What were the most significant WW2 battles?
What were the
most significant WW2 battles?
There were no insignificant battles in the war. However,
there is clear proof that particular wars are more significant then other wars.
The wars that would be classified as significant are the wars that are the most
important and caused the most impact and maybe change the course of a whole
war.
Many historians have described Stalingrad as the turning
point of World War 2. It has been described as the Hitler’s demise. The war
began with the axis powers heading into the Soviet Union (which at the time was
classed as a superpower) on June 22nd 1941. The axis powers tried to
siege the Russian city, Stalingrad. The war was the soviets against the Nazis
and its allies (Romania, Italy, Slovakia etc.). Stalingrad was an industrial
city and it also held the name of his rival Stalin. Stalin realised this and
forced anyone who was able to hold a rifle to fight. This is seen as one of the
most significant battles of World War 2 because Hitler lost 850,000 men. This
is a quarter of the men fighting in the western front. They also lost a
significant amount of supplies that they couldn’t recover. They were forced to
retreat out of Eastern Europe causing the collapse of the Nazi empire.
Stalingrad is arguably ‘the bloodiest battle in human history’.
Pearl Harbour is known for Japan’s surprise attack on
America to cause immense destruction on Pearl Harbour. Pearl Harbour was a
military bas in Hawaii. It was the base for the US Military action in the
pacific. On December 7, 1941 the Japanese completely destroyed Pearl Harbour
with dive bombers and fighter planes. The Americans were very angry with this
and President Franklin Roosevelt declared war after Pearl Harbour. On December
11, 1941 Germany declared war on the US as Japan and Germany were in alliance.
The attack on Pearl Harbour caused the Americans to lose 21 warships, 177
planes (on the ground) and over 2000 men. The Japanese lost only 29 planes and
100 people which seems a small price to pay for the damage dealt to the US. The
main significance of the battle is that the US were involved in the war and
that they declared war on Japan on the 7th December and the axis
powers declared war on the US on 9th December.
Hiroshima and Nagasaki are best known for the droppings of
atomic bombs. August 6, 1945 an atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima and on
august 9, 1945, an atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. The droppings of the
bombs forced the Japanese to surrender and they had no option as they thought
the Americans had more atomic bombs (even though the Americans only had 2
atomic bombs). The Americans believe that the bombings prevented the deaths of
many people from both armies. The Japanese think otherwise. The bombings of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki were the finishing part of the war that lead to the
surrender of Japan and it is significant due to the impact that it had on
Japan. As well as 214,000 people dying from the explosion the radioactive
particles gave the bomb its venom. Many people were killed by the effects of
radiation a long time after the war and at the time no one knew how severe the
bombings were and how to cure or improve the conditions from radiation
exposure. Due to the sheer power of the atomic bombs the Japanese were forced
to surrender as they could not sustain another blow from an atomic bomb which
gives this battle its significance as it ties up Japan and removes them from
the war.
It would be foolish to say that any of the wars in world war
2 were insignificant but I have chosen these three wars to be the most
significant because of the impact that they caused (especially Hiroshima,
Nagasaki and Pearl Harbour) also the loss of men contributed to the
significance for these wars and also in terms of the war Stalingrad was seen to
be the bloodiest war ever and the turning point in the war. Pearl Harbour led
to the introduction of the US and this lead to Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Hiroshima and Nagasaki was the major blow that forced the Japanese to
surrender. For these very reasons I would say that the three most significant
battles were Stalingrad, Pearl Harbour and Hiroshima and Nagasaki.