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World War II, or the Second World War,^[1] was a global military conflict, the joining of what had initially been two separate conflicts. The first began in Asia in 1937 as the Second Sino-Japanese War; the other began in Europe in 1939 with the German invasion of Poland.

This global conflict split the majority of the world's nations into opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis powers. It involved the mobilization of over 100 million military personnel, making it the most widespread war in history, and placed the participants in a state of "total war", erasing the distinction between civil and military resources. This resulted in the complete activation of a nation's economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities for the purposes of the war effort. Over 60 million people, the majority of them civilians, were killed, making it the deadliest conflict in human history.^[2] The financial cost of the war is estimated at about a trillion 1944 U.S. dollars worldwide,^[3]^[4] making it the most costly war in capital as well as lives.

The Allies were victorious, and, as a result, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as the world's leading superpowers. This set the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 45 years. The United Nations was formed in hopes of preventing another such conflict. The self determination spawned by the war accelerated decolonization movements in Asia and Africa, while Europe itself began moving toward integration.^[5]

Background

In the aftermath of World War I, the defeated German Empire signed the Treaty of Versailles.^[6] This caused Germany to lose 13% of its national territory and prohibited the annexation of Austria, Czechoslovakia, Poland and Danzig, and mandated German armed forces number no more than 100,000 troops. Some of the Treaty's prohibitions were of conscription, manufacturing of weapons, import and export of weapons, and imposed massive reparations on Germany.

Russia's Civil war led to the creation of the Soviet Union which soon was under the control of Joseph Stalin. In Italy, Benito Mussolini seized power as a fascist dictator promising to create a "New Roman Empire."^[7] The ruling Kuomintang (KMT) party in China launched a unification campaign against rebelling warlords in the mid-1920s, but was soon embroiled in a civil war against its former Chinese communist allies. In 1931, an increasingly militaristic Japanese Empire, which had long sought influence in China^[8] as the first step of its right to rule Asia, used the Mukden Incident as justification to invade Manchuria; the two nations then fought several small conflicts until the Tanggu Truce in 1933.

National Socialist Adolf Hitler became the leader of Germany in January 1933. He began a massive rearming campaign.^[9] This worried France and the United Kingdom, who had lost much in the previous war, as well as Italy, which saw its territorial ambitions threatened by those of Germany.^[10] To secure its alliance, the French allowed Italy a free hand in Ethiopia, which Italy desired to conquer. The situation was aggravated in early 1935 when the Saarland was legally reunited with Germany and Hitler repudiated the Treaty of Versailles, speeding up remilitarization and introducing conscription. Hoping to contain Germany, the United Kingdom, France and Italy formed the Stresa Front. The Soviet Union, concerned due to Germany's goals of capturing vast areas of eastern Europe, concluded a treaty of mutual assistance with France.

Before taking effect, the Franco-Soviet pact required to go through the League of Nations but was essentially toothless^[11]^[12] and in June of 1935, the United Kingdom made an independent naval agreement with Germany easing prior restrictions. The United States, concerned with events in Europe and Asia, passed the Neutrality Act in August.^[13] In October Italy invaded Ethiopia, with Germany the only major European nation supporting her invasion. Italy then revoked objections to Germany's goal of making Austria a satellite state.^[14]

In direct violation of the Versailles and Locarno treaties, Hitler remilitarized the Rhineland in March of 1936. He received little response from other European powers.^[15] When the Spanish Civil War broke out in July, Hitler and Mussolini supported fascist Generalísimo Francisco Franco in his civil war against the Soviet-supported Spanish Republic. Both sides used the conflict to test new weapons and methods of warfare.^[16]

With tensions mounting, efforts to strengthen or consolidate power were made. In October, Germany and Italy formed the Rome-Berlin Axis and a month later Germany and Japan, each believing communism–and the Soviet Union in particular–to be a threat, signed the Anti-Comintern Pact, which Italy would join in the following year. In China, the Kuomintang and communist forces agreed on a ceasefire to present a united front to oppose Japan.^[17]

Course of the war

War breaks out

In mid-1937, following the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, Japan began a full invasion of China. The Soviets quickly lent support to China, effectively ending China's prior cooperation with Germany. Starting at Shanghai, the Japanese pushed Chinese forces back, capturing the capital Nanjing in December. In June of 1938 Chinese forces stalled the Japanese advance by flooding the Yellow River. Though this bought time to prepare their defenses at Wuhan, the city was still taken by October.^[18] During this time, Japanese and Soviet forces engaged in a minor skirmish at Lake Khasan; in May of 1939, they became involved in a more serious border war.^[19]

In Europe, Germany and Italy were becoming bolder. In March 1938, Germany annexed Austria, again provoking little response from other European powers.^[20] Encouraged, Hitler began making claims on the Sudetenland; France and Britain conceded these for a promise of no further territorial demands.^[21] Germany soon reneged, and in March 1939 fully occupied Czechoslovakia.

File:German Soviet.jpg

Soviet and German officers in Poland

Alarmed, and with Hitler making further demands on Danzig, France and Britain guaranteed their support for Polish independence; when Italy conquered Albania in April, the same guarantee was extended to Romania and Greece.^[22] The Soviet Union also attempted to ally with France and Britain, but was rebuffed due to western suspicions about Soviet motives and capability.^[23] Shortly after the Franco-British pledges to Poland, Germany and Italy formalized their own alliance with the Pact of Steel; following this, in a move that shocked all other major powers, Germany and the Soviet Union concluded a non-aggression pact, including a secret agreement to split Poland and eastern Europe between them.^[24]

By the start of September 1939, the Soviets had routed Japanese forces and the Germans invaded Poland. France, Britain, and the countries of the Commonwealth declared war on Germany but lent little support other than a small French attack into the Saarland.^[25] In mid-September, after signing an armistice with Japan, the Soviets launched their own invasion of Poland.^[26] By early October, Poland had been divided between Germany and the Soviet Union. During the battle in Poland, Japan launched its first attack against Changsha, a strategically important Chinese city, but was repulsed by early October.^[27]

Axis advances

Following the invasion of Poland, the Soviets began moving troops into the Baltic region. Finnish resistance in late November led to a four-month war, ending with Finnish concessions.^[28] France and the United Kingdom, treating the Soviet attack on Finland as tantamount to entering the war on the side of the Germans^[29] responded to the Soviet invasion by supporting its expulsion from the League of Nations.^[29] Though China had the authority to veto such an action, it was unwilling to alienate itself from either the Western powers or the Soviet Union and instead abstained.^[29] The Soviet Union was displeased by this course of action and as a result suspended all military aid to China.^[29] By mid-1940, the Soviet Union's occupation of the Baltics was completed with the installation of pro-Soviet governments.^[30]

In Western Europe, British troops deployed to the Continent, but neither Germany nor the Allies launched direct attacks on the other. In April, Germany invaded Denmark and Norway to secure shipments of iron-ore from Sweden which the allies would try to disrupt. Denmark immediately capitulated, and despite Allied support Norway was conquered within two months.^[31] British discontent over the Norwegian campaign led to the replacement of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain by Winston Churchill on May 10, 1940.^[32]

On that same day, Germany invaded France and the Low Countries. Using blitzkrieg tactics, the Netherlands and Belgium were overrun and British troops were forced to evacuate the continent, abandoning their heavy equipment by the end of the month.^[33] On June 10th, Italy invaded, declaring war on both France and the United Kingdom;^[33] twelve days later France surrendered and was soon divided into German and Italian occupation zones,^[34] and an unoccupied rump state under the Vichy Regime. In early July, the British attacked the French fleet in Algeria to prevent their seizure by Germany.^[35]

With France neutralized, Germany began an air superiority campaign over Britain to prepare for an invasion^[36] and enjoyed success against an over-extended Royal Navy, using U-boats against British shipping in the Atlantic.^[37] Italy began operations in the Mediterranean, initiating a siege of Malta in June, conquering British Somaliland in August, and making an incursion into British-held Egypt in early September. Japan increased its blockade of China in September by seizing several bases in the northern part of the now-isolated French Indochina.^[38]

Throughout this period, the neutral United States took measures to assist China and the Western Allies. In November 1939, the American Neutrality Act was amended to allow Cash and carry purchases by the Allies.^[39] During 1940, the United States implemented a series of embargos, including oil, iron, steel and mechanical parts, against Japan;^[40] in September it agreed to a trade of American destroyers for British bases.^[41]

At the end of September the Tripartite Pact between Japan, Italy and Germany formalized the Axis Powers. The pact stipulated, with the exception of the Soviet Union, any country not in the war which attacked any Axis Power would be forced to go to war against all three.^[42] The Soviet Union expressed interest in joining the Tripartite Pact, sending a modified draft to Germany in November and offering a very German-favourable economic deal;^[43] while Germany remained silent on the former, they accepted the latter.^[44] Regardless of the pact, the United States continued to support the United Kingdom and China by introducing the Lend-Lease policy^[45] and creating a security zone spanning roughly half of the Atlantic Ocean where the United States Navy protected British convoys.^[46]

In October, Italy invaded Greece but within days were repulsed and pushed back into Albania, where a stalemate soon occurred.^[47] Shortly after this, in Africa, Commonwealth forces launched offensives against Libya and Italian East Africa. By early 1941, with Italian forces having been pushed back into Libya by the Commonwealth, Churchill ordered a dispatch of troops from Africa to bolster the Greeks. The Italian Navy also suffered significant defeats, with the Royal Navy putting three Italian battleships out of commission via carrier attack at Taranto, and several more warships neutralized at Cape Matapan.^[48]

The Germans soon intervened to assist Italy. Hitler sent German forces to Libya in February and by the end of March they had launched an offensive against the diminished Commonwealth forces. In under a month, Commonwealth forces were pushed back into Egypt with the exception of the besieged port of Tobruk. The Commonwealth attempted to dislodge Axis forces in May and again in June, but failed on both occasions. In early April the Germans similarly intervened in the Balkans, invading Greece and Yugoslavia; here too they made rapid progress, eventually forcing the Allies to evacuate after Germany conquered the Greek island of Crete by the end of May.^[49]

The Allies did have some successes during this time though. In the Middle East, Commonwealth forces first quashed a coup in Iraq which had been supported by German aircraft from bases within Vichy-controlled Syria,^[50] then, with the assistance of the Free French, invaded Syria and Lebanon to prevent further such occurrences.^[51] In the Atlantic, the British scored a much needed public morale boost by sinking the German flagship Bismarck.^[52] Perhaps most importantly, the Royal Air Force had successfully resisted the Luftwaffe's assault, and on May 11, 1941, Hitler called off the bombing campaign over Britain.^[53]

In Asia, in spite of several offensives by both sides, the war between China and Japan was stalemated by 1940. In August of that year, Chinese communists launched an offensive in Central China; in retaliation, Japan instituted harsh measures in occupied areas to reduce human and material resources for the communists.^[54] Mounting tensions between Chinese communist and nationalist forces culminated in January 1941, effectively ending their co-operation.^[55]

With the situation in Europe and Asia relatively stable, Germany, Japan and the Soviet Union made preparations. With the Soviets wary of mounting tensions with Germany and the Japanese planning to take advantage of the European War by seizing resource-rich European possessions in Southeast Asia the two powers signed a neutrality agreement in April, 1941.^[56] By contrast the Germans were steadily making preparations for an attack on the Soviet Union, amassing forces on the Soviet border, particularly in Finland and Romania.^[57]

The war becomes global

File:GermanTroopsInRussia1941.jpg

German soldiers in the Soviet Union, 1941

In late June, Germany, along with other European Axis members and Finland, invaded the Soviet Union. They made significant gains into Soviet territory, inflicting a large numbers of casualties, and by the start of December had almost reached Moscow, with only the besieged cities of Leningrad and Sevastopol behind their front-lines left unconquered.^[58] With the onset of a fierce Soviet winter though, the Axis offensive was ground to a halt^[59] and the Soviets launched a counter-offensive using reserve troops brought up from the border near Japanese Manchukuo.^[60]

Following the German attack on the Soviets, the United Kingdom began to regroup. In July, the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union formed a military alliance against Germany^[61] and shortly after jointly invaded Iran to secure the Persian Corridor and Iran's oilfields.^[62] In August, the United Kingdom and United States jointly issued the Atlantic Charter, a vision for a post-war world which included "the right of all peoples to choose their form of government".^[63] In November, Commonwealth forces launched a counter-offensive in the desert, reclaiming all gains the Germans and Italians had made.^[64]

