{"id":23906,"date":"2025-09-14T19:41:13","date_gmt":"2025-09-14T18:41:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/?p=23906"},"modified":"2025-09-14T19:42:39","modified_gmt":"2025-09-14T18:42:39","slug":"year-1940","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/year-1940\/","title":{"rendered":"Year 1940"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[et_pb_section fb_built=&#8221;1&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.16&#8243; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; locked=&#8221;off&#8221; theme_builder_area=&#8221;post_content&#8221;][et_pb_row column_structure=&#8221;1_2,1_2&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.27.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; theme_builder_area=&#8221;post_content&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;1_2&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.27.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; theme_builder_area=&#8221;post_content&#8221;][et_pb_code _builder_version=&#8221;4.27.4&#8243; 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background_size=&#8221;initial&#8221; background_position=&#8221;top_left&#8221; background_repeat=&#8221;repeat&#8221; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; theme_builder_area=&#8221;post_content&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;4_4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.16&#8243; custom_padding=&#8221;|||&#8221; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; custom_padding__hover=&#8221;|||&#8221; theme_builder_area=&#8221;post_content&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.27.4&#8243; background_size=&#8221;initial&#8221; background_position=&#8221;top_left&#8221; background_repeat=&#8221;repeat&#8221; hover_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; theme_builder_area=&#8221;post_content&#8221; sticky_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243;]<\/p>\n<p><!-- divi:shortcode --><\/p>\n<table class=\"tdih_table\"><thead><th class=\"tdih_event_date\">Date<\/th><th class=\"tdih_event_type\">Type<\/th><th class=\"tdih_event_name\">Event<\/th><\/thead><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-01-08<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><strong>In 1940<\/strong>\u00a0food rationing was introduced to\u00a0<a title=\"United Kingdom\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-kingdom\">Great Britain<\/a>.\r\n\r\nInitially, bacon, butter and sugar were the only items that were rationed, using books of coupons for the items but later many more food items as well as petrol, clothes and soup would be added to the list. The rationing started due to supply lines and production being hampered by the <a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">Germans<\/a>\u00a0in World War II.\r\n\r\nThe government launched initiatives like <strong>\u201cDig for Victory\u201d<\/strong>, encouraging citizens to grow their own food in gardens, allotments, and even public parks.\r\n\r\nRecipes and cooking tips were widely circulated to help people make the most of rationed ingredients, with a focus on minimizing waste.\r\n\r\nAlthough rationing meant restrictions, it also led to healthier diets for many Britons, as people consumed fewer fats and sugars and relied more on vegetables and whole grains. It also increased the <span style=\"font-size: 16px\">sense of shared sacrifice and fostered community spirit during the war.<\/span>\r\n\r\nRationing did not end with the war's conclusion in 1945. It continued into the post-war years due to economic challenges and food shortages. <span style=\"font-size: 16px\">The last rationing restrictions were lifted in <\/span><strong style=\"font-size: 16px\">1954<\/strong><span style=\"font-size: 16px\">, marking the end of a system that had lasted nearly 15 years.<\/span><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-05-10<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><p class=\"bodytext\" style=\"text-align:justify;\">&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n\r\n    <p class=\"bodytext\" style=\"text-align:justify;\"><strong><span style=\"line-height:115%; font-family:'Verdana','sans-serif'; font-size:12pt;\">On this day in <\/span><span style=\"font-family:'Verdana','sans-serif'; font-size:12pt;\">1940 First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill, became Prime Minister of  the United Kingdom. <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p class=\"bodytext\" style=\"text-align:justify;\">In September 1938 <a href=\"..\/united-kingdom\">British<\/a> Prime Minister Neville  Chamberlain met with Hitler at his Mountain top retreat. Hitler said he would  invade Czechoslovakia unless Britain supported his plans to take Sudetenland  (an area of Czechoslovakia around its border with <a href=\"..\/germany\">Germany<\/a> and full of German  loyalists). Chamberlain discussed the situation with French leader, Edouard  Daladier, and they met with Hitler on the 29<sup>th<\/sup> of September 1938 to  sign the Munich Agreement. This Agreement said that Britain and France would  support Germany&rsquo;s take over of Sudetenland on the understanding that Germany  makes no more attempts of expanding its borders. Chamberlain claimed that the  move would promote &ldquo;peace in our time&rdquo; but once Hitler was given Sudetenland he  continued on to take the whole of Czechoslovakia and would continue to take  many more European countries. On this day in 1940 Chamberlain lost a vote of  confidence in the House of Commons and subsequently resigned. His replacement  was Winston Churchill, who took over at a time when many <a href=\"..\/european-countries\">European Nations<\/a> had  been forced to surrender (including the other &ldquo;Allied Nations&rdquo;, <a href=\"..\/france\">France<\/a> and  <a href=\"..\/poland\">Poland<\/a>) and Britain stood alone in Europe against the Axis powers (Germany, <a href=\"..\/russia\">Russia<\/a>, <a href=\"..\/italy\">Italy<\/a> and <a href=\"..\/japan\">Japan<\/a> (Japan joined a few months later on the 27<sup>th<\/sup> of September 1940) with only commonwealth members (<a href=\"..\/canada\">Canada<\/a>, <a href=\"..\/australia\">Australia<\/a>, <a href=\"..\/new-zealand\">New  Zealand<\/a>, <a href=\"..\/india\">India<\/a>, Newfoundland and <a href=\"..\/south-africa\">South Africa<\/a>) giving military support.