World War II

====Axis advance stalls (1942–1943)====
On 1 January 1942, the [[Four Policemen|Allied Big Four]]{{sfn|Bosworth|Maiolo|2015|pp=313–314}}—the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, and the United States—and 22 smaller or exiled governments issued the [[Declaration by United Nations]], thereby affirming the [[Atlantic Charter]]{{sfn|Mingst|Karns|2007|p=22}} and agreeing not to sign a [[separate peace]] with the Axis powers.{{sfn|Shirer|1990|p=904}}

During 1942, Allied officials debated on the appropriate [[grand strategy]] to pursue. All agreed that [[Europe first|defeating Germany]] was the primary objective. The Americans favoured a straightforward, [[Operation Sledgehammer|large-scale attack]] on Germany through France. The Soviets demanded a second front. The British argued that military operations should target peripheral areas to wear out German strength, leading to increasing demoralisation, and bolstering resistance forces; Germany itself would be subject to a heavy bombing campaign. An offensive against Germany would then be launched primarily by Allied armour, without using large-scale armies.<ref>{{cite web |title=The First Full Dress Debate over Strategic Deployment. Dec 1941 – Jan 1942 |website=US Army in WWII – Strategic Planning for Coalition Warfare |pages=97–119 |url=https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-WD-Strategic1/USA-WD-Strategic1-5.html |access-date=16 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121109145033/https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-WD-Strategic1/USA-WD-Strategic1-5.html |archive-date=9 November 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref> Eventually, the British persuaded the Americans that a landing in France was infeasible in 1942 and they should instead focus on driving the Axis out of North Africa.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Elimination of the Alternatives. Jul–Aug 1942 |website=US Army in WWII – Strategic Planning for Coalition Warfare |pages=266–292 |url=https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-WD-Strategic1/USA-WD-Strategic1-12.html |access-date=16 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130430013447/https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-WD-Strategic1/USA-WD-Strategic1-12.html |archive-date=30 April 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>

At the [[Casablanca Conference]] in early 1943, the Allies reiterated the statements issued in the 1942 Declaration and demanded the [[unconditional surrender]] of their enemies. The British and Americans agreed to continue to press the initiative in the Mediterranean by invading Sicily to fully secure the Mediterranean supply routes.<ref>{{cite web |title=Casablanca – Beginning of an Era: January 1943 |website=US Army in WWII – Strategic Planning for Coalition Warfare |pages=18–42 |url=https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-WD-Strategic2/USA-WD-Strategic2-1.html |access-date=16 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130525075310/https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-WD-Strategic2/USA-WD-Strategic2-1.html |archive-date=25 May 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> Although the British argued for further operations in the Balkans to bring Turkey into the war, in May 1943, the Americans extracted a British commitment to limit Allied operations in the Mediterranean to an invasion of the Italian mainland, and to invade France in 1944.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Trident Conference – New Patterns: May 1943 |website=US Army in WWII – Strategic Planning for Coalition Warfare |pages=126–145 |url=https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-WD-Strategic2/USA-WD-Strategic2-6.html |access-date=16 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130525100621/https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-WD-Strategic2/USA-WD-Strategic2-6.html |archive-date=25 May 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>

=====Pacific (1942–1943)=====
[[File:Second world war asia 1937-1942 map en6.png|thumb|upright=1.4|Map of Japanese military advances through mid-1942]]

By the end of April 1942, Japan and its ally [[Thailand in World War II|Thailand]] had almost conquered [[Japanese invasion of Burma|Burma]], [[Malayan campaign|Malaya]], [[Dutch East Indies campaign|the Dutch East Indies]], [[Fall of Singapore|Singapore]], and [[Battle of Rabaul (1942)|Rabaul]], inflicting severe losses on Allied troops and taking a large number of prisoners.{{sfn|Beevor|2012|pp=247–267, 345}} Despite stubborn [[Philippines campaign (1941–1942)|resistance by Filipino and U.S. forces]], the [[Commonwealth of the Philippines|Philippine Commonwealth]] was eventually captured in May 1942, forcing its government into exile.{{sfn|Lewis|1953|loc=p. 529 (Table 11)}} On 16 April, in Burma, 7,000 British soldiers were encircled by the Japanese 33rd Division during the [[Battle of Yenangyaung]] and rescued by the Chinese 38th Division.{{sfn|Slim|1956|pp=71–74}} Japanese forces also achieved naval victories in the [[Sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse|South China Sea]], [[Battle of the Java Sea|Java Sea]], and [[Indian Ocean raid|Indian Ocean]],{{sfn|Grove|1995|p=362}} and [[Bombing of Darwin|bombed the Allied naval base]] at [[Darwin, Northern Territory|Darwin]], Australia. In January 1942, the only Allied success against Japan was a Chinese [[Battle of Changsha (1941–1942)|victory at Changsha]].{{sfn|Ch'i|1992|p=158}} These easy victories over the unprepared U.S. and European opponents left Japan overconfident, and overextended.{{sfn|Perez|1998|p=145}}

