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#REDIRECT [[List of World War II battles]]
{{Short description|None}}
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<!-- End of AfD message, feel free to edit beyond this point -->[[Image:A heavy explosion on board USS Lexington (CV-2) blows an aircraft over her side, 8 May 1942 (80-G-7413).jpg|thumb|250px|[[USS Lexington (CV-2)|USS Lexington]] explodes during the [[Battle of the Coral Sea]].]]
[[Image:Supermarinespitfire.JPG|thumb|250px|A formation of [[Supermarine Spitfire|Spitfires]] shortly before World War II.]]
This is a '''list of military engagements of World War II''' encompassing land, naval, and air engagements as well as campaigns, operations, defensive lines and sieges. Campaigns generally refer to broader strategic operations conducted over a large bit of territory and over a long period. Battles generally refer to short periods of intense combat localised to a specific area and over a specific period. However, use of the terms in naming such events is not consistent. For example, the [[Battle of the Atlantic]] was more or less an entire theatre of war, and the so-called battle lasted for the duration of the entire war. Another misnomer is the [[Battle of Britain]], which by all rights should be considered a campaign, not a mere battle.

== Battles ==
{{see also|List of World War II battles}}

===1939===
{| style="background:transparent; font-size:95%;" cellspacing="0"
|- valign="top"
|width="190px"| • [[Invasion of Poland]]
::
:: [[Battle of the Bzura]]
:: [[Battle of Mława]]
:: [[Battle of Tomaszów Lubelski]]
:: [[Battle of Kock (1939)|Battle of Kock]]
:: [[Siege of Warsaw (1939)|Siege of Warsaw]]
| Poland invaded by [[Nazi Germany]].
: &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
|-
| • [[Soviet invasion of Poland]]
:: [[Battle of Lwów (1939)|Battle of Lwów]]
:: [[Battle of Wilno (1939)|Battle of Wilno]]
:: [[Battle of Grodno (1939)|Battle of Grodno]]
:: [[Battle of Szack]]
:: [[Battle of Wytyczno]]
| Poland invaded by [[Soviet Union]].
: &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
|-
| • [[Slovak invasion of Poland]] || Poland invaded by Slovakia
|-
| • [[Saar Offensive]] || French attack on [[Saarland]].
|- valign="top"
| • [[Winter War]]
:: [[Battle of Tolvajärvi]]
:: [[Battle of Suomussalmi]]
| Finland invaded by the Soviet Union and, initially, resists successfully.
| &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
|-
| • [[Battle of Changsha (1939)|First Battle of Changsha]] || First Japanese attempt to take [[Changsha]] in [[China]] during the [[Second Sino-Japanese War]].
|-
| • [[1939–40 Winter Offensive]] || First large-scale Chinese counter-offensive operation.
|-
| • [[Battle of the River Plate]] || The ''[[German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee|Admiral Graf Spee]]'' chased into [[Montevideo]] harbour and later scuttled.
|}

===1940===
{| style="background:transparent; font-size:95%;" cellspacing="0"
|-
|width="190px"| • [[Battle of the Atlantic]] || Name given to the conflicts in the Atlantic Ocean between 1940 and 1945.
|- valign="top"
| • [[Winter War]]
:: [[Battle of Kollaa]]
:: [[Battle of Honkaniemi]]
| &nbsp;
: &nbsp;
: The only tank battle during the Winter War.

