On September 1st., 1939, 1.8 million German troops invaded Poland on three fronts; East Prussia in the north, Germany in the west and Slovakia in the south. They had 2600 tanks against the Polish 180, and over 2000 aircraft against the Polish 420. Their "Blitzkrieg" tactics, coupled with their bombing of defenseless towns and refugees, had never been seen before and, at first, caught the Poles off guard. By September 14th, Warsaw was surrounded. At this stage, the poles reacted, holding off the Germans at Kutno and regrouping behind the Wisla (Vistula) and Bzura rivers. Although Britain and France declared war on September 3rd, the Poles received no help - yet it had been agreed that the Poles should fight a defensive campaign for only 2 weeks, during which time the Allies could get their forces together and attack from the west.
Walter von Reichenau attacked just before dawn on May 10 to jump the Meuse and the Albert Canal north of Liege and swing southwestward into the Gembloux gap. Taking out the guns of Fort Eben-Emael was essential to the army's progress. In a minutely planned operation, German parachutists and glider troops landed within the fortress and quickly seized key points. The garrison was forced to surrender around noon on the second day, May 11.
In World War II, Churchill emerged as the leader of the united British nation and Commonwealth to resist the German domination of Europe, as an inspirer of the resistance among free peoples, and as a prime architect of victory. In this, and in the struggle against communism afterward, he made himself an indispensable link between the British and American peoples, for he foresaw that the best defense for the free world was the coming together of the English-speaking peoples. Profoundly historically minded, he also had prophetic foresight: British-American unity was the message of his last great book, A History of the English-Speaking Peoples.
On May 26, thousands of British, French, and Belgium ships retreated to Dunkirk. The Germans bombed the city, and Dunkirk was badly damaged. From late May to early June, Allied ships began excavating Dunkirk. They headed for England. The vessels included cruisers, fun boats, destroyers, minesweepers, and many other boats. This evacuation ranks as one of the best-planned military movements in history; it has sometimes been called the Miracle of Dunkirk.
On June 11, the French government moved to Tours and later to Bordeaux. The Germans occupied Paris June 14. The French cabinet voted in favor of an armistice on June 16. Marshal Henri Pétain, the 84-year-old hero of World War I, became premier. He asked the German government to state its terms. The Franco-German armistice was signed June 22 in the forest of Compiègne. It was signed in the same railway car in which France had dictated its terms to a beaten Germany 22 years before. The Franco-Italian armistice was signed on June 24. More than half of France was now occupied by German troops. This included France's entire Atlantic coast and its northern area from Geneva almost to Tours.
In this battle, ships of all kinds were used. The Royal Air Force (RAF) proved cover for everyone. The RAF saved over 300,000 soldiers. This battle was fought between the British and French.
Against overwhelming odds, the RAF pilots fended off the Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain and warded off German invasion of the British Isles. The Luftwaffe loses 1,733 aircraft and crews.
The governments of Germany, Italy and Japan decided to stand by and cooperate with one another in regard to their efforts in greater East Asia and regions of Europe.
The Bismarck´s first salvo landed short but close. The initial fire of the Germans had been excellent, and at 0557, the Prinz Eugen had already obtained a hit on Hood around the mainmast causing a big fire. Shortly after, Lütjens ordered the Prinz Eugen to change her target to the Prince of Wales, while the secondary artillery of the Bismarck, which had just entered in action, did the same. At 0600 the Hood and the Prince of Wales turned 20º to port in order to use their after turrets, but at 0601, the fifth salvo from Bismarck hit the Hood passed through her two decks and penetrated inside an after magazine where it exploded. The enormous explosion impressed the observers aboard the Bismarck. The Hood, the mighty Hood, pride of the Royal Navy and during 20 years the largest warship in the world, cracked in two and sank in two minutes at about 63º 20´´ north, 31º 50´´ west. There was not even time to abandon the ship.
SS Cyclopes first ship sank during this operation. Operation Drumbeat ended February 6. 26 ships were sunk during the time.
Thousand bomber raids, mounted in May-June 1942 against German cities by RAF Bomber Command, were ordered by Harris, C-in-C Bomber Command, to publicize—at a time when Roosevelt wanted to cut back on the delivery of US-built aircraft—the importance of the strategic air offensive against Germany. The raids, employing the area bombing technique, used four or five times more aircraft than normal and Harris had to use training units to increase his serviceable bombers, then numbering 400, to the required figure. The first raid, on 30 May 1942, used 1,050 bombers, which caused massive damage to Cologne. A second used 956 bombers and the new Shaker technique to bomb Essen two nights later. This, from the British point of view, was less successful, and a third, on 25 June, using 1,006 aircraft (including some from Coastal Command) to bomb Bremen, was also disappointing to Harris, with 49 aircraft being lost.
D-Day was the largest, air, land and sea invasion ever. 5,000 ships, 10,000 airplanes and 250,000 men were involved. The Allied forces suffered 9,758 causalities. 6,603 Americans died. At a minimal loss of life, the Allies succeeded in bringing ashore a massive force: sixteen divisions in five days. One month after the landing, close to one million Allied troops were engaged in the Battle of Normandy.
A group of civilians and officers had been conspiring since 1938 to overthrow Hitler. But Hitler's popularity with the masses, the conspirators' need for complete secrecy, and their recurring doubts about the rightness of their cause handicapped them. Furthermore, they failed to reach an understanding with the Allies. The energy of Col. Claus von Stauffenberg finally brought the plot to a head on July 20, 1944, but his attempt on Hitler's life and the subsequent putsch failed, confirming Hitler's belief in his own invincibility.
The goal of Operation Cobra was to attack and breakthrough German lines between rivers Vire and Lozon. Ten days before the line was broken Rommel is quoted as saying “the moment is fast approaching when our hard-pressed defenses will crack.
The Battle of the Bulge was the last major offensive by the German Army. It was a counterattack against the Allied invasion in the Ardennes region in Belgium. The battle got its name because the German counter achieved only a bulge in the Allied lines before being repulsed.
Himmler attempted to negotiate with the Allies. Hitler condemned them, but without effect. Only Goebbels, Bormann, and Eva Braun, whom he now married, remained with him. Hitler dictated his political testament and appointed Adm. Doenitz his successor. With the Russians rapidly approaching his bunker in Berlin, Hitler and Eva committed suicide.
The agreement was signed on May 7th. The conditions were unconditional surrender. This ended the war in Europe. Russia did not know about the surrender until May 9th.