The Crucial Battles That Ended WW2 | Battles Won and Lost | Timeline
In Battles Lost and Won, we investigate each crucial battle that decided the resources, territory and strategic advantage of nations at war.
Across every theatre of the Second World War battle strategies were designed to capitalise on terrains with better access to supplies.
Despite these tactics, many forces were stretched beyond their limits, facing unforeseen conditions and underestimating targets. These battles won and lost would determine possession of territory, resources and the strength to go on fighting. For some of the battles it was the victory that most influenced the future course of the war.
For others, it was the defeat. From sweeping offensives to special operations, this is the story of the battles won and battles lost that shaped the outcome of the greatest conflict in history.
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The Best Generation is an understatement! My father was a B24 Gunner for the Mighty 8th and never said a word. I only found out 5 years ago! He passed in 1993.. Me Mum was a little girl in London during the Blitz. She mentioned her experience a little bit when I was a kid. Apparently not enough to catch my attention... What a selfish brat for never asking ONE freaking question to my mother and father about WW2....Here I’m watching hundreds of documentaries about WW2 and my mother and father were living bibles of WW2... What a great Generation of men and women!!!! Love you Jennie and William!!!
If you watched WW2 Week-by-Week With Indy Nidell, you'd know the battle of France was a lot more complex than shown here.
Every battle is more complex than a TV show.
Indy and the team do great stuff on WW1 the interwar years as well as WW2. If anyone wants to see some of the best 20th century history on u tube check them out 👍
No 1 single battle. A culmination of events led to the Germans halt to world supremacy!
@Pepper Grinder Not in 1940...
L Haviland I agree Indy and the team are the best at what they do would also have to recommend him on the Great War channel as well
This random historical documentary is interrupting my ads.
Tried AdBlock or uBlock? You can also try to fast foreward, wait a moment, then replay.....
@ప్రపంచాన్ని గెలుద్దాం u
The battle of Stalingrad broke Germany's back. It was a brutal beginning of the end.
No, Germany lost the war at the gates of Moscow 1941. That failure prolonged the war instead of ending it and that bleed the German army white. Concurrent to that the thrust to take Leningrad was to slow to achieve it's objective. Furthermore the Germans choose the direct approach for both prongs instead of an indirect approach as they did at the start. All of this is bad but the killer was superior German engineering that made over engineered vehicles that were too complex and too expensive for war. A T-34 was built with a life expectancy of like 2 months.
@@ThePzrLdr Okay, except the books I've read say 6th Army defeat and surrender were losses in men and equipment that couldnt be replaced in the East. There are many battles in thr Eastern War that certainly changed tactical advantages and battles that followed. You and I aren't the final say but just for fun, and I haven't tried it yet, but let's Google what battle between Russia and Germany in world war II decided the fate of the war. Betcha Moscow isn't the answer.
Fascinating video! Thank you for uploading! My Grandfather fought for the Wehrmacht during the war. He was part of the 6th army, 44th infantry division and saw action in Poland, France and Kharkov. He was captured along with thousands of men at Stalingrad and ultimately lost 80lbs of body weight post-war moving around different Russian labour camps before finally returning home to Germany in the mid 1950s. His older brother served in the German navy as an officer. He was on submarine U-107 which sank British ship Colonial off Guinea, French West Africa; the entire crew of 100 survived and rescued by HMS Centurion. The youngest brother out of the 3 survived the war as a loader for the Jagdtiger in the 512th heavy tank destroyer battalion and surrendered to the Americans by the end in May 1945.
Are they still alive if I may ask?
There were really five battles during the 2nd world war, which accounted for the allied victory. 1. Battle of Britain: Actually, more of a defeat for Germany, than a victory of Britain. Had Germany been successful in destroying the RAF, this would have opened up Britain for an invasion, that Germany almost certainly would have won. This would have have knocked out Britain as the "unsinkable aircraft carrier", meaning no strategic bombing of Germany, as well as neutralizing Britain as a base for launching the invasion of France. 2. Battle of Stalingrad: Turning point of WW2. Germany worst defeat up to that time, on the eastern front. 3. Battle of Kursk: All hope of Germany regaining the initiative on the eastern front was lost here, along with the destruction of the best remaining parts of the Wehrmacht's armored forces. 4. Battle of Midway: Turning point of WW2 in the Pacific. The loss of four carriers, their planes, and air crews, which Japan was never able to replace. Japan lost the initiative in the Pacific. 5. Battle of Guadalcanal: Kind of like the "Kursk of the Pacific". The Japanese and American Navies swung wildly at each other over a period of seven months, exhausting the Japanese, until they with drew their forces. This was a battle of attrition, one which the Japanese could never hope to prevail in, over the US. After this, Japan was on the defensive for the remainder of the war.
