2.
Hitler invaded Poland
in Sept. 1939.
Britain and France
had pledged to help
Poland and declared
war on Germany.
World War II begins!
August 1939 – NaziSoviet Pact signed,
pledging not to attack
each other.
3.
4.
Hitler’s decision to invade the
Soviet Union on June 22, 1941
violates the Nazi-Soviet Pact
signed in 1939.
War is now being fought in
Eastern and Western Europe
Stalin (Soviet Union) wanted a
second front to open up in
France (occupied by
Germany), as Great Britain
opened up a front in N. Africa
and Italy
Soviets were alone fighting in
Eastern Europe and barely
were able to fight off Germans
5.
Allies defeated the German and Italian forces in
N. Africa and Italy by 1943
Soviet Red Army was barely able to defend against
Germany in Europe
Allied forces plan an invasion of Nazi-occupied
France in the fall 1943
Strategy was to make an amphibious (by land and sea)
attack on the Normandy coast in N. France
60 mile stretch of beaches
Code name: Operation Overlord
Supreme Commander: General Dwight D. Eisenhower
(U.S.)
10.
Allies prepared by sending supplies and
soldiers to Great Britain
2 million soldiers
Thousands of airplanes, ships, and tanks
On June 6, 1944 the Allies stormed the Germandefensed beaches of Normandy
150,000 soldiers, 1,500 tanks, 5,300 ships, and 12,000
aircraft
11.
3 types of attacks
Aircraft steadily bombed from sky
Ships offshore fired at German defense
24,000 airborne troops parachuted behind enemy lines to give
them no escape
German leaders were surprised by the date and
location of the Normandy invasion
Allied hoax (trick) led them to believe a different location
Allies crossing the sea/beach almost ruined the attack
Troops were easy targets running on the beach
Hidden land mines almost the beach dangerous
12.
Do you think it was heroism or technology of
the Allies benefited them at D-Day? Explain
you choice.
13.
D-Day lasted from June 6th to July 25
Allies continued to march to Paris to free France
Hitler was forced to now fight on 2 fronts
Belgium was liberated next
Allies slowly marched to Germany in the west
Soviets crushed Germans in Poland
Germans lost 1.3 million soldiers between June and
September
Aircrafts bombed German supply lines and cut
off their reinforcements
14.
15.
Hitler made a last ditch effort at the Battle of
the Bulge in December 1944
Outnumbered, American troops held the
Germans off for 8 days without reinforcements
Tried to attack the weak point in the Allied defense
200,000 reinforcements arrived and were able to
drive the Germans back
After the German defeat, Allied troops crossed
the Rhine River and General Bradley pushed
troops for the final offensive
16.
By March of 1945, Soviets were 35 miles from
Hitler’s headquarters and Allies were 200 miles
away
The “Big Three” met in Yalta to discuss the
terms of surrender in February 1945
Soviets start their assault on Berlin on April of
1945
American and British forces arrive on the 25th
17.
Hitler was forced to go
into hiding in his
bunker
Married his lover Eva
Braun on April 29
Knew that he was
defeated
Both committed suicide
within 40 hours after
wedding
Hitler’s instructed
soldiers to burn their
bodies and bury the
ashes in their garden
18.
Hitler’s successor (Admiral
Karl Donitz) signed a
document declaring
surrender on May 7, 1945
Americans army units were
the first to liberate the camps
Many could not erase the
true horror they saw at Nazi
death camps
6 million Jews were killed
(2/3 of the Jews in Europe)
Prisoners looked like
skeletons due to starvation
Eisenhower stated, “I want
every unit to see this place.
Now he knows what he is
fighting against.”
19.
How would you feel as a soldier being able to
see the horror and freeing the Jews from the
concentration camps?
