1. Battles of WWII

2. Dunkirk -- May 1940 Not really a battle, but a massive evacuation of Allied soldiers from France. The British used fishing boats and even small life boats to cross the English Channel and return with the troops. Over 20 miles across!

4. Battle of Britain -- June 1940 Germans bomb Britain, attempting to destroy the British Air Force (RAF). First military campaign to be fought only by air forces. Although London was heavily damaged, the British did not give in to Hitler and proved that Hitler’s advances could be stopped!

5. Battle of Britain

6. FILM FOOTAGE FROM THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kj1LYvF4 0DM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwiXruIW GLw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vff9AQm MhhE

7. Operation Barbarossa -- June 1941 Hitler’s plan to send 3 to 4 million troops to invade the Soviet Union, breaking the Non-Aggression Pact with Stalin

8. Operation Barbarossa By the end of the year, more than 3 million Russians had been taken prisoner and another million were dead. Film Footage from Operation Barbarossa http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RePOWFt sInw

9. Pearl Harbor -- December 7, 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii – ‘the date which shall live in infamy” This surprise attack killed over 2400 Americans and destroyed 6 ships and 188 airplanes. Photo taken by a Japanese pilot as he bombs the American base

10. Pearl Harbor http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sv1niwxQgoY

11. Battle of the Coral Sea -- May 1942 Fought entirely by planes launched from aircraft carriers. The Japanese and American ships never sighted each other – instead all attacks made by airplanes Halted Japanese expansion southward

12. Battle of the Coral Sea https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkQnn 9hVVUY

13. Battle of Midway -- June 1942 American code breakers knew that the attack would take place American pilots took out the majority of Japanese air craft carriers Japan was never successfully on the offensive again Started ‘island hopping’ to push Japanese back to Japan Midway is a tiny island in the Pacific

14. Battle of Midway https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16P5gfoXNMU

15. Battle of Stalingrad -- August 1942 Largest battle on the Eastern front in the USSR Hitler bombed the city extensively before invading Hitler proclaimed victory, stating “Germans will never leave this city.” THEN…winter set in trapping Germans without supplies and fuel – Soviets used scorched-earth Ultimately, the Soviets were successful in defeating the German Army. **Who else in history made this same bone-headed move?!?!?

16. Battle of Stalingrad

17. Film footage from the Battle of Stalingrad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6b1PN WqpbM Clip from Enemy at the Gates https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJ3bzg- Tvt4

18. Battle of El Alamein -- October 1942 Fought in the deserts of Africa between the Allies and Axis powers The Axis powers hoped to control Egypt and the Suez Canal Allied troops (Americans) commanded by General Eisenhower helped the Allies obtain victory and control of the canal

19. Battle of El Alamein

20. Operation Torch -- November 1942 American General Eisenhower led an invasion of the north coast of Africa. The only serious fighting took place in the city of Algiers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fW- ZZ1xw0dEhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fW- ZZ1xw0dE

21. Battle of Guadalcanal – February 1943 First major Allied offensive against Japan It was important to secure Guadalcanal to protect Australia from Japanese invasion Allied soldiers were victorious after a month long battle but soldiers who were captured endured torturous conditions – called it the ‘island of death’

22. Guadalcanal https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9tGRRa2kr8

23. Operation Overlord or D Day -- June 1944 Allies invade 5 beaches in Normandy, France to free France from the Germans Those landing in Omaha Beach, under Gen. Omar Bradley, almost failed under German fire Known as the largest sea borne invasion in history  3 million men  16 million tons of supplies  5,000 large ships  4,000 landing craft  11,000 aircraft Tehran Conference – where Churchill, FDR, and Stalin met to plan this

24. D-Day

26. Battle of the Bulge -- December 1944 Hitler’s last desperate offensive Dec. 1944 – Germans race toward Belgium to cut off Allied supplies US ground troops and aircraft respond quickly, causing 100,000 German casualties Led to German surrender

27. Battle of the Bulge http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8a8fqG pHgsk