minor damage was inflicted by the forces of medium bombers. These bombers were specially modified to be launched from Carriers.

VIDEO: DOLITTLE RAID ON JAPAN, 1942

  MAY 3rd 1942

Battle of the Coral Sea

The Japanese were advancing toward Australia, with the intention of assaulting Port Moseby. US task forces engaged a Japanese force in the Coral Sea. It was the first battle in which two naval forces engaged, without ever coming within shooting distance of each other. Japanese planes managed to sink the American carrier "Lexington" and damage the "Yorktown." The Americans sank a Japanese light-carrier and put two Japanese cruisers out of commission. The Japanese advance was halted.

VIDEO: BATTLE OF CORAL SEA

MAY 30th 1942

British Launch 1,000 Aircraft Raid on Cologne

The British launched a 1,000-plane night raid on Cologne. This raid was just one of many night raids visited on German cities.

VIDEO: BRITISH BOMB COLOGNE, MAY 30, 1942

JUNE 4th 1942

Battle of Midway

The Japanese planned to attack the Island of Midway, expanding their hold on the Central Pacific. American intelligence intercepted Japanese plans and knew of the impending Japanese attack. The Americans sent their entire carrier force, including the recently damaged "Yorktown," to intercept the Japanese force. The Americans succeeded in sinking four Japanese carriers, loosing only the "Yorktown." This was the turning point in the Pacific War.

VIDEO: BATTLE OF MIDWAY

AUGUST 19th 1942

Dieppe Raid

The Raid on Dieppe took place on August 19, 1942. Its mission was to test German coastal defenses. It was carried out primarily by Canadian troops. The raid turned into one of the greatest allied fiascoes of the war. The element of surprised was completely lost, and the air force was unable to provide sufficient air support. Of the 4,963 Canadians who took part 3,367 were killed wounded or taken prisoner.

VIDEO: DIEPPE RAID

AUGUST 27th 1942

German Troops Reach Stalingrad

German troops reached the Russian city of Stalingrad, on the Volga, and laid seige to it. German troops advanced on Stalingrad and broke through Russian lines, but did not succeed in taking the city. Hitler would allow no withdrawal from Stalingrad, and the Russian troops gradually wore down the Germans.

VIDEO: GERMANS REACH STALINGRAD

OCTOBER 23rd 1942

British Are Victorious At El Alamein

 German forces, under the command of Rommel, met the British forces, under the command of General Montgomery at El Alamein. Montgomery had a two-to-one advantage in tanks, and was victorious. The victory in El Alamain eliminated the German threat to the Suez Canal and the Middle East.

VIDEO: BRITISH VICTORY AT EL ALAMEIN

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MARCH 11th 1941

Lend-Lease Passed

With the war going badly for the British, it was clear that Great Britain would require assistance from the United States. The British were running out of money to pay for the arms they were buying. President Roosevelt, therefore, went before the country in a Fireside Chat, in which he called for America to become an "arsenal of Democracy".

Roosevelt then introduced a bill to Congress on January 8, 1941, providing the president with the power to lend military equipment to countries that the president believed were in need.
The bill passed the House 260-165 and the Senate 60 to 31, with votes split primarily on party lines.

By the end of the war the United States had provided the following aid:

Great Britain.............$31 billion
Soviet Union.............$11 billion
France...................... ..$ 3 billion
China........................$1.5 billion
Other European..........$ 500 million
South America.............$400 million

The amount totaled: $48,601,365,000.

VIDEO: LEND LEASE

MARCH 28th 1941

Battle Of Matapan

The British fleet met the Italian fleet at the battle off of Cape Matapan. The Italian Force was led by Vice Admiral Angelo Iachino, the British force was led by Admiral Cunningham. The British force included the battleships Warspite, Valiant and Barham. It also included the carrier Formidable. Cunnigham cruisers engaged part of the Italian force on March 28th. In the meantime Cunninghams main force was closing. When the British aircraft attacked, the Italians changed course and began to withdraw.

Cunnighman then launched successive air attacks against the Italian fleet. The Vittorio Veneto was hit and forced to slow down, but was soon making 20 knots. The cruiser Polo was seriously damaged and two other cruisers and four destroyers were detached to escort the Pola. Cunnighams main force of battleships then struck the Italian cruiser in the middle of the night, Within three minutes the Italian cruisers Zara and Fiume were sunk. The destroyers Affeieri and Carducci soon followed. Finally, the partially disabled cruiser Pola was boarded and captured. It was the greatest British naval victory since Trafalgar.