|-
| • [[German invasion of Denmark (1940)|German invasion of Denmark]]
|-
| • [[Battle of Drøbak Sound]] || Took place on the first day of the [[German invasion of Norway]].
|-
| • [[Battles of Narvik]] || Minor Allied victory in [[Norway]].
|-
| • [[Namsos Campaign|Battle of Namsos]] || Failed Allied attempt to halt the Germans in Norway.
|-
| • [[Invasion of Iceland]]
|-
| • [[German invasion of the Netherlands]]|| Germany defeats the [[Netherlands|Dutch]] in Europe during the opening stages of the first operation of the [[Battle of France]], "[[Fall Gelb|Case Yellow]]" (''[[Fall Gelb]]'').
|-
| • [[Invasion of Luxembourg]] || Germany defeats [[Luxembourg]] during the continuation of ''Fall Gelb''.
|-
|-
| [[German invasion of Belgium (1940)|• German invasion of Belgium]]|| Germany defeats [[Belgium]] during the continuation of ''Fall Gelb''.
|-
| • [[Battle of France]]
:: [[Battle of Dunkirk]]
:: [[Dunkirk evacuation]]
:: [[Battle of Arras (1940)|Battle of Arras]]
:: [[Battle of Boulogne (1940)|Battle of Boulogne]]
|-
| • [[Attack on Mers-el-Kébir]] || Operation "Catapult". Feared by the possibility of some French ships moored in the French Algeria could fall in Axis hands, the [[Royal Navy]] proceed to a bombardment of Mers-El-Kebir. One French warship is sunk and three others damaged. The operation is ''in fine'' a failure as most of the French ships leave to Toulon, southern France.
|-
| • [[Battle of Britain]] || The German Air Force (''[[Luftwaffe]]'') fails to defeat the British [[Royal Air Force]] as the precondition for the invasion of [[Great Britain|Britain]].
|- valign="top"
| • [[Italian conquest of British Somaliland|British Somaliland]]
|| Italian conquest of [[British Somaliland]]
|-
| • [[Invasion of French Indochina|First Battle of French Indochina]] || The forces of [[Imperial Japan]] successfully invade [[French Indochina]] but leave the [[Vichy French]] forces in control.
|-
| • [[Battle of Dakar]] || An unsuccessful attempt by the Allies to capture the strategic port of [[Dakar]] from [[Vichy French]] control.
|-
| • [[Greco-Italian War]]
:: [[Battle of Pindus]]
| [[Italy|Italian]] forces invade [[Greece]] from [[Albania]] and are repelled. Greek counter-attack drives Italians back into Albania.
: &nbsp;
|-
| • [[Battle of Gabon]] ||[[Free French]] forces under General [[Charles De Gaulle]] take [[Libreville]], [[Gabon]], from [[Vichy French]] forces.
|-
| • [[Battle of Taranto]] || British carrier-based planes destroy the Italian fleet in [[Taranto]] Harbor.
|-
| • [[Hundred Regiments Offensive]] || Major offensive by the Chinese [[People's Liberation Army|Red Army]] against the [[Imperial Japanese Army]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Sidi Barrani]] || The first big British attack of the Western Desert campaign.
|}

===1941===
{| style="background:transparent; font-size:95%;" cellspacing="0"
| • [[Thailand]] during [[French-Thai War]].
|-
| • [[Battle of the Litani River]] || [[Australia]]n forces cross the [[Litani River]] to begin the [[Syria-Lebanon campaign|Syria-Lebanon Campaign]] against [[Vichy French]] forces.
|-
| • [[Battle of Damascus (1941)|Battle of Damascus]] || Commonwealth and Allied forces take [[Damascus]] from the Vichy French.
|-
| • [[Battle of Beirut (1941)|Battle of Beirut]] || Commonwealth and Allied forces take [[Beirut]] and the Vichy French surrender all forces in [[Syria]] and [[Lebanon]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Keren]] || Commonwealth and Allied forces defeat Italian forces at Keren of the [[East African Campaign (World War II)|East African Campaign]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Cape Matapan]] || British fleet defeats Italian fleet.
|-
| • [[Battle of Denmark Strait]] || The German battleship [[German battleship Bismarck|''Bismarck'']] sinks {{HMS|Hood|51|6}}.
|-
| • [[Last battle of the battleship Bismarck]] || The German battleship [[German battleship Bismarck|''Bismarck'']] is sunk by the Royal Navy after the sinking of {{HMS|Hood|51|6}}.
|-
| • [[Invasion of Yugoslavia]] || Germany and Axis allies invade [[Yugoslavia]] via [[Germany]], [[Italy]], [[Hungary]], [[Bulgaria]], and [[Albania]].
|-
| • [[German invasion of Greece|German Invasion of Greece]]
:: [[Battle of the Metaxas Line]]
:: [[Battle of Vevi (1941)|Battle of Vevi]]
:: [[Battle of Thermopylae (1941)|Battle of Thermopylae]]
|-
| • [[Battle of Crete]] || German [[paratrooper]]s capture [[Crete]] but suffer many casualties.
|-
| • [[Operation Barbarossa]]
:: [[Battle of Smolensk (1941)|Battle of Smolensk]]
:: [[Battle of Kiev (1941)|Battle of Kiev]]
:: [[Battle of Moscow]]
| German invasion of the [[Soviet Union]].
: The German advance is halted temporarily.
: &nbsp;
: The German [[Army Group Centre]] is driven back from [[Moscow]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Gondar]] || The final defeat of organized Italian resistance in [[Italian East Africa]] by Commonwealth and Allied forces.
|-
| • [[Attack on Pearl Harbor]] || Surprise Japanese attack destroys almost all the [[United States Pacific Fleet|US Pacific Fleet]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Changsha (1941)|Second Battle of Changsha]] || Failure of Japan's second attempt to take Changsha in China.
|-
| • [[Battle of Shanggao]] || Japanese 11th Army attacked the headquarters of the Chinese 19th Army
|-
| • [[Japanese Invasion of Thailand|Battle of Thailand]] || Japan invades and occupies [[Thailand]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Hong Kong]] || Japan captures the British colony of [[Hong Kong]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Guam (1941)]] || Japan captures the American territory of [[Guam]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Wake Island]] || Japan captures the atoll of [[Wake Island]].
|-
| • [[Malayan Campaign]]
:: [[Japanese Invasion of Malaya]]
:: [[Operation Krohcol]]
:: [[Bombing of Singapore (8 December 1941)|Bombing of Singapore]]
:: [[Battle of Jitra]]
:: [[Battle of Kampar]]
:: [[Battle of Slim River]]
:: [[Battle of Muar]]
::: [[Battle of Gemas]]
:: [[Battle off Endau]]
|-
| • [[Sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse]] || Japanese defeat British naval forces.
|}