In early May 1942, Japan initiated operations to [[Operation Mo|capture Port Moresby]] by [[amphibious warfare|amphibious assault]] and thus sever communications and supply lines between the United States and Australia. The planned invasion was thwarted when an Allied task force, centred on two American fleet carriers, fought Japanese naval forces to a draw in the [[Battle of the Coral Sea]].{{sfn|Maddox|1992|pp=111–112}} Japan's next plan, motivated by the earlier [[Doolittle Raid]], was to seize [[Midway Atoll]] and lure American carriers into battle to be eliminated; as a diversion, Japan would also send forces to [[Aleutian Islands campaign|occupy the Aleutian Islands]] in Alaska.{{sfn|Salecker|2001|p=186}} In mid-May, Japan started the [[Zhejiang-Jiangxi campaign]] in China, with the goal of inflicting retribution on the Chinese who aided the surviving American airmen in the Doolittle Raid by destroying Chinese air bases and fighting against the Chinese 23rd and 32nd Army Groups.<ref>{{Harvnb|Schoppa|2011|p=28}}.</ref><ref>[{{GBurl|id=lILltXBTo8oC|p=19}} Chevrier & Chomiczewski & Garrigue 2004], p. 19.</ref> In early June, Japan put its operations into action, but the Americans had broken [[Japanese naval codes]] in late May and were fully aware of the plans and order of battle, and used this knowledge to achieve a decisive [[Battle of Midway|victory at Midway]] over the [[Imperial Japanese Navy]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Ropp|2000|p=368}}.</ref>

With its capacity for aggressive action greatly diminished as a result of the Midway battle, Japan attempted to capture [[Port Moresby]] by an [[Kokoda Track campaign|overland campaign]] in the [[Territory of Papua]].{{sfn|Weinberg|2005|p=339}} The Americans planned a counterattack against Japanese positions in the southern [[Solomon Islands]], primarily [[Guadalcanal]], as a first step towards capturing [[Rabaul]], the main Japanese base in Southeast Asia.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gilbert |first=Adrian |year=2003 |title=The Encyclopedia of Warfare: From Earliest Times to the Present Day |publisher=Globe Pequot |isbn=978-1-59228-027-8 |page=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofwa0000gilb/page/259 259] |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofwa0000gilb/page/259 |access-date=26 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190719123035/https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofwa0000gilb/page/259 |archive-date=19 July 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Both plans started in July, but by mid-September, [[Guadalcanal campaign|the Battle for Guadalcanal]] took priority for the Japanese, and troops in New Guinea were ordered to withdraw from the Port Moresby area to the [[Oro Province|northern part of the island]], where they faced Australian and United States troops in the [[Battle of Buna–Gona]].{{sfn|Swain|2001|p=197}} Guadalcanal soon became a focal point for both sides with heavy commitments of troops and ships in the battle for Guadalcanal. By the start of 1943, the Japanese were defeated on the island and [[Operation Ke|withdrew their troops]].{{sfn|Hane|2001|p=340}} In Burma, Commonwealth forces mounted two operations. The first was a disastrous [[Arakan campaign (1942–1943)|offensive into the Arakan region]] in late 1942 that forced a retreat back to India by May 1943.{{sfn|Marston|2005|p=111}} The second was the [[Operation Longcloth|insertion of irregular forces]] behind Japanese frontlines in February which, by the end of April, had achieved mixed results.{{sfn|Brayley|2002|p=9}}

=====Eastern Front (1942–1943)=====
[[File:RIAN archive 44732 Soviet soldiers attack house.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|[[Red Army]] soldiers on the counterattack during the [[Battle of Stalingrad]], February 1943]]

Despite considerable losses, in early 1942 Germany and its allies stopped a major Soviet offensive in [[Central Russia|central]] and [[southern Russia]], keeping most territorial gains they had achieved during the previous year.{{sfn|Glantz|2001|p=31}} In May, the Germans defeated Soviet offensives in the [[Battle of the Kerch Peninsula|Kerch Peninsula]] and at [[Second Battle of Kharkov|Kharkov]],{{sfn|Read|2004|p=764}} and then in June 1942 launched their main [[Case Blue|summer offensive]] against southern Russia, to seize the [[Petroleum industry in Azerbaijan|oil fields of the Caucasus]] and occupy the [[Kuban]] [[steppe]], while maintaining positions on the northern and central areas of the front. The Germans split [[Army Group South]] into two groups: [[Army Group A]] advanced to the lower [[Don (river)|Don River]] and struck south-east to the Caucasus, while [[Army Group B]] headed towards the [[Volga|Volga River]]. The Soviets decided to make their stand at Stalingrad on the Volga.{{sfn|Davies|2006|loc=p. 100 (2008 ed.)}}

