WWII Battles
Allies
Name:_________________________________
Battle of Stalingrad
Axis
Significance
People
Involved
People Involved
Facts/Location (2 Facts, 1 Location)
Allies
Operation Torch
Axis
Significance
People
Involved
People Involved
Facts/Location (2 Facts, 1 Location)
Allies
Operation Overlord
Axis
Significance
People
Involved
People Involved
Facts/Location (2 Facts, 1 Location)
Allies
Battle of the Bulge
Axis
Significance
People
Involved
People Involved
Facts/Location (2 Facts, 1 Location)
Allies
Battle of Midway
Significance
Axis
WWII Battles
Name:_________________________________
People
Involved
People Involved
Facts/Location (2 Facts, 1 Location)
Allies
Battle of Guadalcanal
Axis
Significance
People
Involved
People Involved
Facts/Location (2 Facts, 1 Location)
Allies
Battle of Iwo Jima
Axis
Significance
People
Involved
People Involved
Facts/Location (2 Facts, 1 Location)
Allies
Battle of Okinawa
Axis
Significance
People
Involved
People Involved
Facts/Location (2 Facts, 1 Location)
WWII Battles
Name:_________________________________
WWII Battles
Name:_________________________________
The most destructive war ever, World War II or the Second World War was fought from 1939
to 1945 mainly between the Allies comprising of Great Britain, France, the Soviet Union, and
the United States of America on one side and the three Axis Powers of Germany, Japan and
Italy on the other. With over 50,000,000 deaths, it was the most devastating conflict in
human history and involved almost all parts of the world, especially Europe, Africa, Asia and
the Pacific. The World War II Map shows the locations where some of the most crucial
battles were fought, especially in Europe, North Africa, and the Asia-Pacific.
German Invasion of Poland : The German invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, signaled
the beginning of the Second World War. It was not the result of an isolated event but the
result of almost 3 years of increasing international tensions brought about by events, such as
the Spanish Civil War, the so-called Anschluss or union of Nazi Germany with Austria, and
the occupation of Czech Sudetenland by Hitler's forces. Following the German attack on
Polish territory, Britain and France declared war on Germany 2 days later. Earlier, in August,
Germany and the Soviet Union signed the non-aggression pact popularly called the
Ribbentrop Pact and Soviet Union accompanied the German invasion of Poland by attacking
the country from the east. By the end of the year 1939, Poland was occupied and divided
between the two invading nations. The most catastrophic war of our times had therefore
already begun.
Invasion of France and the Blitzkrieg: After occupying Poland, the Russians pushed towards
Finland while the Germans attacked Denmark and Norway. The stage was now set for the
German invasion of France through the Low Countries of Belgium and the Netherlands on 10
May. The German attack comprised of fast movements of armed tanks supported by sudden
and surprise air raids by the Luftwaffe and this technique was popularly referred to as the
Blitzkrieg or ‘lightning warfare' method. The German strategy was not only a novel military
innovation but also proved quite effective against the much larger Allied forces. By the end
of May 1940, Belgium and Holland were already occupied and Paris fell 2 weeks later.
The Evacuation from Dunkirk: After the fall of France, the Germans advanced towards the
military settlements of the British Expeditionary Forces in the French territory and therefore
it became imperative to evacuate the troops by the sea. After the Germans crossed the
defensive line around Calais, the only port left to be evacuated was Dunkirk. Before the
Germans could close on into Dunkirk, Hitler, quite surprisingly, ordered a halt of the German
advance towards Dunkirk. This sudden turn of event provided a vital opportunity to the Allies
to evacuate their troops through the English Channel port. The British made use of every
possible vessel of any make and utility to evacuate as many troops as possible. The
evacuation of troops from Dunkirk started on May 26, 1940, and the next day when the
Luftwaffe bombed and damaged the inner harbor, most of the troops had to be ferried out to
the open sea in small vessels to board larger ships waiting there. When the evacuation was
finally completed by June 4, 1940, around 200,000 British and 140,000 French and Belgian
troops had been saved. This was to become a crucial factor for the Allies in the later stages
of the war. World War II Europe map depicts this well.