===1942===
{| style="background:transparent; font-size:95%;" cellspacing="0"
|-
| • [[Battle of Bataan]]
|-
|width="190px"| • [[Battle of Dražgoše]] || First direct engagement between [[Slovenia]]n partisans and German occupying forces.
|-
| • [[Battle of Makassar Strait]] || Japanese aircraft raid an American and Dutch convoy.
|-
| • [[Battle of Singapore]]
:: [[Battle of Sarimbun Beach]]
:: [[Battle of Kranji]]
:: [[Battle of Bukit Timah]]
:: [[Battle of Pasir Panjang]]
|-
| • [[Battle of the Java Sea]] || Japanese forces destroy an Allied naval squadron.
|-
| • [[Battle of Badung Strait]] || Outnumbered Japanese forces defeat an Allied night-time naval attack.
|-
| • [[Battle of Java (1942)|Battle of Java]] || Japanese forces invade the island of [[Java]]
|-
| • [[Indian Ocean raid]] || Allied naval forces and shipping suffer many losses during Japan's Fast Carrier Strike Force sortie.
|-
| • [[Battle of Christmas Island]] || The Japanese occupy [[Christmas Island]] unopposed.
|-
| • [[Battle of Corregidor]] || [[Philippines]] lost to Japan.
|-
| • [[Japanese capture of Burma]] || [[Burma]] lost to Japan.
|-
| • [[Battle of Nanos]] || Eight hundred Italian soldiers lay siege to fifty Slovene partisans.
|-
| • [[Doolittle Raid]] || First air raid on Tokyo.
|-
| • [[Battle of the Coral Sea]] || First aircraft-carrier vs. aircraft-carrier battle
|-
| • [[Battle of Gazala]] || German offensive in the desert south of Tobruk anticipated and nearly defeated but ends with many losses to British armour, forcing a withdrawal. In a surprise strike, Tobruk was taken in a day. Rommel exploited the success by pursuing the British into Egypt, denying them time to recover from the defeat but was checked at El Alamein.
|-
| • [[Battle of Midway]] || Defeat of Japanese naval forces in the Pacific; the Japanese lose four aircraft-carriers.
|-
| • [[Convoy PQ 17]] || A convoy of thirty-five ships leaves [[Iceland]] on June 17, bound for [[Murmansk]]. Eleven arrive on July 5.
|-
| • [[Battle of the Aleutian Islands]]|| [[Japan]]ese invade and occupy two islands of Alaska's Aleutian archipelago as part of a feint to cover the Imperial Fleet's intended trap at [[Midway Atoll|Midway]]
|-
| • [[Attack on Sydney Harbour]] || Japanese midget submarines attack [[Sydney]] harbour.
|-
| • [[First Battle of El Alamein]] || British Eighth Army stops [[Erwin Rommel|Rommel]]'s Axis forces invading Egypt.
|-
| • [[Second Battle of El Alamein]] || [[Bernard Montgomery|Montgomery]]'s Eighth Army forces [[Erwin Rommel|Rommel]] out of Egypt.
|-
| • [[Battle of Sevastopol]] || Captured by Germans after eight-month siege.
|-
| • [[Battle of Changsha (1942)]] || Chinese claim victory over Japanese.
|-
| • [[Kokoda Track Campaign]] || Australians and U.S. for the first time in World War II stop a Japanese offensive (against [[Port Moresby]])
|-
| • [[Battle of Guadalcanal]] || Beginning of Allied action in [[Solomon Islands]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Savo Island]] || Japanese sink four US cruisers.
|-
| • [[Battle of Dieppe]] || Operation Jubilee was an Allied amphibious raid on the German-occupied port of Dieppe in France. A tactical disaster for the Allies. Lessons learned applied to later amphibious operations including D-Day.
|-
| • [[Battle of Stalingrad]] || City besieged by [[Friedrich Paulus|Paulus]]' German Sixth Army; from November 23 the Sixth Army is surrounded and destroyed by Soviets; bloodiest battle in history, 1.8 million dead approx.
|-
| • [[Battle of the Eastern Solomons]]|| Japanese aircraft carrier ''[[Japanese aircraft carrier Ryūjō|Ryūjō]]'' sunk.
|-
| • [[Battle of Milne Bay]] || First time Japanese landing force had been driven back into sea.
|-
| • [[Battle of Buna-Gona]] || Australians and U.S. defeat Japanese on north coast of New Guinea.
|-.
| • [[Battle of Cape Esperance]] || near [[Guadalcanal]]
|-
| • [[Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands]] || near Guadalcanal, {{USS|Hornet|CV-8}} sunk.
|-
| • [[Operation Torch]] || Allied landings in [[North Africa]] and putsch by French Resistance in Algiers to prevent Vichy forces opposition.
|-
| • [[Naval Battle of Guadalcanal]] || US defeats [[Japan]], a turning point.
|-
| • [[Battle of Tassafaronga]] || off [[Guadalcanal]]
|-
| • [[Second Battle of Kharkov]] || Failed Soviet attempt to retake [[Kharkov]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Changsha (1942)]] || [[Second Sino-Japanese War]]
|-
| • [[Battle of Madagascar]] || Allies capture Madagascar from [[Vichy France]].
|}