In Asia, Japan was preparing for war. The Imperial General Headquarters plan was to create a large perimeter stretching into the Central Pacific in order to facilitate a defensive war while exploiting the resources of Southeast Asia; to prevent intervention while securing the perimeter it was further planned to neutralize the United States Pacific Fleet on the outset.^[65] In preparation, Japan seized military control of southern Indochina in July, 1941; an action the United States, United Kingdom and other western governments responded to by freezing all Japanese assets.^[66] On December 7th Japan attacked British, Dutch and American holdings with near simultaneous offensives against Southeast Asia and the Central Pacific, including an attack on the American naval base of Pearl Harbor.^[67]

These actions prompted the United States, United Kingdom, China, and other Western Allies to declare war on Japan. Italy, Germany, and the other members of the Tripartite Pact responded by declaring war on the United States. In January, the United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union and China, along with twenty-two smaller or exiled governments, issued the Declaration by United Nations, affirming the Atlantic Charter^[68] and formalizing their alliance against the Axis Powers. The Soviet Union did not adhere fully to the declaration though, as they maintained their neutrality agreement with Japan^[69] and exempted themselves from the principle of self-determination.^[63]

British soldiers surrendering from the Battle of Singapore

The Axis Powers, however, were able to continue their offensives. Japan had almost fully conquered Southeast Asia with minimal losses by the end of April, 1942, chasing the Allies out of Burma and taking large numbers of prisoners in the Philippines, Malaya, Dutch East Indies and Singapore.^[70] They further bombed the Allied naval base at Darwin, Australia and sunk significant Allied warships not only at Pearl Harbor, but also in the South China Sea, Java Sea and Indian Ocean.^[71] The only real successes against Japan were a repulsion of their renewed attack on Changsha in early January, 1942,^[72] and a psychological strike from a bombing raid on Japan's capital Tokyo in April.^[73]

Germany was able to regain the initiative as well. Exploiting American inexperience with submarine warfare, the German Navy sunk significant resources near the American Atlantic coast.^[74] In the desert, they launched an offensive in January, pushing the British back to positions at the Gazala Line by early February.^[75] In the Soviet Union, the Soviet's winter counter-offensive had ended by March.^[76] In both the desert and the Soviet Union, there followed a temporary lull in combat which Germany used to prepare for their upcoming offensives.^[77]^[78]

The tide turns

In early May, Japan initiated operations to capture Port Moresby via amphibious assault and thus sever the line of communications between the United States and Australia. The Allies, however, intercepted and turned back Japanese naval forces, preventing the invasion.^[79] Japan's next plan, motivated by the earlier bombing on Tokyo, was to seize the Midway Atoll as this would seal a gap in their perimeter defenses, provide a forward base for further operations, and lure American carriers into battle to be eliminated; as a diversion, Japan would also send forces to occupy the Aleutian Islands.^[80] In early June, Japan put their operations into action but the Americans, having broken Japanese naval codes in late May, were fully aware of the Japanese plans and force dispositions and used this knowledge to achieve a decisive victory over the Imperial Japanese Navy.^[81] With their capacity for amphibious assault greatly diminished as a result of the Midway battle, Japan chose to focus on an overland campaign on the Territory of Papua in another attempt to capture Port Moresby.^[82] For the Americans, they planned their next move against Japanese positions in the southern Solomon Islands, primarily against the island of Guadalcanal, as a first step towards capturing Rabaul, the primary Japanese base in Southeast Asia.^[83] Both plans started in July, but by mid-September the battle for Guadalcanal took priority for the Japanese, and troops in New Guinea were ordered to withdraw from the Port Moresby area to the northern part of the island.^[84] Guadalcanal soon became a focal point for both sides with heavy commitments of troops and ships in a battle of attrition. By the start of 1943, the Japanese were defeated on the island and withdrew their troops.^[85]

In Burma, Commonwealth forces mounted two operations. The first, an offensive into the Arakan region in late 1942 went disastrously, forcing a retreat back to India by May of 1943.^[86] The second was the insertion of irregular forces behind Japanese front-lines in February which, by the end of April, had achieved dubious results.^[87]

File:Soviet soldiers moving at Stalingrad2.jpg

Soviet soldiers in the Battle of Stalingrad

On the German's eastern front, they defeated Soviet offensives in the Kerch Peninsula and at Kharkov^[88] and then launched their main summer offensive against southern Russia in June, 1942, to seize the oil fields of the Caucasus. The Soviets decided to make their stand at Stalingrad which was in the path of the advancing German armies and by mid-November the Germans had nearly taken Stalingrad in bitter street fighting when the Soviets began their second winter counter-offensive, starting with an encirclement of German forces at Stalingrad^[89] and an assault on the Rzhev salient near Moscow, though the latter failed disastrously.^[90] By early February, the German Army had taken tremendous losses; their troops at Stalingrad had been forced to surrender and the front-line had been pushed back beyond its position prior to their summer offensive. In mid-February, after the Soviet push had tapered off, the Germans launched another attack on Kharkov, creating a salient in their front-line around the Russian city of Kursk.^[91]

In the west, concerns that the Japanese might utilize bases in Vichy-held Madagascar caused the British to invade the island in early May, 1942.^[92] This success was off set soon after by an Axis offensive in Libya which pushed the Allies back into Egypt until Axis forces were stopped at El Alamein.^[93] On the Continent, Allied commandos had conducted a series of increasingly ambitious raids on strategic targets, culminating in the a disastrous amphibious raid on the German held port of Dieppe.^[94] In August the Allies succeeded in repelling a second attack against El Alamein and, at a high cost, managed to get desperately needed supplies to the besieged Malta.^[95] A few months later the Allies commenced an attack of their own in Egypt, dislodging the Axis forces and beginning a drive west across Libya.^[96] This was followed up shortly after by an Anglo-American invasion of French North Africa which resulted in the region joining the Allies.^[97] Hitler responded to the defection by ordering the occupation of Vichy France,^[97] though the Vichy Admiralty managed to scuttle their fleet to prevent its capture by German forces.^[98] The now pincered Axis forces in Africa withdrew into Tunisia, which was conquered by the Allies by May, 1943.^[99]

Allies gain momentum

Following the Guadalcanal Campaign, the Allies initiated several operations against Japan. In May, 1943, American forces were sent to eliminate Japanese forces from the Aleutians,^[100] and soon after began major operations to isolate Rabaul by capturing surrounding islands, and to breach the Japanese Central Pacific perimeter at the Gilbert and Marshall Islands.^[101] By the end of March, 1944, the Allies had completed both of these objectives, and additionally neutralized another major Japanese base in the Caroline Islands. In April, the Allies then launched an operation to retake Western New Guinea.^[102]

In mainland Asia, the Japanese launched two major offensives. The first, started in March, 1944, was against British positions in Assam, India^[103] and soon led to Japanese forces besieging Commonwealth positions at Imphal and Kohima;^[104] by May however, other Japanese forces were being besieged in Myitkyina by Chinese forces which had invaded Northern Burma in late 1943.^[105] The second was in China, with the goal of destroying China's main fighting forces, securing railways between Japanese-held territory, and capturing Allied airfields.^[106] By June the Japanese had conquered the province of Henan and begun a renewed attack against Changsha in the Hunan province.^[107]

In the Mediterranean, Allied forces launched an invasion of Sicily in early July, 1943. The attack on Italian soil, compounded with previous failures, resulted in the ousting and arrest of Mussolini later that month.^[108] The Allies soon followed up with an invasion of the Italian mainland in early September, following an armistice with the Allies.^[109] When this armistice was made public on September 8th, Germany responded by disarming Italian forces, seizing military control of Italian areas,^[110] and setting up a series of defensive lines.^[111] On September 12th, German special forces further rescued Mussolini who then soon established a new client state in German occupied Italy.^[112] The Allies fought through several lines until reaching the main German defensive line in mid-November.^[113] In January 1944, the Allies launched a series of attacks against the line at Monte Cassino and attempted to outflank it with landings at Anzio. By late May both of these offensives had succeeded and, at the expense of allowing several German divisions to retreat, on June 4th Rome was captured.^[114]

File:Prokhorovka.jpg

A Soviet tank during the Battle of Kursk

German operations in the Atlantic also suffered. By May 1943, German submarine losses were so high that the naval campaign was temporarily called to a halt as Allied counter-measures became increasingly effective.^[115]

In the Soviet Union, the Germans spent the spring and early summer of 1943 making preparations for a large offensive in the region of Kursk; the Soviets anticipated such an action though and spent their time fortifying the area.^[116] On July 4th, the Germans launched their attack, though only about a week later Hitler cancelled the operation.^[117] The Soviets were then able to mount a massive counter-offensive and, by June 1944, had largely expelled Axis forces from the Soviet Union and made incursions into Romania.^[118]

In November, 1943, Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill met with Chiang Kai-shek in Cairo and then with Joseph Stalin in Tehran. At the former conference, the post-war return of Japanese territory was determined and in the latter, it was agreed that the Western Allies would invade Europe in 1944 and that the Soviet Union would declare war on Japan within three months of Germany's defeat.

Allies close in

In June, 1944, the Western Allies invaded northern France and in August, after reassigning several Allied divisions in Italy, then invaded southern France;^[119] by 25 August the Allies had liberated Paris.^[120] During the latter part of the year, the Western Allies continued to push back German forces in western Europe, and in Italy ran into the last major defensive line.

On the Germans eastern front, the Soviets launched a series of powerful offensives. Starting in early June the Soviets launched massive assaults against Finland, Belarus, Ukraine and Eastern Poland, Romania, and Hungary.^[121] These operations resulted in great successes, with Bulgaria, Romania and Finland signing armistices with the Soviet Union,^[122] and prompted Polish resistance forces to initiate several uprisings in Poland, though the largest of these, in Warsaw, was conducted without Soviet assistance and put down by German forces.^[123]

By the start of July, Commonwealth forces in Southeast Asia had repelled the Japanese sieges in Assam, pushing the Japanese back to the Chindwin River^[124] while the Chinese captured Myitkyina. In China, the Japanese were having greater successes, having finally captured Changsha in mid-June and the city of Hengyang by early August.^[125] Soon after, they further invaded the province of Guangxi, winning major engagements against Chinese forces at Guilin and Liuzhou by the end of November^[126] and successfully linking up their forces in China and Indochina by the middle of December.^[127]

In the Pacific, American forces continued to press back the Japanese perimeter. In the middle of June, 1944, they began their offensive against the Mariana and Palau islands, scoring a decisive victory against Japanese forces in the Philippine Sea within a few days. In late October, American forces invaded the Filipino island of Leyte; soon after, Allied naval forces scored another large victory against the Japanese in the Leyte Gulf.^[128]

Axis collapse, Allied victory

On December 16 1944 German forces counterattacked in the Ardennes against the Western Allies. It took six weeks for the Allies to repulse the attack. The Soviets attacked through Hungary, while the Germans abandoned Greece and Yugoslavia. In Italy, the Western Allies remained stalemated at the German defensive line.

In mid-January 1945, the Soviets attacked in Poland, pushing from the Vistula to the Oder river in Germany, and overran East Prussia.^[129]

On February 4, U.S., British, and Soviet leaders met in Yalta. They agreed on the occupation of post-war Germany,^[130] and when the Soviet Union would join the war against Japan.^[131]

In February, Western Allied forces entered Germany and closed to the Rhine river, while the Soviets invaded Pomerania and Silesia. In March, the Western Allies crossed the Rhine north and south of the Ruhr, encircling a large number of German troops, while the Soviets advanced to Vienna. In early April the Western Allies finally pushed forward in Italy and swept across western Germany, while in late April Soviet forces stormed Berlin; the two forces linked up in Germany on April 26.^{[citation needed]}

On April 12, U.S. President Roosevelt died; he was succeeded by Harry Truman. Mussolini was killed by Italian partisans on April 28th^[132] and two days later Hitler shot himself.^[133]

German forces surrendered in Italy on April 29th and Germany itself surrendered on May 7.^[134]

In the Pacific theater, American forces advanced in the Philippines, clearing Leyte by the end of 1944. They landed on Luzon in January 1945 and Mindanao in March.^[135] British and Chinese forces defeated the Japanese in northern Burma from October to March, then the British pushed on to Rangoon by May 3.^[136] [[Image:nagasakibomb.jpg|left|thumb|[[N