The Battle of Britain: After the armistice with Germany was signed in France and a puppet
regime under Marshall Petain installed at Vichy, Hitler set his eyes on Britain and ordered
WWII Battles
Name:_________________________________
the Luftwaffe to launch a major air offensive on British air and sea defences and bomb
British cities. This was believed to be the key to destroying the superiority of British air
defences and facilitating the proposed amphibious invasion of Britain code-named ‘operation
sea-lion'. What followed was a series of ferocious aerial combats between the German
Luftwaffe and the British Royal Air Force (RAF), which came to be collectively known as the
Battle of Britain, the first battle to be fought completely in the air. The aerial Battle of Britain
lasted from July to September 1940 and at the end the RAF, mainly with the help of its
radars, extracted a narrow victory. Although the German air raids and bombing of British
cities were to continue throughout the war, their range and intensity diminished subsequently
and Germany was forced to indefinitely postpone any plans of invading the British Isles.
Invasion of the Soviet Union: Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union was code-named
‘Operation Barbarossa' and comprised around 150 divisions totaling 3,000,000 men, 3,000
tanks, 7000 artillery guns, and 25,000 aircraft. Operation Barbarossa, which was launched on
June 22, 1941, was therefore the most massive and powerful invasion force ever. The
Germans took the Red Army by surprise and moved fast and deep into Soviet territory, and
by mid-July they had advanced 400 miles and were only 200 miles away from the Soviet
capital. The German advance somewhat slackened owing to an indecisiveness about which
direction they ought to follow thereafter and in the meanwhile the Russian winter had set in.
The Germans realized, like Napoleon had done a century and a half earlier, that they were
ill-equipped to survive the harsh weather conditions and soon enough the Russian forces
who were adept in fighting in such conditions launched quick and decisive counter-attacks.
The Eastern Front of the war was therefore delayed due to inactivity and the attention was
now diverted to the Pacific theater with the Japanese attack on the American naval base of
Pearl Harbor in Hawaii.
The Pearl Harbor Attack: On December 7, 1941, Japan launched a massive air attack on the
US Pacific naval base of Pearl Harbor. The early morning air assault by around 350 aircraft
caught the Americans completely by surprise and damaged, amongst others, all the eight
battleships anchored there, destroyed more than 180 aircrafts while damaging the rest, and
killed over 2,000 troops while wounding around a thousand more. The attack forced the
United States to declare war on Japan on December 8, 1941, and subsequently on December
11, Germany declared war on the USA. Within a week Japan had also invaded the Philippines,
Burma, and Hong Kong. With this sudden turn of events the war in the Pacific had therefore
not only begun but the global war had also commenced. The Second World War, which had
begun in Europe, now engulfed almost the whole world. This is one of the living World War II
memories sketched by the map of World War II.
The Battle of Midway: The Japanese advance in the Pacific and Asian regions continued
unabated into Borneo, Java, and Sumatra and resulted in the fall of Singapore, the British
stronghold in Asia-Pacific, in June 1942. The United States tried to check the Japanese
advance but suffered a heavy defeat in the Battle of the Java Sea and achieved mixed results
in the Battle of the Coral Sea. Although the Japanese failed to achieve a clear victory in the
Coral Sea and therefore had to abandon their plans of taking Port Moresby in Papua New
Guinea, they nevertheless launched a major naval expedition towards the island of Midway.
But in the ensuing Battle of Midway, the United States Air Force managed to thwart the
WWII Battles
Name:_________________________________
Japanese attack and forced the Japanese forces to give up their plans of seizing the strategic
Midway Island. The Battle of Midway was therefore a turning point in the war in the Pacific
and it managed to substantially reverse Japanese fortunes in the Asia-Pacific region.
The Battle of el-Alamein: The German Panzer divisions led by Erwin Rommel formed a
formidable fighting force in the North African desert and were responsible for most German
advances in Libya and Egypt. After much hesitation for months, the British, under General
Montgomery finally launched their counter-offensive against the Panzer divisions of the
German Afrika Korps at a place called el-Alamein on October 23, 1942. What followed in the
subsequent days was one of the fiercest tank battles in world war history with both sides
achieving mixed results. But at the end, Montgomery's forces gained the upper-hand and
Romell's forces had to retreat, thereby not only losing one of the most crucial battles of the
war but also paving the way for the Allies to launch their offensive against Mussolini's Italy.