===1943===
{| style="background:transparent; font-size:95%;" cellspacing="0"
|-
|width="190px"| • [[Battle of Osankarica]] || About 2,000 Germans massacred all 69 men and women of the Pohorje Battalion. Germans lost 19 men dead and had 31 wounded.
|-
| • [[Battle of Rennell Island]] || Japanese bombers sink a cruiser.
|-
|-
| • [[Third Battle of Kharkov]] || Germans retake [[Kharkov]].
|-
| • [[Battle of the Kasserine Pass]] || Battle between US and German armored forces in [[Tunisia]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Neretva]] || [[German Army (Wehrmacht)|German Army]] offensive in southern [[Bosnia (region)|Bosnia]]. Offensive launched to encircle and destroy [[Yugoslavia]]n [[Communist]] [[Partisans (Yugoslavia)|Partisan]] forces. Supporting the German forces in this effort were [[Kingdom of Italy|Italian]], [[Ustaše]] and Serbian [[Monarchism|Royalist]] [[Chetnik]] units. The partisans were badly mauled but managed to escape encirclement.
|-
| • [[Battle of the Komandorski Islands]] || Naval engagement between US and Japan in the [[Bering Sea]].
|-
| • [[Battle of the Ruhr]] || British strategic bombing of the industrial Ruhr Area, which had coke plants, steelworks and ten synthetic oil plants. Targets included the Krupp armament works (Essen), the Nordstern synthetic-oil plant (Gelsenkirchen), and the Rheinmetal–Borsig plant in Düsseldorf.
|-
| • [[Battle of the Bismarck Sea]] || U.S. and Royal Australian Air Force planes attack and sink most of a Japanese convoy carrying troops to reinforce Lae, New Guinea.
|-
| • [[Battle of the Bering Sea]] || [[United States]] and [[Japan]]ese navies fight an inconclusive battle.
|-
| • [[Operation Cartwheel]] || Operation to neutralize the Japanese base at Rabaul.
|-
| • [[Battle of Attu]] || [[United States]] troops defeat and drive the [[Japan]]ese off the Aleutian Islands of Alaska.
|-
| • [[Warsaw Ghetto Uprising]] || 5,000 Jews and 2,000 Germans die, Jews confined.
|-
| • [[Sutjeska offensive|Battle of Sutjeska]] || Another attempt by German forces in [[Yugoslavia]], this time supported by [[Kingdom of Italy|Italian]], [[Bulgaria]]n, and [[Government of National Salvation|Serbian]] units, to encircle and destroy the [[Yugoslavia]]n [[Communist]] [[Partisans (Yugoslavia)|Partisan]] forces in southern [[Bosnia (region)|Bosnia]]. Again, the partisans were mauled but escaped.
|-
| • [[Battle of Castle Turjak]] || Slovene partisans took the castle guarded by the Slovene village sentries.
|-
| • [[Battle of Kursk]] || Germans attack [[Kursk]] salient at [[Oryol|Orel]] and [[Belgorod]], Russians drive them back. A very big tank battle.
|-
| • [[Allied invasion of Sicily]] || Allies take [[Sicily]] from the Italians and German armies.
|-
| • [[Allied invasion of Italy]] || Landings at [[Calabria]], [[Taranto]] and [[Salerno]].
|-
| • [[Dodecanese Campaign]]
:: [[Battle of Kos]]
:: [[Battle of Leros]]
| Allied and German scramble to occupy the [[Dodecanese Islands]].
: German amphibious and airborne operation to capture Kos.
: German amphibious and airborne operation to capture Leros.
|-
| • [[Battle of Smolensk (1943)|Battle of Smolensk]] || The Soviets attack 850,000 German troops near [[Smolensk Fortified Region]], drive them back inflicting severe losses.
|-
| • [[Battle of Kiev (1943)]] || [[Kiev]] retaken by Soviets.
|-
| • [[Raid on Schweinfurt]] || milestone air battle between the [[Luftwaffe]] and the [[USAAF]] known as "Black Thursday"
|-
| • [[Schweinfurt-Regensburg mission]] || another big daylight air battle, first shuttle mission.
|-
| • [[Battle of Berlin (air)|Battle of Berlin]] || Germany defend Berlin from the British.
|-
| • [[Battle of Tarawa]] || First major American [[amphibious warfare|amphibious]] landing in the Pacific.
|-
| • [[Battle of Makin]] || Americans capture the atoll of [[Makin Atoll]].
|-
| • [[Salamaua-Lae campaign]] || Australian and U.S. forces capture two major Japanese bases at Lae and at Salamaua.
|-
| • [[Battle of Wau]] || Australians defeat Japanese attempts to capture Wau, New Guinea.
|-
| • [[Bernhardt Line|Battle of the Bernhardt Line]] || U.S. 5th Army sustains 16,000 casualties fighting through the Mignano Gap to reach the [[Cassino]] defenses.
|-
| • [[Moro River Campaign]]
:: [[Battle of Ortona]]
|}

