الحرب العالمية الثانية باختصار

In 1914, a massive war broke out that spread across most continents and pulled in countries from all over. These days, we just call it World War I. The countries at war ended up splitting into two sides. And after four long years of brutal fighting, This side won. The other one had no choice but to sign surrender treaties. Among losing side was nation called .. Germany. After the first World War, the winning side – strangely - decided that Germany was to blame for the war. And so they needed to be punished and weakened to prevent them from starting future ones. Germany was forced to sign a famous peace treaty called the Treaty of Versailles. which included many harsh terms: Losing territories, Paying massive reparations, Shrinking its military, Most importantly, Germany was officially blamed for the war and they totally deserve it. Now, Germany is divided and weak. it’s got no real way to compete with the other big powers. And this is the idea! Supposedly, this new setup would make Europe: a ‘safer place’. Naturally, the Germans were very upset and frustrated, and felt humiliated by all those harsh terms. Especially the ‘war guilt’ part. They really did not like that. But! Despite all the protests and complaints and because, losers don’t get to make the rules Germany had no choice but to comply. And for a few years, Germany tried to show good will, by following the rules, and sticking to the treaty. Maybe if the allies saw Germany struggling, they’d feel a bit little sympathy and even realize the treaty was way too harsh and needed to change? oh look how poor I am ~ This was Germany's plan. So, Germany started trying to work its way back into the international community. It signed all kinds of treaties, agreed to respect its new borders, and promised not to use war to solve problems anymore. It even joined the League of Nations. ermany kept playing along — being polite, paying the money, and doing what it was told, until… *World Economy* In 1929, the world was hit by a massive economic crisis — what we now call the Great Depression. Now, on top of a humiliating treaty, the German economy collapsed, Many were out of work and the German currency was so worthless that it made more sense to burn the money to make a cup of tea than .. even trying buying bread with it. All of this — especially the economic mess, made the Germans really hate and resent their government, which they blamed for miserable situation that they found themselves stuck in In the middle of all this chaos, Adolf Hitler and Nazi Party emerged on the scene. The National Socialist German Workers' Party or simply the Nazi Party, was a political group that really didn’t like the government. Hitler and the Nazi Party relentlessly attacked the German government and other political parties. Promising the people to restore Germany to its rightful place. Hitler had several political and ideological goals, including: Destroying the Treaty of Versailles. Making Germany self-sufficient and economically independent. Expanding Germany eastward to give the German people more “living space” or a Lebensraum. Building a great German Empire (or a Reich) that would dominate the rest of Europe. And so finally, the great German Empire had to be racially pure. That last goal is what set Hitler and his party apart. Hitler believed in a “superior” race of humans. He and his crew called to it the “Aryan race”. So, who were the Aryans excatly? Honestly, Hitler and his buddies were never really that clear about it. Generally speaking, to them, Aryans were a certain group of Europeans mainly Germans — with light skin, blonde hair, and blue eyes you know .. those types. And so sometimes, they would slap on top other groups if it served their interests. Hitler saw Germany as the last hope for the “Aryan race” and it had to be their exclusive homeland, a place to ‘protect’ them from mixing with any other inferior races So Germany had to be "cleansed" of other groups. For example, Hitler didn’t want any Slavs: Poles, Czechs, and Slovaks and others and, more notably, the Jews. Hitler believed that the Jews had to go somehow. He also kept talking about something he called ‘Judeo-Bolshevism’, claiming the Jews were behind communism which he saw as a massive threat to Germany. And that they were behind the communist revolution in Russia. So yeah… Hitler hated communism, the Jews, and.. he hated lots of people. Anyway In the year of 1933, after few behind-close-doors deals with the German president, Hitler made his way to power and became Chancellor of Germany Essentially, the country’s de facto leader. Now that he’s in charge, he can finally start chasing his goals. first thing first: Wreck that stinkin’ Treaty of Versailles. At that time, the countries that were supposed to keep Germany in line were divided and .. they just couldn’t seem to work together. France was politically divided and struggling economically. Britain was starting to think the treaty might’ve been too harsh. And America .. Well, America was sound asleep in isolation, and staying out of Europe. So .. Hitler, started moving. In 1933, Hitler went ahead and pulled Germany out of the League of Nations and the Disarmament Conference. Other nations condemned, but they did not take any serious measures against him. In 1934, he saw that France was trying to form an alliance with Poland against Germany. so he moved first and signed a ten-year non-aggression pact with Poland to ruin their plans. France condemned this action but did not take any serious measures against him. In 1935, after finally becoming head of state, Hitler announced he was going to build a German air force or the Luftwaffa Seeing that the other nations just "condemned but did not take any serious measures against him," he announced a week later that he was building a new German army. He even managed to convince Britain probably France’s most important ally to let Germany rebuild part of its navy. then, he remilitarized a region near France where they previously were not allowed to have troops *France said calmly: ASDACDGWRFWSC!!