German Forces Invade Greece and Yugoslavia

APRIL 6th 1941

The Germans invaded Yugoslavia, after a coup in Belgrade that overthrew the pro-German government and replaced it with one committed to neutrality. At the same time, the Germans invaded Greece. German troops reached Athens by April 27th. Britain was able to send 48,000 of the 60,000 members of its expeditionary force to Greece.

VIDEO: GERMAN TROOPS IN GREECE

MAY 27th 1941

German Battleship “Bismark” Sunk

The German battleship, "Bismark," was sunk by the British Navy . In the first round of the fight, the British lost the battleship "Hood" and suffered the crippling of the battleship "Prince of Wales". A second British task force caught up with the "Bismark." On May 26th, a plane from the "Ark Royal" attacked the "Bismark." A torpedo hit its rudder and disabled the steering. That night, battleships "Rodney" and "King George" attacked the "Bismark" with their big guns. Together with torpedos from the "Doretshire," they sank the "Bismark".

VIDEO: BATTLESHIP BISMARCK

JUNE 22nd 1941

German Forces Invade Russia

 German forces invaded Russia. The Germans advanced on a 2,000 mile-long front. Together with their allies, they were able to mass 3,000,000 troops. Initially, the Russians had 2,000,000 troops. German troops advanced along the hod front. By September, they began laying seige to Lenningrad, and then captured Kiev. By the end of October, the Germans had reached Crimea in the south and Moscow's suburbs in the north.

AUGUST 11th 1941

Atlantic Charter

President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill spent three days meeting together on-board their ships at Argentina Bay, Newfoundland. The two leaders developed a close personal friendship, probably the closest between a President and any foreign leader up to that time.

While the President was meeting with Churchill, the American military staff, led by George Marshall, was meeting with the British military, discussing aid, as well as joint actions that could be taken.

DECEMBER 7th 1941

Pearl Harbor

The American decision to impose sanctions on Japan, in response to the Japanese invasion of Indo-China, convinced Japanese leaders that war with the United States was inevitable.

While the Japanese continued to negotiate in Washington, plans went ahead for military actions. The Japanese were convinced that they could not win a war of attrition with the United States, so they planned a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, hoping that a decisive victory would be achieved which would force the United States to negotiate. The Japanese attack was executed with precision and, despite having broken the Japanese code, the Americans at Pearl Harbor were caught unprepared, and the attack was successful.

VIDEO: PEARL HARBOR

Text from historycentral.com

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FALL OF WARSAW: September 27th 1939 

 Warsaw surrendered to German troops encircling its borders. Massive air and artillery bombardments left the poles no choice. Eastern Poland was occupied by the Soviet Union, while the rest of Poland was occupied by the Germans. The Germans immediately began their campaign against the Jews of Poland– herding them to live in ghettos in big cities.

VIDEO: FALL OF WARSAW

Soviet Union Invades Finland: NOVEMBER 30th 1939

The Soviets invaded Finland on three fronts. The Finns put up a heroic resistance, often stopping the Soviet attack in its tracks. However, the overwhelming numeric superiority of the Soviet forces was too much for the Finns to overcome, and they eventually sued for peace. On March 12th, a peace treaty was signed that ceded the Karelian Isthmus, the city of Viipuri, and other lands to the Soviets.

VIDEO: BATTLE FOR FINLAND

Battle For The Atlantic: DECEMBER 1939

The submarine war began on the third day of the war when a German submarine U-30 commanded by Lieutenant Fritz Julius Lemp fired on the British passenger liner Athenia. The Athenia sunk the next day, after most of the passenger were saved. One hundred and twelve people lost there lives, including 28 Americans. Lemp fired despite explicit orders not to fire on a passenger ship. In the first four months of the war 221 ships of more than 750,000 tons were sunk.

On the evening of September 17, German U-boat 29 under the command of Commander Otto Schuart fired three torpedoes at the HMS Courageous. Within fifteen minutes the Courageous sank taking with it its captain and 518 men.

On October 13th Lieutenant Gunter Prien commanding U-boat 47 successfully entered into the British naval base at Scapa Flow. There he was able to attack the British battleship Royal Oak. He first fired four torpedoes at the battleship.; Only one hit, that one doing most of its damage above the waterline. Prien returned to fire three more torpedoes. One of them causing a catastrophic explosion sinking the Royal Oak and 833 men in fifteen minutes.

VIDEO: BATTLE OF ATLANTIC

The period between July and October 1940 became know as the “Happy Time” for German submarines. During this period the wolf pact, a group of submarines operating together on a convoy, became operational. U-boats reached an outstanding 217 ships sunk representing more then a million tons of shipping, losing only six U boats.