===1944===
{| style="background:transparent; font-size:95%;" cellspacing="0"
|-
| • [[Battle of Meiktila]]
|-
| • [[Battle of Monte Cassino]] || Four battles in [[Italy]] Jan - May. Allies finally breakthrough towards [[Rome]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Monte Castello|Battle of Monte Castelo]] || An unsuccessful attempt to break through the Northern Apennines. The battle marked the [[Brazilian Expeditionary Force]]'s entry into the land war in Europe.
|-
| • [[Battle of Anzio]]
:: [[Battle of Cisterna]]
|-
| • [[Battle of Kwajalein]] || American forces assault the islands of Kwajalein and Roi-Namur.
|-
| • [[Battle of the Admin Box]] || Japanese attempt a local [[counter-attack]] against an Allied offensive.
|-
| • [[Battle of Eniwetok]] || Battle between American and Japanese on [[Eniwetok Atoll]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Imphal]] and [[Battle of Kohima]] || Attempted Japanese invasion of [[India]] fails with heavy losses.
|-
| • [[U Go offensive]] || Allied successfully defend Manipur from the Axis
|-
| • [[Operation Ichi-Go]] || Successful Japanese campaign to capture American air bases in China capable of sending bombers to Japan.
|-
| • [[Raid on Drvar|Operation Rösselsprung]] || German attempt to capture [[Josip Broz Tito|Tito]] using airborne troops.
|-
| • [[Operation Overlord|Battle of Normandy]] || Allies invade northern France ([[Operation Overlord]]), hard fighting from Cherbourg to Caen, Germans surrounded and destroyed at Falaise.
|-
| • [[Battle of Saipan]] || The battle was fought on the island of [[Saipan]] in the [[Mariana Islands]] and resulted disastrous for Japanese forces since most died.
|-
| • [[Battle of Guam (1944)|Second Battle of Guam]] || American forces capture back [[Guam]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Tinian]] || American forces capture [[Tinian]].
|-
| • [[Operation Bagration]] || Soviet offensive destroys German Army Group Center on the [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Philippine Sea]] || Major carrier battle; US lose 123 planes and destroy 315 Japanese planes.
|-
| • [[Battle of Tali-Ihantala]] || [[Finland|Finnish]] stop Soviet offensive.
|-
| • [[Warsaw Uprising]] || 20,000 armed Poles against 55,000 [[Wehrmacht]] and [[SS]]. 90% of city destroyed, more than 250,000 casualties.
|-
| • [[Operation Dragoon]] || Allied invasion of Southern France.
|-
| • [[Battle of Debrecen]] || Soviets gain ground in [[Hungary]] but German and Hungarian forces manage to withdraw relatively intact after both sides suffer similar losses.
|-
| • [[Gothic Line|Gothic Line offensive]]|| British 8th Army and U.S. 5th Army attempt unsuccessfully to break into the north Italian plains.
|-
| • [[Battle of Arnhem]] || The major battle of [[Operation Market Garden]]; Allies reach but fail to cross the Rhine; British First Airborne Division destroyed.
|-
| • [[Battle of Peleliu]] || A fight to capture an airstrip on a speck of coral in the western [[Pacific]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Aachen]] || [[Aachen]] was the first major German city to face invasion during World War II.
|-
| • [[Battle of the Scheldt]] || Decisive Canadian victory, solved the logistical problems of the Allies, and opened the port of [[Antwerp]] for supplies directly to the front.
|-
| • [[Battle of Crucifix Hill]] || The 18th Infantry, [[U.S. 1st Infantry Division]] take [[Crucifix Hill]], a crucial position to help surround [[Aachen]]. Cpt. [[Bobbie E. Brown]] is awarded the [[Medal of Honor]] for his heroics.
|-
| • [[Battle of Angaur]] || American forces capture an island in [[Palau]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Hurtgen Forest]] || Stubborn German defense, appalling losses to [[US army]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Leyte]] || American and Filipino guerrillas forces capture [[Leyte]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Leyte Gulf]] || The largest air-sea battle in history.
|-
| • [[Operation Queen]] || was a joint British-American operation during World War II at the [[Western Front (World War II)|Western Front]] between [[Aachen]] and the Rur river.
|-
| • [[Battle of Mindoro]]
|-
|-
| • [[Battle of Vianden]] || The only major open battle fought between the [[Luxembourgish Resistance]] against German forces.
|-
| • [[Battle of the Bulge]] || German counterattack in [[Ardennes]]; General [[Anthony McAuliffe|McAuliffe]] says "NUTS" at [[Bastogne]].
|}