The Battle of Stalingrad: After their losses at the North African Front and the reversals at the
Pacific Front, the Axis forces had to face further counter-attacks, this time from the Soviets
in the Eastern Front. The massive Soviet counter-offensive was launched on November 19,
1942, and in the ensuing battle the Russians engaged the German forces to the north and
south of Stalingrad while encircling those inside the city. Finally, on January 31, 1943, after
what came to be considered as one of the greatest battles of World War II, the German
forces totaling around 90,000 men surrendered to the Russians in Stalingrad. The Battle of
Stalingrad was therefore a turning point in the Second World War and marked the beginning
of the German defeat that was to follow in the ensuing time.
The Battle of Kohima: In the later half of 1943 and early 1944, both the British and the
Japanese forces fought with each other for control of South East Asia. The British wanted to
launch a counter-offensive to halt the Japanese advance in Burma while the Japanese wanted
to cross the Chindwin River into the Imphal Valley and establish a line of defence in Assam in
order to advance into India. When the Japanese finally crossed the Chindwin into Assam and
approached the town of Imphal (in present-day Manipur state of India) and encircled Kohima
(present-day capital of Nagaland state), what ensued was one of the most bitterly fought
battles of the Second World War. After days of fierce fighting and after British
reinforcements arrived from elsewhere in India, the Allies, by June 22, 1944, pushed back
the Japanese at Kohima. The Battle of Kohima was therefore crucial for the British and it
gave them the initiative to carry forward their offensive into Burma. But the cost of this
crucial battle was more than 18,000 British and over 30,000 Japanese deaths. The defence of
Kohima stopped a possible Japanese advance into India and the heroics of this great yet
lesser-known battle is epitomized in the epitaph of a young soldier in the Kohima War
Cemetery in the following words:
“When You Go Home, Tell Them Of Us And Say,
For Their Tomorrow, We Gave Our Today”
The Normandy Landings: After long debates and much vacillation, the Allies finally launched
their invasion of France which was believed to be crucial in winning back the territorial
WWII Battles
Name:_________________________________
losses to the Germans and in sealing Hitler's fate in Europe. Codenamed ‘Operation
Overlord', some 130,000 Allied forces landed on five beaches in Normandy codenamed Utah,
Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword. The Allied landings in Normandy were supported by cover
fire from 12,000 Allied aircraft that also bombed German defences. The Normandy landings
caught the Germans by surprise and they failed to launch any decisive counterattack. The
Allies slowly advanced into France and in 2 weeks time Paris was liberated, thereby lending
a major blow to Hitler's loosening morale and prestige. The Normandy Landings were a
crucial success for the Allies and were instrumental in securing the Allied victory against
Hitler's Germany in the following months.
The Battle of the Bulge: Also called the Battle of the Ardennes, the Battle of the Bulge was
Hitler's last offensive on the Western Front and his one last-ditch effort to halt the tide of
Allied victories following the Normandy Landings. The ensuing German offensive in the
Ardennes in December 1944 killed around 19,000 American troops and delayed the Allied
advance to an extent. But lack of resources and the stiff Allied resistance forced the
Germans to withdraw by early January 1945. On April 21, 1945, the Soviets entered Berlin
and on April 30, 1945, Hitler committed suicide. Germany surrendered on May 7, 1945, and
the Second World War came to an end in Europe.
The Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki: Although the war in Europe ended with
Germany's surrender, it continued in Asia. The Allies, however, started exacting gains from
Japan with decisive victories in Burma. In February 1945, the Americans successfully
invaded Iwo Jima followed by the capture of the Philippines and Okinawa, and the Japanese
withdrew from China. The Allies wanted to wrap up the war with an attack on Japan but
fearing heavy casualties and Japanese resistance, American President Truman ordered the
atomic bombings of Japanese cities. On August 6, 1945, atom bombs were used for the first
time in human history when a US bomber dropped an atom bomb on the city of Hiroshima
followed by another on Nagasaki 3 days later. These atomic attacks left Japan devastated
and stunned the whole world. Japan surrendered on August 14, 1945. The infamous atomic
attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki thus ended the most devastating war of human history.
The death, destruction and the horror of World War II will continue to haunt humanity for
many more years to come.
WWII Battles
Name:_________________________________