Battle of Moscow?
And the defeat of Rommel in North Africa. Italy and Germany lost well over 300,000 troops over the course of that campaign. (620,000 casualties in total)
The Battle of Britain decided nothing. You can’t protect an invasion force from the world’s largest Navy with 7 destroyers and 22 submarines. Even if your two heavy cruisers decoy away a couple of battle groups you still have Revenge operating out of Plymouth. It’s an old ship but it is a big part of the reason the Kreigsmarine doesn’t have a single capital ship available.
World War 2 is soo interesting. The fact that its something our Grandfathers took part in is incredible
Yup, I just wish i knew more information about my Opa on the Russian front......he was there till the end.
JulieBeans73 What was his unit/division?
@@alitlweird I have no idea, having only found my biological father and family in the he last few years. All I do know is that they were severely under supplied. They were starving, and found cured meat hanging in a barn or other outbuildings.... They put them under their arms to warm them and many men ended up with hypothermia. At the end Opa walked home.... A Russian soldier surrendered to him - I think Opa took him home with him. I also know Opa walked home carrying a bullet in his chest, a millimetre from his heart.
My grandfather was in the first world war. My dad was in the second
29:13 I think the mispronouncing of Jodls name by Churchill was deliberate. It's so subtle and deliberate at the same time. Perfectly fits Churchills persona during the war.
Based on the title of this episode, you forgot Midway, 4 June 1942. After Midway, the Japanese never regained the offensive. They were always defensive. Talk about a crucial battle.
As critical as Stalingrad
I was thinking the same thing they should have said something about Midway.
agree, it was the turning point.
It's in one of the other videos from the series.
They didn't wana give away the middle.
*Thank you for posting all of your videos. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!*
This series covers considerably more battles than this single video if you're wondering it's available on prime
Haha the dramatic facial expressions the two guys make at each other gives me the giggles 😆
haha same 😂
They look constipated.
@@VictorVonGrooove 4:11
abott and costello
I don’t understand why they’re even there lol
Maybe next time spend your tiny production budget on some research instead of a star trek set.
Thank you timeline......
Thiluna Prasad no, thank you.
The battles of Midway,Stalingrad & El Alamein & the land battle of Guadalcanal should have been featured.
Like how do you leave out the battle of Midway
Stalingrad is the main one on the Eastern front, not op citadel. It was game over at that point anyway.
In other episodes all those battles and many more are covered .
@@Blastoice The delay in attacking Moscow. Because of Mussolini's ambitions in the Balkans/Greece.
Yeah I was kind of stunned. Kursk over Stalingrad? Sure it was a strategic battle, but they could have lost it while still winning the war. I thought that was strange
Jeremy Clarkson take on the raid on St Nazaire is one of the best. It's on KZhead, for those that haven't seen it
The Battle of Convoy ONS5 was decisive. German U-Boat losses were so high during 'Black May' that Donitz was forced to withdraw his submarines from the Atlantic, as the Royal Navy and Royal Canadian Navy had mastered the art of convoy protection.
One of the Best ww2 documentary, Soviet Storm. I highly recommend it if u want to learn and the Eastern front
2:34 LOL why would they use modern borders for this graphic?
subverting expectations :)
I really enjoy documentary's like this, gives us an insight to the history and the people. As well we see what repercussions that could appear from decisions and action taken, all very valuable lessons to use for our future. But i just don't get why we have those two fellas acting like they are a couple generals at a table map playing like they are in a game of chess. Any way i guess it does have some form of effect for dramatic purposes. Great video, and excellent channel.
Yeah, the two guys didn't fit well at all with the rest of the cool documentary. Reminded me of stock photo models....terrible ones.
@@ChuckManchester Thanks, i thought afterwards i was being to critical with my comment. :-)
@@ou8my58 You're welcome. Critical? Nah...you're good. I was laughing at the scenes they were in, but they did seem kind of awkward. X-D
I wish we could watch the archive of the war footage. I've seen so many documentaries on pacific theater but there are some footage I've never on this on.
