German Aggression, Japanese Aggression & Major Battles and Events of World War II

Important battles and life changing events that occurred during World War II and had an impact on the

themes of Personal Freedom, Respect for Human Dignity and

Individual Responsibility!

(the following battles and events are NOT in chronological order. They are separated by the themes listed above!)

Personal Freedom

The state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under

physical restraint

Fall of France Italy enters war on

Germany’s side Germany invades France

from the North and Italy invades from the South = Close in on Paris

June 22, 1940 Hitler handed French officers term of surrender, stating that Germany would now occupy the Northern part of France.

“France has lost a battle, but France has not lost the war.” Charles De Gaulle

Negative Personal Freedom because France was being confined under German rule.

Kristallnacht November 9 – 10, 1938 “Kristallnacht” translates to

Night of Broken Glass Nazi troops attacked Jewish

homes, buisnesses, and synagogues

100 Jews were killed 30,000 Jews arrested and

sent to concentration camps The Nazi’s blamed the Jews

for the destruction Negative Personal Freedom

because Jewish people were targeted by Nazi’s for their own religion and beliefs.

Doolittle’s Raid Spring 1942 Allies turned against

Japanese Raid on Tokyo and other

Japanese cities Lieutenant Colonel James

Doolittle led 16 bombers Pearl Harbor air style raid Lifted American spirits Positive Personal Freedom

for Americans and Negative for Japanese.

The Battle of Midway

Japan’s next attack was on the island of Midway near Hawaii

Allies stopped the Japanese AGAIN! Americans broke Japanese and found

out next attack June 3, 1942 – Scout planes found on

Japanese fleet, caught with planes still on deck.

Japan lost four aircraft carriers, a cruiser and 250 planes.

Japanese official “the Americans have avenged Pearl Harbor.”

Huge turning point in the war Island Hopping – Allies won back

island from Japanese and with each island they got closer to Japan.

Positive Personal Freedom for Americans, made them feel confident and gave them a burst of morale.

Individual Responsibility

Helping yourself and taking own

responsibility

Japanese Defense Kamikaze – suicide plane,

pilots crashed airplanes with bombs attached to them into enemy ships.

Kamikaze – Divine Wind In Philippines, 424 Kamikaze

pilots embarked on suicide missions, sinking 16 ships and damaging 80 ships

Americans watched with “strange mixture of respect and pity”

Negative Individual Responsibility because it resulted in the death of enemies and allies

Iwo Jima Island near the Philippines Iwo Jima – Sulfur Island Heavily loaded bombers

could reach Japan from here

Heavily defended with 20,700 Japanese troops

6,000 Marines died taking the island

200 Japanese survived Negative Individual

Responsibility because so many Americans risked there lives and died.

The Manhattan Project Atomic Bomb General Leslie Groves Scientist – J. Robert

Oppenheimer 60,000 Americans involved

in project First Bomb Test was on

July 16, 1945 in Alamogordo, New Mexico

Positive Individual Responsibility for Americans, so they could win the war and find peace.

The Battle for Okinawa April 1945 United States Marines

invaded the island of Okinawa Japanese unleashed 1,900

kamikaze attacks on Allies, sinking 30 ships, damaging 300 ships and killing 5,000 seamen

By June 21, 1945 – 7,600 Americans had died

Japanese death toll – 110,000 Negative Individual

Responsibility due to the Kamikaze Attacks which killed numerous amounts of people

Respect For Human Dignity

Having respect for others not matter what race or

nationality they belong

Blitzkrieg

September 1, 1939 German Air force dropped bombs over military bases, airfields, roads and cities in the Soviet Union

Meanwhile German tanks rushed across Poland, spreading terror and confusion! Tested Germany’s new military tactic Blitzkrieg which translates to Lightning

War Fast Tanks, Powerful Aircraft, Take enemy by surprise, Crush opposition and

the tactics worked perfectly WORLD WAR II BEGINS!

Attack on Pearl Harbor December 7, 1941 Japanese dive bombers

swooped low over harbor followed by more than 180 warplanes

“Air raid on Pearl Harbor. This is not a drill.”

43 ships in Pearl Harbor and 18 Sunken

Targets – Battleships, Aircraft Carriers, Ford Island and Wheeler Field

Negative Respect for Human Dignity, because Japanese commited crimes against Americans that were uncalled for and unexpected. They murdered thousands of innocent Americans.

The Holocaust

Concentration Camps Mass Exterminations Nazi’s killed thousand of Jewish People Genocide – The deliberate and systematic killing of an

entire population Negative respect for human dignity because the Nazi’s

killed thousands of innocent Jew’s based on their race.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki Hiroshima: August 6, 1945 B-29 bomber Enola Gay Dropped Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima Code Name – Little Boy Hiroshima was an important military

base in Japan

Nagasaki: August 9, 1945 Code Name – Fat Man Leveled Half the city of Nagasaki 200,000 dead due to radiation, injury

and poisoning. Negative respect for human dignity

because of the murder of innocent people. But, this was payback for the lack of human dignity that was given to Americans by the Japanese