1941 saw the tide of U-Boat activities shift temporarily. The use of additional escorts, air patrols, and US convoying of ships halfway across the Atlantic significanly cut down U-Boat losses. The period that followed the American entry into the war however temporarily changed this. Suddenly there were hundreds of unescorted vessels off the coasts of the US all silohetted nicely against the lights of US cities.

By early 1943 the tide tunred decisively agaisnt the U Boats, The allies had 500 escorts at there dsiposal, they were intercepting U Boat radio communications, and the introducation of escort carriers allowed uniterrupted air coverage for convoy across the Atlantic. Thus by mid 1944 one U boat was being lost for every allied ship sunk. The war in the Atlantic would go on, but victory was in the hands of the Allies.

Germany Invades Norway: APRIL 9th 1940

German forces invaded Norway and Denmark. Oslo, Bergen, Trondheim, Stavanger and Naravik were rapidly taken. Navarik was retaken by a British force, but the British were soon forced to withdraw from the town.

By the end of the month, the Germans had broken the stiff Norwegian opposition, and the Norwegians were forced to surrender.

VIDEO: BATTLE FOR NORWAY

German Armies Invade Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg: MAY 10th 1940

In a flanking move that made the French Maginot Line irrelevant, the Germans attacked the low countries. The Netherlands surrendered in four days, after massive German attacks on Rotterdam.

The Germans quickly drove into Northern France, dividing the French and British forces into two.

Paris Falls: JUNE 13th 1940

France Surrenders: JUNE 22nd 1940 

 On June 13th, Paris was evacuated by French forces, in the face of advancing German forces. On the 23rd of June, France surrendered. Terms of the surrender included the disarmament of French forces and the occupation of two-thirds of France by the Germans.

VIDEO: GERMAN VICTORY PARADE IN PARIS

Dunkirk Evacuated: JUNE 4th 1940

The British successfully extricated 200,000 British and 100,000 French troops from the beaches of Dunkirk. The troops were stranded in Northern France, cut off by the sweeping German victories. The British and French troops were forced to abandon their equipment, but their soldiers were available to fight another day.

VIDEO; DUNKIRK

Battle Of Britain: AUGUST 1940

 

The Germans attempted to subdue Great Britain by utilizing air attacks. Germany attacked all major cities and military installations. British preparedness, combined with the valor of its pilots and a new weapon called "radar," forced the Germans to pay a heavy price for their bombing. By the end of October, when the winter weather made the threat of invasion unlikely, the Germans had lost 2,375 planes, compared to 800 British planes lost.

VIDEO: BATTLE FOR BRITAIN

Italy Invades Greece: OCTOBER 28th 1940

 The Italians invaded Greece, expecting a quick victory. The Greeks received reinforcements from the British and planes from the Soviets. This allowed Greek forces to hold their own and attack the Italians in Albania, overruning one- quarter of the country.

VIDEO: ITALY ATTACKS GREECE

British Attack Italian Forces In Egypt: DECEMBER 8th 1940

British troops launched a surprise attack on Italian troops, which occupied parts of western Egypt. The British routed the Italians. On January 5th, the Italian garrison at Bardia– with 25,000 troops– surrendered.
By the end of January, the British captured Tobruk and, in early February, captured Bengasi and liberated Ethiopia. In April, German reinforcements, under the command of General Rommel, arrived in Africa and stopped the British advance. The British were forced to withdraw.

Graf Spee Sunk: DECEMBER 17th 1939

 

The first major naval campaign of Word War II, took place when the British navy pursued the Graf Spee, a German battlecruiser who was on a mission to attack British merchant vessels. Between September 30 and December 7 1939 the Graf Spee, under the command of Captain Hans Langsdorff sunk nine cargo ships with a total tonnage of 50,089. Not a single crewmen or passenger on any of the sunk vessels was killed.

The British navy correctly deduced that the Graf Spee would next head for the area off of Montevideo to intercept more shipping. A British task force composed of the cruisers Ajax, Achilles and Exeter converged on Graf Spree. On the morning of December 12, 1939 the found the Graf Spree. The Graf Spee opened fire first, damaging the Exeter. All three British troops responded. The British ships responded. In the ensuing battle both the British ships and the Graf Spee were damaged, but the cumulative effect of three British ships damaged the Graf Spee severely. The Graf Spee headed for Montevideo requesting time for repairs. The Uruguayans refused, while the British rushed additional forces toward Montevideo. Captain Langsdorff then decided to scuttle the Graf Spee in Montevideo harbor.

VIDEO: GRAF SPEE SINKING

Text Source: History Central

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