1943
January
At the Casablanca Conference, Roosevelt and Churchill agreed to step up the bombing of Germany. The goal of the campaign was "the progressive destruction of the German military, industrial and economical system, and the undermining of the moral of the German people". The Allies also agreed to attack the Axis at he island of Sicily. Churchill was convinced that the Italians would quit the war if the Allies invaded their homeland.
January 31
The last German forces in Stalingrad surrendered to the Russian army. Stalin had ordered his troops to hold the city at all cost. Retreat was forbidden. The Germans were forced to fight from house to house, losing thousand of soldiers in the process. When the Soviets' reinforcements arrived on November 23, the 250 000 German troops were trapped in the city. 91 000 German soldiers surrendered, but only 5000 of them survived the Soviet prison camps. The Battle of Stalingrad was a major turning point in the war in Europe, just like the Battle of Midway was a turning point in the pacific. The Germans and the Japanese were on a defensive.
February 9
American forces continued their offensive against Japan, and cleared the Japanese from Guadalcanal Island.
May 17
The German Army in North Africa finally collapsed.
July 10
The invasion of Sicily began. The Allied troops captured the western half of the island within the first eight days of fighting. British forces led by Montgomery attacked from the South and the Germans on the island were in serious trouble.
July 25
The Italian dictator, Benito Mussolini, was overthrown. The king of Italy, Victor Emmanuel and a group of Italian generals decided to overthrow Mussolini. The king invited the dictator to his palace and told him that he was the most hated man in Italy, and placed Mussolini under arrest.
August 17
The Allies occupied the Island of Sicily after 39 days of fighting. The German forces were forced to evacuate the island.
September 8
The Italian government publicly announced Italy's surrender. But Hitler would not give up that easy. The German forces pushed the Allies back and took control of northern Italy. The Germans put Mussolini back in power. It took five months before the Allies finally could break the German lines. And the Italian Campaign did not end until May 2 1945. The Italian Campaign was one of the bloodiest in the war. It cost the Allies more than 300 000 casualties.
November 28
Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill met in Theran, Iran before they launched their invasion on France. They reached several agreements. Stalin promised to launch a full-scale attach against the Germans when the Allies invaded france in 1944. Roosevelt and Stalin also agreed to break up Germany after the war so that it would never again threaten world peace. Stalin also promised that once Germany was beaten, the Soviet would helpt the US to defeat Japan. He also accepted Roosevelt's proposal to create an international organization to help keep the peace after the war.