^ Official military histories in Commonwealth nations refer to the conflict as the Second World War, while the United States' official histories refer to the conflict as World War II. English translations of the official histories of other nations tend to resolve into English as Second World War also, for example zweite weltkrieg in German. See C.P. Stacey Official History of the Canadian Army in the Second World War, for example. "Official" usage of these terms is giving way to popular usage and the two terms are becoming interchangeable even in formal military history.
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^ Mayer, E. (2000) "World War II" course lecture notes on Emayzine.com (Victorville, California: Victor Valley College)
^ Coleman, P. (1999) "Cost of the War," World War II Resource Guide (Gardena, California: The American War Library)
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^ Mandelbaum, Michael. The Fate of Nations: The Search for National Security in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries, pg. 96
^ Schmitz, David F. Henry L. Stimson: The First Wise Man, pg. 124
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^ Commager, Henry Steele. The Story of the Second World War, pg. 30
^ Reynolds, David. From World War to Cold War: Churchill, Roosevelt, and the International History of the 1940s, pgs. 76, 77
^ ^a ^b Kennedy, David M. Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945, pg. 439
^ Militärgeschichtliches Forschungsamt. Germany and the Second World War - Volume 2: Germany's Initial Conquests in Europe, pg. 311
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^ Brown, Robert J. Manipulating the Ether: The Power of Broadcast Radio in Thirties America, pg. 91
^ Morison, Samuel Eliot. History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, pg. 60
^ Maingot, Anthony P. The United States and the Caribbean: Challenges of an Asymetrical Relationship, pg. 52
^ Bilhartz, Terry D.; Elliott, Alan C. Currents in American History: A Brief History of the United States, pg. 179
^ Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II, pg. 200
^ Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II, pg. 201
^ Murray, Williamson; Millett, Allan Reed. A War to Be Won: Fighting the Second World War, pg. 165
^ Knell, Hermann. To Destroy a City: Strategic Bombing and Its Human Consequences in World War II, pg. 205
^ Clogg, Richard. A Concise History of Greece, pg. 118
^ Jackson, Ashley. The British Empire and the Second World War, pg. 106
^ Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II, pg. 229
^ Watson, William E. Tricolor and Crescent: France and the Islamic World, pg. 80
^ Jackson, Ashley. The British Empire and the Second World War, pg. 154
^ Stewart, Vance. Three Against One: Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin Vs Adolph Hitler, pg. 159
^ "The London Blitz, 1940". Eyewitness to History. 2001. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
^ Joes, Anthony James. Resisting Rebellion: The History And Politics of Counterinsurgency, pg. 224
^ Fairbank, John King. China: A New History, pg. 320
^ Garver, John W. Chinese-Soviet Relations, 1937-1945: The Diplomacy of Chinese Nationalism, pg. 114
^ Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II, pg. 195
^ Shukman, Harold. Stalin's Generals, pg. 113
^ Burroughs, William James. Climate: Into the 21st Century, pg. 115
^ Whymant, Robert. Stalin's Spy: Richard Sorge and the Tokyo Espionage Ring, pg. 314
^ Pravda, Alex; Duncan, Peter J. S. Soviet-British Relations Since the 1970s, pg. 29
^ Heptulla, Najma. The Logic of Political Survival, pg. 131
^ ^a ^b Louis, William Roger. More Adventures with Britannia: Personalities, Politics and Culture in Britain, pg. 223
^ Gannon, James. Stealing Secrets, Telling Lies: How Spies and Codebreakers Helped Shape the Twentieth Century, pg. 76
^ Morgan, Patrick M. Strategic Military Surprise: Incentives and Opportunities, pg. 51
^ Ropp, Theodore. War in the Modern World, pg. 363
^ Thurman,M. J.; Sherman, Christine. War Crimes: Japan's World War II Atrocities, pg. 68
^ Mingst, Karen A.;Karns, Margaret P. United Nations in the Twenty-First Century, pg. 22
^ Dunn, Dennis J. Caught Between Roosevelt & Stalin: America's Ambassadors to Moscow, pg. 157
^ Klam, Julie. The Rise of Japan and Pearl Harbor, pg. 27
^ Hill, J. R.; Ranft, Bryan. The Oxford Illustrated History of the Royal Navy, pg. 362
^ Hsiung, James Chieh; Levine, Steven I. China's Bitter Victory: The War with Japan, 1937-1945, pg. 158
^ Chun, Clayton K. S. The Doolittle Raid 1942: America's First Strike Back at Japan, pg. 88
^ Gooch, John. Decisive Campaigns of the Second World War, pg.52
^ Molinari, Andrea. Desert Raiders: Axis and Allied Special Forces 1940-43, pg. 91
^ Welch, David. Modern European History, 1871-2000: A Documentary Reader, pg. 102
^ Mitcham, Samuel W.; Mitcham, Samuel W. Jr. Rommel's Desert War: The Life and Death of the Afrika Korps, pg. 31
^ Glantz, David M. From the Don to the Dnepr: Soviet Offensive Operations, December 1942-August 1943, pg. 215
^ Maddox, Robert James. The United States and World War II, pgs. 111-112
^ Salecker, Gene Eric. Fortress Against the Sun: The B-17 Flying Fortress in the Pacific, pg. 186
^ Ropp, Theodore. War in the Modern World, pg. 368
^ Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II, pg. 339
^ Gilbert, Adrian. The Encyclopedia of Warfare: From Earliest Times to the Present Day, pg. 259
^ Swain, Bruce. A Chronology of Australian Armed Forces at War 1939-45, pg. 197
^ Hane, Mikiso. Modern Japan: A Historical Survey, pg. 340
^ Marston, Daniel. The Pacific War Companion: From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima, pg. 111
^ Brayley, Martin. The British Army, 1939-45, pg. 9
^ Read, Anthony. The Devil's Disciples: Hitler's Inner Circle, pg. 764
^ Badsey, Stephen. The Hutchinson Atlas of World War II Battle Plans: Before and After, pgs. 235-236
^ Black, Jeremy. World War Two: A Military History, pg. 119
^ Shukman, Harold. Stalin's Generals, pg. 142
^ Paxton, Robert O. Vichy France: Old Guard and New Order, 1940-1944, pg. 313
^ Rich, Norman. Hitler's War Aims: Ideology, the Nazi State, and the Course of Expansion, pg. 178
^ Penrose, Jane. The D-Day Companion, pg. 129
^ Thomas, David Arthur. A Companion to the Royal Navy, pg. 265
^ Thomas, Nigel. German Army 1939-1945 (2): North Africa & Balkans, pg. 8
^ ^a ^b Ross, Steven T. American War Plans, 1941-1945: The Test of Battle, pg. 38
^ Bonner, Kit; Bonner, Carolyn. Warship Boneyards, pg. 24
^ Collier, Paul. The Second World War (4): The Mediterranean 1940-1945, pg. 11
^ Thompson, John Herd; Randall, Stephen J. Canada and the United States: Ambivalent Allies, pg. 164
^ Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945, pg. 610
^ Rottman, Gordon L. World War II Pacific Island Guide: A Geo-Military Study, pg. 228
^ Lightbody, Bradley. The Second World War: Ambitions to Nemesis, pg. 224
^ Zeiler, Thomas W. Unconditional Defeat: Japan, America, and the End of World War II, pg. 60
^ Craven, Wesley Frank; Cate, James Lea. The Army Air Forces in World War II, Volume Five - The Pacific, Matterhorn to Nagasaki, pg. 207
^ Hsiung, James Chieh; Levine, Steven I. China's Bitter Victory: The War with Japan, 1937-1945, pg. 163
^ Coble, Parks M. Chinese Capitalists in Japan's New Order: The Occupied Lower Yangzi, 1937-1945, pg. 85
^ O'Reilly, Charles T. Forgotten Battles: Italy's War of Liberation, 1943-1945, pg. 32
^ McGowen, Tom. Assault From The Sea: Amphibious Invasions in the Twentieth Century, pgs. 43-44
^ Lamb, Richard. War in Italy, 1943-1945: A Brutal Story, pgs. 154-155
^ Hart, Stephen; Hart, Russell. The German Soldier in World War II, pg. 151
^ Blinkhorn, Martin. Mussolini and Fascist Italy, pg. 52
^ Read, Anthony; Fisher, David. The Fall of Berlin, pg. 129
^ Havighurst, Alfred F. Britain in Transition: The Twentieth Century, pg. 344
^ Read, Anthony. The Devil's Disciples: Hitler's Inner Circle, pg. 804
^ Glantz, David M. From the Don to the Dnepr: Soviet Offensive Operations, December 1942-August 1943, pgs. 216-217
^ Kershaw, Ian. Hitler, 1936-1945: Nemesis, pg. 592
^ Chubarov, Alexander. Russia's Bitter Path to Modernity: A History of the Soviet and Post-Soviet Eras, pg. 122
^ Zaloga, Steven J. US Armored Units in the North African and Italian Campaigns 19422-45, pg. 81
^ Badsey, Stephen. Normandy 1944: Allied Landings and Breakout, pg. 91
^ Wiest, Andrew A.; Barbier, M. K. Strategy and Tactics Infantry Warfare pgs. 65, 66
^ Wiktor, Christian L. Multilateral Treaty Calendar - 1648-1995, pg. 426
^ Berend, Tibor Iván. Central and Eastern Europe, 1944-1993: Detour from the Periphery to the Periphery, pg. 8
^ Marston, Daniel. The Pacific War Companion: From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima, pg. 120
^ Jowett, Philip S. The Japanese Army, 1931-45, pg. 8
^ Howard, Joshua H. Workers at War: Labor in China's Arsenals, 1937-1953, pg. 140
^ Drea, Edward J. In the Service of the Emperor: Essays on the Imperial Japanese Army, pg. 54
^ Cook, Chris; Bewes, Diccon. What Happened Where: A Guide to Places and Events in Twentieth-Century History, pg. 305
^ Glantz, David M. The Soviet-German War 1941-1945: Myths and Realities: A Survey Essay pg. 85
^ Solsten, Eric. Dwight Germany: A Country Study , pgs. 76-77
^ United States Dept. of State. The China White Paper, August 1949, pg. 113
^ O'Reilly, Charles T. Forgotten Battles: Italy's War of Liberation, 1943-1945, pg. 244
^ Kershaw, Ian. Hitler, 1936-1945: Nemesis, pg. 823
^ Donnelly, Mark. Britain in the Second World War, pg. xiv
^ Chant, Christopher. The Encyclopedia of Codenames of World War II, pg. 118
^ Drea, Edward J. In the Service of the Emperor: Essays on the Imperial Japanese Army, pg. 57

[1] Official military histories in Commonwealth nations refer to the conflict as the Second World War, while the United States' official histories refer to the conflict as World War II. English translations of the official histories of other nations tend to resolve into English as Second World War also, for example zweite weltkrieg in German. See C.P. Stacey Official History of the Canadian Army in the Second World War, for example. "Official" usage of these terms is giving way to popular usage and the two terms are becoming interchangeable even in formal military history.

[2] Dunnigan, James. Dirty Little Secrets of World War II: Military Information No One Told You About the Greatest, Most Terrible War in History, William Morrow & Company, 1994. ISBN 0-688-12235-3

[3] Mayer, E. (2000) "World War II" course lecture notes on Emayzine.com (Victorville, California: Victor Valley College)

[4] Coleman, P. (1999) "Cost of the War," World War II Resource Guide (Gardena, California: The American War Library)

[columbia-5] "World War II". The Columbia Encyclopedia (6th ed.). 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-10.