===1945===
{| style="background:transparent; font-size:95%;" cellspacing="0"
|-
|width="230px"| • [[Operation Elephant]] || Allied offensive against a German bridgehead at Kapelsche Veer in the [[Netherlands]].
|-
| • [[Raid at Cabanatuan]] || [[US Army Rangers]] rescue [[Bataan]] and [[Corregidor]] [[POWs]] from Japanese prison camp.
|-
| • [[Prague Offensive]] || 1st, 4th, and 2nd Ukrainian Fronts of the Soviet Army crushed the last concentration of German troops (over 1,000,000 men in two army groups) in southeastern Germany and Czechoslovakia. These troops were [[Army Group Centre]] and the remnants of [[Army Group Ostmark]].
|-
| • [[Operation Spring Awakening]] || The last German offensive of the war, launched around Lake Balaton, in Hungary.
|-
| • [[Battle of Bataan (1945)|Battle of Bataan]] || U.S. and Philippine Forces retake the historic Bataan Peninsula.
|-
| • [[Battle of Manila (1945)|Battle of Manila]] || City totally devastated after month-long battle between the American, Filipino and Japanese forces; 100,000 civilians killed.
|-
|valign="top"| • [[Battle of Luzon]] || The battle where [[Mexico]] entered [[World War II]], contributing pilots to help the [[United States]] and the [[Commonwealth of the Philippines|Philippines]] defeat [[Imperial Japanese Army|Japan]] in the South Pacific, with a loss of 37,870 [[Allies of World War II|Allied soldiers]] and 217,000 [[Japanese people|Japanese soldiers]]; an Allied victory
|-
| • [[Battle of Corregidor (1945)|Battle of Corregidor]] || Spectacular combined U.S. and Philippine assault retakes island bastion from Japanese forces.
|-
| • [[Raid at Los Baños]] || U.S. Airborne Task Force rescues more than 2,000 Allied POWs and civilian internees held by Japanese.
|-
| • [[Battle of Mindanao]] || [[U.S. Eighth Army]] together with the Philippine Commonwealth troops completes the recapture of Southern Philippines.
|-
| • [[Operation Varsity]] || 134 Allied gliders land troops in Weisel.
|-
| • [[Battle of the Visayas]] || [[U.S. Eighth Army]] together with the Philippine Commonwealth troops retakes central Philippine islands.
|-
| • [[Battle of Meiktila and Mandalay]] || Japanese defeated in Central [[Burma]]
|-
| • [[Battle of Iwo Jima]] || After a month, U.S. Forces take main offshore Japanese island.
|-
| • [[Operation Encore]] || [[10th Mountain Division (United States)|10th Mountain Division]] and the [[Brazilian Expeditionary Force]] forced the German [[LI Mountain Corps (Wehrmacht)|LI Mountain Corps]] from their positions in the Northern Apennines, leading to the start of the [[Spring 1945 offensive in Italy]]
|-
| • [[Battle of West Henan–North Hubei]] || Indecisive battle between China and Japan. Japan controls airbases after battle.
|-
| • [[Battle of Halbe]] || Part of Battle of Berlin, Germans unable to break out.
|-
| • [[Battle of Berlin]] || Soviet forces encircle and capture German capital; Hitler commits suicide.
|-
| • [[Battle of Hamburg (land)|Battle of Hamburg]] || British forces capture German city.
|-
| • [[Battle for Castle Itter]] || Troops of the 23rd Tank Battalion of the [[12th Armored Division (United States)|12th Armored Division]], [[Wehrmacht]], SS-Hauptsturmführer [[Kurt Siegfried Schrader]], and recently freed French prisoners of war defended [[Itter Castle]] against an attacking force from the [[17th SS Panzergrenadier Division Götz von Berlichingen|17th SS Panzergrenadier Division]].
|-
| • [[Trieste#Yugoslav and New Zealand involvement|Battle of Trieste]] || British army and Yugoslav Partisans capture the city.
|-
| • [[Battle of Tarakan (1945)|Battle of Tarakan]] || Allied attack as part of the Borneo campaign.
|-
| • [[Battle of Poljana]] || (14–15 May 1945) Battle between Yugoslav partisans and HOS (Croatia), German ''Wehrmacht'', Slovene Home Guard...
|-
| • [[Battle of Odžak]] || Last battle of [[World War II]] in Europe. Between Yugoslav partisans and HOS (Croatia) from 19 April to 25 May 1945.
|-
| • [[Battle of West Hunan]] || Chinese victory in final battle to expel [[Japan]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Okinawa]] || US takes Japanese Island in the Ryūkyūs; many casualties to both sides.
|-
| • [[Battle of North Borneo]] || Australian victory during final stages of World War II in the Pacific.
|-
| • [[Battle of Balikpapan (1945)|Battle of Balikpapan]] || Allied victory over [[Japan]].
|-
| • [[Battle of Manchuria]] || Soviet forces liberate [[Manchuria]].
|-
|• [[Battle of Groningen]]
|Canadian forces capture Dutch city from SS troops
|-
|• [[Battle of Otterlo]]
|German forces attempt to break an encirclement by attacking Canadian and British forces
|}