Surprised the Battle of Midway isnt on here, considering that was the finite turning point in the pacific war for the US
I guess Midway was too early to call "war winning"? Seems like a major turning point at the very leaat
@@tenacious645 it certainly was. Especially with the fog of war at the time. And a major turning point it was
@@tenacious645 but one can argue with the benefit of hindsight that it was certainly the battle that allowed us to win the war, hence my comment
Interesting and I have enjoyed watching the post but no Moscow, Stalingrad, Kursk, Bagration, D Day, Midway, Battle of Britain?
LoL i have watched a few of these videos, it seems its more about promoting communism than relating history lol ,if you have a topic that might show communism as realistic ideology you might get a video made :)
@@aniceguy9876 What are you drinking fella?? It has nothing to do with communism heaven forbid. The fact is that the Germans bled to death in Russia. The biggest battles were in Russia and it's estimated that the Germans had as many as eight million casualties during the campaign. Killed, wounded, taken prisoner and lost in action. Its a proven fact that the allies could not have defeated the Germans without the Russian involvement.
@@aminbazdeep6417 That's because his type rely on Hollywood to tell the story of WW2 while the "cooomunists" were building their destroy structures. Now look who dominates the the true story of WW2...the Russians! Now they (the "coomunists") are in control of Asia, Latin America and Africa economic policies.
Anice Guy ignoring history of the fear of promoting communism is the reason idiots like you can promote ignorance. TIK, an anti socialist/communist is extremely balance in his view and say attacking Russians was the beginning of the end for the Germans. His research and and his opinion greatly emphasis that willingly ignoring history is the ultimate ignorance that allow humans to repeat historical mistake again and again. Fools like you allowed that.
@@saigon68foxtrot83 lol california has a bigger GDP then Russia sure buddy
Someone may already have said this, but without a doubt, the most decisive battle of the Pacific War was Pearl Harbor. The Japanese would have lost eventually regardless of what happened there (or at Midway), but by failing to sink the US aircraft carriers, none of which were present on December 7th, their own defeat came much sooner than it may have otherwise.
It is funny that the fact we had already cracked the Japanese diplomatic codes prior to Pearl Harbor is never discussed. We take it as gospel how "lucky" we were that none of our carriers were in harbor that day. The fact is we knew an attack was imminent and had sent warnings to both Pearl Harbor and the Philippines. MacArthur, military genius that he was (sarcasm), decided that he should guard against sabotage by Japanese "infiltrators" and ordered all the aircraft at the airfield to be parked wing to wing in the center of the field under 24 hour guard. Which made them super easy for the first wave of fighters to destroy on the ground. Edit: To be clear MacArthur was the overall commander in the Philippines, not Pearl Harbor.
@@brianeleighton Yes. Very fortunate. My thoughts exactly. What happened to the officer who dismissed the Radar sightings?
@@alexhayden2303 In fairness to that, radar was still a fairly new technology and the crew manning it were doing so with trainees to get training. Hindsight is, of course, 20/20 but even today I can't fault that decision at the time. It would be crazy to mobilize the entire combined Naval and Army forces in Hawaii based on the say so of a single crew practicing on unproven technology. However, the Commander of the Pacific Fleet was fired immediately after Pearl Harbor.
It would be great if you make a video on the 3rd battle of Kharkov. Not much documentories speak about that, since it was chosen not to and largely overshadowed by the German defeat at Stalingrad.
2:41 Using a post-war map of Germany. lol
I know its a pet peeve of mine
It's considered verboten for Germans to remember East Prussia existed. Danzig? Königsberg? Never heard of them!
I hope people don't get me and you mixed up mate!!!
30:29 those rings .. superb
Stalingrad. It most certainly made the Third Reich generals realize how limited their Waffe was and from that point onward paved the path for their inevitable demise. The indestructible morale was lost and never caught up to Hitler's aspirations.
And Kursk....its all retreat for the Germans after Kursk
They were in a bad way even prior to Fall Blau starting due to the number of casualties taken by integral experienced units. Far too many dead NCOs being a big factor.
@@Nikola5982 Yes, Kursk definitely made the Third Reich realize that even with their modern Panther and Tiger Tanks (which were lengthy and expensive to produce) they couldn't beat the average assembly line T-34's snd several others which rolled out to the tune of around 80 to one single Panther. Not to even mention the experimental Tigers. Definitely another battle that brought home the limitations of yet another major aspect of ground warfare - tank battle. Further failures of Luftwaffe just cemented the Third Reich's inability to dominate the sky which was likely the strategic turning point for the war altogether.
the battle was lost before stalinrad. it was just realised at stalinrad.