[6] Hakim, Joy (1995). A History of Us: War, Peace and all that Jazz. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-509514-6. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

[7] Shaw, Anthony. World War II Day by Day, pg. 35

[8] Myers, Ramon; Peattie, Mark. The Japanese Colonial Empire, 1895-1945, pg. 458

[9] Wouk, Herman. The Winds of War, pg. 72

[10] Brody, J. Kenneth. The Avoidable War: Pierre Laval and the Politics of Reality, 1935-1936, pg. 4

[11] Record, Jeffery. Appeasement Reconsidered: Investigating the Mythology of the 1930s, pg. 50

[12] Mandelbaum, Michael. The Fate of Nations: The Search for National Security in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries, pg. 96

[13] Schmitz, David F. Henry L. Stimson: The First Wise Man, pg. 124

[14] Kitson, Alison. Germany 1858-1990: Hope, Terror, and Revival, pg. 231

[15] Adamthwaite, Anthony P. The Making of the Second World War, pg 52

[16] Graham, Helen. The Spanish Civil War: A Very Short Introduction, pg. 110

[17] Busky, Donald F. Communism in History and Theory: Asia, Africa, and the Americas, pg. 10

[18] Twitchett, Denis; Fairbank, John K. The Cambridge history of China, pg. 566

[19] Coox, Alvin D. Nomonhan: Japan Against Russia, 1939, pg. 189

[20] Collier, Martin; Pedley, Philip. Germany 1919-45, pg. 144

[21] Kershaw, Ian. Hitler, 1936-1945: Nemesis, pg. 173

[22] Lowe, C. J.; Marzari, F. Italian Foreign Policy 1870-1940, pg. 330

[23] Sharp, Alan; Stone, Glyn. Anglo-French Relations in the Twentieth Century, pg 195-197

[24] Day, Alan J.; East, Roger; Thomas, Richard. A Political and Economic Dictionary of Eastern Europe, pg. 405

[25] May, Ernest R. Strange Victory: Hitler's Conquest of France, pg. 93

[26] Zaloga, Steven J. Poland 1939: The Birth of Blitzkrieg, pg. 80

[27] Jowett, Philip S. The Japanese Army, 1931-45, pg. 14

[28] Hanhimäki, Jussi M. Containing Coexistence: America, Russia, and the "Finnish Solution", pg. 13

[ChinaBitter16-29] Hsiung, James Chieh; Levine, Steven I. China's Bitter Victory: The War with Japan, 1937-1945, pg. 16

[30] Bilinsky, Yaroslav. Endgame in NATO's Enlargement: The Baltic States and Ukraine, pg. 9

[31] Commager, Henry Steele. The Story of the Second World War, pg. 30

[32] Reynolds, David. From World War to Cold War: Churchill, Roosevelt, and the International History of the 1940s, pgs. 76, 77

[FreeFromFear439-33] Kennedy, David M. Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945, pg. 439

[34] Militärgeschichtliches Forschungsamt. Germany and the Second World War - Volume 2: Germany's Initial Conquests in Europe, pg. 311

[35] Brown, David. The Road to Oran: Anglo-French Naval Relations, September 1939-July 1940, pg. xxx

[36] Kelly, Nigel; Rees, Rosemary; Shuter, Jane. Twentieth Century World, pg. 38

[37] Goldstein, Margaret J. World War II, pg. 35

[38] Mercado, Stephen C. The Shadow Warriors of Nakano: A History of the Imperial Japanese Army's Elite Intelligence School, pg. 109

[39] Brown, Robert J. Manipulating the Ether: The Power of Broadcast Radio in Thirties America, pg. 91

[40] Morison, Samuel Eliot. History of United States Naval Operations in World War II, pg. 60

[41] Maingot, Anthony P. The United States and the Caribbean: Challenges of an Asymetrical Relationship, pg. 52

[42] Bilhartz, Terry D.; Elliott, Alan C. Currents in American History: A Brief History of the United States, pg. 179

[WorldArms200-43] Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II, pg. 200

[WorldArms201-44] Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II, pg. 201

[45] Murray, Williamson; Millett, Allan Reed. A War to Be Won: Fighting the Second World War, pg. 165

[46] Knell, Hermann. To Destroy a City: Strategic Bombing and Its Human Consequences in World War II, pg. 205

[47] Clogg, Richard. A Concise History of Greece, pg. 118

[48] Jackson, Ashley. The British Empire and the Second World War, pg. 106

[49] Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II, pg. 229

[50] Watson, William E. Tricolor and Crescent: France and the Islamic World, pg. 80

[51] Jackson, Ashley. The British Empire and the Second World War, pg. 154

[52] Stewart, Vance. Three Against One: Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin Vs Adolph Hitler, pg. 159

[53] "The London Blitz, 1940". Eyewitness to History. 2001. Retrieved 2008-03-11.

[54] Joes, Anthony James. Resisting Rebellion: The History And Politics of Counterinsurgency, pg. 224

[55] Fairbank, John King. China: A New History, pg. 320

[56] Garver, John W. Chinese-Soviet Relations, 1937-1945: The Diplomacy of Chinese Nationalism, pg. 114

[57] Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II, pg. 195

[58] Shukman, Harold. Stalin's Generals, pg. 113

[59] Burroughs, William James. Climate: Into the 21st Century, pg. 115

[60] Whymant, Robert. Stalin's Spy: Richard Sorge and the Tokyo Espionage Ring, pg. 314

[61] Pravda, Alex; Duncan, Peter J. S. Soviet-British Relations Since the 1970s, pg. 29

[62] Heptulla, Najma. The Logic of Political Survival, pg. 131

[AdvenBrit223-63] Louis, William Roger. More Adventures with Britannia: Personalities, Politics and Culture in Britain, pg. 223

[64] Gannon, James. Stealing Secrets, Telling Lies: How Spies and Codebreakers Helped Shape the Twentieth Century, pg. 76

[65] Morgan, Patrick M. Strategic Military Surprise: Incentives and Opportunities, pg. 51

[66] Ropp, Theodore. War in the Modern World, pg. 363

[67] Thurman,M. J.; Sherman, Christine. War Crimes: Japan's World War II Atrocities, pg. 68

[68] Mingst, Karen A.;Karns, Margaret P. United Nations in the Twenty-First Century, pg. 22

[69] Dunn, Dennis J. Caught Between Roosevelt & Stalin: America's Ambassadors to Moscow, pg. 157

[70] Klam, Julie. The Rise of Japan and Pearl Harbor, pg. 27

[71] Hill, J. R.; Ranft, Bryan. The Oxford Illustrated History of the Royal Navy, pg. 362

[ChinaBitter158-72] Hsiung, James Chieh; Levine, Steven I. China's Bitter Victory: The War with Japan, 1937-1945, pg. 158

[73] Chun, Clayton K. S. The Doolittle Raid 1942: America's First Strike Back at Japan, pg. 88

[74] Gooch, John. Decisive Campaigns of the Second World War, pg.52

[75] Molinari, Andrea. Desert Raiders: Axis and Allied Special Forces 1940-43, pg. 91

[76] Welch, David. Modern European History, 1871-2000: A Documentary Reader, pg. 102

[77] Mitcham, Samuel W.; Mitcham, Samuel W. Jr. Rommel's Desert War: The Life and Death of the Afrika Korps, pg. 31

[78] Glantz, David M. From the Don to the Dnepr: Soviet Offensive Operations, December 1942-August 1943, pg. 215

[79] Maddox, Robert James. The United States and World War II, pgs. 111-112

[80] Salecker, Gene Eric. Fortress Against the Sun: The B-17 Flying Fortress in the Pacific, pg. 186

[81] Ropp, Theodore. War in the Modern World, pg. 368

[82] Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II, pg. 339

[83] Gilbert, Adrian. The Encyclopedia of Warfare: From Earliest Times to the Present Day, pg. 259

[84] Swain, Bruce. A Chronology of Australian Armed Forces at War 1939-45, pg. 197

[85] Hane, Mikiso. Modern Japan: A Historical Survey, pg. 340

[86] Marston, Daniel. The Pacific War Companion: From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima, pg. 111

[87] Brayley, Martin. The British Army, 1939-45, pg. 9

[88] Read, Anthony. The Devil's Disciples: Hitler's Inner Circle, pg. 764

[89] Badsey, Stephen. The Hutchinson Atlas of World War II Battle Plans: Before and After, pgs. 235-236

[90] Black, Jeremy. World War Two: A Military History, pg. 119

[91] Shukman, Harold. Stalin's Generals, pg. 142

[92] Paxton, Robert O. Vichy France: Old Guard and New Order, 1940-1944, pg. 313

[93] Rich, Norman. Hitler's War Aims: Ideology, the Nazi State, and the Course of Expansion, pg. 178

[94] Penrose, Jane. The D-Day Companion, pg. 129

[95] Thomas, David Arthur. A Companion to the Royal Navy, pg. 265

[96] Thomas, Nigel. German Army 1939-1945 (2): North Africa & Balkans, pg. 8

[AWP38-97] Ross, Steven T. American War Plans, 1941-1945: The Test of Battle, pg. 38

[98] Bonner, Kit; Bonner, Carolyn. Warship Boneyards, pg. 24

[99] Collier, Paul. The Second World War (4): The Mediterranean 1940-1945, pg. 11

[100] Thompson, John Herd; Randall, Stephen J. Canada and the United States: Ambivalent Allies, pg. 164

[101] Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945, pg. 610

[102] Rottman, Gordon L. World War II Pacific Island Guide: A Geo-Military Study, pg. 228

[103] Lightbody, Bradley. The Second World War: Ambitions to Nemesis, pg. 224

[104] Zeiler, Thomas W. Unconditional Defeat: Japan, America, and the End of World War II, pg. 60

[105] Craven, Wesley Frank; Cate, James Lea. The Army Air Forces in World War II, Volume Five - The Pacific, Matterhorn to Nagasaki, pg. 207

[106] Hsiung, James Chieh; Levine, Steven I. China's Bitter Victory: The War with Japan, 1937-1945, pg. 163

[107] Coble, Parks M. Chinese Capitalists in Japan's New Order: The Occupied Lower Yangzi, 1937-1945, pg. 85

[108] O'Reilly, Charles T. Forgotten Battles: Italy's War of Liberation, 1943-1945, pg. 32

[109] McGowen, Tom. Assault From The Sea: Amphibious Invasions in the Twentieth Century, pgs. 43-44

[110] Lamb, Richard. War in Italy, 1943-1945: A Brutal Story, pgs. 154-155

[111] Hart, Stephen; Hart, Russell. The German Soldier in World War II, pg. 151

[112] Blinkhorn, Martin. Mussolini and Fascist Italy, pg. 52

[113] Read, Anthony; Fisher, David. The Fall of Berlin, pg. 129

[114] Havighurst, Alfred F. Britain in Transition: The Twentieth Century, pg. 344

[115] Read, Anthony. The Devil's Disciples: Hitler's Inner Circle, pg. 804

[116] Glantz, David M. From the Don to the Dnepr: Soviet Offensive Operations, December 1942-August 1943, pgs. 216-217

[117] Kershaw, Ian. Hitler, 1936-1945: Nemesis, pg. 592

[118] Chubarov, Alexander. Russia's Bitter Path to Modernity: A History of the Soviet and Post-Soviet Eras, pg. 122

[119] Zaloga, Steven J. US Armored Units in the North African and Italian Campaigns 19422-45, pg. 81

[120] Badsey, Stephen. Normandy 1944: Allied Landings and Breakout, pg. 91

[121] Wiest, Andrew A.; Barbier, M. K. Strategy and Tactics Infantry Warfare pgs. 65, 66

[122] Wiktor, Christian L. Multilateral Treaty Calendar - 1648-1995, pg. 426

[123] Berend, Tibor Iván. Central and Eastern Europe, 1944-1993: Detour from the Periphery to the Periphery, pg. 8

[124] Marston, Daniel. The Pacific War Companion: From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima, pg. 120

[125] Jowett, Philip S. The Japanese Army, 1931-45, pg. 8

[126] Howard, Joshua H. Workers at War: Labor in China's Arsenals, 1937-1953, pg. 140

[127] Drea, Edward J. In the Service of the Emperor: Essays on the Imperial Japanese Army, pg. 54

[128] Cook, Chris; Bewes, Diccon. What Happened Where: A Guide to Places and Events in Twentieth-Century History, pg. 305

[129] Glantz, David M. The Soviet-German War 1941-1945: Myths and Realities: A Survey Essay pg. 85

[130] Solsten, Eric. Dwight Germany: A Country Study , pgs. 76-77

[131] United States Dept. of State. The China White Paper, August 1949, pg. 113

[132] O'Reilly, Charles T. Forgotten Battles: Italy's War of Liberation, 1943-1945, pg. 244

[133] Kershaw, Ian. Hitler, 1936-1945: Nemesis, pg. 823

[BritWarxiv-134] Donnelly, Mark. Britain in the Second World War, pg. xiv

[135] Chant, Christopher. The Encyclopedia of Codenames of World War II, pg. 118

[136] Drea, Edward J. In the Service of the Emperor: Essays on the Imperial Japanese Army, pg. 57

