1945

Today in History 06/22 (Battle of Okinawa)

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US soldiers of the 29th Infantry moving under smoke cover in Okinawa, Japan (© Keystone View Company/FPG/Getty Images)(1945) Battle in the Pacific finally grinds to a halt
One of the deadliest Pacific battles of World War II ends as US forces secure the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa, a few hundred miles from the Japanese mainland. Some will say that the ferocious Japanese defense is a major factor in the US decision to use atomic bombs to try to end the war without invading Japan.
The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Marine and Army forces against the Imperial Japanese Army. The initial invasion of Okinawa on April 1, 1945, was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific Theater of World War II. The 82-day battle lasted from April 1 until June 22, 1945. After a long campaign of island hopping, the Allies were planning to use Okinawa, a large island only 340 mi away from mainland Japan, as a base for air operations for the planned invasion of the Japanese home islands.
Start date: Apr 01, 1945
End date: Jun 22, 1945

US Marine from the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines on Wana Ridge provides covering fire with his Thompson submachine gun
Two Marines from the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment during fighting at Wana Ridge during the Battle of Okinawa, May 1945. On the left, Davis Hargraves (1925-) provides covering fire with his M1 Thompson submachinegun as Gabriel Chavarria (on the right; 1926-), with a Browning Automatic Rifle, prepares to break cover to move to a different position. Wana Ridge was a long coral spine running out of northern Shuri Hill and was lined on both sides with Okinawan tombs. Japanese emplacements in the tombs and on the reverse slope of the ridge forced the Marines to carefully fight their way through the fortifications. A Japanese counterattack on the Marines on the ridge on 22 May was repelled. It is not known if this photo was taken before or after the Japanese counterattack. Note that the photographer has apparently taken the picture from a covered position behind the ridgeline.
wiki/Cuyahoga_River
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(1945) Battle in the Pacific finally grinds to a halt.
Also on this day,
1611 | English explorer’s storied career ends in mutiny
Henry Hudson’s last known voyage begins as he, his teenage son, and seven crewmen are ordered on board a small open boat in what will later be called Hudson Bay. After enduring a brutal winter, Captain Hudson’s crew has mutinied and set the famous English explorer adrift. He and his boat mates will never be seen again.
1937 | Joe Louis is a new force in boxing wins his first heavyweight title
An Alabama sharecropper’s son, Joe Louis, knocks out Jim Braddock in the 8th round, becoming the world heavyweight boxing champion. The first African American to hold the title since Jack Johnson, Louis will remain champ for 140 months, and will later be named history’s greatest heavyweight boxer.
1969 | Cleveland’s polluted Cuyahoga river catches fire and spurs change
A reporter witnesses an oil slick burning near a steel mill on Cleveland, Ohio’s Cuyahoga River and the resulting feature in Time magazine, despite using images from a previous fire on the river, will be instrumental in furthering the growing environmental movement in the US.

Today in History 05/08/18

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People celebrating VE Day along the Champs Élysées in Paris on May 8, 1945 (© Serge DE SAZO/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)(1945) German surrender ends WWII in Europe
With the unconditional surrender of the German military now official, the Allies and their supporters celebrate with massive VE Day demonstrations around the globe. The deadliest conflict in world history is over in Europe, but WWII still rages on in the Pacific.
Victory in Europe Day, generally known as V-E Day, VE Day or simply V Day, was the public holiday celebrated on 8 May 1945 to mark the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Nazi Germany’s unconditional surrender of its armed forces. The formal surrender of the German forces occupying the Channel Islands did not occur until the following day, 9 May 1945. It thus marked the end of World War II in Europe.
Also called: V-E Day VE Day
Observed by: France, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Europe (1945)
Significance: End of World War II in Europe
Related to: Victory over Japan Day, Victory Day
Date: 7/8 May 1945

Wilhelm Keitel Kapitulation
Field Marshall Wilhelm Keitel signing the unconditional surrender of the German Wehrmacht at the Soviet headquarters in Karlshorst, Berlin.
wiki/Victory_in_Europe_Day
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(1945) German surrender ends WWII in Europe.
Also on this day,
1877 | Dog show debut
1886 | Coca-Cola introduced
1902 | Mount Pelée erupts

Today in History 05/02/18

May 1945 photo showing Soviet soldiers hoisting the red flag over the Reichstag in Berlin (© Yevgeny Khaldei/ITAR-TASS/AP)(1945) The Fall of Berlin heralds the beginning of the end of WWII
Soviet Red Army forces raise their flag over the former Nazi high command center, the Reichstag building, as the Battle of Berlin comes to an end. In the months to come, the German capital will be divided into Allied zones, with the USSR controlling East Berlin.
The Battle of Berlin, designated the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, and also known as the Fall of Berlin, was the final major offensive of the European theatre of World War II.
Start date: Apr 16, 1945
End date: May 02, 1945

Bundesarchiv B 145 Bild-P054320, Berlin, Brandenburger Tor und Pariser Platz
For documentary purposes the German Federal Archive often retained the original image captions, which may be erroneous, biased, obsolete or politically extreme. Berlin 1945 Blick über den Pariser Platz auf das Brandenburger Tor Anfang Juni 1945
wiki/Battle_of_Berlin
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(1945) The Fall of Berlin heralds the beginning of the end of WWII.
Also on this day,
1536 | Anne Boleyn arrested
1939 | Lou Gehrig sits out
1952 | First jet airliner

Today in History 03/09/18

Aerial photo taken March 9, 1945 showing the destruction caused by Operation Meetinghouse on the industrial section of Tokyo along the Sumida River (© AP)(1945) Operation Meetinghouse firebombs Tokyo
US warplanes in World War II begin dropping over 1,600 tons of bombs on Japan’s largest city. The most destructive single firestorm in history begins, and will kill up to 130,000 and leave 1 million homeless.
The Bombing of Tokyo often refers to a series of firebombing air raids by the United States Army Air Forces during the Pacific campaigns of World War II. On the night of 9–10 March 1945, Operation Meetinghouse was conducted and is regarded as the single most destructive bombing raid in human history. 16 square miles of central Tokyo were annihilated, over 1 million were made homeless with an estimated 100,000 civilian deaths. The Japanese later called this event Night of the Black Snow.
Start date: 1942
End date: 1945

Firebombing of Tokyo
“Tokyo burns under B-29 firebomb assault.” May 26, 1945.
wiki/Bombing_of_Tokyo
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Today in History 12/27/17

World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim in 2014 (© Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)(1945) The World Bank and International Monetary Fund are created
First conceived at the Bretton Woods Conference in July 1944, the World Bank and International Monetary Fund are formally created to help Europe rebuild after World War II. Over time, their focus will shift to providing loans to address poverty.
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to countries of the world for capital programs. It comprises two institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the International Development Association. The World Bank is a component of the World Bank Group.
Website: www.worldbank.org
Founded: 1944
Headquarters: Washington, D.C., IL
CEO: Kristalina Georgieva (Since 2017)
Founders: John Maynard Keynes · Harry Dexter White
Subsidiaries: International Bank for Reconstruction and Development · International Development Association · Energy Sector Management Assistance Program · World Bank office, Chennai
Phone number: +1 2024731000

World Bank building at Washington
The World Bank Group headquarters bldg. in Washington, D.C.; Designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox.

wiki/World_Bank
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