@@aquilatempestate9527 No, the Germans needed oil, they had plenty of manpower and machine but no the resources to use em and with Allied aid to the Soviets, they were doomed.
I really enjoyed this series of ads. Pity they were constantly interrupted by a WWII documentary
*cough*ADBLOCKPLUS*** Adblock works. The plus version works even better!!
The Battle of Stalingrad.
Or the Battle of Berlin
@@bobbywilliam7440The Battle of Stalingrad was the bloodiest battle in history and was the turning point of World War 2 and yet it's not even mentioned here. The documentary series entitled "The Unknown War" goes in depth about the war on the eastern front that western historians largely ignore and just reduce to a footnote if nentioned at all.
Alex Zander any historian of WW2 is aware of Stalingrad’s importance and many have written about it and the Eastern Front.
I think it’s in the East for sure, but I don’t know whether it’s Stalingrad. Stalingrad was very symbolic and both sides put in a lot cause of its symbolism. But I’ve read that it wasn’t really important militarily. It was an ego thing for the two dictators. I think it’s close. But I think the Kursk was more important.
@Real Thailand Tiny in numbers? The Battle of Britain involved over 4,513 air craft. It was the largest air battle in history
10:35 "Those tanks weren't just fueled by benzin, they were fueled by some sort of weird psychic projection..." and copious amount of methamphetamines.
- Every battle is a victory or a defeat. Wow
There are very few battles that actually changed the course of WW2. I would list the following decisive battles; Stalingrad, Kurst, Battle of Britain, Battle of Midway.
@Real Thailand The battle for Moscow was not a decisive battle. It did shock the world that Russia had any reserves left and save Moscow which was a transport hub. That said the German forces fought the Russians to a standstill. There were serious ramifications for both sides but it was not a battle that changed the course of the war. It was Stalingrad followed by Kursk The Germans were then in full retreat and the Russian forces forced them all the way back.
you are about right with these 4 battles, the Battle of Britain, stopped Germany from invading Britain, Stalingrad, stopped Germany from advancing through Russia, Kursk, finished off Germany in Russia, Midway, was the end for Japan too.
@Real Thailandcan you tell me, in what battle did the Royal Navy "win?" to prevent Germany from invading Britain ?????, Germany needed air superiority to make up for the fact, it didn't even have a viable invasion force, so the Battle of Britain did prevent a German invasion, (those flat bottomed barges in French/ Belgian ports, would have capsized in an open sea, so the Royal Navy, didn't even need to get out of port to stop that happening), i would imagine that you would say that, "it was just a coincidence that Germany postponed its planned invasion of Britain, after the Battle of Britain" (I never watch movies too, but, I have studied both World War 1 and World War 2).
This vídeo is all of a históric jewel
I am pretty sure the B-29 had two sets of throttles on the right and left side of the cockpit so the bombardier could enter into the nose (the pilot and co-pilot each had their own set of throttles). At about 30:40 they show throttles in the middle between the control columns. It must be a different plane.
You mean there was a mistake in editing? Oh shame! How could that have happened? And it had such a big impact on the documentary as a whole!! Ffs grow up
@@perkeyser2032 Sloppy editing. It's done often and I think needs to be pointed out so viewers are not misinformed.
Very interesting 👍
I like the dynamic illustrations on the table with those two mean looking men.
I enjoyed the actors' facial expressions as they shifted their forces. At 22:00 "Aha you seem to have me by the short curlies Ivan Ivanovich and my eyes are blinded by tears or is it that our over-acting is reducing me to tears of quiet laughter?"
Same. The actor for Germany smiling at the Allied actor in the Battle of France segment had me laughing.
Go Australia🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺 everyone did us proud,, lest we forget
Azzies are badass mate!
Interestingly the Australian army was the first to defeat the Wehrmacht at he defence of Tobruk, and the Japanese Imperial forces on the Kokoda trail; they really did us proud. And we must not forget the always present from across the ditch (NZ), as well as the Indian and South African soldiers. the UK had some remarkable allies in the field - the Canadians also spring to mind, us Australians should not get too cocky!!!!
Stuart Barton spot on mate
if ever WWI is in discussion, Australian General John Monash turned the tide of the Great War * his planned deployment of aircraft, tank, & artillery in minutes precision for Battle of La Hamel was revolutionary for the time. He also got the tank and artillery personnel in sync with each other, not only in trusting their abilities & armor, but emotionally also.