<\/p>\r\n  <p class=\"bodytext\" style=\"text-align:justify;\">Churchill proved to be the strong leader required to fight Axis powers  determined that Britain would never surrender. Initially Russia was part of the  Axis powers but after Hitler invaded the Soviet Union on the 22<sup>nd<\/sup> of  June 1941 Stalin switched sides and began to repel the German advance. On the 8<sup>th<\/sup> of December 194 the <a href=\"..\/united-states\">United States<\/a> were attacked by Japan and they too declared  war on the Axis Powers. <\/p>\r\n  <p class=\"bodytext\" style=\"text-align:justify;\">&nbsp;<\/p><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-05-15<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><strong><span>On this day in 1940 Dutch forces surrendered to Nazi Germany.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><span>On the 10<sup>th<\/sup> of May 1940, the <a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">German<\/a> invasion of <a title=\"Netherlands\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/netherlands\">the Netherlands<\/a> began overwhelming the Dutch army and forcing a considerable amount of the troops to surrender. But to ensure total surrender on the 14<sup>th<\/sup> of May 1940 Hitler ordered the bombardment of Rotterdam by the Luftwaffe. 900 civilians died and many thousands were left homeless.\u00a0 Hitler threatened more bombings of major cities unless the Netherlands surrendered and on this day in 1940, the Netherlands surrendered to Nazi Germany.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><\/p><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-06-03<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\">&nbsp;\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><strong>On this day in 1940, during the Battle of France (10<sup>th<\/sup> of May \u2013 22<sup>nd<\/sup> of June 1940),<\/strong> <strong>the Luftwaffe bombed Paris killing 254 people, mainly civilians.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\">Despite <a title=\"France\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/france\">France<\/a> being all but conquered by <a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">Germany<\/a>, with the <a title=\"United Kingdom\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-kingdom\">British<\/a> expeditionary forces sent to help in the defence making a strategic retreat at Dunkirk, the Luftwaffe bombed Paris to drive home the defeat of France and put fear into the hearts of French civilians. Of the 254 dead, 195 were civilians and the remaining 195 were French soldiers. In addition, a total of 652 were injured with 545 of these civilians and 107 soldiers.<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\">In retaliation, Allied warplanes bombed Munich, Frankfort-on-Main and Ruhr the following day but with much fewer casualties reported by the Germans.<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><\/p><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-06-04<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\">&nbsp;\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><strong><span>On this day in 1940, the Evacuation of Allied forces at Dunkirk ended.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><span>On the 10<sup>th<\/sup> of May 1940, Hitler began his lightning invasion of the Low Countries on his journey towards taking <a title=\"France\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/france\">France<\/a>. This became known as the Battle of France and would continue until the 22<sup>nd<\/sup> of June when <a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">German<\/a> forces would be triumphant and force France to sign an Armistice, to be carved up by the Axis Powers. In an attempt to aid French forces, <a title=\"United Kingdom\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-kingdom\">Great Britain<\/a> sent in many troops including the British Expeditionary Force (BEF).<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><span>In his first public speech to the Nation (on the 19<sup>th<\/sup> of May 1940) Prime Minister Winston Churchill had to give the grim news that the Germans had broken through French defences were pushing forward. He also announced that he had formed a coalition government to wage war on Germany until victory. <\/span><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><span>With the Germans pressing forward Churchill had a recognisance plane fly over Paris to assess the situation. He ordered that they retreat to Dunkirk to avoid the capture of the British Expeditionary Forces by the approaching German Army.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><span>Between the 23<sup>rd<\/sup> and 26<sup>th<\/sup> of May 1940, 4,000 British and French troops held Calais in what became known as the Siege or Battle of Calais. Despite being outnumbered by at least 3 to 1 and against superior artillery the 4,000 troops ignored offers to surrender and fought to the last, holding back German forces for three days. Of these 4,000 only 33 were recovered uninjured.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><span>Herman Goering had assured Hitler that the Luftwaffe would be able to take out the Allied forces at Dunkirk. Therefore Hitler ordered his troops to pull back and continue the invasion of <a title=\"Belgium\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/belgium\">Belgium<\/a> and France. On the 26<sup>th<\/sup> of May King Leopold III of Belgium surrendered and German troops once again began to attack Dunkirk.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><span>Prime Minister Winston Churchill addressed the nation with British and French forces being driven back and surrounded. He called upon all those with boats to aid in evacuating the Allied forces. Hundreds of civilians came forward, some in fishing boats, to help the navy. The Evacuation effort was known as Operation Dynamo and began on the 26<sup>th<\/sup> of May 1940 with the enormous task of evacuating almost half a million Allied troops. The mission seemed impossible and it was assumed only a handful would survive.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: justify\"><span>By the 4<sup>th<\/sup> of June, a total of 335,000 Allied troops (198,000 British and 137,000 French) were rescued before the Germans finally broke through to Dunkirk and ended the evacuation. <\/span><\/p>\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<div id=\"Layer32\" class=\"MsoNormal\">\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<\/div><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-06-10<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><p style=\"font-weight: 400\"><strong>In 1940, Italy declared war on France and England.