WW II The Beginning of the End

1
WW II- The Beginning of the End

• 1942-1945

2
Battle of Stalingrad

• August, 1942- February, 1943
• Hitlers goal- the oil fields in southern
  U.S.S.R.
• German losses- 300,000 men killed, wounded or
  captured
• Red army takes the offensive and drove the
  Germans out of the Soviet Union

3
The Invasion of Sicily and Italy

• July, 1943- British and American forces land in
  Sicily
• 1943-1944- Allied forces move up the Italian
  peninsula toward Germany
• Hitler fighting on two fronts- southern and
  eastern

4
The Invasion of France

• June 6,1944- D-Day invasion
• Allied planes drop paratroopers behind German
  lines
• Thousands of ships carry 176,000 troops across
  the English Channel
• Allied Powers fought through German lines toward
  Paris
• August, 1944- Paris free
• September, 1944- France free

5
The Battle of the Bulge

• December, 1944 in Belgium
• Last German offensive of WW II
• Opened the door to the invasion of Germany
• Allied planes bombing German towns
• March, 1945- Allies cross the Rhine River
• April, 1945- American and Soviet troops meet at
  the Elbe River
• Axis armies begin to surrender

6
The Last Days of WW II in Europe

• April, 1945- Hitler commits suicide
• April, 1945- Mussolini executed
• May 7, 1945- Germany surrenders
• May 8, 1945- V-E Day ( victory in Europe Day)