We sure did brother 🇬🇧🇦🇺
That Junkers 88 at 11:04 is actually a Dornier 17.
i was really disappointed to see a map of modern Germany when talking in the context of the Manstein plan
Context is important 😂
and Corsica isnt shown as french territory.
I get used to, American documentary :/
@@piecia66 It's actually a British documentary.
Great documentary, other than the dramatized strategy map thing. I guess the budget wasn't enough for graphics...
Definitely not hearts of Iron 😂
Or uniforms.
I have never seen yet a detailed account of just what equipment or tactics were used to "pass the impassable" Arden
They identified the most appropriate roads & best terrain to move across. Simple.
The Germans had enough understanding of the terrain to know that the roads were good enough for their tanks. As long as the French did not suspect an attack there the Germans were confident they could overcome the second class units who were supposed to hold out much longer than they did. The French high command was 100% focused on German invasion of Belgium and did not notice nor react to the problems on the Ardennes. When the Germans tried again during the Battle of the Bulge they ran into difficulty because the terrain favors defense and the armored units had to stay on what few roads their were. While the Germans were initially successful, the Americans were able to block their attack by blowing up bridges, cutting down trees and so on. They also correctly rushed troops to Bastogne as 5 roads converge there and it was on a high point that could bring accurate artillery fire all around. The Germans lost time and fuel trying to take it.
Yes, Stalinegrad was the beggining of the end...
Well... Yes. But the one and only thing Germany needed at that time was to eliminate Stalin from the game... And it wasn't too difficult... IMHO
@@zdzichus.3264 Whe are talking about what did, not what could
attacking Russia was the real beginning of the end
The attack on Poland was where they lost. They were never going to win. They did not have enough oil.
Without Britain winning the B.O.B. (And a big shout out to each commonwealth country) The USSR would have been annihilated by Germany. It was Britain that told Stalin Germany were going to attack them. The USSR was an enemy during the B.O.B. And only became an ally after Britain had won the B.O.B. Churchill had agreed to supply the USSR, who had no rifles or real weaponry, without Britain winning the B.O.B. Germany would have attacked the USSR in 1940 with full strength in the air and on the ground. That would have left Germany in control of all the USSR and all Europe, that would have seen the USA completely annihilated. Britain winning the Battle of Britain is what actually allowed the allies to go on and win the War! Not America, not the USSR. Britain were responsible for winning WW2. And It doesn't matter if anyone doesn't think so, because these are the FACTS, THE UNDENIABLE FACTS.
Maybe yall could try and include some ww2 content to go along with this long series of ads.
Well the allies figured it out 40,000,000 deaths later. Garrison the defeated enemy for more than 70 years and keep them mostly disarmed....
you can have a draw. Or a tactical defeat/victory and strategic defeat/victory
Is there something wrong with the date? All scenes talk about 1941. Owl Jima was in 1945 I think???
Tony Bullaert Yes there is something wrong because Iwo Jima was 1945, Owl Jima, not quite sure....
@@duckrikini Should have been IWO and not OWI... typing error...
Is that the only battle date you know?
@@roseypuddin8805 No! I only mentioned this one. The battle of Kursk is also wrong. Should be 1943. I would have to look again to check the other dates. Overall a comprehensive dock.. a bit sorry for the dates... all 1941.
Super good the vídeo but again I think we should forget and try to heal old wounds
If you forget, you are doomed to repeat history
To Le Beast, thank you for your reply. Except for the trench warfare dead lock in WW1, since the industrial age the winners of wars are generally those with the greater industrial capacity. The only other way to win is perseverance,(gorilla warfare) as seen by the Rebels in our Revolution and N. Vietnamese in the Vietnam war. The trick there was to hang on long enough until the other side(public) loses the will to keep on fighting. In our Civil War the only hope the south would have had to win, was to fight a gorilla war against the superior power of the north, like Washington did against the British. If the South could have dragged the war on long enough and convinced the north the cost was too great, they might have won, but of course that would be only speculation now. I think in any honest historical study, only the facts are important and who was right or wrong must remain irrelevant. Thanks again for your comment.
I hope to God we never have another situation like this that leads to another all out war. So many futures ruined over greed. Drafted, or enlisted. In the end both fought side by side for someone else. May we never forget, and remember the price before the pride. Thank you to all the men, and women who fought for freedom of the defenseless. Those are the true heroes. What gets to me is knowing a lot these enemies could have been best friends with our troops. They also had families, and most just fought for there nations pride unaware of their leaders true horrors. This was only 80 years ago. That is nothing in the grand scheme. We can’t forget we can’t. I don’t think people realize how much the internet has changed the world, for the better.