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Benito Mussolini was the founder of the Italian Nationalist Party, (Fasci di Combattimento) who became Prime Minister of Italy on the 31<sup>st<\/sup>\u00a0of October 1922 due to fears of Communist growth in the country. By the 24<sup>th<\/sup> of December 1925, Mussolini used secret police to destroy all opposition and become the first fascist dictator of Europe. As leader of the German Nationalist Party with similar aspirations, Hitler became a fan of Mussolini and when he also came to power the two leaders signed a non-military alliance with Germany. Advances of <a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">Germany<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a title=\"Italy\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/italy\">Italy<\/a>\u00a0on other nations in\u00a0<a title=\"Countries of Europe\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/countries-of-europe\/\">Europe<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a title=\"Countries of Africa\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/countries-of-africa\/\">Africa<\/a>\u00a0were highly opposed by both Britain and France leading to the prospect of War.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">On the 22<sup>nd<\/sup>\u00a0of May 1939 Hitler and Mussolini signed the Pact of Steel which was aimed mainly against the\u00a0<a title=\"United Kingdom\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-kingdom\">British<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a title=\"France\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/france\">French<\/a> threat and assured that either nation would come to the other's aid if war were declared.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">When Germany began its invasion of Poland between 1 September 1939 \u2013 6<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of October 1939 Great Britain and France were preparing for possible warfare. On the morning of the 3<sup>rd<\/sup> of September 1939 the British Ambassador to Germany, Neville Henderson, handed a communiqu\u00e9 to the German government stating that unless Germany gave a response declaring that they would withdraw from <a title=\"Poland\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/poland\">Poland<\/a> then both Great Britain and France would be in a state of war with Germany. When the response didn\u2019t materialise Prime Minister Neville Chamberlin addressed the UK and informed them that they were now at war with Germany.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Hitler expected Mussolini to declare war on Britain and France in response but the declaration didn\u2019t come. Then on this day when Germany had conquered much of Europe and was in the final stages of conquering France (Battle of France 10<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0May \u2013 22<sup>nd<\/sup> of June 1940), Mussolini finally declared war on France and Britain. \"First they were too cowardly to take part. Now they are in a hurry so that they can share in the spoils,\" remarked Hitler.<\/p><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-06-17<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><p style=\"font-weight: 400\"><strong>In 1940 the evacuation of French citizens and allied troops continued in Operation Ariel as France prepared to surrender.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">With the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/\/grmany\">German<\/a>\u00a0troops occupying 70% of\u00a0<a title=\"France\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/france\">France<\/a> and the newly appointed French Prime Minister, Marshal Henri Petain, preparing to sign an armistice with the Nazis, British soldiers evacuate many French civilians and Allied soldiers. The French General, Charles de Gaulle, had already fled to <a title=\"England\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/england\">England<\/a>, where he made an announcement to his countrymen, requesting they continue resisting German occupation. Meanwhile, British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, reassured the citizens of the\u00a0<a title=\"United Kingdom\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-kingdom\">United Kingdom<\/a>\u00a0that whatever happened in France, they would continue to resist invasion and defeat the enemy.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">After the mass evacuation at Dunkirk on the 4<sup>th<\/sup> of June 1940, where 335,000 Allied troops (198,000 British and 137,000 French) were evacuated to Britain, Winston Churchill was not ready to give up on France. Soon after the 52<sup>nd<\/sup>\u00a0Division and 1<sup>st<\/sup>\u00a0<a title=\"Canada\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/canada\">Canadian<\/a>\u00a0Division were sent back to France to continue the fight and help the remaining, outnumbered, French forces.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">By the 14<sup>th<\/sup> of June, it had become apparent that the Allied effort against the Nazi invasion of France was ineffective and the head of British troops in France,\u00a0General Alan Brooke,\u00a0contacted Churchill and requested permission to start evacuating Allied troops once more. Churchill agreed and Operation Aerial began on the 15<sup>th<\/sup> of June 1940. By the end of the operation, 191,870 Allied soldiers (British, Canadian, French,\u00a0<a title=\"Poland\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/poland\">Polish<\/a>,\u00a0<a title=\"Belgium\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/belgium\">Belgian<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a title=\"Czech Republic\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/czech-republic\">Czech<\/a>\u00a0soldiers) were rescued as well as civilians, and military equipment. Added to those saved at Dunkirk brought the total amount of evacuated Allied soldiers from the invading Nazi forces in France to 526,870.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Unfortunately, a German bombing raid sank the Ocean Liner Lancastria killing 3,000 of the 5,800 Allied soldiers and French civilians aboard on this day in 1940.<\/p><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-06-22<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><p style=\"font-weight: 400\"><strong>In 1940 France signed an Armistice with Nazi Germany ending the Battle for France.