== Sieges ==
* [[Siege of Warsaw (1939)|Siege of Warsaw]]
* [[Siege of Leningrad]]
* [[Battle of Lwów (1939)|Siege of Lwów]]
* [[Siege of Modlin]]
* [[Siege of Novorossiysk]]
* [[Battle of Odessa (1941)|Siege of Odessa]]
* [[Siege of Sevastopol (1942)|Siege of Sevastopol]]
* [[Siege of Tobruk]]
* [[Battle of Budapest|Siege of Budapest]]
* [[Battle of Breslau (1945)|Siege of Breslau]]
* [[Siege of Bastogne]]
* [[Siege of Budapest]] (1945)

== Naval engagements ==
'''General'''
* [[Arctic Convoys]]
* [[Battle of the Atlantic]] – the name given to the conflict in the Atlantic Ocean between 1939 and 1945.
** see also [[Timeline of the Battle of the Atlantic]]
* [[Battle of the Mediterranean]]
* [[South-East Asian Theatre of World War II#Indian Ocean|Battle of the Indian Ocean]]

'''Specific'''<br />
''1939''
* [[The Battle of the River Plate]]
''1940''
* [[First Battle of Narvik]]
* [[Second Battle of Narvik]]
''1941''
* [[Battle of Cape Matapan]]
* [[Battle of Pearl Harbor]]
''1942''
* [[Battle of the Coral Sea]]
* [[Battle of Midway]]
* [[Battle of Guadalcanal]]
''1943''
* [[Battle of the Komandorski Islands]]
''1944''
* [[Battle of Leyte Gulf]]
''1945''
* [[Operation Ten-Go]]

== Major bombing campaigns ==
'''General'''
* [[Strategic bombing during World War II]]
* [[Strategic bombing survey]] for the overall impact of the bombing.

'''Specific'''
* [[Baedeker Blitz|Baedeker raids]]
* [[Bombing of Chungking in World War II|Chungking]]
* [[Coventry Blitz|Coventry]]
* [[Operation Retribution (1941)]] – bombing of [[Belgrade]] during 1941.
* [[Attack on Broome|Broome]] – Japanese raid on the town of [[Broome, Western Australia|Broome]], targeting the airfield.
* [[Bombing of Dresden in World War II|Dresden]]
* [[Bombing of Darwin|Darwin]] – Japanese target the harbour.
* [[Bombing of Hamburg in World War II|Hamburg]]
* [[Bombing of Helsinki in World War II|Helsinki]] – February 1944, was mostly ineffective due to air defence and deception.
* [[Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki|Hiroshima]] – One nuclear weapon, [[Little Boy]] dropped from a [[B-29]], devastating a city.
* [[Bombing of Kassel in World War II|Kassel]]
* [[London]] – "[[The Blitz]]" and the [[V-1 flying bomb|V-1]] and [[V-2]] campaigns
* [[Lübeck]]
* [[Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki|Nagasaki]] – One nuclear weapon, [[Fat Man]] dropped from a B-29, devastating a city.
* [[Narva]] – March 1944. Evacuated town was destroyed by Soviet ADD.
* [[Battle of Pearl Harbor|Pearl Harbor]]
* [[Rostock]] – Heinkel Airplane Construction Plant, Seaport, and City
* [[Bombing of Rotterdam in World War II|Rotterdam]]
* [[Battle of Stalingrad|Stalingrad]] – 23 August 1942
* [[Tallinn]] – February–March 1944. Bombed by Soviet ADD. Large-scale damage.
* [[Bombing of Tokyo in World War II|Tokyo]] – Several devastating raids.
* [[Bombing of Warsaw in World War II|Warsaw]]

