World War 2 timeline
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Adolf Hitler Orders the Construction of the Atlantic Wall Following the St. Nazaire Raid
On March 23, 1942 Führer Directive Number 40 called for the official creation of the Atlantic Wall. After the St. Nazaire Raid, on April 13, 1942... Read more
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Doolittle Raid
The Doolittle Raid, 18 April 1942, was the first air raid by the United States to strike a Japanese home island (Honshū) during World War II. It... Read more
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German Luftwaffe Bombs Exeter as Part of the Baedeker Blitz
The Baedeker Blitz or Baedeker raids were a series of Vergeltungsangriffe ("retaliatory raids") by the German air force on English cities in... Read more
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German Luftwaffe Bombs English City of Bath as Part of the Baedeker Blitz
The Baedeker Blitz or Baedeker raids were a series of Vergeltungsangriffe ("retaliatory raids") by the German air force on English cities in... Read more
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German Luftwaffe Bombs Norwich as Part of the Baedeker Blitz
The Baedeker Blitz or Baedeker raids were a series of Vergeltungsangriffe ("retaliatory raids") by the German air force on English cities in... Read more
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German Luftwaffe Bombs York as Part of the Baedeker Blitz
The Baedeker Blitz or Baedeker raids were a series of Vergeltungsangriffe ("retaliatory raids") by the German air force on English cities in... Read more
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Zhejiang-Jiangxi Campaign
As the raiders landed in China, most were aided by local Chinese forces or civilians. One raider, Corporal Leland D. Faktor, died while bailing... Read more
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Battle of the Coral Sea
The Battle of the Coral Sea, fought during May 4–8, 1942, was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II between the Imperial... Read more
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Battle of Kerch Peninsula
Battle of the Kerch Peninsula (German: Unternehmen Trappenjagd) was a World War II offensive by German and Romanian armies against the Soviet... Read more
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The Second Battle of Kharkov
The Kharkov area was a pivotal area on the Eastern Front, sitting astride two important strategic axes towards Kursk and the Donbas. The Russian... Read more
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The Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway, fought over and near the tiny U.S. mid-Pacific base at Midway atoll, represents the strategic high water mark of Japan's... Read more
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Germans Begin Assault on Secondary Defense Line at Sevastopol
After expelling the Soviets from the Crimea, the German attention turned once again to Sevastopol. To help with the siege von Manstein had at his... Read more
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Battle of Voronezh (1942)
The Battle of Voronezh was a battle on the Eastern Front of World War II, fought in and around the strategically important city of Voronezh on the... Read more
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Germany Initiates Case Blue
Case Blue (German: Fall Blau) was the German codename used by the German Armed Forces (Wehrmacht) for its 1942 strategic summer offensive in... Read more
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Battle of Stalingrad Begins
The Battle of Stalingrad was a battle of World War II between Nazi Germany and its allies and the Soviet Union for control of the city of... Read more
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Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project, formally constituted in August 1942, was the code name for the federally funded research program to develop the atomic bomb.... Read more
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Makin Island Raid
The Makin Island Raid (pronounced, "Muckin") (occurred on August 17, 1942 – August 18, 1942) was an attack by the United States Marine Corps on... Read more
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Sinyavin Offensive/Operation Nordlicht
Operation Northern Light (German: Unternehmen Nordlicht) and the Sinyavin Offensive refers to two near simultaneous military operations by planned... Read more
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First Flight of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress
Designed in 1940 as an eventual replacement for the B-17 and B-24, the first B-29 made its maiden flight on Sept. 21, 1942. In December 1943 U.S.... Read more
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German Paratroopers Land near Grozny to Join Forces with Chechen Rebels
Abwehr's Nordkaukasische Sonderkommando Schamil landed in several points in Chechnya, coordinating strikes with rebels. On 25 September 1942 German... Read more
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Second Battle of El Alamein
The Second Battle of El Alamein marked a major turning point in the Western Desert Campaign of World War II. The battle lasted from 23 October to 5... Read more
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Winston Churchill Delivers His 'This Is Not The End' Speech
The Germans have received back again that measure of fire and steel which they have so often meted out to others. Now this is not the end. It is... Read more
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Operation Uranus
Operation Uranus (Russian: Операция «Уран», romanised: Operatsiya Uran) was the codename of the Soviet strategic operation in World War II which... Read more
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Operation Mars
Operation Mars was the operation codename for the Rzhev offensive operation part of the Rzhev-Vyazma strategic offensive operation (08.01-20.04.42)... Read more
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Operation Winter Storm
Operation Winter Storm (German: Unternehmen Wintergewitter) was a German offensive in World War II undertaken between 12–23 December 1942, in which... Read more