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">On the 10<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of May 1940 Hitler began his invasion of Western\u00a0<a title=\"Countries of Europe\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/countries-of-europe\/\">Europe<\/a>\u00a0and onto the Low countries in a campaign known as The Battle of\u00a0<a title=\"France\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/france\">France<\/a>. In the early hours of the Morning Hitler gave his orders to <a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">German<\/a> forces via radio. The code word \u201cDanzig\u201d announced by Hitler over the radio begins the first phase of the attack, \u201cOperation Fall Gelb\u201d (or case yellow), the invasion of Western Europe. First, the Luftwaffe began bombing raids which was quickly followed by German parachute regiments dropping in and taking key positions such as bridges and roads. Within an hour German forces enter Holland,\u00a0<a href=\"..\/Belgium.html\">Belgium<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Luxemburg and by lunchtime,\u00a0<a title=\"A horizontal tricolour flag with three equal stripes: red on top, white in the middle, and light blue on the bottom.\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/luxemburg\">Luxemburg<\/a> surrendered to Nazi Germany. On the first day of the attacks, the King of the <a title=\"United Kingdom\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-kingdom\">United Kingdom<\/a> asked Winston Churchill to take Neville Chamberlin\u2019s place as Prime Minister. \u00a0Over the next few days, British and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/belguim\">Belgian<\/a> bombers attempt to slow down the advancing German forces but without much success. On the 14<sup>th<\/sup> of May the Luftwaffe bombed Rotterdam in Holland, killing 30,000 civilians and the following day Holland surrendered while their King escaped to <a title=\"England\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/england\">England<\/a>. Also on the 15<sup>th<\/sup> of May, the French armoured division encounters German Panzers in Phillipeville, Holland but later that evening French troops are ordered to withdraw from Belgium.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">On the 23<sup>rd<\/sup> of May, the French city of Boulogne falls to German forces while Calais comes under siege. Between the 23<sup>rd<\/sup>\u00a0and 26<sup>th<\/sup> of May 1940, 4,000 British and French troops held Calais in what became known as the Siege or Battle of Calais. Despite being outnumbered by at least 3 to 1 and against superior artillery the 4,000 troops ignored offers to surrender and fought to the last, holding back German forces for three days. Of these 4,000 only 33 were recovered uninjured.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">With Belgium surrendering to Germany on the 28<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of May, Hitler\u2019s plan is all but complete. On the 3<sup>rd<\/sup> of June, the Luftwaffe bombed Paris to drive home the defeat of France and put fear into the hearts of French civilians.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">With British and French forces being driven back and surrounded, Prime Minister Winston Churchill addressed the nation and called upon all those who had boats to aid in the evacuation of the Allied forces. Hundreds of civilians came forward, some in fishing boats, to help the navy. The Evacuation effort was known as Operation Dynamo and began on the 26<sup>th<\/sup> of May 1940 with the enormous task of evacuating almost half a million Allied troops. The mission seemed impossible and it was assumed only a handful would survive.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">By the 4<sup>th<\/sup> of June, a total of 335,000 Allied troops (198,000 British and 137,000 French) were rescued before the Germans finally broke through to Dunkirk and ended the evacuation.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">On the 10<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of June 1940, after Germany had conquered much of Europe and was in the final stages of conquering France, Mussolini's\u00a0<a href=\"..\/Italy.html\">Italy<\/a>\u00a0finally declared war on France and Britain. \"First they were too cowardly to take part. Now they are in a hurry so that they can share in the spoils,\" remarked Hitler.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">The fall of Paris on the 14<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of June disrupted coordination of French troops and by the 17<sup>th<\/sup> of June, Marshal Phillipe P\u00e9tain\u00a0requested an armistice with Germany.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Second Armistice at Compiegne was signed on the 22<sup>nd<\/sup> of June officially ending the Battle of France. France was then divided into sections with Germany controlling the north and west of the country, Italy was given a small zone in the southeast while a new French Government, led by Marshal P\u00e9tain, controlled the Zone Libre or unoccupied zone.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">French General, Charles de Gaulle, escaped to England on the 17<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of June from where he led the Free French Government in exile.<\/p><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-07-03<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><p style=\"font-weight: 400\"><strong>In 1940 as part of \u201cOperation Catapult\u201d the Battle of Mers-el-K\u00e9bir took place.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">When the Battle of\u00a0<a title=\"France\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/france\">France<\/a>\u00a0ended on the 25<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of May 1940 Germany now occupied France and the\u00a0<a title=\"United Kingdom\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-kingdom\">United Kingdom<\/a>\u00a0only had the might of its navy between them and a Nazi invasion. With the French Armistice signed\u00a0<a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">Germany<\/a>\u00a0now controlled much of the French military hardware.