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@@ Line 39: / Line 39: @@
 * [[SMART Tunnel|Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel]] in [[Kuala Lumpur]], [[Malaysia]]
 * Substance Misuse Arrest Referral Team - A South East UK based drug treatment agency - working closely with local DIPs (Drug Intervention Programs)
+== The Genius (Smarts) Of Hitler vs. Morality Fight Fight Fight ==
+{{pp-semi-protected|small=yes}}
+{{WW2InfoBox}}
+{{WWIITheatre}}
+'''World War II''', or the '''Second World War''',<ref>Official military histories in Commonwealth nations refer to the conflict as the Second World War, while the United States' official histories refer to the conflict as World War II. English translations of the official histories of other nations tend to resolve into English as Second World War also, for example ''zweite weltkrieg'' in German. See [[C.P. Stacey]] ''Official History of the Canadian Army in the Second World War'', for example. "Official" usage of these terms is giving way to popular usage and the two terms are becoming interchangeable even in formal military history.</ref> was a [[global]] military [[War|conflict]], the joining of what had initially been two separate conflicts. The first began in [[Asia]] in 1937 as the [[Second Sino-Japanese War]]; the other began in [[Europe]] in 1939 with the German [[Invasion of Poland (1939)|invasion of Poland]].
+This global conflict split the [[Participants in World War II|majority of the world's nations]] into opposing military alliances: the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] and the [[Axis powers]]. It involved the mobilization of over 100 million military personnel, making it the most widespread war in history, and placed the participants in a state of "[[total war]]", erasing the distinction between civil and military resources. This resulted in the complete activation of a nation's economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities for the purposes of the war effort. Over [[World War II casualties|60 million people]], the majority of them civilians, were killed, making it the deadliest conflict in [[History of the world|human history]].<ref>[[Jim Dunnigan|Dunnigan, James]]. Dirty Little Secrets of World War II: Military Information No One Told You About the Greatest, Most Terrible War in History, William Morrow & Company, 1994. ISBN 0-688-12235-3</ref> The financial cost of the war is estimated at about a trillion 1944 U.S. dollars worldwide,<ref>Mayer, E. (2000) [http://emayzine.com/lectures/WWII.html "World War II"] course lecture notes on ''Emayzine.com'' (Victorville, California: Victor Valley College)</ref><ref>Coleman, P. (1999) [http://members.aol.com/forcountry/ww2/wc1.htm "Cost of the War,"] ''World War II Resource Guide'' (Gardena, California: The American War Library)</ref> making it the most costly war in capital as well as lives.
+The Allies were victorious, and, as a result, the [[Soviet Union]] and the [[United States]] emerged as the world's leading [[superpower]]s. This set the stage for the [[Cold War]], which lasted for the next 45 years. The [[United Nations]] was formed in hopes of preventing another such conflict. The [[self determination]] spawned by the war accelerated [[decolonization]] movements in Asia and Africa, while Europe itself began moving toward [[History of the European Union|integration]].<ref name="columbia">{{cite encyclopedia|title=World War II|url=http://www.bartleby.com/65/ww/WW2.html|encyclopedia=[[The Columbia Encyclopedia]]|date=2007|edition=6th|accessdate=2008-03-10}}</ref>
+{{TOClimit|limit=4}}
+==Background==
+In the [[aftermath of World War I]], the defeated [[German Empire]] signed the [[Treaty of Versailles]].<ref>{{cite book
+  | last = Hakim
+  | first = Joy
+  | authorlink =
+  | coauthors =
+  | title = A History of Us: War, Peace and all that Jazz
+  | publisher = Oxford University Press
+  | date = 1995
+  | location = New York
+  | pages =
+  | url =
+  | doi =
+  | id =
+  | isbn = 0-19-509514-6 }}</ref>  This caused Germany to lose 13% of its national territory and prohibited the annexation of Austria, Czechoslovakia, Poland and Danzig, and mandated German armed forces number no more than 100,000 troops. Some of the Treaty's prohibitions were of conscription, manufacturing of weapons, import and export of weapons, and imposed massive reparations on Germany.
+Russia's [[Russian Revolution (1917)|Civil war]] led to the creation of the [[Soviet Union]] which soon was under the control of [[Joseph Stalin]]. In Italy, [[Benito Mussolini]] [[March on Rome|seized power]] as a [[fascist]] [[dictator]] promising to create a "[[New Roman Empire]]."<ref>Shaw, Anthony. ''World War II Day by Day'', pg. 35</ref> The ruling [[Kuomintang]] (KMT) party in China launched a [[Northern Expedition (1926–1927)|unification campaign]] against rebelling warlords in the mid-1920s, but was soon embroiled in a [[Chinese Civil War|civil war]] against its former [[Chinese communist]] allies. In 1931, an [[Militarism-Socialism in Showa Japan|increasingly militaristic]] [[Empire of Japan|Japanese Empire]], which had long sought influence in China<ref>Myers, Ramon; Peattie, Mark. ''The Japanese Colonial Empire, 1895-1945'', pg. 458</ref> as the first step of its [[Hakko ichiu|right to rule Asia]], used the [[Mukden Incident]] as justification to invade [[Manchuria]]; the two nations then fought several small conflicts until the [[Tanggu Truce]] in 1933.
+[[Image:Reichsparteitag 1935 mod.jpg|thumb|left|German troops at the 1935 [[Nuremberg Rally]]]]
+[[Nazism|National Socialist]] [[Adolf Hitler]] became the leader of Germany in January 1933. He began a massive rearming campaign.<ref>Wouk, Herman. ''The Winds of War'', pg. 72</ref> This worried France and the United Kingdom, who had lost much in the previous war, as well as Italy, which saw its territorial ambitions threatened by those of Germany.<ref>Brody, J. Kenneth. ''The Avoidable War: Pierre Laval and the Politics of Reality, 1935-1936'', pg. 4</ref> To secure its alliance, the [[Franco–Italian Agreement|French allowed Italy a free hand in Ethiopia]], which Italy desired to conquer. The situation was aggravated in early 1935 when the [[Saarland]] was legally reunited with Germany and Hitler repudiated the Treaty of Versailles, speeding up remilitarization and introducing conscription. Hoping to contain Germany, the United Kingdom, France and Italy formed the [[Stresa Front]]. The Soviet Union, concerned due to Germany's goals of capturing vast areas of eastern Europe, concluded a treaty of mutual assistance with France.
+Before taking effect, the [[Franco-Soviet Treaty of Mutual Assistance|Franco-Soviet pact]] required to go through the [[League of Nations]] but was essentially toothless<ref>Record, Jeffery. ''Appeasement Reconsidered: Investigating the Mythology of the 1930s'', pg. 50</ref><ref>Mandelbaum, Michael. ''The Fate of Nations: The Search for National Security in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries'', pg. 96</ref> and in June of 1935, the United Kingdom made an [[Anglo-German Naval Agreement|independent naval agreement]] with Germany easing prior restrictions. The United States, concerned with events in Europe and Asia, passed the [[Neutrality Act]] in August.<ref>Schmitz, David F. ''Henry L. Stimson: The First Wise Man'', pg. 124</ref>  In October Italy [[Second Italo-Abyssinian War|invaded Ethiopia]], with Germany the only major European nation supporting her invasion. Italy then revoked objections to Germany's goal of making [[Austria]] a satellite state.<ref>Kitson, Alison. ''Germany 1858-1990: Hope, Terror, and Revival'', pg. 231</ref>
+In direct violation of the Versailles and [[Locarno Treaties|Locarno]] treaties, Hitler [[Remilitarization of the Rhineland|remilitarized]] the [[Rhineland]] in March of 1936. He received little response from other European powers.<ref>Adamthwaite, Anthony P. ''The Making of the Second World War'', pg 52</ref> When the [[Spanish Civil War]] broke out in July, Hitler and Mussolini supported fascist Generalísimo [[Francisco Franco]] in his civil war against the Soviet-supported [[Second Spanish Republic|Spanish Republic]]. Both sides used the conflict to test new weapons and methods of warfare.<ref>Graham, Helen. ''The Spanish Civil War: A Very Short Introduction'', pg. 110</ref>
+With tensions mounting, efforts to strengthen or consolidate power were made. In October, Germany and Italy formed the [[Rome-Berlin Axis]] and a month later Germany and Japan, each believing communism&ndash;and the Soviet Union in particular&ndash;to be a threat, signed the [[Anti-Comintern Pact]], which Italy would join in the following year. In China, the Kuomintang and communist forces agreed on a ceasefire to present a [[Second United Front (China)|united front]] to oppose Japan.<ref>Busky, Donald F. ''Communism in History and Theory: Asia, Africa, and the Americas'', pg. 10</ref>
+==Course of the war==
+{{seealso|Timeline of World War II}}
+===War breaks out===
+[[Image:Wuhan 1938 IJA.jpg|right|thumb|Japanese forces during the [[Battle of Wuhan]]]]
+In mid-1937, following the [[Marco Polo Bridge Incident]], Japan began a [[Second Sino-Japanese War|full invasion of China]]. The Soviets [[Sino-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact|quickly lent support to China]], effectively ending China's prior [[Sino-German cooperation (1911–1941)|cooperation with Germany]]. Starting at [[Battle of Shanghai|Shanghai]], the Japanese pushed Chinese forces back, [[Battle of Nanjing|capturing the capital Nanjing]] in December. In June of 1938 Chinese forces stalled the Japanese advance by [[1938 Yellow River flood|flooding the Yellow River]]. Though this bought time to prepare their defenses at [[Wuhan]], the [[Battle of Wuhan|city was still taken]] by October.<ref>Twitchett, Denis; Fairbank, John K. ''The Cambridge history of China'', pg. 566</ref> During this time, Japanese and Soviet forces engaged in a minor skirmish at [[Battle of Lake Khasan|Lake Khasan]]; in May of 1939, they became involved in a more serious [[Battle of Khalkhin Gol|border war]].<ref>Coox, Alvin D. ''Nomonhan: Japan Against Russia, 1939'', pg. 189</ref>
+In Europe, Germany and Italy were becoming bolder. In March 1938, Germany [[Anschluss|annexed Austria]], again provoking [[Appeasement of Hitler|little response]] from other European powers.<ref>Collier, Martin; Pedley, Philip. ''Germany 1919-45'', pg. 144</ref> Encouraged, Hitler began making claims on the [[Sudetenland]]; France and Britain [[Munich Agreement|conceded these]] for a promise of no further territorial demands.<ref>Kershaw, Ian. ''Hitler, 1936-1945: Nemesis'', pg. 173</ref> Germany soon reneged, and in March 1939 fully [[German occupation of Czechoslovakia|occupied Czechoslovakia]].
+[[Image:German Soviet.jpg|thumb|left|Soviet and German officers in Poland]]
+Alarmed, and with Hitler making further demands on [[Free City of Danzig|Danzig]], France and Britain [[Polish-British Common Defence Pact#British Guarantee to Poland|guaranteed their support for Polish independence]]; when [[Italian invasion of Albania|Italy conquered Albania]] in April, the same guarantee was extended to [[Romania]] and [[Greece]].<ref>Lowe, C. J.; Marzari, F. ''Italian Foreign Policy 1870-1940'', pg. 330</ref> The Soviet Union also attempted to ally with France and Britain, but was rebuffed due to western suspicions about Soviet motives and capability.<ref>Sharp, Alan; Stone, Glyn. ''Anglo-French Relations in the Twentieth Century'', pg 195-197</ref> Shortly after the Franco-British pledges to Poland, Germany and Italy formalized their own alliance with the [[Pact of Steel]]; following this, in a move that shocked all other major powers, Germany and the Soviet Union concluded a [[Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact|non-aggression pact]], including a secret agreement to split Poland and eastern Europe between them.<ref>Day, Alan J.; East, Roger; Thomas, Richard. ''A Political and Economic Dictionary of Eastern Europe'', pg. 405</ref>
+By the start of September 1939, the Soviets had routed Japanese forces and the Germans [[Invasion of Poland (1939)|invaded Poland]]. France, Britain, and the countries of the [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] [[Declaration of war#1939|declared war on Germany]] but lent little support other than a [[Saar Offensive|small French attack into the Saarland]].<ref>May, Ernest R. ''Strange Victory: Hitler's Conquest of France'', pg. 93</ref> In mid-September, after signing an armistice with Japan, the [[Soviet invasion of Poland (1939)|Soviets launched their own invasion of Poland]].<ref>Zaloga, Steven J. ''Poland 1939: The Birth of Blitzkrieg'', pg. 80</ref>  By early October, Poland had been divided [[Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany|between Germany]] [[Polish areas annexed by the Soviet Union|and the Soviet Union]]. During the battle in Poland, Japan launched its [[Battle of Changsha (1939)|first attack against Changsha]], a strategically important Chinese city, but was repulsed by early October.<ref>Jowett, Philip S. ''The Japanese Army, 1931-45'', pg. 14</ref>