@Aaron Mooneyham: Agree the sentiment, but that should read could've (could have), not could of.
Elr James Ah thank you I’ll fix that 👍
It was not pride, WWI set the stage for another war, I don't think WWII could have been avoided. Both the Soviet Union and Germany started the war, because otherwise their dictatorships would have collapsed.
I agree with everything but the last sentence. The internet has made the spread of disinformation and paranoia easier than ever, among other things.
After the Battle of Moscow in December 1941, the Germans should have seen the gig was up. After Stalingrad a year later, many Germans could see the war was lost.
This documentary had mor wrong facts than right ones. If you watch this, you will understand less of ww2, than you did before.
very good
The "famous picture" at Iwo Jima was a recreation, I thought this really was common knowledge? It was also fought in 1945, not 41! For a history documentary, its rather poorly researched...
agreed
what it was .. was ..putting a larger flag up and that what was captured on film of the whole deal. it was never 'staged' it just happened to be filmed in the process.
It’s pretty obvious that it was just a mistake in the graphics rather then Actually believing it being that they’re talking about the end of the war in Germany.
@@HowlingWo1f I was under the impression that there was a Crucial Battle ...rather than a run down of how it was...the 'crucial' part was my hang up.
@@moss8448 And so reenacted ... exactly my point.
So to everyone winning a battle there was someone losing it? I‘d have never thought.
This was over simplified and didn’t talk about anything good
Nice video thank you. I think basically all wars are simply battles of attrition. WW1 is a good example of the attrition of manpower WW2 is more about which side could produce more military equipment. While German war production was being bombed 24/7 Americas production ran 24/7 bomb free. December 7th 1941 was really the beginning of the end of ww2. Once we were in the war neither Germany or Japan could match out industrial might.A similar scenario is seen in the Civil War, where the South was unable to match the industrial power of the North. In the Battle of the Bulge, the Germans were achieving victory but with fuel reserves gone and the allies successful delays. They ran out of fuel and the victory was lost. Just saying.
Interesting point
John Murray An interesting analysis that cannot be disputed other than your conclusion that Dec 7 1941 was really the point when the Germans lost the war. I would argue that Sept 15 1940 was the real pivotal point when German fortunes were to be decided. Whilst that date did not signify the end of the war it decided on how the war was to be conducted from then onwards, on who controlled the Atlantic, the Mediterranean and the sea routes into Russia. Without that control all the productive capabilities of the US would have been meaningless.
They ran out of budget for the generals' uniforms.
At Stalingrad the Soviets wiped out the entire German 6th army, which Germany could never hope to replace, so yeah basically that one. Or maybe Kursk where the Soviets blunted and destroyed basically everything in terms of men and materiel the Germans had left through supreme deep fortification. Or maybe >Insert any other major Soviet victory here
@LET IT BE TIME WILL TELL If one person has a bomb counting down strapped to their chest, and the other person has the key to disable it, and they fail to get the key off of them, that's a victory for the guy with the key
The desert fox. The Italians were extra baggage for the panzers
Ask the ones who fought against the Folgore division.
The Folgore division were the true romans
I think the Battle of Midway, turning point in the Pacific, Second Battle of El Alamein, the main turning point in N.Africa, The "forgotten" battle of Imphal and Kohima, turning back the Japanese army in Malaysia and Burma could have been mentioned.
Eastern front expert David Glantz says there were 3 turning points: Failure to capture Moscow meant Germany could not win the war on Hitlers terms. Loss at Stalingrad meant the Germans would lose but there was still a decent chance it would just a partial defeat or end in a stalemate where Soviet territory would be returned w/o an invasion of German territory. The German loss at Kursk and other losses in summer/autumn 1943 meant Germany would definitely lose and Soviet armies would be in Germany. I agree with this, but would say Operation Bagration truly ended any chance of a partial defeat/stalemate where Germany would not be invaded & Hitlers regime would survive....bc even in summer 44...German Army Group Center was still just outside Smolensk.
Those men seem to desire not war but love.
Frank Capra series of docos made during and short time post war are great (yes they were made for propaganda). Nevertheless, they have a great and insightful take on the battles
Not to forget the battle of Kohima which is commonly known as Stalingrad of Asia. It was here that the Japanese troops were stopped and not in Burma.