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Great Britain wanted to remove the possibility of the Germans using French naval vessels against the Royal Navy despite French Admiral Francois Darlan\u2019s reassurance that the Armistice prohibited the Germans from using the French Fleet. The armistice actually required the French Navy to return their ships to port where they would be disarmed by the Germans but not used in any way. This was little comfort to the British government because Germany had proven time and again that it didn\u2019t value such agreements, including in the invasion of Czechoslovakia. The Allied agreement stated that neither country could surrender to Germany without notifying the ally. When France made it known to the British Government of their intent to surrender to Germany, Britain strongly requested that the French naval fleet sail to British ports to prevent them from falling into enemy hands. Many of the French Naval fleet did indeed sail to Britain but a larger fleet sailed to the Algerian port of Mers-el-K\u00e9bir.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u00a0On the 3<sup>rd<\/sup> of July, The French ships in the British ports were immediately boarded and taken by the British naval officers to prevent any agreement between the French and Germans being acted on.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">On the same day, the British Vice-Admiral James Somerville and his naval fleet arrived at the <a title=\"Algeria\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/algeria\">Algerian<\/a>\u00a0port to deliver an ultimatum with four choices to the French Admiral Marcel-Bruno Gensoul stationed there.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<ol style=\"font-weight: 400\">\r\n \t<li>The French fleet should join the British Fleet and continue to fight the enemy.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Sail to British ports with a reduced crew that will be sent home at the earliest convenience.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">(If either of these options is chosen then your ships would be repaired and returned to you at the end of the war. And Britain would pay compensation for any damage sustained)<\/p>\r\n\r\n<ol style=\"font-weight: 400\">\r\n \t<li>To have the fleet disarmed at Oran under the supervision of the British.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Scuttle the ships where they are.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">If the Admiral refused these options then Somerville was under direct orders to attack and destroy the French fleet within six hours of delivering the Ultimatum. Admiral Gensoul refused all the options given to him by the British officer and he refused to meet with a British representative to discuss the issue. He did however make it known that French vessels would not take any action against the British fleet unless provoked. Reluctant to open fire on an allied naval force the British offered another option to the French fleet. They could sail for the US where they would be safe from German influence and they would be returned after the war. This option too was rejected by Admiral Gensoul who sent a message to French Fleet Admiral Darling informing him of the situation, but for whatever reason Gensoul only informed Darling of the British intention to sink the ships within six hours and failed to pass on any of the other options given by the British. Admiral Darling reacted by ordering all available French vessels to set sail for the port and aid the Admiral against any British attack.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">The British intercepted this communication and informed Somerville of the approaching French vessels. Somerville had no choice but to open fire on the French fleet. They returned fire but to little effect. By the end of the Battle of Mers-el-K\u00e9bir the following day 1,297 French sailors died while Britain lost just two airmen that were shot down while laying sea mines to prevent escape. Relations between Britain and France were very strained after Operation Catapult and France even attempted to retaliate by bombing British ships at Gibraltar but with little effect. Germany enjoyed the opportunity for propaganda created by the situation.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">As early as December of 1940 Germany began to plan Operation Anton with the intention of taking control of the Vichy French government and all the remaining French Naval vessels to be used against the Allies. In November 1942 Germany and Italy did indeed break the Armistice Agreement and occupy the French Vichy government. On the 27<sup>th<\/sup> of November 1942 French naval officers scuttled many battleships to avoid German capture. Some of the French vessels were captured by the Axis powers but Allied bombing raids prevented their use in the war.<\/p><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-07-10<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><p style=\"font-weight: 400\"><strong>In 1940 the Battle of Britain began.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">On the 18<sup>th<\/sup> of June 1940 newly appointed Prime Minister of the\u00a0<a title=\"United Kingdom\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-kingdom\">United Kingdom<\/a>, Winston Churchill gave a speech stating that \"... the Battle of France is over. The Battle of Britain is about to begin\". On the 22<sup>nd<\/sup> of June,\u00a0<a title=\"France\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/france\">France<\/a>\u00a0signed an Armistice with\u00a0<a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">Germany<\/a>\u00a0leaving Britain as the only remaining Allied threat in\u00a0<a title=\"Countries of Europe\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/countries-of-europe\/\">Europe<\/a>. Hitler was planning an invasion of Britain, but the invasion would not come from the sea due to Britain's superior Royal Navy. But Hitler did have the Luftwaffe, the most powerful Air Force in the world.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">On the 28<sup>th<\/sup> of June 1919 the \u201cTreaty of Versailles\u201d, signed at the end of World War I, ordered Germany to disarm and forbade them from having military forces including an air force. However, Germany continued training its pilots using civilian training schools as a cover. Later in 1924, Germany became more daring and aided by Russia they began training in a secret airfield in Lipetsk using larger military aircraft. Shortly after Adolf Hitler came to power as chancellor on the 30<sup>th<\/sup> January 1933 he ordered the large-scale production of military aircraft and training of pilots under the command of Herman Goering. The Luftwaffe was created on the 15<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of May 1933 and thanks to huge financial support within three years the secret air force soon became the largest and most powerful air force in the world.