+===Axis advances===
+[[Image:British prisoners at Dunkerque, France.jpg|thumb|right|British and French soldiers taken prisoner in Northern France]]
+Following the invasion of Poland, the Soviets began moving troops into the [[Baltic region]]. Finnish resistance in late November led to a [[Winter War|four-month war]], ending with [[Moscow Peace Treaty|Finnish concessions]].<ref>Hanhimäki, Jussi M. ''Containing Coexistence: America, Russia, and the "Finnish Solution"'', pg. 13</ref> France and the United Kingdom, treating the Soviet attack on Finland as tantamount to entering the war on the side of the Germans<ref name="ChinaBitter16">Hsiung, James Chieh; Levine, Steven I. ''China's Bitter Victory: The War with Japan, 1937-1945'', pg. 16</ref> responded to the Soviet invasion by supporting its expulsion from the League of Nations.<ref name="ChinaBitter16"/> Though China had the authority to veto such an action, it was unwilling to alienate itself from either the Western powers or the Soviet Union and instead abstained.<ref name="ChinaBitter16"/> The Soviet Union was displeased by this course of action and as a result suspended all military aid to China.<ref name="ChinaBitter16"/> By mid-1940, the Soviet Union's [[Occupation of Baltic states|occupation of the Baltics]] was completed with the installation of pro-Soviet governments.<ref>Bilinsky, Yaroslav. ''Endgame in NATO's Enlargement: The Baltic States and Ukraine'', pg. 9</ref>
+In Western Europe, British troops deployed to the Continent, but [[Phoney War|neither Germany nor the Allies]] launched direct attacks on the other. In April, [[Operation Weserübung|Germany invaded Denmark and Norway]] to secure shipments of [[Swedish iron ore (WWII)|iron-ore from Sweden]] which the allies would try to disrupt. [[Denmark]] immediately capitulated, and [[Norwegian Campaign|despite Allied support]] [[Norway]] was conquered within two months.<ref>Commager, Henry Steele. ''The Story of the Second World War'', pg. 30</ref>  [[Norway Debate|British discontent over the Norwegian campaign]] led to the replacement of Prime Minister [[Neville Chamberlain]] by [[Winston Churchill]] on May 10, 1940.<ref>Reynolds, David. ''From World War to Cold War: Churchill, Roosevelt, and the International History of the 1940s'', pgs. 76, 77</ref>
+On that same day, Germany [[Battle of France|invaded France and the Low Countries]]. Using [[blitzkrieg]] tactics, the [[Battle of the Netherlands|Netherlands]] and [[Belgium]] were overrun and British troops were [[Dunkirk evacuation|forced to evacuate]] the continent, abandoning their heavy equipment by the end of the month.<ref name="FreeFromFear439">Kennedy, David M. ''Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945'', pg. 439</ref> On June 10th, [[Italian invasion of France|Italy invaded]], declaring war on both France and the United Kingdom;<ref name="FreeFromFear439" /> twelve days later [[Armistice with France (Second Compiègne)|France surrendered]] and was soon divided into [[German occupation of France during World War II|German]] and [[Italian-occupied France|Italian occupation zones]],<ref>Militärgeschichtliches Forschungsamt. ''Germany and the Second World War - Volume 2: Germany's Initial Conquests in Europe'', pg. 311</ref> and an unoccupied [[rump state]] under the [[Vichy Regime]]. In early July, the British [[Attack on Mers-el-Kébir|attacked the French fleet]] in [[French Algeria|Algeria]] to prevent their seizure by Germany.<ref>Brown, David. ''The Road to Oran: Anglo-French Naval Relations, September 1939-July 1940'', pg. xxx</ref>
+[[Image:Heinkel He 111 during the Battle of Britain.jpg|thumb|left|[[Heinkel He 111|German bombers]] during the [[Battle of Britain]]]]
+With France neutralized, Germany began an [[Battle of Britain|air superiority campaign over Britain]] to prepare for [[Operation Sealion|an invasion]]<ref>Kelly, Nigel; Rees, Rosemary; Shuter, Jane. ''Twentieth Century World'', pg. 38</ref> and [[Battle of the Atlantic (1939–1945)#.22Happy Time.22 .28June 1940 .E2.80.93 February 1941.29|enjoyed success]] against an over-extended [[Royal Navy]], using [[U-boat]]s against British shipping in the [[Battle of the Atlantic (1939-1945)|Atlantic]].<ref>Goldstein, Margaret J. ''World War II'', pg. 35</ref>  Italy began operations in the Mediterranean, initiating a [[Siege of Malta (World War II)|siege of Malta]] in June, [[Italian conquest of British Somaliland|conquering British Somaliland]] in August, and [[Western Desert Campaign#Italian invasion of Egypt|making an incursion into British-held Egypt]] in early September. Japan increased its blockade of China in September by [[Invasion of French Indochina|seizing several bases]] in the northern part of the now-isolated [[French Indochina]].<ref>Mercado, Stephen C. ''The Shadow Warriors of Nakano: A History of the Imperial Japanese Army's Elite Intelligence School'', pg. 109</ref>
+Throughout this period, the neutral United States took measures to assist China and the Western Allies. In November 1939, the American Neutrality Act was amended to allow [[Cash and carry (World War II)|Cash and carry]] purchases by the Allies.<ref>Brown, Robert J. ''Manipulating the Ether: The Power of Broadcast Radio in Thirties America'', pg. 91</ref> During 1940, the United States implemented a series of [[embargo]]s, including oil, iron, steel and mechanical parts, against Japan;<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot. ''History of United States Naval Operations in World War II'', pg. 60</ref> in September it agreed to a [[Destroyers for Bases Agreement|trade of American destroyers for British bases]].<ref>Maingot, Anthony P. ''The United States and the Caribbean: Challenges of an Asymetrical Relationship'', pg. 52</ref>
+At the end of September the [[Tripartite Pact]] between Japan, Italy and Germany formalized the [[Axis Powers]]. The pact stipulated, with the exception of the Soviet Union, any country not in the war which attacked any Axis Power would be forced to go to war against all three.<ref>Bilhartz, Terry D.; Elliott, Alan C. ''Currents in American History: A Brief History of the United States'', pg. 179</ref> The Soviet Union expressed interest in joining the Tripartite Pact, sending a modified draft to Germany in November and offering a very German-favourable economic deal;<ref name="WorldArms200">Weinberg, Gerhard L. ''A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II'', pg. 200</ref> while Germany remained silent on the former, they accepted the latter.<ref name="WorldArms201">Weinberg, Gerhard L. ''A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II'', pg. 201</ref> Regardless of the pact, the United States continued to support the United Kingdom and China by introducing the [[Lend-Lease]] policy<ref>Murray, Williamson; Millett, Allan Reed. ''A War to Be Won: Fighting the Second World War'', pg. 165</ref> and creating a security zone spanning roughly half of the Atlantic Ocean where the [[United States Navy]] protected British convoys.<ref>Knell, Hermann. ''To Destroy a City: Strategic Bombing and Its Human Consequences in World War II'', pg. 205</ref>
+In October, [[Greco-Italian War|Italy invaded Greece]] but within days were repulsed and pushed back into Albania, where a stalemate soon occurred.<ref>Clogg, Richard. ''A Concise History of Greece'', pg. 118</ref> Shortly after this, in Africa, Commonwealth forces launched offensives [[Operation Compass|against Libya]] and [[East African Campaign (World War II)#Allied counter-offensive|Italian East Africa]]. By early 1941, with Italian forces having been pushed back into Libya by the Commonwealth, Churchill [[Operation Lustre|ordered a dispatch of troops from Africa to bolster the Greeks]]. The [[Regia Marina|Italian Navy]] also suffered significant defeats, with the Royal Navy putting three Italian battleships out of commission via [[Battle of Taranto|carrier attack at Taranto]], and several more warships neutralized at [[Battle of Cape Matapan|Cape Matapan]].<ref>Jackson, Ashley. ''The British Empire and the Second World War'', pg. 106</ref>
+[[Image:German paratroopers jumping From Ju 52s over Crete.jpg|right|thumb|[[Fallschirmjäger|German paratroopers]] invading [[Crete]]]]
+The Germans soon intervened to assist Italy. Hitler [[Operation Sunflower|sent German forces to Libya]] in February and by the end of March they had [[Axis desert offensive (1941)|launched an offensive]] against the diminished Commonwealth forces. In under a month, Commonwealth forces were pushed back into Egypt with the exception of the [[Siege of Tobruk|besieged port of Tobruk]]. The Commonwealth attempted to dislodge Axis forces [[Operation Brevity|in May]] and [[Operation Battleaxe|again in June]], but failed on both occasions. In early April the Germans similarly intervened in the Balkans, [[Battle of Greece|invading Greece]] and [[Invasion of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]]; here too they made rapid progress, eventually forcing the Allies to evacuate after Germany [[Battle of Crete|conquered the Greek island of Crete]] by the end of May.<ref>Weinberg, Gerhard L. ''A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II'', pg. 229</ref>
+The Allies did have some successes during this time though. In the [[Middle East]], Commonwealth forces first [[Anglo-Iraqi War|quashed a coup in Iraq]] which had been supported by German aircraft from bases within Vichy-controlled [[French Mandate of Syria|Syria]],<ref>Watson, William E. ''Tricolor and Crescent: France and the Islamic World'', pg. 80</ref> then, with the assistance of the [[Free French]], [[Syria-Lebanon Campaign|invaded Syria and Lebanon]] to prevent further such occurrences.<ref>Jackson, Ashley. ''The British Empire and the Second World War'', pg. 154</ref>  In the Atlantic, the British scored a much needed public morale boost by [[Last battle of the battleship Bismarck|sinking the German flagship Bismarck]].<ref>Stewart, Vance. ''Three Against One: Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin Vs Adolph Hitler'', pg. 159</ref> Perhaps most importantly, the [[Royal Air Force]] had successfully resisted the Luftwaffe's assault, and on May 11, 1941, Hitler called off the bombing campaign over Britain.<ref>{{cite web|title=The London Blitz, 1940|url=http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/blitz.htm|work=Eyewitness to History|date=2001|accessdate=2008-03-11}}</ref>
+In Asia, in spite of several offensives by both sides, the war between China and Japan was stalemated by 1940. In August of that year, Chinese communists launched an [[Hundred Regiments Offensive|offensive in Central China]]; in retaliation, Japan instituted [[Three Alls Policy|harsh measures]] in occupied areas to reduce human and material resources for the communists.<ref>Joes, Anthony James. ''Resisting Rebellion: The History And Politics of Counterinsurgency'', pg. 224</ref> Mounting tensions between Chinese communist and nationalist forces [[New Fourth Army Incident|culminated in January 1941]], effectively ending their co-operation.<ref>Fairbank, John King. ''China: A New History'', pg. 320</ref>
+With the situation in Europe and Asia relatively stable, Germany, Japan and the Soviet Union made preparations. With the Soviets wary of mounting tensions with Germany and the Japanese planning to take advantage of the European War by seizing resource-rich European possessions in Southeast Asia the two powers signed a [[Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact|neutrality agreement]] in April, 1941.<ref>Garver, John W. ''Chinese-Soviet Relations, 1937-1945: The Diplomacy of Chinese Nationalism'', pg. 114</ref> By contrast the Germans were steadily making preparations for an attack on the Soviet Union, amassing forces on the Soviet border, particularly in Finland and [[Kingdom of Romania|Romania]].<ref>Weinberg, Gerhard L. ''A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II'', pg. 195</ref>
+===The war becomes global===
+[[Image:GermanTroopsInRussia1941.jpg|right|thumb|German soldiers in the Soviet Union, 1941]]
+In late June, Germany, along with other European Axis members and Finland, [[Operation Barbarossa|invaded the Soviet Union]]. They made significant gains into Soviet territory, inflicting a large numbers of casualties, and by the start of December had [[Battle of Moscow|almost reached Moscow]], with only the besieged cities of [[siege of Leningrad|Leningrad]] and [[Siege of Sevastopol (1941-1942)|Sevastopol]] behind their front-lines left unconquered.<ref>Shukman, Harold. ''Stalin's Generals'', pg. 113</ref>  With the onset of a fierce Soviet winter though, the Axis offensive was ground to a halt<ref>Burroughs, William James. ''Climate: Into the 21st Century'', pg. 115</ref> and the Soviets launched a [[Soviet Offensive (1941-1942)|counter-offensive]] using reserve troops brought up from the border near Japanese Manchukuo.<ref>Whymant, Robert. ''Stalin's Spy: Richard Sorge and the Tokyo Espionage Ring'', pg. 314</ref>