@#FWEFWRWHYK* The Treaty of Versailles is now practically dead. Hitler had managed to rebuild Germany’s military power, and his reputation sky rocketed in Germany and around the world After the Treaty of Versailles, Hitler began working to fix Germany’s economy. And at the same time, he started planning and looking for the right chance to expand Germany and take new territories. and the opportunity was right next to him. With his neighbors and cousins: Austria. Many Austrians at the time had German roots and .. were overly excited about Germany’s growing power. The Austrian government got nervous .. and tried reaching out to Britain kinda like: ‘Hey… if something goes down, you’ll have our back and such, right?’ Hitler learned about this and .. simply sent his troops there and annexed Austria, claiming that this was what the Austrian people wanted. The international community’s response was basically: “Hitler .. no >:( ! ”. *Wind howling* And that was basically it. After Austria, came Czechoslovakia's turn. Some of its population were of German descant and spoke german, and started calling to ‘return to the Reich.’ Hitler saw that and went: "hehe >:)" Then started calling for a piece the country called the Sudetenland. Europe at first said: “Hilter NO!!” … Ok, you can take this part only. But not an inch more !! Hitler: " Haha" "Sure ;)" Hitler just annexed the rest of Czechoslovakia'. And then the country was divided further The allies said: "Hitler !!!" After that, France and Britain were like: ‘Alright… this guy can’t be trusted, and won’t keep his word.’ If he dares to touch or step near Poland (with whom there is a non-aggression pact!) then that’s it! WAR IT IS!! Here, Hitler did two important moves... He signed an alliance with Italy and its leader, Benito Mussolini — what we now call the Pact of Steel. In short, it said they were friends and would stand by each other’s side.” and, his government met with the leadership of the Soviet Union, led by Joseph Stalin and they signed a non-aggression pact. Also they secretly agreed that each side would take a piece of Poland for themselves. at the surface, The treaty didn't make sense at all. Germans and Soviets were ideological enemies and didn't like each other. But it was useful for both sides. So, they struck a deal anyway. Hitler told his ally Italy – which was totally unprepared to get ready for an invasion of Poland. And then, without any delay in a move that changed history forever *Snap* Hitler marched his army into Poland. As a result, Britain and France declared war on Germany. And with that, the Second World War had begun. World War 2 Summersied Made By:

Hassan Abdullah

Ahmad Abdullah

Yousef Abdullah

Hussain Abdullah The invasion of Poland came fast — and with overwhelming force! Germany started with air raids, THEN QUICKLY! followed up with a huge ground attack Tanks, vehicles, everything The Germans did not want to get stuck in trench warfare like in World War I. Their goal was simple: MOVE FAST! HIT HARD! NEVER STOP! Surprise the enemy, strike like lightning, and don’t give them a second to breath. This strategy later became known as “Blitzkrieg”. or what you would call in plain English: "Lightning Warfare". And so it is what the Germans became known for in World War II. The Poles were not weak. but they just could not withstand Germany’s rapid attack. Within a week, the Germans reached the polish capital. Soon after, the Soviet Union — following its secret deal entered Poland from the east and ... Poland was completely overrun. Each country took its share. nd Britain and France — the ones meant to protect Poland Just watched, unable to do a thing.” After that, Stalin — the Soviet leader who trusted absolutely no one started getting nervous. He worried that Finland might fall under German influence putting Germany right on his border close to their major cities like Leningrad So Stalin basically told Finland: "Hey!" “Hand over some land, or I swear!’ The Finns were like: “NO!” So, Stalin sent his forces and took parts of Finland. And then he went on to occupy the Baltic states and took a chunk of Romania. On the other side, Germany suspected that Britain and France were planning to take Norway so it won’t fall into German hands. So, Hitler ordered his army to take .. Denmark and Norway too. The British and the French sent few forces to stop him but they got clapped quickly and Germany took both countries Now, Hitler was secure from the north, the south, and the east. Only one direction left for him to dominate Europe - the west. Now it’s France and Britain's turn Germany's first enemies from the first World War. Everything before this was just child’s play The real war was about to begin. Germany started preparing for a massive attack and the French and British — knowing the fight was coming straight at them began getting ready as well. France, although not in the best shape, till had one of the strongest and largest armies in the world. Add the British forces, and you get a power you really shouldn’t underestimate. The German army: over 3 million soldiers. France, together with the British forces supporting them, over three million soldiers as well. On paper, both sides were evenly matched in troops and equipment. France had its border with Germany heavily fortified. They had a whole line of defences called the ‘Maginot Line.’ The Germans were not dumb; they wouldn't try to breach it. So France — along with the British — expected Germany to take Belgium, that small country between them. and move their troops through it. Just like they did in World War I. So they mobilized their forces at Belgium in anticipation. uh one thing we need to mention. Right along the French border, there’s a huge forest called the Ardennes. France didn’t bother fortifying it because the German army relied on tanks. And tanks can’t go through dense forests. Right? Oh well ... no need to fortify it. Foreshadowing .. The British and the French gathered most of their troops near Belgium, setting up their defenses and getting ready to face the Germans there. and it looked like, they were right the Germans did go into Belgium. then something odd happened the Germans also moved into the Netherlands. Huh? Why are they splitting their forces? That alone threw the Allies off and made them pretty nervous. But then, came the big surprise. Unlike what the French expected, the Germans didn’t attack from Belgium alone. They split their forces, hitting Belgium and the Netherlands but the largest part of the army pushed straight through the Ardennes forest. They came out behind the French lines, surrounded them, and cut off all supplies. The French and British were trapped. The Germans were hitting them from all directions. Their lines fell apart, and everyone started retreating north. The British forces kept pulling back until they were finally cornered in a place called Dunkirk. For some reason, the German forces halted their advance And only bombarded them from the air. The British saw this as their chance to escape and quickly, quickly, quickly, hey loaded every soldier they could onto ships and sent them back to Britain and left the French alone. The Germans kept pushing the french and advancing and towards Paris. And in a very short time, they reached the capital and France declared its surrender. It was a sweeping victory for the Germans. France — the same country Germany fought for four long years in the first war collapsed in just thirty-five days. Even Hitler himself did not expect this quick win. So He rushed to Paris and took a few photos. Germany set up a new, pro-German government in France and took over part of the country. And after that Paris pretty much became a playground for the Germans. At this moment, Hitler was THE dominant in Europe. *Army March* Oh right .. ummmmm Italy, under Mussolini, declared war on France and tried to send troops into southern France after Dunkirk. but, their rear was kicked and couldn't do much. by the way, the alliance between Germany and Italy was called the “Axis powers”, and their enemies were called the Allies. So, these are the names of the factions that participated in World War II. Anyway, let's continue Britain, now alone and without any allies knew a German invasion was coming. Their forces still hadn’t recovered from fighting the Germans and they had left a lot of their equipment behind in France when they escaped. So things weren’t great. But they had a card up their sleeve that might help them win. Britain is an island. in the middle of the sea. You can’t roll tanks into it like you did in France. They have a natural barrier protecting them called: the "English Channel." Germany lacked a good way to carry an invasion across the channel. So, the British had a chance. The Germans thought: if you can't attack them from the land or the sea, then your only option is to attack them from the air. And so that's what happened. Both sides fought in the air for control of the British skies. The German Air Force: the Luftwaffe. VS The British Royal Air Force: the RAF. They started with light air skirmishes during which Hitler tried to “negotiate for peace” ... while bombing them, of course. Then came a massive air battle and Britain proved it wasn’t easy to break, and managed to push back the German attacks. The Germans got fed up and decided to bomb London and the British also bombed Berlin too Hitler realized he won’t be able to control british skies or wipe out their air force sooo ~ he decided to “postpone” the invasion. But of course, the bombing didn’t stop. And Britain .. won? They held off Germany’s assault. So they won. For the first time, Hitler had failed in a military operation. Defeating the Germans is possible! After failing to invade Britain, Hitler turned his head east Toward the Soviet Union. But before we dive into Russia, let's take a look at Italy and see what it was up to at this point of the war Italy was on the winning side at the end of World War I. Its allies had promised it some territories after the war but, as colonizers usually do, they ditched Italy and gave it nothing. The Italians were furious with the Allies, and out of that anger emerged Mussolini taly’s bald leader and Hitler’s buddy who loved to take off his shirt. Mussolini wanted to bring back Italy’s old glory and rebuild the Roman Empire yes, that Roman Empire. After watching his buddy Hitler win battle after battle and grab everything in sight, Mussolini felt he had to move fast before there was nothing left for him. and he started taking action Now, let’s take a look at a map of the lands the Romans once ruled. See all these areas? North Africa, parts of Greece, Mussolini simply wanted them Back then, North Africa was under European rule. Britain controlled Egypt, Italy held Libya, and France ruled Tunisia, Algeria, and most of Morocco. and the rest of Africa was split among European powers Mussolini started with a few skirmishes against British forces First in Malta and then again in east Africa But his first real battle came when Italy launched an invasion of British Somaliland. and actually managed to defeat the British there. Okay, before we continue, there’s something you need to know about Mussolini He often acted on his own, without coordinating with Hitler. He launched a campaign against Egypt on his own to take it from the British. but it went so bad that the British pushed him back, took part of his Libyan territory and captured a huuuuuge number of his soldiers. *The sound a person makes when they feel like kicking the one next to them* Overall, the Mediterranean wasn’t that important to Hitler but since his buddy was getting slapped around there, he had to send one of his best generals, to North Africa with a lot of tanks to North Africa to bail Italy out. And then, of course, Mussolini decided he wanted Greece too. He sent his troops in without even asking Hitler, and he got slapped there too. Consult! Consult! Hitler was furious. And after securing alliances with Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia to protect his southern borders, he decided to let Mussolini and the Italians take their beating in Greece for a bit. *Per favore!