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u00a0The Royal Air Force was the first independent air force in the world, formed on the 1<sup>st<\/sup> of April 1918. After World War I the Royal Air Force also became the largest air force in the world but this title would not remain for long. When the strength of the Luftwaffe was demonstrated in 1939 and war was imminent the United Kingdom began large-scale production of its air force. The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan started on the 17<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of December 1939, training pilots in\u00a0<a title=\"Canada\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/canada\">Canada<\/a>,\u00a0<a title=\"Australia\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/australia\">Australia<\/a>\u00a0<a title=\"New Zealand\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/new-zealand\">New Zealand<\/a>,\u00a0<a title=\"South Africa\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/south-africa\">South Africa<\/a> and the UK for aerial warfare and strategic bombing. Pilots from all these countries and more would soon be available to fight within their air force or part of the RAF.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Despite the increased preparations the RAF were numerically inferior to the Luftwaffe and previous fighting in the Battle for France signalled the Luftwaffe\u2019s superiority of the skies. On the 10<sup>th<\/sup> of July 1940, the Luftwaffe began an aerial bombardment of British ships in the Channel marking the start of the Battle of Britain. Shortly after the Luftwaffe began to attack coastal shorelines until the 12<sup>th<\/sup> of August 1940 when their focus was turned to the RAF, airfields and radar bases. The Luftwaffe\u2019s pilots favoured their Messerschmitt BF 109E (Me 109) for aerial combat believing them to have superior manoeuvrability, while RAF pilots preferred the Spitfire which could out manoeuvre the Me 109 with a smaller turning circular and superior weaponry (the Spitfire had 8 machine guns compared to the Me 109\u2019s 2 machine guns and two cannons).<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Goering was concerned and surprised with the losses to the Luftwaffe during these raids and on the 4<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of September he changed tactics once more with bombing raids of the major cities. These raids continued with the hope of destroying British infrastructure and morale. On the 15<sup>th<\/sup> of September, the Luftwaffe sent out its largest fleet of 1,120 aircraft with the hope of initiating a large-scale attack on the RAF and hopefully annihilating them once and for all. As the 500 bombers approached their target London with their 620 fighter escort, the 620 RAF fighters engaged the invaders and the largest aerial battle in history ensued over the city of London. The RAF proved to be the superior force inflicting far more damage on the enemy despite fewer numbers. Hitler realised that aerial superiority over Britain would not be possible and therefore \u201cOperation Sea Lion\u201d, the invasion of Britain, never came to pass.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">In the battle of Britain the RAF had 1,960 aircraft with 2,936 pilots and of these 595 were non-British pilots. The foreign Allied pilots that aided in the battle of Britain included 145 <a title=\"Poland\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/poland\">Polish<\/a>, 127 New Zealanders, 112 Canadians, 88 Czechoslovakians, 32 Australians, 28\u00a0<a title=\"Belgium\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/belgium\">Belgians<\/a>, 25 South Africans, 13 French, 10\u00a0<a title=\"Ireland\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/ireland\">Irish<\/a>, 7 from the\u00a0<a title=\"United States of America\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-states\">US<\/a>, 3 Rhodesians, 1\u00a0<a title=\"Jamaica\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/jamaica\">Jamaican<\/a>\u00a0and 1\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/palestine\">Palestinian<\/a>. Thanks to the efforts made by these allies and the 2,341 British pilots Hitler lost the Battle of Britain which ended on the 31<sup>st<\/sup>\u00a0of October 1940.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">During the Battle on the 20<sup>th<\/sup> of August 1940, Churchill gave a speech to the House of Commons, declaring that \u201cNever in the field of human conflict was so much owed to so many by so few\u201d.<\/p><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-07-11<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><p style=\"font-weight: 400\"><strong>In 1940 the Vichy Government was established in France during the NAZI occupation of World War II.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">As the Battle of\u00a0<a title=\"France\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/france\">France<\/a>\u00a0raged the French government were regularly meeting to discuss the situation. In one camp was Philippe Petain who argued for an Armistice with\u00a0<a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">Germany<\/a> and in another was Brigadier General Charles de Gaulle who led a successful battle against the invading German forces and was dead against the notion of surrender. Charles de Gaulle wanted the French Government to move to French Territories in North Africa from where they could coordinate French forces to continue the fight against the enemy. The French Premier Paul Reynaud was considering both suggestions but Petain strongly argued against the idea of leaving France and their people to the Germans. Reynaud was leaning on the side of an Armistice to save what little of France he could. As per the Entente Cordiale agreement either country had to discuss a possible surrender with their ally. A further agreement between Reynaud and Chamberlin in March 1940 both leaders agreed that neither would seek separate peace with Germany. So <a title=\"United Kingdom\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-kingdom\">British<\/a> Prime Minister Winston Churchill was also part of many discussions on the matter. Initially, Churchill was dead against any form of surrender and threatened action against French ports to ensure Britain\u2019s safety but as the fighting went on and as Reynaud\u2019s growing belief in the armistice, Churchill\u2019s opinion changed. He contacted French President Albert Lebrun and Churchill gave France its blessing on the understanding that the French fleet flee to British ports preventing the use of French naval ships by Germany. He also offered a British-Franco Union and while Reynaud and some of the other ministers agreed with the terms set out by Churchill Petain and other ministers disagreed. Premier Reynaud handed the President his resignation in frustration and suggested Petain take his place. On the 14<sup>th<\/sup> of June 1940, President Lebrun made 84-year-old Petain Premier of France and the next day on the 15<sup>th<\/sup> requested a cease-fire with Germany with the aim of an Armistice.