+Following the German attack on the Soviets, the United Kingdom began to regroup. In July, the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union formed a [[Anglo-Soviet Agreement|military alliance against Germany]]<ref>Pravda, Alex; Duncan, Peter J. S. ''Soviet-British Relations Since the 1970s'', pg. 29</ref> and shortly after [[Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran|jointly invaded Iran]] to secure the [[Persian Corridor]] and Iran's oilfields.<ref>Heptulla, Najma. ''The Logic of Political Survival'', pg. 131</ref> In August, the United Kingdom and United States jointly issued the [[Atlantic Charter]], a vision for a post-war world which included "the right of all peoples to choose their form of government".<ref name="AdvenBrit223">Louis, William Roger. ''More Adventures with Britannia: Personalities, Politics and Culture in Britain'', pg. 223</ref> In November, Commonwealth forces [[Operation Crusader|launched a counter-offensive in the desert]], reclaiming all gains the Germans and Italians had made.<ref>Gannon, James. ''Stealing Secrets, Telling Lies: How Spies and Codebreakers Helped Shape the Twentieth Century'', pg. 76</ref>
+In Asia, Japan was preparing for war. The [[Imperial General Headquarters]] plan was to create a large perimeter stretching into the Central Pacific in order to facilitate a defensive war while exploiting the resources of Southeast Asia; to prevent intervention while securing the perimeter it was further planned to neutralize the [[United States Pacific Fleet]] on the outset.<ref>Morgan, Patrick M. ''Strategic Military Surprise: Incentives and Opportunities'', pg. 51</ref> In preparation, Japan seized military control of southern Indochina in July, 1941; an action the United States, United Kingdom and other western governments responded to by freezing all Japanese assets.<ref>Ropp, Theodore. ''War in the Modern World'', pg. 363</ref> On December 7th Japan attacked British, Dutch and American holdings with near simultaneous [[Japanese expansion (1941-1942)|offensives against Southeast Asia and the Central Pacific]], including an [[attack on Pearl Harbor|attack on the American naval base of Pearl Harbor]].<ref>Thurman,M. J.; Sherman, Christine. ''War Crimes: Japan's World War II Atrocities'', pg. 68</ref>
+These actions prompted the United States, United Kingdom, China, and other Western Allies to declare war on Japan. Italy, Germany, and the other members of the Tripartite Pact responded by declaring war on the United States. In January, the United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union and China, along with twenty-two smaller or exiled governments, issued the [[Declaration by United Nations]], affirming the Atlantic Charter<ref>Mingst, Karen A.;Karns, Margaret P. ''United Nations in the Twenty-First Century'', pg. 22</ref> and formalizing their alliance against the Axis Powers. The Soviet Union did not adhere fully to the declaration though, as they maintained their neutrality agreement with Japan<ref>Dunn, Dennis J. ''Caught Between Roosevelt & Stalin: America's Ambassadors to Moscow'', pg. 157</ref> and exempted themselves from the principle of self-determination.<ref name="AdvenBrit223"/>
+[[Image:Bosbritsurrendergroup.jpg|left|thumb|[[Suffolk Regiment|British soldiers]] surrendering from the [[Battle of Singapore]]]]
+The Axis Powers, however, were able to continue their offensives. Japan had almost fully conquered Southeast Asia with minimal losses by the end of April, 1942, [[Japanese capture of Burma|chasing the Allies out of Burma]] and taking large numbers of prisoners in the [[Battle of the Philippines (1941–42)|Philippines]], [[Battle of Malaya|Malaya]], [[Netherlands East Indies campaign|Dutch East Indies]] and [[Battle of Singapore|Singapore]].<ref>Klam, Julie. ''The Rise of Japan and Pearl Harbor'', pg. 27</ref> They further [[Bombing of Darwin (February 1942)|bombed the Allied naval base at Darwin, Australia]] and sunk significant Allied warships not only at Pearl Harbor, but also in the [[Sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse|South China Sea]], [[Battle of the Java Sea|Java Sea]] and [[Indian Ocean raid|Indian Ocean]].<ref>Hill, J. R.; Ranft, Bryan. ''The Oxford Illustrated History of the Royal Navy'', pg. 362</ref> The only real successes against Japan were a repulsion of their [[Battle of Changsha (1942)|renewed attack on Changsha]] in early January, 1942,<ref name="ChinaBitter158">Hsiung, James Chieh; Levine, Steven I. ''China's Bitter Victory: The War with Japan, 1937-1945'', pg. 158</ref> and a psychological strike from a [[Doolittle Raid|bombing raid on Japan's capital Tokyo]] in April.<ref>Chun, Clayton K. S. ''The Doolittle Raid 1942: America's First Strike Back at Japan'', pg. 88</ref>
+Germany was able to regain the initiative as well. Exploiting American inexperience with submarine warfare, the [[Kriegsmarine|German Navy]] [[Second Happy Time|sunk significant resources]] near the American Atlantic coast.<ref>Gooch, John. ''Decisive Campaigns of the Second World War'', pg.52</ref>  In the desert, they launched an offensive in January, pushing the British back to positions at the Gazala Line by early February.<ref>Molinari, Andrea. ''Desert Raiders: Axis and Allied Special Forces 1940-43'', pg. 91</ref>  In the Soviet Union, the Soviet's winter counter-offensive had ended by March.<ref>Welch, David. ''Modern European History, 1871-2000: A Documentary Reader'', pg. 102</ref> In both the desert and the Soviet Union, there followed a temporary lull in combat which Germany used to prepare for their upcoming offensives.<ref>Mitcham, Samuel W.; Mitcham, Samuel W. Jr. ''Rommel's Desert War: The Life and Death of the Afrika Korps'', pg. 31</ref><ref>Glantz, David M. ''From the Don to the Dnepr: Soviet Offensive Operations, December 1942-August 1943'', pg. 215</ref>
+<br style="clear:both;" />
+===The tide turns===
+[[Image:SBDs and Mikuma.jpg|right|thumb|[[SBD Dauntless|American aircraft]] attacking a [[Japanese cruiser Mikuma|Japanese cruiser]] at Midway]]
+In early May, Japan initiated operations to [[Operation Mo|capture Port Moresby]] via [[amphibious assault]] and thus sever the line of communications between the United States and Australia. The Allies, however, [[Battle of the Coral Sea|intercepted and turned back Japanese naval forces]], preventing the invasion.<ref>Maddox, Robert James. ''The United States and World War II'', pgs. 111-112</ref>  Japan's next plan, motivated by the earlier bombing on Tokyo, was to seize the [[Midway Atoll]] as this would seal a gap in their perimeter defenses, provide a forward base for further operations, and lure American carriers into battle to be eliminated; as a diversion, Japan would also send forces to [[Aleutian Islands Campaign|occupy the Aleutian Islands]].<ref>Salecker, Gene Eric. ''Fortress Against the Sun: The B-17 Flying Fortress in the Pacific'', pg. 186</ref>  In early June, Japan put their operations into action but the Americans, having broken [[Japanese naval codes]] in late May, were fully aware of the Japanese plans and force dispositions and used this knowledge to [[Battle of Midway|achieve a decisive victory]] over the [[Imperial Japanese Navy]].<ref>Ropp, Theodore. ''War in the Modern World'', pg. 368</ref> With their capacity for amphibious assault greatly diminished as a result of the Midway battle, Japan chose to focus on an [[Kokoda Track campaign|overland campaign]] on the [[Territory of Papua]] in another attempt to capture [[Port Moresby]].<ref>Weinberg, Gerhard L. ''A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II'', pg. 339</ref>  For the Americans, they planned their next move against Japanese positions in the southern [[Solomon Islands]], primarily against the island of [[Guadalcanal]], as a first step towards capturing [[Rabaul]], the primary Japanese base in Southeast Asia.<ref>Gilbert, Adrian. ''The Encyclopedia of Warfare: From Earliest Times to the Present Day'', pg. 259</ref>  Both plans started in July, but by mid-September [[Guadalcanal Campaign|the battle for Guadalcanal]] took priority for the Japanese, and troops in New Guinea were ordered to withdraw from the Port Moresby area to the [[Oro Province|northern part of the island]].<ref>Swain, Bruce. ''A Chronology of Australian Armed Forces at War 1939-45'', pg. 197</ref>  Guadalcanal soon became a focal point for both sides with heavy commitments of troops and ships in a [[Attrition warfare|battle of attrition]]. By the start of 1943, the Japanese were defeated on the island and [[Operation Ke|withdrew their troops]].<ref>Hane, Mikiso. ''Modern Japan: A Historical Survey'', pg. 340</ref>
+In Burma, Commonwealth forces mounted two operations. The first, [[First Arakan Offensive|an offensive into the Arakan region]] in late 1942 went disastrously, forcing a retreat back to India by May of 1943.<ref>Marston, Daniel. ''The Pacific War Companion: From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima'', pg. 111</ref> The second was the [[Operation Longcloth|insertion of irregular forces]] behind Japanese front-lines in February which, by the end of April, had achieved dubious results.<ref>Brayley, Martin. ''The British Army, 1939-45'', pg. 9</ref>
+[[Image:Soviet soldiers moving at Stalingrad2.jpg|left|thumb|Soviet soldiers in the [[Battle of Stalingrad]]]]
+On the German's eastern front, they defeated Soviet offensives in the [[Battle of the Kerch Peninsula|Kerch Peninsula]] and at [[Second Battle of Kharkov|Kharkov]]<ref>Read, Anthony. ''The Devil's Disciples: Hitler's Inner Circle'', pg. 764</ref> and then launched their main [[Case Blue|summer offensive]] against southern Russia in June, 1942, to seize the oil fields of the Caucasus. The Soviets decided to make their stand at Stalingrad which was in the path of the advancing German armies and by mid-November the Germans had [[Battle of Stalingrad|nearly taken Stalingrad]] in bitter [[urban warfare|street fighting]] when the Soviets began their [[Soviet Offensive (1942-1943)|second winter counter-offensive]], starting with an [[Operation Uranus|encirclement of German forces at Stalingrad]]<ref>Badsey, Stephen. ''The Hutchinson Atlas of World War II Battle Plans: Before and After'', pgs. 235-236</ref> and an assault on the [[Operation Mars|Rzhev salient near Moscow]], though the latter failed disastrously.<ref>Black, Jeremy. ''World War Two: A Military History'', pg. 119</ref> By early February, the German Army had taken tremendous losses; their troops at Stalingrad had been forced to surrender and the front-line had been pushed back beyond its position prior to their summer offensive. In mid-February, after the Soviet push had tapered off, the Germans launched another [[Third Battle of Kharkov|attack on Kharkov]], creating a [[Salients, re-entrants and pockets|salient]] in their front-line around the Russian city of [[Kursk]].<ref>Shukman, Harold. ''Stalin's Generals'', pg. 142</ref>
+In the west, concerns that the Japanese might utilize bases in Vichy-held [[Madagascar]] caused the British to [[Battle of Madagascar|invade the island]] in early May, 1942.<ref>Paxton, Robert O. ''Vichy France: Old Guard and New Order, 1940-1944'', pg. 313</ref>  This success was off set soon after by an Axis [[Battle of Gazala|offensive in Libya]] which pushed the Allies back into Egypt until Axis forces were [[First Battle of El Alamein|stopped at El Alamein]].<ref>Rich, Norman. ''Hitler's War Aims: Ideology, the Nazi State, and the Course of Expansion'', pg. 178</ref>  On the Continent, Allied [[commando]]s had conducted a series of increasingly ambitious raids on strategic targets, culminating in the a disastrous [[Dieppe Raid|amphibious raid on the German held port of Dieppe]].<ref>Penrose, Jane. ''The D-Day Companion'', pg. 129</ref> In August the Allies succeeded in repelling a [[Battle of Alam el Halfa|second attack against El Alamein]] and, at a high cost, managed to [[Operation Pedestal|get desperately needed supplies to the besieged Malta]].<ref>Thomas, David Arthur. ''A Companion to the Royal Navy'', pg. 265</ref> A few months later the Allies [[Second Battle of El Alamein|commenced an attack of their own]] in Egypt, dislodging the Axis forces and beginning a drive west across Libya.<ref>Thomas, Nigel. ''German Army 1939-1945 (2): North Africa & Balkans'', pg. 8</ref> This was followed up shortly after by an [[Operation Torch|Anglo-American invasion of French North Africa]] which resulted in the region joining the Allies.<ref name="AWP38">Ross, Steven T. ''American War Plans, 1941-1945: The Test of Battle'', pg. 38</ref> Hitler responded to the defection by ordering the [[Case Anton|occupation of Vichy France]],<ref name="AWP38" /> though the Vichy Admiralty managed to [[Scuttling of the French fleet in Toulon|scuttle their fleet]] to prevent its capture by German forces.<ref>Bonner, Kit; Bonner, Carolyn. ''Warship Boneyards'', pg. 24</ref>  The now pincered Axis forces in Africa withdrew into [[Tunisia]], which was [[Tunisia Campaign|conquered by the Allies]] by May, 1943.<ref>Collier, Paul. ''The Second World War (4): The Mediterranean 1940-1945'', pg. 11</ref>
