End of WWII

1. End of WWII

2. The Final Days • In April 1945, the battle is coming to a close. • On the 30th April, Hitler commits suicide together with his mistress Eva Braun hours after they were married. • Hitler gave strict orders for his body to be burned, so that his enemies wouldn't do what they had done to Mussolini, who was publicly displayed hanging upside down.

4. The Soviets Arrive – Berlin Falls • By 2 May, the Reichstag, the old German parliament falls and Berlin surrenders. • The Battle for Berlin cost the Soviets over 70,000 dead. Many of them died because of the haste with which the campaign was conducted.

5. VE-Day • The major Allied ground offensive from the west against German territory began on 8 February 1945 • In April, Canadian troops liberated most of the Netherlands • The Germans formally surrendered on 8 May 1945, known as Victory-in-Europe, or ‘V-E’ Day

6. Nuremberg Trials 1945-1949 • The Nuremberg Trials were trials held to prosecute major Nazi leaders for crimes committed because of the holocaust. • The trials convicted many Nazi participants in the holocaust. The first trial prosecuted 22 of Nazi Germany’s most prominent leaders. 12 of the defendants were sentenced to death, 3 to life imprisonment, 4 to imprisonment from 10-20 years, and 3 acquittals. • The indictments were for: • Participation in a common plan or conspiracy for the accomplishment of a crime against peace • Planning, initiating and waging wars of aggression and other crimes against peace • War crimes • Crimes against humanity