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">De Gaulle left for Britain the next day and on the 18<sup>th<\/sup> he broadcast a message to his countrymen requesting that they continue to fight the German invaders. De Gaulle led the Free French Government in exile and coordinated attacks on French and British troops.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Reynaud was travelling by car in Southern France when he lost control and hit a tree. His wife was killed and Reynaud was taken to hospital. When he was discharged, Petain ordered his arrest and had him imprisoned. He was later handed off to the Germans by Petain.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Petain, under the agreement and supervision of the Germans, became the head of a French government that presided over part of southern France (known as the Unoccupied Zone) while the Germans controlled the North. The government was known as Vichy France and was eventually completely controlled by the Nazis on the 11<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of November 1942. Petain claimed the downfall of France was the blame of the French ministers in power at the time and so set up the Riom Trial. It was a propaganda exercise by Petain and the Vichy government that backfired. The Nazi party supported the trial which claimed that France had itself to blame by declaring war on Germany but the Ministers outwitted their accusers and the trial was seen for the farce it was.<\/p><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-07-17<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><p style=\"font-weight: 400\"><strong>In 1940 the evacuation of French citizens and allied troops continued in Operation Ariel as France prepared to surrender.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">With the\u00a0<a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">German<\/a>\u00a0troops occupying 70% of\u00a0<a title=\"France\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/france\">France<\/a> and the newly appointed French Prime Minister, Marshal Henri Petain, preparing to sign an armistice with the Nazis, British soldiers evacuate many French civilians and Allied soldiers. The French General, Charles de Gaulle, had already fled to <a title=\"England\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/england\">England<\/a>, where he made an announcement to his countrymen, requesting they continue resisting German occupation. Meanwhile, British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, reassured the citizens of the\u00a0<a title=\"United Kingdom\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-kingdom\">United Kingdom<\/a>\u00a0that whatever happened in France, they would continue to resist invasion and defeat the enemy.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">After the mass evacuation at Dunkirk on the 4<sup>th<\/sup> of June 1940, where 335,000 Allied troops (198,000 British and 137,000 French) were evacuated to Britain, Winston Churchill was not ready to give up on France. Soon after the 52<sup>nd<\/sup>\u00a0Division and 1<sup>st<\/sup>\u00a0<a title=\"Canada\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/canada\">Canadian<\/a>\u00a0Division were sent back to France to continue the fight and help the remaining, outnumbered, French forces.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">By the 14<sup>th<\/sup> of June, it had become apparent that the Allied effort against the Nazi invasion of France was ineffective and the head of British troops in France,\u00a0General Alan Brooke,\u00a0contacted Churchill and requested permission to start evacuating Allied troops once more. Churchill agreed and Operation Aerial began on the 15<sup>th<\/sup> of June 1940. By the end of the operation, 191,870 Allied soldiers (British, Canadian, French,\u00a0<a title=\"Poland\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/poland\">Polish<\/a>,\u00a0<a title=\"Belgium\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/belgium\">Belgian<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a title=\"Czech Republic\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/czech-republic\">Czech<\/a>\u00a0soldiers) were rescued as well as civilians, and military equipment. Added to those saved at Dunkirk brought the total amount of evacuated Allied soldiers from the invading Nazi forces in France to 526,870.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Unfortunately, a German bombing raid sank the Ocean Liner Lancastria killing 3,000 of the 5,800 Allied soldiers and French civilians aboard on this day in 1940.<\/p><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-07-17<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><p style=\"font-weight: 400\"><strong>In 1940 the evacuation of French citizens and allied troops continued in Operation Ariel as France prepared to surrender.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">With the\u00a0<a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">German<\/a>\u00a0troops occupying 70% of\u00a0<a title=\"France\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/france\">France<\/a> and the newly appointed French Prime Minister, Marshal Henri Petain, preparing to sign an armistice with the Nazis, British soldiers evacuate many French civilians and Allied soldiers. The French General, Charles de Gaulle, had already fled to <a title=\"England\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/england\">England<\/a>, where he made an announcement to his countrymen, requesting they continue resisting German occupation. Meanwhile, British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, reassured the citizens of the\u00a0<a title=\"United Kingdom\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/united-kingdom\">United Kingdom<\/a>\u00a0that whatever happened in France, they would continue to resist invasion and defeat the enemy.