* After a while, Hitler sent his forces there — but only after "persuading" Bulgaria to join the Axis and invading Yugoslavia to clear a path. and he defeated the British-backed Greek forces and ended up rescuing the Italians. After that, the Germans and the British fought on an island called Crete and … the Germans won. Ok .. we covered Italy .. *thinking noises* Let’s go back to Germany. After his failed invasion of Britain in the west, Hitler decided it was time to go after his main goal. To crush the Soviet Union and communism in the east and create a new homeland for the Germans. From the very start, if you remember, Hitler’s ideological enemy had always been the Soviet Union communism, or what he called Judeo Bolshevism. A non-aggression pact between them didn’t matter Hitler will destroy them. The Germans began preparing for the biggest military operation in human history An operation known as "Barbarossa". Even though Russia was far larger than Germany in land and in army size Hitler still expected a quick, easy victory. He believed the Soviet Union was weak, backward, and poorly equipped. He though” “Just kick in the front door, and the whole rotten structure will collapse.” The Germans split their forces into three army groups and unleashed them on Russia. The attack caught the Soviets off guard They were not ready for it In the first 24 hours alone, the Germans caused tens of thousands of casualties, captured massive numbers of prisoners, and advanced at a speed even they didn’t expect. Because the Soviets were ideological enemies, not just military ones, the Germans treated them with extreme brutality. In their first two months in Russia, they committed things .. that are difficult to talk about. The Germans kept pushing deeper into Russia and captured huge areas. But even with all these victories, they soon started running into major problems. First issue! Russia is massive, and has a harsh weather. The deeper they advanced, the harder it was to supply their troops Second issue Despite being chaotic, poorly organized, and taking massive losses, the Soviets still managed to hit back hard and wear the Germans down. As the Germans moved forward, Soviet units that hadn’t been captured regrouped and formed resistance groups or “partisans” who attacked from behind. These partisans became a nonstop headache for the Germans. And harassed them constantly. The Soviets also adopted a scorched-earth policy In short: they destroyed anything that could be useful if they had to retreat. Roads, bridges, buildings, fields. *Burning Noises* One of the most astonishing things in the war was how the Soviets dismantled their factories in the west bolt by bolt, piece by piece and from there, they built entirely new industrial cities to support their war effort. It was a massive undertaking something the Germans never expected. So, because of all this, Germany’s advance kept stalling. The Russians were tougher than expected and the war looked like it would drag on something Germany really .. really didn’t want. By September, the Germans had finally reached Kyiv in Ukraine and the city of Leningrad. hey managed to take Kyiv, but Leningrad was put under siege a siege that lasted nearly 900 days Which will claim the lives of more than a million people, many of them through hunger and starvation By late September, the central army pushed toward Moscow. But the Russian autumn did not help them at all Rain and mud. Non-stop! their vehicles could barely move. Add to that the Soviet defences. They kept pushing and pushing until winter arrived. And now… you are in Russia. In the cold. In Russia! The German soldiers weren’t prepared for this weather at all. Wallah! They thought it was going to be a quick victory, So they didn’t even bring proper jackets to wear. The Russians on the other hands, this was their weather. They were used to it. They brought in troops from Serbia that are experts in winter fighting and in December they launched a counter-attack near Moscow that stopped the German advance. The Germans, under these conditions, could do nothing. They had to halt their operations in Russia until spring, when the weather warmed up a bit That’s what Hitler really wanted to avoid. Germany had always relied on fast, blitzkrieg attacks to overwhelm their enemies and most.. they collapsed quickly But the Russians held on. Despite Germany’s heavy blows. And now, the conflict between the Germans and Soviets was turning into a long costly war of attrition. And Germany was not ready for that. if you’ve noticed, there’s been a sleeping giant. that talked about since the start of the war .. *light switch* Japan. Japan came out of World War I as a winner after snatching up a few nearby islands from Germany. And after the war, it was handed those islands plus a few areas in China. *Happy Noises* But the West asked Japan to limit the size of its navy, so there wouldn’t be constant conflict in that part of the Pacific. *Sad Noises* Many in Japan were upset by what they perceived as Western arrogance And they became convinced that the only path to national security was in .. getting stronger. In general, Japan was dealing with a lot of problems at the time. The population was booming he country lacked natural resources, and many people had lost faith in the civilian government seeing it as incompetent and corrupt. So many in Japan’s military became convinced that the only real solution to Japan’s growing problems was expansion to grab new lands filled with food, oil, minerals All the good stuff you need to build a strong military. Sooo.. where could they find land like that? Right to their west was a region in China rich with resources, called Manchuria. So .. After a ‘small incident’ — definitely not staged Japan zipped in with its army, took over the area, and established A new "state" over there called Manchukuo. The League of Nations said: Japan NO!! But Japan ignored them and quit the League and so on. It went to china and took huge chunks of it and so on. And committing not-very-nice-things in the capital Nanjing and so on. And for a while, she kept harassing China and pushing deeper to expand and secure resources. despite condemnation from the US Japan tried to expand northward but the soviets told them: Okay, so Japan. Can’t push north because there’s a Soviet giant that bites that way. So… south? Down south, America had a choke hold on the part of the Pacific. Any move there meant Japan would’ve been on a collision course with the