1. WWII Battles (continued) Italian campaign and D-Day

2. WWII Battles 7. Italian Campaign a. Rommel defeated in Africa by 1943 b. The next step would be two fold: An invasion of Italy, and an invasion of Northern Europe 1. Stalin pushed for help. 2. Heavy casualties for the Russians on the Eastern front

3. WWII Battles c. Italian Campaign 1. Invasion of Sicily a. Two weeks of heavy fighting 2. General George S. Patton a. Lead US general in Italy and tank corps commander 3. Tuskegee Airmen a. Segregated African- American pilots, participating in battle for the first time in Italy!

5. WWII Battles 4. Italy surrenders a. Italian government rejects Mussolinis leadership. b. Italy surrenders Sept. 3, 1943 and joins the allies.

7. WWII Battles 8. D-Day: Operation Overlord a. It was decided a quick knock-out blow must be delivered to Germany New German weapons? 1. V-2 Rocket 2. Atomic Bomb? b. Amphibious invasion from England 1. Landing troops onto land from naval ships

8. WWII Battles c. Atlantic Wall 1. A series of underground German bunkers, artillery fortifications, and rocket sites stretching from Norway to the coast of Spain. 2. Allied Target: Normandy, France 3. Fake landing at Calais a. Hitler believed it… did not reinforce Normandy!

10. WWII Battles d. June 6, 1944 1. 3.5 million total soldiers 2. Allied Commanders: Omar Bradley (US) Bernard Montgomery (UK) 3. Naval shelling, airborne attack, amphibious attack, and bombing raids all used to secure the beaches. 4. Breakout occurred in a few short weeks, pushing through to Paris.

11. WWII Battles 5. Massive casualties for US troops. 6. Overall, an amazing success!

16. WWII Battles e. Battle of the Bulge 1. Last gasp by German army to try to win the war. 2. Initially, Germans take control in the battle, looking like they will repel the D-Day advance. 3. Battle of Bastogne a. Patton- Tank corps blunts the German attack setting up an allied victory!

18. Last War Years f. 3 months 1. 3.5 million men landed on the coast of France 2. Pushed through the German lines 3. Moved through to liberate Paris 4. By April 1945 it was a race to Berlin with the Russians. g. May 7, 1945- European Theater fighting is over