2.  Grand Alliance – BR, US,
USSR
 Agreed to stress military
operations & ignore
political differences
 Beginning 1943 – Allies
agreed to fight until Axis
surrendered
unconditionally

3.  German Afrika Korps-led
by General Erwin Rommel
(the Desert Fox)
 Broke through BR
defenses in Egypt &
pushed toward
Alexandria
 British forces-led by
Bernard Montgomery-
held the British lines at El
Alamein

4.  Rommel, hit the El Alamein line
on July 1, 1942.
 The Afrika Korps was so far
from their supply lines they could
not make a serious attempt to
break through.
 Rommel dug in, and created a
defensive line of mines, antitank
guns, tanks, and infantry.
 Bernard L. Montgomery took
command of the BR Eighth Army
on August 12, 1942. He claimed El
Alamein would be the decisive
battle of the war.
 -War in North Africa MAP
General Irwin Rommel,
“The Desert Fox”

5.  October 23, 1942, Montgomery
started Operation Lightfoot against
Rommel’s line after four hours of
artillery bombardment by 1,000 guns.
Soldiers crawled on their hands and
knees, feeling for mines by hand to cut
two lines across the minefields for
tanks. Australians went deep into
German territory. Montgomery
attacked on November 2. Rommel
attacked with all his tanks, and lost
heavily.
 Hitler told Rommel to stand and die
in El Alamein, but he disobeyed orders
and retreated on November 4. Four
days later Americans began landing in
North Africa, and the Afrika Korps
began its expulsion from North Africa.
Germans surrendered May in Africa
May, 1943-Interactive MAP
General Bernard Montgomery

6.  Battle of Stalingrad-Aug 1942-Germans start to
bomb Stalingrad
 Germans advance and battle starts Sept. 13, 1942
 Including the 6th Army (Germany's best)
 Jan, 1943-Russians launch counter-offensive with
1mil. Troops (6 armies) and surrounded German
6th army- ended Feb.2,1943
 Ger General Paulus surrendered -91,000 Germans
forced to march to Siberia-only 7,000 were left
and released by Soviets 10yrs later

7.  Death Totals:
 Axis soldiers - 800,000
 Russian soldiers -1.1million.
 Civilians-unknown
 850,000 people in city when the battle started
 1500 left in 1945
 at least 40,000 died

8. May 13, 1943 – Axis forces in Tunisia
Allies crossed Mediterranean to Italy,
took Sicily
Sept - began to invade mainland Italy
Mussolini – removed from office &
arrested after Sicily fell
New Italian govt offered surrender to
Allies
Mussolini freed by Ger & set up as
head of puppet German govt in N.
Italy
German troops moved in & occupied
Italy
June 4, 1944 – Rome fell to Allies
Troina, Sicily

9.  June 6, 1944 – D-Day, Allied invasion of France
 Under Dwight D Eisenhower (Supreme Commander)
 Combined Allied Invasion – US, BR & FR

10.  Germany assumed an
invasion would be led by
Gen George Patton
 Eisenhower had Gen.
Patton set up a fake
army to trick the
Germans into thinking
the invasion would take
place in a different spot.
 He enlisted the help
of special effects people
to make fake tanks,
airplanes, and other
equipment.

11.  Stats:
150,000 men
5,000 ships
30,000 vehicles
13,000 paratroopers
landed- night of
June 5th
300 planes dropped 13,000 bombs
along the coastline of Normandy-
100,000 men made it onshore by
night of June 6th
9,000 dead or wounded on the
beaches that day
Total invasion force- 2mil. Men and
500,000 vehicles-within 3 months
Video Map

13. • Allies pushed inland & broke Ger
defenses
•August 1944 –Allies liberated Paris
•Russians defeated Germans at
Battle of Kursk
•Soviets move on to occupy
Warsaw–Jan 1945
•March 1945 – crossed Rhine River
into Germany
•End April 1945 – Allies in N.
Germany moved toward Elbe R &
linked w/Soviets
•Allies entered Berlin April 23, 1945
•Hitler committed suicide April 30,
1945-2 days later Mussolini is killed
•May 7, 1945-Germans surrendered
-VE Day
Video