...So, no mention of Bagration, Saipan, or Normandy?
Exactly...and no mention of Hong Yang Pow either. They've missed out a bunch of details.
Battles can be drawn.If in a battle you achieve your objectives but suffer more casualties than the enemy,you have drawn the battle.
Hey tank (or armor) enthusiasts. At 20:52 we see two knocked out tanks. The tank on the right sure looks to me like an American Stuart tank. I have no idea what the one on the left is. What do you think?
it looks like a soviet t-70
No mention of Stalingrad? hu?
Stalingrad (Battle of Britain, the holding of Moscow, Pearl Harbor, Midway, El Alamein...all important too, in saving or turning the war, then later Sicily and of course D Day towards victory)
Timorrow I lo watch it again
Why didnt you tell they rammed the docks in Nazaire and the bom on board of the boat blew up later! Right when the germans thought it was a failed attempt. That is a fascinating story!
Alamein was a hyped up battle. Win or lose nothing would have changed.
This may be contraversal but in my opinion the two major battles that sealed Gemany's fate, were El Alamein and the Battle for the Caucasus. The one commodity that Germany desperately lacked was OIL. Both of the mentioned battle deprived the Germans of that prize. Lets look at what would have happened if the British and Russians had lost. Rommel and his Desert Rats would have the whole of the middle east oil fields. And at that time the Caucasus oil fields were the worlds richest. At the death it was lack of petrol that grounded the Luftwaffe, and restricted the movements of Tiger Tanks . That shouldn't be forgotten .
1 Battle of Britain 2 battle of Stalingrad 3 battle of midway
Good Call!! I like #1Battle of Britain #2 Midway for the Pacific....#3 Stalingrad for the East then #4 Overlord nailed the coffin shut for Charlie Chaplin want a be...
I'm thinking the battle of Moscow was critically more important than Stalingrad because it gave Stalin time to move factories out. Being a centrally controlled government, most of the important weapons factories were probably located in Moscow rather than Stalingrad or Leningrad. Stalingrad was the turning point in the War but not as critical. Just my idea. The other two you listed, Yes.
carpe diem you’re right, that was the battle the Germans started retrieving once the Russians got the reinforcements.
Is there a similar show for WW1? Very interesting show idea
try "The Great War" here on youtube. very very well researched, and unbiased by a multiethnic team. having many tiny videos also makes it easier to watch.
@29:28 Churchill announced Germany's surrender and at 35:00 they are talking about North Africa operations against Germans? How was this documentary made?
Here are the ones that contributed the most to the Axis defeat. The Royal Navy blockade of Europe - depleted the Germans of oil and resources which effectively forced them to attack the soviet union. Battle of Britain - first major defeat of the German war machine, the luftwaffe would lose thousands of experienced pilots that the germans wished had been diverted to russia instead. Battle of Stalingrad - The entire sixth army surrenders to the soviets... beginning of the end for Germany. Battle of Guadalcanal and the Battle of Midway - both stopped the Japanese momentum, from this point on the Japanese navy was fighting defensive battles as they could not recoup the carrier losses suffered at midway.
Germany lost the war when they allowed the evacuation at Dunkirk... You can't be friends with someone who wants to kill you.
Bullet-Tooth Tony You forgot the battle of Moscow, the real turning point
dougie 1943 I appreciate your reply, thank you! Yes I agree Sept 15th 1940 was a important pivotal point of WW2, as it effectively stopped Germany's final trust to control all of Europe. Although at that point the German invasion plans for England were put on hold, the conflict was not anywhere near over. I think by 1941 the war in Europe was basically at a stalemate with production on both sides drastically reduced. Americas involvement in the war left us as the only ally nation to not be involved geographically in it. Only this lucky chance of fate, left us in a position to mass produce war products in a way that neither our allies nor enemy's had. Under these conditions the United States had all the advantage in turning the tide of war. Thanks again, I love a chance to discuss history!
St Nazaire raid was the turning point in addition to the two earlier wins at sea. After Graf Spee and Bismarck being defeated. The Battle Of The Atlantic was won by the Brits owning the surface. Had the large German ships been able to take to sea at will England would have been starved into making terms.
The UK, but yes, the Battle Of The Atlantic was as important as anything. The Royal Navy held the key to the oil embargo.
Say what you wish, Germany defeating France within 6 weeks stands as perhaps the most impressive martial feat of the 20th century.