U.S. and its friends. So… Japan decided to cool it for a bit and focus on building up its own strength and influence with “peaceful means”. Then, this mustache guy popped up in Germany and so on. and Japan watched him slap the West around and so on. and they thought : “Hey, we can do that too” and so on. Japan replaced its government with a more aggressive one. and the new government started taking even more of China. They also made a deal with Germany and Italy. If any one of them went to war with the U.S., the others would help. And with that, the famous Axis Powers alliance of the second world war was complete *Axis Powers* When America saw Japan doing all these things, hey hit them with economic sanctions. cutting their oil and other supplies. After that, America even froze Japan’s money in U.S. banks. Japan was now crippled without resources. They got mad, screamed, protested But there wasn’t much they could do to change the West’s position. They wanted them out of China. To continue its expansionist project, maybe violence was their only option.. And that’s what happened. In November 1941 Japan quietly sent a huge carrier toward an American base in Hawaii called Pearl Harbor and .. It destroyed a significant chunk of the U.S. Pacific fleet. Now they had some time to do what they wanted and expand freely while America scrambled to rebuild its presence in the Pacific. Unsurprisingly, the Americans were furiousa and immediately declared war on Japan. With that, both the U.S. and Japan were part of World War II. Hitler declared war on the U.S. since, well, he’d signed that pact with Japan - if you remember the war now shifted from a European conflict into a true world war. Japan wanted to grab whatever it could while it still had the chance. So they went around the Pacific and .. steamrolled everything in their path. They seized a lot of land. At that time, Japan was the undisputed power of Southeast Asia. And now the sea was wide open for them what should they do next? While Japan was thinking about its next move, suddenly! The United States shocked Japan by bombing Tokyo. The U.S. wanted to show Japan: Don’t get cocky with few wins— we can hit you at home if we wanted That strike on Tokyo was a slap that brought Japan back to reality and pushed them into a more defensive stance. Before expanding further, they had to push the U.S. out. Here, they entered their first real battle with America in a place called the Coral Sea. The Japanese fleet wanted to expand its control cut the supply line between Australia and the U.S. which brought them head-to-head with the American fleet. This clash sparked a battle unlike anything seen before. A battle in the middle of the sea but the fighting was done with aircraft and their carriers. Both sides claimed victory but strategically, the U.S. won since they stopped Japan from taking any more territory. Japan said: !@#!$ Japan couldn’t move freely with America lurking around. They had force the U.S. out of the Pacific, by any means. So once again, they put together a massive naval fleet and — with a complicated plan we don’t have time to get into they headed toward an island called Midway, where the Americans had a base. And there, the two strongest fleets in the world clashed again. The battle was fast and chaotic with planes swarming like bees in the skies and ships and carriers dodging around like something out of a movie or a fantasy. NO SERIOUSLY Just look at how the Japanese carriers were maneuvering to avoid the bombs! The battle concluded with … a decisive victory for the U.S. America succeed in sinking four Japanese carriers. The Battle of Midway was a devastating defeat for Japan. From that point on, It was no longer the dominant power in the Pacific and was forced to shift from offense to defense. Near Australia, in the Solomon Islands, Japanese and American forces became locked in a long , drawn-out battle known as the Battle of Guadalcanal. The Americans eventually won, but you know. It wasn’t easy. During this time, he U.S. began a secret project called the Manhattan Project aiming to develop a new weapon powered by the energy inside the atom. Meanwhile, in North Africa, The forces Hitler sent to save Italy managed to drive the British out of Libya except for a city called Tobruk. And the two armies remained stuck on the Egyptian border. fighting over the same ground again and again. Sometimes the Allies won, sometimes the Axis did. But Hitler kept refusing to send real reinforcements because, the region was a sideshow to him — Mussolini is the one dragged him to it. In the East, near Iraq, a pro-German coup erupted throwing Britain into disarray and forcing them to divert some troops to intervene. In Syria, the British and the Free French forces fought against the French army loyal to the Vichy government, which supported Germany. Britain managed to find a way to resupply its forces in Egypt And there, they managed to defeat the Germans in a major battle called El Alamein pushing them back and forcing them to retreat deep into Libya. Here, the Allied forces started discussing their next move. The Soviet Union — now an ally — was basically saying: “Guys! Hitler’s killing us here!" " Can someone please open another front in Europe to ease the pressure? ” "And Africa doesn’t count!" The Americans agreed and said to Britain: Why don’t we attack them through the English Channel, Right next to you? Britain replied:"‘No…" "Why not?" America asked. Britain answered: "Because.. I said so” “Plus we’re not ready” “Plus the waters are crawling with German U-boats” “Plus your troops aren’t ready to face the Germans” “Plus I don’t wanna” After some back and forth, The Allies agreed to delay the attack on Germany through the English Channel and instead strike from French North Africa or the Maghreb countries. *Angry Stalin:"We said Africa doesn’t count!"