What’s Italy Thinking?Italy enters the war: June 1940

Mussolini had the immediate war aim of expanding the Italian colonies in North Africa by taking land from the British and French colonies.

Of Italy's declaration of war, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, President of the United States of America, said: "On this tenth day of June 1940, the hand that held the dagger has struck it into the back of its neighbor."

Italian campaignFollowing the Allied victory in North Africa an Allied invasion of Sicily began on July 10, 1943 with both amphibious and airborne landings. The Germans were unable to prevent the Allied capture of the island, but succeeded in evacuating most of their troops to the mainland, the last leaving on August 17, 1943.

The Allied invasion of Italy started when British forces landed in the 'toe' of Italy on September 3, 1943. The Italian government surrendered on 8 September, but the German forces prepared to defend without their assistance. On 9 September American forces landed at Salerno. While the rough terrain prevented fast movement and proved ideal for defense, the Allies continued to push the Germans northwards through the rest of the year.

The German prepared defensive line called the Winter Line. The line was eventually broken by frontal assault in the Spring of 1944, and Rome was captured in June.

Following the fall of Rome and the landings in Normandy and Soviet advances on the Eastern Front the Italian campaign became of secondary importance to both sides.

Operation Overlord (Normandy Invasion)

The invasion was the largest seaborne invasion at the time, involving over 156,000 troops crossing the English Channel from the United Kingdom to Normandy.

The "D-Day" invasion began with overnight parachute attacks, massive air attacks, naval bombardments, an early morning amphibious landing and during the evening the remaining elements of the parachute divisions landed.

The Normandy landings were costly in terms of men, but the defeat inflicted on the Germans was one of the largest of the war.

Strategically, the campaign led to the loss of the German position in most of France and the secure establishment of a new major front.

Normandy landings helped the Soviets on the Eastern front, who were facing the bulk of the German forces.

Battle of the Bulge The Ardennes Offensive (16 December 1944 – 25 January 1945) was a major German offensive on the Western Front.

Germany’s planned goal was to split the British and American Allied line in half, forcing the Western Allies to negotiate a peace treaty.

The Battle of the Bulge was the bloodiest of the battles that U.S. forces experienced in World War II; the 19,000 American dead were greatest of all battles.

The German losses in the battle were critical : the last of the German reserves were now gone; the German Air Force had been broken; and the German Army in the West was being pushed back. On the Eastern Front the German Army was unable to halt the Soviets.

Malmedy massacre: troops ordered to line up and shot

Victory in Europe Day May 7 and May 8, 1945

April 30, Hitler committed suicide during the Battle for Berlin, and so the surrender of Germany was authorized by his replacement, President of Germany Karl Dönitz

TinianBest known for being the base from which the American atomic bomb attacks on Japan during