+===Allies gain momentum===
+[[Image:U.S. Soldiers at Bougainville (Solomon Islands) March 1944.jpg|thumb|right|U.S. soldiers in the Solomon Islands]]
+Following the Guadalcanal Campaign, the Allies initiated several operations against Japan. In May, 1943, American forces were sent to [[Aleutian_Islands_Campaign#Allied_response|eliminate Japanese forces from the Aleutians]],<ref>Thompson, John Herd; Randall, Stephen J. ''Canada and the United States: Ambivalent Allies'', pg. 164</ref> and soon after began major operations to [[Operation Cartwheel|isolate Rabaul by capturing surrounding islands]], and to [[Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign|breach the Japanese Central Pacific perimeter at the Gilbert and Marshall Islands]].<ref>''Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945'', pg. 610</ref> By the end of March, 1944, the Allies had completed both of these objectives, and additionally [[Operation Hailstone|neutralized another major Japanese base]] in the [[Caroline Islands]]. In April, the Allies then launched an operation to [[Western New Guinea campaign|retake Western New Guinea]].<ref>Rottman, Gordon L. ''World War II Pacific Island Guide: A Geo-Military Study'', pg. 228</ref>
+In mainland Asia, the Japanese launched two major offensives. The first, started in March, 1944, was [[Operation U-Go|against British positions in Assam, India]]<ref>Lightbody, Bradley. ''The Second World War: Ambitions to Nemesis'', pg. 224</ref> and soon led to Japanese forces besieging Commonwealth positions at [[Battle of Imphal|Imphal]] and [[Battle of Kohima|Kohima]];<ref>Zeiler, Thomas W. ''Unconditional Defeat: Japan, America, and the End of World War II'', pg. 60</ref> by May however, other Japanese forces were being besieged in [[Myitkyina]] by Chinese forces which had invaded Northern Burma in late 1943.<ref>Craven, Wesley Frank; Cate, James Lea. ''[http://books.google.ca/books?id=6ZsTiBcmzNUC The Army Air Forces in World War II, Volume Five - The Pacific, Matterhorn to Nagasaki]'', pg. 207</ref> The second was in China, with the goal of [[Operation Ichi-Go|destroying China's main fighting forces, securing railways between Japanese-held territory, and capturing Allied airfields]].<ref>Hsiung, James Chieh; Levine, Steven I. ''China's Bitter Victory: The War with Japan, 1937-1945'', pg. 163</ref> By June the Japanese had conquered the province of [[Henan]] and begun a [[Battle of Changsha (1944)|renewed attack against Changsha]] in the [[Hunan]] province.<ref>Coble, Parks M. ''Chinese Capitalists in Japan's New Order: The Occupied Lower Yangzi, 1937-1945'', pg. 85</ref>
+In the Mediterranean, Allied forces launched an [[Allied invasion of Sicily|invasion of Sicily]] in early July, 1943. The attack on Italian soil, compounded with previous failures, resulted in the ousting and arrest of Mussolini later that month.<ref>O'Reilly, Charles T. ''Forgotten Battles: Italy's War of Liberation, 1943-1945'', pg. 32</ref>  The Allies soon followed up with an [[Allied invasion of Italy|invasion of the Italian mainland]] in early September, following an [[Armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces|armistice with the Allies]].<ref>McGowen, Tom. ''Assault From The Sea: Amphibious Invasions in the Twentieth Century'', pgs. 43-44</ref> When this armistice was made public on September 8th, Germany responded by disarming Italian forces, seizing military control of Italian areas,<ref>Lamb, Richard. ''War in Italy, 1943-1945: A Brutal Story'', pgs. 154-155</ref> and setting up a series of defensive lines.<ref>Hart, Stephen; Hart, Russell. ''The German Soldier in World War II'', pg. 151</ref> On September 12th, German special forces further [[Gran Sasso raid|rescued Mussolini]] who then soon established a [[Italian Social Republic|new client state in German occupied Italy]].<ref>Blinkhorn, Martin. ''Mussolini and Fascist Italy'', pg. 52</ref> The Allies fought through several lines until reaching the [[Winter Line|main German defensive line]] in mid-November.<ref>Read, Anthony; Fisher, David. ''The Fall of Berlin'', pg. 129</ref> In January 1944, the Allies launched a [[Battle of Monte Cassino|series of attacks against the line at Monte Cassino]] and attempted to outflank it with [[Operation Shingle|landings at Anzio]]. By late May both of these offensives had succeeded and, at the expense of allowing several German divisions to retreat, on June 4th [[Rome]] was captured.<ref>Havighurst, Alfred F. ''Britain in Transition: The Twentieth Century'', pg. 344</ref>
+[[Image:Prokhorovka.jpg|thumb|left|A Soviet tank during the [[Battle of Kursk]]]]
+German operations in the Atlantic also suffered. By [[Black May (1943)|May 1943]], German submarine losses were so high that the naval campaign was temporarily called to a halt as Allied counter-measures became increasingly effective.<ref>Read, Anthony. ''The Devil's Disciples: Hitler's Inner Circle'', pg. 804</ref>
+In the Soviet Union, the Germans spent the spring and early summer of 1943 making preparations for a large offensive in the region of Kursk; the Soviets anticipated such an action though and spent their time fortifying the area.<ref>Glantz, David M. ''From the Don to the Dnepr: Soviet Offensive Operations, December 1942-August 1943'', pgs. 216-217</ref> On July 4th, the Germans [[Battle of Kursk|launched their attack]], though only about a week later Hitler cancelled the operation.<ref>Kershaw, Ian. ''Hitler, 1936-1945: Nemesis'', pg. 592</ref> The Soviets were then able to mount a massive counter-offensive and, by June 1944, had largely expelled Axis forces from the Soviet Union and made [[Battle of Târgul Frumos|incursions into Romania]].<ref>Chubarov, Alexander. ''Russia's Bitter Path to Modernity: A History of the Soviet and Post-Soviet Eras'', pg. 122</ref>
+In November, 1943, Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill met with Chiang Kai-shek [[Cairo Conference|in Cairo]] and then with Joseph Stalin [[Tehran Conference|in Tehran]]. At the former conference, the post-war return of Japanese territory was determined and in the latter, it was agreed that the Western Allies would invade Europe in 1944 and that the Soviet Union would declare war on Japan within three months of Germany's defeat.
+===Allies close in===
+[[Image:Approaching Omaha.jpg|thumb|right|Assault landing at [[Omaha Beach]] in [[Normandy]]]]
+In June, 1944, the Western Allies [[Battle of Normandy|invaded northern France]] and in August, after reassigning several Allied divisions in Italy, then [[Operation Dragoon|invaded southern France]];<ref>Zaloga, Steven J. ''US Armored Units in the North African and Italian Campaigns 19422-45'', pg. 81</ref> by [[25 August]] the Allies had [[Liberation of Paris|liberated Paris]].<ref>Badsey, Stephen. ''Normandy 1944: Allied Landings and Breakout'', pg. 91</ref> During the latter part of the year, the Western Allies continued to [[Allied advance from Paris to the Rhine|push back German forces]] in western Europe, and in Italy ran into the [[Gothic Line|last major defensive line]].
+On the Germans eastern front, the Soviets launched a series of powerful offensives. Starting in early June the Soviets launched massive assaults against [[Fourth strategic offensive|Finland]], [[Operation Bagration|Belarus]], [[Lvov-Sandomierz Offensive|Ukraine and Eastern Poland]], [[Iaşi-Chişinău Offensive|Romania]], and [[Budapest Offensive|Hungary]].<ref>Wiest, Andrew A.; Barbier, M. K. ''Strategy and Tactics Infantry Warfare'' pgs. 65, 66</ref> These operations resulted in great successes, with Bulgaria, Romania and [[Moscow Armistice|Finland signing armistices]] with the Soviet Union,<ref>Wiktor, Christian L. ''Multilateral Treaty Calendar - 1648-1995'', pg. 426</ref> and prompted [[Armia Krajowa|Polish resistance forces]] to [[Operation Tempest|initiate several uprisings in Poland]], though the largest of these, in [[Warsaw Uprising|Warsaw]], was conducted without Soviet assistance and put down by German forces.<ref>Berend, Tibor Iván. ''Central and Eastern Europe, 1944-1993: Detour from the Periphery to the Periphery'', pg. 8</ref>
+By the start of July, Commonwealth forces in Southeast Asia had repelled the Japanese sieges in Assam, pushing the Japanese back to the [[Chindwin River]]<ref>Marston, Daniel. ''The Pacific War Companion: From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima'', pg. 120</ref> while the Chinese captured Myitkyina. In China, the Japanese were having greater successes, having finally captured Changsha in mid-June and the city of [[Hengyang]] by early August.<ref>Jowett, Philip S. ''The Japanese Army, 1931-45'', pg. 8</ref>  Soon after, they further invaded the province of Guangxi, winning major engagements against Chinese forces at [[Battle of Guilin-Liuzhou|Guilin and Liuzhou]] by the end of November<ref>Howard, Joshua H. ''Workers at War: Labor in China's Arsenals, 1937-1953'', pg. 140</ref> and successfully linking up their forces in China and Indochina by the middle of December.<ref>Drea, Edward J. ''In the Service of the Emperor: Essays on the Imperial Japanese Army'', pg. 54</ref>
+In the Pacific, American forces continued to press back the Japanese perimeter. In the middle of June, 1944, they began their [[Mariana and Palau Islands campaign|offensive against the Mariana and Palau islands]], scoring a decisive victory against Japanese forces in the [[Battle of the Philippine Sea|Philippine Sea]] within a few days. In late October, American forces [[Battle of Leyte|invaded the Filipino island of Leyte]]; soon after, Allied naval forces scored another large victory against the Japanese in [[Battle of Leyte Gulf|the Leyte Gulf]].<ref>Cook, Chris; Bewes, Diccon. ''What Happened Where: A Guide to Places and Events in Twentieth-Century History'', pg. 305</ref>
+===Axis collapse, Allied victory===
+[[Image:Reichstag flag.jpg|thumb|right|Soviet [[Victory Banner]] being raised over the German [[Reichstag building]]]]
+On [[December 16]] [[1944]] German forces [[Battle of the Bulge|counterattacked in the Ardennes]] against the Western Allies. It took six weeks for the Allies to repulse the attack. The Soviets attacked through Hungary, while the Germans abandoned Greece and Yugoslavia. In Italy, the Western Allies remained stalemated at the German defensive line.
+In mid-January 1945, the Soviets attacked in Poland, [[Vistula-Oder Offensive|pushing from the Vistula to the Oder]] river in Germany, and [[East Prussian Offensive|overran East Prussia]].<ref>Glantz, David M. ''The Soviet-German War 1941-1945: Myths and Realities: A Survey Essay'' pg. 85</ref>
+On February 4, U.S., British, and Soviet leaders [[Yalta Conference|met in Yalta]]. They agreed on the occupation of post-war Germany,<ref>Solsten, Eric. ''Dwight Germany: A Country Study '', pgs. 76-77</ref> and when the Soviet Union would join the war against Japan.<ref>United States Dept. of State. ''The China White Paper, August 1949'', pg. 113</ref>
+In February, Western Allied forces entered Germany and closed to the [[Rhine]] river, while the Soviets [[East Pomeranian Offensive|invaded Pomerania]] and [[Silesian Offensives|Silesia]]. In March, the Western Allies crossed the Rhine [[Operation Plunder|north]] and [[Remagen|south]] of the [[Rhine-Ruhr|Ruhr]], [[Ruhr Pocket|encircling a large number of German troops]], while the Soviets advanced to [[Vienna]]. In early April the Western Allies finally [[Spring 1945 offensive in Italy|pushed forward in Italy]] and swept across western Germany, while in late April Soviet forces [[Battle of Berlin|stormed Berlin]]; the two forces linked up in Germany on [[April 26]].{{Fact|date=April 2008}}
+On April 12, U.S. President Roosevelt died; he was succeeded by [[Harry Truman]]. Mussolini was killed by [[Italian resistance movement|Italian partisans]] on April 28th<ref>O'Reilly, Charles T. ''Forgotten Battles: Italy's War of Liberation, 1943-1945'', pg. 244</ref> and two days later [[Death of Adolf Hitler|Hitler shot himself]].<ref>Kershaw, Ian. ''Hitler, 1936-1945: Nemesis'', pg. 823</ref>
+German forces surrendered in Italy on April 29th and [[Victory in Europe Day|Germany itself surrendered on May 7]].<ref name="BritWarxiv">Donnelly, Mark. ''Britain in the Second World War'', pg. xiv</ref>
+In the Pacific theater, American forces advanced in the [[Philippines campaign (1944–45)|Philippines]], clearing Leyte by the end of 1944. They [[Battle of Luzon|landed on Luzon]] in January 1945 and [[Battle of Mindanao|Mindanao]] in March.<ref>Chant, Christopher. ''The Encyclopedia of Codenames of World War II'', pg. 118</ref> British and Chinese forces defeated the Japanese in northern Burma from October to March, then the British pushed on to [[Rangoon]] by May 3.<ref>Drea, Edward J. ''In the Service of the Emperor: Essays on the Imperial Japanese Army'', pg. 57</ref>
+[[Image:nagasakibomb.jpg|left|thumb|[[N
 == See also ==