The Defeat of the Axis• Mid-1943—Allies stopped the Axis powers in

Europe and the Pacific• Early 1944—Allied bombers attacked German

industrial centersdestroying production and transportation

• Feb. 1945—Dresden fire-bombed by Allies– 135,000 Germans dead and city destroyed

D-Day

• On June 6, 1944, the U.S. and Allied forces launched “Operation Overlord” on the beaches of Normandy, France

• More than 11,000 planes, 4,400, ships, and over 1 million allied troops gained a toehold in France

Eisenhower’s D-Day Message

• Answer the following questions :– What do you think the first Eisenhower letter

really was?– What does the second letter tell us about the

outlook of the invasion of Normandy?

Ernie Pyle, The Toughest Beachhead in the World, 1944

• Read the story by Ernie Pyle• Use the graphic organizer to record details

about the invasion of Normandy.• When finished reading, write a main idea

sentence about the invasion of Normandy.• Turn in your note card and graphic organizer

and staple them together.

• December 1944—Battle of the Bulge—Germany’s last offensive=FAILURE!!

• January 1945—Soviets reached outskirts of Berlin

• February 1945—FDR, Churchill, and Stalin met at Yaltaagreed to dismantle Germany and force them to pay reparations; SU pledge to declare war against Japan after the defeat of Germany

• April 12, 1945—FDR dies; replaced by Harry Truman

• April 1945—Americans reached outskirts of Berlin

• April 30, 1945—Hitler committed suicide• May 7, 1945—Germany surrendered• May 8, 1945—Victory in Europe Day (official

acceptance of German surrender)