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">After the mass evacuation at Dunkirk on the 4<sup>th<\/sup> of June 1940, where 335,000 Allied troops (198,000 British and 137,000 French) were evacuated to Britain, Winston Churchill was not ready to give up on France. Soon after the 52<sup>nd<\/sup>\u00a0Division and 1<sup>st<\/sup>\u00a0<a title=\"Canada\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/canada\">Canadian<\/a>\u00a0Division were sent back to France to continue the fight and help the remaining, outnumbered, French forces.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">By the 14<sup>th<\/sup> of June, it had become apparent that the Allied effort against the Nazi invasion of France was ineffective and the head of British troops in France,\u00a0General Alan Brooke,\u00a0contacted Churchill and requested permission to start evacuating Allied troops once more. Churchill agreed and Operation Aerial began on the 15<sup>th<\/sup> of June 1940. By the end of the operation, 191,870 Allied soldiers (British, Canadian, French,\u00a0<a title=\"Poland\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/poland\">Polish<\/a>,\u00a0<a title=\"Belgium\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/belgium\">Belgian<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a title=\"Czech Republic\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/czech-republic\">Czech<\/a>\u00a0soldiers) were rescued as well as civilians, and military equipment. Added to those saved at Dunkirk brought the total amount of evacuated Allied soldiers from the invading Nazi forces in France to 526,870.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400\">Unfortunately, a German bombing raid sank the Ocean Liner Lancastria killing 3,000 of the 5,800 Allied soldiers and French civilians aboard on this day in 1940.<\/p><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"tdih_event_date\">1940-12-05<\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_type\"><\/td><td class=\"tdih_event_name\"><strong>In 1940 Hitler\u2019s military plans for the invasion of Russia were complete<\/strong>\r\n\r\nIn October 1940\u00a0<a title=\"Germany\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/germany\">Germany<\/a>\u00a0and the Soviet Union began talks regarding the possibility of them joining the fourth member of the Axis Powers against the Allies. But\u00a0<a title=\"Japan\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/japan\">Japan<\/a> had always been firmly opposed to Communism and their military pact with Germany was based on their mutual opposition to it. In December 1940 Germany ceased communication with the Soviet Union on the matter. But even during these talks, Hitler had been planning his invasion of\u00a0<a title=\"Russia\" href=\"https:\/\/www.earth-site.co.uk\/Education\/russia\">Russia<\/a>. Hitler\u2019s wish to invade Russia, as explained in Meine Kampf, had always been on his mind and additionally, Hitler wanted their oil and a new labour force. On the 5<sup>th<\/sup> of December 1940, Hitler\u2019s military plans for the invasion of Russia were complete. On the 22<sup>nd<\/sup>\u00a0of June 1941 \u201cOperation Barbarossa\u201d began as the largest invasion force ever seen, some 4 million troops, began their invasion of Russia. On the 8<sup>th<\/sup> of September 1941 the German troops began the siege of Leningrad, a hugely symbolic city to the Soviets as it was named after the founder of the communist movement in Russia and the people of Leningrad would not give it up without a fight. The Siege of Leningrad continued until the 27<sup>th<\/sup> of January 1944. The remainder of this huge attack force pushed into Russia and in less than six months German troops were within 30 kilometres of Moscow. The \u201cBattle of Moscow\u201d began on the 2<sup>nd<\/sup>\u00a0of October 1941 when the Desperate Soviets began throwing all they had at the Invading German forces. On the 5<sup>th<\/sup> of December 1941 (exactly one year after Hitler\u2019s plans for the invasion were complete) the Russians began to stop the advance of the German army ending Operation Barbarossa. Russia had nearly 4.5 million casualties of war by this point but this would be the beginning of the end for Hitler. Despite his many further attempts to defeat the Russians, they continued to repel the Germans right back to Berlin, causing Hitler to take his own life and Germany to lose the War. The Battle of Moscow continued until the 7<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0of January 1942 when the Russian army forced a German retreat.<\/td><\/tr><\/table>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><!-- \/divi:shortcode --><\/p>\n<p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=&#8221;1_2,1_2&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.27.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; theme_builder_area=&#8221;post_content&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;1_2&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.27.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; theme_builder_area=&#8221;post_content&#8221;][et_pb_code _builder_version=&#8221;4.27.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; global_colors_info=&#8221;{}&#8221; theme_builder_area=&#8221;post_content&#8221;]<\/p>\n<style><!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] -->         .btn-grad {background-image: linear-gradient(to right, #348F50 0%, #56B4D3  51%, #348F50  100%)}<!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] -->         .btn-grad {<!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] -->            margin: 10px auto;<!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] -->            padding: 15px 45px;<!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] -->            text-align: center;<!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] -->            text-transform: uppercase;<!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] -->            transition: 0.5s;<!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] -->            background-size: 200% auto;<!-- [et_pb_line_break_holder] -->            color: white; 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