== Operations ==
{{main|List of World War II military operations}}

===Raids===
Small to medium-sized '''raiding operations''' were carried out by both [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] and [[Axis Powers|Axis]] armies during [[World War II]]. The ''modus operandi'' used included [[guerrilla warfare|guerrilla]] attacks by [[Partisan (military)|partisan]]s in occupied territory and/or [[combined operations]] involving the landing and removal of specialised [[light infantry]], such as [[commando]]s, by means of small boats.
* Allied
** [[Operation Colossus]]
*** 10 February 1941
*** Experimental raid by 38 [[British Commandos]] on a fresh water aqueduct near Calitri in southern [[Italy]].
** [[Operation Claymore]]
*** 4 March 1941
*** 1000 Men from the [[British Commandos]] and belonging to the [[Norwegian Independent Company 1]] destroy fish oil factories on the remote islands off the coast of [[Norway]].
** [[Operation Archery]]
*** 27 December 1941
*** 570 men from the [[British Commandos]] and belonging to the [[Norwegian Independent Company 1]] raid and attack German positions on [[Vågsøy]] Island in [[Norway]].
** [[Battle of Timor (1942-43)|Battle of Timor]]
*** 19 February 1942 – 10 February 1943
*** Continuous raids from [[Australians|Australian]] commandos against the occupying Japanese.
** [[Operation Chariot]]
*** 28 March 1942
*** 196 [[Royal Navy]] and [[Army Commando]] units raid and destroy the heavily defended docks of [[St. Nazaire]] in occupied [[France]].
** [[Dieppe Raid]]
*** 19 August 1942
*** Over 6,000 infantrymen, mostly [[Canadians|Canadian]] attempted to seize and hold the port of [[Dieppe, Seine-Maritime|Dieppe]].
** [[Makin Island raid]], 17–18 August 1942
** [[Operation Jaywick]], September 1943
** [[Operation Jedburgh]], 1944
** [[Operation Roast]], April 1945
* Axis
** [[Operation Greif]], December 1944

'''Raiding units'''
* Allied
** Multinational
*** [[Chindits]]
*** [[Devil's Brigade]]
*** [[Z Special Unit]]
*** [[Popski's Private Army]]
*** [[Gideon Force]]
** [[Australia]]
*** [[Australian Army Independent Companies]]
** [[France]]
*** [[Far East French Expeditionary Forces]]
*** [[Intervention Light Corps]]
** [[Greece]]
*** [[Sacred Band (World War II)|Sacred Band]]
** [[United Kingdom]]
*** [[Long Range Desert Group]]
*** [[Special Air Service]]
*** [[Royal Marines]]
*** [[Special Operations Executive]]
*** [[British Commandos|British Army Commandos]]
**** [[Layforce]]
*** [[Parachute Regiment (United Kingdom)|British Paratroopers]]
** [[United States]]
*** [[Marine Raiders]]
*** [[US Army Rangers]]
*** [[Alamo Scouts]]
*** [[Merrill's Marauders]]
* Axis
** [[Nazi Germany]]
*** [[Brandenburger Regiment]]
*** [[Waffen-SS]] (commando force led by [[Otto Skorzeny]]).
** [[Fascist Italy (1922–1943)|Fascist Italy]]
*** [[Decima Flottiglia MAS]]
** [[Empire of Japan]]
*** [[Special Naval Landing Forces]]

== Defensive lines ==
* [[Atlantic Wall]]
* [[Caesar Line]]
* [[GHQ Line]]
* [[Gothic Line]]
* [[Gustav Line]]
* [[Maginot Line]]
* [[Mannerheim Line]]
* [[Metaxas Line]]
* [[Siegfried Line]]
* [[Taunton Stop Line]]

== Contemporaneous wars ==
* [[Chinese Civil War]]
* [[Ecuadorian–Peruvian War]]
* [[Greek Civil War]]
* [[Second Italo-Abyssinian War]]
* [[Soviet-Japanese Border War (1939)]]
* [[Spanish Civil War]]
* [[Afghan tribal revolts of 1944–1947]]

== See also ==
* [[Campaigns of World War II]]
* [[Participants in World War II]]
* [[List of World War II military operations]]
* [[List of battles 1901–2000]]

{{World War II}}

[[Category:Military operations of World War II|Engagements]]
[[Category:World War II-related lists|Military engagements]]
[[Category:Chronology of World War II|Military engagements]]

Latest revision as of 04:39, 6 June 2024

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