* And they launched a massive joint attack there. The Americans finally had a chance to test themselves against Hitler, and.. "Told you, you’re not ready for the Germans" The Axis forces .. clapped them especially in Tunisia. But after that, the Allies regrouped and since Hitler still refused to send proper supplies to his African corp they managed to launch a second attack and surround the Germans and Italians near Tunis. Now in north Africa, Axis was kicked out of the east and were chased there. Cornered in the west and many of their forces were captured there. and they just lost control .. there. And just like that, the Allies cemented their dominance in North Africa. and the North African campaign .. came to a close. America: “Alright, Africa’s done?” America: “Can we finally invade Germany through the English Channel?” Britain: “Not yet. Let’s knock out Italy first" Britain: "Look! our troops are already close, and Italy is weak right now.” Britain: "It’s an Easy win” America: “…No! But… sigh …okay, You’ve got a point.” Now, the Allies set their sights on Italy. The attack began on the island of Sicily and the Italians barely put up a fight and huge numbers of them were surrendering in bulk Nobody wanted to risk their life for Mussolini. The Germans, though, dug in fiercely. But .. The Allies quickly took control of Sicily. Losing Sicily and the possibility of an invasion of Italy itself Led to something unexpected. Mussolini, Hitler’s main ally and source of inspiration was removed from power and replaced by a new government which immediately announced its surrender. Italy surrendered in September 1943 But the Germans were still there—and they had no intention of giving up Rome. So, they sent more troops into northern Italy set up a puppet government, and put Mussolini back in charge as a symbolic leader. The Allies split their forces and tried entering Italy from several directions. and after long, brutal fighting, in miserable conditions especially for the Americans the Allies finally managed to take southern Italy and reached the outskirts of Rome by late 1943. After that everything kinda stalled. Neither side could push forward And things in Italy settled into a kind of uneasy stalemate. Still, the campaign against the Germans in Italy continued. The Allies fought several battles here and there until they reached Rome. The Germans pulled back north partly because they didn’t want a major symbol of Western civilization — like Rome — to be destroyed. and there, they fortified themselves along a second defensive line known as: The “Gothic” line. Let’s rewind a bit. On the Eastern Front, over in Russia if you remember he Germans were trying to take two cities: Moscow and Leningrad But it just wasn’t working The Soviets were exhausted.

The Germans were exhausted. Operation Barbarossa, was a failure Hitler was like: Dang it! Boys, listen up—we’re changing strategy! instead of these two dumb cities which we don’t even need! we’ll launch a new operation that actually benefits us. We’ll send part of our army into southern Russia. Down there, in the Caucasus, there are oil fields we can use. Also, we’ll take a city there called Stalingrad. Stalingrad was an industrial city that produced many tanks and weapons for the Soviets. And it sat on one of Europe’s largest rivers. A key route for moving supplies Taking it would cripple Soviet industry and cut off a major supply route. and besides, what was the city’s name again? Stalingrad > STALINgrad > Stalin grad (in English: Stalin city / fortress ) No joke— one of the reasons the Germans wanted the city was because it had “stalin” in its name. They thought taking it would be a huge insult and psychological blow to the Soviets. Hitler split his forces and pushed them south. and despite Soviet attempts to them, the Germans reached the city. And right here, one of the most brutal battles in human history began the Battle of Stalingrad The Germans would take the city at any cost. And the Soviets would defend it to the last. It started with a bombardment and a full siege, then it turned into close combat. Combat shifted from the streets to the alleys to inside the buildings. The city was reduced to rubble - and inside that rubble, the fighting continued. Soldiers fought and killed over a few meters. Snipers were hiding in every corner. Among all the battles in World War II No battle claimed more lives than Stalingrad. At first, the Germans controlled nearly 90% of the city and it looked like victory was theirs. But in one of the largest counter-offensives of the war the Soviets sent in massive reinforcements and managed to encircle the Germans inside the city. After weeks of siege and starvation The German soldiers wanted to surrender. But Hitler ordered them to fight to the last man. The Germans remained trapped through the freezing Russian winter, cut off from supplies—until they finally surrendered in February. It was a victory for the Soviets — and a crushing defeat for Germany. From that point on, the scales began to tip in Russia. The Germans suffered defeat after another, until the Soviets drove them back from most of their territory Around the time the Battle of Stalingrad was raging, and the Soviets basically told Britain and America: Listen… no more excuses. Open a second front against Germany '@#$!@#' Stalin had had enough. Roosevelt had had enough Both of them wanted an invasion of Germany through the English Channel Britain finally said: ‘…Alright, fine.’ And preparations began for the operation meant to end Germany once and for all "Operation Overlord" By June 1944, everyone was on edge, waiting for the Allied invasion. The Germans knew an attack was coming from the sea They just didn’t know when or where They knew one thing for sure If they failed to stop it, the future of the Third Reich was uncertain And on June 6th, off the coast of France, in a place called Normandy German soldiers spotted something in the English Channel D-Day The scale of the attack was unbelievable. For weeks on end, ship after ship, plane after plane, nonstop. Over two million soldiers, from more than twelve countries landed with their equipment on the beaches of Normandy. All of them, heading into France to fight the Germans and their allies German defenses fought back fiercely and wiped out huge numbers of troops. But numbers prevail The Allies managed to secure the beaches and establish their landing zones. The Allies had finally returned to mainland Europe and Germany was in serious trouble. Now it was fighting