By mid-November, the Germans had [[Battle of Stalingrad|nearly taken Stalingrad]] in bitter [[urban warfare|street fighting]]. The Soviets began their second winter counter-offensive, starting with an [[Operation Uranus|encirclement of German forces at Stalingrad]],{{sfn|Beevor|1998|pp=239–265}} and an assault on the [[Operation Mars|Rzhev salient near Moscow]], though the latter failed disastrously.{{sfn|Black|2003|p=119}} By early February 1943, the German Army had taken tremendous losses; German troops at Stalingrad had been defeated,{{sfn|Beevor|1998|pp=383–391}} and the front-line had been pushed back beyond its position before the summer offensive. In mid-February, after the Soviet push had tapered off, the Germans launched another [[Third Battle of Kharkov|attack on Kharkov]], creating a [[Salient (military)|salient]] in their front line around the Soviet city of [[Kursk]].{{sfn|Erickson|2001|p=142}}

=====Western Europe/Atlantic and Mediterranean (1942–1943)=====
[[File:8th AF Bombing Marienburg.JPEG|right|thumb|American [[Eighth Air Force]] [[Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress]] bombing raid on the Focke-Wulf factory in Germany, 9 October 1943]]

Exploiting poor American naval command decisions, [[Second Happy Time|the German navy ravaged Allied shipping off the American Atlantic coast]].{{sfn|Milner|1990|p=52}} By November 1941, Commonwealth forces had launched a counter-offensive in North Africa, [[Operation Crusader]], and reclaimed all the gains the Germans and Italians had made.{{sfn|Beevor|2012|pp=224–228}} The Germans also launched a North African offensive in January, pushing the British back to positions at the [[Battle of Gazala#Gazala line|Gazala line]] by early February,{{sfn|Molinari|2007|p=91}} followed by a temporary lull in combat which Germany used to prepare for their upcoming offensives.{{sfn|Mitcham|2007|p=31}} Concerns that the Japanese might use bases in [[French Madagascar|Vichy-held Madagascar]] caused the British to [[Battle of Madagascar|invade the island]] in early May 1942.{{sfn|Beevor|2012|pp=380–381}} An Axis [[Battle of Gazala|offensive in Libya]] forced an Allied retreat deep inside Egypt until Axis forces were [[First Battle of El Alamein|stopped at El Alamein]].{{sfn|Rich|1992|p=178}} On the Continent, raids of Allied [[commando]]s on strategic targets, culminating in the failed [[Dieppe Raid]],{{sfn|Gordon|2004|p=129}} demonstrated the Western Allies' inability to launch an invasion of continental Europe without much better preparation, equipment, and operational security.{{sfn|Neillands|2005|p=60}}

In August 1942, the Allies succeeded in repelling a [[Battle of Alam el Halfa|second attack against El Alamein]]{{sfn|Keegan|1997|p=277}} and, at a high cost, managed to [[Operation Pedestal|deliver desperately needed supplies to the besieged Malta]].{{sfn|Smith|2002}} A few months later, the Allies [[Second Battle of El Alamein|commenced an attack of their own]] in Egypt, dislodging the Axis forces and beginning a drive west across Libya.{{sfn|Thomas|Andrew|1998|p=8}} This attack was followed up shortly after by [[Operation Torch|Anglo-American landings in French North Africa]], which resulted in the region joining the Allies.{{sfn|Ross|1997|p=38}} Hitler responded to the French colony's defection by ordering the [[Case Anton|occupation of Vichy France]];{{sfn|Ross|1997|p=38}} although Vichy forces did not resist this violation of the armistice, they managed to [[Scuttling of the French fleet at Toulon|scuttle their fleet]] to prevent its capture by German forces.{{sfn|Ross|1997|p=38}}{{sfn|Bonner|Bonner|2001|p=24}} Axis forces in Africa withdrew into [[Tunisia]], which was [[Tunisian campaign|conquered by the Allies]] in May 1943.{{sfn|Ross|1997|p=38}}{{sfn|Collier|2003|p=11}}

In June 1943, the British and Americans began [[Combined Bomber Offensive|a strategic bombing campaign]] against Germany with a goal to disrupt the war economy, reduce morale, and "[[Dehousing|de-house]]" the civilian population.<ref>[https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/AAF/USSBS/ETO-Summary.html#tc "The Civilians"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105044932/https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/AAF/USSBS/ETO-Summary.html#tc |date=5 November 2013 }} the United States Strategic Bombing Survey Summary Report (European War)</ref> The [[Bombing of Hamburg in World War II|firebombing of Hamburg]] was among the first attacks in this campaign, inflicting significant casualties and considerable losses on infrastructure of this important industrial centre.{{sfn|Overy|1995|pp=119–120}}