Yep an then England put there foot down
@@doobydoo88 Yes, it wasn't enough to totally bankrupt and mutilate our nation for very dubious objectives in the first war. Certain factions thought it best we do it a second time! Britain had nothing to gain and the only result of the second war was to destroy everything that was left of Britain following the first. Fantastic, what a victory. British power shattered and now totally handed to the US, Germany in utter ruins and hordes of insane Communists occupying half of Europe. Declaring war on Germany for the second time really was the most insane folly in British foreign policy history.
Touche
But to make it that time they did things like bombing the intire city of Rotterdam to make the Dutch surrender so the units could keep going
@@aquilatempestate9527 Even Churchill the warmonger was quoted saying "WW2 was the unnecessary war".
Old scars must be sealed and healed
But not forgotten
I read that the Skipper and Professor both fought at Guadalcanal. I bet Gilligan's Island was nicer!!
please get rid of those two annoying sideshows with their tokens
right from the start these mimes hahaha
My favorite part of this analysis is the two guys standing on either side of the table and giving each other dirty looks.
@Charles Yuditsky nah he won tobruk
they should kiss already
Do I have news for you: The Ardennes is also Belgium!
Manstein's support of Operation Citadel in my opinion really diminishes his reputation as the bee's knee of military tactics. Having waited far too long allowed the Soviets to build up vast entrenchments as well as the production of more tanks, artillery, and aircraft dooming the plan before it began. Manstein even wanted to continue operations past the point when it was clear the gamble was a total failure. All those resources built up on the German side should have been used after executing a tactical withdraw west allowing the Red Army to outdistance its supplies before counterattacking like was the case earlier in the year (February).
Seems the French didn’t bet on planes becoming such a force, never see any footage of French planes in the war.
Actually the Brits and French were terrified for German planes in the interbellum. They actually overestimated the German air potential. They thought France and England would be bombed flat bij an aerial Blitzkrieg.
Battle of the Atlantic as well as the giant battle at Kursk
0:11 Unless you are Switzerland.
Hm, Methinks that in the European theater, the German war effort was already lost and slated for ultimate defeat by the end of 1941. Germany opted to pursue to break the (by them vastly underestimated) USSR morale by striking out at Moscow instead of going for the economical real necessities of primarily oil (of which it had hardly any of its own.). Germany failed to attain its objectives (Defeat the USSR morale by taking Moscow.) and had already overstretched its logistical capabilities to the point of breaking . As well it had exhausted its capabilities of on the one hand replacing its losses and on the other maintaining initiative and freedom of operations at a tactical level. Once Germany was defeated by the USSR, the outcome of the world-conflict, known as WWII, was a forgone conclusion in which Japan did not stand the proverbial "snowball's chance in Gehenna" against the theoretically now totally unified thrust of the Allied forces.
Thats exactly what I was thinking.
I've always wondered how France fell so quickly. Now this documentary says the Germans even had inferior tanks. I understand that it numerically had more soldiers than Germany. Then had allied support. But still fell with in weeks. Mentality has to be playing a part here.
Yes there was a crucial battle that won the war....the war of production, which the Axis lost before the war began. Almost everything else is irrelevant, which makes the millions of deaths even more tragic.
There is a fascinating book on this "To Lose a Battle, France 1940", Alistair Horne. It is a great read if you wonder how in the world the Germans did it.
They did it because they were man for man better soldiers than the allies. They knew how to use their tanks. The French had a bigger army, more tanks. But they saw no chance for "elan". Their Generals were hidebound old men.
@@ziblot1235 That is an oversimplification. Your assertion that "man for man" the German Soldier was superior is incorrect. In a lot of ways they were not, they were also not as well armed in many ways. In the particular battle with the French they were much better led. Grab the book and check it out, many small decisions were made by the French that turned out to be catastrophic. The overall impression was that the French were still fighting world war one. For the record the Germans were also led by very old men at equal levels with the French. There was very little difference in respective ages. It was more of a philosophy difference.
WOW!
Stalingrad and Midway. After those two battles the axis were on their back foot, never threatened the allies again and ultimately lost the war.
The Germans went on the attack at Kharkov and Kursk after Stalingrad. After Kursk they were on the back foot. And after El Alamein in the west.
I think you could of sqeezed 2 more ads in there you know?
At 29:00 its says the Iwo Jima was fought in 1941 . . . . How about 1945? Other than that these are great documentaries.
Too many ads... I dint mind ads at the beginning nor at the the end 😨😨😨