on three fronts: In the west, in the east, and in the south, in Italy. The Allies pushed in from the west, while the Soviets advanced from the east. Despite German resistance - which was falling apart from every direction the Soviets scored major victories in the east. Meanwhile, Britain and the United States liberated northwest France and retook Paris And they didn’t stop there. They kept moving into Belgium and Luxembourg The Allies kept pushing forward in the west, but they ran into serious supply problems he same issue that plagued pretty much every army in World War II They also tried to launch a major operation to end the war but the Germans stopped it. Despite stopping a major Allied operation Germany was still in serious trouble. The country was now surrounded on all sides, losing ground everywhere. Hitler’s main enemy had always been the Soviet Union, not anyone else. But to focus on them, he first had to deal with Britain and the United States. If he couldn’t defeat them outright He can at least force them to the negotiating table. All he needed was a massive blow strong enough to make them say ouch ouch ouch! OK STOP! Ok let’s talk Remember the move Germany pulled at the start of the war against France where they pushed through the ‘impassable’ forest? Hitler decided to gamble on that same move again. He planned to strike the Allies from the one place they wouldn’t expect split their forces, and seize a major port in Belgium. His officers protested. Many of them did. An attack like this wouldn’t work anymore. But Hitler was desperate. And in December 1944, with the skies hidden by clouds and snow covering the ground Hitler gathered everything he had left and ordered a surprise attack on the Americans Launching a secret attack through the Ardennes later known as the Battle of the Bulge. The German army smashed into the American lines and punched a hole through them. At first, the Germans had the upper hand But That was the end of the German offensive. The Allies held the line and pushed them back. Hitler ignored his officers’ warnings and wasted the very last of his resources on a failed gamble. His reckless choices ended any hope of winning the war. Now, Germany could no longer fight — not in the west… and not in the east. The Soviets were ready to push into poland. And Hitler had nothing left to stop them. But before we continue with Hitler let’s rewind a bit and check in on Japan. Last time, we were at the battle between the U.S. and Japan on an island called Guadalcanal which ended in an American victory. After that, while the Allies and Axis powers were fighting across Europe and Africa. The U.S. and Japan were locked in a series of battles for control of islands across the Pacific. Which islands? See all those tiny dots? The U.S. and Japan fought viciously over them and for a good reason kinda. Here’s America, and here’s Japan. Between them a massive ocean called the Pacific If one of them wanted to strike the other, had to travel a loooong way by ship to get there And aircraft back then… they just could not make it It wasn’t practical to attack directly Nah, better option was to control islands across the Pacific using them as launch points for your forces. Besides, holding the islands kept your merchant ships safe At first, Japan controlled many of these islands. But once the U.S. secured Guadalcanal they launched a new strategy: hopping from island to island The goal was to take control of that part of the Pacific and slowly carve a path toward Japan itself. America on the offensive, Japan on the defensive. The U.S. kept pushing forward, fighting Japan across island after island and honestly, they won most of those battles. Japan kept losing… and losing… and losing. and every time the Americans landed on a new island, a massive battle would erupt over a tiny piece of land you can barely see on a map and only few birds live there When the Americans moved in to take the Mariana Islands they clashed with Japan in a massive battle near the Philippine Sea And Japan got absolutely wrecked. A huge portion of what was left of the Japanese fleet and carriers was destroyed. and they lost over 500 planes The U.S. kept island-hopping and pushing forward Advancing until they reached a point from which they could launch bombers directly to Japan's homeland. Japan’s government collapsed and a new one took its place. Now Japan was in a very dangerous position. The Americans were closing in fast, and what was left of Japan’s navy was barely standing. They had to find some way to turn things around or at least score a major victory. The Allies moved to retake the Philippines, and Japan couldn’t afford to lose them. So they gathered whatever was left of their fleet and threw it into a a suicidal battle against the U.S. at Leyte Gulf. at Leyte Gulf in the largest naval battle of World War II. The American fleet was far bigger, and Japan went to battle without proper support from their carriers But this time, Japan had a secret weapon In that battle, driven by sheer desperation the Japanese began using one of the strangest and most infamous tactics of the war kamikaze suicide attacks. Japanese pilots flew their planes directly into American ships turning the aircraft themselves into weapons. The psychological impact was huge. It convinced many Americans that the Japanese were fanatical. and were willing to do absolutely anything. But despite these strange attacks, the Japaneese unsurprisingly was beaten. The Japanese navy was effectively broken After this battle, it played real role for the rest of the war. The U.S., backed by Australia and Mexico, continued its push in the Philippines. America continued its campaign in the Philippines to drive Japan out and they kept moving forward, and now it was very close to Japan’s mainland Here, America wanted to take two more islands to gain even more launch points for air attacks on Japan The islands of Iwo Jima and Okinawa And the Japanese fought ferociously there. The battles on those islands were absolutely fierce. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers were killed, most of them Japanese Japan was beaten, and it had nothing left to stop the Americans except its own people. And it was ready to sacrifice everything Just to keep the Americans off its homeland. After this battle, the U.S. began to realize that a full invasion of mainland Japan would be a disaster. Their estimates? they could lose up to a million soldiers And who knows how many millions of Japanese would die along the way. America knew it would eventually win. But it didn’t want to pay that kind of price for victory. Is there a way to force Japan to surrender with fewer losses? Here, the U.S. began a new strategy They started launching aircrafts from China and the islands it had captured and began bombing Japan and destroying it Back to Germany By February 1945, Soviet forces had pushed deep into Eastern Europe. and were just sixty-five miles from Berlin, Germany’s capital. From the other side, the Allies had crossed the Rhine on Germany’s western border and by April, they were at the gates of the capital as well During the Soviet advance in the east they uncovered one of the most horrifying discoveries of the entire Second World War Throughout this period, Germany and its allies built camps across their territory and across many of the regions they controlled there, prisoners were gathered along with many people who belonged to groups the Nazi Party disliked and over whom it now held power The Soviets, Poles, Serbs, Roma, people with disabilities, anyone labeled an enemy and of course, Jews. Inside these camps, many were forced into labor to serve the Nazi regime And beyond that, the regime pursued a ‘final solution’ for dealing with these groups In the camps, millions were systematically eliminated An estimated seventeen million people died through execution , exhaustion, or the brutal conditions they were forced to endure. Now, Allied forces are at Germany’s capital — Berlin Months earlier, the Big Three ( Britain, America, and the Soviet Union ) have agreed to leave Berlin to the Soviets They would take the city. After Hitler spent years trying to destroy them after killing millions of their people Now, they would fire the final shot the one that would end his state The Soviets launched their final assault with a storm of fire on the German defenses around Berlin Then they sent their armies in to take the city. Once Berlin was encircled, they crushed the city and its remaining resistance At this point, one question was on the minds of the Americans and the British: “where is Hitler?” is he hiding somewhere inside Berlin or has he escaped the city? Intelligence suggested that the Germans had built a stronghold in the Alps so maybe he was hiding there So, the Allies sent most of their forces south, toward Bavaria. To search for him But they wouldn’t find him there. Hitler was still in Berlin, under the bombardment. Hitler was hiding in a bunker beneath the city fully aware that the war was over for him and for his party Not long before that, his friend Mussolini had been captured while trying to flee northern Italy, after repeated Allied attacks and uprisings against him. and he was executed and his body was publicly displayed in the streets of Milan. Determined not to meet the same fate, Hitler decided he would neither run nor surrender to the Allies. On April 30, 1945 Hitler took his own life. And he ordered his followers to burn his body so it wouldn’t be desecrated the way Mussolini’s had been. On May 8th, victory over Germany was officially declared. And a few weeks later, what remained of Hitler’s body was discovered And with that World War II came to an end at least in Europe .. After Germany’s defeat there was one major thing left for the Allies to deal with .. Japan. Despite repeated defeats, Despite the heavy bombing Despite the destruction of its navy Japan still refused to surrender. The U.S., after all the earlier island battles, wanted to avoid a ground invasion. They wanted to end the war quickly with minimal losses but also, didn’t want to negotiate. Britain and The US demanded unconditional surrender America issued an ultimatum: America: "We will let you keep land." America: "We will let you rebuild your industry.' America: "and we have no intention of enslaving you or wiping you out as a nation." America: "as long as you withdraw from all occupied territories." America: "Disarm completely,," America: "and surrender without conditions." America: "Either accept this," America: "Or prepare to face total and complete destruction" Japan.. did not accept On the morning of August 6, 1945, An atomic bomb was dropped on the city of Hiroshima The bomb alone obliterated 60% of the city, killing between 80,000 to 100,000 people, America: "Didn’t we warn you we can destroy you?" America: "You want Japan erased from existence?" America: "That’s what you want?" America: "We’ve got a stockpile of this weapon!" The U.S. dropped a second atomic bomb on Nagasaki Sending Japan an unmistakable message: We possess the most devastating weapon on Earth and we’re not afraid to use it As a final blow, the Soviet Union declared war on Japan. the Soviet Union also declared war on Japan. At first, Japan still refused to surrender even after Nagasaki. But numbers .. prevail. Japan at the end, Surrounded on all sides, finally, on August 15, announced its surrender. And with that, the war finally ended. World War II was the largest human conflict in history. 55 million people lost their lives. As a result, no place on earth escaped its impact. Even regions untouched by direct fighting. The war reshaped global power dynamics. In its aftermath: The United Nations was founded to prevent future world wars. The United States and Soviet Union emerged as superpowers setting the stage for the Cold War. Europe, at least for a while was divided. And after the war, Decolonization movements surged and the modern nation-state model spread across the globe It was total war It was costly war It was, in every sense of the word, a world war And that’s its story summarized. World War 2 Summarized Animations and Character Design By:

Yousef Abdullah

Ahmed Abdullah

Hassan Abdullah

Written and Produced By:

Hussain Abdullah These designs were inspired by the following historical figures to represent nations and individuals in the video